The Liars (25 page)

“Are you going to do this instead of studying, Princess? I read your report on the import of trade, and ‘the stupidity of using silk instead of cotton in the summer’ does not count as an analysis.”

Memory climbed up the spiraling stairs, letting her fingertips graze across the spines of the books. The higher she went, the dustier they were. She coughed as a dust cloud flew into her face.

“You’re still sick, dear.” Diana said kindly, and Memory turned to her and painfully gritted out;

“Visiting. Records.”

“Yes yes, of course.” She started going back down, stopping midway on the stairs and pointing at a shelf.

“Most records are kept on the computers, but the public ones are printed out and bound into a book.” Diana pulled out a tome at least five inches thick. It looked brown at first until Diana wiped the spine to reveal a lovely shade of blue.

“The books are updated once every five years.”

“Just out of curiosity,” Memory started, taking hold of the tome. It was heavier than expected. “Why do they keep these records? Is it because of the girls–can’t–leave–the–palace thing?”

Diana shook her head. “They have done this since the beginning of the monarchy itself. It’s quite useful for the King,
since he’s always going in and out of so many places. Nobody else ever reads those, though.” She pointed to the shelf, which had at least twenty volumes.

Memory stared at the book in her hands. “Can I access the online ones?”

“No.”

“Great. Which one covers the records of
eight years ago? Or maybe fifteen?”

Diana pursed her lips, and then indicating volume numbers eighteen and nineteen.

“Anything else, Princess?”

“No, but thanks.” Memory motioned her away, but Diana was unwilling to leave. Sighing, the two settled onto the seating area in the corner of the library as Memory pried the eighteenth volume open.

She didn’t know what she was expecting, but certainly not a day–by–day record of who left and who entered the palace.

Days in which balls were held had a list that was at least
four pages long. And on normal days (which had no visitors or balls), there was a laundry list of names, especially King Darius. Chrysander’s name was written a couple times, accompanying his brother to places like France and Japan, but seeing as he was thirteen at the time, Memory didn’t expect him to leave the palace often.

She also saw the names
of Tsavorite and Tourmaline quite often, especially if it had Clithorp in the same sentence. Tsavorite, despite being married and having another home, visited the palace and went on trips with her siblings a lot. It looked like the imprisonment hadn’t started yet. Even Queen Beryl was sometimes visiting exotic places.

And finally, she found what she was looking f
or. On March 4
th
fifteen years ago, the Viviste family visited. Six months later, Kendall Banks left but the rest of the family stayed. Memory assumed that was when he was disowned.

No doubt about it. But still, what happened?

And after that, Memory no longer saw any recognizable names. There was one day when Tsavorite left for Clithorp and then came back, but for the next year, Memory couldn’t spot her or Tourmaline’s name anywhere.

So the prohibition on leaving started around the same time Kendall was disowned.

She switched to the next volume, flipping through to go eight years back. Kendall Banks name never appeared, even when his family member’s did. But as she hit nine years ago, she pinpointed a date which confused her even further.

July fifteenth, Tsavorite Jackson arrives at the palace from the Jackson Estate.

July sixteenth. Tsavorite Jackson and Tourmaline Eastcote receive permission and leave for Clithorp.

July
thirtieth, they return.

Nine years ago. Memory slapped her head. The two, or at least Tourmaline, must’ve visited Kendall. That’s when Lilyana was conceived, she decided.

She skipped to nine months later, and there it was, Tourmaline’s name etched into the paper. She’d left for Clithorp and returned merely four days later.

Memory put her head in her hands.

Nothing made sense.

“Diana, I need to visit Tourmaline.”

Diana’s eyebrows shot into
her receding hairline.

“Tourmaline?” She said hesitantly, as if she didn’t hear properly the first time.

“Yeah. I’ll be back soon.”

Diana was skeptical but left, leaving Memory to her devices.

Her eyes were red and bleary by the time she approached Tourmaline’s door. She supposed she should’ve kept a guard or two (possibly ten) around her but she was at rock–bottom low, and confronting Tourmaline seemed to be the best idea.

I’m right. I’m right. I have to be right.

But Memory had severely underestimated the power of her ‘aunt’s’ voice.

“You little–” She fumed, “It was none of your business,
none
!”

Memory pinched her nose at the strong perfume she wore.

“Are you going to try and kill me again?”

“Kill you?” Tourmaline laughed but it sounded like an eagle screeching. “Oh no, I’m going to tear you apart, limb by limb, until you wish you’d never returned.”

Memory bit her lip, trying to hide her anger at this woman. “But then you’ll never see your daughter.”

“What?!”

“I’m serious.” She continued, sniffing. Blackmailing wasn’t her strong suit, but heaven forbid if she didn’t try. “I’m not here to ruin you, but I will if you start threatening me. The
King
is my father, and the person in charge right now is Prince Cassian. I’ve got a lot of power on my side. Even if they won’t disown you, I could tell them right now that you–”

Pointy nails scraped at her cheeks as Tourmaline clasped a hand over Memory’s mouth and dragged her inside. She
hissed as she shut the door, and Memory was sure there were claw marks all over her face.

“Shut it, you little chit.” Tourmaline glow
ered. “One word of this and I won’t hesitate to hit you.”

“But Chrysander, Queen Beryl, and my parents know, right? Who else knows?
”

Tourmaline shrilled as she kicked all the maids out of her room. She spun around to give Memory a death glare.

“No one hears a word of this. Ever.”

“But what if things change and you can visit Lilyana? Or she can stay here with you?” Memory tried. If the woman had cried over visiting her daughter, there had to be some semblance of good in her, right?

The woman stepped back, mouth open.

“How…did you know her name?” She whispered, eyes wide as tennis balls. “Did Chrysander–”

“Sort of. He wanted to clear things up.” Memory pinned her with a determined look. “Kendall Banks. You let him in during the ball, didn’t you?”

“Kendall?!” Tourmaline cried. “He would never steal–”

“Didn’t you read the news? It was confirmed. He stole the heirloom and hid it in his friend’s house.” Memory said with an accusatory tone. “And you know how he got in?”

“I swear I didn’t–”

“He used the tunnels. Even Prince Cassian didn’t know about them until I told him. There was no way Kendall could’ve known without–”

“Tunnels?” Tourmaline
sounded genuinely confused. “What?”

Memory frowned at her surprise. “You didn’t know?
And he escaped, too. There has to be–”

“And you think it’s me?” Tourmaline shrieked, grabbing a vase which surely cost thousands and lunged towards her. Memory yanked the vase out of her hands and ducked as her hands tried to claw her again. “How dare you!”

“It has to be you! There’s no one else who would want to poison the King!”

With every accusation, Tourmaline’s temper rose. She shoved Memory and smiled cruelly when she hit a glass table. The corner scraped against her mouth, and Memory wiped away the blood.

“You did it!”

“No, I didn’t!” Tourmaline squawked, her hands clenched into fists. “
Maybe it’s you! How do I know it’s not you and you’re trying to pin the blame on me?”

“Me?” Memory stumbled from the dizzying direction the fighting was taking. “I have nothing to do with him!”

“Prove it!”

Memory threw a punch at her but Tourmaline dodged in the nick of time. “You had a child with him!
King Darius won’t let you see her, it made you mad and now you tried to kill him–”

“Even I’m not stupid enough to poison the King.”
Her ‘aunt’ slapped her across the face. In retaliation Memory aimed a kick at her belly.

“So you admit you’re stupid?”

She, having the wind knocked out of her, fell to the floor. “I am! I was a fool and in love.” She gasped, wrapping her arms around her midsection. “And I’ve paid the ultimate price.”

Memory made a move to kick her again but exhaustion won out. She tumbled towards a chair and collapsed onto it. Her cheek stung.

“You still–”

“I. did. Not.” Tourmaline wheezed. “How many times must I say it? All I’ve wanted for the past eight years was to see my daughter. Just once. Is that too much to ask?”

“What about the tunnels? The secret passageway? How did Kendall know?” Her stubborn interrogation didn’t help the woman as she started crying.

“I don’t know. When I heard he was convicted…I was shocked.” She snarled at her. “I am already filth in the palace. Why would I do something to jeopardize my position?”

“What about the King? Don’t you hate him?”

“For not letting me leave?” Tourmaline sniffed haughtily.
“I haven’t had the freedom in
fifteen
years.”

“What about Clithorp? You visited about nine years ago. Nine months before Lilyana was born. That was when–”

“Yes yes, I’m well aware.” Tourmaline snapped. “Do take a biology course and I’m sure you’ll learn how the female body works.”

Memory glowered at her. “How did you leave
, then?”

“Annoying chit, you need to know everything don’t you? Like that pesky brother of yours.”

“Prince Cassian is
not
pesky–” Memory stopped. She had no need to defend someone who obviously saw her as a means to an end and nothing more.

“I’m sure he isn’t.” Tourmaline replied scathingly. “Just like my dear sister who won’t keep her hands off of what isn’t hers.”

“So that visit to Clithorp–”

“King Darius was too busy with his engagement to Queen Pearl. To get on the good side of the family, when we asked her to leave, she convinced his majesty that a vacation was in order.” Tourmaline huffed. “The only good that that witch ever did.”

Memory, on the verge of tears, turned away. She didn’t want to accept it. How could she have been wrong?

“But Kendall Banks was disowned. Why in the world would you talk to him?”

“Me? Oh no. Tsavorite was absolutely enamored and wanted to see him again.”

Memory shot up. “Again?”

Tourmaline didn’t hear her. “We had guards following but she made me help her sneak away. But the guy knew who was better of the two, obviously, and turned Tsavorite down. I, on the other hand…”

“Fell in love with him?” Memory shook her head, images of Kendall Banks snooty tone and annoying behavior flooding into her head.
How can anyone like that wall of meat?

“In what, like fifteen days? You guys weren’t even there for three weeks!”

Tourmaline glared at her. “Did Chrysander tell you
everything
?”

“I can do research.” Memory answered simply. That earned her another glare. “What happened when father found out you…?”

“Conceived? Horrible really.” Tourmaline picked at her gown. “Wouldn’t shut up about honor and tradition. And the restrictions were even tighter. I didn’t leave my room for months, and then he ordered me to be airlifted to Clithorp to have my child there. Says he didn’t want filth to touch the palace.”

Memory, for the first time, noticed the excruciating pain swirling in the woman’s eyes. She spoke so casually, so
bitterly, but the underlying emotion was still there.

“And I came right back. The mess was cleaned up. No one knew what happened, and the maids who took care of me were deported to other countries.” Tourmaline finished, standing up shakily. “No one said a word except Chrysander, who consoled me.”

Memory remembered her own mother. How she’d left without a word. Would Lilyana grow up thinking the same, thinking that her mother (the annoying twat) abandoned her? Hated her? Never wanted to see her?

It was all very confusing. But in the end, Memory was convinced. The numbers didn’t match up anyway, and there was no way Tourmaline could act so distraught and not sound fake like the rest of the time.

“I’m sorry.” Memory said finally. She watched as Tourmaline blinked to clear her eyes of the excess water they’d accumulated.