The Unexpected Heir: A Tale of Alus (32 page)

Her eyes let him know that his performance was believable enough. She began to shake her head slowly and her hands reached to his face as the woman sighed in relief. "I knew that it had to be a mistake. You were so kind to Needaly and the Brothers of the Blood help people too. Though I have also heard them complaining about the king in the streets, so I admit that I was worried."

"I was raised by the brothers, by Caldrefan in particular; but I am not one of them," he reminded Tareina gently. "Their complaints aren't mine, but I do like to follow their choice to help others."

The woman nodded at his words. "I should have known that you wouldn't wish to harm Needaly or the others, but...," she faltered before the information that she must tell him. "Kamaal and some of the other gardeners have died. A few of the princesses' handmaids grew ill and I think a few died as well after handling the flowers. The princesses all were ill and... and Princess Persimee...." she faltered unable to say the words.

Though Karlaan had no malice towards the princess in particular, there was some joy in his heart as he managed to sound sympathetic as he said, "They say that Princess Deeanne was pregnant and lost the baby because she was ill. Princess Persimee was even sicker, wasn't she?"

"The princess died today," Tareina breathed as tears streamed down her cheeks. He wasn't sure if the tears were for the princesses or because she still worried that he would take the blame if his part were known.

Reacting startled, Karlaan breathed, "Oh no, that is awful!"

"If they found out that Needaly used something that you had given her..."

He nodded. "They don't know though, do they? Even if I gave it to her with the right warnings, they might think that I intended to try and kill someone in the castle. It is ridiculous to think that. What kind of assassin poisons flowers, but they might try to blame me even so?"

Apparently the thought seemed right to the girl and Tareina shifted to escape the sheet covering her. Kneeling, she moved to embrace him and lay her head on his shoulder. "Oh, Karlaan, what will we do? I know that you didn't mean to harm anyone, but if someone should find out about the flasks..."

"Did Needaly ever tell anyone else about it?" he asked curiously.

Pulling back to look at him in the darkness, her dark eyes looked at him as she confessed, "As far as I know she said nothing to anyone."

He pretended to consider the matter before suggesting. "Then only you and I know of this. If you don't say anything about it, then we should be safe enough. Since you knew about it and didn't tell them so far, they are likely to think that you had something to do with it now also. We're best to say nothing to anyone."

A mix of emotions crossed her face, but Karlaan knew that the girl had already chosen him when she hadn't told of the fertilizer. She was committed to him even if Tareina had questions about it at first. Trust in him and whatever degree of love had pushed her to protect him.

She also realized that he was right. If Tareina had been asked if she knew anything that might have killed Needaly and hadn't told of it; the king's men would think her just as guilty as he.

"You're right," the young woman agreed. "We can't say anything to anyone. Let it remain a mystery how the flowers could become poisonous. I bet that Kamaal went to the wizards for an answer and they gave him something."

"It might not even have been my fertilizer, if that is true. They might have given him something that caused this all on its own," Karlaan said acting like he believed wizards might have caused all the trouble. Wizards weren't totally trusted by people without magic, so blaming them was an easy way out as well.

Tareina nodded looking relieved. "Yes, I suppose that is true also. Maybe he was using something that reacted with yours or maybe it was just something already there from trying to make the plants grow before your fertilizer even got there. You couldn't know if there was something that would change it to poison either."

Her relief made the woman feel free of the worry plaguing her for almost two weeks. She wore a lightweight nightdress that only came down to her upper thighs. Two string width straps went over her shoulders and the left had slipped down to her upper arm. Even in the dim light given from the moons outside coming in through the screen, Karlaan thought the woman enticingly beautiful.

"I haven't seen you for too long," he said eyeing her and noticing that Tareina continued to touch him in a familiar way.

She nodded and started pulling up his tunic. "We need to be quiet though. My parents and brothers are sleeping in the other rooms."

Chuckling, Karlaan slid her nightdress over her head revealing her naked body and asked, "Were you planning to scream? I know that I can be quiet enough. Now I think it is time to make up for lost time."

Philip was feeling frustrated. Lord Denefar's men had yet to discover anything new and all his investigations had similarly yielded little fruit. There were certainly signs that pointed him towards the answers, but he felt like someone had to be lying or otherwise concealing the truth. Someone knew where the poison had come from, but no one had confessed to it.

Then there was the inevitable bad news sent by messenger from the castle. First there was Deeanne's miscarriage, then nearly a week later Princess Persimee succumbed to her exposure to the poison. Neither medicine nor magic could save the king's daughter and then she was gone.

Serafene looked at her husband with tears in her eyes. "That poor girl," she said not for the first time since hearing the news. "The king and queen must be beside themselves with grief now. A grandchild and their only daughter taken by poison from flowers no less. Something so pretty shouldn't be a thing of death."

Nodding at her words, Philip had seen Orlaan after the miscarriage. It had hurt the prince and his young wife; but miscarriages happened often enough that it hurt much less than losing someone in the prime of their life. Persimee had been hovering on the brink of death for weeks. Without wizards' magic being used on her round the clock she would have died a week earlier at the latest; but finally even magic wasn't enough.

The sound of Alicia crying as she sat on one of the other couches drew his eyes. His daughters had been fairly close to the princess. They were nearly the same age and had grown up together. Though Persimee was separated a bit living at the castle, Orlaan had always made sure to let the girls play as children to alleviate some of the solitude of being a royal child.

His daughter had sent her suitors away telling them to give her time to mourn her cousin properly. The unoccupied courtyard was the single beneficial thing to come from all this tragedy. He had become tired of seeing them taking their turns at trying to woo his daughter. Some had even tried to get to her through him. Thinking of Alexander and his arranged marriage, Philip decided that boys were certainly easier at this stage.

The thought of his son made him consider penning another message for Alexander. Word had been sent often since the poisonings had been discovered. His son had been keeping watch over his town, but so far he and his wife were safe. Alexander was more worried about his parents living so close to the king than he was about his security in Patris. An invitation to come stay with him had been relayed twice since Annalicia had left for the tournament.

"Orlaan will put up a strong face, but Murietta's love for her children will make Persimee's death weigh heavily upon her," he replied lost in his thoughts. Even thinking of other things, Philip made sure to answer his wife.

"Perhaps I should go see her? I could have Xurie make a special treat as an excuse to visit," Serafene suggested. Her eyes were red from her crying.

"They have bakers and cooks at the castle. Though Xurie is an excellent baker, I doubt that they need a special dish from us," he replied with a smile. Serafene couldn't cook at all, so she could only offer someone else's work in that regard, the man thought feeling amused for a moment. It was good to feel happy even if it was brief. He felt like sadness and worry had been his companions for too long now.

Serafene looked over at their daughter and she lowered her voice as she asked her husband, "Do you think we need to worry with all of this happening?"

Unsure of how to answer, even if he was being truthful, Philip had to wonder. It was a question he had been asking for weeks already. "I have already spoken with our guardsmen and worked to shore up our security here just in case. If the coincidence of deaths had just remained centered on the king's castle, I would feel less worried."

His wife frowned and followed his line of thinking as she said, "You think Carland's death and maybe the duke's are related to all this?"

Shrugging in his uncertainty, he replied, "When Amaan died, it was barely questioned. He was older, though the duke was in relatively good health. A heart can have weaknesses that wouldn't be expected from his outward appearance and his wife had preceded him a few years ago. It seems like most spouses follow each other in a short period of time when they love each other."

Despite the dark talk, Serafene smiled as she gave a brief giggle. "Does that mean you will follow me, Philip? With your father's longevity, you could live more lifetimes than mine."

Making a face of distaste at her joking, the man replied, "Let's not talk of such things. It is bad luck even at our age. Thinking of losing you is something I would rather put off for a lot longer. Thank you."

Her blue eyes darkened at the rebuff and realized her bad taste in the moment. Serafene's dark blonde hair even seemed to deepen with the thought. Nodding to her husband, she moved back to topic. "So even the young earl's death comes under scrutiny; though from all admitted reports, it was an accident. He was a good rider, but circumstances can happen where a horse throws even someone like him."

Agreeing with her observation, Philip answered, "He had no wife or children to follow him leaving another void. Orlaan has also received worrisome reports from Marq Oland. The loss of her son seems to have set off your sister as well."

"Etrine has always been a bit delicate," his wife nodded echoing his worries. "I remember after her pregnancies that they spoke of her depressions making Oland fearful that she might kill herself. If losing Carland pushes her too far..."

"If her mind becomes too fragile, no assassin would be necessary to remove her as well. The king's chief support has been his family. If someone has been targeting them in truth, then the question becomes who is hoping to benefit from it all."

Serafene glanced towards Alicia. The girl rose looking beside herself as she ascended the stairs. Likely heading to her room to be alone, her mother wondered if she should follow. At a time like this, it would be best to keep each other strong, especially if someone was trying to cut through the royal houses.

"Itan has no desire to be king and I hardly think our children need more than they already have. Within the family Duchess Pherena's house would be the next to benefit, if the threat even comes from a family member hoping to take the throne in such a way."

"Word has been a little spotty from the duchess since this all began. Orlaan has mentioned his sister's lack of communication, though that hardly means that she has decided to chase the crown," Philip told his wife one of the many scenarios that had already been discussed within the king's council. "She and her children are the guardians of the west. If Tseult were to throw away our alliance, they would be the first line."

"Unless they chose to turn against the king," his wife nodded.

Philip's stomach was a knot of worry. There were too many possible enemies, when there should be none. He had never noticed any sign of trouble in the royal family before and hoped that it was just his paranoia trying to undermine his confidence in them. Avoiding looking at all possibilities could lead to trouble, but it also might lead to damaging ties if there were accusations for no reason also.

Giving a sigh, he responded, "I hope that we are just imagining the worst, but if it isn't someone within the family that leaves many more questions. The Brothers of the Blood have talked rebellion, but who knows if the other houses haven't considered removing the king's house from contention also. Beyond that, other nations could benefit from dissention in Malaiy."

"Keep calm, Philip, and continue to be observant. You need to be the eyes and ears of the king as much as anyone, but you also need to be his counsel."

"I know," Philip replied hating to bring the worries of the crown into his home. It was a moment like this where he considered accepting Alexander's invitation to leave the city. If things continued to build, he wondered how dangerous Yalan would become.

Turning to other conversation less troubling, the two decided to stroll outside where the sunny day tried to make them forget their troubles.

The sounds of cannon fire and various uses of magic surrounded Annalicia on the foredeck of the Sea Dragon. Once more trouble had followed them, though this time it came in the form of a black ship carrying warlocks and monsters.

Sebastian and his team had found another island with evidence of the Grimnal's passing. They had fought for an axe lodged in the back of a giant lizard from what he had told her, but the monsters of the island were just one danger. A castle, haunted by a warlock cursed to live there for eternity by the Dark One, was laden with traps including the animated skeletal remains of at least part of Gerid's crew.