“Is that because you betrayed him?” She seemed amused. “Choosing Ander over him.”
The queen would dig my truths out of me with her enchantments. But what did I know for sure? I suspected Fieran had manipulated me into joining Clan Amber, but I also had seen a flash of genuine hurt on Fieran’s face.
“I think I hurt him. And I shouldn’t care.” But I did. The implication hung in the air.
She let out a laugh. “Oh, I see your guilt, but it’s wasted.Youcannot hurt my son.”
I wasn’t sure if she was insulting me, Fieran, or both of us at once.
Tay grinned as if he were carried along on her laughter, and my worry felt as if I’d choke on it.
How could I help my brother escape her clutches?
“Tell me more, Cara. Walk me through your talks with him.”
That was an awkward discussion to have in front of my brother. I chose my words as carefully as I could, though I was keenly aware I was sloppy, as if I’d had several cups of wine.
She regarded me impatiently. “I know you can’t lie to me. But I wonder if perhaps you’ve lied to yourself.”
“Did you compel me…”
“Of course,” she said. “Do you think I’d listen to all that besotted talk about my son without a purpose?”
“I’m not besotted.”
She made an impatient gesture. “As I said. Perhaps you’ve lied to yourself. But surely you have noticed more.”
I had to find something else to give her. “I know he’s scheming.”
“Obviously. He is breathing.” She gave me a look full of disappointment, and I braced.
The queen must have other spies, and she must have heard the murmurs that my dragon mark had been manipulated by magic, brought into being. I wasn’t giving away anything if I confessed to it. But there was another possibility too, a safer one to confess.
“Ander and Fieran have been fighting over me,” I admitted. “I think that’s the reason Fieran wants me to adore him. It’ll allow him to win over Ander. Besides, he’s accustomed to being adored, and it’s offensive that a mere mortal would not.”
She eyed me skeptically. “If you can’t figure out what game he’s playing, I might have to take away his toys.”
Tay stood by smiling as she threatened me, and I had never felt more alone in my life.
He was in danger too right now—his value to her, only that I was controlled by my need to protect him—and he had no idea.
Gods, I wish Fear was here now.
But I had to get to him before he could help, and the way the queen tapped her pointed fingernails on her sleeve made me feel as if a clock were ticking, as if losing Tay was again just a matter of moments away. Worst of all, whatever magic she employed against me made me feel thick-headed and groggy, more loose-lipped and drunken by the moment.
“He thinks he can use me to ignite a mortal rebellion.” I couldn’t hold back the words. “I don’t know why he thinks anyone would follow me.”
“What has he said exactly?” Her bored gaze changed in an instant, became focused, and I realized her eyes were eerily like Fieran’s.
“He’s said nothing about a rebellion. He assumes I’ll give anything he tells me away to you. But I hear other students whispering.”
“He thinks the mortals will follow you into treason,” she murmured. “But whyyou?”
She was studying my face too closely, and I couldn’t meet that awful, bright gaze. I found myself studying Tay instead, feeling a swell of emotion at the sight of my brother, healthy and strong and empty-eyed.
“Mortals prefer to follow men, so you’re a rather poor choice. And even by mortal standards, you are aggressively ordinary.” She mused. I would’ve happily claimed theordinarytitle on another day, but it still rankled on someone else’s lips. “Why you, Cara?”
Ander’s words floated back to me about why he’d wanted to claim me for his clan. “Maybe I’m not as weak as I look to you.”
