Ardec didn't look any different than he had the day at the gala. "I just don't understand," Luke said. "He didn't even so much as sneeze at the gala, and we were together all day. Well, most of it anyhow. What could make him so ill so quickly?"
"Hand me my bag." She pointed to where she had placed it on the floor.
Luke did as she asked and watched as she pulled out a syringe and test tube. "What are you doing?"
"Basically, I'm using our father as a science experiment." She did her thing and took a vial of blood from Ardec's arm. "I want to do my own tests to see if I can figure out what this sudden illness is all about."
"I'm sure Dr. Seneel has already done that."
"Has he?" Larisa raised a brow as she stared at him. "Father was healthy one minute, and this ill the next? There are few possibilities that fit that description, but poison is one."
Luke's eyes widened. "You think someone poisoned him?" He hadn't thought of the possibility.
"It's plausible," Larisa answered. "Something has made him unconscious."
"And you don't want the doctor to know that you're doing the tests."
"Luke, this is the Dragon King of the Sacred Gardens. If someone has poisoned him and basically put him on his deathbed, and we have no idea who to even accuse, we have to treat everyone as a suspect. I hate it, but that includes Dr. Seneel."
He let out a long sigh. "Maybe if you can figure it out, you can find an antidote."
"That would be ideal, if I have time." She felt Ardec's wrist. "He has a weak pulse." She turned sad eyes to Luke. "I don't know if he'll make it or not. I almost want to say that if he was poisoned, they gave him a large enough dose to finish him."
Luke thought of Sarah. If he were king, she'd be free to come home. He closed his eyes.I can't think like that.
"What?" Larisa asked. "You have something running through your mind."
"I don't know that I'm ready to be king."
"You may not have any choice."
He paced again. "Why can't you be queen?"
She snickered. "You know that's not how it works."
He knew. He just didn't want to admit it.
She eyed him closely. "Have you married yet? I know I should know, but I haven't really been paying any attention to what's going on around here."
"No," he answered with a shake of his head. "I'm not married."
She narrowed her eyes. "All right, little brother. Spill it."
"Spill what?" He really didn't want to go into the Sarah story yet.
"I've known you for your whole life, and you have a secret." She rose and stood in front of him. "Who is she?"
He stared at her, not sure how much to tell.
Chapter Seven: Exoneration
Sarah Hale
The next morning, Sarah was up early as she helped Vinia with breakfast. They had another family checking in that afternoon at the last minute, so they were scrambling to make sure everything was ready.
"It'll be a rather large family, several siblings. They've requested separate cabins, so we need to be sure everything is done. I already have the boys doing an inspection of each to see what needs to be freshened up." Vinia glanced at the clock. "We still have plenty of time though."
"Isn't it rather weird that they decided at the last minute to go on vacation?" Sarah's mood was as bleak as the pre-dawn haze outside.
