I do as I’m told, finding a glass in my hands a moment later. As I bring it to my lips, a familiar aroma sends my head spinning. “Midnight Blush?”
Lorelei grimaces. “I might have smuggled a bottle under my gown from the revel last night.”
I don’t hesitate a moment longer before I take a drink, letting the wine slide down my throat and warm my stomach. With eyes closed, I savor the way it eases my breathing and slows my racing heart. It helps me find a sense of calm amidst the chaos in my mind. Once I’ve managed to regain some semblance of composure, I say, “Tell me everything. What happened last night?”
Foxglove takes a seat on the couch next to me while Lorelei perches on the armrest. “It was madness,” Foxglove says, adjusting his spectacles. “We knew it would be messy, of course, but things went far worse than the king expected.”
“What did Aspen expect?” I say, forcing my words to come out evenly. “How long had he been planning on refusing to marry his Chosen?”
“I doubt he ever planned to marry her at all, so long as he could guarantee his actions didn’t put you or your mother in danger. When Queen Nyxia informed him in private that you were safe in Lunar, he was confident in his decision to refuse the marriage alliance. However, I do believe he was under the impression that if you were in Lunar, you were resigned to stay in Faerwyvae.”
That explains why he seemed surprised when I told him I still planned to attend my mother’s trial. “Did Nyxia not tell him the truth? That my stay here is a temporary one?”
Foxglove frowns. “Omission is a great form of deception when one can’t lie. Especially when the result suits one’s needs quite well.”
Of course Nyxia wanted Aspen to compromise the treaty. Her omission helped hurry his resolve.
Foxglove continues. “Once the king made his stance clear to the council, the majority reacted as he anticipated. The unseelie supported him, but most of the seelie were in an uproar. The king even expected what happened next, although it was a surprise how it came to pass.”
I sit forward in my seat. “What?”
“Queen Dahlia suggested the council allow Prince Cobalt to secure the treaty and strip Aspen from his throne.”
“Queen Dahlia made that suggestion? Why am I not surprised?” I knew there was something about her I didn’t like. Well, aside from the grudge I’ve carried against her for not taking better care of Faerwyvae’s only other living Chosen—the aging Doris Mason, a lonely woman spending her miserable final days at Queen Dahlia’s Summer Court. After my most recent unsettling conversation with the queen, I thought perhaps it was Aspen’s affection she wanted. I wouldn’t have guessed she was after his demise.
“I always thought she was fake,” Lorelei says with a sneer.
“Aspen had his suspicions about her as well,” Foxglove says. “It’s unclear whether she was in contact with Cobalt during her entire stay, but it can be assumed the betrayal was set up from the start.”
“What happened when she petitioned for Cobalt to take the throne?” I ask.
“Well, it certainly put the council further at odds. Arguments were made that Cobalt had lost his right to rule Autumn when the All of All chose Aspen. But other council fae insisted the ruling of the All of All encompassed that incident alone, and that Cobalt could still be considered an eligible heir now that Aspen was compromising the treaty yet again. The debate went on and on without resolution as the council was split half-and-half. You see, one ruler was missing from the festivities up to that point.”
His grim expression sets me on edge. “Who?”
“Queen Melusine. Queen Dahlia got the council to agree that the Sea Court would have final say over the ruling. And that, my dear, is when Cobalt came waltzing into the palace like he owned it.”
Lorelei mutters a string of curses.
A rush of indignation heats my core. “How did Cobalt have the nerve to show his face before the ruling was made for or against him?”
“He was protected,” Foxglove says, “by his claim that he was now King of the Sea Court.”
“Wait, did Melusine...give her throne to Cobalt?”
His voice lowers, tone grave. “Not willingly. He made his apologies, stating he was late because he’d spent all day dealing with the murder of his mother.”
My throat goes dry. “Murder?”
“He went on to claim she was found dead in one of the collapsed underwater caves near the shore with an iron blade buried inside her.Youriron blade, to be exact.”
“Mine?” The room begins to spin around me, the blood leaving my face. I remember what Aspen muttered to the wolf king in the throne room.It wasn’t her. “The council actually believed it was I who killed her?”
Foxglove wrings his hands. “It was a devious accusation, one that served several purposes. Not only would your guilt weaken Aspen’s position, but your innocence would reveal your whereabouts to King Ustrin. You see, neither Aspen nor Nyxia could provide you an alibi without giving away your location.”
I shake my head, wondering how long this plan has been in motion. All this time, Cobalt had my missing blade, the one I lost when he captured me in the coral caves. He’s likely been waiting for the perfect opportunity to use it as revenge, and what better way than to condemn me and his brother while earning himself a new crown? Then again, the iron blade should have made my dagger impossible for him to wield…
A chill runs up my spine.But not impossible for Amelie.
