“He’s possessed.”
I snapped my head around to stare at the man, feeling even more off-kilter with this information. “Like, demonic possession?”
“Not quite, not like you mean. His mind has been enslaved to a demon, but through demonic energy. He’s not a host for a demon. It’s hard to tell unless you know what signs to look for.”
Of course James would know. He’d fought the Demon King; he’d know better than anyone else living in this country.
“How can you tell?” Helena jumped to stand at her brother’s side, staring at her attacker with blatant distrust. “I know you’ve described this to me before but I can’t really tell.”
“See how his eyes can’t focus—”
The man blinked at Helena and then abruptly lunged for her, trying to seize her with his bound hands. Dame Verd immediately squashed this attempt, hauling him back, but he kept fighting her, throwing all his body weight forward.
Dame Verd huffed in effort but nodded gamely. “I’ve still got him. He’s fighting me but not so much I can’t hold him.”
James kept a weather eye on the man but continued to explain. “See the white film over the top of his eyes? Also, the unnatural shade of his lips is because they’ll go fully black over time.”
Now that he’d pointed out the signs, they were obvious.
“Something,” James said quietly, his tone unnerved, “is very wrong here. I can’t find any reason for his possession other than Valentina must be somehow connected to demons. This man’s been possessed for several weeks, judging by the way he looks.”
I couldn’t refute that, but… “She herself wasn’t possessed. Acting strangely, yes, but she didn’t have these signs of possession.”
“Hm, yes, it’s odd. Perhaps she has become a demonic cultist? Although how a princess would even be introduced to an extinct cult is another question.”
I had no immediate answers.
“Can we ask him?” Lucien inquired while pointing at the man.
James shook his head, mouth flat with worry. “He won’t be able to answer questions. His will is not his own. He can’t make the judgement to answer or not without his master at his elbow.”
“She can’t have brought demons in here—or can she?” Helena’s eyes flicked from face to face.
“There’s nothing about the wards of the palace that would prevent it,” I said. James had learned the hard way in the previous life. “The wards of the palace are relatively new, renewed every five years or so, and they don’t include those protections anymore. Why should they, when it’s been a hundred years since the Demon King was resealed? She could have snuck someone inside or been given the power to brainwash people herself. Who knows.”
That was the hell of it—I really didn’t know what she’d done. But her doing this now indicated she had definitely done it in our previous life. No one had recognized the signs then, was all. Honestly, her being in league with demon cultists made a lot of sense, considering what damage she had wreaked. James had made the comment that she’d done everything possible to thwart the war, almost like she was on the Demon King’s side.
Seemed she actually was.
“Edwin.” James turned to me. “We need to do several things at once.”
“Check on the rest of the royal family, make sure they weren’t targeted as well,” I filled in immediately, well able to predict what he would say next. “We also need to inform Lenville of what just happened. It’s entirely possible the royal family of Ascor is also under possession, if their princess is dabbling in dark arts, and we need to verify it immediately.”
“You’re so smart. I’ll check on the family if you’ll contact Lenville.”
“Done.”
And hopefully we got good news back.
Somehow, I wasn’t holding my breath.
Seventy-seven
Edwin
It was safe to say I couldn’t assume anything. I couldn’t assume I knew what was going on, what people were doing, motivations, or even if I knew the true face of any actor in this particular play. I trusted nothing.
So first, I sent a runner to get James.
