Marguerite plucked a cake off the tray before holding it out to Jade. “Did you try one of these at the party? You have to—you’ll love them. Our cook makes the most delectable cakes.”
Slamming back into the present, Jade refocused her attention and smiled at Marguerite’s offering before adding a cake to her plate. “Oh, thank you.”
“We’ve been eating these since we were children,” Alanna said, and took a bite of the fluffy white cake. When she had finished chewing, she added, “They’re quite nostalgic. Every time I have one, it takes me back to when we were young.”
“Yes, me too!” Marguerite reached out to Alanna, resting a hand on her forearm. “They were Cook’s special treat for us when we cousins all got together. I remember Arabella had always requested them the moment she leaped out of the carriage!” She drew her hand back as her brow crinkled and her bright expression fell. “And Artis made a show of never wanting them. You know, I’m not sure he ever did taste one.”
Alanna’s smile turned sad, and Marguerite’s mouth pressed into a thin line, her eyes downcast. It was no secret why. Few now spoke of the king’s late son. Prince Artis. He would have been the next king, had he and his mother not tragically died in a fire when he was fourteen.
The ladies’ genuine sadness permeated the air and wafted to Jade. Her heart ached—for them. For these royal cousins she was getting to know and slowly growing fond of. They’d shown their humanity on more than one occasion now. Perhaps there was more to the royals than Jade had always believed.
Marguerite wiped the grief from her face and sat straighter, grabbing another cake. “They haven’t changed at all. I hope Cook never tires of making them.”
Alanna made a sound in her throat and finished her cake. Jade bit into hers as well, and—blazing plague, what were these things made of? Baby laughs and angel wings? She’d never tasted something so scrumptious in her entire life.
Jade’s eyes flew open. When had she closed them? Both Marguerite and Alanna were eyeing her, their faces lit up.
“See what I mean?” Marguerite asked with a laugh. “They’redivine. Here, have another.”
At the risk of getting distracted again, Jade took the offered cake, but she used the moment between bites to refocus.
“If Lady Arabella is trying to appeal to the people, all she has to do is provide them with these cakes.” Jade chuckled and lifted the cake in the air before adding it to her plate. Marguerite and Alanna both giggled, but Alanna’s cheerfulness didn’t last long.
“I wish it were that simple. Then this blasted mess could be done with.” She dropped her eyes to her hands where they were clasped in her lap. “This whole thing has dragged out for far too long. If Arabella would only be patient...”
Marguerite faced Alanna, resting a hand on her arm again. “It’s not only Arabella. It’s my father as well. It’s this ridiculous grudge.” She shook her head, turning her attention back to Jade. “He says his father should have been king instead of King Reginald, Alanna and Arabella’s grandfather. My grandfather, Leonard, was King Reginald’s twin, but he was born first. He had been of weaker constitution, however, so his parents had deferred the line of succession to Reginald, lying to the world telling everyone he was older. My great-grandmother had confessed the truth to my grandfather on her deathbed, and then he told my father. And my father has held a grudge against King Mervyn and his line ever since.”
Jade’s mouth fell open in faked astonishment. She knew all of this, of course. Lord Grannam hadn’t kept it secret. He wanted people to know that he had a true claim to the throne of Marran, long before the king fell ill in the first place.
Gears turned in Jade’s mind that never had before. If Grannam had held such a grudge, hadhedone something to the king? The king may not have actually fallen ill. Perhaps Grannam had tried to kill him and failed. Was all this orchestrated by Grannam to put him on the throne? It would explain hiring assassins, keeping poison, and possibly trying to make a deal withArabella. This was his work, but others, like Arabella and Marchand and the other insignificant contenders, kept getting in the way.
“It’s no surprise he’s trying to claim the throne, then,” Jade said in almost a whisper. She sought to appear empathetic to Marguerite by validating her concerns.
Marguerite replied with a small nod before she shook herself, and her momentary sullenness transformed back to her usual bubbly demeanor. “Regardless, it will hopefully be over soon. Alanna, do you need more lemonade?”
The footman came at Marguerite’s request with the pitcher of lemonade, and the two picked up a lighter topic. Jade smiled and laughed and participated on the conversation, though her mind reeled. Was Marguerite referencing the king’s turn for the worse as the reason the conflict should be over soon, or was there something else she wasn’t saying?
They knew more than they had divulged, but Jade wasn’t getting anything further out of them in this meeting. And the new assumption that Grannam was likely the mastermind behind this entire conflict gave Jade a new perspective on how she approached her assignment. Not to mention information for Nicolas as well.
Twenty-One
Anxiety wrapped around Jade’s heartlike a noose, pulling tighter until she could no longer breathe. She’d been avoiding going back to the farmhouse—avoiding Nicolas—but she’d run out of options. The latest note from him burned a hole in her pocket, as obvious to her as a beacon though it was folded and tucked away.
I thought we had a deal.
You’ve had significant opportunity to obtain the evidence I requested. It is time you return to me.
I’ll be expecting you tonight. Same time and place.
Jade’s heart clenched again as she recalled the words from the note she had received that morning. Two days had passed since the tea with Marguerite and Alanna, and Jade had hoped that Nicolashad either forgotten about her or didn’t care that she hadn’t come back yet. The appearance of the letter had proven neither was the case.
So she had left, the same way as she had before, scaling the wall surrounding the base and sneaking off into the night.
Jade never found the nerve to tell Theo about Nicolas and now debated whether that was the best course of action. He would have trailed her as backup, so she wouldn’t have been going into this alone.
No, really, it was more likely he would have tried to convince her against going at all. Or sent his whole company to the farmhouse in her place to “have a chat” with Nicolas.
While she had told Commander Matherson her suspicions about Grannam during their debrief after the tea, they still had nothing concrete to pin any of what Jade suspected on him. And with Grand General Devereaux still insisting they had no leads for Jade to pursue, Jade found herself driven back to the person she knew had leads, the person who had asked to help her bring an end to this conflict.
