Theo chewed on the inside of his cheek for a second, then leaned forward with his elbows on his knees. “Okay. We’ll bring it up with Matherson after the meeting.”
Jade smiled, appreciative of the way Theo always supported her, even if he didn’t necessarily agree with her. He was right, of course. The conflict was over. The man behind the murders had been identified and was dead. There was nothing more to worry about, but Jade would rather leave no stone unturned. At least she’d be able to move forward easier that way.
But they had never identified the assassin. With his employer dead, there shouldn’t be any more murders, but Jade still wanted to find him and bring him to justice too.
“I took that letter from Arthur to Lady Arabella yesterday.” Theo’s change of subject took Jade by surprise and thoroughly captured her attention.
“You did? Why didn’t you say so sooner?”
Theo shrugged and let out a small chuckle. “We couldn’t do anything about it yet, anyway. Besides,” he said, leaning back against the seat of the carriage again and crossing his arms, a grin playing across his lips, “you essentially bombarded me with your information as soon as you got the chance.”
Jade opened her mouth to argue but immediately slammed it shut. He wasn’t wrong there.
“Well, thank you,” she ended up saying instead. “I don’t know what I hope to accomplish by it now that The Claim has come to an end. I just knew she had to see it. Maybe it will hold some meaning for her.”
Theo nodded in agreement, and the two fell silent, Jade lost to her thoughts.
The mastermind behind the murders was dead. Arabella herself had made no movement in the conflict, so Prince Reynauld had no further obstacles on his way to the throne. But still, Jade believed deep down thatsomething had been missed. She couldn’t shake the sense that she didn’t have all the information, and Arabella might be the one to have answers.
Thirty-Nine
The meeting room within themilitary base at Castle Venemer was filled with rows of chairs, and Jade and Theo took their seats in two free chairs near the back. Jade scanned the room. She recognized several of the officers from her time on other bases or working missions that employed officers from more than one base, but many of the faces were new to her.
Officers continued to file in for a few more minutes, and once the door was closed behind the last of them, Grand General Devereaux strode to the front of the room. Immediately, the murmurings quieted and an anticipatory hush settled over the room.
“Early this morning, I received a communication that our great King Mervyn has finally passed on,” the grand general began, her voice strong and easily commanding attention. “My colleagues who also work closely with the king believe he died sometime in the night. It is a relief to all of us that he isno longer suffering. The illness kept him in a state of paralysis for months, unable to move, to speak, to give any kind of ruling as our king.
“He will lie in state for twenty-four hours here in the castle for the royal family to come and pay their respects, then there will be a memorial service at Seven Saints Cathedral. The following day, the cathedral will be prepared for the coronation, and Prince Reynauld will be crowned king. Lady Fellsrin will be crowned as well, and the Fellsrin daughters will receive the new title of princess.”
Devereaux paused briefly, surveying the officers in orderly rows before her. No one made a sound, the members of the military knowing better than to whisper to each other while their grand general spoke. When Devereaux began again, her voice was ripe with a new intensity.
“This is a new chapter for our kingdom, and a strong military offers a foundation and a sense of security in such an unprecedented time. All officers, as well as a good number of troopers, will be present at both the memorial service and the coronation as we as a kingdom bid our past farewell and look ahead to our future.”
Maybe it was because Jade had recently read the notes from Devereaux’s meeting announcing the deaths of the queen and prince, but much of this sounded familiar to her. Something in the grand general’s tough exterior made Jade wonder if the woman was just saying what was expected of her, the things she was supposed to say. Or had her years of service had so hardened her that emotion couldn’t crack through the surface?
Devereaux continued with instructions for the officers regarding both the memorial service and coronation. Jade tried hard to pay attention, but she found her mind wandering back to what she had discovered in the archives and what she had discussed with Theo in the carriage. Still trying to piece the information together.
When Devereaux dismissed the officers and left the front of the room, Jade shot a quick glance at Theo, hoping he had paid better attention than she had and could fill her in on what they were supposed to do. They stoodin sync, and Jade turned her gaze to where she had last spotted Matherson on the front row, but he was nowhere in sight. She stood in place as she peered through the crowd, Theo doing the same.
“Do you see him anywhere?” she asked, but Theo didn’t get a chance to answer her.
“Do you mean me, Captain Ni’ihm?”
The voice behind Jade made her whirl around, and she threw her arm up in a quick salute to Commander Matherson, and then to Grand General Devereaux, who stood beside him.
“Actually, yes, Commander,” Jade answered. “We were hoping to speak with you after the meeting.”
“Excellent. We were hoping to speak to the two of you also.” Matherson extended an arm toward the door. Grand General Devereaux led the way, out of the meeting room, down the hallway, up the stairs, and into a room with a name plate on the door that readGrandGeneral I. Devereaux. She pulled a key out of her pocket to unlock the door and then ushered them inside.
Devereaux’s office was both larger than Matherson’s and grander, as was everything in these headquarters. Tall, curtained windows on the wall opposite the door were battered with rain as the storm continued to howl outside. The other two walls were lined with shelves and cabinets, accented by moldings and bronze light fixtures, with the occasional painting. Her desk sat farther into the room in front of the windows, made of a rich cherry wood that was laden with stacks of papers, writing implements, and letters. A telephone sat to one side, opposite an electric lamp.
“Have a seat, please,” Grand General Devereaux offered as she sat in her own high-backed chair upholstered with plush red leather. Jade, Theo, and even Matherson sat in three of the four armchairs that faced her desk.
Devereaux’s gaze settled squarely on Jade. A tingle went up Jade’s spine, raising the hairs on the back of her neck. The woman’s intense green-eyed stare wasn’t as severe as it had been before, when she and Jade had last beenin such proximity. Instead, a certain ease seemed to have settled in the corners of her eyes and mouth. As if she was—dare Jade think it—pleased?
“Your excellent work in The Claim has not gone unnoticed, Captain Ni’ihm.” Devereaux folded her hands on the desk in front of her. “Commander Matherson has been keeping me updated with your missions and their outcomes throughout these past seven months. The promotions you have already been granted speak to that.”
Jade’s stomach clenched. Did she know Jade hadn’t earned those promotions solely through skill of her own?
