Ronan closed his eyes briefly, naked grief filling his face. When they opened, all that was left was hate. “Did you have an accomplice?”
“Oh dear.” Her gaze drifted to Alexandra. “Has that old rumor bubbled up?” Jewels flashed in the sunlight as she grinned.
Alexandra sat back down on her chair, gripping the arms. “Hatefulold bitch. Those rumors were of your creation. Your mirth speaks to madness, because you will be executed for all that you have done.”
The queen of Amarid shrugged. “It seems the pupil has surpassed the master, and I find that I take some pleasure in that.”
“Enough vagaries,” Ronan demanded. “Answer the question.”
Katarina remained silent.
“Answer!” Ronan roared. “Did Alexandra conspire with you?”
Silence.
William grimaced, sweat dampening his brow beneath his crown. “Speak the truth and tell them you acted alone. Confess to all your crimes, and rather than losing your life, you will only lose your crown and your freedom.”
All across the room, brows furrowed, because William had effectively destroyed the legitimacy of Katarina’s testimony. Yet Keris didn’t think it was an act of strategy, but rather one of desperation. The skin above William’s jugular fluttered rapidly, and the underarms of his coat were beginning to soak through with sweat.
“This was not what we agreed to!” The room seemed to shake from the volume of Ronan’s voice. “Alexandra is guilty, but you are a grown man still on the teat and you do not know how to live without her. You make yourself look weak. You make Harendell look weak.”
“I will not condemn my mother based solely on the word of a known liar,” William replied.
A soft rasping noise filled the throne room, and it took Keris a heartbeat to realize that Katarina was laughing. It grew louder, the sound making his skin crawl, and as he stared at the queen, Keris was reminded of the Magpie just before he took his last flight.
“What an unexpected treat to discover I am not the only one who stands accused,” she cackled. “I see you, William. See that you are torn between loyalty to yourmummyand your desperate desire to disprove your father’s belief you would make a poor king.”
Katarina panned her gaze across onlookers, and when her eyes locked on Keris’s, he swore evil itself looked straight into his soul.
Ronan stepped closer, his hand resting on the hilt of his sword. “This is your last chance to speak, Katarina. I will not lead you, as William has done, because you know the truths we wish to hear. Speak and be done with it. Go to death with your conscience clear.”
The queen of Amarid showed no fear, only amusement as she said, “You promise me mercy if I absolve your mother, William, but Ronan promises me absolution if I condemn her. How to choose? More important, will all those watching believe what I have to say?”
“Get on with it, Katarina.” The words ripped from Keris’s throat. “No matter what you say, you are a dead woman walking for what you did to Ithicana.”
“Killing me won’t help you sleep at night,” she replied. “When you lie awake, remember how you guided Aren toward my outstretched hand. Think of me, Keris. When you finally jump, think of me all the way down.”
Keris’s blood ran cold, his skin crawling.
“Enough stalling!” The king of Cardiff’s hand was balled into a fist as though he might strike her. “Speak your truth!”
“As you like.” Katarina smiled, and it was all gold and jewels. “I will tell all that I know, but only to the king of Harendell. Come, William, let me whisper my words in your ear.”
“William, no!” Alexandra spoke for the first time. “You are the king! This is beneath you!”
William ignored her. “To what end? Why do you play this game, Katarina?”
Her eyes were cold as frost as she said, “Because the truth is what you make of it.”
The king of Harendell rested his hand on his sword hilt, but he didn’t move.
“Are you afraid to come close to an old woman?” Katarina asked, baiting him. “Or is it the truth that you fear?”
“I fear nothing,” William snapped, then belied his own words by adding, “But I’ve no interest in playing whispering games like a child.”
“That is my deal.” Katarina’s golden teeth gleamed as she grinned. “Threaten me, torture me, do your worst. But I will only speak the truth into your ear.”
Keris’s skin crawled, and at his feet, his dog whined and pressed closer to his leg, her small body trembling.
