“I did as well. I found no hint of taint.”
I glanced his way. “Someone in the kitchen may have added something. They refilled our tea. My primwort. I didn’t test again because I felt confident.” My sigh whooshed out. “A big mistake on my part.”
“I’m sorry. I should’ve kept testing myself.”
“It’s on us both.”
Savory landed on my shoulder, her black eyes taking in our joined hands.
Interesting how the crisis has passed, yet the hand-holding continues,she said.
Heat flooded my cheeks. I pulled my hand from Dominic’s, immediately missing the warmth.We were just catching our breath.
Of course. I’m sure proximity was purely medicinal.
The plants around us had begun responding to something, their leaves unfurling more fully, a few late blooms opening. I tracked the changes with my emerging plant sense, realizing they could be drawing strength from the emotional energy between Dominic and me.
If so, our partnership was affecting the gardens. The connection we’d been building over the past few days had created some kind of magical resonance that the emotion-responsive plants could feed on.
My mind kicked in, cataloging the observation for later consideration. First, we needed to address the food and drink contamination problem.
“We were safe while we ate carefully selected food,” I said. “The moment we dined with everyone else and didn’t continue testing, we receive something tainted.”
Dominic rose and paced in front of the bench. “Someone is doing this, but who?”
“The pattern is too consistent,” I said. “Multiple people were affected after eating and drinking in the dining room, but no one was experiencing symptoms before consuming anything.”
“Which means someone with kitchen access.”
“Or someone who can bypass normal access.” I looked up at him as he stopped pacing.
“What are you thinking of for surveillance?”
“The spice room off the kitchen has a good vantage point of the main preparation area, and there’s enough clutter that two people could hide without being immediately visible.”
Dominic’s expression shifted, something heated flickering through his eyes before he schooled his features. “Two people.”
“We’ll need to watch in shifts, which means we’ll both need to be there.” I tried to keep my voice analytical, as if I hadn’t just suggested we’d be pressed close together in a small, hidden space for hours. “One of us watching while the other rests, then switching off.”
“That’s practical.”
“It’s the best option. We’ll need to bring food and water with us, untainted supplies that we’ve personally tested. And we’ll need to be there for much of the night.”
Alone. Together.
The words hung between us, loaded with implications neither of us acknowledged directly.
The hunter who stalks with a trusted partner catches prey the solitary hunter never could,Savory said.
I shot her a look. “Great insight.”
She preened.Thank you. I’m noticing something interesting about your magic lately.
I pretended not to know what she was talking about.What might that be?
It strengthens when you lean into trust rather than away from it.She groomed one wing with her beak.Some gardens bloom best when tended by two sets of hands.
The blossoms around us had opened fully, and the wilting had reversed in this immediate area, new life replacing the earlier decay.
