“The timing is not wholly coincidental. The magical ailment was, in fact, a curse that I broke only hours ago. For months I made no progress, but between Miss Cardh’s brilliance and an unexpected run in with those responsible last night, I was finally able to break the spell.”
I hated taking credit for Isa’s efforts, but the way her whole body went stiff when I mentioned her name, I figured she didn’t want to be tied to my cure so directly. I didn’t know why, but it fit with her leaving the night before.
“A curse?” Princess Charmina’s aloof mask cracked, and for a moment she was just a young woman, both shocked and intrigued. “I was under the impression that curses required more power than most mages possess.”
“Indeed, but a node changes things.”
“Then a member of your own family was responsible? Is the Truthhold line squabbling for power?”
An easy lie. All I had to do was agree with the princess’s conclusions and I could avoid sharing the relative ease with which people could gain access to my node. But no matter what else I said, such a lie would cause Her Highness to look at my cousin askance. Charlotte didn’t deserve to be under suspicion.
“No. If anything, my relatives are impatient for me to add to the family and push them even further down the line of succession.” I looked around the room, meeting everyone’s eyes but Isa’s. “There was reason for the secrecy surrounding what happened to me, and I hope you all will appreciate the possible consequences of the story spreading beyond these walls when I tell you that someone used the considerable magic of the Truthhold node to curse me into the form of a beast.”
“If not a relative, then—” Princess Charmina gasped. “The Truthhold node is unlocked?”
“Thankfully, no. Though that was my first fear as well. It wasn’t until Miss Cardh began working for me that we discovered that Lady Cecily had gained a tie to the node through me.”
The princess’s eyes narrowed at the mention of Cecily, but she didn’t interrupt. I recounted what had happened, my foolish reliance on a secretary who turned out to be my curser’s accomplice, the discoveries Isa had made, and the events of the night before. I glossed over how Isa came to work for me and omitted her presence at the castle the night before entirely. When I finished, there was a moment of silence.
Princess Charmina’s eyes were wide, and it took her a moment to remember that she was the only person in the room who outranked me, and that it fell on her to pass judgment. She looked back at her guards. “Peter, I’d like you to question His Grace’s prisoners alongside Constable Berklay.”
The male guard nodded.
“Go straight through the great hall and turn left.” I told the men. “They are in the corner room. I will unlock it once you are at the door.”
The constable didn’t get up. “I’m not going anywhere until I know what you did with Isa.”
“I’ve already informed you that she used her familiarity with truth-magics and a patience I don’t possess to help me understand the node better. She discovered Marc’s deceptions and paved the way for me to break the curse.”
“But why was she at Rose Castle in the first place? There are some pretty damning rumors going around Leort, and I’m not satisfied they are without merit.”
“I am familiar with the rumors you are referring to,” I told him, aware that the princess was listening to our exchange with rapt attention. “They were a part of Marc’s plan to discredit me, as I already explained. Miss Cardh was here to help me break the curse,nothing more. Though I suppose, to reassure you, I shall have to relinquish the little bit of dignity I maintained having told you of the curse. The term beast might have given you a false impression. I spent the past few months as a cat, Constable. Nothing untoward happened with Miss Cardh.”
He grumbled, and Isa said something to him in a voice too low to hear, her expression fierce. Frederic looked at her, then away. He stood and joined the guard, Peter. “Let’s see these prisoners, then.”
They left. The princess watched me for a few heartbeats, then stood. “I’d like a private word please, Your Grace.”
I followed her to the corner of the room farthest from Isa, feeling her guard’s stare with every step. Berklay moved around to stand by Isa, leaving the princess and me alone on one side of the room.
“Yes, Your Highness?”
“I understand your reasons for secrecy and desire not to name the exact manner in which a person can tie themselves to the node without being born into the Truthholder family. I can respect those secrets. But there is something else you talked around that I cannot ignore.”
I waited.
“How did Miss Cardh come to help you, when you had sent everyone but your secretary away months prior?”
“There is a law, a remnant from generations ago, that details the hierarchy among male relations in determining authority over women.” I spoke slowly, not sure why I didn’t try to prevaricate, but certain that I needed to tell the truth. Perhaps I wanted the princess to condemn me, for she had the power that others lacked, and I needed to be held accountable for what I had done. “Edwin Cardh came to Rose Castle about two months after I was cursed, hoping to steal from me. When I caught him, I offered an exchange. I’d let him go free if he sent his daughter to help me break the curse. Because of this law, Edwin, as Isa’s closest male relative, was able to sign in her name and make the contract binding.”
Princess Charmina’s eyes went wide. “How can that be legal?”
“A technicality. The node is not sentient. It does not judge the spirit of the law, only the letter. It cannot understand that the law granting women legal rights strips their male relatives of the right to sign for them. I abused this loophole to force Isa’s presence.”
“You admit it was an abuse of power?”
“I do. I plan to see the old law struck down as soon as possible. But I want you to know that I did not subvert the law lightly. It is not an excuse for what I did, but if I had not genuinely believed that my node had been unlocked and feared the result of word getting out, I would never have done such a thing.”
Princess Charmina pursed her lips. “Your words might offer a sliver of reassurance, if I didn’t wonder if you are immune to the truth-telling enchantment enveloping your home.”
