Wendell stared down his nose at her. “Are you under the impression you have power here just because someone important wants to fuck you? I see the similarity with your mother now.”
Sparks erupted from Evelyn’s fingers. She lurched at Wendell, but Damien wrapped both arms around her and dragged her backward. Evelyn thrashed, but he wouldn’t let go.
“Stop!” Damien hissed in her ear. “You’re fine. This gets way worse if you burn his books.”
Was Wendell referring to Leo or Haydn? The king or the councilor? How much does he know about me? How well did he know my mother?
Leo stepped forward. “You have insulted the Queen of Gryon and assaulted a captain in the Royal Army. Is this how you treat all of your allies?”
“What allies?” Wendell snapped. “You cry about secrets and murder, then have me translate this horseshit?” He tossed the sketches, which scattered across the floor.
“So you know what the symbols mean?” Moeller asked, sounding bored.
“Of course I do,” Wendell muttered. “If you had studied languages as much as I advised, you would too.”
Moeller sighed. “Will you please tell the children about the translations so I can send them home?”
Wendell narrowed his eyes on Leo. “King. Queen. Prince. Princess. Heir.”
Leo shook his head. “I don’t understand.”
“Your guards were carved up with every variation of those five words in five dead languages. Does that help you solve your murders? I have better things to do than translatePrincessa dozen more times.”
“How can that be it? No threats or clues, just titles?”
“You would have to ask the person who cut the words into their skin,” Moeller said unhelpfully.
“Thank you, Wendell,” Damien called over Evelyn’s shoulder. “We appreciate it!”
Wendell glared at them before sitting down at his desk again. “Homicida reginam a scolari custodit. Regnum cadet et ne scient quidem.”
Moeller ushered them into the hallway.
“Did anyone else notice Wendy was in a bad mood?” Damien quipped.
“What the fuck is his problem?” Evelyn demanded.
“Wendell gets grumpy when he’s bored,” Moeller said. “He found the translation task disappointing.”
“We aren’t here for hisamusement!”
“And yet, tossing Fontaine around is the most excitement Wendell will experience for a decade.”
Damien rubbed the back of his head. “Glad to be of service.”
“Wendell gave us the translation we asked for,” Leo said.
“But it’s useless,” Evelyn argued. “King, queen, prince, princess, heir. That tells us nothing!”
“We agreed to help you translate,” Moeller reminded her. “It’s not our fault that your murderer has a limited vocabulary.”
“It’s time for us to leave,” Leo decided before Evelyn could start cursing. “Thank you for welcoming us here. We will be on our way as soon as everyone is packed.”
Leo took Evelyn’s hand and headed toward their room. Damien followed, whispering an update to Rory and Simon.
“Doesn’t it bother you that we didn’t learn anything?” Evelyn asked.
“This wasn’t a waste of time,” Leo replied. “We know the killer’s priority is the royal family. Maybe both families, yours and mine. It’s all about heirs and succession.”
