Rune wasn’t sure where to go, but he knew that if something was going on, Killian would know, so he headed towards his brother’s office.He didn’t get that far, though.He turned the corner to find that Palmer’s brother and Aaron, the human ambassador, were coming toward him.They were talking quickly, and Rune paused, wondering if they’d answer his questions.He hadn’t officially met Taylor before, though he’d seen him around the palace.He was sure that Taylor knew of Rune’s relationship with Palmer, and not only through gossip.Palmer had mentioned that he and his brother were close and that they’d talked about many things, and Rune was sure that included him.He just hoped he’d left a good impression on the man.
Aaron looked up and smiled when he saw him.Rune hoped that meant that everything was fine, but he still needed to be sure.“I heard there might be a fire,” he said.
Taylor blinked at him.“Where did you come from?”
“Marlin and Curran’s quarters.Curran just laid his egg, and your brother is in there helping.”
Taylor smiled.“Oh, that’s good.Everyone’s fine?”
“They are.I heard about that possible fire from my brother, and I was wondering what was happening.”
“Which one of your brothers?”Aaron asked.“Killian didn’t mention talking to you.”
“Because it wasn’t him.I understand if you can’t tell me anything, but I’d like to know if you can.”
“I’m sure Killian will be fine with you knowing.The two of you are close.”
“I don’t think so, but I can go directly to him if it makes you more comfortable.”
Taylor shrugged.“Considering that you’re dating my brother, you might as well know.Someone did set a fire in the west wing.”
“Who?”That didn’t sound like something Pearl would do.She was sneakier.She didn’t use fire.
She used poison.
Aaron hesitated.“It was another one of your siblings.”
Rune briefly closed his eyes.“That doesn’t surprise me.”Pearl wouldn’t have set the fire by herself, but she wouldn’t have hesitated to use one of her supporters to do so, including her siblings.She would probably sacrifice her own mother if it brought her one step closer to the throne.“Who?”
“Alatar.I’m sorry.”
“You have nothing to be sorry about.I’m not surprised to hear his name.”
“Will you be surprised to hear that Killian already sent someone to his quarters and they found proof that he’s involved with the poisoning of three of your siblings?”Taylor asked.
“He’s Pearl’s ally.I know she was involved with the poisoning, but she was never one to get her hands dirty.”Still, this felt like something had gone wrong.Even if Alatar was involved with the poisonings, why had he left evidence lying around in his rooms?He should’ve been smarter than that.Pearl would definitely have kept an eye on him if he truly was involved, and she would’ve made sure that no one could link her to any of this.
That was it, wasn’t it?She’d wanted to be sure that she couldn’t be linked to the poisonings, so she’d set up her brother so he’d take the fall for it.She probably thought that with Alatar involved, Killian would stop looking at her.
She should know better.She might be stubborn, but when it came to protecting the people he loved and the throne, Killian was even more stubborn.He’d get to the bottom of this, and hewouldfind out who was involved, no matter what anyone was trying to hide.
“At least he seems eager to drag her down with him,” Taylor commented, surprising Rune.
“I’m sorry?”
“He blurted out that she told him to do it almost as soon as he realized that he was done for.He’s not going to keep her involvement secret.He might have been loyal to her before, but I don’t think he is anymore, not when it comes to saving his own skin.”
Rune hadn’t expected that.Usually, the people who worked with Pearl were devoted to her.He’d sometimes wondered how she did that because it was clear that she didn’t care about anyone but herself.How could she convince people to care about her so deeply that they didn’t hesitate to sacrifice themselves for her?
Not Alatar.It didn’t look like he was going to sacrifice himself for anyone.He might have believed in Pearl’s cause when it came to the throne, but clearly, he wouldn’t go down on his own.
This could be the break they needed.
It might not be enough, but it also might be.Pearl would no doubt argue that Alatar just wanted to save his own skin, and that definitely was something most people would do, but it gave Killian and his people something to dig into.It gave them hope.They could find out what Pearl had been up to so they could stop her.
For now, that was all he needed.
Chapter Twelve
