“I have no idea what you’re talking about,” he said.
I took a sip of my coffee. “Oh?”
“You received a bad head wound, Ethan. Henrietta said it could take weeks for things to equalize.”
All true, but I knew that wasn’t it. Kinsley was lying to me. “Everyone is acting weird. Henrietta checks on me far too much. You just lied to me for the first time since you’ve been part of this Keep. I ask you one more time, Kinsley. What’s going on?”
My Second leaned forward. “You sustained a head wound while far into Keep property. We had to carry you back on a stretcher, and you were comatose for over twelve hours. Everyone is tiptoeing around you because they’re afraid of something happening to you.”
Truth. I leaned back and studied him.
Kinsley’s eyes were dilated. His breathing was a little heavier than normal. Heartbeat a little elevated. I leaned forward and was about to grill him when Henrietta walked in and spotted me.
“Lord!” she squawked. “What are you doing up at this hour?”
I pointed at Kinsley. “Why aren’t you yelling at him?”
Henrietta rolled her eyes. “Because he’s not a senior citizen, and he didn’t sustain a serious head wound less than twenty-four hours ago.”
“Senior citizen!” I barked.
Henrietta’s eyes twinkled. “To Kinsley, you are a senior citizen.”
“I swear. You speak to me like a bratty younger sister,” I grumbled.
“Get back in bed, or I’ll switch the sugar with salt.” Henrietta made a shooing motion.
I got up with a groan. Kinsley escaped from the kitchen without a backward look, and Henrietta escorted me back to my bedroom with the efficiency of a military general.
She stopped at the door and was about to open it when I spoke.
“Henri?”
“Mmm?”
“Was I friends with Moira before?”
Henrietta’s heartbeat picked up. “Friends? She’s always been an acquaintance and was briefly here on an errand from Rowan’s Lady.”
She didn’t directly answer, but Henri smelled of deception.
I could rage and insist she tell me. If she still refused, I could pull on my power and force the truth out of her. But my people were sworn to one promise.
To protect me and our people.
If Kinsley and Henrietta were both lying to my face, something much worse than the truth was going on. They felt revealing the truth would be dangerous.
Both knew I would know they were lying. But they also knew I wouldn’t push it if I realized why.
Damn it. What in the world could have happened to force them to this?
I tried another tactic. “Was there a reason I wasn’t wearing my ring today?”
Henrietta’s vague smile faltered. I’d asked her a direct yes or no question. She’d have to lie to me again.
“I found it in an old jewelry box. The strange thing was it was tarnished. Odd, right?”
“That is odd,” Henrietta said. “Maybe the gold was misrepresented. Only twenty-four karat doesn’t tarnish. Do you know what type it is? Maybe I can contact the jeweler.”
