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It didn’t take long for her to lean back. “That was too close,” she whispered.

He wiped a smudge of dirt from her cheek. “What happened?”

“He lured Aony into the secret passages and then killed him.”

It was fear, not sadness, on his wife’s face, but he could sense her general turmoil. Ber frowned. “A surprise, but hardly a tragedy.”

“I overheard Aony refusing to give him Selesta before a wedding,” Tes said. “I thought my father was showing him the tunnels as part of a marriage offer, but instead, the tunnelsbecame a tomb. He…the king…he used an incineration spell after. I made my escape under the cover of that.”

Terror and fury strangled Ber until he could only pull Tes tight against him again. “You were close enough that…”

“Around the corner,” she explained. “If not for Ria’s sound-dampening dress, I probably would have been caught. Ber, he called Selesta his Lora returned to him. She’s in danger. We’re all in danger.”

That they were.

But as his rage surged, Ber suspected Ryenil was in the most danger of all.

Chapter 31

The Mantle

“Come, love,” Ber said, leading his wife to the sofa and pulling her onto his lap.

She rested her head beneath his chin. “You’re comforting me too much. I feel weak.”

Smiling, Ber pressed his lips against her hair. She’d always hated losing control of herself in front of others, and in truth, it was an understandable worry. She’d been punished for any so-called imperfection since her earliest childhood. But for that reason, she perhaps needed comfort more than anyone.

“You had a near miss with your father, who also happened to murder someone just around the corner from you,” Ber murmured. “I’d say that justifies you taking a moment.”

Her sigh brushed his skin. “Maybe. But I would rather focus on our next steps.”

Ah, it was a distraction she needed. “Very well, then. Would Lady Selesta listen if you told her what happened? Would she heed the danger your father’s obsession poses?”

“I don’t know,” Tes replied. “What could she possibly do? She’s only twenty and newly presented to court. My father’s fixation will become one of many problems. Whether Aony’sdeath is confirmed or not, she will be very vulnerable to those who seek to claim her. There’s no telling what the worst of the lords will attempt to do.”

That was an understatement. Although the women of Centoi were technically equal to men, they weren’t treated as such in Ryenil’s court. The king had scorned women since the death of Lora, as he’d blamed both the queen and the other ladies at court for giving the woman grief. Their safety and regard had slid precariously ever since.

Unfortunately, it wasn’t only the king to blame after so many centuries. More than one lord had taken on their sovereign’s terrible attitude. “At best, she’ll be inundated with threats cloaked beneath marriage proposals, since Aony had no heir. There will be a rush to claim the dukedom through her. Ryenil will push to marry her immediately before others demand her hand.”

“Exactly that,” Tes said. “If she marries my father, he’ll fold Aony back into the royal properties, and that will not be popular at court. I’ll have to think of a reason to visit her tonight, before word of her brother’s disappearance spreads through court.”

Two quick knocks cracked against the door, and for a heartbeat, both of them froze. Then Tes leapt to her feet and darted into the bedroom, out of sight of any visitor. Worry locked around him like a vise, for there was little security in her hiding spot. But Ber could only hurry to the door and hope it wasn’t an enemy waiting on the other side.

When he opened the door, he saw only the faintest hint of fabric at the far end of the corridor as someone disappeared around the corner. He frowned at the guard stationed beside his door. “Who was that?”

The guard shrugged before he remembered his manners and bowed. “Ah, Your Highness. It was merely a servant intent ondelivering a message. I offered to hold it for her, but she slipped it beneath the door before I could stop her.”

Ber lifted a brow, and the other man flushed. “You allowed someone close enough to push something beneath my door? After an assassination attempt?”

“Only because she was Lady Selesta’s personal maid.” The guard shifted on his feet. “Word is she might marry the king, so I couldn’t see any harm in it.”

Ber swallowed the growl caught in his throat and spun to search for the note. The cursed, foolish note that the worthless guard had so boldly announced where any lurkers might hear. If Ryenil didn’t confront him about it before dinner, it would be a great surprise.

Only when Ber had closed the door did he spot the sealed envelope where it had come to a stop against the edge of a side table. Snatching the paper up, Ber carried it into the bedroom. Tes perched on the side of the bed, her anxious gaze darting immediately to the note.

He dropped down beside her and waved the envelope. “It’s a—”

“Note from Selesta,” Tes said, her voice tight with anger. “The guard was loud enough that yourbrotherprobably heard the news.”