Page 92 of Under the Lion Star

“He killed a man for touching you?” Yunia fanned herself. “That’s so unhinged but strangely romantic.”

“You need help,” Lina raised a brow.

“Look,” I sighed, watching Sanna closely, who probably did not want to hear about the intricacies of my relationship with her brother. “Possessive dagger-happy husbands aside, we need to make a plan.”

“We got this,” Nima set her hand on mine.

The twins, Nima, Sanna, and I, were gathered around the small table in Sanna’s room. My sisters had spent the first hour of the visit gawking at her collection of books, but now we were ready to get down to business.

“Tell me what you overheard,” I told Sanna, opening the floor to her.

“My handmaid overheard a conversion,” she clarified. “Malner was washing linens when she heard two angry male voices.”

“Did she recognize them?” Yunia asked.

“No,” she shook her head. “But they were arguing about rushing the plan. One of them said it would be better if Zialda lived. Something about heirs.”

For a brief moment I wondered if my own father was somehow in on the attempted coup, but quickly dismissed it. Erik Helner had no hunger for power.

“They said something about a potion maker and that you were going to figure out it was him.”

“Lord Corrin,” I stated, my sisters filling in the rest of the blanks with what I had already explained to them.

“We need to start with him,” Lina said, tapping her chin. “See if we can figure out who he is working with. If Corrin thought you’d figured out he was involved from the clue he left by signing his name ‘Arkhain,’ then it makes sense he would send mercenaries in to take you out.”

“That was the first time your life was ever threatened?” Nima asked.

“Yeah,” I nodded. “Every other attempt has been exclusive to Leor.”

“Corrin owns mines,” Nima tilted her head. “I think it’s safe to say he’s involved on some level.”

“But we need to know who he was arguing with,” Yunia set her palms on the table. “I have an idea, but we’ll need some disguises.”

“I, um–” Sanna pressed her mouth closed.

“You’re part of this,” I pointed at her. “Don’t hold back any ideas.”

“I don’t want to get in trouble,” she chewed on her thumb.

“We’re all going to be in a fuck load of trouble,” I chuckled. “May as well go whole hog.”

“I’ve been reading about Elldara,” she said, unable to meet anyone’s eye. “And I found a book that outlines certain blood magic spells.”

“Blood magic,” Nima’s eyes went wide.

“I think,” the princess hesitated. “I think I could glamour you to look like someone else. If you could get the herbs.”

“You know we can,” I grinned. “You really think you can disguise us? Can you remove it afterward? I think Leor might be harder to placate if I’m wearing someone else’s face.”

“Without actual Elldaran blood, the spells are all temporary.”

“Still might buy us enough time to sneak into Corrin’s house,” Yunia mused.

“So, herbs, what else do we need?”

“We need the blood of whoever you want to be disguised as,” Sanna winced. “And probably a change of clothes.”

“I need you all to understand the severity of what we’re doing,” I took a deep breath, looking around the room. “We’re potentially dealing with a man who had assassins sent into the castle to kill a king.”

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