Page 170 of The Mad King and the False Queen

She could still hear his broken voice. She could still hear his lies that he had never seen the bottle before. He was so lackadaisical about the letters, it was as if his admittance wasn’t written plain as day.

And how did he make the connection that she was an assassin that quickly after asking how she had magic? It was as if all people with magic who weren’t guardians had to be assassins.

Her mind flashed to her conversation with Queen Bernadette about Dagmara’s mother.

Her heart was removed, but she had no injuries when they found her…evidence she was killed by a Life Guardian…and a mark of the First Prince accompanied her.

Dagmara’s mother had been killed by people with Life magic—the same people she had been ordered to assassinate.

Claude had told King Bogdan his parents were killed by an assassin with Mind magic. Was it true that somehow the First Prince was rising…and that he was sending assassins with magic to take out the guardians? Was there anywhere in the legend that stated the First Prince could grant people magic?

Dagmara and Sabien rounded the corner, and a door appeared at the end of the dark hall. “That’s our exit,” he said.

Dagmara froze in the center of the hallway.

If Claude was the one she faced off against on the day of the coronation, how did he return to Ilusauri so quickly to send the proposal Scribestone to Magdalena? It couldn’t have been Claude who had faced off with her in the throne room.

The captain was forced to come to a halt. He turned over his shoulder and eyed Dagmara curiously. “What’s wrong?”

“It was you,” Dagmara said under her breath. “Claude’s father was killed by an assassin with Mind powers. You have Life magic, which means you were sent for the Life Guardians. That’s why you were in Azurem for the coronation. Why else have you kept my identity a secret and tried to get close to me? You’ve just been waiting for me to tell you where Magda is so you can kill her and finish the job.”

Sabien shifted his weight, planting one hand on his hip. He let out a laugh, “It took you long enough.”

CHAPTER 54

Magdalena

Heading back to Vex’s hideout, Magda knew there would only be one way to find the assassin.

Odie.

After Ravi and Magda joined Ishani and Odie, they headed directly to the docks, the streets far less crowded than during the day.

If only the people knew their guardian was dead.

Shaking the thought from her mind, Magda tried not to think about Queen Sanyal, but she couldn’t remove the image of her death from her mind. Why had the earth attacked her? The thorns slit her throat while the vines strangled her. If Queen Sanyal had Soul magic, why did it turn against her? Magda was certain it wasn’t her own doing, and Kiran was unable to function let alone channel her magic. Kiran wouldn’t have taken her own mother’s life.

The only logical answer was that the assassins had Soul magic. But that solution was equally illogical. Only guardians had magic.

When they reached the docks, the salt on the wind clouded Magda’s senses. Ishani led the way to the warehouse, her steps silent as she moved with grace, her two axes on either hip. Ravi brought along a knife, and Magda felt completely exposed with nothing on her person. Then she remembered, nearly everything around her could turn into a weapon. Plants, roots, rocks, sand…it all answered to her. She still didn’t know why.

The trio reached the warehouse, Odie padding along beside them. He remained close to Magda, glancing up at her every few paces.

The sea-green tent was closed. The entrance flapped in the wind, completely unguarded. Had the Marauder’s scattered when Vex died?

Ishani glanced over her shoulder, placing a finger to her lips to tell them to remain quiet, before she parted the curtain and disappeared into the darkness.

Magda exchanged a glance with Ravi. He nodded at her encouragingly, and they both followed after Ishani.

The tent seemed larger when no one occupied it. It was completely empty save for the tables and tapestries. The arena was coated in dried blood, and the space still smelled of liquor.

“Alright,” Magda whispered, kneeling beside Odie. She extended the jacket that the assassin had left behind toward her dog. “Go find,” she ordered.

Odie sniffed the jacket, his ears perking slightly. Then when Magda withdrew the jacket, Odie’s nostrils flared, picking up the scent. He bent his head to the ground, his snout scouring for the trail as he started padding around the room.

He led the way past a few tables, through the benches at the edge of the arena, and toward the other end of the room. He reached the back corner of tables, still littered with empty bottles and mugs. Odie crossed over an alcohol-stained rug, heading to the edge of the tent. Then Odie paused, retracing his steps, narrowing his search until he stopped at the center of the rug. Looking up at Magda, Odie sat down, his tail wagging.

“I guess the assassin didn’t have anywhere else to go,” Ravi said.

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