Page 82 of Reign

“I believe him,” Riordan chokes out.

All eyes turn to him.

“I believe Chase. Our prince. My friend. And I believe the possum. Ivy liked her. Trusted her.”

“I’m with him, too,” another boy pipes in.

“Me, too,” says another.

“Oh, yeah.” Tempest raises a wry hand, as if his opinion was ever in question. “Then there’s me. The soulmate.”

“Guys.” James drifts away from Riordan and appeals to the room. “Come on. You’re taking the word of some chick who hasn’t been here two semesters over my suspicions?”

“About that,” I say, and this time, my step forward is sure. “One thing I left out in the email, and a fact I’m positive your suspicious nature will be interested in. Sabine isn’t the true heir of the Virtues. None of the Harringtons are, or were.” I arch a brow. “But I bet you knew that, didn’t you?”

James rears back and sneers, “I don’t care to know shit about you, possum.”

“Listen to her, cocksucker,” Chase warns, then gestures for me to continue.

“You’re looking at your true queen.” I keep walking, my steps loud among the new, shocked hush befalling the room, until I’m all the way in James’s face. “My murdered mother was the last descendent of Rose Briar before I came along. Then, when she was nineteen, well, I came along. I’m the last living bloodline of the original Virtue queen, so how about you sit the fuck down and listen to your future royals?”

* * *

“That was exhilarating,” I say as we tumble into the lake house. “Do you think we swayed enough of them?”

He strips off his coat, tossing it on the couch, his open shirttails fluttering with his movements as he strides into the kitchen.

“We’ve introduced important questions,” he says. “Next time Sabine and my father addresses them, the subject of her legitimacy will come up. The key is not giving her enough time to formulate a plan. When she meets with the Virtues tomorrow, I’ll have the Nobles that are with us accompany them. We’ll out her. No more secrets. The new generation will want answers.”

As he heads to the coffee maker, I ask, “The rules of monarchy are steadfast in the Nobles, but I don’t think they ever were in the Virtues. Maybe at face value, to keep the Nobles in the dark, but that’s it. Are questions enough to kick her out?” I gesture absently. “We’re waiting on DNA results, but that could take a while, and until I can prove Mom’s murder…”

“Sabine’s ensured a mindfuck kind of loyalty from her Virtues,” Chase agrees, “Who were left out of this meeting for a reason. But my Nobles still have influence. They can convince a few girls.”

“That’s looking way too far in the future,” I counter, then collapse on the couch.

Chase tips his face to the ceiling, showcasing the purple hollows under his eyes. “All we want right now is uncertainty. Like any unrest, there will be factions—those for you and those for Sabine, but that’s where Ivy becomes the tipping point in this war.”

“Her death shouldn’t be like this.” Changing my mind, I push of the couch and go to him. “Used as a wager. Are you sure I can’t just steal the binder, involve the police, and arrest Sabine for murder? We saw her do it, Chase.”

“Your hospital transcripts.” Chase lays a hand on arm when I reach him, but thankfully doesn’t expand on the matter. He doesn’t have to. I’m the least credible eye-witness there is, and Chase has proven his bias when it comes to me. “The societies have operated underground for centuries. Let me try to fuck her over underground, too. It might cause Sabine to make a public mistake.”

I fold my hand on his. “Us. Let us try.”

“Yes.” He squeezes. “Together.”

“We did all we could in there,” I say. Chase places two steaming mugs in our hands before we head into the den. “I gave them my version of events. Did you see their faces when I told them about Noble alumni sneaking onto the academy—a high school—to have sex with the Virtuous princesses and countless other girls? They didn’t know. I can’t believe none of them knew.”

Chase goes rigid beside me. His teeth must be cracking under the pressure, but by some miracle, he restrains himself from lashing out with what he must understand is a pointless, too-late temper. He sits.

I nestle closer, holding my mug in two hands while I attempt to soften him with my presence and a reminder that it’s in the past. “We won’t allow Sabine to hurt Emma anymore,” I say to Chase. “When Emma gets here, we’ll lay it all out. We haven’t been communicating well with our friends, you and I. It’s taken too long to realize that. It has to be rectified tonight.” I sip my coffee, my teeth clanking against the ceramic. “I won’t let them leave until we work through this.”

Chase barely blinks in response.

“This is why,” I say, moving to squeeze his free hand. When I find it unresponsive, I repeat, “This is why we need the new generation of Nobles on our side. I’m hoping we did that tonight and the next time Sabine tries to walk into a room with them, they’ll confront her. Throw Baby Briar’s birth certificate in her face. Demand she give them reasons. Maybe even tonight, they’ll go to their Virtue soulmates and tell them everything they’ve learned.”

“It’s a damned good start,” Chase grits out. “And farther than I’ve ever gotten in changing their views. Listening to you,” Chase rasps, but stares vacantly at a spot in front of him. “Hearing it from your lips, it was an entirely new level. And Father … father knowing about this and marrying the bitch anyway, I—fuck, I need to hit something. Kill something. If this scheme we’ve started doesn’t work, I’ll strangle her myself. She’s not collecting any more girls. She’s not touching my sister again.”

I believe him. I’m so confident in his vow, my grip on his wrist turns solid. “There’s been enough murder. Let’s see where tonight goes, first. And the press could still get involved. My email was opened by enough outsiders that it could get things rolling, too. We haven’t given it a whole lot of time. Sabine could be fucked already, inside and out. Can’t we pour some whiskey in these coffees to celebrate?” I smile, though it’s tight at the edges. “I think I saw a bar cart in your dad’s study.”

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