Page 117 of Shadows of Winter

Good. The last thing Kaylina wanted was for him to lose his calm in here. By all the gods, if he turned into the beast and killed the queen… There would be no saving him after that.

“Poisoning the mead that was delivered as, according to the message accompanying it, a gift for the queen,” Jana said.

Even though Kaylina had figured out right away that Jana was up to something—and probably behind this—she couldn’t keep from blurting, “Delivered? What gift? I didn’t send any mead.” She looked at Vlerion, more worried that he would believe the lie than that the queen would. “When would I have had time to do that? I don’t know anything about poisoning.”

Vlerion’s face remained masked, and he kept his gaze on the women and the guards instead of Kaylina. He hadn’t moved his hand to the hilt of his sword yet, but it was open beside it.

Jana lifted something that had been hidden by the chair. One of Kaylina’s bottles of mead. One of the missing bottles.

“I thought the catacomb bandits took that.” Kaylina stepped toward Jana, anger driving away wisdom—and her self-preservation instinct. “Did you start the fire in the castle? My brother almost died in that.”

She crouched, fantasizing about springing over the chair to throttle Jana. But two more guards surged out of a side room, stepping between Kaylina and the queen and Jana. They drew their swords and faced Kaylina grimly.

Vlerion stepped between her and them. He didn’t draw his own sword, but his hand did rest on the hilt.

Kaylina swore to herself. She had to keep her cool lest she endanger him—in more ways than one. Besides, this was idiotic. She hadn’t done anything wrong. She had to be rational and defend herself logically. As Frayvar would be the first to advise.

“I know nothing about the origins of that fire,” Jana stated calmly. Almost smugly. As if she knew she’d already won.

Gritting her teeth, Kaylina eased out from behind Vlerion so she could see the two women. Petalira observed her through slitted eyes.

“Are you sure?” Kaylina asked. “Because I saw you there, watching from across the river.”

“You are mistaken. I was at work creating mead that isn’t poisoned.”

“Mine isn’t poisoned either.”

“How did you acquire that bottle?” Vlerion asked.

“I acquired it,” the queen answered. “As I said, it arrived via a messenger with a note suggesting the king and I would enjoy sipping it during the holiday celebration.”

“Was it a Virt messenger smelling of the catacombs?” Kaylina suspected Jana had paid someone to steal it, rather than wandering through the dark and monster-filled passageways herself, but she had to be responsible.

“It was a known messenger working for a reputable service,” Petalira said.

“I didn’t send it, Your Majesty. Someone’s trying to frame me.” Kaylina looked at Jana.

“Why would a proprietor who’s lived in Port Jirador her entire life and been supplying mead to the castle kitchen, among other reputable establishments, for decades seek to incriminate you?” Petalira asked. “A newcomer working out of a cursed building that nobody with common sense would ever visit.”

Unfortunately, that was a good question. Kaylina had no idea why Jana had ever been concerned about her.

“Because I make wonderful mead using my grandmother’s famous and award-winning recipes,” Kaylina said, though she struggled herself to believe that was the reason. “She’s threatened by me.”

Jana looked at the queen sidelong. Watching for her reaction? To see if she believed that?

Could Kaylina have stumbled upon the truth? Maybe Jana had, from the beginning, given Kaylina more credit than anyone else had and thought she did have what it took to be legitimate competition. Maybe she thought Grandma and the family were backing Kaylina and would send their support to make sure the meadery was a success.

“That’s laughable,” Petalira said. “Besides, Jana has nothing to prove to me. She did not send me poisoned mead.”

“Neither did I. And it’s not poisoned.” Kaylina couldn’t keep the exasperation out of her voice.

Irritation flickered in the queen’s eyes, but all she said was, “If you are certain of that, then you won’t hesitate to enjoy a few swallows.”

She pushed the bottle toward the edge of the desk and beckoned Kaylina in invitation.

“Of course not.” Kaylina stepped forward.

Vlerion held out a hand to stop her. “The bottle has been out of your possession for many hours.”

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