Page 90 of The War and Deceit Series omnibus

He hums his agreement, dipping his head in acknowledgement. “You’re right, and that is the only reason we allow them to live,” he states casually, like he’s discussing the weather.

My blood runs cold at the statement, a thought coming to me… “So, if we were to win the war…”

“We would no longer need the magicians. We could finally be rid of two enemies in one go.” Glee lights up his face, and he’s solost in his own fantasy world, he doesn’t see my look of horror before I can school my expression.

“The magicians aren’t your enemy. They love the Great Mother, they serve her, they protect us,” I tell him, needing him to understand. “They are good people.”

Smiling at me like I’m a child, he simply shakes his head. “Some sacrifices need to be made in war,” he reasons, like I couldn’t possibly understand. But I understand perfectly.

“You are talking about mass genocide.” Pulling away from the prince, I take a step back, not wanting his hands on me for a moment longer.

The music has stopped, as the musicians are changing their sheet music, and my voice is louder than I had planned, but in my horror, I don’t seem to care. The people around us gasp and step back, watching us with shocked glances.

“Lady Clarissa, I think you must be confused,” the prince replies loudly in a soothing tone, but I’ve had enough.

Turning, I stalk over to Wilson and Aileen, the latter of which is watching me with an impressed but stunned expression. Reaching their sides, I just shake my head, not wanting to talk about it and trying to quell the feeling of his hands on me.

The meal is exquisite, as usual, but I don’t have much of an appetite, so I push most of the food around my plate. There’s a part of me that’s disgusted with myself for wasting food when, as a slave, I would have been lucky to even receive a scrap of bread to get me through the day. My friends try to make conversation with me, as well as a kindly lord who’s sitting opposite us for the week, but I just can’t focus on anything. I’m jittery, and adrenaline runs through my body in a fight or flight response, although I’m not quite sure what has triggered it. When the dessert plates have been taken away and the servants file in with the gilded boxes, I’m suddenly filled with calm. This is it, this iswhy I can’t focus. I made a scene in front of the crown prince, of course it will be me who has the poisoned chocolate.

A servant places a box in front of me, whispering, “Beloved,” before scurrying away. Flipping open the lid, I stare down at the innocent-looking chocolate. I feel a heavy gaze and I look up, seeing Rhydian watching me with a smile. He lifts his wine glass, as if in toast, and my hands start to shake.

Another servant comes up to the table and places a box in front of Aileen, but she’s looking at me.

“Beloved,” she whispers, but she says it urgently, and as I frown at her, she tilts her head ever so slightly towards the box, and if I hadn’t been looking directly at her, I wouldn’t have seen. My Goddess mark on my wrist bursts to life, glowing brightly as my body is filled with power, and I realise I was wrong—Aileen’s got a poisoned chocolate.

The servant hurries off just as the king stands, gazing around and seeing everyone has their box, he nods. “Eat,” he commands, and all the ladies reach for their chocolates. All except me. I don’t have time to think, to plan a more conspicuous way of doing this, but there is no question in my mind. I won’t let my friend die.

“No!” I shout, knocking Aileen’s hand away from the box. She looks at me, shocked, and I feel everyone else in the room doing the same. The king is still standing, his eyes narrowed on me, and a shiver goes down my spine. I’ve just lost my usefulness to him.

“I said, eat.” He doesn’t raise his voice, but somehow it carries through the hall as if he’s standing right in front of me.

“Clarissa, what are you doing?” Wilson hisses, his skin pale. I hate that I’m putting him through this.

Reaching across the table, I switch my box with Aileen’s, making sure she sees my glowing Goddess mark in the process.I don’t try to hide what I’m doing, and a low mumbling fills the hall.

“Eat the chocolate from my box,” I tell Aileen in a low voice. It’s important that she’s seen eating one of them, obeying the king, but she won’t be safe for long. For whatever reason, she has a target on her back now. “Then, when this is over, find your father, tell him what happened here, and then go to the Queen’s Courtyard. There will be someone waiting there, hidden. He will help you escape.”

“What?” She’s looking at me in surprise, and I know she understands the consequences of my little rebellion as tears gather in the corner of her eyes.

“Clarissa, what are you saying?” Wilson leans across Aileen, placing his hand on my arm. He looks confused, but hurt lines his face. He might not understand what just happened, but he knows I’ve been hiding something from him.

“Switch those boxes back. That is an order,” the king bellows. I don’t look up from Wilson or Aileen, but out the corner of my eye, I can see guards making their way towards us. Ignoring them, I just smile at my friends, hoping they don’t see past it and notice how frightened I am.

“Come on, Wilson, you know what was going to happen here tonight. You’re going to lose one of us either way, at least this way it’s me.”

He shakes his head as if the action could negate what I’m saying. He wants to fight for me, but I know he would have to choose between me and Aileen. I won’t make him do that. His hand tightens on my arm. “Clarissa—”

Removing his hand, I push from my chair and smile at the king.

“Your Majesty, is there a problem?” My comment sends another ripple of muttering through the guests. I feel sick to mystomach, and my hands are trembling, so I ball them into fists which I hide under the table.

“You will eat from the box you were given.” The king stares at me, his voice settling back to his normal volume as he expects me to jump to follow his order. Rhydian sits forward on his throne, watching me with cruel glee as if all his wishes have come true. I’ve seen looks like that before, and it reminds me of children who torture small animals for fun. Fighting a shudder, I turn back to the king and tilt my head to one side as if I don’t understand. The king knows what I’m doing. If I outright defy him, he could have me killed on the spot, and when he doesn’t, that will raise suspicions. There’s a reason they are keeping me alive—I just don’t know why—or they would have killed me by now. So, instead, I pretend to be dense, and let the watching lords and ladies think I’m just stupid.

“So are you saying that one of these is different? Are you going to poison myself or Lady Aileen?”

Rhydian laughs, realising what I’m doing and enjoying my act. The king scowls further.

“I’m saying that—”

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