Page 21 of The Sorrow of Shadows

“And you and your wife have been married since you were very young?”

“Since we were twenty-three,” he confirms.

“So, you’ve spent nearly one hundred and seventy years together. How would you feel if you were to lose her, then find yourself being pressured into marrying another just a month after her passing?”

“I...I would call them crazy. There’s no way I would marry so soon; it would be disrespectful to her memory.”

“I was blessed with twenty-nine years with my soulmate. Twenty. Nine. Years. A mere fraction of what you have spent with your wife. I will take advice from youonlywhen you have felt my pain. I am just out of the mourning period. It’s been barely six weeks, and you want to rush me into marrying another? I will not disrespect his memory. I pray you never feel what I feel, but if you ever do, we can talk then. That is all I will say on the matter.”

Just like that, the conversation is over. Council members shift uncomfortably, several rising to leave the meeting.

“I have something else I would like to bring to the table, Your Majesty,” Lord Seamus says.

“Get on with it,” Genevieve says impatiently.

He turns his attention to Breyla. “General, you didn’t return home for your father’s funeral—why is that?”

Breyla’s face is completely unreadable as she responds, “I was unable to return home for his last rites, and the reasoning is my own. I owe you no explanation, Lord Seamus.”

“Indeed, but I think you’ll find I am not the only one wondering why you would bother returning now when you couldn’t be bothered to see your father off into the afterlife.” Lord Seamus’ words are accusatory and laced with venom.

“Be that as it may, I answer to none of you. Remember your place, Seamus,” Breyla growls.

Genevieve stands, resting her palms on the table as she stares down Lord Seamus. “What is your point, My Lord?”

“I have it on good authority that Breyla’s true purpose inbeing in the capital is to make a move for the throne herself. She plans to displace you as queen. It appears that she didn’t care about the death of her Father, seeing as she couldn’t be bothered to come home when he passed. She only bothered to return when she learned about your engagement to Lord Aurelius. How do we know she isn’t the one behind his attempted murder? She wants the throne and needs the two of you out of the way.”

I see a slight smile at the corner of Breyla’s mouth before her, the queen, and Elijah are all laughing. The other council members look confused, but Seamus looks utterly irate.

Trying to catch her breath, Breyla gasps, “Who in the world told you that? I have no intention of reaching foranycrown. I understand I will wear it one day, but I will do whatever I can to prolong that time.” She winks at Lord Seamus. “Thanks for the laugh, though. I think we all really needed that.”

Lord Seamus is fuming, his heart beating so rapidly I fear it might fail him. If only we could be so lucky. He opens his mouth to speak but is silenced by the whoosh of a slim dagger landing in the wood of the table barely an inch from his right hand.

Eyes wide, he looks up to Breyla, who is now wearing a sinister smile. “Oh, and Seamus?” she sing-songs.

“Yes,” he grits out.

“If I were going to kill someone, I wouldn’t use poison. I’d slit their fucking throat,” Breyla says, turning on her heel to exit the room.

“Now, if you’ll excuse us, we have servants to question and a murderer to find,” I say, finally ending the meeting. I retrieve Breyla’s dagger as everyone exits the meeting room. I’m a few paces behind Breyla, but quickly close the distance and grab her wrist, pulling her into an alcove in the hallway.

“Okay, Princess, start talking,” I demand.

She smiles coyly at me. “Is that normally what people do when they’re pulled into dark corners by dark sinful males?”Darkness surrounds us as her shadows wrap around our bodies, helping blend us into the wall's stonework. Anyone passing by would see an empty alcove, and the secrecy of our conversation only contributes to the feeling that I shouldn’t be this close to Breyla. Logically, I should be putting space between us, but my logic had a habit of fleeing when it came to her.

I lean in close, trapping her against the stone wall and whisper, “Oh, little demon, there aremanyother things I would prefer to do in this situation.” I sense her heart beating faster and her eyes widening. “That’s not the reason for this conversation. I need to know who wants me dead as much as you do—probably more. But what I really want to know is why you named me for questioning the servants? What value do I add in comparison to Jade?” It was a valid question; one that anyone would ask.

She grins widely at me. “Oh, Aurelius. I know your secret.”

“Oh? Is that so? And what might that secret be?” I keep my tone neutral to not betray my panic. Thanks to Gen, I'm keeping more than one secret, so I’m eager to hear which one she knows.

“You may be known for what you can do with blood, but I know you have an Anima Gift. You keep it hidden well; I’ll give you that. It was always impossible to lie to you, and I always wondered why, but one day it just clicked. It’s not just me—you know whenanyonelies.” She smiles triumphantly.

A sigh of relief gets trapped in my throat. “That’s not quite all of it, but it’s the gist. I don’t know how you figured it out, but please keep that to yourself.”

“Of course, My Lord. It will be difficult to keep from Jade during the investigation, though.”

I trail my hand up the wall next to her, letting my fingers nearly touch her, but resisting—just barely. When my hand reaches her neck, I wrap my fingers around her slender throat and squeeze. My grip is firm, but not painful, to accentuate my next point. “You can tell her if you must, but if I find out anyone else knows...you will regret it.”

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