Page 19 of The Throne's Undoing

Sylvia whispered something in Dani's ear that made Dani finally settle as well. Dani leaned her head against the wall, closing her eyes as she spun her wedding ring around her finger.

Medenia leaned forward. "You care for Kalisandre, do you not, Graeson?"

Graeson dragged his gaze from the floor to the Tetrian princess and nodded.

"Yet you are all right with taking her against her will and rendering her unconscious?" It was the same question Ellie had asked but held no judgment or ridicule; only bewildered curiosity filled Medenia's words.

"What do you wish for me to say?" Graeson asked, brushing a hand through his hair. "Every moment that passes, every second that Kalisandre remains in this coma, pains me more than the last. It is not a choice I make easily."

"Yet you make it all the same," Medenia murmured.

"Because she cannot make her own choices, not when Domitius has poisoned her mind."

Medenia leaned back, flipping a crystal within her palm as she peered at Kalisanre. "She has been made to believe the bull king was her father. And for better or worse, he has played that role for as long as Kalisandre can remember. It is understandable that--"

"No," Graeson said, cutting her off. "That is not the main problem here. While it is terrible that he has fed Kalisandre a lie her entire life about who he is to her, when the truth was revealed to her, she ignored it. Think about it: if you were to discover that your parent was killed by the person who raised you, would you forgive them so easily?"

Medenia shrugged. "Families can be complicated."

Graeson knew that all too well, but it did not explain everything. Not in this case. "While that may be true, it does not mean you would forgive him so easily if you were in Kalisandre's position."

Medenia paused, then said, "I cannot say what I would do." She tilted her head, her brows furrowing. "You keep saying that Domitius has messed with her mind, Graeson, but how do you know that? What proof do you have?"

Graeson cracked his knuckles. "He confessed it in the tunnels."

"What did he say exactly?"

"He said that her mind has been manipulated."

"Manipulatedhow?" Medenia asked. Then, as her gaze flicked from Kalisandre to Graeson, she gasped, eyes widening. "Does Domitius--"

"No," Graeson said, anticipating the question. "Domitius doesn't bear an ability. If he did, Armen would have discovered it and told us. While he is the one pulling the strings, Domitius is not the one with a gift."

"Then who?" Medenia asked, forehead creasing in confusion.

"The handmaiden."

"The handmaiden?" she repeated.

Graeson nodded. "Kalisandre's handmaiden and best friend is a woman named Myra. She was the other woman we had brought to Pontia originally."

"Wait," Sylvia said, snapping their eyes open. "Thathandmaiden?"

"Yes?" Graeson said, but by the way Sylvia's eyes had widened, the response came out more as a question. Graeson leaned forward. "What is it that you know, Sylvia? Did she say something when you were traveling with her?"

Sylvia shook their head. "Not quite."

"But?" he pressed.

Sylvia's shoulders dropped. "It's more of a hunch. When we were traveling south together, she was...off."

Ellie snorted as she used one of her knives to pick the dirt from her nails. "Why you all expect these women to react positively to being kidnapped is beyond me."

Graeson, ignoring Ellie, asked, "Off how, Sylvia?"

Sylvia tipped their head in Ellie's direction. "Ellie is right, actually. I had expected some sort of reaction from the handmaiden while we traveled--whether that be anger or a form of disassociation. I recall you saying that on your trip north with Kalisandre, the princess fought back. She tried to escape. But the handmaiden? She was...compliant. Friendly even."

Graeson waved a hand dismissively. "That's how she was with the rest of us when we arrived in Pontia. She was sweet, kind, and endearing, especially to Kalisandre. Maybe it's merely her personality? Or perhaps it's what she thought she needed to do to survive when she still believed us to be the enemy?"

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