Page 117 of A Dance of Shadows

That’s not exactly how Father explained it to me, but it’s not inaccurate either. I suspect Linus will prefer to think of strength rather than calm.

I open the box to show him the moonstone trinket. “After your interest in the Sabrellian relic and the blessed spring waters, I thought you might appreciate this ornament as well.”

Linus cocks his head with an unreadable expression and lifts the pendant by its gold chain. It isn’t a particularly ostentatious piece, the circular pendant only about as wide as his thumb.

As he peers at the sigil etched on the back, the baby bumps the inside of my belly with an elbow or a knee. I keepquiet, knowing this version of my husband won’t revel in the knowledge of his supposed heir’s vitality.

He clicks his tongue. “You shouldn’t imagine this makes up for your failings with Sabrelle’s armband.”

I duck my head. “That wasn’t my intention. Whatever can add to your glory, you should have, shouldn’t you?”

“I suppose I should,” Linus says, but he doesn’t sound all that enthused. Rather than fasten the chain around his neck, he tucks the pendant into his trouser pocket.

Will it have any effect in there? Not much if any, but I can’t see how pressing the matter will make him more compliant rather than less.

He takes my arm, keeping the same noncommittal tone. “Very considerate of you. Now let’s not deprive our court of my honored presence any longer.”

“Of course not, husband.”

I did the best I could.

When we amble out into the full sunlight of the back gardens, Raul is standing with a couple of baronissas near the doorway. He doesn’t look my way, but he curls his fingers by his side to tell me he’s already completed his task.

I finally managed to procure a packet of one of Accasy’s forbidden poisons just a couple of days ago. I left it near the hidden entrance to my rooms for Raul to pick up overnight, but yesterday Gallum never joined the guards watching over us.

We’re set to leave in just a few days to ensure we make it through the mountain pass to Goric before the first winter snow. This may be the only chance I get to determine the full extent of any conspiracy against me—and to remove the figure who seems to be my most obvious enemy.

I’ve pored over Marc’s record book several times. Not one of the staff or soldiers who’ve joined us on our tour has a gift I canimagine being used to crack a rock from a cliffside—other than Gallum.

Whether he was responsible for the other “accidents” that befell me, I can’t be sure. But his gift is too dangerous to leave unchecked regardless. Remembering the cold glare he aimed at my people before he followed Linus’s orders sends a shiver down my spine.

I circulate through the garden at my husband’s side, taking note of where Gallum has stationed himself. When my husband saunters off to join a boisterous conversation with a few of his noble friends, I abandon the security of his guards to seek out my own dear companions.

Nica and Cataline are chattering in a small cluster of other Accasian noblewomen I wasn’t quite as close with. At my approach, they part to make room for me in their circle. I spread around my greeting, but I can’t make my request in front of all of them.

After several minutes of conversation that ranges from the latest flirtations to the winter preparations around their estates, I lean a little closer to Nica. “You and Cataline were going to show me that new type of limerberry bush you consulted with the royal gardeners on.”

They actually already showed off the plant they contributed to with Nica’s interest in botany and Cataline’s insight as a Prospiran dedicat, but they aren’t my closest friends without reason. Nica picks up on my need for a private conversation without skipping a beat. “Of course.”

As the three of us stroll away from the group, Nica shoots me a curious look. “What’s on your mind, Your Imperial Highness?”

The lightly teasing note she adds to the title eases my nerves. We’ve had plenty of moments to talk since I arrived, even ventured out to a few of our favorite haunts in the city with my guards keeping close watch, but my sense of a wall between ushasn’t diminished. There are lines I can’t cross, things I can’t say, at least not in present circumstances.

But they still see me as their friend as well as their empress. I’ve always been able to count on them.

I pitch my voice low. “I could use your help. I fear one of the soldiers who’s accompanied the imperial convoy has hostile intentions against me.”

Cataline’s expression tenses with worry. “What? Surely the emperor wouldn’t tolerate that behavior?”

“He hasn’t observed what I have, and he’s unlikely to believe it without proof. I’ve arranged the means for that, but if I put forward the accusation myself, I may place myself in even more danger.”

Nica squares her shoulders. “We’ll have your back. If anyone tries to hurt you while you’re here—I beat my fencing instructor in our last sparring match, you know.”

Cataline makes a face at her. “I hardly think anyone’s going to come at Aurelia with a fencing sword.”

“It’s the principle of the thing. I can stab someone where it hurts.”

The corner of my mouth twitches upward. “I don’t expect it to come to that. I simply need someone else to raise a complaint so that the soldier will be searched and the evidence found to allow my parents to arrest him. And two complaints will be more effective than one.”

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