Page 56 of Caress of Fire
“Maybe a guard overheard us, but that is a stretch. No one was in the room but us.”
“It cannot be one of us.” Henron nodded to Marielle, suddenly intense in his focus. Because they all understood. The killer had finally made a mistake.
And it was going to be his undoing.
“You forgot someone.” Marielle looked at Fedryc, then Henron, then back at Fedryc. “Silva was there in the room with me. She knew.”
Fedryc stared at Marielle with a frown and Henron inclined his head. She was right, Silva had known, but his cousin was so young, it was impossible to think she could be the mastermind behind the assassination of his father and the abduction and torture of a young man.
She simply wasn’t old enough to have such evil in her heart.
“It can’t be Silva.” Fedryc shook his head. “She’s too young, she can’t possibly know Ignio Marula. She’s never even been out of the kingdom so how could she be leading the Knat-Kanassis?”
“Silva could have talked to someone.” Marielle spoke softly, her face careful as she studied his every reaction. “Someone she trusted, someone who has the power to have done all those things.”
“You’re talking about Isobel?”
“Maybe Silva had another confidante. It’s possible. But I just don’t see who else.” Marielle inhaled, then shook her head. “But it doesn’t make sense. Isobel lived her entire life with her brother. His death turned her own life upside down.”
“You are right.” Fedryc growled with frustration. This whole thing made no sense. “Isobel lost her position when my father died. She would not have brought this on herself. Still, she knew my father would have sent Silva to Lord Anion despite her age.”
“There is a difference between murdering Lord Aymond and butchering a hundred people at the border, including children,” Henron pointed out, his face grim and serious. “Your aunt didn’t have any motive for that.”
“No, she didn’t.” Fedryc shook his head. “But this is our only lead.” He took a step back, his mind rebelling against the idea of such a betrayal, but in the end his feelings didn’t matter.
Isobel Haal had just become their main suspect.
At his side, Henron cursed in Delradon.
Fedryc felt the rage well inside his chest. He had been right all along. The snake in his house was much closer than he’d thought. It was his very blood.
“I need more proof before I accuse my aunt of this abomination.” Fedryc turned to Henron, who returned his stare with a cold resolve. “You will maintain a detailed surveillance on the Lady Isobel. Arrest her at the first indication of wrongdoing.”
Marielle’s eyes returned to Rela and Fedryc watched the landscape of pain and anger cross her features. Pain and anger that reflected his own.
* * *
Dr. Ylco had senther away a few hours ago, insisting that Rela wasn’t going to wake up any time soon. Marielle felt guilty about leaving the girl alone in the medical rooms, but exhaustion had eaten away at the edges of her mind so she hadn’t protested.
At least, not very much.
Now that she was back in the rooms she shared with Fedryc, fear took hold of her again. This new suspicion that Isobel was at the heart of the Knat-Kanassis’ encroachment on Aalstad was a new development she hadn’t seen coming.
Marielle hugged herself, looking out of the large window in her bedroom.
This view had become her refuge against the constant fear of living in the Draekon castle. Behind her, the door to the washroom opened and Marielle heard Fedryc’s wet footsteps on the stone. His shower had been long, to wash off the dirt and blood on his body and his soul. She understood.
“I am sorry.” Fedryc’s voice came from behind her, but Marielle didn’t turn around. “I wish I could have brought your brother back.”
“You tried.” She spoke from her heart. “And you were right. If I had gone, not only would I not have found Devan, but I would surely be dead by now. Now we at least know the killer has some link or another to Silva and Isobel.”
“Yes, we do.” Fedryc’s hands closed on her waist and she was pulled against the hardness of his hot, wet, naked chest. Marielle was so grateful for his strength when she found her own crumbling under the weight of her worry. “And it’s thanks to you and your sharp mind. Without you, I would never have thought it was Silva’s presence that proved a weak link in our armor.”
Marielle sighed. “She’s not to blame. It’s not her fault.”
“No,” Fedryc said close to Marielle’s cheek. “But it’s someone close to her. It’s the first lead we have and I’m not going to let it go.”
“I know.” Marielle twisted in Fedryc’s embrace and found herself molded to his tall, strong form. Warm water dripped from the hair on his forehead and rolled all the way between her breasts. “But it’s a start. And you will have to be more careful than ever. If the killer suspects anything, he may lash out, and you’re his most likely victim. Trust no one from now on.”
