Page 216 of A Queen's Game
Monty met them outside the inn, eyes darting between the two, catching what had happened. Marietta wouldn’t meet Keyain’s gaze; she held her head high in the opposite direction, trying to have some pride still.
Keyain’s heavy footsteps approached behind her, his hand falling on her shoulder. Her lips trembled, turning to him. “I guess this is it, Mar.” He fought back his tears, his jaw tightening.
“It is.” Marietta looked up into his face, memorizing his features. The spattering of freckles. The cut of his cheekbones. The arch of his lips. Each detail she loved, that she would miss.
“Monty will take you to Kentro. I figured you’d find your own guard after that.”
Marietta nodded, tears sliding down her cheeks.
Keyain rubbed his eyes before the tears fell. “I love you so much, Mar, always will.”
“I’ll always love you, too.”
He kissed her one last time, his lips lingering, not wanting to pull away, not wanting the end to come.
Marietta turned from him, gasping for a breath. She couldn’t look at him; she would change her mind.
Monty pulled up the horses beside her. “Ready?”
She mounted her horse, taking a deep breath, and kicked her steed into motion with Monty at her side.
Marietta didn’t let herself glance back to see Keyain standing alone in the middle of the street. She didn’t let herself imprint the pain of his expression into her mind. Their futures were separate from one another, regardless of their love. Or perhaps because of it. She loved him enough to let him go. Keyain would live in his large house with the kids he always wanted, but Marietta would never be a part of it.
Chapter Eighty-Three
Marietta
Later that afternoon, Amryth rushed into the suite and released her anger. Of the things that Marietta could have said, why did she say pregnant?
“Are you out of your gods damned mind? They’re going to know,” she hissed, her voice dropping.
“I know,” Marietta hissed back. “It was stupid, but what else was I going to say?”
“Literally anything but that, Marietta. I hope your outing was worth it.” Amryth plopped down at the dining table, rubbing her temples.
“It was. Someone is leaking information from Satiros, and I’m one of their suspects.”
Amryth dropped her hands with a frown. “Please tell me you’re not.” When she saw Marietta’s face, she sighed. “Better yet, don’t tell me. I’d rather not be an accomplice to treason. Are you their only suspect?”
“No, Queen Valeriya is, too.”
Amryth laughed. “The Queen seems more viable a suspect than you. I bet they only threw out your name because of the temple.”
Marietta leaned away so Amryth wouldn’t see her face. She should tell Amryth the truth about how she was helping Valeriya steal information. Amryth wouldn’t be against it. She had turned her back on Keyain already; but Marietta couldn’t do it there, not knowing who watched them. She’d have to wait until they left the palace. Marietta glanced over her shoulder at Amryth. “I’m not sure, but the King is keeping watch on the Queen and I both.”
“What are you going to do when they find out you’re not pregnant?”
“By then, I should be an official Iros and protected by the temple.”
Amryth nodded her head. “So, you’ve decided, and you finally have a logical plan.”
“Thanks,” she said, rolling her eyes.
“If the King and his council think you’re committing treason, the temple can’t protect you from their investigation, let alone if you’re found guilty.
She didn’t know that. Panic bloomed in her gut but vanished as warmth flared in her chest from the goddess. “Can we go to the temple in the morning? Coryn and Deania will need to know.”
“You’ll have to ask Keyain, though I suspect half of Satiros already knows the news.” Amryth gave her a leveling stare. “You weren’t exactly subtle about your fake announcement.”
