Page 223 of A Queen's Game
She pointed at him with her fork. “And a lot more fun, but our child will still be half-elven.”
Keyain rolled his eyes. “That doesn’t matter.”
“Doesn’t it, though?” Marietta tilted her head with a raised brow. “Imagine our daughter at court and whatever noble could have a marriage license signed without her consent, let alone yours.”
“My child wouldn’t. There are perks to being in positions of power.”
Marietta set down her fork, the food turning to lead in her stomach. “So you recognize that it’s wrong to do?”
“Well, if it’s our child—”
“What if it was me?” she snapped.
“Mar, calm down. Anger isn’t good for the baby.”
Marietta took a deep breath, closing her eyes. “It’s what you did to me, and it happens to pilinos all over Satiros, Keyain. If it’s wrong for our child, then it’s wrong for anyone. You don’t get to pick and choose the use case of your morals.”
“This is why we don’t get along. Everything turns into a fight with you,” Keyain answered, cutting into his food.
She sat back, realizing it was her last meal with Keyain, her last evening with him. As it was in the beginning, he still didn’tunderstand how his views hurt her, or why they were a problem. It was the proof she needed. Keyain would never change.
“What?” he said, catching her gaze.
“Nothing.” She forced a smile. “What baby names do you like?”
Keyain rambled on about the non-existent baby until they climbed into bed, thinking it was a safe topic. After settling, Keyain rolled over to face her. “I’m still upset by you, more than you could ever understand, but I’m trying to work past it for the sake of our child. I love you, Marietta, and I’m excited about getting this third opportunity with our relationship.”
“I love you, too,” she said, the lie coming easy.
In the dark, Keyain leaned over with a kiss. “Life will be easier in the country, I promise.” With his last words, he rolled over, making a point not to sleep next to Marietta.
Life on his estate would be easy, away from court, away from the King and Queen. Marietta would never know what that kind of life was.
When Keyain’s breathing turned heavy, she slipped out of bed, retrieving the papers from her wardrobe. The nymph dagger rested precariously in her pocket. At the threshold of the bedroom, she looked one last time to Keyain. Leaving in the night seemed fitting, considering it was how he stole her in the first place.
Marietta pondered what life with Keyain would have been like if she married him all those years ago. Would she have learned to love it? Would any of it be different? Perhaps she and Keyain would love each other, filling his countryside manner with kids. She shook her head, her final goodbye to Keyain.
The hidden door in Keyain’s office swung open silently, though she struggled to close it in the dark of the stairwell. Marietta didn’t risk lighting her light globe until she stumbled down the spiraling staircase, arriving at the adjacent corridorwell below the palace. Marietta thanked whatever god or goddess blessed her with a memory for directions as she retraced her way to Valeriya’s secret room. After a few wrong turns, she arrived at the door.
With a deep breath, she knocked. No noise came from the other side. She waited a moment and reached to knock again, but the door cracked open, revealing the Queen’s face before opening up wider.
“Marietta, I’m so happy to see you,” she softly said after she shut and locked the door.
“I don’t have a lot of time, Valeriya.” The Queen smiled as Marietta spoke her name. “I dug through Keyain’s files. I have proof that there is a spy in the Exisotis. I also found this coded message. If they felt the need to hide the meaning, then it’s probably worth knowing.”
She handed the papers over to the Queen, who glanced through them. “You’re right. They have word-for-word documentation from their meetings, a lot of it being from Tilan.”
“We need to get this to them as soon as possible. Were you able to deliver my notes on Minister Royir’s ledgers?”
Valeriya nodded her head. “I delivered them last week.”
“Good.” Marietta paused before adding, “King Wyltam and his council know one of us is leaking information.” She waited for Valeriya to mention the incident with Wyltam, but she didn’t.
Instead, the Queen gave her a sad smile. “This meeting will be the last we can have. I’m leaving Satiros. We’re no longer safe here.” She paused, reaching for Marietta’s hand. “Come with me. I have a way for us to escape.”
“Oh,” Marietta hesitated, surprised by the offer.
“Don’t say yes or no just yet. I have another thing to show you, one last secret. It will probably influence your decision to stay or leave, but you need to see this before I go.”
