Page 117 of Charmless
“Hush, Ella. Your memory is still confused from the pixie dust.” Horatio moved closer, resting his hand protectively on my shoulder. “I killed the prince, and I am fully prepared to accept the consequences.”
“No, you won’t.” Mal growled at him. “Because I did it.”
“Stop it, both of you,” I cried. “If you think I will allow either of you to take the blame?—”
“Be quiet, Ella!” Mal and Horatio commanded in unison. They tried to talk over each other, both declaring they had killed Florian until Greenleaf flung up his hands.
“Enough! There is no need for these dramatic attempts at self-sacrifice because no one will ever know what happened last night. I have already begun preparing the official report. King August perished from a stomach ailment?—”
“Because Florian poisoned him.” Mal interrupted.
Ignoring him, Greenleaf went on, “As for the prince, I shall devise some suitable explanation for his death.”
Greenleaf was willing to conceal the truth about Florian’s death? I gaped at him, torn between hope and disbelief, but Mal seized eagerly upon the notion.
“We could tell everyone Florian tossed his hair and walked into a tree. Or he stopped to admire his reflection in a stream, fell in and drowned.”
“Thank you, Mr. Hawkridge,” Greenleaf said wryly. “I believe I can conjure a more noble end for our prince.”
Although Horatio looked relieved, he protested, “What about the witnesses? The prison guards and Florian’s own men.”
“All too befuddled by pixie dust to have any good recollection and I can ensure that they remain so.”
Horatio released a deep breath, looking grateful to Greenleaf for his intervention. Perhaps I should have felt the same. But I rose to my feet, regarding the wizard with suspicion.
“Why would you do that?” I demanded. “Protect me by covering up what really happened.”
“Have I not made it clear, Miss Upton? I have a high regard for your late father and you as well, my dear.” The smile that Greenleaf trained upon me was positively avuncular. Why did I not find it more reassuring?
He continued, “Could you imagine how devastating it would be for our kingdom if the truth got out? That the noble Florian poisoned his own father, and the prince was such a monster, that his betrothed was obliged to slay him. No, far better that the reputation of the Helavalerians remain untarnished as we embark on a new age of prosperity in Arcady. The kind and gentle Prince Kendrick will become our king.”
“That simpleton?” Mal sneered. “He is more addicted to pixie dust than Florian ever was.”
“A habit I shall help him to break. With my guidance, I am sure Prince Kendrick can become a wise and great ruler.”
The wizard’s guidance or his control? Kendrick was a weak man, far easier to manipulate than King August or Prince Florian would have been. I could not help wondering if Sidney Greenleaf had been quietly scheming for years, planning for the day when he would be king in all but name. What would his reaction be if he realized that the man who was our true king stood but a few feet away from him? Despite Sidney’s seeming good will and affability, I had little doubt what he would do to anyone who thwarted his ambitions. Horatio’s life would be instantly forfeited.
Fortunately, Greenleaf appeared to be unaware of what had transpired just before his arrival. Greenleaf rubbed his hands together and said, “Now there is only one other small matter that needs settled, Mr. Hawkridge. The stolen orb. I want it back.”
“Oh, I’ll wager you do.” Mal locked his arms across his chest. “And if I refuse? You’ll have me arrested and tortured again?”
“I should be excessively loath to do so, but you must understand. The disposal of that orb is necessary for the safety and good of the kingdom.”
“For the good of Arcady or your puppet prince?”
Horatio vented a wearied sigh. “For frap’s sake, Hawkridge, just give him the blasted orb.”
Mal cast Horatio a look filled with incredulity and reproach, dismayed that Horatio should be so willing to surrender the object that could prove his birthright. Perhaps Horatio believed we had no other choice, but he ought to have realized by now how stubborn Mal could be.
Mal affected a careless shrug. “I can’t return the orb because I no longer have it. I have no idea where it is.”
“Don’t you?” Greenleaf asked softly. “Then perhaps we should ask your cat.”
Mal stiffened, his face washing pale beneath his bruises. “What cat? I don’t have a cat?”
“What about the one hiding under your bed?” Greenleaf smirked.
I had allowed myself the false hope that Greenleaf had not seen Delphine change to Ebony and hide the orb. But Sidney had just been biding his time.
