Page 97 of Once Upon a Crown
“You should talk to Cai. I’m sure he’s been told of your arrival. First, let’s get you to your rooms.”
Rhen offered to take her as I called for a servant to bring her luggage.
Lance fell into step beside me. “He’s dead, isn’t he? And based on the look on your face, it was probably Cai who killed him.”
“Not a word,” I said under my breath.
* * *
“You said you wanted to speak to me?” I asked Rhen once Gwen and Lance had been settled.
“Yes, I do, but we should probably go somewhere more private.” Rhen looked over his shoulder as if someone might be listening to us.
“Is it about the diary?” I asked in a hushed tone, and he nodded.
“All right, let’s find somewhere we can talk without interruption.” We walked side by side in silence, heading towards the nearest study. My stomach rumbled, not loud enough for anyone to hear but enough to indicate that I was, in fact, quite hungry. I stopped a servant who passed us, asking if they would bring some food and something warm to drink for me and Rhen.
It wasn’t Cai’s personal study but a much smaller one. Outside the window, I saw the last traces of snow on the palace ground that had yet to melt away. The study was cold and dark with no fire to warm the room. Neither Rhen nor I took a seat.
“So, I think there might be a link between the objects,” Rhen said once he’d closed the door. He hardly wore his uniform these days, spending most of his time in the library or a study, poring over the pages of the old king’s diary. He was desperate for an answer, like the rest of us.
“King Evrin made an entry about the queen’s slow descent into madness and how she grew more hungry for power and violence. The king decided to track down the goldsmith who’d forged the objects in the first place, since he was the only one who knew what kind of magic was used.”
Of course, in all of this no one had really given the goldsmith much thought, even though he was the one who’d made it all possible.
“Turns out the goldsmith hailed from a line of magic wielders who came from the continent. But because of their abilities, they were often persecuted. At this point, there was no one left from their legacy apart from the goldsmith and his family. The magic he’d been taught by his forefathers was so ancient and rare that no one knew it even existed anymore.”
“So did the king find him?” I rubbed my hands together, trying to create some warmth.
“Well kind of. It took some time to track down the goldsmith, but when they found him, he’d killed himself and his family had disappeared.”
“So, it was just another dead end?”
“Not entirely.” Rhen rubbed his hand over his face, where a little stubble had grown. “The smithy was covered in scribblings, most of it incomprehensible, but the king and his men did find a little information with regards to the stones.”
There was a light knock on the door before the servant girl entered, carrying a tray.
“Thank you,” I told her as she set the tray down on the nearest table. There were two cups of warm cider and a plate of small pies, steaming in the cold room.
The servant girl nodded again, and I caught her looking at Rhen admiringly before leaving the room. I could hardly blame her. Rhen was a tall man with a strong jawline and deep browneyes. It was understandable that girls would find him attractive. Not to mention that he was a captain of the royal guard.
I grabbed the cup of cider nearest to me, holding it with both hands so I could warm them.
“So, you were saying about the information they found,” I encouraged him to continue, taking a long sip of the cider, revelling in the way it warmed me.
“Yes.” Rhen cleared his throat, trying to remember the last thing he’d said. “Right, so when the smith had placed the magic within the objects, he’d linked them all together.”
I reached for one of the small pies. Biting into it, I found it to be minced meat, the pastry crunchy in my mouth. It might just have been the best thing I’d ever eaten. Either that or I was really starved. Both options seemed likely.
“A link? That’s interesting. What does that mean for us?” The thought gave me the slightest bit of hope that we stood a chance of finding the third object. Especially now, when it mattered more than ever.
“I can’t be a hundred per cent certain. I think even the king was making assumptions at this point. But he believed that one object might be used to find the other. I’m not exactly sure how, but there is a possibility at least,” Rhen said, drinking his cider.
Luckily, we had not just one but two of the other objects, and if what Rhen said was true and we could somehow use them to find the third, this significantly increased our chances.
“This is good news. Thank you for all your trouble. I’m sure Cai will be happy to hear we have a new lead, as well.”
“Speaking of which.” He put the empty cup back on the tray. “Is everything all right between you two?”
