Chapter 76

My eyes start to blur as I lean over the desk, reading one name than another. The Chantarelle estate has become a maze of deeds, transfers, and suspicious signatures, every page more complicated than the last. It would almost be easier to give up and burn the whole pile.

I sigh. There is too much depending on this. The Queen wants Kaine removed one way or another. I need to prove her guilt in all of this before it’s too late.

I look down at my stomach, at the baby growing inside me. I need to work fast. It is only a matter of time before my pregnancy is discovered and people start asking questions.

I try to push back my panic at being discovered. Every day feels a little harder. I know eventually my symptoms will ease, but by that time I will be beginning to show.

My head pounds and I check the time. I need to eat something.

I feel Nara’s displeasure with me. Ever since I discovered my pregnancy, she has been worried about how well I’ve been taking care of myself. I understand her concern.

I stand and stretch before heading out of the small office in search of food. As I walk I mull over the details of the case. If I can prove the Queen’s ties to Lady Chantarelle’s father, if I can expose her connection to Kaine’s mother’s death, she will be ousted and unable to interfere with the line of succession.

I return to my office sometime later to see Kaine already waiting for me. I take my seat across from him, examining his posture. He looks tense. I observe the way his jaw clenches every few minutes and I resist the urge to scold him for grinding his teeth.

He hasn’t said much tonight, and I understand. Lila’s suspicions have only served to make this case more real, more dangerous.

I reach across him to grab another document, and my hand brushes his where he works. A spark shoots through me at the point of contact, and I freeze. Although the spot where our hands meet is small I find myself drawn to the warmth, unable to pull away.

I am transfixed and for a beat too long, I don’t move.

Nara stirs and I feel her desire for me to move closer, to claim him. I feel the now familiar burn in my mark, and the way the bond sings to me and for a second I want to give in.

Then I realize what I'm doing.

My hand is still touching his. I realize that what should have been only momentary contact has stretched into seconds. My face heats in embarrassment and I yank my hand back too quickly, knocking over the stack of files.

I scramble to right them but only make more of a mess. Kaine looks me in confusion, and my embarrassment deepens as his eyes meet mine.

I snap before I can think better of it. “Try to write a little neater, I can hardly make out the words on your reports.”

I feel my face grow warmer at my needless outburst. I want to run out of the room, but I hold his gaze in an attempt to hide my embarrassment.

Kaine looks like he wants to say something, opening and closing his mouth a few times, but eventually he shakes his head and goes back to what he was working on again.

The air in the room feels stifling, but I do my best to ignore it and remain professional.

Now that my focus has slipped once, I find it harder to concentrate on the task at hand. I catch my eyes wandering more than once to the sharp set of Kaine’s jaw and his thick, dark lashes as he lowers his eyes to read something.

I try to shake the feeling, but my thoughts continue to wander as we sit across from one another. My imagination starts to take over and I can practically hear his deep voice, just behind my ear, so close that it sends vibrations down my spine.

I shift in my seat, and Kaine looks up. “Everything alright?”

I nod.

As the hours pass, my traitorous mind and body continue to react to his presence. He stretches and I nearly moan in appreciation as his shirt lifts, revealing a strip of skin that I want to lick.

Lick? I pinch myself under the table. I cannot keep doing this.

“I just remembered, I have a backlog of information I need to file for the new recruits. I need to get that done by morning. Why don’t we call it here?”

He gives me an odd look but nods. “Alright.”

He makes his way across the room, looking back at me before stepping out. I look down to avoid his eyes. I wait until I can hear his footsteps echoing down the hall before I let out a sigh of relief.

Now that Kaine is gone it is easier to focus, and I look over his work, this time with a clear mind. I nod to myself. If I can just focus when he’s around, I really believe that we can expose his stepmother.

I take a quick look out the window and see that the sun has long since set. I gather to files, making sure the most important ones are on top for tomorrow and make my way out of my office, locking the door behind me.

Now that the work is done for the evening, I let my mind wander. I think about the baby growing inside me and smile. Despite everything, I’m excited to be a mother.

I am knocked out of my reverie by the sound of quiet footsteps in the distance, too quiet. It sounds like someone is purposefully sneaking around. I slow my own pace, matching that of the other person’s to remain undetected.

When I come to the corner I stop. I see Robert standing some distance away near the Queen’s private corridor.

I watch for a moment, holding my breath to see what he will do. Robert stays where is for a moment looking around, before entering.

My heart hammers in my chest. He had almost seen me. I wrack my mind for what Robert would be doing so near the Queen’s rooms this late in the evening.

He’s not assigned to her protection as far as I know. I think about following, but the risk is too great. I can’t afford to be seen snooping around the Queen’s offices this close to finding out the truth about her and Kaine’s mother.

I walk past the corridor, looking to see if any particular door is ajar, and when I see the one to very end is, I make a mental note of it.

I’ve lingered long enough. I continue in the direction of my quarters, making sure not to seem too concerned with anything in particular.

Once I make it inside, I lock the doors and quickly ready myself for bed. Once I’ve sunk into the safety of my bed I let myself think about what Robert was up to. Was he working for or against the Queen?

Kaine

I leave Ember’s office, confused about her recent changes in behavior. She wasn’t the person who poisoned me, I believe that after what Lila said, but something else is going on with her.

I don’t know what, but she’s hiding something.

I think back to my moments of suspicion. She had been so cold to me in the time leading up to my accusation. It stung more than I care to admit.

Despite that, it had at least become predictable. Now I have no idea what she could be thinking.

Tonight, her hand lingered when it brushed against mine. I should have pulled away when she didn’t but I wanted to see what she would do. After a moment she snatched it away like I had burned her and snarled some petty insult at me.

That’s the part I can’t wrap my head around. For a moment it will seem like things used to be, our conversation will come easily, we work. The next minute the air is thick with tension, whether that be anger, or something else.

I sigh as I remember what she had said a few days prior. “Before I go.”

What does she mean by that? Surely, she wasn’t plan on leaving the guard. I know how much she had worked for this.

I think about the Queen and all the danger Ember had been in lately. Is it possible that someone is pressuring her to go?