Page 83 of A Lie so Pretty and Poisonous

I looked up at Anya, silently thanking her.

King Torrish stood after his fourth tankard of ale. The permanent scowl on his face was only eclipsed by the swaying of his body. “Dinner is over. I have a meeting with my council to discuss Edenalee,” he grumbled, his speech slurred.

My head turned to King Torrish at the mention of my home. Gabriel quickly stood and moved to his side. “Brother, allow me to accompany you to the council room. There is much to discuss about the militia and the new developments I mentioned to you.” He looked at me reassuringly.

“Yes, yes. I need to strategize on all fronts. Bring the map,” the king commanded.

Gabriel left in a hurry with Torrish without so much as a word to me, even leaving behind his sword in haste. I dragged my eyes down the table as seraphs stood, when my gaze crashed with Queen Mollah’s. She was staring at me, a look of indifference on her face, but something behind her eyes made me jumpy. I moved to stand with Cora.

“Lady Aurora. A word, if I may,” the queen said with a painted-on smile.

I paused. “Of course, Your Majesty.”

Oh, what in the underworld now?

Anya nodded to me, took Cora’s hand, and led her out of the dining hall. When the room cleared, Queen Mollah moved to sit next to me, taking Gabriel’s seat. Her sweet smile was still perfectly in place, but her demeanor was tense. “I want to tell you how wonderful you are at adapting to your new surroundings, Aurora. It must be hard to be a human in a seraph land. Cora is such a joy, and my son tells me they are the best of friends. Tell me, how are you feeling about Tironaill so far?”

“Thank you, Your Majesty. I am sometimes confused and sometimes elated, but everyone has been so welcoming. A vastly different interaction than I thought I would have coming here.” I kept an easy smile on my face.

“I’m so glad. And how are you handling the enchants around you?” she asked and folded her hands in front of her.

“I don’t know how seraphs do it! Everyone’s so different, and I’m ignorant of what any seraph is capable of at any given time.”

Mollah let out a breathy laugh. “Yes, I would imagine for a human that it would be hard to navigate. Most seraphs can shield, so we aren’t always subjected to other seraphs’ enchants. Especially the passive ones. Did you know I have two enchants? Both passive.”

I had wondered what each royal could do. “No, Your Majesty.”

“Oh, yes. The enchant that I use almost all the time is my glamour enchant. I can make myself look young and beautiful no matter what. I don’t think I even remember what I look like without it,” she admitted.

Flatter her, Rory. “You are beautiful, Your Majesty. You have a kind spirit.”

She nodded. “But that isn’t how I got to be queen, though I am sure Torrish loves that I have that enchant.” My head tipped, and my brows creased. “I became queen how any angheal noble would: By climbing the social ladder. Though I was much better at it than everyone else, using secrets, good and bad, to get the crown on my head. Oh, don’t look frightened. I can’t read minds,” Queen Mollah giggled.

I did worry about it for a second, and my stomach dropped.

“You see, Aurora, I know so many secrets because I am audioperceptive. I can hear exceptionally well and at a further distance than most. Whispered conversations across crowded rooms, for instance. I can even tell when people, say, sneak up on me in compromising situations.” Her smile dropped.

My eyes widened. “Your Highness, I⁠—”

“You saw Devoruh and me together,” Queen Mollah whispered in a deadly tone.

“It is none of my business, Your Majesty. I would never say anything. Nobody knows.” My mind was racing. Would she have me killed?

Mollah stared at me, searching my face. “I believe you, Aurora. Royals marry for lineage, power, and politics. Nothing more. Torrish and I have no true love for each other, but that doesn’t mean he doesn’t view me as his possession.” She rose and paced in front of me, still maintaining pristine posture. “I find in Devoruh what has been missing from marriage. We have been through a lot together. Devoruh has been through more than anyone, seraph or human, could ever imagine. But that doesn’t mean I can let go of my station. My life also depends on it.”

“I understand, Your Majesty,” I said urgently.

Mollah paused and looked down at me. “But I didn’t make my way to being queen by taking people at their word, for I deal in secrets. I am calculated but not cruel. I want no harm to come to you, Aurora. You are needed here. But I must ensure your silence, and secret for secret is how I work.”

I tipped my head.

She smiled at my confusion. “I am also good at hearing muffled conversations through walls and floors. Your rooms just happen to be under my tearoom.”

I dragged in a shaky breath. Queen Mollah smiled. Her saccharine persona covered her devious abilities. “You are not a stupid woman. You have been quite busy wooing my brother-in-law, or should I say, using him. But you don’t fancy him that way, do you?”

I lifted my hands in supplication. “It isn’t that. I⁠—”

“Now, now, Aurora, you have some complicated feelings for our Captain of the Guard, my dear nephew, don’t you? A tragic outcome of why we don’t cross angheals with other seraphs. But he broke your heart a little, didn’t he? Last night, you told him how you felt, and he left without returning your feelings. How unfortunate.” She shook her head and pursed her lips in a mocking pout. “And today he scared you. You saw the side of him that scares all seraphs. Darragh showed you his monstrous side, and now, you want out of here. I wonder how our Army Commander would feel knowing that the woman he is pining after yearns for another.” The queen paused, then her sweet smile turned positively wicked. “Not just another man. The one he hates most in this world. It would put both you and Darragh in so much danger. Gabriel has quite the temper, but you saw that already in the sparring room. I wonder how far you would have let Darragh go if you weren’t interrupted by Gabriel’s outburst. He was furious, you know. He told the king and me all about it. I didn’t have to overhear you telling Anya to know that a lady in a compromising position like that isn’t just trying to learn how to fight. I mean, why fight when you could have men fight for you?”