JК
A Lick Of Frost :: Гамильтон Лорел
Страница: 40 из 184"What does he mean by that?"
"Do you have sexual or marital intentions toward Princess Meredith?" Biggs asked.
"I do not see what such a question has to do with the savage attack by those Unseelie monsters on the beautiful Lady Caitrin."
All the men touching me tensed again or went very still, even Galen. They had all realized that the king had not answered the question. The sidhe only avoided answering a question for two reasons. One, sheer perversity and a love of word games. Taranis had no love of word games, and was one of the least perverse of the sidhe. Two, that the answer was something that they didn't want to admit to. But the only answer Taranis could possibly want to avoid was "yes." It couldn't be "yes." He couldn't have romantic designs on me. He couldn't.
I looked up at Doyle and Frost. I looked for a clue as to what to do. Did I ignore it, or pursue it? Which was better? Which was worse?
Cortez said, "Though we have sympathy with the princess' childhood tragedies, we are here to investigate a new tragedy, the attack by these three men on Lady Caitrin."
I looked at Cortez, He actually looked away from my gaze, as if his statement sounded harsh even to his own ears.
"You do understand that you are all being magically influenced by him?" I asked.
"I think I would know if I were being influenced, Princess Meredith," Cortez said.
"The nature of magical manipulation," Veducci said, coming forward, "is that you don't know it's happening. It's why it's so very illegal."
Biggs faced the mirror. "Are you using magic to manipulate the people in this room, King Taranis?"
"I am not trying to manipulate the entire room, Mr. Biggs," Taranis said.
"May we ask a question?" Doyle asked.
"I will not speak to the monsters of the Unseelie Court," Taranis said.
"Captain Doyle is not accused of any crime," Biggs said. I realized that the lawyers on our side were having less trouble with Taranis's magical presence than those on the other side, except for Veducci, who seemed to be doing just fine. The lawyers had entered into a agreement with Taranis, just a verbal one, but that would be enough for someone of his power to have more of a hold over all of them. It was the subtle magic of kingship. If you agreed to be a true king's man, there was power to that agreement. Taranis had once been chosen by faerie to be king, and even now there was power to that old bargain.
"They are all monsters," Taranis said. He looked at me, gave me all the longing those green-petaled eyes could hold. "Meredith, Meredith, come to us before the power of the Unseelie makes of you something horrible.
"Do you have sexual or marital intentions toward Princess Meredith?" Biggs asked.
"I do not see what such a question has to do with the savage attack by those Unseelie monsters on the beautiful Lady Caitrin."
All the men touching me tensed again or went very still, even Galen. They had all realized that the king had not answered the question. The sidhe only avoided answering a question for two reasons. One, sheer perversity and a love of word games. Taranis had no love of word games, and was one of the least perverse of the sidhe. Two, that the answer was something that they didn't want to admit to. But the only answer Taranis could possibly want to avoid was "yes." It couldn't be "yes." He couldn't have romantic designs on me. He couldn't.
I looked up at Doyle and Frost. I looked for a clue as to what to do. Did I ignore it, or pursue it? Which was better? Which was worse?
Cortez said, "Though we have sympathy with the princess' childhood tragedies, we are here to investigate a new tragedy, the attack by these three men on Lady Caitrin."
I looked at Cortez, He actually looked away from my gaze, as if his statement sounded harsh even to his own ears.
"You do understand that you are all being magically influenced by him?" I asked.
"I think I would know if I were being influenced, Princess Meredith," Cortez said.
"The nature of magical manipulation," Veducci said, coming forward, "is that you don't know it's happening. It's why it's so very illegal."
Biggs faced the mirror. "Are you using magic to manipulate the people in this room, King Taranis?"
"I am not trying to manipulate the entire room, Mr. Biggs," Taranis said.
"May we ask a question?" Doyle asked.
"I will not speak to the monsters of the Unseelie Court," Taranis said.
"Captain Doyle is not accused of any crime," Biggs said. I realized that the lawyers on our side were having less trouble with Taranis's magical presence than those on the other side, except for Veducci, who seemed to be doing just fine. The lawyers had entered into a agreement with Taranis, just a verbal one, but that would be enough for someone of his power to have more of a hold over all of them. It was the subtle magic of kingship. If you agreed to be a true king's man, there was power to that agreement. Taranis had once been chosen by faerie to be king, and even now there was power to that old bargain.
"They are all monsters," Taranis said. He looked at me, gave me all the longing those green-petaled eyes could hold. "Meredith, Meredith, come to us before the power of the Unseelie makes of you something horrible.