A Kiss Of Shadows   ::   Гамильтон Лорел

I held my hand up so that the ring glistened in the thick autumn sunlight. "Whoever put the spell in the car used this ring to fuel the magic. They knew the ring would be there. Who would the queen trust with such information?"

"The list is small for those that she trusts, but the list is long for those she knows are too afraid of her to go against her wishes. She could have given the ring and the note to anyone, and trusted that they would do as she asked with it. It would ne'r occur to her that her guard would disobey her." She squeezed my hand. "You're obviously not going to eat these good pasties. I'm going to send them downstairs. My guests will certainly appreciate them."

"I'm sorry, Gran. I just can't eat when I'm nervous."

"I'm not offended, Merry, just practical." She gestured, and the door opened to the small hallway and the stairs beyond. The plates with food began trooping out the door.

"What purpose would it serve to have Galen and me executed?" I asked.

The plates were still making their uneven dance out the door, but she turned to me without missing a beat or spilling anything. "You might rather ask what purpose would it serve if the queen's ring were found wrapped around a love spell designed for you."

"But it wasn't designed for me. It could have been anyone in the backseat of the car."

"I don't think so," Gran said. She took my hand and traced the silver band. It didn't respond to her touch as it had to Galen's. "This is the queen's ring, and you are the queen's blood. But for an accident of birth order, Essus might have been king. You would already be queen, and not Andais. It would be your cousin Cel who was second in line to the throne, and not you."

"Father never approved of how Andais ran the court."

"I know there were those who urged him to kill his sister and take the throne," Gran said.

I didn't try and hide the surprise. "I didn't think that was commonly known."

"Why do you think he was killed, Merry? Someone got nervous that Essus might take the advice and start a civil war."

I gripped her hand. "Do you know who ordered him killed?"

She shook her head. "If I did, child, I would have told you by now. I was not a part of either court's machinations. I was tolerated, nothing much more."

"Father did more than tolerate you," I said.

"Ah, that he did. He gave me the great gift of being allowed to watch you grow from child to woman. I will always be grateful for that."

I smiled. "So will I."

Gran sat up straighter, hands clasped in her lap-a sure sign she was uncomfortable.