Fantasyland 01 Wildest Dreams (39 page)

Until now.

I tried not to look at her as she approached
then I couldn’t tear my eyes away for she was aiming a look of pure
venom at me, hatred clear and openly read in her eyes.

That was when I decided, perhaps upon my
return, I would have a word myself with the housekeeper to see
about Viola moving on to other employment or perhaps being
reassigned to do the laundry.

She bobbed a curtsy and held up the
tray.

I wanted champagne and that was the only
reason I took a glass after Franka took hers and without a backward
glance, Viola expertly and swiftly melted into the crowd.

“To marriage,” Franka lifted her glass and,
eyes on me over the rim, she took a sip.

I wanted a sip, actually, I wanted to down
the whole glass but instead I studied her and didn’t take one.

Then I asked straight out, “Tell me, Franka,
are you genuinely pleased your cousin has found someone who makes
him happy or are you just having some fun?”

She tipped her head to the side and asked
back, “
Has
my handsome
cousin found someone who makes him happy?”

Actually, it hit me right then, he had. And
he made no bones about it.

And that someone was me.

And at that thought, that quicksand slurped
up another foot.

“
Yes,” I whispered. “We’re both very
happy,” I told her honestly and
slurp!
up another foot I went.

Franka didn’t speak. She inspected my face
and she did it closely.

Then she whispered back, “Gods, you don’t
jest.”

“And why would I jest?” I returned.

She took another sip of champagne. Then she
moved slightly closer and I stiffened but held my ground.

Then she spoke, “I am not of that bent, my
princess, although I must admit I’ve dabbled and, since I’ve
dabbled, and enjoyed it when I did, you must know there are
those
of
that bent
who feel quite
certain you are too. And, I must say, my curiosity for coming here
was to gaze upon your beauty and, perhaps, see about, as you put
it,
having
some fun.
”

I stared at her a second before it hit
me.

Hells bells, she thought I was a
lesbian.

Shit.

“Of course,” she said quietly, her eyes
warming, her face showing hunger, “if Frey is dipping into that
honey, I know him enough to know he’ll not share so, alas, although
you are everything they say you are, I will stand down.”

Seriously, the Drakkars. I had never, in all
my travels, met anyone like them. Not even close. No wonder Frey
got the hell out of there as soon as he could.

“
That would please me,” I told her firmly
then stressed, “
tremendously.
But I will say that it is unfortunate for those who
are
of that
bent,
as you put it,
that you cast your lures as you do. I don’t wish to be offensive
but you must know, it’s inelegant and lacks panache.”

She blinked at me, her chin jerking back as
my hit scored and I heard the orchestra stop playing as out of the
corner of my eye, as promised, I saw my eager dance partner
approaching.

I turned to a table beside me and set my
glass next to another resting there and turned back to Franka.

“A unique pleasure,” I muttered to her
acidly, using Frey’s words as I tipped my chin then turned my head
and smiled at my partner who already had his hand extended to
me.

I took it and also took another cue from
Frey and didn’t look back.

And then, luckily, that unpleasant meeting
was forced from my brain since I had to concentrate on the dance,
which was one of the more complicated ones.

And since I was concentrating, it wasn’t
until after a woman bumped into me and my partner clutched my hand,
stopped dancing and pulled me close that I quit concentrating. I
looked up at him to see his face pale, eyes wide and he was looking
toward the corner I had not long ago fled.

I turned that way and as I did I saw all the
people on the dance floor had their eyes riveted that way too. I
also heard the coughing, which was uncontrollable, and as my eyes
moved to the corner where I’d been standing not three minutes ago,
I saw an elderly woman in a deep purple gown start retching
violently.

But there was blood already dribbling from
her lip.

She had one hand to her throat, her eyes
were wide with terror and her other hand held a champagne glass,
the contents of which sloshed out as she coughed so deeply, it hurt
to hear.

There was a low murmur running through the
crowd as she struggled and a man in a deep purple shirt had his
hand on her back and looked to be trying to guide her to a chair
when it happened.

A profuse gurgle of blood poured out of her
mouth.

I took a horrified step back and sucked in a
shocked breath as small screams and more gasps were heard. But
still more blood rushed forth from the poor woman’s throat as her
skin turned livid, her eyes bugged out hideously and then she
collapsed to the floor.

It was at that exact moment a hand curled
around to cover my eyes and I was turned until I felt my front
pressed into Frey’s.

“
Find Franka. Find that
bloody
maid. And get your hands on that gods
damned glass,” he growled, his voice a fearsome rumble, I tipped
back my head and his hand slid away. One glance up at his face set
in granite told me he’d busted the scales and he was in the Anger
Danger Zone.

I looked over my shoulder and saw Max start
winding urgently toward the crowd that had closed around the woman
but Orion, Gunner and Lund were already there.

Before I could say a word, Frey shifted me
into the waiting Thad’s arms and grunted, “Her room. Now. No one
attends her.
No one.
”

Then Frey turned the opposite direction and
moved into the ballroom in a direction I noted took him to Franka
in her blood red dress but Thad was pulling me through the shoving,
slightly frightened, slightly curious crowd and I lost sight of
him. Then I saw Atticus pushing his way toward me, his face pale,
his frightened eyes locked on me.

“Finnie,” he said when he got close but Thad
positioned himself between me and Father and kept pulling me toward
the hall.

“Stand back, your grace,” Thad warned as
Father kept moving toward us.

Atticus’s eyes shot to Thad and the fear
left them as anger, shock and royal affront filled them.

“I beg your pardon?” he clipped.

“Orders of The Drakkar,” Thad stated,
Atticus’s mouth dropped open and Thad yanked me through a bunch of
people who were streaming into the ballroom to see what all the
commotion was about and then we were in the hall.

He didn’t waste any time pulling me through
the hall, down the stairs and to my rooms. Then he didn’t waste any
time ascertaining they were empty.

Then he took hold of both my arms and bent
so his face was close to mine.

“Bolt the door behind me. I need to see
what’s happening and I, or another of Frey’s men, will be back to
guard your door. Do not open it to anyone, Princess Finnie, I don’t
care who they are and I don’t care if you trust them. You open this
door to Frey and me. Only Frey and me. Am I understood?” he
asked.

“What’s happening?” I whispered.

“Am I understood, Finnie?” he repeated.

“Thad, what’s happening?” I repeated too but
louder.

Thad stared at me a second as if trying to
decide something.

Then he decided. “That glass was served to
you by a maid known to Frey. Frey marked it when you put it down
and he marked it when that woman accidentally picked it up.
Tonight, my princess, someone tried to poison you.”

My mind filled with that woman pouring forth
blood and my head got light.

“Gods, don’t go down, I don’t have time to
revive you,” Thad muttered, giving me a gentle shake.

“I’m not going to go down,” I whispered.

“Your eyes, princess, focus on me,” he
urged.

I focused on him. Then I asked, “But my
Father –”

He got closer and his fingers gave me a
slight squeeze before he reminded me softly, giving me the
knowledge that he held information I was surprised he had, “Finnie,
your father isn’t your father. Any child you put on the throne will
not be his blood. I’m sorry, your grace, but in this land and every
other, you have one ally and that is The Drakkar.”

I blinked at him as my heart twisted. It did
this in a quick wrench that hurt so badly, it was a wonder I didn’t
pass out.

“Bolt the door, a man you can trust will be
here shortly,” he muttered, I nodded then he gave my arms another
squeeze and he took off.

After he left, I went directly to the door,
locked it and threw all three bolts home.

Then I turned my back to it, covered my
mouth with my hand and stared at my beautiful room.

Then I sucked in a deep breath, pushed away,
walked to the bed where Penelope had lifted her head at the
commotion and was yawning huge. I scooped her up, she protested, I
shushed her and held her tight as I waited for the return of The
Drakkar.

Lack of Vigilance

“By the gods,” Frey Drakkar heard muttered
in horror behind him, he turned from the broken, bleeding woman at
his feet and saw King Atticus and Queen Aurora had entered the
room.

Atticus was the one who muttered and he,
indeed, looked horrified as his eyes stayed glued to the woman on
the floor. Aurora looked pale but her eyes, also on the woman
bleeding and curled into herself, were shielded.

“Your daughter has a traitor on her staff,”
Drakkar growled, his gut tight, his neck tight, bile in his throat
at the thought he’d actually had his cock in the bitch who’d
schemed to murder his Finnie, delivering the poison her gods damned
self. “She’s confessed. A physician should attend her once my men
have transferred her to jail.”

Both Atticus and Aurora’s eyes shot to him
and Drakkar forced himself from his thoughts in order to remain
focused and take in every infinitesimal nuance of both king and
queen.

“This maid poisoned Finnie?” Atticus
whispered, still horrified and that was all Drakkar read on the
king’s face.

He read something else on Aurora’s. A flash
of anger mixed with more than a little bit of accusation.

An interesting reaction and an uncomfortable
one.

Drakkar lifted his chin to Oleg who moved to
Viola, hefting her over his shoulder with complete immunity to her
whimpers and cries as he carried her out, exactly as he’d been
immune to the same as he’d extracted her confession.

Drakkar’s eyes slid through his cousin who
was standing against the wall, arms crossed on her chest, eyes,
revoltingly excited.

She’d enjoyed watching Oleg obtain
information from Viola.

A mistake. He’d thought it would bring forth
fear.

But she was a Drakkar. He should have known
better.

He looked to Aurora and stated, “Yes. Viola
accepted payment to prepare and deliver a poisoned glass to
Finnie.” Atticus and Aurora stared at him and he continued, “She’s
also given us another name to add to Berg Enger’s. Hernod Grieg,
they’re associates.”

He continued to regard the king and queen
closely. Atticus already knew that Berg Enger was the Lunwynian who
had paid for the assassination attempt that had failed in
Houllebec. Enger had been found by Drakkar’s man Quincy and had
not, yet, provided them with further information and, considering
their tactics, it was highly likely he didn’t know much more than
he’d already told them.

What they knew was that Enger was a
malcontent, this starting at his displeasure of losing some land as
penance from his liege lord for a string of petty crimes. This was
appealed to the king and the king held his liege lord’s ruling.
Because of this, Enger had no love for the crown but he also had no
money.

What he did have was an association with a
network of men who considered they had been wronged by Atticus in
some way.

What they did not know was who was financing
Enger. Until now.

Hernod Grieg was a merchant who traded out
of Sudvic, as Drakkar did. Drakkar knew of him, had met him and
didn’t like him. Grieg didn’t consider himself wronged by the crown
in so much as he disliked paying taxes to it for he preferred his
coin in his coffers.

Why he would participate in a treasonous
plot, Drakkar did not know. But both Quincy and Balthazar were
already riding to Sudvic to find out.

With Viola out of the room, Atticus pulled
himself together and not for the first time Drakkar thought this
was one characteristic every king should have that Atticus of the
House of Wilde did not.

He didn’t have the stomach for the dirty
work of politics.

It was a weakness.

“I’ve heard of this Grieg,” Atticus
stated.

“And what do you know?” Drakkar asked.

“Not much,” Atticus shook his head. “He’s a
merchant in Sudvic. He attended the Solar Hunt last year, invited
by a member of a House but he did not go to the Gales. I met him
very briefly. I can’t even say for certain I recall what he looked
like,” Atticus answered.

“Which House?” Drakkar pushed.

Atticus shook his head again. “That, as
well, I can’t recall.

Drakkar studied his king then he whispered,
“Try.”

Atticus held his eyes then replied,
“Ravenscroft or Lazarus, maybe Sinclair or Njord but saying any at
this juncture is slander for, indeed, Drakkar, this meeting was
insignificant and I truly cannot recall.”