The Cogsmith's Daughter (Desertera #1)(45)
Aya crossed her arms. “And that’s when King Archon framed the previous queen in adultery so she would be out of the picture.”
“As always.” Queen Zedara pressed her lips together. “But Isadona didn’t want to marry King Archon. Her true love aside, like most noblewomen, she knew the king’s pattern. I still don’t know why she agreed to marry him. My best guess is that he threatened her—or her lover, maybe—so she consented to keep them both alive. Of course, the pressure from her father didn’t help anything.”
Aya’s brow furrowed. “What do you mean?”
Queen Zedara scoffed. “Lord Varick was thrilled when King Archon asked for Isadona’s hand. I mean, as if the act of the king having to ask Varick for permission didn’t get his tiny pecker hard enough, the idea of securing his family’s place in the royal lineage certainly did.”
Aya tilted her head. “That’s not what Lord Varick told me.” She paused, trying to remember Lord Varick’s story exactly. “When he came to me, Lord Varick said that Isadona was madly in love with the king. He said that she was entirely blinded by his charm, and that neither she nor Varick himself realized the king’s scheme until it was too late. In fact, Varick said that Isadona’s unwavering love for the king was how he knew she never would have betrayed him, was how he figured King Archon out.”
Queen Zedara’s hands tightened into fists. Aya took an imperceptible step away from her. “That’s ridiculous. Isadona begged Varick not to make her marry the king. Sure, once her father forced her into it, she put on a good act. She had to. But everyone knew it was a loveless marriage, the same as mine.”
Queen Zedara tapped her foot and bit her thumbnail. Her eyes studied the statue of Queen Hildegard. “Varick must have told you that to make himself sound better. He probably didn’t want to risk telling you that Isadona’s death is on his hands.”
“Maybe.” Aya glanced over her shoulder. Still empty. “Your Highness, if you knew all of this, how did you end up married to the king?”
Queen Zedara clenched her jaw. “The king grew tired of Isadona, as he does with all his wives, sooner or later. He framed her in adultery and had her executed. At her funeral service, he approached me with the grieving widower act. He said that I was the only one who could understand his pain, all those kinds of things. After the funeral, Lord Varick approached me. He told me how guilty he felt about forcing Isadona to marry King Archon. He claimed that he had truly believed she would keep the king’s interest, and he had never meant for her to die. I do believe him about the last part. Isadona died too early to put Varick’s blood in the royal line.”
Aya shook her head, her face forming into a grimace. “That’s sick.” Aya touched her cheek; it felt like fire. Despite the plausibility of Varick’s claims, Aya knew in her bones that Queen Zedara spoke the truth. Aya had heard the same rage and bitterness in her own voice a thousand times. “Why would you agree to do this, knowing everything you know?”
Queen Zedara turned to stare at Aya directly. “Look, Varick may be slime for carelessly putting his daughter at risk the way he did, but I do think he regrets it, even if for his own selfish reasons.”
Aya looked down and bit her lip. “Lord Varick was right to lie to me. I never would have agreed to this if I’d known he didn’t love his daughter, that he was only mad that he lost his ties to the crown.”
“Yes, you would have.”
Aya glared and grabbed the sides of her dress to keep her hands in place. She could have slapped Queen Zedara. “What in the Benevolent Queen’s name would make you think that?”
“Because I did.” The queen paused, letting her words sink in. “Varick gave me the same deal he gave you. Put yourself in the path of a madman, put your life in danger, and maybe, just maybe, we’ll be able to stop him, kill him, and save the kingdom.”
Aya stayed silent, ashamed at herself for not thinking about the bigger picture. She was just so angry about being lied to and falling for it. She had viewed Varick as some kind of surrogate father. He had lost his daughter. She had lost her father. She had thought they needed each other.
“I have the same motive as you,” Queen Zedara said. “Revenge. King Archon married the person I loved most in this world because he was bored with his wife, and then he killed her because he was bored with her. If I can help bring him to justice, I have to, for Isadona.”
Aya nodded. She examined Queen Zedara, a little blond ball of rage and regret who Aya didn’t know from any other noblewoman, and for some reason, when she looked into the queen’s dark blue eyes, she believed every word.
“King Archon killed my father.”
Queen Zedara raised her eyebrows. “Your father? Varick didn’t tell me who, but he told me you lost someone to the king. I’m sorry.”
Aya smiled, her lips tight. “I’m sorry for your loss as well.”
“Thank you.” Queen Zedara blinked several times, as if trying to hold her emotions inside. Aya studied the queen’s features, her pursed lips, the way she held herself upright like someone constantly in defiance. Aya wondered if she would have been so torn up about Dellwyn’s death. She wondered exactly how close Zedara and Isadona were.
Queen Zedara sighed. “Look, Lord Varick is a lying sack of filth, but he is our ally. He may not share our motives, but he does want the king dead, and that’s what matters.”