The Wish Granter (Ravenspire #2)(82)

Sebastian took the plate Ari offered, his fingers brushing hers. She smiled at him, but there was something underneath it—a sadness that hadn’t been there when he’d seen her yesterday before she went to the market with Teague.

Leaning down to grab a fork, he whispered, “Are you all right?”

She gave a barely imperceptible shake of her head, and Sebastian frowned at Maarit. He didn’t want to leave the villa until he knew what was wrong with the princess—beyond the fact that she was trapped here with the threat of losing her soul while Teague prepared to make puppets out of the high-ranking nobility in kingdoms across the land—but she wasn’t going to tell him anything with the housekeeper in the room.

“You said Teague left a list?” he asked as he set his plate on the table and sat facing Maarit.

“Already told it to you.” She fumbled with another apple slice, dropped it, and then struggled to pick it up with her trembling hands. Ari set her plate beside his and reached across the table to retrieve the apple slice for Maarit.

“Are you feeling well?” she asked the older woman. “You seem off today. Maybe you need to drink some of that magic fae tea.”

Maarit snapped her head up to glare at the princess. “Why would I do that?”

“Because it helps heal us, and you don’t seem to be feeling like yourself.”

“Want to make me too sleepy to watch over you, is that it?”

Ari sighed. “Seriously, Maarit, a slice of bread would do wonders. If it didn’t put you in a better mood, it would at least give you something to do besides snap at me for being concerned about you.”

Maarit was silent for a moment, and then she said quietly, “You’re right. I’m not feeling well. I’ll call some of the guards inside to watch you and take the tea to my room. Don’t disturb me.”

“I wouldn’t dream of it,” Ari said as the old woman shuffled from the room, her remaining apple slices lying forgotten on the table.

The moment she was out of earshot, Sebastian said, “What’s wrong?”

Ari pushed her full plate of food away and turned to face him. “I need your help.”

“Anything.”

She smiled, though her eyes were full of sadness. “Yesterday Teague took me to the market to show me that he’d burned down my favorite spice shop, along with the merchant and some of his customers.”

Sebastian’s stomach coiled with tension. Cautiously, he said, “That’s the kind of thing Teague does, though up until your brother’s coronation, he did those things in secret.”

“He burned Edwin and left him lying on the floor of his ruined shop.” Her voice was thick with tears. “He called it an object lesson.”

“I’m sorry.” Should he reach for her? Hold her hand or brush the tears from her face?

Once upon a time, he’d known exactly where the boundaries in their relationship stood. Now, he was in unfamiliar territory without a map.

She wiped her own tears and said with vicious force, “I’m going to stop him, Sebastian. And not just to free my brother and myself. He can’t be allowed to terrorize my people any longer. I’m going to stop him.”

“We’re going to stop him.” He bumped his shoulder against hers because it seemed safer than taking her hand. “What’s the plan?”

She tapped her fingers on the table and lowered her voice to a breathy whisper as they heard Maarit and some of the villa guards tromp through the front door. “The plan is to weaken him with poison, research his origins in the Book of the Fae, examine the blank contract to find a loophole if one exists, figure out why Gretel wanted me to read Magic in the Moonlight, and hire someone to go to Llorenyae and get answers on who exiled Teague and how they did it.”

“That’s a good plan. How can I help?”

Outside the kitchen, Maarit was giving instructions to the guards to keep a close eye on Ari until either Teague got home or Maarit felt well enough to leave her room again.

Ari leaned close to him, her arm brushing against his as she whispered in his ear, “There’s a bottle of bloodflower poison in my suite at the palace, Thad would know who to send to Llorenyae, and the Book of the Fae is waiting for me at Rahel’s bookshop.”

The guards entered the kitchen, and Sebastian whispered, “Consider it done.”

Moments later, he was riding away from the villa on the horse Teague had set aside for his use, his saddlebag full of parchment, ink, and quills—the tools he’d need to mark down the inventory from each street boss’s establishment.

He couldn’t go directly to the palace. If Teague heard of it, he’d be instantly suspicious. He could, however, send someone in his place, if he was careful.

Directing his horse west toward the market and the distant palace, Sebastian scanned the streets until he found what he was looking for. A flower girl, her basket overflowing with roses in lush colors, stood on her usual corner, hawking her wares to the early morning passersby. Pulling his horse to a stop, Sebastian dismounted and scanned the area before approaching her.

No street runners. No thieves. No one who belonged to Teague’s organization anywhere in sight.

“Good morning.” Sebastian made himself smile at the girl, even though his scars tingled as he turned his back to the rest of the street. She looked half his age, though the weariness in her eyes made her seem older. “I’d like to buy some flowers.”