Treacherous Witch

28. Blatant Lies and Manipulation

"Never trust the tongue of a woman."
Drakonian Proverb

Their next supper was a subdued affair. She didn't dare to speak first, although she kept looking at him over her tea and gingerbread.

Lord Avon seemed calmer. He was reading a stack of letters that the servants had delivered on a tray. When he had finished, he drained his tea and clasped his hands in his lap, looking at her.

"I want you to be truthful with me, Valerie."

She sat up straighter in her seat. "I'm always truthful, my lord."

"I mean it. Swear it on the life of your prince."

"I swear," she said.

"I told you that we were going to arrest Lavinia. Yesterday at noon she took a carriage from the marketplace to the northern edge of the city. When my men stopped the carriage, it set ablaze. The fire spread across the street, instigating riots across the city. She and her children fled in the chaos. I know you visited your family. Did you warn her about the arrest?"

"Of course I did. Are you going to punish me for that too? Or find another member of my family to torment?"

He stared at her and she held his gaze.

"I ought to," he said at length. "I ought to have you chained up and locked away to stop you from working your mischief."

"Go ahead."

She'd rather his attention focused on her, that he punished her if anyone. If he tried to hurt her, she could strike back.

To her surprise, Avon shook his head. "Perhaps I was... overzealous. But you overstepped."

She knew at once this was the closest to an apology she would get. Now was the time to act contrite.

"I'm sorry, my lord. For what it's worth, I truly meant you no harm. I only wanted a way to defend myself."

"What happened when you were attacked by the mob?" he asked. "Tell me in your own words."

She did, slowly, but in as much detail as she could. The only fact she omitted was the thimble; let him think she'd done it of her own power. When she had finished, he was silent for a moment. Then he leaned back in his chair and exhaled.

"That should never have happened. Captain Doryn and his men should have been enough to protect you."

She said nothing. He was right, and admitting this fault meant that either the rebels had grown stronger or the Empire's grip was weaker.

Avon leaned forward, his gaze piercing. "You killed a man."

"Yes, my lord."

"That must be terribly unsettling."

"Yes, my lord."

Her answer was as bland as the previous, and perhaps that disconcerted him because he hesitated.

"He was one of your own countrymen."

"I know, my lord."

"Do you not feel regret?"

She looked away. "If you hadn't imprisoned me, I wouldn't have been there, and they wouldn't have attacked us. Or let's go back further. If the Empire hadn't invaded, none of this would have happened. The blood of every Maskamery rebel is on your hands, not mine."

Guilt was not an emotion she'd allow herself to feel, not when the Empire had its claws in her homeland, and not when she was forced to have supper with the man who'd ordered the arrest of Lavinia and her children.