He’s quiet for a moment. “Is there nothing I can do to help you enjoy the palace?”
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“No, there’s nothing.”
“Perhaps try, and you will see the palace differently.” I shift in my chair. I know I’m doing a terrible job tran-
sitioning to the palace. Even the leaders told me that. “Try? You charmed me in my village and acted like my friend. Then you whisk me off from all I love. What do you expect me to feel? I’m angry with you!”
The sheer honesty of my statement surprises me. He grins smugly. “I charmed you?”
“Don’t tease me. I’m not in the mood.”
“I’m genuinely sorry.” He reaches across the table and clasps my hand. “Admittedly, I wished to keep you closer. I wanted you here. I don’t know what you feel, but I like- ”
Before he can finish, our food arrives.
I ordered a thick, fruit-filled porridge, much like the ones I used to make and eat at home. There’s a small cup of dasi, a thin, sweet syrup, to pour over it.
Dmitri eyes my breakfast. He must wonder how such a small girl could stomach such a large bowl of heavy por- ridge. His breakfast is nothing more than a piece of bread with a little cheese and meat.
I lift my spoon and scoop up a bite. Steam curls off it, and I give it a moment to cool before placing it on my tongue.
But the moment it touches my tongue, I know some- thing is wrong.
{ 13 }
Chapter 13
T’S THE SAME POISON I USED YEARS AGO, the same
poison that killed my father.
Did someone learn my secret and want to send me a
harrowing message?
I lean back and take a deep breath. As I stare at Dmitri’s plate, an uneasy feeling settles in my stomach. I pull his plate over to me as he swallows a bite of toast.
“Hey!” he complains.
“Don’t touch the food. It’s poisoned.”
His eyes widen a fraction. “How do you know?”
“My mouth is reacting to my porridge. I suspect yours is laced as well.”
“Do you need a doctor?”
I shake my head. Working with poisons has given me a slight immunity. “It will pass. I only had one bite.”
Alexa Mackintosh
He remains impressively collected as he rises from the table. “I think I’ll have a talk with the cook. I’ll be back in a moment.”
I watch him walk to the kitchen as I try to ignore the pain in my mouth.
I should never have told him about the poison. I should’ve let him die, but I couldn’t. I’d like to say it was because I knew it was too soon, but deep down I know that wasn’t it.
Something in me couldn’t watch him eat, unaware that he summoned his death.
Wait, he took a bite of his toast and nothing happened. I cut a piece of his bread and place it on my sore tongue. I push the bread around my mouth, and to my surprise,
nothing happens.
The prince’s food isn’t poisoned.
Which means whoever did this targeted me.
s
By the time Dmitri returns, my mind has processed every possibility I can imagine.
Maybe the Royals know I’m a rebel and poisoned me. Though, Dmitri would have to be a good actor for that to be true. He didn’t seem hostile in the slightest or overly friendly, both of which are often used to cover true mo- tives.
City of Deception
It could be an unhappy rebel, but why would a rebel try to kill me? The rebellion is depending on me and the completion of my mission.
It scares me someone tried to kill me the same way I murdered my father. Who could know what I did? Don’t they know it was a terrible accident? I was young and didn’t know what I was doing.
Dmitri comes back and stands by the table. “I wish I could say this was unusual, but the life of a prince is rarely safe.”
I don’t tell him the poison wasn’t meant for him. “Do you want to return to the palace?” he asks.
“No, let’s go back to the market.” I’m shaken, but I swallow my fear as best I can.
We spend several hours in the market and meet back with Zadie and Petrov. We don’t speak of the incident, and my mouth soon recovers, but my thoughts remain on the poison.
Why does someone want me dead, and more im- portantly, who?
{ 14 }
Chapter 14
wo Weeks Later:
“WHICH PRINCE DO YOU THINK IS MORE ATTRAC-
TIVE?” Zadie asks.
She glances up from the cards in her hand. The tutors gave us a day off from our studies, and I’ve spent most of my days with her since we met. She acts as if we are best friends despite knowing me a few short weeks.
She wanted to play Poison Jack, the popular card game of chance and mystery in her room on the floor below the princes’ and I’s room. The name sends shivers through my bones, but I play anyway. The point of the game is to win by “solving” who is the murderer or the “Poison Jack.”
Zadie kicks my foot under the table. “I hate when you daydream. I asked which prince you thought attractive. You didn’t find that interesting?”
Alexa Mackintosh
She talks a great deal, so I only hear half of our con- versations, but her question is strange.
“Why do you ask such a question? If I did find someone attractive, I wouldn’t say because I’m a Third, and Thirds don’t look at Firsts.”
She giggles. “Please don’t put on a show for me. You must find someone attractive in the White City.”
“No one has caught my eye.”
“What about a boy from your village? There must have been someone.”
“No boy from my village looked my way, nor would I look his.”
“Snobbery will not get you a boyfriend.”
“I don’t want one.” That isn’t entirely true, but I have other concerns for now.
Zadie sighs. “One day you will realize how intoxicating love is. I’ve felt it, and I wouldn’t be able to give it up if I tried. It’s a drug everyone is addicted to, even those that think they can do without.”
“There is someone you love?”
She nods. “I love him though he is a different class.” “You love someone below you?”
“Again with the snobbery?” She shakes her head, raven curls falling into her face. She recently cut it and styled it as a short bob. “Class doesn’t matter when love is in- volved. It does to others, but not to the lovers. You’ll see one day.”
City of Deception
“Perhaps so.” Class is ingrained in me. I don’t like judging people because of a class, but it is what I have been taught to do.
Zadie flippantly says, “What about Orion?”
I open my mouth to speak, but I don’t know what to say.
She studies me before saying, “You’re blushing, Lady Alkaev.”
I press my hand to my cheek. It is warm. Why am I blushing? “I’m warm.”
“I noticed. Is it because a certain prince lights your heart on fire?”
“Oh please.”
He’s not what I expected of a Mersiovsky. He genuinely cares about those around him and tries to please them. He doesn’t expect others to do his work, and he doesn’t treat me as his lesser.
I’ve also noticed how I sometimes stare a little too long at his well-built body.
She claps her hands together, and several cards slide into her lap. “You do think Orion is handsome!”
“Hush!”
Her crimson painted lips creep into a smile.
I press my hands to my cheeks. “Stop it! You’re making me blush more.”
“Why shouldn’t you like Orion? He’s sweet and kind.
He is also single and very princely.”
Alexa Mackintosh
“This is a pointless conversation. I don’t like Dmitri and never have.”
“You’re lying.” “I’m not lying!”
She begins to speak b
ut stops. “Orion, do come in.” My back is towards the door, but she is facing it.
I hear his footsteps as he makes his way over to the ta- ble. I duck my head so he doesn’t see my flushed cheeks. I will melt into a pool of embarrassment if he heard our conversation.
“May I join in the next round?” he asks.
“Of course.” She chooses a card and lays it on the table. “Your move, Natalia.”
I’m amazed by her ability to act as though we weren’t discussing Dmitri. Scanning my cards, I place one beside hers.
“I heard Kir arrived last night. Did he enjoy his trip?” Zadie asks.
“I think so, but you can ask him at dinner,” Dmitri an- swers.
We continue to talk as we finish our round of Poison Jack. Zadie wins, and I let Dmitri take my place. Half an hour later, the game is tense. Both are experienced play- ers, and neither plan to lose.
As they study their cards, Prince Ivan enters.
I stand out of respect. His Royal Highness will one day be Emperor if my plan succeeds, and he has been a hero for the revolution since his parents died.
City of Deception
He staggers across the room to the cabinet with food and drinks. Zadie’s maid brought refreshments up earlier today.
Prince Ivan fetches a stout drink and turns to face us. Even from a few feet away, his breath smells of alcohol. He eyes me as he sips his drink.
I curtsy. “Your Highness.”
He acts as though he’s never met me. Other than the dance in the village, he hasn’t spoken to me. Not even at dinners.
“Why the drinks, Ivan? Don’t you remember your last hangover in January?” Dmitri asks without glancing from his cards.
“You know why.” He stumbles to the table, spilling a few drops of his drink on Dmitri’s shoulder. “Today was the first day she came to me and left you.”
Zadie stands and places a hand on Ivan’s shoulder. “Come, Ivan. I recently wrote a music piece and wished you to hear it. You are the one with the musical talent in the family.”
He pushes her away. “Don’t use your graces to cover for Orion’s mistakes. We all know what he’s done and what he wants to do.” He glances to me. “How long before she comes to your bed? I see it in your eyes when you look at Natalia: the same look I used to give Vera.”
Ivan couldn’t mean…
My attention goes to Dmitri, waiting for him to react to Ivan’s accusation.
Alexa Mackintosh
The reaction is immediate. Dmitri grabs Ivan by the shoulders, causing the glass to slip out of Ivan’s hand. “We need to speak outside,” Dmitri says, pulling Ivan out of the room.
As soon as the two are in the hall, Zadie shuts and locks the door.
She sighs. “I’m afraid that will never end.”
“What was that about? What woman was Ivan talking about?”
Zadie hesitates. “You should have heard about the in- cident, even in your town, but maybe the Mersiovskys forced reporters to remain quiet. Remember Veronica Ashwood?”
Ashwood? The rebels in higher positions and likely Angelica who studied the Royal family would know.
I nod. “I remember the name mentioned. She was a First on your planet, correct?”
She nods. “She was my adopted sister. My parents found her on the streets, poor and hurt, and they brought her to the palace. She was eighteen then. She came to us much as you come to the Mersiovskys. She was a quiet sort, and few accepted her new position, but she cared lit- tle. A few years later, my parents arranged a marriage for her to Prince Orion.”
“Dmitri?” He never mentioned a previous wife.
“Yes, but he was fifteen, and she was a great deal older. They were friends, but neither were in love. No, her eyes wandered to another. I don’t know for sure, but,” she
City of Deception
leans forward and whispers, “I suspect she had an affair with Ivan.”
I studied Ivan’s past, and that certainly wasn’t in the files. Perhaps the leaders know.
Walking to the com system on the wall, Zadie sends for a maid to clean up the spilled glass on the floor. “A few months after the engagement, Veronica died in a winter accident. She and Orion had gone out on a snowmobile the day after a big blizzard blew through. They had chap- erones, but they escaped them for a few private moments. After all, as two Royals, Vera and Orion rarely had a mo- ment just the two of them. The snowmobile flipped, kill- ing Vera instantly.”
“How awful! It must have been hard to lose her.”
“I didn’t know her that long, and we had our differ- ences. However, she was my big sister. I do miss her, de- spite our short time knowing each other.”
We’re silent as Zadie remembers Vera, and I consider this new piece of information.
“How was she killed, but Orion lived? Did the snowmo- bile flip and throw him off before he could get trapped?” I gasp. “I’m sorry! That…I shouldn’t make you remember anymore. I know what it’s like to lose one you love, and someone asking questions never helps.”
She shrugs. “It’s been a few years. I had to deal with the media asking far more for months. Orion says he walked off to…a…relieve himself, leaving her alone. They were far out in the country, so what he says is likely true.
Alexa Mackintosh
He supposes, as did the investigators, that she wanted to try to drive the snowmobile by herself, but she pulled the wrong lever and slid too close to the edge of a steep bank. The machine slid and flipped on her. When Orion re- turned, it was too late to save her.”
She wipes at her eyes, tears treacherously hanging from her lashes. “Orion blames himself for her death. For several years after he distracted himself with dangerous military missions, claiming he took the missions in the hope he might save a life to make up for the mistakes he made with Vera. It was his idea to go out on the trip, and if chaperones had gone, she wouldn’t have been allowed to drive the snowmobile. Vera was a horrible driver; every- one tried to keep her from getting behind any wheel. I don’t know when Orion found out, but when he discov- ered Ivan slept with his fiancée, he was furious. He’s never forgiven Ivan since. I’ve seen those boys with more than one black eye apiece for discussing Vera.”
“So, the mission he was on when he came to my village was partially because of her passing?”
“It was the result of his foolishness. He went on many successful missions, and last spring rose to a Foxhall cor- poral. He should be a private first class, but his Royal po- sition and academy training gave him a higher rank. Then, three months before he went to your village, he was sent to a far-out village on the border of the desert. All his men died, but his leadership and the men’s bravery helped put down a violent overthrow attempt. Rebels
City of Deception
tried to overthrow one of the town supervisors out there, but Dmitri and his men saved them. Dmitri was hailed a hero and given a medal, but he lost both of his legs.”
He never explained to me how he lost them. I won- dered, but I’ve thought it kinder not to bring up some- thing he may wish to forget.
“He spent months under the care of doctors. They ac- quired prosthetics for him, and he came to your village to fully recover out of the sight of the media. He was mostly better by then, but he still limped I guess?”
I nod. “He used a cane on bad days, but he said he was shot. He didn’t tell me the truth. Why?”
She smiles. “He cares for you, and appearing weak in front of you terrifies him. He’s respected for his power and name, not being himself. He doesn’t wish to lie to you, but sometimes he does it for your protection. His father is picky about who knows what. Orion doesn’t want you knowing the wrong thing and pay painfully.”
“You know your cousin well.”
“He’s like my brother. I sometimes know more about him than he knows about himself.”
A knock sounds at the door. Zadie’s maid enters and scurries past and sees to the mess Ivan left behind.
Zadi
e doesn’t spare her a glance. “Let’s send for the seamstresses and order a new dress each. I need some- thing fun after the princes ruined our card game.”
s
Alexa Mackintosh
Zadie and I spend all day together, each of us reveling in some much needed “girl time” after all our weeks of study and obligations. The princes don’t drop by again, and we take the opportunity to enjoy manicures, flipping through fashion books, and playing the newest albums on Zadie’s record player. I could listen to Zadie’s silly stories for hours, as it’s such a change from the things I heard back home.
I’m used to working until my hands are raw, so a man- icure is a pleasant change for my still blistered fingers. When we finish our activities, we send for our food and eat in Zadie’s room. I wish to invite Georgianna and Za- die’s maid, Etienne, to join us during our meal, but Zadie dismisses my idea. She says she doesn’t mind, but it will cause untold gossip.
Once our maids leave, she puts on a new record, and we eat.
Near the end of our meal, my vision begins to blur. The room separates into two images for a few seconds, like two pieces of paper with two different sketches laid over each other and held before a bright light.
After a moment, the image clears to one, but Zadie is gone.
s
My heart skips a beat.
She’s disappeared. No warning except the fuzzy vision.
City of Deception
I make my way to the door. It’s shut, and it takes a few tries for my shaking hands to open the door. I shout for Zadie as I open the door, but no one is in sight.
I stumble along the corridor to find someone, but no one is near. No guards stand at attention as they have since I first arrived.
City of Deception (The White City Series Book 1) Page 9