by Jayne Faith
I stood and hurried from the banquet hall—I had to make sure Akantha didn’t try to have Maya put to death on the spot—but I couldn’t keep a harsh smile from my face as I ran through the corridors with two of my guards pounding along behind me.
Not only had Maya managed to attack Akantha, but she’d done it on a live broadcast with thousands watching. She’d publicly humiliated the Mistress of Tournament, and by the stars it made me want to punch the air with a grim sort of glee. Akantha’s injuries would be quickly healed and erased by a medic, but her mortification would live on in the replays that would no doubt fill the news over the next few days.
My dark delight evaporated when I reached the site of the portal.
The surviving Offered huddled in a rag-tag bunch, watching with wide eyes as Akantha screamed. Calvin had left Maya in the hands of Tullock and gone to restrain Akantha.
The sight of me seemed to reinvigorate Akantha’s venom.
“Bid farewell to your little Earthen plaything, Lord Toric,” she seethed, turning her anger-flushed face on me. “She’ll go to the sacrificial flames early for what she’s done.”
Akantha’s chest heaved. She tried to twist sharply to elbow Calvin in the ribs, but my guard stood behind her with his huge hands locked around her upper arms.
My mind whirled as I tried to recall whether she really had grounds to command that Maya be put to death.
I glanced at Maya. Her eyes were still locked on Akantha and flashing with hate, but her body had gone still. Tullock only kept a hand on her upper arm, and it seemed more to support her than to contain her.
It suddenly struck me that Maya’s implant should have activated as soon as she formed the intention of attacking Akantha. At least, I would have assumed so. But it hadn’t, and no Monitors had appeared to take her away.
Maya shifted her gaze to me, and the haunted, cold look in her eyes made my chest ache. It was almost as if she didn’t even recognize me.
I turned to Akantha. “You do not have the authority to sentence her,” I said. “Right now your only job is to finish with the formalities of this challenge.”
I did not relish the thought of going into a room with Akantha to hash out the ranks of favor, but at least I’d be able to keep an eye on her.
I turned to my guards. “The Mistress of Tournament is injured and needs the attention of a medic. I trust that two of you can take over her duties for the moment and escort the Offered safely to their dressing rooms.”
Calvin stayed where he was with his arms around Akantha, while Tullock and one of the guards who had arrived with me rounded up the Offered.
Maya came straight to me, standing close and tipping her small face up to look in mine. “She drugged Orion. That’s why he died. She intended to drug me too, but I didn’t eat the food in my dressing room.” Her face hard as a stone mask, she turned and joined the other Offered.
My mouth dropped open, and I shot a glance at Akantha. By her lack of reaction, I was sure she hadn’t heard what Maya said.
I snapped my jaw closed and let out a hiss through my teeth, trying to quell the sick feeling rising up in my stomach. Someone had attempted to drug Maya again? It couldn’t be coincidence. My mother and Akantha must have been plotting together.
“Call for a medic,” I said to North, the guard who stood beside me. He touched his earpiece and mumbled a quick order. I planted my hands on my hips and faced Akantha. “Can we trust you to control yourself?”
She glared at me but nodded after a moment. Calvin released her, and she let out a loud huff as she straightened her mussed clothes with a couple of yanks.
“This dress is ruined. I can’t appear in the throne room looking like this,” she said, gesturing with one hand at the burn where Maya had hit Akantha with the stinger. “Send the medic to my apartment.”
She spun on her heel and started to stalk away. I went right after her.
“You’re injured, and you may go into shock,” I said smoothly, catching up and striding at her side. “My guards and I will accompany you in case you begin to feel faint. I insist.”
Her mouth worked, and she turned to me as if to hurl an insult but then clamped her lips together and stared straight ahead.
When we reached her apartment, she tried to close the door on me, but I caught it with my foot.
“I must insist that you remain under the watch of my guards. And by law I must have two guards with me at all times, so I must come in as well. You’ll forgive us for invading your quarters.” I shoved the door hard enough to push her out of the way and went inside. “It’s for your own well-being, of course.”
Red splotches sprang to her cheeks. She turned and stomped to what I assumed was her bedchamber. “I’ll thank you for allowing me to change clothes in private, my Lord,” she hollered before slamming her bedchamber door.
I couldn’t prevent her from communicating with someone from within her bedroom, but at least I could keep her from slipping out to do anything that might bring harm to Maya.
I touched my earpiece, turning on the private communication channel to Calvin. “This is most urgent. Send someone you trust immediately to the Offered dressing rooms to collect any food and drink that still remains in Orion and Maya’s rooms. If the rooms have been serviced, have your men track down the servant that cleared them. Tell your men to do everything in their power to find the food that was in those two rooms.”
I had little hope that I’d be able to find the evidence of Maya’s claim—the rooms had likely been cleared immediately after the Offered left them—but I had to try.
I touched my earpiece again, this time on the channel that allowed me to communicate with my head administrator. “Camira, put me through to the royal legal advisor’s office immediately.”
While I waited for the connection, a medic arrived, and Akantha opened her bedroom door to allow him in.
After confirming that the royal attorney had seen the broadcast and understood the scenario, I asked him what possible legal action Akantha could pursue.
“This is an odd case, my Lord, as the Monitor system should have prevented such an attack. If the Offered girl were a Calistan citizen, she would be arrested for battery. A charge of grave bodily injury could potentially be added,” he said.
The tightness in my chest began to loosen by a small degree. “But none of the potential charges would carry a serious penalty?”
There was a long pause. “Actually, I don’t see that the Mistress of Tournament has grounds for any charge, my Lord. Earthens are subject to a different system than Calistans. Without a Monitor response to the incident, the Offered girl may be punished only if you so decree. And even then, you would have to go through the Monitors’ Office to do so.”
I tightened my fists in victory but managed to keep a straight face. “Are you positive about this?”
“I could do a full formal case inquiry, but I do not think it would result in any surprises.”
“Thank you,” I said. “And do contact me immediately if you come upon anything that contradicts what you just told me.”
I touched my earpiece to end the communication. When I caught Calvin’s eye, the corner of his mouth twitched in what might almost be considered a little half-smile. I’d suspected that he and Tullock had grown a bit fond of Maya, and Calvin knew me well enough to see that I’d gotten favorable information from the royal legal advisor.
I drew a long breath. I had one more concern: that Maya’s attack on Akantha would affect her rank of favor. It would come down to the Priestess’s ruling, as Akantha and I would of course be on opposite ends of this issue.
I considered asking Camira to connect me with the Priestess so I could consult with her, but we would be meeting face-to-face soon enough, and the Priestess understood the stakes every bit as well as I did. I could only hope she would be able to find something in the sacred texts that would allow her to rule that the attack be excluded from consideration in judging Maya’s performance.
&
nbsp; Akantha’s bedroom door opened, and the medic emerged. A few moments later, the Mistress of Tournament came out dressed in a fresh gown, her hair smoothed, and looking as if the attack had never happened. Her frosty gaze swept me and my guards.
I couldn’t help wondering if she’d discovered what I knew—that she had no legal avenues to pursue against Maya in the Calistan justice system. But I knew I shouldn’t get too smug. I had no doubt she was already plotting her next move, something that would leverage her power as Mistress of Tournament to punish Maya.
Trepidation curled around my heart in a murky current as I recalled the trip to the hothouse with the Priestess. Akantha must have been in league with my mother, both working against Maya. I took a steadying breath. I needed to remain clear-headed. I had no true proof that Mother was trying to harm Maya, and it made no sense that she would care to single out one of the Earthen Offered. Akantha, however, had clear motive: her anger and jealousy over Jeric’s attention to Maya.
Despite my anxious thoughts, I put on a confident face.
“I imagine the Priestess is already waiting for us.” I tilted my head at the door and jauntily swept my arm out, taking pleasure in Akantha’s dark mood. “Ladies first.”
Only a few days ago, Akantha was the talk of the nation when I announced her engagement to my brother, but after Maya’s attack, Akantha’s notoriety would be of a completely different variety. Every servant in the palace would have at least heard of how an Offered girl had managed to disarm and burn the Mistress of Tournament, and most nobles had watched it unfold live.
I glanced down at Akantha’s profiled face. She looked steadily ahead with her chin set. Her face looked remarkably calm, though her cheeks were pink as if she’d just come in from the cold. Perhaps the flush was not from embarrassment, which would have been my first assumption. She was the type who got a rush from controversy or the anticipation of plotting her next move.
Even before Maya’s Tournament, I had no liking for Akantha, but I knew it would serve me well to try to understand her as thoroughly as possible. She was a devious and power-hungry foe, and I could not allow my distaste for her character to create blind spots, especially after Maya had just given Akantha even more reason to stir up trouble.
We reached the chamber under the throne to discover that indeed the Priestess was waiting. She rose to curtsy.
“Forgive me, Your Holiness, for the delay,” Akantha said, stopping to offer a deep curtsy. “I had to return to my apartment for a change of clothes.” Her tone was completely free of ire.
Ah, she was going to be demure about the attack to try to gain the sympathy of the Priestess.
“Perfectly understandable, and no need for apology,” the Priestess said. “I hope any physical injury you suffered was easily and painlessly healed?”
“Yes, Your Holiness, I’m good as new.” Akantha sat on a bench, crossed her ankles, and folded her hands in her lap.
I had to give Akantha credit for managing to elicit the Priestess’s concern. But Akantha didn’t know what I knew—and what the Priestess knew—about Maya’s role in the destiny of Calisto. The sympathy of the Priestess would only go so far.
Seeing that neither the Priestess nor Akantha was going to begin the deliberations, I cleared my throat. “Three of the Offered did not survive the challenge. We are down to two for the men and five for the women.” I hoped that by drawing attention to the loss of lives, I would make Akantha seem less sympathetic.
Akantha opened her mouth to speak, but I continued before she could get in a word. “And I have received information that one of the men who perished, Orion, was drugged before the challenge. His behavior and movements during the challenge certainly support this claim. He would not have made it even as far as he did without Maya’s heroic efforts.” I looked Akantha square in the face. “Someone has interfered with the Tournament, a disgraceful breach of the law. And worse, a violation of the sacred texts.”
Akantha’s eyes widened just a fraction, and she paled slightly. “Who gave you this information, my Lord?”
“There is indication that Orion was not the only target,” I said, ignoring her question and turning to the Priestess. “Maya was to have been drugged, too, and it was only by pure chance that she was not.”
The Priestess drew a long, audible breath and pulled her opalescent robes more tightly around her. “This is an extremely serious violation.”
“I have investigators collecting evidence even as we speak.” I was bluffing somewhat—I knew I had little hope of tracking down the evidence—but it was worth it if it helped to throw Akantha off her game and give Maya an edge in the deliberations for rank. “As soon as we are finished announcing the ranks of favor, I’m going straight to them for an update.”
“Well, I guess we should get on with it then, shouldn’t we?” the Priestess said, her face still troubled.
I slid a glance at Akantha. I had no idea how Maya had come to know that her food and Orion’s had been drugged, but I’d backed the Mistress of Tournament into a corner. All that remained was whether anything from the sacred texts might support my stance. If so, Maya would easily claim the first position in the women’s rankings.
“I defer to the Mistress of Tournament to make her bids first for the ranks of favor,” I said, giving Akantha a magnanimous little bow of my head and shoulders.
She swallowed and blinked a few times. “For the men, ah, Amet in first and Kriss second.”
“I concur,” I said. “And for the women?”
Her eyes darted around the room as if looking for some escape. “For the women . . . for the women, I’d have to say that Kalindi showed great cunning. She made it through the challenge first, but she also clearly tried to sabotage the others. Cheytan and Meribel did nothing remarkable except survive the challenge. Britta was smart and extended help to one of her competitors.”
“And Maya?” I asked after a long pause.
“I have obvious reason to argue against her. Her behavior after the challenge was downright beastly,” Akantha said. “But I cannot deny her valiant effort to save that boy during the challenge. In my mind, her actions after the challenge cancel out her actions during the challenge.”
“It seems to me that her behavior after the challenge should not come into consideration,” I said, angling my gaze toward the ceiling and folding my arms thoughtfully. “Because if we consider Maya’s behavior outside of the Tournament, we will have to do so for all of the Offered. And then where do we draw the line?”
Akantha and I both looked at the Priestess.
“Indeed, my Lord, that would introduce complications,” the Priestess said. “But there is precedent for considering the behavior of the Offered outside the challenges when figuring the ranks of favor. In light of the possibility of foul play, I believe the Mistress of Tournament’s balanced approach is the correct one: Maya should be neither rewarded nor punished as her actions do seem to balance out. And so, for this challenge Britta shall be first, followed in order by Maya, Kalindi, Meribel, and Cheytan.”
My heart bumped as I quickly recalculated the points the women would receive from the challenge and how the overall rankings would stand.
It wasn’t the outcome I’d wanted, but it might have been much worse.
I needed Maya’s help to discover who had sabotaged the Tournament.
20
Maya
MY LIFE HAD become a nightmare from which I could not wake. Over and over, the last few seconds of Orion’s life played in my mind. It didn’t matter if my eyes were open or closed. I couldn’t stop the images. Every time I reached out to him, he seemed to slip right through my fingers.
I’d stood like a stone in the throne room as the crowd gathered for the announcement of the ranks of favor. I saw nothing but Akantha, positioned in her usual spot at the foot of the throne platform. She’d changed her dress, but otherwise there was no sign of our struggle.
She ignored me, never once looking directly at me, bu
t the way her eyes kept skirting around me was too deliberate. Perhaps I’d actually rattled the Mistress of Tournament? Even if I had, it didn’t matter. She’d lost nothing except a layer of skin where I’d burned her with the little silver wand. And the wound had probably been quickly repaired and erased.
As the updated overall ranks displayed on the wall—Kalindi and I were tied for first place on the women’s side—I knew I should have been pleased but only felt numb.
After the ceremony in the throne room, I was taken back to my lavish quarters within Lord Toric’s chambers. I mechanically stripped off my Tournament clothes, bathed, and dressed only in clean underclothes. With the lights off, I crawled into bed.
I felt like my insides had been scraped out with violent strokes of a serrated knife, leaving me empty yet also somehow full of pain. And something unfamiliar throbbed faintly deep in my gut and my head. I had not the energy to examine it, but it made me uneasy, as if something foreign and dark, but dormant for the moment, had taken up residence within me.
I didn’t know how long I stayed there—perhaps an hour or two, or maybe half a day—before Lord Toric came calling at the door. I listened to him asking, and then demanding, that I open the door. When I did not respond, he finally found a way in.
“Maya?” he called, his voice full of concern.
I could hear him swiftly moving through the dark rooms, looking for me. I rolled over to my other side so I would not have to face him.
His footsteps stopped next to the bed, and for a moment all I heard was his breathing.
“Maya, are you hurt? Should I call for a medic?”
His fingers touched my wounded shoulder, and I flinched away and pulled the covers tighter around me. The injury still throbbed, but I didn’t want it healed.
The bed creaked and the mattress dipped as he sat on the edge of it.