The Queen's Advantage

by Jessie Mihalik

  I could tell she was stalling, so I kept the conversation going to give her a bit more time. “Or maybe they are just very good liars.” I toasted her with my chocolate pastry.

  “Touché,” she said with a grin.

  She sobered and her expression went distant as she gathered herself to share what was an obviously painful story. “Victor and I had an arranged marriage that quickly turned into a love match. I was young when we were married, barely twenty, and far too naive. We tried for three years to have a baby because I knew my one job was to secure the line.”

  She must’ve seen the question on my face because she said, “Fertility procedures are not allowed for the Imperial line. It is seen as destiny if the ruling family cannot conceive naturally. And it is almost always followed by an ‘accident’ and a new emperor or empress in the form of whichever heir was next in line.”

  “That’s the stupidest thing I’ve ever heard.”

  Her smile was grim. “I agree, and now, I would campaign to change the rules, but at the time, I was young and vulnerable. Victor’s cousin Leo was part of the Imperial cabinet and fifth in line to the throne behind a bunch of healthy men and women—he knew he would never become emperor. He was fifteen years my senior and had the same good looks as Victor. He was also here all the time, while Victor was always off overseeing some war or treaty or something.”

  I doubted Valentin had two cousins named Leo, so I had the awful feeling that I knew where this story was going, but I held my peace.

  Margie stared down at the table. “I loved my husband dearly and was deathly afraid of what would happen if I couldn’t conceive. I confessed my worries to Leo. He told me that perhaps Victor was the one with the problem, not me. And he, being a good friend—or so I thought—offered me a solution. You can guess what it was.”

  I kept my expression perfectly blank as one of the puzzle pieces I was missing snapped into place, but anger burned in my belly. She’d been preyed on by an older man who had used her worry as a weapon against her, most likely to further his political goals.

  “A few weeks later, Victor returned, and within a month, I was pregnant. I was blissfully happy and honestly thought it was Victor’s child. I stopped seeing his cousin, and when it seemed like the rejection was going to be a problem, I had Victor reassign Leo to a diplomatic post. I thought that would be the end of it. As I said, I was young and dumb.”

  “You weren’t dumb,” I said. “You were manipulated.”

  “You are kind, but I made a mistake. I knew it was wrong. I hoped Victor would never find out, but I’ve found that secrets rarely stay buried. I don’t know how he knew or when he learned Nikolas wasn’t his. He never once mentioned it to me, and he treated Nikolas as if he were his own. When Valentin came along a year later as a happy surprise, Victor was elated, but he never favored Valentin over Nikolas.”

  “Why did Victor change the succession?”

  “He didn’t discuss it with me, so I can only guess.” Margie paused and swallowed. She still wasn’t meeting my eyes, and she was visibly uncomfortable.

  “If it’s too personal, you don’t have to continue,” I made myself offer, despite the fact that I desperately needed the confirmation.

  A smile trembled on her mouth. “I didn’t expect this to be so hard,” she admitted.

  I reached across the table and squeezed her hand. Her skin was clammy. The elegant empress was gone, and in her place was a woman swamped by pain and sorrow.

  She took a steadying breath and continued, “Victor changed the succession two months before his death. Valentin said Victor’s files revealed he knew about Nikolas from birth, though he had the DNA test sealed and struck from the record. He never told me about the test. He really did plan for Nikolas to be the heir.”

  “So why change it so late, when it would put both of his sons in an awkward position?”

  Margie sighed. “I think someone found out and they were trying to blackmail Victor over Nikolas’s illegitimate status. A late succession change would be difficult, but crowning an illegitimate son would be disastrous. I have no proof, but that is my gut feeling.”

  “Where is Nikolas’s father now?” I asked quietly. I needed final proof before I went to Valentin with what I’d found.

  Her short laugh was so bitter it hurt to hear. “The universe delivered my deepest shame directly to my doorstep, so I would never forget my biggest mistake. Leo is Hannah Perkins’s husband.”

  It was the answer I’d expected, but hearing it confirmed was still a shock. “Why haven’t you asked Valentin to send them away again? Sitting down at dinner next to them every night must be torture.”

  Her expression once again turned shrewd, but she didn’t ask me how I’d known that Hannah and Leo had only returned to the palace full-time after the old emperor’s death.

  “The emperor doesn’t have as much power as people believe, and that is doubly true for new emperors. Valentin is in an even trickier spot thanks to the last-minute succession change.”

  “You’re protecting him, even though it’s costing you,” I breathed. “And yet you want to keep him in the dark because he would do the same for you. I wonder where he learned that tactic?"

  Some of her spark returned. “I am his mother. It is my job to protect him, not the other way around.”

  Chapter Seventeen

  I spent the rest of the day poring over the financial data I’d gotten from my contacts. They had given me raw data and flagged some initial places to look, but I liked to dig deeper myself. While I’d picked up the payments to Lewis fairly quickly because they were barely hidden, the rest of the money movement was harder to track.

  Hannah and her husband owned a ridiculous number of companies, both on the books and off. Tracing money as it moved through the various accounts was time consuming and tedious, but it had to be done. Somewhere in here was the data I needed to prove that she was betraying Valentin.

  I had a suite of software designed to sort through data like this, but without Invictia’s processing power, it was slow going. I felt the loss of my ship like the loss of a limb. I kept thinking I’d wake up and it would all be a nightmare, but it wasn’t, and the grief snuck up on me in quiet moments.

  Delving into the net while I waited for my queries to run, I found three kill contracts on Valentin, all opened within the past year. But no matter how I cross-referenced the payment amounts, I couldn’t find the payments in any of Hannah’s accounts.

  But I did find matching amounts buried in an account owned by Copley Heavy Industries, Asmo’s family’s company. It was a tenuous link because the amount had been paid into a shell account. Once would’ve been a coincidence. Three times was not.

  So, was Asmo working independently of Hannah, or were they working together? My gut said they were working together, but I hadn’t found the link.

  Imogen brought me dinner, and I ate while I worked. Valentin was due to be released tomorrow, and I wanted to bring him more than conjecture. As if my thoughts conjured him, he sent me a neural link request.

  I briefly wondered if my thoughts had alerted him. Surely his abilities didn’t extend that far, right?

  I accepted the link. You can’t read my mind, can you?

  He laughed, and it was so good to hear that something loosened in my chest. No. Were you thinking about me? Luka said you hadn’t been by to bother him in a while, so I was worried about you.

  Yes, I was thinking about you. How are you feeling?

  Better, but Junior won’t let me out until tomorrow. He’s driving me crazy. How are you?

  I am okay. Busy. I’m digging through financials. It’s super fun. I’m ready for you to be out so Myra will let me question the Quint soldiers we caught.

  Yeah, she told me you were driving her crazy. She also told me about Lewis. His voice was flat, but I knew it had to hurt. He’s been with me for five years. I had no idea.

  I’m so sorry. I wish it had turned out to be Oskar. I wouldn’t have minded ta
king that asshole down a few pegs.

  Who else?

  Hannah and Asmo.

  He was quiet for a long time. Do you know why?

  I’m still working on it. I hope to have an answer by tomorrow. And I really wanted to have this conversation in person because I knew that for all Valentin was pretending cool indifference, he had to be wounded and angry. I wanted to be able to wrap my arms around him and offer what comfort I could.

  Be careful.

  I will be.

  He cut the link, and I was left with a mountain of data to sort through. It was going to be a long night.

  It had taken hours, but I’d finally found the link between Asmo and Hannah, buried deep in their financial data. I’d barely been able to keep my eyes open, so I’d crashed just before dawn and had gotten a few hours of sleep.

  Valentin was due to be released at noon. He was going to do a public appearance, then we were meeting in his suite, so I spent the morning going through all of the data my information specialist had found on Nikolas.

  From what I could tell, Nikolas had been in Koan since he’d left the palace. His exact location was difficult to track because he wasn’t paying rent or staying in hotels, which meant I had to guess his location based on the purchases he was making—including two yesterday morning.

  By the time I’d tracked down what I thought was the likely building, I didn’t have time to check out my hunch in person, which left me antsy. I hated incomplete data.

  Ten minutes before Valentin and I were supposed to meet, I started pacing. Imogen watched me and rolled her eyes. “After all you’ve been through, now you’re nervous?”

  “I got his soldiers killed and didn’t even catch the person responsible.”

  “Neither did the ten other people with you,” Imogen reminded me gently. “I know you think you can do everything, but occasionally, you have to let the rest of us take our fair share of the blame.”

  She was technically right, but it didn’t change how I felt. Valentin had already told me he didn’t blame me, but it had been my call to attack Adams and my failure that had resulted in deaths. So I paced.

  At two minutes to one, I headed for Valentin’s suite. Luka opened the door, and my heart sank. If Valentin had been as eager to see me as I was him, wouldn’t he have opened his own door?

  “He’s on the balcony. Imogen and I will be in the kitchen.”

  When I glanced at Imogen, her lip curled at the high-handed order, but she nodded her agreement.

  I left them to it and made my way through Valentin’s suite. It was even larger than Margie’s and done in tasteful shades of blue and gray. The living room overlooked the balcony. Valentin stood staring out into the garden through the tall thermoplastic panels that had been added for extra protection. He wore a dark pinstriped suit that fit him perfectly, and the difference between us had never been more apparent.

  I composed myself and pushed open the door to the balcony. Valentin turned as I approached, but I couldn’t read his expression.

  “How are you feeling?” I asked, just to break the awkward silence.

  He closed the distance between us and pulled me into a tight hug. All of my careful planning went out the window, and I wrapped my arms around him.

  “I was so worried,” he murmured into my hair. “I’ve wanted to do this for two days.”

  “Me, too,” I agreed. I enjoyed the moment before I remembered why he’d been in a med chamber to begin with. “I have more information about the traitors and Nikolas. I’m sorry I didn’t get it fast enough to prevent the attack.”

  He chuckled but didn’t let me go. “Only you would do something I’ve been trying to do for months in mere days and apologize for not doing it faster.”

  “I had help. And it wasn’t cheap, FYI. I’m adding it to your bill. You might want to be sitting down when you look at it.” I shut my mouth to stop the rambling.

  He drew back far enough to meet my eyes. “Thank you.” He slowly moved in, giving me plenty of time to back away. I stayed.

  Valentin brushed his lips against mine. I closed my eyes and leaned into him. He kept the kiss light, but some of my tension melted. He was here, and he was okay. I didn’t know what the future held for us, but for this moment, I enjoyed his mouth on mine, his hands holding me tight.

  He pulled away, his reluctance clear. “As much as I would like to continue, I suppose work must come before play.” He led me to a pair of outdoor chairs clustered around a little table. “Is this okay? Can I get you something to drink?”

  “This is perfect, and I’m good.” The nerves were back, and I just wanted this conversation to be over.

  Valentin settled into the chair next to me. “You’ve been busy. I looked over the data you shared, but I want you to talk me through it, make sure I’m seeing the same things you are. And I would like to know where it came from.”

  “That one is easy, though I won’t give you my exact sources. Suffice it to say that their job is digging up information that people would rather wasn’t found. I’ve worked with them in the past.”

  “Before you became queen?”

  That was a delicate way to ask if it was from the time I’d been working on kill contracts. “Yes.”

  “You trust them?”

  I shrugged. “As much as I trust anyone. Their loyalty is to credits. I worked with the two of them independently and their data matched. I suppose there is a small chance they are both compromised and working together, but that would be unusual.”

  “I’m assuming they didn’t obtain their information through legal channels?”

  I laughed. “You assume correctly.”

  “Tell me what you found.”

  “As we discussed before, Hannah and Asmo are both working against you. Copley Heavy Industries, Asmo’s family’s company, nearly went under fourteen months ago, just before your father died. Only a large private loan from a shell company owned by Leo Perkins allowed them to remain solvent.”

  Valentin did not look surprised.

  “I don’t know why the original deal happened. Perhaps it was just good business. But then you became emperor instead of Nikolas, and suddenly, Hannah Perkins had a hold over Asmo. I believe she coerced him into helping her try to put Nikolas on the throne. Maybe he had his own reasons, too, but it’s only after the loans that payments on three separate kill contracts on you came from deeply buried Copley accounts.”

  “Are you sure they are working together? Leo could have made a business decision without Hannah’s involvement, and now it is just coincidence that she and Asmo are both betraying me.”

  “It’s possible,” I allowed. “I have enough evidence to prove their betrayal, but not that they are working together. If I could question one of them, then perhaps they would give up more information, but I didn’t want to do that without your consent.”

  His expression hardened. “Both will be questioned. Extensively.”

  “As far as I can tell, Asmo has been dealing with the mercenaries and kill contracts, while Hannah is feeding both money and the information she got from your assistant to Commander Adams.”

  This time, true pain flashed on Valentin’s face. “I still can’t believe Lewis betrayed me.”

  “He apparently loves life’s little luxuries and they don’t come cheap. He needed additional income to keep living in the style to which he’d become accustomed. I don’t have definitive proof yet that Hannah is the one providing the information to Adams, but she made additional payments to your assistant just before Adams picked you up last time. How many people knew exactly where you were going to be?”

  Valentin closed his eyes. “Not many. It was a last-minute trip. Why does she hate me?”

  “It’s not you she hates, it’s Quint. They killed her sons. She wants them wiped out and you are threatening peace. If Nikolas takes over, perhaps she thinks he’s less likely to stop the war.”

  “She can’t know that, though. Why risk it?”

  I knew
Valentin was too smart to accept half an answer. “I believe she knows or has proof that Nikolas is illegitimate and plans to blackmail him into continuing the war. And I believe she also promised Asmo that the war would continue to secure his help, since his family depends on the income from their shipbuilding company.”

  Valentin narrowed his eyes at me. “Why do you think she knows about Nikolas’s parentage?”

  “Because I spoke to your mother.” Telling him that much wasn’t technically breaking my promise to Margie, and while I understood where she was coming from, I refused to lie to him. “That’s all I can tell you.”

  Valentin shook his head. “I’ve long suspected Asmo, but Hannah was a surprise.”

  “You told me you didn’t know who was betraying you!”

  A chagrined smile touched the corners of his mouth. “I didn’t, not for sure, and I didn’t want my feelings to influence you.” His smile died. “And I would’ve bet credits that Lewis was loyal.”

  I rubbed my face and prayed for patience. “Did you also know Nikolas has stayed in Koan since he left the palace?”

  He blinked at me in surprise. “No.”

  “I was working on his location this morning, so I haven’t had time to verify it, but his most recent transactions were yesterday near a building where Leo Perkins owns two penthouses.”

  “You got his recent transaction history? That would’ve taken me weeks of red tape. I was considering doing it anyway, but Mother kept thinking she could get him to come around and respond to our messages. I guess that didn’t happen.” Valentin laughed without humor and my heart ached for him. “You mentioned Leo owned the penthouses near there. Do you think Hannah has been helping Nikolas hide?”

  “I would assume so.”

  “Mother is going to be crushed,” he murmured. He shook his head and asked, “If Nikolas made purchases yesterday, did he escape or did Adams let him go?”