stared
up at him mutely, her eyes burning with misery.
How could she hate him? She didn’t have the right, or the
strength. Yes, he was a killer—and she owed him her life.
Carefully, Severin reached out to brush earth from her hair.
Eloise winced, and he wiped his forearm across his face instead, smearing dirt
and sweat. “You’re not going to be Queen.”
“What?” Her voice was hoarse and barely audible even to
herself.
“You’re not going to be Queen of Ystria. Not even if I get
you home alive.” He pulled away to her side and lay down slowly on one elbow,
breathing hard. His shirt was torn and he was covered in dirty sand. She
suspected she looked just as bad. “I didn’t tell you because I thought…I
thought it would be bad for you if you knew. Until now.”
“I don’t understand.”
‘That’s because you don’t know how things are at Court. But
I know. You will never be the Queen, Ella.”
“You said—”
“Listen to me. This is how it will happen, at the very, very
best. I will get you home, and King Arnauld will greet you with rejoicing and
gratitude. You’ll be welcomed with feasting and celebration, and I will be
honored for having brought you safely from the hands of the enemy. Then, after
the celebration, the ladies of the Court will come and question you. They will
want to know everything about what happened since the shipwreck. They will ask
how I behaved toward you, and what I said to you, all in the minutest detail.
You will be physically examined by several most respectable and high-ranking
women. And you will be put under some duress to confess any wrongdoing.
Because, you see, nobody will really believe that after all these days and
nights in a man’s company, sharing the road and his bed with him, that you are
still an unsullied virgin.”
Eloise’s mouth opened in protest, her eyes widening. Severin
paused to hear what she had to say, but she just shook her head.
“In the meantime,” he added grimly, “I will also be
questioned. Rather more roughly. By those whose profession it is to seek
confession.”
She understood. In that moment her internal picture of
Severin de Meynard wrenched itself, once again, into a new alignment. “No!”
“The King’s honor is at stake, after all.”
“But…we haven’t…” Her face, pale from shock, flushed now.
This was too much for her to take in instantly.
“Of course not. And believe me, I will get you home with
your maidenhead intact or not at all, because anything else is treason and we
will both be executed for it.”
“What?”
“Don’t panic. There’s no need for that to happen. The King
is a just man, when he has the chance to be. You will not suffer needlessly.
But neither may he take our word alone for our own innocence. Who would believe
us, after all?”
“The King will believe you, won’t he? I mean—you’re his
favored man…”
“The King is not all Ystria. The King is not men gossiping
in the taverns and women gossiping over the embroidery frames. The King is not
the keeper of his own honor.”
“But it will be proved—I will be found…innocent.”
“Yes. And this will be announced publicly, so that no stain
may be imputed to you. There will be a time of silence, when the eyes of the
kingdom are allowed to turn elsewhere. And in that time, very quietly, the
betrothal will be called off, and you—with luck—will be returned home to Venn.
And the King will marry another.”
The whole world was crumbling beneath her feet. “But why?”
He sighed. “Because whatever is proved in law, there will
always be rumors against you. Your reputation will always be suspect. If you
were to become Queen, there would be suggestions that your children were tainted
by another man’s seed, if not actually illegitimate, and this would be used by
the King’s enemies. Do you think Arnauld could tolerate such a situation? His
queen must be unimpeachable.” He caught his lip in his teeth. “And you are
up at him mutely, her eyes burning with misery.
How could she hate him? She didn’t have the right, or the
strength. Yes, he was a killer—and she owed him her life.
Carefully, Severin reached out to brush earth from her hair.
Eloise winced, and he wiped his forearm across his face instead, smearing dirt
and sweat. “You’re not going to be Queen.”
“What?” Her voice was hoarse and barely audible even to
herself.
“You’re not going to be Queen of Ystria. Not even if I get
you home alive.” He pulled away to her side and lay down slowly on one elbow,
breathing hard. His shirt was torn and he was covered in dirty sand. She
suspected she looked just as bad. “I didn’t tell you because I thought…I
thought it would be bad for you if you knew. Until now.”
“I don’t understand.”
‘That’s because you don’t know how things are at Court. But
I know. You will never be the Queen, Ella.”
“You said—”
“Listen to me. This is how it will happen, at the very, very
best. I will get you home, and King Arnauld will greet you with rejoicing and
gratitude. You’ll be welcomed with feasting and celebration, and I will be
honored for having brought you safely from the hands of the enemy. Then, after
the celebration, the ladies of the Court will come and question you. They will
want to know everything about what happened since the shipwreck. They will ask
how I behaved toward you, and what I said to you, all in the minutest detail.
You will be physically examined by several most respectable and high-ranking
women. And you will be put under some duress to confess any wrongdoing.
Because, you see, nobody will really believe that after all these days and
nights in a man’s company, sharing the road and his bed with him, that you are
still an unsullied virgin.”
Eloise’s mouth opened in protest, her eyes widening. Severin
paused to hear what she had to say, but she just shook her head.
“In the meantime,” he added grimly, “I will also be
questioned. Rather more roughly. By those whose profession it is to seek
confession.”
She understood. In that moment her internal picture of
Severin de Meynard wrenched itself, once again, into a new alignment. “No!”
“The King’s honor is at stake, after all.”
“But…we haven’t…” Her face, pale from shock, flushed now.
This was too much for her to take in instantly.
“Of course not. And believe me, I will get you home with
your maidenhead intact or not at all, because anything else is treason and we
will both be executed for it.”
“What?”
“Don’t panic. There’s no need for that to happen. The King
is a just man, when he has the chance to be. You will not suffer needlessly.
But neither may he take our word alone for our own innocence. Who would believe
us, after all?”
“The King will believe you, won’t he? I mean—you’re his
favored man…”
“The King is not all Ystria. The King is not men gossiping
in the taverns and women gossiping over the embroidery frames. The King is not
the keeper of his own honor.”
“But it will be proved—I will be found…innocent.”
“Yes. And this will be announced publicly, so that no stain
may be imputed to you. There will be a time of silence, when the eyes of the
kingdom are allowed to turn elsewhere. And in that time, very quietly, the
betrothal will be called off, and you—with luck—will be returned home to Venn.
And the King will marry another.”
The whole world was crumbling beneath her feet. “But why?”
He sighed. “Because whatever is proved in law, there will
always be rumors against you. Your reputation will always be suspect. If you
were to become Queen, there would be suggestions that your children were tainted
by another man’s seed, if not actually illegitimate, and this would be used by
the King’s enemies. Do you think Arnauld could tolerate such a situation? His
queen must be unimpeachable.” He caught his lip in his teeth. “And you are
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