A Lick of Frost(32)

"I understand that," Rhys said.

Hugh looked off to one side of the mirror, where we could not see. "I must go. Talk to your queen, but when the rest of the nobles know what Taranis did to Lady Caitrin, and that other nobles helped him, the vote will go against him."

"Did he get the lady to lie, or did he bespell her, too?" Rhys asked.

"He used his illusions to make three of our nobles appear as the three of you. But he made them monstrous, with projections and spines and…" Hugh shivered. "Her body was quite broken. She is even now still confined to her bed, even with our healers." He looked at me. "If you have need of healers for your men, but ask and it will be yours."

"We will ask if we need them," I said, and I fought the urge to say thank you because Hugh was old enough to be offended by it.

"What did the king hope to gain by such evil?" Frost asked.

"We aren't certain," Hugh said, "but we can prove that he did it, and lied about it, and that the nobles involved lied as well. It is an abuse of magic that has almost no precedent among us."

"And you can prove it?" Rhys asked.

"We can." He looked off to the side again. He turned back to us, but there was a look of concern on his face. "I must go. Talk to your queen. Be ready." He gestured, and we were looking at our own reflections.

"This smacks of court intrigue," Frost said.

I watched Rhys and myself both nod solemnly in the mirror. Neither of us looked very happy.

Veducci came up behind us. "You have been given amazing news, Princess Meredith. Why don't you look happier?"

I answered his reflection rather than turning around. "It has been my experience that court intrigue usually ends badly. The Seelie Court has treated me worse than the Unseelie Court all of my life. I do not believe that a few new magics will make me queen of a people who despise me. If by some miracle it happens as Sir Hugh has stated, then I will have two sets of assassins to deal with instead of one." As soon as I said it, I knew I shouldn't have. My only excuse was the total shock of what had just happened.

Rhys spoke quickly. "I assume the charges against me and my friends are dropped."

Veducci turned to him. "If what Sir Hugh has just said is true, then yes, but until the lady herself drops the charges, they don't go away."

"Even with what Hugh just said?" Frost asked.

"As you pointed out, court intrigue can get ugly. People lie."

"The sidhe do not lie," I said.

Veducci stared hard at me. "Have there been assassination attempts on your life other than the one that happened at the airport, where you were shot at?"

"She can't answer that without talking to Queen Andais," Rhys said. He put his arm across my shoulders. Frost did not give up my hand, so I stood pressed to both of them. I couldn't tell if Rhys's gesture was to reassure me or himself. It had been one of those days when we all needed a hug.

"You do realize that is an answer," Veducci asked.

"What kind of lawyer knows to carry just the right herbs in his pocket to disrupt such a spell?" I said.

"I don't know what you mean." he said with a smile.

"Liar." I whispered it, because I heard steps behind us.

Biggs and Shelby were there. Biggs's suit jacket was gone. His shirtsleeve was rolled back, and there was a bandage on his arm. "I think King Taranis's actions today put his accusations against my clients in serious doubt."

"We can't say yes to that without talking to some…" Shelby stopped, cleared his throat, and tried again, "We'll get back to you." He gathered his assistant and went for the door.

"The nice young woman who fixed up my arm says I have to ride with them to the hospital," Biggs said. "My assistant will take you to a room where you can rest and gather yourselves before you have to leave."

"Thank you, Mr. Biggs," I said. "I am sorry that the hospitality of faerie was not up to its usual standards."

He laughed. "That is the most polite way I have ever heard anyone apologize for such a fucking mess." He raised his injured arm a little. "It was hard on me, and on your men, but if your uncle, the king, had to choose a moment to have his meltdown, this wasn't a bad time for it. It certainly hurt his case and helped ours."

"I suppose that's one way of looking at it," I said.

Rhys hugged me, bumping his cheek against my hair. "Cheer up, sweets, we won."

"No, the Seelie came to the rescue and saved our asses," I said.

The female EMT came to touch Biggs's shoulder. "We're ready to go."

Nelson was strapped to a gurney and looked unconscious. Cortez was beside her, looking more annoyed than worried.