The Gender Lie(95)

I couldn’t be more grateful that we had convinced Tim and Jay to stay on the boat with Alejandro and the eggs. We’d known that there was a good chance we would get caught, which made it important to keep the eggs out of the situation. We’d kept them in reserve, as a backup plan if this didn’t go well.

The door swung open and a warden stepped into the prison chamber, making her way to my cell.

“What’s going on?” I asked as she slipped the key into the door. She looked at me, her blue eyes stoic and flat. I took a step back from the bars, turning around and dropping my arms behind my back.

The cell door swung open. Grabbing me just above my elbow, she marched me out and through the open door on the other side of the room.

We were in the royal palace, and as I stepped into the hall, I felt a tug of déjà vu. It hadn’t been that long since I had last been here, and nothing had changed. The warden guided me up several flights of stairs, to the very topmost level of the palace. I passed by the portraits of Queen Rina and her daughters, taking a moment to gaze at Elena’s profile, before I was shoved into a familiar office.

My stomach clenched at the memory of Queen Rina and Mr. Jenks’ lifeless bodies sitting in the now-empty chairs in front of the table. Instinctively, my eyes went to the table to see if Lee’s words were still there. Of course they weren’t—the surface had been sanded down and re-stained.

A solitary figure stood by a window, staring out at the city below. Queen Elena. She was clothed now, her blonde hair coifed in curling waves artfully pinned into place. I heard the wisp of skirts as she turned, her hands folded over her abdomen.

As I met the new queen’s gaze, I felt a rush of excitement. This was my chance to explain what had happened and try to get a way out for me and Viggo. Stepping forward, I offered her a bow, noting the look of surprised pleasure on her face.

“Hello, Ms. Bates,” Queen Elena said, her voice soft. “Please, have a seat.” She held out an arm toward one of the chairs on my side of the table, and after a moment’s hesitation, I sat down.

She moved over to her own chair, opposite me, and seated herself, smoothing the front of her dress with both hands before resting her arms on the table.

“You know, Violet, I have been thinking a lot the last few hours, and I have to say, you are a rather fascinating subject to think about.”

“Your majesty, please… where is Viggo Croft? Is he… is he all right?”

Elena smiled and leaned back in her chair, watching me. “Such devotion to a Patrian… how I admire that.”

I frowned, unsure of what she was talking about. Leaning forward, I tried a different route. “Your majesty, you have to understand—he’s innocent. We both are. We saved the ceremony.”

“No, actually, what you did is what you have been doing all along—annoying me with setbacks,” she announced, standing up. “You see, I had a plan, but then you came along, and kept forcing me to adapt it.”

I gaped at her as she moved over to a rope hanging from the ceiling and pulled it once. The doors behind me swung open, and I stared as a woman with a familiar face marched in with an unconscious person slung over her shoulder. I watched as Ms. Dale was deposited on one of the couches with a grunt.

Straightening, the familiar woman rotated her neck and then looked at the queen. I recognized her as Tabitha, second in line for succession. She was muscular, her limbs and neck bulging, while Elena was slender, like a willow reed.

“Thank you, Tabitha,” Elena said. “And now… Desmond?”

My jaw dropped as Desmond appeared, seemingly from nowhere, in front of the queen. “As always, my dear girl, it is an honor to serve,” she said, bowing deeply.

Elena smiled and embraced the older woman, placing her forehead against Desmond’s in a sign of complete trust. Then Elena broke from her, coming around the table to sit back down.

I stared at Desmond as she moved behind Elena and leaned against a shelf.

“I… I don’t understand,” I said, shifting my gaze between the two women.

Desmond threw me a piteous look while Elena gave me a feline grin. “Violet, you’ve seen the facility,” the queen said. “You know what Mother and Mr. Jenks did to me and my sisters.” I nodded and she continued. “Do you know what gift I was given?”

I shook my head. I probably should have looked it up, but it hadn’t seemed as important to me when Viggo was in his coma and Tim was struggling to fit in.

Leaning forward, she rested her chin on her hand and sighed. “I really expected more from her, Desi,” she said, and Desmond shrugged.