off his brow as he pulled with all his might, and nothing happened.
He let go at last, panting as he stared at Josef. “What is that thing?” he said, too out of sorts to remember the proper address for a prince. “It weighs more than a bloody mountain.”
“It’s my sword,” Josef said. “Everything else you can take. This one stays with me.”
The soldier shook his head. “Queen’s orders,” he panted. “I can’t leave you with a weapon.”
“Forget it,” Josef said. “I didn’t kill the duke. The queen knows that. Now, you cannot lift this sword. No one can, except me. You’ve done your job disarming me as best you could. Let it alone.”
The soldier glanced at his companions, rubbing his strained shoulders. The other guards eyed the Heart with trepidation and, one by one, shook their heads.
“Right,” the guard said at last. “Move out. You,” he said, looking Eli up and down. “Coming?”
“I’ll stay here, if it’s all the same to you,” Eli said, flopping into a chair by the hearth.
“Suit yourself,” the guard said. “But no one gets out of this room until the queen gives the order.”
“That’s fine,” Eli said. “I think our poor, maligned prince could use the company during his wrongful incarceration. But thank you for your diligence, officer.”
The soldier gave Eli a sideways look, like he wasn’t sure if that was sincerity or an insult, maybe both. In the end, he let it go, walking out with a shallow bow and locking the door behind him. As the lock clicked, Josef grabbed the Heart and returned it to his back.
“This is a fine mess,” he grumbled, walking over to the tiny window.
“Mmm,” Eli said, staring absently into the fireplace. “Josef, is your mother-in-law a card player?”
Josef blinked in confusion. “What?”
“Lenette,” Eli said. “Is it possible she used to be a cardsharp?”
“No,” Josef said, appalled. “Why in the world would you even ask that?”
“Because she pulled the best snake-in-the-sleeve I’ve ever seen,” Eli said. “And I’ve seen a lot.”
If possible, Josef grew even more confused. “Snake-in-the-where?”
“Snake-in-the-sleeve,” Eli said slowly. “It’s a gambling move. Watch.” He held out his empty hand, and then, very subtly, flicked his wrist. Out of nowhere, a Daggerback card appeared between his fingers. “See?” he said, turning the card over. “Looks easy, but it takes years of practice.”
“Wait a second,” Josef said. “That’s a Shepherdess.” His eyes widened. “How long have you had a trump up your sleeve?”
“A long time,” Eli said, grinning wide.
Josef crossed his arms over his chest. “I want my money back.”
“Josef,” Eli said, looking hurt as the card disappeared back up his sleeve. “I would never cheat you.”
Josef rolled his eyes.
“Anyway,” Eli said. “That’s hardly the point. What matters is that I saw Lenette do that exact move when the servant handed her the cup.”
Suddenly, Josef was paying very close attention. “Are you sure?”
“I wasn’t at first,” Eli said. “I caught it only by chance. But then I saw her do it a second time, while she was stirring. That time there was no mistaking it.”
“Right,” Josef said, rubbing his neck. “And what did she take out?”
“I don’t know,” Eli confessed. “As I said, she was really good. I couldn’t even see if she was taking something out of her sleeve or putting something in. But I saw her wrist move, and I’ve been in enough card games to know that when you see someone flick their hand that way, you either call your bets or start cheating better.”
Josef scowled. “What would Lenette be putting in the queen’s cup? She owes my mother everything. Her position, her wealth, her daughter’s place as princess, everything. The second the queen dies, Lenette goes right out the door. She knows that better than anyone. So why would she take the risk of doing something that could possibly be seen as treasonous?”
“I have no idea,” Eli said, standing up. “But the royal family’s luck is getting a little too bad for me to buy.”
Josef winced. He knew that look on Eli’s face. “What are you going to do about it?”
“First,” Eli said, walking over to the table beside the door, “I’m going to find out who’s been drugging you at night, and how. I’m guessing it happened again?”
“Yes,” Josef said. “And it got Nico too.”
“Really?” Eli said. “How curious.”
Josef frowned. “Why curious?”
“Because it didn’t get me,” Eli said. “Which rules out the food.”
“And you think the sleeping thing is related to the duke’s death?”
“I don’t know,” Eli said, running his hands along the wall. “But as I said, this is too much bad luck, even for you. Now keep your voice down.” He glanced pointedly at the door. “Bored soldiers have surprisingly sharp ears.”
Josef looked skeptically at the door, but he nodded and moved over to the couch, sitting down with the Heart between his legs.
“Where is Nico, anyway?” he said, trying to keep the annoyance out of his voice.
Eli ducked his head to examine the bookshelf. “Probably making herself useful. She’s not locked up, after all. No point in sticking around here.”
Josef had to give him that one. Still, it annoyed him that he didn’t know where Nico was. But complaining wasn’t going to get him anywhere, so he sat and stared at his sword, letting his mind go blank as he traced the Heart’s scarred surface. He could feel the battle coming, like a storm on the horizon. Good. Let it come. He would be ready.
Josef took a deep breath, letting the anger and frustration flow out of his mind. Then, in one smooth motion, he stood up and stepped into first position. Mindful of the small space, he raised the Heart and began to practice his swings. Eli shot him an annoyed look and stepped out of the way, continuing his investigation around Josef’s sword work.
Outside, dawn turned to morning as the sun peeked over the mountain.
Josef had just passed his one hundredth swing when Eli shouted, “Got it!”
Josef lowered his sword. Eli was standing in the corner looking unbearably smug and holding a candelabra.
“It’s the candles,” Eli said, wrenching a candlestick out of its holder. “Here, smell the wax.”
“No,” Josef said. “You just said it’s poison.”
“Only if you burn it,” Eli said, shoving the candlestick in his face. “Smell.”
Josef sniffed, wrinkling his nose. “Smells like bitter greens.”
Eli nodded. “That’s incenteth. Doctors use it to knock patients out for amputation, usually by making them smoke it. I never even thought of putting it in candles.” He sounded deeply impressed. “Kind of brilliant, actually. The candles burn down, slowly filling the room with the drug. Servants and others can enter and leave with no ill effects except a little drowsiness, but anyone staying in the room would get the full dose and fall into a deep sleep until the candles burned out and the drug stopped.”
“Well, I’m glad you’re impressed,” Josef grumbled. “But unless someone signed their name on those candles, we still don’t know who did it.”
“Up to this point, I’d have said the duke,” Eli said, putting the candle back with a long sigh. “I still think it could be, but that’s a moot point now, isn’t it?”
Josef scowled at that comment, but before he could answer, he heard a familiar step on the carpet behind him. He turned just in time to see Nico step out of the deep shadows by the window.
He smiled, but his smile dropped when he saw the expression on her face. “What?”
“Something’s going on down at the storm wall watchtower,” she said. “Two guard squads have already been sent in.”
Josef caught his breath. That was where he’d had his argument with the duke the day before. “What have they got against me now?”
Nico shook her head. “I don’t think that’s it,” she said, her voice low. “They called in medics as well.”
Josef frowned. “How close did you get?”
