“It can wait.” He glanced at his bed, then at her. “Unless you have something else in mind.”
She scoffed. “You seem to have only one thing on your mind these days.” She darted past him to open the door.
“It’s what happens when a man falls in love.”
She froze in his doorway, then whispered, “Don’t.”
“Don’t what? Fall in love?”
“Don’t tempt me.” She stepped into the hallway.
Did that mean she was tempted? He ran after her, slamming his door behind him. “Gwen.”
In the hallway, a few doors down, a servant gasped at the sight of them and dropped her armful of bed linens on the floor.
“Are you all right?” Silas picked up the bedsheets and handed them to the servant. “We didn’t mean to frighten you.”
“I—I’m fine, Your Highness.” The young woman curtsied, then dashed away.
Gwen shot him a wry look as she headed for the western wing. “I told you to button your shirt.”
He snorted. “Are you saying my chest is scary?”
“Not exactly,” she muttered.
He followed her as he fastened the buttons. “I’ve been wondering how you were doing. Have you made any progress?”
She explained how they were examining the queen’s jewelry and that so far, there was one ring they suspected was poisoned. “It was a gift from the king last summer.”
“Petras gave it to her?”
Gwen nodded. “Margosha said she would ask around to see where it came from.”
“I’ll ask him.”
Gwen gave him a worried look. “That could end badly if the king thinks we suspect him.”
“He’ll cooperate. He wants rid of the curse more than anything. He believes his wife will improve if we—” Silas stopped when a pained look crossed Gwennore’s face.
“I don’t think it’s possible for her to improve. She’s been poisoned for too long, and it’s affected all her internal organs.”
Silas swallowed hard. He’d told Petras that he would help the queen. And if he failed, he would go along with Petras’s wish to do what Fafnir ordered. Invade Woodwyn and declare war on Tourin.
“I’m sorry,” Gwennore whispered.
“So am I.” Silas remained silent for a while as they walked, then something occurred to him. “The queen received the ring last summer, but she’s been ill for longer than that. And my mother suffered from madness, too.”
Gwennore nodded. “That’s another reason why I suspect the jewelry. It’s the only thing that gets passed on from one queen to the next. Everything else changes.”
When they reached the workroom, they found Annika, Margosha, and Olenka inside. They’d brought up several baskets of food and were arranging it on a table. Brody, in dog form, was wolfing down a plate of ham that had been placed on the floor.
Annika saluted Silas then motioned to Brody. “We found this dog in the room. I don’t know where he came from.”
“But he’s so cute.” Olenka patted Brody’s head, and he grinned at her.
Gwen set the stack of clothes on the floor next to Brody. “We should leave the room for a few minutes.”
“What?” Annika eyed the clothes. “Why?”
“We were just about to eat,” Margosha protested. “Would you like to join us, my lord?”
“In a moment,” Silas said. “First, I’d like to talk to Brody. So if you don’t mind…” He motioned to the door.
“Brody?” Margosha looked confused. “You mean the dog?”
Annika snorted. “You want to talk to a dog?”
Gwennore picked up a plate of ham and cheese and headed for the door. “I’ll explain outside. Come on.”
Margosha grabbed the bottle of wine, while Olenka and Annika gathered up some cups and a loaf of bread. Then they followed Gwen out the door.
As soon as the door shut, Brody’s form wavered for a few seconds, then snapped into the shape of a man. He reached for the underpants. “I smelled death on you. What’s going on here?”
Silas wandered about the room, studying Gwen’s experiment. “Lord Romak was murdered last night. I’ve been investigating the matter.”
“Who is he?” Brody fastened the waist of the underpants.
“The king’s personal secretary.” Silas explained how he’d discovered Romak’s spying activity. “I sent Aleksi to follow the priest, so we can figure out who was paying Romak. I suspect Lord Morris or one of his minions.”
Brody pulled on the pair of breeches. “Is this Aleksi one of your dragons?”
When Silas stiffened, Brody gave him a wry look. “I can smell a fellow shifter.”
Silas clenched his fists. Dammit, he should have realized this, since he’d always been able to tell that Brody was a shifter. “Have you told anyone?”
“No.” Brody smiled. “You can relax. I don’t intend to tell anyone. Shifters’ code of honor.”
Silas flexed his hands. “I’ll hold you to that.”
“So someone killed the spy you arrested.” Brody buttoned the breeches. “Sounds like you may have more than one spy around here.”
Silas nodded. “Someone made sure Romak couldn’t talk. Romak had planned to kill me and frame Gwennore for it.”
“What?”
“She was given a poisoned dagger—”
“Is she all right?”
“Yes.” Silas motioned toward the door. “You saw her. She’s fine.”
Brody frowned as he put on the shirt. “So any idea who killed this Romak?”
With a grimace, Silas ran a hand through his hair. “It’s not making any sense. The two guards said their captain ordered them to stay by the dungeon entrance all night. And they saw him go inside with a knife, the same knife that is now protruding from Romak’s chest.”
“Then he’s your man.” Brody buttoned the shirt.
Silas shook his head. “Karlan swears it wasn’t him. And I checked with the other soldiers. He was in the barracks with them all night.”
“Then the two guards are lying.”
Silas sighed. “They swear they’re telling the truth. And even Karlan says they are trustworthy. He’s completely baffled. Hell, we all are.”
Brody paused in the middle of fastening a button. “The murderer looked like the captain, but he wasn’t him?”
Silas nodded. “Right.”
“You still have the body?”
“In the dungeon, yes.”
“Take me there.” Brody finished buttoning his shirt. “If it was the Chameleon, I might be able to pick up his scent.”
“The Chameleon?”
Brody nodded. “I’ll explain on the way.”
“No
