Chapter 30 Suspicion
The council investigation began at dawn. Adrian convened every advisor, every guard captain, every person with knowledge of palace security. Lila sat in the back of the council chamber, allowed to observe because of her pack bond with Theo. Through their mate bond, she felt Adrian's cold fury barely contained beneath his kingly composure.
"Someone opened the garden gate from inside the palace." Councilor Thorne examined the broken lock. "This wasn't a random kidnapping. This was planned. Coordinated. Someone wanted Prince Theo to disappear."
"Who benefits from the Prince going missing?" Councilor Devon asked the obvious question.
All eyes turned to Celeste. She stood beside Garrett, her face pale but defiant. "You think I'd endanger my own son? Are you insane?"
"Not you directly." Thorne's voice was careful. "But perhaps someone who wanted to prove you incapable of protecting the heir. Someone who wanted to damage your custody claim."
The implication was clear. Everyone in the room knew about the separation. Everyone knew Celeste kept Theo away from Adrian. If she couldn't keep the Prince safe, the council could override her custody rights.
"Lady Margot." Adrian's voice cut through the murmurs. "Where were you last night between the hours of nine and eleven?"
Margot stood smoothly, her expression perfectly composed. "I was in the library, Your Majesty. Working on correspondence for the southern province trade negotiations."
"Can anyone confirm this?"
"Three servants saw me there. The head librarian was with me for an hour discussing historical precedents." Margot's smile was serene. "I'm happy to provide their names for questioning."
Adrian gestured to a guard who left to verify her alibi. Through their bond, Lila felt his frustration. He suspected Margot too, but she'd prepared her defense perfectly.
"The garden gate required a specific key." The head guard held up the broken mechanism. "Only five keys exist. One held by His Majesty. One held by the head gardener. One held by the Queen. One in the key master's locked cabinet. And one that went missing three months ago."
"Missing?" Adrian's voice sharpened. "Why wasn't this reported?"
"It was, Your Majesty. We searched extensively but never found it. We assumed it had been lost or misplaced." The guard's face reddened. "We should have changed all the locks. It was an oversight."
"A convenient oversight." Adrian's jaw clenched. "Who had access to the key room three months ago?"
The guard consulted his records. "Multiple people, Your Majesty. Council members. Royal family. Senior servants. Lady Margot among them."
"As were dozens of others." Margot interjected smoothly. "I hardly think my being in the key room months ago proves anything about last night."
She was right. The evidence was circumstantial at best. But Lila watched Margot's face carefully, saw the calculation behind her calm expression. Margot hadn't staged the kidnapping herself, but she'd known it would happen. Known someone else would make the move.
The guard who'd been sent to verify Margot's alibi returned, nodding to Adrian. "Her story checks out, Your Majesty. Multiple witnesses place her in the library during the relevant time."
"Then someone else opened that gate." Adrian stood, his presence filling the room. "Someone with access to the stolen key. Someone who wanted my son endangered." His voice dropped dangerously. "And when I find them, they will pray for death long before I grant it."
The council session continued for hours. Every servant who'd been on duty was questioned. Every guard who'd patrolled near the garden. Every person who'd had opportunity. But no clear culprit emerged. Whoever had done this had been careful, leaving no obvious trail.
Lila's mind worked through the puzzle. Margot had an alibi. But she'd reacted wrong when Theo was found. Not surprised enough. Not confused enough. She'd known he'd be in that garden.
Which meant she'd coordinated with someone else. Someone who could physically unlock the gate while she established her alibi elsewhere. Someone close enough to the situation to know about the forgotten garden. Someone who benefited from Celeste looking incompetent.
Her eyes cut to Garrett. He stood beside Celeste, playing the supportive lover, but his expression was too satisfied. Too pleased with himself. Like a man watching a plan unfold exactly as intended.
The council session adjourned with no resolution. Adrian dismissed everyone with orders to continue investigating. As people filed out, Lila lingered, waiting for the right moment.
She followed Garrett when he left the council chamber. Followed him through corridors to a rarely used section of the palace. When they were alone, she called out.
"Lord Garrett. I need a word."
He turned, his handsome face arranging itself into polite concern. "Lady Lila. How can I help you?"
"You can tell me the truth." She moved closer, keeping her voice low. "About last night. About the garden gate. About why Prince Theo conveniently disappeared from his locked room."
"I have no idea what you're implying." His voice stayed pleasant, but his eyes hardened. "I was with the Queen all evening. She can confirm it."
"I'm sure she can. But that doesn't mean you didn't plan it." Lila forced herself to meet his gaze. "Margot stole that key three months ago. She gave it to you. You unlocked the garden gate and left it open, knowing Theo would eventually crawl that direction."
"That's a serious accusation." Garrett's smile didn't reach his eyes. "Do you have proof?"
"I have logic. Motive. Opportunity." Lila's voice steadied as pieces clicked together. "You want Celeste free. You've been pushing her to leave Adrian, to take Theo and disappear south. But she won't go while she has power here, while she controls the heir."
"So?"
"So you staged a kidnapping. Made her look incompetent. Gave the council reason to question her custody." Lila stepped closer. "You didn't care that Theo could have been hurt. Didn't care that a one-year-old child was left alone in a garden for over an hour. You just wanted Celeste to lose her leverage so she'd finally leave with you."
Garrett's pleasant mask slipped. Something cold and cruel flickered across his face. "You're smarter than you look. I'll give you that."
"You did it." The confirmation settled like ice in her stomach. "You tried to kill the Prince."
"Kill? No." Garrett laughed softly. "The boy was perfectly safe. I made sure of it. The garden was secure. The weather was mild. He was never in real danger."
"He's one year old. Anything could have happened."
"But it didn't." Garrett's voice hardened. "And now Celeste sees how vulnerable she is. How the council questions her abilities. How Adrian uses every mistake to undermine her authority." He leaned closer. "By month's end, she'll agree to leave. We'll take our settlement and disappear south, and you can have your precious mate all to yourself."
"I'll tell Adrian. Tell the council. Expose what you did."
"With what proof?" Garrett's smile returned, sharp and dangerous. "You have theories. Suspicions. Nothing that would stand up to investigation." He straightened his jacket casually. "And if you do tell anyone, if you try to implicate me in something you can't prove, I'll make sure the next time something happens to little Theo, it's not so safe."