Ch 18: Unconventional relationship

Aribella POV

“Your actions this morning were….. odd, for lack of a better word,” Rhory started once the three of us were closed inside of his office.

“I wasn’t expecting Mael to eat breakfast with us,” I huffed, walking around, and admiring the books once again.

“Are you honestly blaming Mael’s presence for the entirety of that trainwreck?” Emrys dropped onto the chaise with a grunt, adjusting his sling to get comfortable.

Tossing a look over my shoulder, I narrowed my eyes. “I was raised…. On a farm. You can’t expect royalty out of me on day one.”

“I think horses have better manners than you, Ms. Voss,” Emrys muttered, causing Rhory to choke on what I assumed was his saliva.

“Did you two drag me in here to insult me or discuss something important?” a book with an emerald, green faded binding caught my eye, and I plucked it off the shelf.

“Ari,” Rhory sighed. “You are different than anyone I’ve ever encountered.”

“That was just a nice way to insult me, your highness.”

“You just removed a book from the Grand Duke’s personal collection without so much as a glance to make sure that it was okay.”

“Was it not okay?”

“That isn’t the point.”

Closing my eyes, I let out a sigh, “May I please borrow this book from your personal collection? I promise to take good care of it and return it to its rightful place back on your shelf the moment I am finished.”

“That’s not a problem at all. You are free to borrow any of my books as you please,” Rhory smiles, and I want to punch him in his smug face. That little show about asking permission was a joke to him.

“This relationship is quite unconventional,” he speaks again at my silence.

I walk over to the seat across from his desk, sitting down with the book in my lap, “I appreciate you being so open minded about this. I’m not trying to make your life difficult. Quite the opposite, actually. I’m just…. Trying to navigate all of these changes, and it’s a lot.”

“I understand, and I am sorry that you bear the burden of Mael’s shortcomings,” he let out a soft chuckle, though it was void of humor. “To be honest, I stared at the fountain for quite some time after you left thinking that you were nothing more than a quack. But the more I considered your words and the confidence in which you had spoken them, the less I could ignore what you had said.”

“I am not ready to die ag… yet, and I figured that this specific situation was mutually beneficial to the both of us, which was why I attempted to come to you personally.”

“I am forever in your debt for the information you gave to me regarding Emrys’s life,” he glanced over at the man lounging on the chaise, and a soft smile tugged at the corner of his lips. His eyes had warmth that I couldn't quite put my finger on.

Emrys didn’t notice, but I did, and in that moment, everything I’d struggled to cope with was worth it. It was clear that Emrys was important to Rhory.

“That being said,” Rhory interrupted my thoughts, “What is next?”

I leaned back in the chair, mulling over the information I remembered from the book. I’d written plenty down in my notebook, but that was back at the house and would be no help to me now.

It took a few minutes to straighten out a timeline, but I think I remember Mael’s next step was poisoning.

“Hemlock!” I practically shouted. “He’s going to poison you with hemlock.”

Rhory began speaking, but I held my finger up, “I’m certain that daily doses of walnut will give you a natural protection against the plant, but I need to verify.” I flipped open the pages on the book, digging through to the documented poisonous plants until I found Hemlock.

Plant contains alkaloid coniine.

Symptoms of exposure; Stomach pains, vomiting, vertigo, partial paralysis. CAN BE FATAL in high doses.

Eating raw walnuts, fig, and rue daily can build up a tolerance in your body.

If ingested, mix honey, poppy leaves, and rose leaves in a mortar and steep in tea.

I slid the book across Rhory’s desk, stabbing my finger at the section that explains hemlock poisoning.

“Your knowledge is impressive, Ari,” his honey-colored eyes lifted to mine, and I blushed under his praise. I wasn’t used to being this close to a man, and I think my senses were already in overdrive after the little trip and catch with Kaelar earlier.

“I would suggest we begin eating walnuts with every meal to be safe,” I started but Rhory cut me off, “We?”

“I believe he will poison me as well, though my becoming your fiancée changes the course of events that I know to be true, I refuse to take any chances.”

“Does this mean that we have a traitor in the kitchen?” Emrys finally decided to join the conversation.

“Unless Mael spends his time in the kitchen, I’d say that’s highly likely.”

Emrys snorted, “That man wouldn’t wipe his rear end if he thought he could get away with it.”

Rhory pinched the bridge of his nose, leaning back in his chair, and looking utterly exhausted, “None of this makes any sense. Why go to all of this trouble to take the throne?”

“Ruling a Kingdom is power, and Mael thinks that you are too soft to become King.”

“Too soft?” Rhory sounded surprised by that bit of information. “If being a fair King makes me soft, then I suppose I’m okay with that, but hearing that's what he thinks of me pains my heart."

“I think we need to evaluate exactly what it is that he finds a problem to figure out why he wants you dead so badly.”

A loud bell rang from outside the castle, and Rhory sighed, “I have a meeting that I need to attend. You are free to explore the castle as long as Kaelar is with you. I’ll be on the grounds if there is an emergency, but for now, we’ll start with your walnut theory and go from there.”

“Thank you for trusting me, Rhory,” I pulled the book to my chest, hugging it against my body. “I know none of this makes sense, but it means a lot to me that you’d go out on a limb for me.”

“Like you said earlier about yourself,” he stood from his desk, walking over to help Emrys up, “I’m also not quite ready to die yet.”