a hand through her hair to lie it in a straight line. Her lips rose into a smile of contentment. Maybe it was just fine that he was not what she had always expected of a husband.
After all, he was a Scot.
Edmund smiled. It was a small curve of his lips, nothing too large. But he was very pleased. Obviously the assassin was good and worth the money he’d paid the man. Across the great hall the man paused just long enough to make eye contact with him before he blended back into the crush of courtiers.
It took a clever man to gain entrance to the great hall, the feat likely costing the man a good bit of his fee.
Edmund tipped his mug back without a care for the cost of the wine. His lips curled into a sneer as he considered the pain it would cost him to retrieve his sister. She would have to make recompense for that. He never forgot a slight. Not even from a family member. He was the earl, or would be, as soon as his father died.
And his only sibling was not going to be bred by a Scot. Even if he had to offer his back to an assassin. He handed the goblet off and strode away from his retainers. They hid their smirks behind gloved hands, assuming he was off to enjoy a quick fuck in the dark corridors of the palace now that it was well into the night.
Edmund grinned. He was off to set in motion a plan that was truly majestic in its cunning. He traveled the darker hallways, pinching out a few of the lanterns along the way. Outside the storm still raged, the wind driving heavy rain into the glass windows. It filled the hallways with noise, which suited him perfectly. He kept walking until he neared the dock. The royal barge was missing, no doubt taken to a safer harbor. Here the sound of the storm was loud because the river added to it. The water was choppy and speckled with debris such as tree limbs. He turned all the way around the corner but he was not alone.
“Now this is a surprise.”
Raelin McKorey turned in a flutter of gold silk and wool cloak. Her eyes widened when she recognized him. Edmund stood in the opening that would allow her off the dock.
“Meeting a lover, are you?”
She scowled at him. “I am not. I sought a bit of peace from the hall full of men like ye.”
Edmund toyed with the sword hanging from his hip. He stepped toward her and she backed away.
“I really am very happy to have this opportunity to settle our affairs.”
She glanced behind her, but stepped even closer to the edge of the dock when she looked up to find him closing in on her. The water was so swollen, it ran over the edges of the dock.
“Stop this. I am in service to the queen.”
“You are a bitch who doesn’t know her place—”
“Sweet mercy!”
Raelin’s eyes widened in terror. Edmund stared at her face, enjoying it. White-hot pain went through his shoulder, snapping him out of his mental obsession with watching Raelin suffer. He looked down to see the tip of a thin dagger protruding from his own body. The pain was so intense he felt almost in awe of it. His thoughts became sluggish, his heart thumping slower and slower. The dagger withdrew, sending a new stream of torment through his body. Hot pain felt as if it was melting his flesh.
“Good work. Exactly what I paid for.” He turned to look at the assassin, his thoughts still moving slowly.
“Guards!” Raelin raised her voice so it could be heard over the rushing water.
“Kill her!” Edmund turned and lunged toward Raelin. “She’ll ruin our game. I need McQuade blamed for this attack.” He grasped a handful of her silk skirts. She dug her heels into the wooden deck to escape, but his strength was too much for her.
“Kill her!” Rage began to burn in him again. “I want to see her bleed.”
The knife penetrated his own chest instead. This time his entire body went cold. His knees bent and slammed into the floor but there was no pain, only a growing chill. Every muscle drew taut, his fingers tightening on Raelin’s skirts. The tip of the dagger was stained with blood. The moonlight reflected off it as water soaked into his hose.
It was a mortal wound. Looking behind him, he stared