The Goddess Test
Page 63
“Mm, morning,” I said, forcing my eyes to open. Instead of smiling, Henry was staring at me as if I’d grown another limb. Confused, I struggled to prop myself up on my elbow, but even that little movement felt like a knife being thrust into the side of my head. Wincing, I gingerly lay back on the pillow. One look at Henry’s face told me I’d made things worse.
He was standing before I realized he’d gotten out of bed. Producing a black silk robe out of nowhere, he quickly wrapped it around his body, never taking his eyes off of me. But it wasn’t the loving look he’d given me the night before. “Does your head hurt?”
It seemed like a stupid question, all things considered, but I nodded—and immediately regretted it.
“Do you feel achy?”
“A bit,” I admitted, squeezing my eyes shut. “What’s wrong?”
He didn’t answer. Forcing myself to open my eyes once more, I saw him standing over the mugs, sniffing what remained of the hot chocolate.
“Henry?” I said, my voice rising. “What’s going on?”
Without warning, he threw the mugs across the room. They smashed against the wall, staining the wallpaper.
“Dammit!” he roared, and then proceeded to curse in another twenty languages I couldn’t name. Struggling to sit up again, this time I pushed past the pain. I clutched the sheet to my chest and stared at him, too shocked to say anything.
“Calliope!” he yelled, his voice booming, but there was no reply. Instead Nicholas opened the door, making a point of not looking at me.
“In bed,” he said gruffly. “She is ill.”
Henry clenched fists so tightly that I was afraid he might hit something and destroy the whole manor in the process. “Look after her,” he said, storming toward the door. “No one comes in or out of this room without my permission, do you understand?”
Nicholas nodded, his expression impassive. He wasn’t helping.
“Henry?” I said in a small voice, my heart pounding in my chest. “What’s going on?”
“I’m sorry,” he said, staring at me in a way that made my blood run cold. “I am so very, very sorry.”
And with no other explanation, he left.
CHAPTER 16
THE RIVER STYX
I spent the rest of the morning in bed crying. My head ached and my entire body was so sore that getting up didn’t seem possible, but all I could think about was the way Henry had looked at me before he’d left. As if he would never see me again.
It wasn’t fair, and for the life of me I didn’t understand why he was doing this. Was it because I’d said I loved him? It’d been quick, and I hadn’t given it much thought, but after I said it, I knew it was the truth. I was willing to do anything it took to give him another chance, even if it meant giving up any choice I had in my life, and if that didn’t equal love, I didn’t know what did. But it wasn’t like I expected him to love me in return.
The more I thought about it, the more I put the pieces together. The confession that fell off my tongue in a shower of words I couldn’t stop—the sudden need to be with him—the warning not to eat. I’d been poisoned. Except this time, so had Henry and Calliope, and we’d all survived.
It hadn’t been designed to kill me. It was an aphrodisiac.
Once I understood, everything seemed much clearer to me. The only question was who? Was someone trying to give me and Henry a push in the right direction, or was there something else to it? And if there was, who hated me enough to even try?
The only person I could think of was Ella. She hated Ava, and maybe if she thought I was on her side…or maybe she thought that getting rid of me would mean getting rid of Ava, too. With the way Ava had behaved lately, I almost couldn’t blame her. But what did Ella have to gain?
James? I dismissed the thought as quickly as it appeared. The last thing he wanted was to push me and Henry closer together. It was possible that this was his intention, for Henry to storm out and ignore me for the rest of my stay, but it was a risk I was sure James wouldn’t take. Giving Henry any excuse to fall for me and to fight for his realm would be dangerous. Besides, the only surefire way to stop it was to make me fail a test, and—
My blood turned to ice in my veins. Of course. The tests. Gluttony, the seven deadly sins—lust.
Despair filled the pit of my stomach. I’d failed, hadn’t I? Even if it wasn’t my fault, even if it had been an aphrodisiac, it didn’t matter. That had to be why Henry was so upset. Anything else didn’t make sense, unless he really had been forcing affection for my sake.
I didn’t want to think about that. I didn’t want to think about possibly failing either, so instead I dragged myself out of bed, grateful that Nicholas was stationed outside my room instead of inside. Without any painkillers, I had to deal with the aches and pains, apparent side effects of whatever drug I’d been given, but even those were duller now.
I dressed, and despite my protesting body, I picked up my clothes from the night before and remade the bed. The council had to see what had happened, that we’d been set up. If they were at all fair and just, they couldn’t fail me because of this. I clung to that hope, that one last chance, and forced myself to push any other possibility aside. Everything would be okay. It had to be.
Calliope came by shortly before sundown, looking about as sick as I felt. She was pale and trembling, and instead of sending her away, as Nicholas had with every other servant who tried to check on me, he offered his arm to her and escorted her inside.
He was standing before I realized he’d gotten out of bed. Producing a black silk robe out of nowhere, he quickly wrapped it around his body, never taking his eyes off of me. But it wasn’t the loving look he’d given me the night before. “Does your head hurt?”
It seemed like a stupid question, all things considered, but I nodded—and immediately regretted it.
“Do you feel achy?”
“A bit,” I admitted, squeezing my eyes shut. “What’s wrong?”
He didn’t answer. Forcing myself to open my eyes once more, I saw him standing over the mugs, sniffing what remained of the hot chocolate.
“Henry?” I said, my voice rising. “What’s going on?”
Without warning, he threw the mugs across the room. They smashed against the wall, staining the wallpaper.
“Dammit!” he roared, and then proceeded to curse in another twenty languages I couldn’t name. Struggling to sit up again, this time I pushed past the pain. I clutched the sheet to my chest and stared at him, too shocked to say anything.
“Calliope!” he yelled, his voice booming, but there was no reply. Instead Nicholas opened the door, making a point of not looking at me.
“In bed,” he said gruffly. “She is ill.”
Henry clenched fists so tightly that I was afraid he might hit something and destroy the whole manor in the process. “Look after her,” he said, storming toward the door. “No one comes in or out of this room without my permission, do you understand?”
Nicholas nodded, his expression impassive. He wasn’t helping.
“Henry?” I said in a small voice, my heart pounding in my chest. “What’s going on?”
“I’m sorry,” he said, staring at me in a way that made my blood run cold. “I am so very, very sorry.”
And with no other explanation, he left.
CHAPTER 16
THE RIVER STYX
I spent the rest of the morning in bed crying. My head ached and my entire body was so sore that getting up didn’t seem possible, but all I could think about was the way Henry had looked at me before he’d left. As if he would never see me again.
It wasn’t fair, and for the life of me I didn’t understand why he was doing this. Was it because I’d said I loved him? It’d been quick, and I hadn’t given it much thought, but after I said it, I knew it was the truth. I was willing to do anything it took to give him another chance, even if it meant giving up any choice I had in my life, and if that didn’t equal love, I didn’t know what did. But it wasn’t like I expected him to love me in return.
The more I thought about it, the more I put the pieces together. The confession that fell off my tongue in a shower of words I couldn’t stop—the sudden need to be with him—the warning not to eat. I’d been poisoned. Except this time, so had Henry and Calliope, and we’d all survived.
It hadn’t been designed to kill me. It was an aphrodisiac.
Once I understood, everything seemed much clearer to me. The only question was who? Was someone trying to give me and Henry a push in the right direction, or was there something else to it? And if there was, who hated me enough to even try?
The only person I could think of was Ella. She hated Ava, and maybe if she thought I was on her side…or maybe she thought that getting rid of me would mean getting rid of Ava, too. With the way Ava had behaved lately, I almost couldn’t blame her. But what did Ella have to gain?
James? I dismissed the thought as quickly as it appeared. The last thing he wanted was to push me and Henry closer together. It was possible that this was his intention, for Henry to storm out and ignore me for the rest of my stay, but it was a risk I was sure James wouldn’t take. Giving Henry any excuse to fall for me and to fight for his realm would be dangerous. Besides, the only surefire way to stop it was to make me fail a test, and—
My blood turned to ice in my veins. Of course. The tests. Gluttony, the seven deadly sins—lust.
Despair filled the pit of my stomach. I’d failed, hadn’t I? Even if it wasn’t my fault, even if it had been an aphrodisiac, it didn’t matter. That had to be why Henry was so upset. Anything else didn’t make sense, unless he really had been forcing affection for my sake.
I didn’t want to think about that. I didn’t want to think about possibly failing either, so instead I dragged myself out of bed, grateful that Nicholas was stationed outside my room instead of inside. Without any painkillers, I had to deal with the aches and pains, apparent side effects of whatever drug I’d been given, but even those were duller now.
I dressed, and despite my protesting body, I picked up my clothes from the night before and remade the bed. The council had to see what had happened, that we’d been set up. If they were at all fair and just, they couldn’t fail me because of this. I clung to that hope, that one last chance, and forced myself to push any other possibility aside. Everything would be okay. It had to be.
Calliope came by shortly before sundown, looking about as sick as I felt. She was pale and trembling, and instead of sending her away, as Nicholas had with every other servant who tried to check on me, he offered his arm to her and escorted her inside.
