"You're keeping a secret from us." I hoped my bold tone would intimidate her. "Now is the time to confess."
Trina's eyes darted. "There is something, but it would only matter if you marry Basil." Now our eyes met. "You won't do that, right?"
"What are you talking about?" I asked.
"Obviously, you want to know why Basil is really marrying you. Why he wanted to move your wedding date forward." Trina shrugged. "Isn't that what we're talking about?"
"No." Simon's brows pressed together. "We're talking about--"
"That's what we're talking about." I looked back to Trina. "Why is Basil marrying me?"
Trina paled. "When I was on my way down here earlier, with the blanket and the bread, I passed your father's library. He was in there, along with Endrick and Sir Basil. Basil was crying, I'm sure of it."
I sat taller, trying to ignore how much this cell closed in on me when I did. "What did you hear?"
"Endrick wants you dead--he said exactly those words. But he's worried that if he executes a Dallisor without cause, the other Dallisors will revolt. He reminded Basil that they had made a bargain. Basil is supposed to kill you, after your wedding. In exchange, Endrick will offer Reddengrad protection."
By the time she'd finished speaking, my hands were shaking. "My father was in the room for this meeting? Are you sure?"
Trina's eyes softened. "I'm sorry, Kestra. Yes, I'm sure."
"Endrick is lying!" Simon scowled. "He'll use Kestra's death as justification to invade Reddengrad. Basil might think he's protecting his country, but it will be the reason his country is destroyed!"
"None of this matters," Trina said. "We
'll get Kestra out of Woodcourt first. Obviously, we won't let her go through with this marriage."
"Basil was crying, the coward?" Simon kicked at the wall. "As if he should be pitied! What about Kestra's safety?"
"Listen to yourselves!" I shouted, then lowered my voice. "Do you have any idea how absurd this conversation is? Who are either of you to judge Basil?"
Simon and Trina fell silent. It obviously hadn't occurred to them that the three of us were not on the same side.
Simon spoke first. "Kestra, maybe things have changed since we came here."
"Or maybe things were never what we thought." I turned to Trina. "Are you a spy for the Halderians?"
Trina's eyes widened, to the point that even in this darkness I saw how suddenly large they had become. Silence followed my question, long enough and uncomfortable enough that I suspected she was working on swallowing her stomach again. Surely it had lurched into her throat.
Finally, she squeaked out, "I'm here for the Coracks! For Tenger!"
"Then explain how the Halderians know you," Simon said.
"Because of what that man said to me at the inn? I don't know him. But he did know Kestra. Why don't you ask her what he wanted?"
"We all know what he wanted with Kestra. To finish what he started the first time she was kidnapped, probably to kill her. When it came time to hide in the wall, you offered to stay out in the room. Why? Had you arranged for that meeting?"
Trina's laugh came from deep within her throat, and carried nothing but disgust. "I am not working for the Halderians!" Still addressing Simon, she pointed to me. "Whatever she's telling you, it's a lie! I promised Tenger that I would find the Blade for him, nothing more."
"For him?" I leaned forward. "Does Tenger want to be the Infidante?"
"Or the king?" Simon added. "Everyone knows Tenger wants more power."
Trina flinched and I asked her, "What do you get out of it? What did Tenger promise you?"
Trina shook her head. "I only want a place where I can belong, which both of you should understand. My father was loyal to the Dominion. In the War of Devastation, he fought for the Dallisors--fought for your father, Kestra--and ended up working here in the dungeons until he died of fever. I was never on the side of the Dominion. But still, his reputation has haunted me. I couldn't even get a meeting with Tenger, not at first. Then a year ago, I discovered my father's journals, which revealed the secrets of these dungeons. I brought them to Tenger, and he let me join the Coracks. We've been planning this mission ever since."
My gaze on her remained steady. "What were your father's secrets?"