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getting past her. If I were her, yeah, I would be upset. But I still wished she would quiet down.
    “Your majesty, I –” Thane tried to explain.
    “Stop!” Brielle shouted. “I’ve had enough of your pathetic excuses, Thane. They are far too frequent as of late. See Danica to bed, then clean up the mess in Ramsey’s room. Your position here will be discussed once Ramsey and her friends leave the palace.”
    Thane remained standing, grasping at words he could not form, but Brielle showed no sympathy. The ugly side of a royal was showing its face, and I couldn’t help but look away. This was not the Brielle I knew and loved.
    “Leave us,” she said again, her voice even and betraying no emotion.
    Thane nodded curtly, took Danica’s hand gently, and guided her out of the room, leaving Brielle and I alone.
    I tried compensating for Thane’s mistake. “Thane said he’d come across his kind before, when your mother was queen. The assassin wasn’t supposed to fail.”
    “But thankfully he did, no thanks to my guards,” Brielle interrupted.
    “Element fairies are strong, Brielle,” I reminded her. “Stronger than most. You know that just as well as I do.”
    For a moment, I thought I saw tears forming in my cousin’s eyes, but she looked away before I could be sure. “Yes, I know,” she said, drawing in a shaky breath. “A band of them murdered my mother.”
    I gasped, not knowing what to say. Until now, no one, not even Brielle, had spoken specifically about how Queen Taryn had died. Only that it was a grave tragedy.
    Brielle nodded, understanding my surprise. “I know. I should have told you sooner. No one knows but myself and the guards. Not even…not even the rest of my family. It happened here, in the palace, just before the guards were supposed to cross into the Element Fairy Realm to rescue you. Nathan, Zora, Addison, and your dragon stepped into the portal the moment the Element fairy brigade arrived. Their sole purpose was to kill my mother. The guards surrounded her, forming a protective wall, while Lady Cora, Elvina, and I were ushered upstairs by Eder.” She paused, drawing in a deep breath. “But I saw the entire scene before I was herded down the hall. A break formed in the line because Danica suddenly doubled over in pain. An air fairy, seeing a good opportunity, rushed forward to attack her, but Thane was too quick for him. Noticing his partner’s distress, he left his spot in the circle to attend to Danica, killing the Element fairy that threatened her life. But in doing so he deserted the Queen, and an earth fairy was able to break through and spear her before any of the other guards could act….”
    I swallowed to get past the dryness in my throat. The reason for Brielle’s anger toward Thane was apparent now. A part of her blamed him for her mother’s death.
    “The guards swarmed the intruders after that, of course, killing every one of them. But it was too late to save the Queen,” she said, her voice hoarse and shaky. She blinked hard, but a single tear escaped, trailing slowly down her cheek. “I didn’t learn until later that Danica was pregnant, and the turmoil had upset the baby. Thane sacrificed the Queen’s life for Danica’s well-being.”
    Startled by news of Danica’s pregnancy, I sat down on the couch and gripped the fabric of my nightgown between my fingers. Danica and Thane hadn’t planned on starting a family for a long time because they were so dedicated to their service. Obviously, nature had thought differently. No wonder Danica had reacted the way she had upon my arrival at the palace, crying and telling me how guilty she felt.
    “This is the second time the Element fairies have found a way in. I’m sorry, Ramsey, for putting your life in danger.”
    “You did nothing wrong,” I said tenderly. “It’s no one’s fault, what happened here tonight. You must understand that what we’re up against isn’t an easy foe. Vortigern’s soldiers are