Chapter 45: A Real Monster

The silver goblet was surprisingly heavy in Valen’s small hands.

Just minutes before his mother had walked through the door, the six-year-old prince had been standing in front of the vanity, staring at the cup.

He had lifted the goblet, bringing it close to his lips. But just before the rim touched his mouth, his little black nose twitched.

Hmm?

Valen lowered the cup, his brow furrowing. Beneath the overwhelming scent of sugar and cream, there was something else. A faint tang that made the back of his throat itch.

He stared at the pink liquid, his mind racing.

If it was from the Empress.... she would have given it to me directly, Valen realized, a cold knot forming in his tiny chest. She wouldn’t just leave it on a table like a servant.

Trembling slightly, he tipped the goblet just a fraction. A single drop of the pink liquid fell onto the floorboards.

Sssssss.

Valen gasped.

Where the drop landed, the thick wood instantly blackened. The liquid hissed and bubbled, eating through the varnish and the wood itself, releasing a tiny wisp of foul-smelling green smoke.

His hands shook so violently he nearly dropped the heavy silver cup. He slammed it back onto the vanity with a loud clatter, stumbling backward.

Did the empress try to—

No, no, no, his mind panicked. She wouldn’t try to kill me. She wouldn’t hurt me.

But the old, ingrained trauma of a neglected child whispered in his ear. Adults in this castle only bring you pain. She’s going to leave you again. She’s probably going to hurt you.

Tears pricked his eyes, but he fiercely blinked them away. He climbed onto the edge of the plush bed, pulling his knees to his chest. He forced his face to go completely blank, building the same cold, impenetrable wall he used to hide from his father’s indifference. He would wait for her. He would see what she would do.

Which brought them to this exact moment.

Karina stood in the doorway, her brow furrowed in confusion. "What? Is something wrong?"

At the sound of her voice, Valen’s cold facade instantly shattered.

His lower lip gave a violent wobble. He didn’t answer her question. Instead, he threw himself off the bed.

He crossed the room in three strides and slammed into her legs, wrapping his small arms around her waist with crushing force. He buried his face deep into the folds of her gown, and his small shoulders began to shake.

"Valen?" Karina’s confusion instantly evaporated, replaced by a spike of panic. She immediately lowered her body and wrapped her arms around his trembling frame. "What’s wrong? What happened?"

"I wasn’t so sure," Valen sobbed. "I... I knew you would give me things directly. You always kneel down. You always smile. You wouldn’t just leave it on a table."

She pulled back just enough to cup his tear-stained face, her thumbs wiping away his tears. "Leave what, Valen? What are you talking about?"

Valen sniffled as he looked past her shoulder toward the vanity. "I think... I think someone tried to poison me."

Poison.

Karina felt her entire world come to a standstill.

Poison...

My son?

"What?" she breathed, the syllable slipping out in a moment of shock.

"I dropped a little bit on the floor," Valen whispered. "It burned the wood."

Karina’s maternal instincts, already on high alert, went completely feral. She stood up immediately, positioning her body firmly between Valen and the vanity, shielding him as if the cup itself might leap out and attack him.

"Stay right there," she commanded. "Don’t move."

She walked over to the carved wooden table, her eyes locked onto the silver goblet. She leaned in and took a deep sniff.

Nothing. It just smelled like sweet berries and heavy cream. Her human nose couldn’t detect a single thing wrong with it. To her, it smelled like a fancy, expensive dessert.

She reached out, her fingers wrapping around the cool metal.

"Pour it on the floor," Valen said from behind her.

Karina tilted the goblet.

A thick drop of the pink liquid fell through the air and hit the stone floor.

HISSSSSS!

Karina violently yanked her hand back.

The moment the liquid touched the stone, it erupted. The drop bubbled and frothed, eating straight through the floor with a sickening sizzle. A thick, acrid green smoke billowed upward, carrying a stench that made Karina’s eyes water and her throat burn.

Karina stared at the melted rock.

What the actual fuck?

My baby. Someone tried to murder my son.

"Uh oh."

Cheshire’s voice echoed in her mind. For the first time since she had met the annoying space-cat, the system didn’t sound cheerful. It didn’t sound mocking. It sounded terrified.

"Host," Cheshire whispered, his robotic voice trembling. "From what I can detect, that concoction would would have turned into a mindless, rabid monster before his heart stopped. This is very dangerous, Host. Whoever tried to poison Valen is working hand in hand with the person spreading the panther plague."

Karina didn’t respond. She couldn’t.

Her heart was racing, and she felt bile claw up her throat, but swallowed it down.

If she had been a moment late and Valen had innocently drank it....

She shook her head. No. No. Focus.

Karina slowly turned her head to look at Valen, who was still staring at her. She forced the murderous rage down, locking it in a steel box in the back of her mind, and softened her face.

"It’s okay, sweetie," she said, her voice scarily gentle. "I’m going to fix this."

She turned back to the smoking crater in the floor, her mind already going through the possible options.

Who had access to Valen’s room? The guards. The maids.

But who had the motive? Who knew she would be distracted in the study? Who would be so cruel and disgusting as to target a child?

Renira.

The name echoed in her skull like a death knell.

The delusional, pathetic mistress. The woman who had crashed the dinner. The woman who had looked at Valen with unfiltered hatred.

Karina gritted her teeth.

She had warned Tanya. She had warned Leonidas. She had given them every chance to keep that venomous snake away from her son.

You want to play games with poison, you delusional bitch? Karina thought, her lips curling into a blood-chilling smile. Fine. Let’s see how you handle a real monster.