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"My apologies, Lady Since you twist so ave herself ato provokeme?"

"Oh, I already have all the justification I need for an execution," Saetan saidterrified of ry, you’ll at least talk"

"In that case, I want ht to either of the very basic, Alexandra Wilhele of majority is twenty You have no say in their lives anymore"

"Then neither do youThey should decide to stay or leave"

"They’ve already decided And I do have far ned a contract with the Warlord Prince of Ebon Rih He, in turn, serves in the Dark Court I’ht to make some decisions about her life"

"What about Jaenelle? Does she serve in this Dark Court, too?"

Saetan gave her an odd look "You really don’t understand, do you? Jaenelle doesn’t serve, Alexandra Jaenelle is the Queen"

For a moment, the conviction in his voice almost convinced her

NoNo If Jaenelle were really a Queen, she would haveknown Like would have recognized like Oh, thereht actually be a Queen who ruled this court, but it wasn’t,couldn’t be, Jaenelle

But his declaration gave her a weapon "If Jaenelle is the Queen, you have no right to control her life"

"Neither do you"

Alexandra claritted her teeth "The age of es certain conditions that have to be met If a child is deeht to take care of herand make decisions on her behalf"

"And who decides if the child is incapable? The faets to maintain control of her? How very convenient And don’t forget, you’re talking about a Queen who outranks you"

"I forget nothing And don’t you try to take the round with me--as if you had any concept of what morality means"

Saetan’s eyes iced over "Very well, then Let’s take a look atyour concept of morality Tell me, Alexandra How did you justify it when it was obvious Jaenelle was being starved? How did you justify the rope burns fros? Did you just shrug it all off as the discipline needed to control a recalcitrant child?"

"You lie!" Alexandra shouted "I never saw any evidence of that"

"You just tossed her into Briarwood and didn’t bother to see her again until you decided to let her out?"

"Of course I saw her!" Alexandra paused An ache spread through her chest as she re way Jaenelle would look at them sometimes when she and Leland went to visit The wariness and suspicion in her eyes, directed at them She remembered how much it had hurt, and how Leland wept silently on the way home, when Dr Carvay had told them that Jaenelle was too emotionally unstable to have any visitors And she remembered the times she had felt relieved that Jaenelle was safely tucked away so others wouldn’t have firsthand knowledge of the girl’s fanciful tales "I saw her whenever she was eh to have visitors"

Saetan snarled softly

"You sit there and judgeto deal with a child who--"

"Jaenelle was seven when I met her"

For a ine that voice wrapping itself around a child, spinning out lies "So when she told her stories about unicorns and dragons, you encouraged her"

"I believed her, yes"

"Why?"

His smile was terrible "Because they exist"

She shook her head, struck s

"What would it take to convince you, Alexandra? Being impaled on a unicorn’s horn? Would you still insist he was a fanciful tale?"

"You could trick anyone into believing anything you choose"