“Tomorrow, along with the royal couple. I just thought of something; could you stop by the instructor’s office in the morning and have Bryn excused from exams so that he can test the king’s food before the luncheon with Halvar?” I asked.
Viggo nodded. “Of course. I’m sure Bryn will be glad for the respite.”
Chapter Thirty-One
Viggo placed a goblet of wine on the table before Lady Helka. “Again, I apologize for the intrusion. Because of the attack on the king at the anniversary celebration, we’re talking to everyone on the hill who could have seen anything suspicious during the preparations.”
“Yes, I understand,” Lady Helka said tersely. “I already told you I didn’t see anything.”
“We don’t conduct our questioning on people’s doorsteps, ma’am,” Viggo said, folding his hands across the table. “It might prevent someone from being completely honest.”
Lady Helka’s dark eyes fell on the two scribes sitting in the corner of the room. “What is their purpose?”
“They record everything we say so that Master Viggo can study the interrogation at a later date or provide evidence to support a claim,” I said.
Helka huffed at me. “Might I ask what you are doing here? You’re the king’s bodyguard, not a member of the security staff.”
Viggo looked surprised. “I’m sorry. I assumed having someone you knew present would ease your discomfort.”
I made to rise from my chair. “I can leave if you—”
“No, please, stay,” Helka said with a forced smile. “It doesn’t matter. I’ll be leaving shortly because, as I said earlier, I didn’t see anything.”
I settled back into my seat. “You’re too quick to answer, my lady. It makes Master Viggo suspicious. Perhaps if you walked us through that day from your perspective, he would be more easily persuaded that you saw nothing of consequence.”
Lady Helka’s nostrils flared as she took in a deep, aggravated breath. She glared at Viggo. “That morning I was at home, eating breakfast with my children. We took a walk, visited with their cousins, and then returned to prepare ourselves for the evening. I hired a hairdresser and a makeup artist to work on me. You can request their verification if you like. I’m sure they’ll gladly testify to my being there. There was also a maid setting out my dress and shoes.”
Viggo carefully pushed the goblet closer to Lady Helka. “Wouldn’t you like—?”
She waved it away without pausing. “Once I was properly dressed, groomed, and painted, I proceeded to help my daughter into her dress and do her hair. Haskell whined about his outfit for at least an hour before I threatened to take away his precious allowance. That promptly ended the whining, and we proceeded to the city’s main square by carriage.” She leaned back in her chair and inspected her fingernails. “I believe the young man who drove us was called Walid. We arrived at the square approximately ten minutes before the celebration was scheduled to begin. I did my usual rounds, saying hello to everyone and anyone of importance, before I allowed my children to play. I conversed with Bodil for at least an hour, sat with the king and queen for about twenty minutes, talked briefly with General Halvar—”
“What about?” I asked, trying my best not to sound too eager.
Lady Helka tossed her red hair over her shoulder. “The weather, my children, the food being served, his many victories across the sea. Trivial matters.”
“What did the general do once your conversation was finished?” Viggo asked.
“He claimed to be fatigued from the amount of energy packed into the square so he retired to his rooms here on the hill,” Helka said. “Why does it matter?”
“No one else left the square to our knowledge,” I said while Viggo scrambled for an answer. “We’re simply making a note of the general’s absence. Perhaps he saw something on his way to the royal hill that would be of use to our investigation. Please, continue your story.”
Helka shrugged. “There’s nothing else to tell. I danced with two men, I conversed with three others, I found Bodil again, I sat with you for a time, I tracked down my children, we listened to Torvald speak, the arrow was shot, Rakim dropped dead from the apartment, you ran to the stage while screaming at the top of your lungs, and then there was an explosion.”
“You seem to be very fond of your suitors,” Viggo said. “For a woman who claims to have only ever loved King Tatsuo, I’m surprised you can find interest in other men.”
Helka laughed. It wasn’t a pretty sound. She crossed her arms and leaned her elbows on the table. “Tell me something, Master Viggo. In all your time pining for Lady Isa, did you ever feel lonely? Did you ever try to fill the void with the company of another woman, even if that woman was as insignificant to you as a fly?”
“Never,” Viggo said in a heartbeat.
Helka scoffed. “Well, then, you are much stronger than I am.”
“How would Tatsuo feel, do you think, if he could see just how many suitors you’re entertaining?” I asked despite myself. “How would your suitors feel knowing they aren’t the only ones vying for your affections?”
Helka scowled at me. “That’s King Tatsuo to you, Isa. I doubt he would care. He would take any woman to his bed in the years after his wife’s death. Every man I entertain has to know I’m not looking for marriage, just company. I express little interest in their personal lives and ask them to vacate my rooms the moment our… activities are over.”
I shuddered.
Helka’s severe frown lessened. “Judge me if you must, but not all of us can be so virtuous.”
“Did Lennart know you only wanted a physical relationship?” I asked.
Helka smirked. “Do you honestly think he was attracted to my personality?”
Viggo rose to his feet and pushed his chair back; the legs screeched against the floor. “All right. Enough. We know you’re much too proud and pathetically attached to King Tatsuo’s memory to share your bed with all these men. We know about the secret panel in the southern section of the wall and the Holgarian warriors you have been letting onto the grounds. We know it was these men who assassinated Counselors Odalis, Cade, and Ganix. That makes you their accomplice.”
We had no evidence to support this but she didn’t know that. We could only hope it would make her nervous enough to make a mistake.
Viggo placed his hands on the tabletop and leaned in. “That makes you a traitor. Do you know what happens to traitors?”
“I imagine they’re executed,” Helka said with a sniff. “But since I’ve done none of the things you’ve stated—”
“We have an eyewitness.”
Helka sent me a proud, incredulous look. “I highly doubt that.”
“Would you doubt the words of your own son?” I challenged.
Viggo pressed his lips in a firm line. We had agreed to keep Haskell out of this, but Helka didn’t appear to be the least bit interested in the wine and I couldn’t think of anything else that would persuade her to speak.
Helka faltered, but only for a moment. “You can hardly trust the fickle word of a child. Given enough money or candy, their allegiance will change at a moment’s notice.”
Viggo produced the metal sheet from his pocket and placed it on the table. “Do you know what this is?”
Lady Helka hardly glanced at it. She took the goblet and carefully swished the wine around. “I assume it’s part of a guard’s documentation plaque.”
“It’s a guard’s documentation plaque that doesn’t shimmer in the light,” I snapped. “The only one of its kind on this hill. Any guesses as to how it came to be in our possession?”