Daemon nodded and took a large swallow of brandy. “If this game had stayed focused on me, I would have let it go. Jaenelle didn’t believe the rumors, and I don’t give a damn what anyone else thinks.” He looked away. “And I thought, if it got physical, I would be the target.”

“You were in that carriage, too.”

“But I’m not the one who was supposed to get hurt. It happened fast, Lucivar. We’d been using that same cab all afternoon. Anyone following us would have had time to put a spell on it—or at least prepare the spell for a fast strike. The way the cab rolled . . . It was too fast, too violent. Had to be Craft-enhanced. Which means someone hoped Jaenelle would be hurt.”

“In order to have you.” He could see it too clearly. A shield would have protected her from broken glass or wood, but being thrown around in a rolling cab could have resulted in a damaged neck or spine. Jaenelle could have been crippled, perhaps forever, just when she was starting to reclaim her life.

“In order to have me,” Daemon agreed.

“So what are we going to do?”

“Whoever caused the accident killed the driver but didn’t finish the kill. I have him. After he makes the transition to demon-dead, he may be able to tell me something.”

“You have plenty of experience in finishing the kill and none when it comes to dealing with someone newly demon-dead.”

“So?”

“Why not take the cab driver to the one person who does know how to deal with the demon-dead?” Lucivar took a swallow of brandy. “If you don’t tell Father about what happened today, he’s going to kick your ass. You know that.”

The room went cold. “Do you think he can?”

Hell’s fire. No. “Jaenelle is his Queen, too, Bastard. If she’s in danger, he needs to be told.”

The temperature in the room eased closer to normal.

“I don’t want to leave Jaenelle,” Daemon finally said.

“Then I’ll take the driver to the Keep.”

“All right.”

“And after we find out whatever the driver knows?”

Daemon watched the brandy as he gently swirled the snifter. “Jaenelle wants to help me find whoever is behind the rumors. I’m not happy about that, but I understand the need. If I try to keep her away from everything that might hurt her, I’ll smother her—and I’ll lose her. She won’t stay if she’s thought of as less than what she was.”

“She is less than what she was.” Lucivar shrugged, ignoring the skitter of nerves down his spine at the way Daemon looked at him. “But she’ll never discover what she can do if we keep standing in the way.”