I felt my lips press together, my brows lower in a stern expression. “Some of the rooms are not. You may be my consort, and you may live here, but I made it clear from the beginning that the locked rooms are forbidden to you. And still, you disobeyed.”

“I’m not a child!” Her voice rang out, echoing from the pillars.

Shiyen advanced, and I caught the glint of fear in her eyes. She took a step back and then held her ground. “No, you are not a child. You are a grown woman who has betrayed the trust of her Emperor. A child might be forgiven. A child might not be executed.”

“And then who will you take for your consort? Who will bear you an heir?”

“Your position does not grant you immunity.”

“Your position does not grant you the ability to do whatever you want without consequence.”

Shiyen’s gaze flicked to the door. “What were you doing in there? How long have you been using that key?”

She gave a one-shouldered shrug. “You always let me pour your tea, so adding some herbs for deep sleep was a small matter. I was researching.”

A flicker of confusion – a feeling that was not my own. “Researching what? What use could you have for what is in that room?”

“Bone shard magic,” she breathed out.

A moment, and then my belly shook with laughter. “You think you can learn bone shard magic? It has been passed from generation to generation within my family. Within my family. No one else has the ability to learn.”

“You think it has to do with your bloodline? Anyone can read a book,” she said, holding her lamp out in front of her like a weapon. “Anyone can learn.”

“You? The third scion from Hualin Or? You never went to any of the Empire’s Academies; you never studied under any of the great masters.”

“No one ever sent me!” I could see the heat rising to her cheeks, and the odd thought arose: She’s not unattractive, just not beautiful. Shiyen’s thought, not mine. “I made my own studies; I’m not stupid or unlearned. Just… passed over.”

“Except by me.”

It was her turn to laugh. “Oh, you passed me over many, many times. My brother introduced you to me twice; you just don’t remember. And I was not your first choice, don’t pretend that isn’t so. I had rivals.”

Now I was intrigued. “Rivals you eliminated.”

Her gaze met mine, and I forgot for a moment that she was so much shorter. “There is no proof of that.”

Of course not. She wouldn’t have left any. I made a quick, snap decision. “I’ll give you use of the storeroom. The one where I keep the iceboxes with the construct parts. Thirty days.”