“Someone in the government must have, at any rate,” Sothe said. “An explosion that size would require quite a bit of powder stuffed under the floor of the box. That would be hard to sneak past the guards—”

“So the guards are in on it.”

“At least some of them must be either complicit or suborned, yes. But that by itself doesn’t implicate Maurisk.”

Raesinia scowled. She had to admit her own bias; the dislike between her and her former companion had come to run both ways. Still. The way he looked when I came in was as good as a confession.

“The problem,” Sothe went on, “is that we have something of a surplus of enemies.”

“There’s an understatement,” Raesinia muttered. “Orlanko, for certain. Borelgai spies, the Hamveltai Komerzint, Murnskai fanatics. The older noble families hate me for surrendering royal powers to the Deputies-General, and the Radicals hate me for not abdicating in favor of a republic.”

“Not to mention,” Sothe said, “the Priests of the Black.”

“You think they wouldn’t bother with bombs,” Raesinia said.

“Revealing your secret to the public would be just as effective as killing you, as far as Elysium is concerned.” Sothe glared. “As I tried to explain earlier.”

“So either Maurisk is trying to kill me, because he doesn’t know he can’t, or the Priests of the Black are trying to blow me to bits in front of witnesses so everyone can see what happens.” Raesinia cocked her head. “If they did blow me to pieces, do you think the missing bits would grow back, or would you have to gather them up for me?”

“Your Majesty—”

“Sorry.” Raesinia took a deep breath. “Maurisk told me he wants me to leave the city. Hide out on a country estate until the danger’s passed.”

Sothe pursed her lips. “It would make it easier to keep you safe. There are too many unknowns in the city.”

“No. I will not be run to ground like a frightened rabbit. Besides, if Maurisk is involved and I leave him alone in the city, I might as well hand him the crown and be done with it.”

“Your Majesty . . .”

Raesinia looked at her, surprised. “You don’t really think I should leave, do you?”

A frown creased Sothe’s normally placid expression. She spoke slowly and deliberately. “If you do not, whoever was responsible for this attack will try again, and I am not confident in my ability to protect you.”

That made Raesinia blink. For Sothe to be less than confident in her ability to do anything was as rare as a summer ice storm. “You’ve done a fine job so far.”