“She died,” said Ta, with the satisfied smile of a gossip who knows she’s scored a point. “They think she went overboard, but they don’t actually know what happened. When the ship got close, they realized she was gone. They think she went out on deck and fell in. But I think the Magistry should consider other possibilities.”

The Magistry was the Keepish police. “Like what?” said Lovisa.

“Maybe murder. People murder queens. Maybe suicide. Her father was that psychopath King Leck, remember? A few people from the delegation came to dinner and I thought they were acting suspicious.”

“Suspicious how?” Lovisa asked, because she couldn’t resist hearing Ta’s opinions on how people were supposed to behave.

“One of them, the queen’s doctor, I think, was way too polite and pleasant for someone who’s just lost his queen. You know? Wouldn’t you expect someone to show some feelings?”

“Definitely.”

“Another one, a big, tall guy named Gidlon or Gildon or something, was all glassy-eyed and pale, and he hardly said a word. I mean, even paler than most Monseans, like he was almost transparent. And he kept shivering too.”

“Like someone in shock?” Lovisa offered.

“Or someone who can’t believe he just threw his own queen overboard,” Ta said. “Don’t you think?”

“Definitely.”

“A bunch of the Royal Continent envoys were there too. The Estillan, the Dellian. The Lienid envoy kept crying. The Monsean queen is half-Lienid, you know.”

“Mm-hm.” Lovisa remembered her parents talking about the Estillan envoy. “Was your aunt Quona there?”

“Yes.”

“Did she have anything to say about it?”

“Um, she’s an animal doctor,” said Ta. “What would she have to say? There’s a Graceling in the delegation too, but she wasn’t at dinner.”

Lovisa was beginning to be rather envious of this dinner. “What kind of Graceling?”

“I don’t know. But the big guy asked about your uncle.”

“Katu?”

“Yes,” said Ta. “Apparently they know him. They wanted to know if he was back from his travels.”

“He’s not,” said Lovisa, badly wishing she knew where to write to Katu. He would want to know about Queen Bitterblue. And he would understand how Lovisa felt right now, like a door that had seemed about to open had slammed shut.

“Is your mother all right?” Ta went on, eyes gleaming. “She got a message during class this morning and ended it early. Then she was late for dinner. Like, very late. We were already done with the soup.”

Lovisa had gone to Politics and Trade class this morning early as usual, then wondered why the classroom was empty. It had been one of the first clues that something was different today. And it was, in fact, unusual for Ferla to be late for anything, especially a dinner at which powerful people were present. “As far as I know, she’s fine,” said Lovisa, then waited.