Page 44 of Bonded By Blood
Well that was an ominous thought.
“Thank you, doctor,” Trista said from her seat on the sofa. It struck Joe that that might have been the sincerest thing he’d ever heard her say.
The doctor picked up the clichéd black case he’d brought with him and offered Trista a bow. “Of course, My Queen.”
“Doctor,” Seth said from where he stood along the wall, “are you sure you wouldn’t rather wait here where it’s safe?”
With a shake of his head, the doctor started for the door. “I’ll be fine in my office.”
“Joseph,” Trista called as the door closed behind the doctor. She gestured to the open half of the sofa. “Come, sit.”
Steeling himself, Joe moved and claimed the far corner of the couch.
“I contacted Kendall.” Trista flicked a glance at him before shifting her gaze toward Brianna. “She seems safe for now.”
A little of the tension rolled out of his shoulders. “Thank goodness.”
Trista arched a brow in his direction. “I’m surprised Brianna told you about her relationship with Kendall. She’s very protective of the girl.”
Joe offered a small, honest shrug. “We’ve talked about a lot of things.” He wasn’t sure if she was trying to make conversation or testing him, and he was less sure how he should respond.
“Hmm.” Trista leaned back against the cushions of the sofa. “So it seems.”
A handful of painful seconds passed by, Joe’s gaze drawn to the careful curve of the blood-filled tube that connected the blood bag to Brianna’s arm, and just as he finally realized he still hadn’t eaten, an unexpected sound splintered the silence. It was the resonating, electronic beep of a security latch releasing.
Joe’s wasn’t the only head in the room that turned toward the door as it swung open.
A woman’s unintelligible sobs preceded Jasen’s echoing steps as he stomped into the room. He slammed the door behind him with the hand he wasn’t using to drag along the crying, seemingly terrified woman. “I found our culprit.”
Trista eased slowly to her feet.
Joe couldn’t see her face, but an aura of danger wafted from her that hadn’t been there before.
“N-no, please—”
“Shut up,” Jasen snapped, throwing the woman to the floor at Trista’s feet.
Joe stood, staying back. He was pretty sure he’d seen this woman before, briefly. If he’d caught her name then, he hadn’t retained it, but she was the one who’d interrupted him and Brianna before. One of the human staff Trista preferred to refer to as—
“A blood slave. I should have guessed.” The cold, even tone of Trista’s voice was chilling.
The woman, in her mid-forties at most and petite in stature, scooted around to face Trista without rising from her knees. “No, please,” she repeated. “My Queen, I would never betray you, or Lady Brianna! I had no idea—”
“Matilda, was it?” Trista asked. The question was probably rhetorical, but it had the desired effect of interrupting the woman’s plea.
“Y-yes.”
“Were you scheduled today?”
She swallowed audibly. “I’m … filling in … for Garvin.”
Trista hummed. “Did you prepare Brianna’s dinner today?”
A strange, tangy, and wet scent teased Joe’s nose just a heartbeat before another tear slid down Matilda’s face. “Yes, my Queen.” Her voice was barely a whisper.
“But you expect me to believe you poisoned my daughter by accident?”
More tears escaped. “I don’t know—I don’t know what happened!” The urgency built up in her voice again and she pushed to sit tall on her knees, pleading. Desperate. “I did everything I was supposed to, everything I always do!”