The second consort looked at her. "You knew."
"I knew pieces," the Seventh consort said. "I knew enough to know the shape of it without knowing the specifics." She looked at Elara. "I was not approached through a child. I have no children. I was approached differently." A pause. "Through debt. My family's estate has been carrying an unusual financial arrangement for fifteen years. Payments made irregularly, no clear source, tied to my continued presence in the palace and my continued silence about certain things I had observed."
"What things," Elara said.
"The seventh prince," the Seventh consort said.
The room went still.
