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All the next day, Sefa worried. No word had come yet from Ismere; Arthur and his men were probably still a day or two's ride out. But Sefa was finding it harder and harder to concentrate on her work. She had to admit it to herself; she liked the queen. Guinevere was a kinder mistress than she could ever have dreamed to exist. Sefa had never imagined her life to be anything but endless toil under those who treated her badly, but in Camelot she had found that hard work didn't need to mean suffering. And no one as gentle as Guinevere could care so much for a monstrous king. She had believed Ruadan's claims because she had never known the nobility to treat commoners with anything but cruelty. To think that the Pendragons might mistreat those with magic as well was no great feat. But now she felt sure that whatever Camelot's laws, the king and queen meant well for their people.
She was worried for the queen, she realized. It was a new sensation; Sefa was unused to worrying about anything but her own neck. When Ruadan was in danger, her concern was less for him than for his temper when he was injured, and for what might become of her if he were wounded or killed. But she wanted Guinevere to be happy because she felt she deserved it. The worry was accompanied by a weight that rested uneasily in the pit of her stomach. Sefa was sorry for the part she had played in Arthur's downfall. It wasn't right for the king to die. It wasn't right for Morgana to kill him.
As Sefa carried the queen's supper dishes away from her chambers that evening, she heard a shout from the courtyard. She looked out to see several knights riding swiftly towards the castle. Neither Arthur nor Merlin was among them. Sefa gulped and hurried to the kitchen.
The queen did not send for Sefa until very late that night. As she began to climb the stairs that led to Guinevere's chambers, she found Gaius also on his way up. He smiled at her when he saw her.
"Sefa, isn't it?"
"Yes, sir."
Gaius laughed. "No need to be so formal, not with me. Just 'Gaius' will do. I was on my way up to see the queen. As, I suspect, are you."
The maid nodded.
"Perhaps you could deliver this for me, then," the physician said, holding out a small vial of orange liquid. "It's a sleeping draft, to help with the worry. Tell her to drink all of it."
"I will." Sefa took the vial.
"Thank you." Gaius turned away, but then he stopped. "You've come at a difficult time, my girl," he said. "I hope you are not finding it too trying. With any luck, the castle should soon return to normal."
Sefa just nodded, touched by his worry. The physician started back toward his own room, and Sefa hurried on to the queen. When she arrived, Guinevere's face was pinched with worry.
"Gaius said to give you this," Sefa told her, holding out the vial. "He said to drink it all, and that it would help you sleep."
The queen took the vial, and Sefa began to undress her in silence.
"It's not right," Guinevere said, more to herself than to her maid. "Morgana and Arthur should be leading Camelot together, not fighting one another to survive."
Sefa was taken aback. "Forgive me, milady, but I should think Camelot would be glad to be rid of her."
Guinevere smiled ruefully. "Now, perhaps. But once, she and Arthur were good friends. She was very kind, growing up. I might have been her servant, but she was my best friend. It's sad to see what hatred has done to her."
Sefa didn't know what to say. She finished putting the queen's clothes back into the wardrobe as Guinevere sat down on the bed.
"Will that be all, milady?"
Guinevere looked up at her maid with an odd expression on her face. Sefa's heart leapt into her chest as she struggled to keep her face neutral. Finally, the queen sighed heavily and nodded.
"Yes, thank you."
Sefa bobbed a quick curtsy and hurried from the room.
Despite her anxiety, Sefa had no trouble falling asleep that night. She woke with a start the next morning to find the sun already streaming through her window. Jumping to her feet, she dressed herself quickly and hurried down the corridor. She hoped the queen would not be too angry at her lateness.
As she rounded the corner nearest the queen's chambers, she nearly ran headlong into two guards. They seized her by the arms and began dragging her down the corridor.
"Where are you taking me?" Sefa asked breathlessly.
"The queen's requested your presence," one of the guards responded gruffly.
They forced her to the throne room, where she found Guinevere staring coldly at her, flanked by several knights and advisors. The guards threw her at the queen's feet and she fell to her knees on the stone floor.
"What have I done?" she asked, her voice trembling.
Guinevere stared stonily down at her, all of the warmth gone from her eyes. "The night before Arthur set out for Ismere, there was a meeting of the king's privy council," she said. "Did you hear what was said?"
"No, milady."
"And yet you were standing right outside the door."
"I was bringing your supper," Sefa protested, unable to meet the queen's eyes.
"Later that night, where did you go?"
Sefa shook her head desperately. "Nowhere."
"Don't make this hard on yourself," Guinevere said. "All I want is the truth. We both know you left the city through the southern gate."
Sefa glanced nervously up at the row of knights beside her, desperate for a way out.
"Look at me," Guinevere commanded, and Sefa obeyed. "Do you deny it?"
Tears pricked the corners of Sefa's eyes. There was no escape. "No, milady," she whispered.
"Who did you see?" Guinevere asked. When Sefa bit her lip, she stepped forward. "You can tell me," she insisted, some of the old tenderness returning to her voice.
"You wouldn't understand," Sefa said. Guinevere was a queen. What did she know of harsh masters and cruel punishments?
"Who did you see?" the queen demanded.
"My master," Sefa answered, her voice barely audible. "Ruadan."
"And you told him what you'd heard?"
"I didn't have a choice," Sefa begged. "Please, milady—"
Guinevere didn't wait for her to finish. "Your treachery cost the lives of many good men," she said.
"I didn't—I didn't mean to—"
"You have admitted your guilt," the queen told her coldly. "You leave me no choice, Sefa. By the laws of Camelot, I find you guilty of treason."
"No," Sefa breathed.
"I sentence you to death."
Sefa felt as if all the air had been sucked from her lungs. She stared up at the queen in shock.
Guinevere nodded to the guards. "Take her to the cells."
Sefa was silent with shock as the guards seized her once more and dragged her from the room. When they reached the dungeons, they threw her into a cell and she landed hard against the straw pallet in the corner. The door clanged shut behind her. Only then did she collapse, her body shaking with silent sobs.