Judge Darling then continued his interrogation.
Iliza's nerves were unraveling by the second. Every lie she told felt thinner than the last, and whenever she dared to glance up, she could feel the Queen's eyes on her, cold and sharp, a silent command: Say what you must, or die where you stand.
She couldn't stop now. She had to follow through.
"I— Then I saw... the woman who's always beside His Highness," Iliza stammered, "she tricked Princess Marissa into drinking the potion."
Judge Darling raised his brow and, with deliberate calm, placed a vial on the stand. The liquid inside was a sickly, luminous green.
"This is the potion in question," he said. "You claim she tricked the princess. Tell me, how exactly did she do that?"
Iliza hesitated, her throat dry. "The princess... trusted her. It was easy to trick her that way."
"And yet, this potion—" he tapped the glass, "—has a distinct color. Wouldn't that raise suspicion? You're suggesting it was added to the drink, yes?"
