Roa almost spit out her tea.“What?”
Everyone turned to stare at her.
Roa forced herself to be calm. “Isn’t that a little... drastic? For a single breach of security?”
“Yesterday wasn’t a breach of security,” said Safire. She put both boots down on the floor now, leaning over her knees. “It was a mutiny.”
Roa’s stomach tightened like a fist.
This would ruin everything. The men and women from Sky were still on their way here. If Firgaard’s gates were shut, they’d all be turned away. And if the Relinquishing was canceled...
Essie was at Rebekah’s mercy. Roa couldn’t afford to let that happen. Not until her sister was saved.
“You can’t do this,” she said.
“This is the third plot against you in less than a week,” said Safire. Her glittering blue eyes were cold. “We can’t sit back and do nothing.”
The third? Do they all know about Sirin, then?
Roa shook off the question and glanced at Dax. “If you shut the city gates and cancel the Relinquishing, it will be yet another broken promise.”
“Roa.” Lirabel’s voice was sharp with warning. She’d turned away from the window to stare down at the queen, her arrow clenched in one hand. “It’s for your own safety.”
Roa ignored her friend and fixed her gaze on Dax. “If you shut the city’s gates, you’llproveyou’re a weak king.”
“Isn’t a broken promise better than taking another knife for you?!” Lirabel shouted.
Both Roa and Dax looked up at her.
“I never asked him to take the first one,” said Roa softly.
Lirabel trembled with anger. “You,” she said, glaring at Dax, “are an irresponsible king if you don’t do as Safire suggests. And you...” Her forehead pinched as she looked to Roa. “I hardly recognize you anymore.”
Roa felt herself wilt beneath those words.
“I’ll consider it. I promise,” Dax said. “Secure the palace, question every soldat and member of the staff, and lock the palace gates for now. As for shutting the gates to the city and canceling the Relinquishing... let me think on it. I’ll give Safire my answer in the morning.”
Lirabel didn’t look at the king. “Are we done?” she asked the commandant.
Safire nodded.
Picking up her earned bow and quiver full of arrows, Lirabel stormed toward the door and slammed it on her way. A taut silence loomed in her wake. Rising, Jas followed her out, taking his cup of steaming tea with him.
Safire rose, stretching, then sheathed her knife. “I’m questioning all the palace guards today. If I get so much as a badfeeling—about any of them—they’ll be dismissed. We can’t afford to make any mistakes.”
A heartbeat later, she, too, was gone, leaving Dax and Roa alone.
In the silence, Dax plucked a mango from one of the gleaming golden bowls in front of them.
“I can’t afford to pretend I’m not losing control,” he said as his hands started to slice, peeling back chunks of yellow flesh, cutting them into cubes. “I don’t like knowing that you’re constantly in danger.”
“So you’d rather keep me caged.”
He looked up from slicing. “No. That’s—”
“Isn’t that what you’re doing—locking me in? It isn’t outsiders who hate me, Dax. It’sFirgaardians. Canceling the Relinquishing won’t make the problem go away.”
“I can’t just disregard Safire’s advice.”
