His heir was the most unpredictable of his children—or at least that had been the case before that Falk whore arrived at court and stole Vale’s mind. Over the turns, the family had needed to clean up many of Rhistel’s messes, and as of late, his heir had been violent towards his own twin.
Still, never in a million turns would the king have thought Rhistel capable of hurting Saga. She was the jewelof the family. The best of them. Pure and innocent and loved by all. Winter’s delight.
Inga’s chin lifted in challenge. “He did. Lord Riis was present at the threat and said he could take her away. Keep her safe.”
“Until when?”
“UntilIdeem that our son is no longer a threat.”
For the first time, his wife sounded uncertain. Was she lying?
Inga, like Rhistel, likeallwhisperers, possessed the power to lie. Even if his wife’s magic was responsible for their positions today, which made her arguably stronger than him, Magnus did not think his queen lied to him often. But he could never be completely certain either.
“Did you succeed in your quest?” Inga asked.
“I did.”
“And do you plan to use it?”
“How did you?—?”
“I’m in Rhistel’s head all day. Holding him, trying to reason with him. I see much.”
Of course. The king was sure his heir would not have told his secret, not if given a real chance.
“You cannot keep him like this,” Magnus said. “The Lady of Silks has noticed he’s acting oddly.”
“Why hasn’t she left court?”
“I have not dismissed her.”
Inga’s lips pursed; the obvious disbelief written across her face. “That didn’t stop the Armenils. Nor the Baliks, or those of the House of the Sea Serpent.” Bright blue eyes snapped up to meet his. “Then again, I supposewhen you say that you’ll see Lord Roar fed to your bear and then give your daughter’s hand to him when he actually reappears, the high lords and ladies don’t believe they need your permission to leave court, do they?”
She was calling him weak. His word worthless.
“Watch yourself,” the king seethed. “They’ll see soon enough that they should have remained where I told them. I have a plan. One that will see the end to the rebellion, and any lack of loyalty in the great houses from here on out. Soon there will no longer be a Falk whore running about. Just bastards who have no greater claim than I to the throne.”
“And what of Vale?” Inga asked. “Will your plan harm him?”
Magnus swallowed. He’d told his allies not to harm his son, but would they follow through?
“I’ve done all I can to secure his well-being. From this point forward, his fate is in his own hands.” The king nodded to Rhistel. “As for that one, at the very leastloosenyour hold. We cannot have him harming Saga, but others cannot notice the state he is in, either.”
She turned away, dismissing him. Annoyance and frustration warring inside him, the king left the queen’s chambers, wishing that he could return to his chambers and take pleasure in his concubine. But Inga, for all her flaws, always had a way of clarifying his priorities.
The king left, and his Clawsguard followed behind, quiet and loyal, just as Magnus preferred. When the king reached his next destination, however, he turned to the soldier.
“I require a moment alone.”
“Yes, Majesty.”
Magnus exited into a courtyard. A break in the clouds dappled the Crown Drassil with sunlight, a rare occurrence for the tree. Magnus approached the magical tree of the realm, inherently linked to the magic of Winter’s Realm, the dead gods, and the Faetia in the starry halls of the afterworld. Perhaps other worlds too.
Standing before the tree, King Magnus placed a hand on the bark. Usually he did this to infuse magic into the tree, a cycle unbroken by those with the strongest winter magic since time forgotten. Instead of pushing his power into the bark, though, he closed his eyes.
“Mighty Drassil, Faetia, and powers in the stars, I’ve come requesting that you fully legitimize me as the King of Winter. To be given the full power I’ve been denied all these turns.”
Whispers filled his head, but one stood out. As ever, the whisper he heard sounded a lot like his mother.
