“House Armenil?” Neve asked. “How am I connected to them by anything other than being a friend to Marit?”
Her face fell on her friend’s name. Marit Armenil had attended our wedding, and the king had punished her for her loyalty to Neve.
“Revna Skau’s mother was an Armenil, so you are a cousin to that family” Arie answered. “And House Armenil and House Balik have blood ties too. They’ve always been loyal to one another, those great houses of north and south.”
“If their entire house has left Avaldenn, Sian and Filip will be in Myrr too,” I added. “Allies indeed.”
Rynni cleared her throat, commanding the attention of the room. “Not that I’m notthrilledthat four strange males and a female have arrived unannounced at my home, but with all that’s transpired, I think we should get a move on. If you have horses and a place in mind to go, any additional tale can be told just as well on the road, can it not?”
“We can go when the rest of you are ready,” Arie said. “In the meantime, we can help pack. Our horses are waiting outside.”
Rynni scowled.
“In the back,” Arie added. “Thanks to a map our father gave us, we knew we’d find you in this city, but it’s not so accurate that it pinpoints homes. We had to ask where the messenger who sent the note to Riis Tower lived. They pointed us in this direction. We figured that, if our friends were still here, discretion would be necessary.”
“At least someonebesides mehas some sense.”
The dragon-fae healer was right. We were putting her at risk, and in truth, I’d feel far more secure behind castle walls than in a small cottage. Now that the king knew the truth of my mate, I was sure he’d come for her. And when he did, he’d be merciless.
Chapter 19
VALE
We rode deep into the night and whiled the hours away by catching everyone up on what had happened in their absence. All secrets, save for my true parentage, had been divulged, and as we set up camp for the night, I could feel that final and most important secret climbing up my throat.
I wished to tell the Riis brothers most of all but Rynni’s presence among my group of friends gave me pause.
I glanced at the healer, tending to Caelo as the rest set up our camp for the night. While I trusted the dragon-fae to follow her oath and mend me, my mate, and my best friend, this was different. This was the sort of information that one would profit from. Information that would turn the realm on its head.
It would endanger my mother. My twin, too, though I was of a split mind there.
Back at Frostveil, Rhistel had threatened my mate, tried to force himself upon her, and before all that, he’d hurt memany times. And yet, he was my twin. We’d shared a womb, been born as close as siblings could be, and when we were still young I thought we were destined to be friends for life.
Against all odds, I’d always secretly hoped we’d one day come together and be as we once were as younglings. Outing our secret, however, would destroy him. After that, would there ever be a chance of us reconciling?
In many ways, at many junctures in my life, Rhistel had been a weakness for me. After all, families were complex, and mine was no exception.
If only I could speak to Rhistel first and give him time to choose his fate as I had. That could be enough. That and I’d love to ask him a few questions . . .
I’d been shocked to hear he was not to be betrothed to a Balik lady. Before I left court, that had been King Magnus’s plan. Such a change likely meant that the king had decided the great house of the south was untrustworthy. Seeing as the Riis brothers claimed the Baliks had left court, the king seemed to have been correct.
“Prince! Come here, let me look at your injuries!” Rynni shouted through the trees.
I looked at Neve. She was still creating her clever shelters of ice and snow. I’d not seen another fae make them, but those same shelters had saved many humans’ lives during our travels south, and they’d keep us alive and as warm as we could be tonight. My mate must have felt me watching her, for she glanced my way and smiled.
No sweat poured down her brow, no appearance of tiring. Despite having ridden for hours, she was fine. No longer affected by our battle with the orcs.
“Don’t make me wait. It’s rude,” Rynni added, her tone riddled with annoyance.
I huffed. The healer might be skilled in her arts, but her bedside manner could use work.
I took a seat on a fallen tree next to the healer. Her eyes, a darker brown than mine, took in my face. “Those wounds are nearly healed. Show me your side and chest.”
I pulled off my cloak and began stripping off my many layered shirts. Before we left Vitvik, Rynni had purchased extra clothes for everyone. Now that we were heading to the seat of House Balik, we expected at least a week-long journey, and as Neve was the most wanted fae in the kingdom, we would not stop at inns, so we’d all rely on layering to remain warm.
The cold penetrated my skin. I shivered, thankful there was no wind today. A stroke of luck that we’d needed.
“Hmm.” Rynni leaned closer, taking in the wounds that she’d cleaned and sealed. “No tears from riding. That was what I was most worried about, but my work held well on you and Caelo.”
