I was the only female in a room full of males, and yet I seemed to be the only one willing to meet anyone’s gaze. All eight eyes jumped from object to object in a dull game of avoidance.
“Please,” I beseeched. I looked to the crown prince. “Taelon?”
Taelon finally looked at me, as if unable to resist the pull of his real name. His blue gaze had dimmed and his mouth pressed into a frown. “He’s untrustworthy. In the truest sense. Some say that he is responsible for the expansion of the Ring of Shadows. They say…”
I seemed to have forgotten how to breathe as I forced a question from my lips. “They say what?”
Taelon’s expression turned helpless. “They say he starves entire villages so the young men will be driven from them into the service of the Shadows. There are rumors that he is the reason the Ring of Shadows moved beyond Blackthorne to begin with, that he has given the Shadows permission to wreak havoc.”
“That’s ridiculous,” I laughed, the brittle sound bouncing around the room. “Blackthorne has always been difficult. My uncle would not allow mercenaries freedom in his governable properties. The royal army—”
“The royal army could crush the Ring beneath their boots in one day. But the royal army does nothing.”
“So who fights them?” I demanded. “You cannot expect me to believe the Ring of Shadows is allowed to do as they please and the individual kingdoms do not intervene.”
“Some have fought back,” Taelon answered. “Soravale for instance. My father has never tolerated lawlessness. But Tyrn has forbidden the army to get involved with the Shadows. He claims that the rumors are exaggerated and falsified and that if we send armies after common men, we will incite civil war. While Tyrn is in the Seat of Power, we remain helpless. If something is not done soon, the entire realm will burn.”
“Are these rumors or are they facts?” I asked breathlessly. “If there is no substantial proof that my uncle is behind the Ring of Shadows, I don’t know how you can—”
Hugo cleared his throat. “Your uncle is one of the vilest men I have ever met. He is too concerned with lining his pockets to notice the suffering of the people he’s sworn to protect. He might very well be the reason the Ring has infiltrated our lands. He does nothing to protect the border between your homeland and Blackthorne. Whether or not he has perpetuated the Shadows’ devastation of the realm or not, I cannot say. But he is responsible for refusing aid. He’s nothing like your father, I can tell you that much. Your father was a good man. Just. Fair. Firm. He would never have let this happen. He would never have let the realm become this version of Denamon.”
Hot tears pressed against my eyes but I didn’t let them stop me from saying, “Thank you, Your Majesty. He was. He was a very good man.”
Hugo nodded. “What we need now is a plan to deal with your uncle.”
“Deal with him how?”
Hugo stared at me. I felt all three other pairs of eyes turn to me as well. Hugo’s voice was that of a king when he said, “I’m wondering how you will unseat him, Tessana. For he will not go willingly.”
I shook my head. “Of course he will. I have the crown.”
“And he has eight years of claim to it.” Hugo argued. “He will not happily give the position over to you. He will not walk away without a struggle.”
“He will,” I insisted. “Everyone recognizes how powerful that crown is. I have it. He will have no choice but to concede.”
“Tessana,” Taelon insisted. “You cannot be serious.”
“I’m quite serious.”
He shook his head and took a step toward me. “You have no army. You have no power. You have nothing but a crown that can easily be stripped from you. Your only bargaining piece is a relic that could have been forged. Perhaps not easily. But there are those in the realm, people of power, people loyal to your uncle, that would testify to its falsehood.”
“It’s not a replica,” I snapped. “Itisthe Crown of Nine.”
“Yes,weknow that,” Haemon agreed. “But it is anyone’s guess as to how your uncle will react when he finds out that you’re alive.”
Taelon’s gaze burned into my face. “Alive and ready to be queen.”
A chill slithered down my spine. I knew the journey would be difficult, possibly treacherous. I knew the royal guard would look on me with suspicion. I knew it would be a challenge attempting to see my uncle and making my case. I also knew that it would be nearly impossible to prove my identity outside of the crown in my possession. But I had never once accounted for my uncle’s desire to keep the throne.
Hugo let out a grumbling sigh. “That’s the other problem.”
“What other problem?”
His steely gray eyes held mine. “You, my dear, are a woman.”
White hot frustration steamed through me. “I am quite aware, Your Majesty. But what does my gender have to do with anything?”
He pressed his hands down on the map, resting his weight on thick fingertips. His gaze swept over the miniature replica of the realm, taking in every tiny tree, every pile of painted sand. He lifted one hand to trail a finger over the raised cliffs of Soravale and the white-crested waves of the Crystal Sea.
