A small smile graced his lips as he met her gaze and nodded. “What would you like to know?”
“Everything.”
The council squirmed in their seats as Daemon relayed the information he had. He spoke of the turmoil throughout his kingdom and the upheaval that Davina had already caused to his court. Going into grave detail over the destruction she’d caused on the Sapphire Isles’ marketplace, Daemon broke down the impact it had on their economy and how that would inevitably affect the rest of Ixora.
As he went on, she watched the expressions on her council’s faces shift from wary glances to ones of shock and anger. But it wasn’t until Daemon spoke of his personal experience with Davina’s abilities that the others seated around the table found their voices.
“Blood magic? She hasbloodmagic?” Master Demir questioned, his bushy charcoal brows pushing up his forehead, forming deep-set wrinkles in his tanned brow. He was one of the more senior council members but wasn’t old by any stretch of the imagination. Though only in his fourth decade of life, time spent in the sun and working alongside his family in the blacksmith’s shop darkened and aged his skin, making him appear older than he actually was.
“It appears so,” Daemon responded. “Though I’m not entirely sure of the extent of her abilities, what Ihave experiencedisn’t something to take lightly.”
It was Lady Ophelia who spoke next, her eyes trained on where her hands rested in her lap. “Nothing about blood magic should be taken lightly. It’s dark and unruly and can corrupt the wielder if they’re not careful.”
Every pair of eyes shifted to the Mistress of Coin as they waited with bated breath for her to continue.
Lifting her gaze from her lap to the detailed map of Ixora that was etched into the tabletop, she continued. “I don’t know much, just bits and pieces I picked up when I was younger. People tend not to notice when a child is nearby; if they do, they never consider that they’re listening.”
She fell silent for a moment, but when her eyes met Auraelia’s, clarity swirled in the chocolate-brown depths of her irises. “Your Majesty, if I’m not mistaken, I believe there are some tomes on blood magic in the archives. I haven’t read them myself, but I know that your mother did. I remember seeing them on her bedside table not too long ago.”
Auraelia glanced toward Xander, his confused expression no doubt matching her own, before turning back toward her Mistress of Coin and asking, “Why would my mother be interested in blood magic, Lady Ophelia?”
Her question was met with a look of sympathy and a slight shake of the head. “I’m not sure. She never said, and I never thought to ask. I’m sorry.”
As the room fell silent once more, Auraelia’s thoughts began to spin around yetanothersecret that her mother had kept. Why was she looking into blood magic? Did she think it was something she may have had to face one day? And if so, why didn’t she share that with Auraelia? Surely, if her mother thought Davina was going to be a real threat, she would have informed her…right?
Auraelia slowly released a breath through her nose.
Too many secrets. Her mother kept too many secrets.
Every time Auraelia felt that she finally found the last one, another reared its ugly head like an unwanted weed in a garden.
“You’re awfully quiet over there, Ser Aeron.” The nasally sound of Lord Harland’s voice broke the quiet of the room. “What doyouhave to say to all of this?”
Ser Aeron was sitting to Xander’s left, his brows furrowed as his eyes traced over the map like he was calculating the most advantageous point of strike in a battle.
“Ser Aeron?” Auraelia prodded, attempting to pull him from whatever thoughts kept him from the conversation at hand.
When his amber gaze met hers, he said, “I have trained your armies to fight. I have trained them to handle the worst conditions imaginable. To live with little to no food and still be battle-ready. But no amount of training will save them from blood magic, Your Majesty. This is a war thatwarriorscan’t win.”
The stress he put on the word “warrior” gave Auraelia a sinking feeling, and the way his gaze bore into hers made it feel like a stone had settled into the pit of her stomach.
Caius.
No one—outside of people who had been present—knew of Caius’ visit to the Court of Emerald. They hadn’t told the council, and Auraelia had intended to keep it that way. She had decided against using his help, sure that they could win the war if it came to a battlefield.
But with all of the information they’d gathered, coupled with the intense gaze of her army commander, that seemed to no longer be an option. If brute force couldn’t fight and win this war, they would have to rely on magic. Which meant that she would need to use the one weapon in her arsenal that Davina supposedly didn’t know about.
Auraelia stood from her seat and released a steadying breath. Calming her frantic thoughts before addressing her council. “I believe that is enough for today. It seems I have some reading to do. Mister Aramis, if you would please reach out to your contacts in the Court of Topaz to see if they have any idea which direction Lady Orna and Lady Blyana are leaning in this war, I would greatly appreciate it. Master Demir, please meet with Ser Aeron so that we can ensure that our army has what they need in regard to weaponry and armor. I want to ensure we are thoroughly prepared when the need arises. Lord Harland. Lady Ophelia. Has anything changed regarding finances, the harvest, or food supply for our people?”
“No, Your Majesty. Everything is still as it should be,” Lord Harland replied.
“Good. Now, if you would, please excuse me.”
As if it were a performance, every council member stood and bowed in a synchronized motion, then began to file out of the room. All except for Ser Aeron, who halted at the door.
“You’re going to use him, aren’t you?” he asked as he turned his head over his shoulder.
“I’m going to see what he has to say, and we will go from there. But I currently don’t see any other way out of this. Do you?”
