The skin on my arms tightened. Her description brought to mind images of someone with singular focus, finding a target and pursuing it until it was dead. Tenacious to the end. No wonder he was popular. People expected the world from him, and he didn’t let them down. Qian was a beacon for their kingdom, so of course he would be sent after the captured princess. But I couldn’t picture Qian to be the hunting type. He had the casual swagger of someone who was in charge and knew it, but for some reason, I always pictured hunters to be flaunting it more. Human television taught me hunters were old guys with safari hats and pants tucked into their boots. Qian had changed my mind on that. Suddenly, Nix mentioning earlier that she wasn’t some trophy to be brought back to their father made sense.
My heart ached. If I sometimes felt like the palace was suffocating, I bet Nix was feeling ten times worse if she ran away because of it.
“Well,” I said, “you’re not some trophy. I’m not letting him take you so easily. You’re safe here.”
Just then, Elias appeared and looked around the empty table. “Did Prince Qian not join you for breakfast?”
“Um, no,” I said. “He didn’t.”
“It’s a bad sign that he’s not here.” Elias gripped the back of an empty chair and sighed. He looked so tired. “Not a second should be wasted not talking. You must meet with them,” he said to me. “Get them to sit down with you, negotiate.”
“Negotiate makes it sound like we’re kidnappers,” I said. “Like we’ve done something wrong.”
“In their eyes, you have. You’re keeping their princess againsttheirwill.”
Nix dropped her spoon and rounded on him. “But what about my will?” she asked.
“You are still a member of their house. They are responsible for your well-being, and if they see fit to bring you home…who are we to stop them?”
I knew, logically, that it made sense, but it still felt wrong somehow, like they were treating Nix as if she were property to be hauled away, to be carted around, to sit still and do as she was told. “Come on, Elias. You can’t be on their side.”
Elias took the other seat next to me and leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees. Seeing him this close, I was struck by how much older he seemed. Gray flecked his short-trimmed dark beard, and the lines around his mahogany eyes were deeper, more pronounced, but his gaze was the same as always, soft and warm. “Queen Mahalina,” he started, and I shot him a look.
“Please don’t get all formal on me.”
“I am not talking to my goddaughter; I’m talking to my queen. Jade Mountain is a neighboring kingdom, and despite what you might want to think, this isn’t a minor squabble. Wars have been started over a lot less. The last time tensions rose between Biringan and Jade Mountain, your great-grandmother worked tirelessly to broker peace.”
I wanted to snap back at him, say I wasn’t a child, but by somemiracle, I held my tongue. He was helping me. I didn’t know why I wanted to fight.
“Forgive me, Elias,” I said. “I don’t have decades of experience with this kind of thing. How did she do it then?”
“She proved to Jade Mountain that she was an ally. She hosted them for diplomatic meetings at the royal jungle retreat in Mount Makiling, and together they signed the accords that still remain to this day, but peace takes work, and now Jade Mountain feels betrayed. One slip-up can shatter their trust, and this incident with Nix is placing peace on the edge of a knife. You must be careful. If you let Prince Qian dictate the rules, you are playing his game. You must set boundaries and offer to come to an agreement; otherwise you will not get what you want.”
Encantos lived a long time. Grudges lived even longer. Like I’d been punched in the gut, I realized I’d been ignorant of how the balance between war and peace was so fragile. I still had a lot to learn about being queen.
I took in a deep breath and looked at Elias. He was my adviser, but he was also my godfather and my dad’s best friend. He was the closest thing I had to a father now, and he was only trying to make sure that I was doing the right thing. I didn’t hold it against him in the slightest. I knew I had an obligation to try, but at the same time, I wondered if I was capable of handling such a situation. Elias was right. I needed to at least do something. For Nix’s sake.
I glanced at my friend, who was still picking away at her food. She hadn’t eaten anything, her thoughts no doubt a million miles away. Was this how Helen of Troy had felt?
“I’m not what Qian thinks I am,” I said to Elias. “I’m not an enemy. I’ll talk to him.”
We convened foranother meeting in the grand hall later that afternoon.
Nix and I were the last to arrive. Everyone was already seated around the large round table, and my stomach fluttered with nerves. I couldn’t fail Nix here. I tried to keep my head high, my hands placed delicately at my waist, but there was so much on the line.
Immediately, my eyes snared on Qian, who was deep in conversation with General Heng. Today Qian was dressed in the same clothes from last night. I couldn’t help but notice the taut muscles of his forearms as they rested on the table. Even though he was still speaking with Heng, his dark gaze caught mine, and a small smile spread across his lips. Heat rushed to my face. He was remarkably handsome, all things considered. I tried to tell myself to get it under control.This is about Nix,I reminded myself.
When Qian finished his conversation, Heng nodded, and Qian stood up to greet us. “I was wondering if Her Royal Highness would arrive or if we were going to have to negotiate with one of the lesser houses.”
I didn’t know what he was talking about until I saw her. Amador was sitting on the opposite side of the room, with Lucas standing behind her. His eyes met mine briefly before he looked away, his fingers fidgeting with the hilt of the dagger at his side.The skin of my hips burned with the ghost of his touch from last night, and my ears burned to match it.
Amador smiled, cupping her chin with her hand, making her engagement ring sparkle. “In typical royal custom, our queen prefers to arrive fashionably late.” She eyed my more formal baro’t saya—a long-skirt-and-blouse combo with a kerchief around my shoulders that Jinky was adamant about me wearing. I didn’t put up a fight like the last time I came to the grand hall and made a fool of myself in front of the court. Today I wanted to put my best foot forward if that meant that I could get Qian to let Nix stay. I didn’t think I looked half bad, but in Amador’s eyes, I was always found wanting.
Qian, for what it was worth, seemed more impressed with my outfit. His gaze lingered on me, and his smile widened.
“Thank you for meeting with us,” I said. Immediately after, though, I wondered if I should have thanked him at all. Did that inadvertently give him the upper hand, implying that he was the one who had to take time out of his day to speak with me? Elias wasn’t here to help me maneuver the land mines of royal politics, and I forced the embarrassment heating up my neck to settle back down.
“Of course, Your Highness.” Qian watched while Nix and I circled the table, and I did everything I possibly could not to glance at Lucas when I took my seat. I swore the taste of him had stayed on my lips from last night.
