The door at the back of the hall boomed as it opened, cutting her off. Aya turned with the rest of the onlookers to see a contingent of Kakos soldiers enter, all dressed in navy livery. Between them, chained in irons not unlike Aya’s, was a group of four prisoners.
“Pardon the interruption,” General Dav remarked. Aya hadn’t even noticed him among the soldiers, too busy as she was scanning the faces of the captives.
She didn’t recognize any of them.
“Soldiers from the Midlands, Your Majesty,” he explained with a bow. “We captured them near the Kakos border. We have reason to believe they have knowledge of future activities by the Midlands armies. They plan on retaking Sitya.”
Aya stilled. Sitya had been Kakos’s first victory. It gavethem access to ships and a stronghold on the continent. If the Midlands were to attempt to retake the city…
It would be a massive blow to Kakos, and a boon to the continent’s morale.
Gregor straightened. “What an interesting development,” he noted. He flashed the prisoners a mocking smile. “Welcome, guests. I look forward to becoming further acquainted.”
He motioned for one of the guards to step forward, likely to take the prisoners away, but Dav cleared his throat.
“There’s more, Your Majesty,” the general remarked. His gaze flitted to Aya, and Gregor followed it with a curious arch of his brow.
“Oh?” he prompted.
Aya knew dread. It had sat heavy on her since the first time she awoke on the skiff on the Anath and remembered where she was, and who was with her, and what her actions had caused:
Tova’s death. The realm’s likely destruction.
And yet she still hadn’t grown used to the way dread soured her tongue and slowed her heart to a sluggish sort of rhythm that dragged like a weight in her chest.
She felt it now, that crushing heaviness and bitter tang, brought on by a simple glance in her direction.
Whatever news Dav had, it brought dread with it.
“Queen Gianna’s Enforcer was captured in the Midlands by Talan forces,” the general said. “The new Talan queen, Hyacinth, had called for his arrest. She claims he was working with Kakos.”
Aya’s fingers went numb.
Hyacinth had taken the throne.Hyacinth, and she had…
Aya forced herself to swallow, forced herself tobreatheas Galda’s voice echoed in the depths of her mind.
Control. Control. Control.
Gregor’s brows rose in subtle amusement. “An interesting accusation.”
Dav bit back his own grin. “It was believed he had aided us in kidnapping the Second Saint. But after Sitya…” The general trailed off as he looked to where Aya stood frozen. “Well, with that display of power, the realm has found it difficult to argue the saint’s darkness.”
Aya frowned, her heart kicking out of its sluggish rhythm and racing ahead of her mind without reason.
What had she done in Sitya that would make the realm believe her to be—
Her thoughts were cut short as her gaze met Evie’s.
The lightning.
It had not been a mockery of Aya’s display of power in the Relija. It had beenintentional. Evie had wielded her power like that on purpose, had markedAyaas the threat, and the realm…
The realmbelievedher.
Aya’s heart pounded a furious rhythm as she took in Evie’s smirk.
The realm didn’t know Evie existed. She had used Aya to hide herself, to keep herselfsafewhile making Aya a scapegoat.
