“Four timberwings?” Ryatt asks. “I thought you’d be doubling up?”
“We are. The fourth timberwing is for you,” Slade replies.
Ryatt blanches. “I’m not going with you. I should stay here, make sure Drollard is safe, and help with the extra hunting to keep up our reserves.”
“I need you with me.”
Anger flushes over Ryatt’s face, making his pale cheeks dapple with color. “I’m your fuckingstand-in!” Ryatt growls back. “If anything, I should go back to the army. But we all know you’re the real commander. I just have to take up the gauntlet when you’re off playing king.”
My eyes bounce between the brothers, watching as the tic in Slade’s jaw pulses. I wonder if he’s ever noticed that Ryatt does the very same thing?
“And I’ll beplaying kingwhen we get back. Which means I’ll need you by my side, and I’ll need your presence among the soldiers when they return. I can do it when I’m able, but I’ll have to be careful with Manu sniffing around. He might not have the magic his sister does, but we can’t underestimate him.”
Ryatt scoffs, rubs a hand down his bristled face. “Fine. I’ll leave Drollard. But I’m going back with the army, not to the kingdom, and I’m taking Hojat with me. Our soldiers have been without our best mender for too longandtheir stand-in commander. Plus, I can send a few of the soldiers here to guard the village.”
A sigh escapes Slade. “Ryatt—”
“I’m not going to the kingdom with you,” he snaps before he turns and starts stalking down the hall. “If I have to be away from here, then I’m going to be with the army, whose morale is probably real fucking low at the moment since two-thirds of its captains abandoned them,andtheir king and commander. I’m going to them, and I’ll be ready to leave in an hour’s time, and don’t fight me on this. I’ll come play your double at the castle when I get there with the rest of our soldiers.”
Slade’s jaw pulses. “Fine.”
Ryatt gives him a terse nod over his shoulder. “And for fuck’s sake, don’t you dare leave without saying goodbye to her.”
The door slams behind him as he storms out.
For a second, no one says anything.
Glancing around, I then clear my throat. “So...I take it he doesn’t like being Fake Rip?”
“He’s grown weary of it,” Slade replies.
Lu snorts. “That’s one way to put it.” Her dark eyes flash to me. “It never used to bother him before. He used to like it in the beginning. It was good for him too. Taught him some good things.”
“What changed?”
“He started to resent that he wasn’thimself,” Lu says with a shrug. “Can’t really blame him either.”
My eyes flick to Slade. “Why did you decide to be your own army commander? That ruse can’t be easy to maintain.”
“I became a soldier so I could better learn how to protect Drollard and to discover more about Orea. The signing bonus was a big incentive too,” he says with a shrug. “We needed the money, and Fourth was recruiting, and they didn’t care about age. But I soon realized I wasgoodat being a soldier. Even more, I realized Ilikedit. I quickly worked my way up, faster than anyone else ever had, using only my physical strength. Fighting always triggered my spikes, so I let it be part of my soldier persona. It set me apart.”
“I bet it did.”
“I never used my rot magic. Never wanted to,” Slade says. “But Fourth’s king was a tyrant, and by the time I hit twenty, I realized how much dissent there was in the kingdom. The king was also doing things at the border that could’ve jeopardized Drollard’s secrecy. So, I decided to take my other form and challenge him for his crown with my rot magic. I won, and Ravinger became king, while Rip became commander. I made sure to quell any pushback by using both forms and keeping my identities separate.”
“And you still wanted to lead your army after that?”
“The army is unstoppable with Rip,” Judd chimes in. “He’s stronger, faster, and more alert. His fae instincts have helped us win more battles than I can count. And his spikes scared the shit out of people. He became notorious in his own right. The rumors of the two of them alone were enough to keep people in line.”
“Commanderandking. Seems like a lot of work.”
Slade tips his head. “I had to win a lot of battles when I took position because of other kingdoms trying to test the new king’s weaknesses. But it’s not as if I could just rot the world, so I met them on a battlefield instead. Grew Commander Rip’s reputation. Once that was established and our army’s strength was realized, the challenges stopped.”
I nod, taking this all in. “And so your brother fills in for you as Rip when you need him to?”
“Yes.”
“But what does Ryatt want to do?”
