“Commander Prisca, Lieutenant Turpis will now be your second in command; you’ll be taking East Mitis’ border. Prince Nikias will see you tomorrow to give you more details.” Commander Livus then closed the scroll and looked up, barking, “Runai, dismissed!”
No. That couldn’t be right.
Her name hadn’t been called.
Nikias had given away her post.
And he didn’t even have the decency to give hersomething.
What was the point of being a commander if she was never going to actuallybea commander? What was Nikias thinking?
It made no sense. Unless… Maybe Nikias had a reason to keep her in Areator.
He’d taken her off the patrol schedule too…
Did heknow?Was this some sort of sick, twisted game that he so loved to play? If he didn’t suspect her of treason, why else would he keep her in Areator?
Was he just tormenting her now?
“Aimilia—”
She ignored Turpis and ducked around the mages until she caught Commander Livus as he was heading back into the palace. “Commander! Pardon me, I just have a quick question about my patrol schedule?—”
Commander Livus turned on his heel and raised his eyebrow. “The schedule for the Areator patrols went out yesterday.”
“I know. I wasn’t on it, so I thought I would be assigned elsewhere.” Aimilia resisted the urge to gesture at her cloak to emphasize her point. “If I’m not being moved out of Areator, why am I not patrolling?”
“I’m afraid I don’t make the decisions, Commander. You’ll have to ask His Highness himself.”
Then Commander Livus was gone, disappearing into the palace.
Oh. She would.
“Aimilia?”
She whipped around to see Turpis approaching her like he would a rabid animal. She took a deep breath, blowing it out slowly as she relaxed her shoulders. The only Runai who needed to be worried she’d bite his head off was Nikias.
“I’m not going to blame you for our prince’s pettiness. I know you had nothing to do with you and Commander Prisca receiving the post near House Mitis,” Aimilia said.
Turpis also let out a soft breath and picked up his pace as he came up to her. “That’s a relief. Last thing I need is for you to flatten me in front of a crowd. Again.”
“You’re safe from me. For today at least.” She looked up at the palace, staring at the windows above them. Nikias wasn’t within sight, but she glared at the whole building like if she put enough heat into it he’d somehow sense it. “His Highness, on the other hand…”
“You’re the only Runai I know both brave enough and favored enough to get away with saying things like that,” Turpis said.
Favored?
She looked back over at Turpis, analyzing the grin on his face. There was something sharp to it, but then again, that was the case for everyone in House Feris.
Considering what she was hiding, she needed to watch herself better. Outward animus toward the royal family would do her no favors in keeping her secret, but she also couldn’t completely change her tune, given how everyone in Areator was aware of her and Nikias’ longstanding feud.
“Well, I’d have fewer things like that to say if His Highness would simply give me a job to do instead of wasting me and making me sit around here until he’s done making me as miserable as he is.” Aimilia forced an airy, breathy laugh out. “You’d think by now it would have gotten old, but I suppose now that we’ve had a few months’ taste of peace, he can’t bear to give up the only other fight he has left.”
“The fact that he continues to make an enemy of you is a mystery to me. Believe me, I learned my lesson.” Turpis’ eyes skimmed over her, lingering longer than they should have in certain places that weren’t her eyes. “I’d do whatever it took to stay on your good side, if I were him.”
Aimilia had never been one of the girls to humor Turpis’ flirting when they’d been classmates, mostly because of her attachment to Gavril, but she saw no reason to now either.
“I’m as confused as you are. If I were him, I’d want me sent far away where I’d never bother him again.” Aimilia crossed her arms, so Turpis’ eyes couldn’t keep lingering.
