“You volunteered,” says Rian.
Corrick looks at me in surprise. “Youvolunteered?”
I lift my chin. “In exchange for passage back to Kandala. Someone needs to warn your brother about the Moonflower poison.”
Corrick glares at Rian. “He was never going to give us passage back to Kandala. He’s going to use me against Harristan.” He pauses. “I admit to being a bit surprised that you didn’t take the opportunity to grab Crane while you could. You wanted me that badly?”
Rian swears. “No, you jackass. I wantsteelthat badly. I want to help my people. So I told my uncle that if he sent you here, I’d deliver his daughter to him. He could keep Silvesse.”
“I’ve seen what he’s doing to the people of Silvesse,” Corrick says. “You sacrificed an island just to get me? That doesn’t exactly sound like you’re caring for your people.” He pauses. “And what are you going to do when you have no daughter to deliver?”
“It doesn’t matter. I already have you. He only has one island. I have the other five. I’ve bought myselftime.”
Outside the house, some commotion has gone up, but I can’t make sense of it. Maybe Rian’s soldiers have drawn closer now that Corrick has been caught.
Rian takes a step toward Corrick. His eyes are so angry. “You thought you would trapme, and you failed.”
“No,” Corrick says. “I offered you exactly what you wanted. Again, you rule like a despot, with double dealings and empty promises andlies. I offered you a solution to the crimes ravaging your country, in exchange for a return to my own. If you wanted steel so badly, you could’ve workedwithme, trapped Oren Crane, and again, I would have been willing to negotiate with my brother on your behalf.” He takes hold of my hand. “Now, I will not.”
“I know what Kandala has done,” Rian snaps. “Your own consuls have been working against the people foryears. No one heretrustsyou.”
“You’re wrong about the people of Ostriary,” says Corrick. “Many people on Silvesse were desperate for Kandala’s help. You’re just too angry to see it.”
“Many peoplehere, too,” I say.
“Say what you want,” Rian replies “I have plenty of detail from Ford Cheeke about what you’ve been doing in Silvesse.”
“Is that the same Ford Cheeke who was kidnapped by Oren Crane before I was dragged here?” says Corrick.
Rian looks like he’s been hit by a fist. “Oren got to Ford?”
“Maybe you’re not the only one capable of double-crossing.”
Outside, a woman gives a ragged scream, and it chills my spine.
From the hallway, Erik says, “Olive.” Then I hear the clear sounds of a scuffle again.
“What’s going on?” Rian calls.
Olive comes pushing through the people to get into the room.Her face is streaked with tears. “What have you done?” she screams at Rian. She shoves him in the chest, hard. “What have you done?”
“What?” he whispers. “What happened?”
A soldier has followed her, breathless and sweat-streaked. There’s soot in his hair. “I rode here as fast as I could,” he says. “It’s the palace at Tarrumor. You need to return at once. Oren Crane is attacking.”
CHAPTER THIRTY-TWO
Harristan
For tonight’s mission, I don’t have any rebels. Just Quint and my guards. I didn’t even want that many people, but Thorin and Saeth insisted.
Actually, it was mostly Saeth. Thorin must have fetched him while we were getting ready to leave, because they were both on the porch when we stepped out of the house. When Saeth saw me laced into my boots with a dagger at my waist, his eyes just about bugged out of his head.
He set his jaw and blocked our path off the porch. “Your Majesty. Youcannotgo into the palace alone.”
“So you’re orderingmenow?” I said.
He inhaled sharply, frustrated—but then let out that breath. “On this? Yes.”
