“—but we’re both wrapped up inwhateveris going on, and I don’t think we should be on opposite sides. Alek isn’t telling me anything. Is Tycho tellingyouanything?”
“He’s notusingme, Callyn!” I jerk the iron out of the fire and smack it against the anvil.
“That’s not what I asked you.”
I lift the hammer—then freeze. No, he’s not really telling me anything at all.
“He’s the King’s Courier,” I say. “He’s bound to secrecy, I’m sure.”
“Maybe so.” She pulls a folded slip of parchment out of her skirts. “But we’re not.”
It’s a message, held together with the same green-and-black seal I’ve seen half a dozen times already.
I don’t reach for it. “I don’t want any part of that anymore.”
“Oh! So high and mighty now!” She kicks dirt at me. “You’re the one who started this, Lord Jax.”
I cannot believe she just did that. I scoop up a handful of dirt and fling it at her like we’re six years old and arguing over the last sweetcake. “To save the forge! To save your bakery! I didn’t shove him under your skirts.”
She flushes.
Oh. I was teasing. I didn’t realize she’d actually done that.
I grimace. “Sorry, Cal. I didn’t know.”
“Forget it.” She turns away.
UGH.
“Stop,” I say. “Just … what do you want me to do with that? Do you need me to hold it?”
She stops, but for a moment, I don’t think she’s going to face me. Finally, an eternity later, she turns around. “No.”
“Then what?”
“Do you still think you can re-create the seal?”
“I don’t know. Maybe.”
She lifts the note. “I think it’s time we figure out what’s really going on.”
CHAPTER 41
TYCHO
Preparations for the first competition have been well underway, and the transformation of the fields surrounding Ironrose Castle is impressive. Markers and targets have been set out for archery, both for long range and accuracy. Small sand arenas sit ready for close combat, either sword fights or hand-to-hand. Longer tracks have been arranged for mounted or foot races. Flagpoles stand at each end, banners with both the green and black of Syhl Shallow and the gold and red of Emberfall snapping in the wind.
Along the far side of the competition fields, nearly a hundred tents have been built, and even though the matches aren’t due to start for at least another ten days, many are already occupied. Pennants and banners in an array of colors already hang from the tent eaves, blues and yellows and greens representing cities and towns and families. Anyone with status has been invited to stay in the castle, but I learn from the Royal Guard that the array of tents is already proving to be a site of revelry and music late into the night.
The prince and princess are away when I arrive, which is both a relief and a disappointment. I’ve been jittery since I left the forge, as if Grey might have sent scouts to make sure I got where I was supposed to be. He didn’t—at least, not as far as I can tell. But I’msurehe and the queen made mention of the goings-on at court in their letters. If I’m going to hear an earful from Rhen, too, I’d rather get it over with.
I try to make the best of my evening alone, turning Mercy loose in a pasture for a few hours of liberty, then sinking into a hot bath for myself. There’s no formal dinner since the prince and princess aren’t in residence, but the castle kitchens always lay out a late meal after sundown, which I prefer anyway. A few stars have begun to twinkle in the twilit darkness outside the windows, and I can hear faint music coming from the distant competition yard. I smile and fill a cloth napkin with slices of bread and cheese and salted meats, then turn for the door to go explore. If I’ve been granted a short reprieve from anyone’s disappointment, I may as well enjoy it.
But I walk through the door and find myself face-to-face with Alek.
I’m so shocked by his presence that I nearly drop my food. He looks like he’s only just arrived, still trussed up in armor and weapons, his red hair a bit windblown, his face unshaven. His own guards are at his back—and though castle guards are on duty down the corridor, right now I’m alone.
My heart pounds, my thoughts replaying that moment in Jax’s workshop when I faced Alek months ago. My free hand is automatically reaching for a sword that’s not there. I’m not even wearing a dagger. I’ve never had need for weapons in the halls of Ironrose.
