I jerk back without meaning to. It’s an automatic motion, but she freezes. Her hand hangs there, outstretched, but then her eyebrows flicker into a frown.
She’s looked at me like that before, and I hate it. I draw up the hood of my coat and look away. “We’re wasting too much time,” I say. “Lead a horse into the woods, then mount and head north. There’s an inn about five miles from here, called Three Fishes. It’s off the main road. I’ll take care of the king and follow in a few—”
“Asher.” She tucks the handkerchief away and faces me with her shoulders squared—exactly the way she faces down her brother. “I’m not running, and you can’t kill him.”
She’s so brave—but this is infuriating. And heartbreaking.
I give a ragged sigh and fold up the slips of parchment, then set them on her dressing table. “I’ll leave you with the proof. Hide them where they’ll be found so Incendar has some evidence that you aren’t responsible.” I scowl. “Butyoudidn’t believe me, so who knows what they will think.” I leap for the rafters again.
“Where are you going?”
“I can’t stay. I’ve been given a deadline. If you change your mind, I’ll meet you at the inn.” I swing high, gripping tight to each beam.
“Asher.” Her voice catches me just before I reach the highest window. “I believe you. I’ll go.”
My heart leaps.
Then she says, “But you can’t kill the king.”
“I can. Without his fire magic, he’s just another soldier.” I snap the latch beside the ledge. Cold air swirls into the space, tugging at my hood. “And it doesn’t matter. If I don’t kill him, someone else will.”
“I know,” she says. “But you said that if I needed help, I could send word. You said you’ddo whatever needed doing.”
I look down at her. She has no idea what I’m risking here. “That’s exactly what Iamdoing, Jor.”
“No. That’s why you’renotgoing to kill him. Astranza needs the kingand his magic—and Incendar might be to blame, but I don’t believeheis.” Her voice isn’t small anymore. It’s strong and brave and clear, reminding me that she might be naive about the world outside these walls—but she’s still a princess, and she’s got a solid grip on my heart.
“If we need to run,” she says, “we’re going to take him with us.”
Chapter Nine
The Warrior
By the time I return to our quarters, my men are awake, with the exception of Nikko, who’s finally asleep in the back room.Ihaven’t slept yet, but my mood is lighter than it’s been in months, and it doesn’t go unremarked. When I come back through the doors, Sev takes one look at me and grins. “Don’t care what she’s like, my ass.”
That makes me blush before I can help myself, and Callum and Garrett both whoop and clap me on the shoulder until I tell them to knock it off. But it’s good to see them so lighthearted after so many hours of riding in the dismal cold—and after months and months of battling near the front, while food stores ran empty and Draegonis seemed to gain ground with every assault.
“I believe we understand each other,” I tell them when they ask about the princess. “And I believe our goals are in accord.”
“Andshe’s beautiful,” Callum coughs, and Garrett smacks him in the arm before I have to.
But warmth clings to my cheeks, and their gentle ribbing starts up again. I truly meant what I told Sev earlier—it doesn’t matter what she looks like. I’m certainly no ideal husband, and I would’ve married a stone pillar if it meant helping my people.
Princess Marjorianaisbeautiful, though.
Jory,I think. I don’t tell my men about that part, because it feels too personal, like a secret between us. Prince Dane never used a nickname when describing his sister. I still can’t quite believe that she resorted to disguising herself when she wanted to see me. It’s simultaneously so brave and so...innocent. Like the way she was ready to put my eyes out with a hairpin, but then she blushed like a schoolgirl when I unbuckled my weapons. I remember the spark in her gaze when she asked me to show her my magic, how badly I wanted to pull my flint right there.
I haven’t said a word, but Callum grins and whistles low through his teeth, and this time I do punch him in the shoulder. He laughs.
Roman smiles too, but his reaction is more reserved. “It’s good that you found some common ground with the princess.” There’s a gravity to his voice that sobers the others, and I realize that it’s not just the endless fighting or the cold ride that’s been weighing on them. It’s the prospect of this alliance—and the risk of failure. Roman himself sketched out a means to escape this palace before he even went to sleep. They all know how tenuous my relationship is with Prince Dane—and how dire the circumstances have become in Incendar.
They also know my reputation, and what’s at stake.
My people are in need, I said to her.I want to help them.
She said her people were in need, too. That she wanted to help them all.
My chest clenches. Hope is so dangerous, but I let it settle in my heart for the first time.
