“Doyouforget that you wear the other half of the crown, brother?”
“Never! And you know it.” He was trying to start a fight to avoid this difficult conversation. He knew I’d storm off to save him from the curse if sufficiently provoked.
The frustration, sharp and jagged like shards of glass, lodged in my throat before I swallowed it and softened my tone. “You must trust yourself to make your own decisions occasionally, Nisien.”
There was a single, barely perceptible twitch of his face. He hated it when I sounded like our father.
“I do trust myself,” he muttered. “Just less now that you’re back—a sentiment everyone seems to share.”
That hit me harder than I’d expected. Nisien didn’t intend to be cruel about my absence, yet his lack of malice somehow made the hurt even worse.
In uncertain times, being seen as the weaker ruler by the court wasn’t just inconvenient—it was dangerous. I’d changed the political landscape by returning home after being gone for so long. So now I had to be the knife in the dark for him. I had to continue being the monster for my kingdom.
He’d already made it clear that he couldn’t do this without better guidance. But I also couldn’t lead without him. I was too volatile, too broken to shoulder the kingdom alone. That was why our father had split the crown between us. We’d remain princes until we agreed that one of us should be king alone.
Since our father’s death, the kingdom had balanced on a blade’s edge. Our fields and waters were still prosperous, but raids on our northern borders were pushing our bannermen to the brink of their tolerance. And the Assembly’s attempts to manipulate our court had only intensified with each passing month of turmoil.
The Assembly wanted Darreth to thrive, but only according to their whims. We were locked in a perpetual push and pull of influence and power that was felt in every whispered conversation and official decree. Now their once subtle maneuvers were becoming more blatant, hence my summons to Caervorn.
They’d promised a patrol of mages to assuage our two most powerful northern bannermen in exchange for one meeting with me—too great a prize to turn down. Now I wondered if I’d made a mistake in going.
I dropped heavily into the nearest chair and reached for his relinquished goblet. Empty, of course.
“Did you know,” I said, changing the subject, “that Maeron expects me to act as a prized stud? Constantly chasing mares in heat to fix our succession problems?”
Nisien didn’t even blink. “Yes.”
I rose from the chair, fists clenched, curse rising again in sudden anger. “And you said nothing?”
“Don’t shout.”
“Why the hell not?”
“Because I already have a headache, and you’ve only made it worse.”
“Drink less wine then!” I paced like a caged beast. “I just spent a week listening to that forked-tongued bureaucrat tell me I need to breed like I’m an animal. And you…you…knew?”
Nisien leaned back, hands in his lap, voice quieter now. “Have you never wondered why I have no bastards?”
I froze. The magic simmering under my skin cooled with my plummeting mood. Voice softer, I asked, “What?”
Nisien had had more lovers than sense. Cursed gods knew I’d envied him for that ease, for the way he moved through the world like he belonged in it.
“Do you really think I’m that careful?” he asked.
Nisien had charm, not caution. Naturally, the thought of him producing bastards had crossed my mind, but I’d never thoughtseriouslyof it. I thought he just didn’t want heirs he couldn’t raise openly as his own.
“Apparently, it happens sometimes with mages,” he said, eyes on the hearth now. “The Assembly knows, of course. They said the only solution is for me to bed another mage. I don’t know of any available mage princesses, do you? And if I’m forced into a political marriage…”
“Gods know you won’t complain about trying to make an heir anyway.” If I didn’t make a joke, something within me was going to break.
“True.” He grinned.
“Why did you say nothing to me, Nisien?”
“What would I have said? That I’m broken?” He laughed bitterly. “That the oh-so-amiable, golden-tongued prince can’t do the one thing everyone wants from him? I already have people questioning my strength, Emrys. I didn’t need to give them more reasons to string me up.”
Nisien was a world-class battle mage. He could best me in a fight if I didn’t have the curse granting me extra power. And his strategy, when he had the mind to trust himself, far outshone most experts. The fact that anyone thought him weak was absolutely absurd.
