With a furrowed brow, I ask, “What am I missing?”
“Nothing dear. It’s just…you must follow up with claiming your place as queen.”
I take a deep breath. “With Nyxia’s support, I think I can do that.”
“And you must defeat King Ustrin according to the Old Ways.”
“Defeat…King Ustrin,” I echo slowly, hating the taste the words leave in my mouth.
“Well, yes,” Foxglove says. “Even if the treaty were amended to allow you to stay, he’d never acknowledge your right to rule. He’ll put up a fight.”
What he’s saying is obvious, but hearing it stated aloud highlights the ridiculousness of this entire plan. “This really is crazy, isn’t it?”
Lorelei leans in closer to me. “It’s not impossible to defeat him, Evelyn. I know it sounds that way, but all you need according to the Old Ways is the All of All’s blessing. The fact that you already petitioned the Twelfth Court and were blessed with a crown shows you have an advantage over King Ustrin. He never faced the All of All for his throne. It was given to him by the two councils.”
“What makes you think he won’t gain the All of All’s blessing just because I unwittingly managed to?”
Foxglove and Lorelei exchange a glance. “There’s no way to know for sure,” Foxglove says, “and I can’t say it won’t be a huge risk.”
I shake my head and rise to my feet. Now I’m the one who’s pacing. “I can’t do this.”
“You could at least try,” Foxglove says.
“Or give up this whole idea,” I say under my breath.
Lorelei approaches me, taking me by the shoulders to halt my steps. Her expression is fierce, though not unkind. “What’s the alternative? Are you going to beg Mr. Duveau for your life? Plead with him to exile you?”
My skin crawls at the thought of begging Mr. Duveau for anything. I force my words past my teeth. “If I must.”
“And where will that get you?” She gives my shoulders a light shake as if she’s trying to stir my anger. I almost wish it would ignite. Anything is better than this overwhelming despair. “I know you’d never forgive yourself for leaving the Fair Isle on the brink of chaos without at least trying first. You’re better than that. Fiercer. You’re above begging scum like Henry Duveau for your life.”
Finally, her words meet their mark, like flint striking steel. The fire of indignation burns inside me, forcing my posture to straighten. However, the intangible odds continue to batter my resolve.
“I don’t know what to do,” I say, surprised at the heat in my tone. “I need to save my mother, the treaty, and the fates of two races. Oh, and if there’s time, I’d like to save my life too. To do so, I’ll have to bargain with a council that hates me, defeat a fae king who hates me more, and once that’s all taken care of, I’ll have to help the rebellion win a civil war. For the love of iron, how the hell am I to accomplish all this?”
Foxglove’s lips pull into a frown. “I agree with what you said. This is too much. If you don’t take a side, you spread yourself too thin. But if you’re determined to try and do everything at once, then this scheme is the only way.”
Tears spring to my eyes, the sheer impossibility of the task at hand threatening to crush me back into despair. This time, I refuse to buckle beneath its weight. Lorelei’s right. I’m fiercer than this. Things may have swung far out of my control, but there’s still a way for me to gain an upper hand. There’s an option that might make everything right...or as right as it can be.
If I do this, I could save the treaty.
I could save my mother.
I could prevent bloodshed.
I could protect fae and humans alike.
There’s another benefit to this scheme, one that takes me by surprise.
I could be with Aspen.
It’s the first time I’ve considered our relationship since this conversation began. Of course, after the words we exchanged in the hall, I’m not sure we even have a relationship. Still, I can’t deny the way my pulse races at the idea that, if we wanted to, wecouldhave one.
Maybe. If this works.
“I’ll do it,” I finally say. “With all things considered, the worst that can happen is I die trying. At best...well, at this point, I’m not sure if there is an at best. But at least this way, I’m part of the fightandthe solution.”
Lorelei lifts her chin, giving me an approving smile, while Foxglove claps his hands.
