Ozik seemed to ruminate on her words for a moment. He ran his tongue along his front teeth, looking smug but impressed. “Most of the nobles have denied invitations since your brother’s death was announced.”
“You aren’t going to answer my question?”
“You haven’t earned an answer yet.”
Vaasa grunted, her body aching as the ship tilted and she tried to remain upright.
“Court has not been held since Dominik left for Icruria,” Ozik continued, ignoring her inquiry about her mother.
What mattered was the direction the soldiers pointed their steel—and steel was only an extension of coin. So while the fortress itself had a robust system of guards and the city a coordinated force, the throne had no army without Asterya’s nobles. If Ozik didn’t have the support of the upper echelon, then he had nothing at all. Likely, they were all lying in wait, wondering if one of them could make a viable claim for the throne.
“That is because you are not a Kozár,” Vaasa finally said.
Ozik chuckled. “Obviously. But their empress has returned. All will go back to the way it’s meant to be.”
Vaasa crossed her arms. “A woman has never taken the throne in Asterya.”
“Neither has a witch. Yet you and I are the only people still standing.”
“Do they know what you are?” she dared ask.
“Only as much as they know whatyouare.”
Clearly, Lord Vlacik did, and members of the clergy. How much had her own father known? Whispers of magic had always spread about Icruria alongside its reputation for unflinching brutality, but since no one made it alive past Wrultho or Hazut, the only source of information Asteryans had was their own church. According to the Asteryan clergy, witches were agentsof the devil. Vaasa’s own father had claimed to be a god-fearing man, had bowed his head in prayer and worked in tandem with the Asteryan clergy. Yet it was possible everything her father had conquered had been the result of bargains made with the man sitting at the table before her. Of the very magic he had claimed to despise.
“Is the archbishop in support of theexperimentsLord Vlacik conducts?” Vaasa asked.
Ozik scoffed. “If the archbishop knew half of what happened in this city, he would burst into flames.”
Mekës was the center jewel of a bloody crown. While her father had made the city seem one of pure grandeur, Vaasa knew the maker of most livelihoods lay in the seedy underbelly of an empire—the city’s slums, brothels, and gambling houses were always full, even if the streets seemed clean. Vaasa shifted her weight, her legs still weary beneath her. “So if you reveal what we are, they will hunt us down for it. The clergy will make examples of us both.”
“The worst part about being an emperor is that everyoneknowsyou are an emperor,” Ozik agreed.
Frowning, Vaasa realized what he intended to use her for. Her eyes flicked to the approaching city, all sparkling granite and sharp iron. “You’re going to make me a figurehead. That’s what you did to my father, wasn’t it?”
Ozik chuckled. “It’s truly a relief to be back in the presence of someone worth partnering with. Your brother had half your potential.”
Frustration curled in her stomach at the mention of her late brother. Thoughts of Dominik washed over her, and Vaasa tried to shake the image of his severed head in her hand. She looked back to Ozik. “The nobility will never agree. If you place me on the throne, you’re handing Asterya to the Icrurians. That’s the law.”
Ozik shook his head. “The archbishop has already signed and delivered the dissolution. You are no longer married to Reid of Icruria.”
Vaasa froze. She hadn’t been prepared for what the sound of Reid’s name would do to her. What it would be like to hear an entire nation attached to him now—no longerof Mireh, butof Icruria.
He had been elected headman.
“What?” she managed through her tight throat.
“He breached his side of the marriage agreement when he attacked Asterya.” Ozik spoke as if it were obvious.
A wicked pulse skipped in her chest. Reid had attacked the border. Ice threaded in Vaasa’s tone. “Who gave you such authority?” Any moment she let herself think of Reid, the wider the pit in her stomach grew. She felt it deep in her bones; there was no piece of paper that could nullify the choice she had made to be his wife, even if it had taken her longer than it should have to decide such a thing. Still, Ozik wouldn’t tell her this information unless he wanted her to know it.
They were at war. Ozik had used Reid’s aggression to his advantage. But it also meant Reid had crossed the border. Was he coming for her? Could he even survive a full-scale invasion of Asterya?
Confidence rode the upturn of Ozik’s lips. “The thing about authority is that it cannot be given. Only taken.”
“Yetyoudo not take it. You plan to hide behind me,” Vaasa countered.
“A future that is better than any of the options you previously had. Your father would have sold you off, your brother would have murdered you, and that Icrurian would have cast you aside the moment he got his hands on your throne.”
