She flinched. “I . . .” Her gaze fell from mine, and her face returned to its usual medium color. “I have nightmares about that raid. I keep thinking I could’ve done something to protect him. Save him. I wake up in a sweat, and I remind myself all over again. A dreg killed him, not King Ivenrail. I don’t trust any fae; I’ll make that clear. But I have a hard time believing he’d bother murdering a simple rider.”
“A rider who learned something he shouldn’t have.”
Her gaze locked on my face. “And what might that be?”
“I believe the dregs and Lieges were created from powerless Nullens.”
She sighed. “That fairy tale again?”
“What do you mean?”
“As I said, I have the former commander’s diary. He was quite the writer. He rambled on and on about how there used to be powerless Nullens, that they were captured by the fae long ago and . . .” More color filled her face. “I can’t believe I’m telling you what he wrote, let alone giving it even a speck of credence. He actually suggested the dregs hadn’t been born in the wasteland but used to live side by side with Nullens.”
“They were called the powerless. We weren’t told the truth about our past and how and why the treaty was formed.” I filled her in on the little bit I’d read inEmber’s Shadow.
“Another book?” she asked, clearly skeptical. “One that was randomly lying around for Reyla to steal, one that contained secrets the fae would kill to protect?”
“The king, not all the fae.”
She scoffed, leaning back in her chair and shaking her head. “Fairy tales, as I said.”
“With a semblance of truth. Kinart overheard our king talking about it.”
Frowning, she tapped her chin. “Was that when he . . .” Her huff rang out. “Now you’ve almost got me believing this could be true.”
“You can believe me or not, but he killed Kinart, and I’m not letting it go.”
“Ah, so that’s why you volunteered for the Claiming. You wanted to get to the fae kingdom and that was the only way to do it. Did you really think you would be allowed to get close enough to such a powerful man to avenge Kinart’s death?”
I shrugged, not willing to outright state my plans.
“You said you had shocking information for me, and I bet it doesn’t relate to a fairy tale.”
“The king has been draining power from Nullens,” I said.
“I read about that in the diary, as well.” Her heavy sigh rang out in the room. “Us, power? I can’t believe it.”
“It’s true. Nullen power has been suppressed.” I wanted to see the former commander’s journal, but I didn’t have time. Vexxion’s wards would only hold for so long, and Ivenrail had already shown he was after us. “The old commander was sending powerful Nullens to the king. In exchange, he was allowed to taste Nullen power himself until he got greedy.”
“He mentioned that as well, how addicting it could be. I thought . . .” Her sigh rang out. “This can’t all be true, can it?”
“I believe it is. I think long ago, there were powerless Nullens and those who had some power. After the treaty, Nullen power was masked by a fae spell.”
“What kind of spell?”
“One that suppresses our magic. Not only that, but I also think Nullens are actually lesser fae and capable of so much more than you know.”
“I . . .” She glanced over her shoulder before leaning across the desk and lowering her voice. “Ican do simple magic. I thought it was a fluke.”
“You must have more power than others, enough to override the spell.”
“I’mnotfae.”
“You’re sure?”
Her eyes wide, she jolted back in her chair. “I . . . It’s . . .” Hereyes closed, but only for a moment. “Alright. I’m starting to believe you.”
“The Lieges allied with Ivenrail, but when he got greedy, they argued. He decided to eliminate them and put Kerune in charge of the dregs. They’ll capture every Nullen and send them to the king to be drained.”
