“She is dead. Your opinion on what my Lady Mother allowed means nothing in her absence. It was my choice, my life he saved. I owe Soren twice over now, for what he has done for myself and Raiah.”
“No you don’t,” Soren all but spit out.
The look Vanya sent him was exasperated and fond. “I do, and you know it.”
“If the Houses find out, they would use him to ruin ours,” Taisiya warned.
“He almost died in Joelle’svasilyet. If she suspected anything, she would have kept him alive to use him against us. If Joelle does not know, it is doubtful any other House does.”
Taisiya studied the pair of them for a moment before shaking her head, letting out a rough-sounding sigh. “He is a weakness, Vanya. But I will rectify that today.”
Vanya couldn’t hide the wariness that came to his eyes, which made Soren tense. “How so?”
“By ensuring he is too difficult a piece to remove. I did say he will accompany me to the next gathering, and there is one this evening.”
“I shouldn’t—” Soren tried to argue.
“You will, if only to impress upon the Houses your position as a warden. The major Houses know the wardens are aware of the crypt and what that means for the future. The minor Houses have never sat upon the Imperial throne and are not buried beneath the palace. Where the major Houses go, the minor will follow.”
“You’re so sure about that?”
“What Joelle has allowed in hervasilyetwill be her undoing. It must be acknowledged. You are uniquely positioned to inform the Houses of what she is doing and what is at stake.”
“And in doing so, make it clear that to align their loyalty with the House of Kimathi will be detrimental to them all, but if they align with yours, the consequences won’t be as bad?” Soren asked sharply.
Taisiya’s lips twitched into a pleased sort of smile. “Good. You understand.”
“I understand you think the wardens favor your House. We don’t.” Soren glanced at Vanya, who stared calmly back at him. “We can’t.”
“Better our House to see through the sanctions and open borders than a hostile House who would bar you from the poison fields to keep power and put our citizens at risk. Our House countered Joelle’s call for a Conclave based on her treatment of the dead. Who better to confirm her betrayal of her oaths than the warden who experienced it firsthand?”
Soren clenched his teeth. With what he knew was happening in the northern countries, it only made sense to keep a House on the Imperial throne that would abide by the Poison Accords. Vanya would see the sanctions through; Joelle, he knew, would not.
“The House throwing today’s gathering has declined to invite the House of Kimathi. Enough of the major Houses have accepted the invitation that it would be prudent for you to join me, and you shall,” Taisiya said.
Soren knew he could leave—that heshouldleave. That he had no right to insert himself so prominently in a country’s politics, but he already had by staying with Vanya. Soren should have walked away long ago, in Bellingham, after taking Vanya from that wrecked train. But it was too late now to amend decisions made. He’d indulged his own wants beneath the wardens’ governor’s orders, thinking his heart safe while he did his duty.
Oh, what a fool he had been.
“The dead are the purview of the wardens,” Soren said.
“Then prove that to the Houses.”
She pressed where Vanya wouldn’t, and Soren couldn’t begrudge Taisiya her desire to see her House safe. He didn’t want to ever return from the poison fields one day to discover Vanya dead and buried in the crypt, Raiah with him or forever out of reach in Joelle’s grasp, some other House seated on the Imperial throne. That was unbecoming of a warden, but then, he had never been just a warden.
“My loyalty is not to you. I’ll not wear your House’s attire.”
“If he is to be a warden, let him appear as such,” Vanya said before Taisiya could argue.
“Very well,” she huffed. “With that decided, let us enjoy our morning meal out in the courtyard.”
She left the parlor for the hallway, leaving Soren alone with Vanya. He looked over at the other man, noting the regal robes he wore and the crown that sat once more upon his head. He looked dressed not for the Conclave but the Senate. “Did you tell her about the vow?”
Vanya shook his head. “No.”
Soren thought he’d hidden the necklace well enough even if he hadn’t, in hindsight, hidden the way he felt about Vanya. What were the Houses to think when he returned time and time again to Vanya’s side, like a comet orbiting the sun?
Vanya closed the distance between them, his hand catching Soren by the elbow. Those dark eyes searched his own, mouth thinning to a hard line before he let out a heavy sigh. “You could ask me for anything, and I would give it to you. It would free you from this.”
