With a final grunt of effort, Luc yanks us over the lip of the pit. We collapse into the snow.
Kaidren’s out of breath, lying on his back and staring at thecloudy sky. “Remira,” he pants out my name in between gasps for air. “Are you all right?”
“I’m fine.” I stand over him, and I can’t help the small smile that creeps over my face. “Thank you.”
For several seconds, he stares at me. Doesn’t say anything, just stares. His eyes are softened into an emotion I can’t decipher. “You’re sure? No injuries?”
My heart flutters at his concern. “I’m completely fine.”
“Good. You need to hide.”
I frown, tilting my head to one side. “What?”
“Hide,” he says again.
“Why would—”
Without warning, Kaidren leaps to his feet and seizes Luc’s flare from where it hangs around his neck. Neither of us has time to react before he sets it off and holds it up high with his signature smirk. “Because the decurio will be here any moment to save him. And you can’t risk them seeing you.”
No.
With that flare, Kaidren just won the second trial.
Worse—Ilost.
CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT
WHEN THE SMOKE CLEARS
The glare I direct at the floor is withering. Footsteps scuttle out of my way, clearing a path for me as I stomp the halls, back to the tiny room I’m forced to call mine.
I slam my door behind me. Bang my head against the solid wood with a groan and slump to the floor. The tears I’ve been keeping at bay release.
Sobs shake my body so violently, I don’t realize I’m not alone.
“You’realive.” Sef stumbles out of my bed and throws her arms around me. Never mind that I’m still on the floor. She joins me. “Don’t do that to me again. I was so worried about you.” Her relieved expression sobers as she pulls back and really takes me in. “Oh. You already heard?”
I swipe tears from my face, sniffling. “Heard what?”
“Those fields in Ophera. We lost them. Petruvia formed a barricade around Farvelle, and now Virdei can’t get through. If we try to strike back, we’ll start a war.”
The tears I just wiped away threaten to come back. I want to curl into a ball and weep away the next five years. I want to find Luc and scream at him for not listening to me. But as furious as I am with him, I’m more upset with myself. “Did anyone die?”
Sef shakes her head. “Not as far as I know.”
“I should’ve stayed.”
“You couldn’t have changed this. You saw that letter. Petruvia was planning this for months. Nothing you did would’ve stopped this.” Sef settles next to me, resting her head on my shoulder. “Maybe it won’t be so bad.”
“Petruvia treats Opherans like dirt.”
“So does Virdei.”
“At least when it’s Virdei, I can do something.” I slam my head against the wall angrily. Thanks to me, the Honorate have passed orders that ended the extortion of landlords in Ophera who would lure in renters with low rates and then raise prices after the first month; there is more funding for things like public bonfires; and resources have been allocated for schools to teach trades and crafts. Ophera is still far from perfect, but I’ve done what I can.
Widow’s Hall is named for the first—and only—Queen to rule Virdei by herself. This was shortly after Virdei began building up the mountain, back when it was still a monarchy. The Queen’s husband died before they conceived, leaving her a childless widow.
Widow’s Hall is named for her. It started as a mean-spirited nickname coined by the men who resented her rule to demean her. She embraced the title to spite them and officially renamed the mountainside fortress Widow’s Hall herself, so no one could call it so behind her back.
