“They’re fine,” Ahnna swiftly assured him. “Everyone is in hiding, either in the wilds or the outer islands, but my plan…it didn’t go as we’d hoped.”
“That’s abundantly fucking clear.” Keris caught hold of the Valcottan woman’s arm. “Zar, if she climbed up, we can climb down. We have no choice but to risk it.”
Zar.
Zarrah.Realization struck Ahnna, and she managed to say, “It’s an honor to meet you, Imperial Majesty.”
Empress Zarrah of Valcotta looked down at her and smiled. “Likewise, Your Highness. I’ve heard a great deal about you.” She crossed her arms. “We’ll talk about climbing down shortly, but first, Ahnna, I want to hear why you’ve risked climbing up.”
86
Keris
“Is the explanation lunacy?” Kerissnapped the words, well past his breaking point. “Do you know what happens to a person when they fall from such a height?”
Thud.
His memory filled with the sound of such a fall, and Keris turned away to hide his flinch. Given that Aren was apparentlynotdead, he’d be the one Keris would have had to tell if Ahnna had been reduced to a splatter on the stone below.
“She’s fine,” Zarrah murmured. “We caught her.”
Fine for now, but the only way out of this palace was the way Ahnna had come up, and he was not looking forward to it.
He went to the table full of decanters and filled a glass. As he did, he noticed the spot of blood on his cuff. Katarina’s blood. “What are you doing here, Ahnna? If William catches you, he will kill you to protect Alexandra. He cut off Katarina’s head in front of his whole court so that she couldn’t implicate his mother.”
“Katarina’s dead, then?”
“Quite.”
“I’m going to poison Alexandra. It might be a long shot, but if William is rid of her influence, we might have a chance.”
He laughed, noticing how Fiona was watching Ahnna with sharpinterest, nose moving, and then she let out three sharp yips. Apparently the coin Saam had spent wasn’t wasted after all. Except Alexandra’s dogs had the same training. “You’re never going to get close to her. Especially not after tonight.”
“What happened? No one in the city knows anything.”
Keris took a sip of his drink. He’d already told Zarrah everything, and the thought of doing so again was exhausting. Seeming to sense that, his wife stepped in, swiftly explaining all that had occurred.
“William won’t turn on Alexandra,” Keris said as she finished. “I’m not sure if he’s in denial about her guilt, or if he just doesn’t care. He’s burned the Cardiffian alliance to protect her, and I don’t think there is any length he won’t go to if it will keep her head attached to her shoulders.”
“He can’t keep this all contained,” Ahnna argued. “The people are going to find out, and they’ll demand justice for Edward. If he refuses, he’ll have a civil war on his hands.”
“If we had time, I’d say that we could work with that,” Keris said. “But when Ronan gave William his ultimatum, he all but told him that there were survivors of the poison plot. Harendell already has soldiers holding the bridge, but the calm season is only weeks away, which means they can move to purge resistance in the outer islands. If he has uncontested control of the bridge, he might be able to buy his mother’s forgiveness from the people. Or at the very least, the nobility.”
“If we can get out of the palace and out of Harendell, we can take the proof we need for me to declare war and sail to Ithicana’s defense,” Zarrah said. “But even that will take more time than we have. If we could even find a way to get the proof south, my father has the authority to set sail.”
It felt hopeless, but instead of panicked, Ahnna’s expression was thoughtful. “I think I know someone who might help. Is Virginia in the palace?”
“Yes, but she’s been in seclusion since she returned,” Keris replied.“I’ve not even seen her, and there is no reason to believe she’ll speak with me.”
“I guarantee that she will.”
“Why is that?”
Ahnna shrugged. “She once referred to you asthe most beautiful man in the world.”
Keris blinked. “Flattering, but I feel compelled to point out the obvious: Virginia Ashford is blind. I could be as ugly as a pig’s ass and she’d never know it.”
“She is now but wasn’t always,” Ahnna replied. “Which means descriptions mean something to her, and you’ve been waltzing about the Sky Palace in full view of all her ladies-in-waiting, which means the descriptions have been confirmed.”
