“Cardiff has what it came for,” he said, then bent to wipe his blade on Alexandra’s dress. “I will leave Harendell to untangle this mess.”
As he walked away, Lestara called out, “You should be proud, Father. Of all your children, I have achieved the most, and I hope our alliance will remain strong.”
“You are everything the stars said you would be, daughter.” Ronan did not stop walking, only joined a group of waiting Cardiffians and disappeared from sight.
Lestara smiled, and it struck Zarrah that the woman had taken her father’s words as a compliment. Then she cleared her throat. “We’ve seen enough death today. George Cavendish, it is clear that you were a victim of Alexandra’s lies and manipulation, and to that end, I pardon your role on the condition that you remove yourself from Verwyrd and return to your family’s estates in the north. You will take Lady Virginia with you so that she might recover from this ordeal. I hope that time together will repair your fractured affections.”
“I’m not going anywhere!” Virginia snarled. “I led you around on a leash, you little bitch. Do not think that you can tell me where to go, and do not think that I will stand by and let you take power!”
“Virginia, I assure you that I willneverforget how you treated me like a dog,” Lestara purred, and the princess took an abrupt step back, seeming to finally realize the dangerous position she stood in.
“She will come with me, Your Grace,” Cavendish said, taking hold of Virginia’s arms and tugging her back. “We will leave straightaway.”
“You cannot do this.” Tears flooded down Virginia’s face. “I will not let you do this.”
Cavendish’s lips were close to her ear, his expression urgent as he whispered words Zarrah could not make out but knew were pleas for her to recognize the danger she was in. To flee and fight another day. And the princess did not resist as he pulled her away.
As they departed, Zarrah noticed that William’s friend, Archibold Bennett, was circulating through his noble peers, murmuring something into their ears. Each time, the individual in question stiffened and paled. He had a stack of paper under one arm, and as he moved past Zarrah, she recognized the letterhead. It was the banking records she’d hidden in Lestara’s rooms, and her gut told her that there was more damning information in them than she’d realized.
And she’d all but delivered them to Lestara’s hands.
“Are you all going to stand here and do nothing?” Keris shouted at the gallery. “You represent the most powerful houses in Harendell, and you just stand there while this monster”—he pointed at Lestara—“takes control?”
The men all exchanged looks, then one lifted a shoulder and said, “She breaks no laws, Your Highness. The baby prince cannot rule, and Lestara is the queen mother, which makes her a strong choice for regent. Stronger still, given that James has shown his loyalties are not with us and Virginia is…” He trailed off, waving a hand before his face. “You know my meaning.”
Keris huffed out a disgusted breath. “You would rather let a monster rule than a blind woman? Lestara leaves thousands of dead in her wake, whereas Virginia has caused the death of no one.”
“That is not a virtue when one has enemies all around,” the man responded. “Besides, all rulers leave death in their wake. Dead soldiers. Dead civilians. Dead children. You are a perfect example of this, Veliant.” His eyes flicked to Zarrah. “As is your empress. As is every ruler who has lived, making decisions that others pay for with their lives. Most claim a righteous path. A greater good. Perhaps that is so, but it does not make the victims of their chosen course any less dead.”
Zarrah tensed, wanting to intervene, but this was Keris’s fight. Even if it was one she knew he’d lose. What would come next was on her, and Zarrah was ready.
Lestara gave him a sideways glance, eyes gleaming with vicious triumph, and then she began to circle William’s body and Alexandra’s headless corpse. She cut a striking image, dressed in bloody birthing clothes, baby prince in her arms, her bare feet leaving crimson prints as she trod through the blood of the fallen. “Alexandra was guilty of many crimes, but the one we cannot rest on her shoulders is the death of King William. Ahnna conspired to get close to him to deliver a poisoned blow, and King Aren was clearly complicit given it was he who rescued her today, at the cost of many of our good and true soldiers. Their purpose was clear: to send Harendell into a tailspin of turmoil over who will lead so as to take advantage and reclaim their precious bridge. But they have sorely underestimated us.”
Rage rose in Zarrah’s chest, hot and fierce, as the men nodded their agreement.
“You’re a liar, Lestara.” Keris stepped up to her, only to be pushed back by soldiers. “This was your poison. Not Katarina’s. Not Ahnna’s. Put a poison dog in your rooms, and I’m sure we’ll find the evidence to prove it.”
“The only evidence you’ll find is of my labors to bring William’s heir into the world.” She gave Keris a disgusted shake of her head. “I was in labor all through the night with midwives watching on. I did not even see my husband until he took Oliver from his cradle and went running from the Sky Palace, and my heart breaks that we did not get one final chance to share words. To share in the accomplishment that is our son.”
She turned away from him again to address the gallery. “The bridge is the greatest wonder of our world. Created before living memory by a power we can’t begin to understand, but its purpose is clear: to connect nations and allow trade to flow. That is why it exists, but its purpose is continually stymied by the fact that the nation that controls itis weak. That weakness makes it an endless target for those who desire control, but all that is ever achieved is a disruption of its very purpose.”
Again the men all murmured their agreement, nodding vigorously, and Zarrah swallowed her anger. Lestara had claimed control of Alexandra’s arsenal of blackmail materials, and their agreement was only a desire to protect themselves.
Lestara raised her voice higher. “The bridge needs to be controlled by a nation powerful enough to protect its interests. A nation whose might is such that no one will contest the ownership, and in the peace that will come from that certainty, trade will flow without disruption. All nations will benefit, as will the people, low and high, because all will be able to carry out business without fear. Harendell, my friends, is the only nation capable of achieving this. The only nation capable of promising the certainty of undisrupted traffic through the bridge, and for this reason, we cannot give it up. For this reason, we must set sail with all force and claim the Bridge Kingdom once and for all.”
The crowd of men erupted into cheers, but they fell silent as Zarrah walked down the steps from the gallery to stand at Keris’s side.
“Empress.” There was a hint of mockery in Lestara’s tone, and more still in the curtsy she gave, holding her stained nightdress out as though it were a gown.
“Spare me the performance, Lestara,” Zarrah said, keeping her tone measured despite the fury in her heart. “And speak clearly. Is it your intent, then, to annex Ithicana by force of arms so as to control the bridge?”
“It need not be by force,” Lestara replied, ignoring her baby’s hungry cries. “We would embrace the Ithicanians if they laid down their arms and accepted Oliver’s rule. We would nurture and protect them as our own people, and they would thrive under the stability we offer. But Aren has been given the opportunity to abdicate before, and he has always chosen deception and violence instead. It would do well ifthe Ithicanians rebelled against his selfish choices, but if they remain loyal to his weak rule, we will move with force. It is for the greater good.”
“No, it is not.” Zarrah stared Lestara down, and it was the other woman who looked away first. “You do this because you desire power. These men do it because they fear the consequences of their own greed.Goodnesshas nothing to do with it, and on my honor, if you do not withdraw from Ithicana, as was William’s intent, it will bemeyou come against. Harendell might be the queen of the north, but Valcotta is empress of the south, and we know warfarbetter than you. Do not test me.”
Lestara’s jaw tightened, and she glared down at her crying child before remembering herself and forcing a smile back to her face.
“Bold words, Zarrah,” she finally said. “Bold words for a woman whose rule is hardly secure. You cannot even keep your consort safe from your own people, because the Endless War has not been fully extinguished. How well will they react to discovering that you intend to stop trade with the north? How strong will support be when you destroy their livelihoods for the sake of another nation? And poor, hungry Maridrina…what of them? How will they react to learning that you are the reason their children starve? How long until the flames of the Endless War burn anew, and both you and yourconsortfind yourselves the first victims?”
