He forces his jaw to unclench as he smiles through the annoyance jabbing at him. It takes great control not to grin knowing that not calling him Excellency is getting under his skin.
“Not if you join our cause.”
“Queen Morwenna pardoned me years ago,” I say.
“The queen is dead.”
The words feel like a physical blow, even knowing what I do. Silence fills the space between us, and long gone is my appetite. As risky as it is to fully open my mind, I gently do so, prodding at his. The man radiates a strange energy I can’t place—it feels dissonant and unnatural. Yet I can’t sense any Wielding within him, and his emotions come to me so scarcely. I’m almost certain he has something that protects his mind. Everything about him feelswrong.
“Your beloved princess nearly burned down the castle. The entire council room was ash by the time I arrived. Councilors included. Jac survived because he hadn’t been present at the final meeting.”
My heart lurches. “How fortunate for him.”The bastard.“What is expected of Zenith members?” I inquire, shifting my focus so as to not dissolve under my hatred for Jac andRheon.
“Support in our endeavor to create the strongest army Erleya has ever seen. The strongest army theworldhas ever seen.”
Queasiness stirs in my gut. “A Mage army?”
“Indeed.”
My jaw nearly unhinges. “How do you intend to do that when, for years, we have enforced anti-magic laws?”
A wicked glint appears in his eyes. “Perhaps it appeared that way on the outside, but I have been recruiting Mage soldiers for years now. Slowly. Surely. Patiently.” He grins at me then lifts his fork to resume eating. Mince falls from the tines as he shovels more pie into his mouth.
“You have no powers, though. Why do you think you’re the right person to lead a Mage army?”
He takes another mouthful of food and chews with a strange, closed-mouth smile. He drinks a few sips of wine and says, “Because I’ve given them sanctuary in a kingdom that has sought to and succeeded in killing their ancestors. BecauseIam the hope of Erleya.”
Damarlach smite me … With an argument like that… We are in for a world of trouble.
Chapter 47
I’ve beenreluctant to leave the comfort of unconsciousness. Even unprepared to face reality, I peel my eyes open to find Chiyo lying on blankets on the cavern floor beside me. Her head is angled toward me as I blink and rub my eyes. I roll onto my side with a movement that makes my bones ache and my side sting. Chiyo tries to muster a smile, but her eyes are weary and dull, her face paler than I’ve ever seen it before.
“You’re alive.” I’m certain that my voice croaks for how dry it is.
She rolls onto her side, propping her head up on a shaky hand and nodding. “You’realive,” she signs one-handedly.
Slowly, I sit up and lean against the cave wall. I lift my tunic to get a look at my wound, but there’s nothing there save for a thin white scar against the light brown of my skin. Isobel brings me a waterskin, and when my head begins to clear, I spot Ava sitting a short distance away, whetting her sword with focused precision.
Anger rises up in me, rivaling the grief in my heart. But I don’t get the chance to dwell on it before Sloan crouches down in front of me. “How are you feeling?” they ask.
I watch the words on their lips and shrug an achy shoulder.
“Alys is sleeping to regain her energy. She lost quite a lot of blood herself. As did Chiyo. Then there’s you. We almost lost three of you.”
We lost one. My chest hurts as my heart constricts, and suddenly I cannot breathe. My pulse spikes as I think of Tiernan. Is he alive? Is he being tortured like Carys said she’d been months ago?
Sloan places their stump on my shoulder. “Deep breaths.”
I listen, but it’s easier said than done.
With another pat on my shoulder, they leave. I lean back and close my eyes, hoping that sleep takes me, because it’s easier than confronting reality right now.
Chapter 48
“You call that a punch?Come on, Princess.” Valdis blows her golden hair out of her eyes and ducks beneath my flying fist yetagain.
Three weeks on this ship and it’s felt like three months. I have plenty of steam to work off. I growl in frustration and immediately swing wildly when she’s upright again.
