Meredy and I almost exchange a smile.
Then Valoria grabs our hands and pulls us in Lysander’s wake, leaving the young guard to address the angry Dead woman now shouting at him.
As soon as we’re in the throne room, two heavily armored guards bar the doors behind us, muffling the noise outside. Meredy and Lysander hang back, but Valoria runs straight to Hadrien, who sits on the polished steps leading up to the massive throne piled high with bronze and blue velvet cushions.
“Oh, Hadrien.” The princess kneels beside him, throwing her arms around his neck. “This is a nightmare. I know Eldest Grandfather isn’t perfect, but he’s ourking! And we don’t have a chance of finding him. We couldn’t even find our own mother.”
As Hadrien embraces his sister, I drag my feet toward them, trying to give them a moment alone despite my burning questions.
A shadow stirs behind the throne. The queen, recognizable only by the delicate crown of gold perched atop her shroud,surveys the cavernous room. Aside from Her Majesty, Hadrien, and several guards, we’re alone in here.
Jax and Simeon must be away, hunting that Shade-baiter Vane, or they’d have answered Hadrien’s summons. I wonder where Master Cymbre is. Hopefully with them and not still hiding from the world in her cottage.
“At least one of the Dead is angry already,” I say softly, climbing the steps to where Hadrien and Valoria sit. “She wants the necromancers to leave the palace, and while I hope she’ll be the last to suggest it, I somehow doubt that.” Pausing a few steps below Hadrien, I face the queen and bow my head. “Forgive me, Majesty.”
Her voice is bone-dry and little more than a whisper. “Whatever for, Sparrow?”
“King Wylding.” Heat rushes to my face as everyone looks my way. “I haven’t been feeling like myself lately. I should have done something more to find those missing people. As a guardian to the Dead, I should have stayed by His Majesty at all—”
“That’s not your job!” Valoria says, her eyes flashing. “You’re not a soldier, and you’re not a shepherd to the king. You can’t blame yourself for any of this!” She leaps to her feet and stands beside me, linking her arm through mine. “It’s out of your control, Sparrow.”
I swallow hard. The shouts of the Dead woman still ring in my ears.
“There has to be something I can do.” I clench my hands at my sides, gazing up at the queen. “Please tell me how I can help, Majesty.”
Her feeble voice is even harder to hear this time. “I don’t know, Sparrow. It’s difficult to say who’s to blame, and until we know that, search parties are our only course of action.”
“I might know of someone, actually.” Vane and his pet Shade flash to mind. Careful to leave Meredy’s name out of it, I describe my encounter with the Shade-baiter as Her Majesty, Valoria, and Hadrien listen raptly. “I think he’s been creating Shades on purpose, which means he could be the one stealing our Dead. Jax and Simeon are out looking for him. Of course, someone probably would’ve noticed him sneaking around the palace, so...”
I shrug, letting the words die. The idea sounded better in my head.
“If this Vane personisbehind the kidnappings, he has no idea what’s coming for him.” Hadrien rises, scrubbing a hand over his face. There’s a shadow along his jaw, dark gold stubble that suggests he hasn’t had time for his usual grooming routine. “Believe me, when we find whoever’s behind this, we’ll cut our problem off at the head. Quite literally.”
He strides down the few steps between us, and for the first time I notice a small red gash and a slight bruise beneath his eye.
Reaching out with my free hand, I trace his swollen skin around the cut. “What happened there?” I murmur.
Hadrien gently takes my hand and folds his fingers over mine. “It’s nothing. I fell out of bed.” He bites his lip. “Rather embarrassing, isn’t it? But Valoria is right, Sparrow. You can’t blame yourself for what’s happened to His Majesty. And rest assured, our best guards are scouring the area for him even as we speak. I’ll have them search at once for the man you described, too, in case Jax andSimeon have yet to find him.” He nods to one of the guards at the back of the room, who hurries away.
Glancing from Hadrien to the queen, I search carefully for words. I can’t just sit by while Karthia crumbles without its leader. “I should join the search right away, too. I wasn’t...” I pause, as it pains me to admit it. “I wasn’t well enough before, but I’m up to it now. Where would I be most useful, Majesty?”
“Actually, I need your help with another equally important matter.” Hadrien squeezes my hand, drawing my attention back to him. “It’s the reason I called you here, and while I regret that Jax and Simeon haven’t arrived yet, we really can’t delay any further.”
My palm is slick with sweat in the prince’s firm grip. I try to pull away, but he holds fast, refocusing his intense gaze on me. To my surprise—and everyone else’s, judging by Valoria’s soft intake of breath—Hadrien kneels before me.
“Odessa of Grenwyr, I ask you now: Will you be my Serpent?”
I barely hear him over the sound of my racing heart. “Your... what?”
With his free hand, Hadrien pulls something from his pocket. A tiny gold pin shaped like a sword with two hissing snakes wrapped around the blade, facing each other. “Every king declares a Serpent. A special soldier who answers only to him, who carries out matters of the greatest importance for the Crown—even if following orders sometimes means doing things outside the law. King Wylding’s Serpent was Duke Nevet, but he went missing with my mother and the rest.” He bows his head, dropping his gaze to the floor in his grief and taking a breath before raising his shining eyes to mine. “In the absence of Duke Nevet, I’m askingif you’ll take on the role. It’s the highest honor I can bestow, but I’ll understand completely if, after all you’ve endured lately, you aren’t up to the task.”
“My husband would approve,” the queen adds softly. “Young as you are, you’re the best at what you do. You’ve been his favorite mage for some time, Sparrow.”
With Valoria looking expectantly at me and the queen’s mask turned my way, I can hardly refuse. I wish I could peek over my shoulder for a glance at Meredy, but she’s probably wearing her usual look of indifference.
My mouth is so dry, all I can do is nod. As Hadrien fixes the gold pin to my tunic, just beneath my two necromancer’s pins, my stomach churns. I haven’t done anything to earn this honor, and no matter what the queen says, I doubt King Wylding would approve. Given how I’ve failed to protect him and Karthia, he’d probably rip the pin off my chest for pretending to be a hero I’m not.
I look down at the pin and remind myself it’s only temporary. Just until we find Duke Nevet. And wewill.
