His mouth tilted into a half-smile. “It was nice to finally meet you, Amelia Stratton.”
Clover, Ruth, and Sariah followed a woman named Fawn through a maze of hallways until they reached the royal quarters. “Your rooms are at the end of the hall.”
She pulled out a key and opened the first one, leading them inside. Clover’s jaw dropped. The sitting room was grander than any she’d seen, even more so than Amos’ at his estate in Dragon Village. She’d never seen his rooms at the palace and wondered if they looked like this.
Fawn showed them into the bedroom, dressing room, and bathroom. “This is a lot of space for one person,” Ruth remarked. “We can share a room.”
“Do you normally put guards in the guest quarters?” Sariah asked, running her hand over the bedcovers. “Don’t they usually stay in the warrior barracks?”
“King Amos insisted,” the maid replied. “Who wants this room?”
“I’ll take it,” Ruth said, dropping her travel sack onto the floor. After neutralizing the rebels, the three had gone to grab their things from their horses. Luckily, a guard who saw them arrive with Rennick had already taken the horses to the royal stables.
They’d originally had a carriage with their trunks, but after the storm, they couldn’t get it through the snow and had to continue on horseback with only what they could carry.
“We need to go into the village and buy supplies to last us until we leave,” Ruth said to Fawn. “After you show us our rooms, can you tell us the best place to go for clothes and necessities?”
“I can send someone for you,” Fawn offered, leading them to the next set of rooms.
“We don’t mind shopping ourselves,” Sariah said, throwing her pack down near the bed. “I’ll take this one.”
Fawn shrugged. “Okay. I’ll make a list of shops.”
Once the maid had shown Clover to her room, she retrieved a piece of paper, ink pot, and quill from the desk in Clover’s bedroom. “These places should have everything you’ll need, and I wrote down my favorite bakery. They make the best sweet rolls.”
Clover took the paper, offering a small smile. “Thanks.”
She bid Fawn goodbye and wandered into the bathroom, thanking the gods when she found it fully stocked. Turning on the water, she quickly stripped and stepped in, trying to ignore the red stream of blood that disappeared down the drain.
She’d killed multiple people today, and while she’d trained for this her entire life, it wasn’t easy. Amos had been doing this for years. As upset with him as she was, she still longed to wrap him in her arms.
Sighing, she closed her eyes and scrubbed the rest of her sins away.
27
The next day, Callum and Amos ate breakfast together, deep in conversation about a new metal found in the Mountain Kingdom mines.
“It’s stronger than anything we’ve seen before,” Callum said. “I don’t know how we’re just now discovering it. It’s indestructible.”
“Where are you?” Roland asked abruptly. That wasn’t like him.
Amos held up a finger for Callum to give him a second and sat back in his chair. “Eating breakfast with Callum. Is something wrong?”
“Ember said Rainer needs you home. The rebel attacks are getting worse.”
Amos’ fists tightened. “How much worse?”
“They attacked a convoy taking grain to the West Oasis. They burned everything.”
Amos leaned forward and slammed his fist on the table. “Was anyone hurt?”
“No.”
Amos blew out a relieved breath. Grain could be replaced; a person could not. “We’ll leave after the wedding tomorrow.”
“I’ll let him know.”
Roland cut the connection.
