I glance down at Aeri, wondering how she’s Baejkin. How she can be related to a man who hunted people for fun or a king who said he’d torture the people we love if we don’t bring him the ring? How is she related to her uncle, who was hurting little girls and who they thought murdered her? Did they all start off like Aeri—sweet, loving, and caring? Or is she different from them?
I settle on her being different. She’s gotta be. But who was the bird thing calling the Son of Vengeance? Me? What does that even mean? So much was going on that I didn’t even think to ask.
Aeri wakes up as I’m staring at her. She smiles brightly, still unnaturally happy the second she opens her eyes.
“Good morning, Royo,” she says. “Ugh, sorry I drooled on you. That’s so unattractive.”
She scrunches her face as she wipes at my jacket. I couldn’t care less.
She looks around. “We’re almost there, aren’t we?”
I nod. The snow is changing over to freezing rain as we come closer to Quu.
“Sora, are you sure this is going to work?” she asks. “I mean…telling the queen about the king’s plan to get her on board?”
Sora stares ahead. “It has to. Especially with war coming.” Then she looks at Aeri. “But remember what I said about the crown and who is fit to rule.”
Aeri looks down, fiddling with the hem of her jacket. Her nervous habit. But what’s she nervous about?
“We’re going to bathe and change, right?” she asks. “Before we see the queen?”
Sora leans forward and says something in Khitanese to the woman driving. I still don’t really get who this Gambria woman is or how she’s involved in all this, but Sora nods and sits back. “Yes, we’ll stop at a traveler’s inn before we go to the palace.”
“She wants to change her outfit?” Euyn asks over his shoulder.
“And is that foolish?” Sora replies. “It’s a royal reception. You should as well.”
He turns to face forward, his shoulders stiff.
I don’t know what happened with the three of them while we were getting the egg. I don’t get why they failed—it doesn’t seem like Mikailcouldfail. But something’s different with Euyn. And most of all with Sora.
I can’t shake the feeling that none of us should be trusting Mikail. He didn’t betray us before, but that doesn’t mean he won’t now.
Oligarch Mountain lies in the distance, looming like a beacon of hope…or a cirena of death. I just wish I knew which one.
Chapter Sixty-Three
Aeri
The Palace of the Sky King, Khitan
The Palace of the Sky King towers over Trialga Square, perched at the top of wide marble stairs. Gambria pulls our sleigh right up to the base.
So, I guess we’re not going for stealth.
As soon as we stop, a dozen guards train their eyes on us. We’re foreigners, but at least we’re formally dressed, bathed, and perfumed. Fancy clothes always make you feel different. We carry ourselves better, and I, at least, feel more prepared to meet my aunt.
Although, if I’m honest, I don’t know what to expect. My father and uncle fear her; Mikail respects her, which means she’s a formidable opponent; and yet Gambria loved her and Sora insists there’s more to the story.
“She’s more than you think,” Gambria says to Mikail as we get out of the sled.
Sora walks next to me. Of course, she looks like she could be the Sky Queen in a fine dress and fur. Even the constant drizzle won’t dampen her beauty.
It’s not until we get under the portico that we reach our first roadblock. In this society, anyone is supposed to be allowed into the palace if they have business with the crown. But after the assassination attempt, everything changed. There are still official royal offices inside, but access is severely restricted.
The huge gilded doors sit open with people milling about inside, but most are mingling on the massive portico.
“Halt,” one guard says. Her red hair is pulled back in a bun under her guard’s hat. “State your business here.”
