I imagined I was as pale as Ottoh, who was approaching with Adrion not far behind.
As the blond heir opened his mouth, a woman got hold of him, and she whispered something furiously in Ottoh’s ear beforeletting go. His face was hard, but he remained quiet as he closed the distance to us, halting right behind Rakkel.
Ivren made his way over as well, and the warning in his eyes was as clear as the sky above the green glen. “Don’t,” he mouthed. “Not now.”
I ground my teeth as I began to shake my head.
“Look at me,” Guner ordered, and the loathing in his tone silenced everyone around us.
A surge of fury washed through my veins, replacing the sorrow.
Who did he think he was? Bragging about killing my people?
I might be new, and I might be hated by most here, but I was still the Sweengard heir.
Lika wouldn’t have stood for it. I very much doubted my father would have either.
I was about to say as much when Darcke bore his eyes into mine and jerked his head with such icy precision my words stuck in my throat. He only did it once, but there was something about his dark eyes, like a lethally quiet glassy lake at night, that made me hesitate.
“I don’t care what you get away with at home, heir,” Guner snarled. “But here atmyHird, you will respect me like you respect our king. That means you do not speak to me unless I speak to you first. That means if something changes for your fylki—likeanother sibling taking over as heir—you tellmefirst. You don’t just fucking show up and surprise everyone. And that means I say if you live or die.”
He turned to face Rakkel and the male heirs, and from their shared look, I wasn’t the only one who was shocked by the hostility. “That goes for all of you. You have been spoiled and pampered at home, but here? It’s time for you to grow the fuck up. There are no more rules that make your life easier than anyone else’s. There are no parents who will protect you.” His eyes went between me and Rakkel. “There will be no more guards to whisper in your ears. You’re the next chieftains, and the king willaccept nothing other than exceptional warriors and conquerors when you graduate.” He rose, his eyes drifting my way again. “Ifyou graduate.”
With that Guner whirled so fast the fur cloak he wore—which was far too warm for summer, but he probably believed it granted him more status because it looked like a shabby version of the king’s—flew out behind him as he stalked off.
Rakkel made a gesture as if to help me get up, but one of the warriors got into her face, so close she stumbled back. She threw me an apologetic grimace, and I tried to give her a crooked smile back, waving for her to leave. No point in more of us getting hurt.
Ivren hovered as well, but as another guard approached him, I shook my head.
“Go,” I urged when he still lingered, not a trace of his usual grin brightening his features.
He shifted his weight from foot to foot, but when the warrior shoved him forward, he finally fell into step behind Ottoh and Adrion as they tailed the old man, the four heirs following Guner as he shouted orders for the karls to come.
Using my sleeve, I wiped off the blood best I could. I took deep breaths to calm my racing heart and the fury that urged me to go after the king’s second. If I hadn’t seen Viljan alive—struggling against the five men it took to keep him away, butalive—I might not have been able to hold back. Even without my magic, I should have been able to take down an old man.
But Viljan hadn’t been harmed. Not like my people from home.
My fingers dug into the ground as their familiar faces faded in and out of my thoughts.
I wanted revenge. I wanted to know why my people had been killed. There was no way anyone from our fylki had somehow betrayed the crown.
Dirt gathered beneath my nails, and I spat more blood onto the grass.
They’d kill me instantly if I even touched Guner. That much was clear from how the soldiers had hovered around him.
A frustrated sound wound up my throat. I was about to push myself up when someone got hold of my collar, and I found myself in the air for a second before I was slammed onto my feet with enough force to rattle my teeth.
A shadow eclipsed the sunlight as I swayed, and it took every shred of will to keep me from burying my rage in the warrior who stared me down. When my hands fisted, his face hardened further. I wasn’t sure how that was even possible, since it already looked like it was etched out of stone.
“What?” I snapped as he continued to glare at me.
“Follow the second,” Darcke ordered as more of that strange accent seeped into his deep voice.
“Yes.” I threw out my hands. “I was just about to. You didn’t need to stay behind for me.”
His dark laugh was even less amused than Guner’s. “I did not stayfor you.” He shoved me forward so I almost fell again. “Move.”
“Stop touching me!” I snarled.
