Easy for a princess to say, but I was a princess no longer.
Too late, I reached out to Takkan. A gust of wind swept the strings from his grasp.
They fell onto the snow, and I jerked to pick them up before the wind stole them. But either I was too slow or the wind was too quick. Our strands of fate twisted off into the air, fluttering above the roofs, then far, far away.
Heavens knew what would become of them.
CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN
I was in the kitchen when I heard screaming. The shrill pitch cut through the din of Chiruan’s chopping, the steady hiss of the kettle, and the clatter of the cooks’ pots as they prepared lunch.
I lowered my knife, wiping it on my apron as I glanced at Chiruan.What’s happened?
“Go take a look.”
I grabbed my cloak and ran outside. Already there was a crowd by the garden across from the north gate.
I noticed Hasege first, guiding Zairena through the men and women. She carried a fan made of black silk and beaded tassels. It was raised, covering everything but her eyes.
Had she been the one who had screamed? No, she couldn’t be. Her chin was raised, her sleeves folded neatly at the cuffs—she was walking slowly, as if toward the temple for a prayer ritual.
What’s she doing here?I wondered.What’s happening?
Zairena closed her fan and knelt, her white robes camouflaged against the snow. I stood on my toes, keeping one eye on Kiki, who had flown out of my sleeve to get a better glimpse of what was happening.
Then I saw it.
A dead sentinel lay in the snow. Under the weak winter sun, shadows clung to his still form, and someone had covered his eyes with a thin sash, but I recognized him immediately.
My heart leapt into my throat.Oriyu.
His veins were blue against his pale skin, his gray hair matted to his temples. But it was his lips that caught my attention.
His lips,Kiki gasped.They’re…they’re—
Black. I crossed my arms, shivering. I didn’t need years of study with the priestesses of Nawaiyi to know what the poison was. Four Breaths.
Her fan rising yet again, Zairena gave Takkan a solemnnod.
“Four Breaths,” she said to the rest of us in her gravest tone. “Within an hour of drinking, the victim’s lips turn black, and death quickly follows.”
Zairena turned to the maid at her side, the one who must have discovered the dead guard.
“Go now to the temple. Cleanse your spirit of this terrible murder. I will come with you—we must pray that Oriyu’s soul finds peace and does not linger to haunt us.”
The crowd parted for them, and I used the opportunity to push my way toward the corpse.
I kept my head low, weaving through the crowd until I could see Hasege and Takkan.
“He will be buried tonight,” Hasege announced gruffly. “The assassin will be found. Now return to your work.”
The crowd dispersed, but I remained. The sentinels were searching Oriyu’s body, and I wanted to see what they found.
Hasege waved a torch in front of my face. “You’re not welcome here.”
“Let her pass,” said Takkan, stepping between us. His face was drawn, and his usually light movements were heavy with grief. I felt for him. Oriyu had been his friend. “Perhaps she will see something we missed.”
“She could be the assassin,” Hasege said harshly. “She isn’t from Iro, and she has no family to speak of. Look at that bowl on her head. She is concealing something—”
