Chapter Twenty-Four

 

Dar paced in front of the fireplace. The fire chased away the coolness of the room as the seasons changed and winter seeped in. The study was empty but for him. Books and parchment lay untouched, slightly dusty from the weeks that Lisbeth and Jeshro had been gone.

Two months ago, he and Grace had sat in this room with the elders. He’d pretended to be on their side, told them he’d meet with her until she got pregnant. Lies to keep her safe. His attempts to keep her safe had failed again and again.

They arrived late last night. At the castle, Dar had been sleeping on a tiny cot in a smelly room with other servants and prisoners. Last night was the best night of sleep he’d had since before all of this started—before Grace showed up at the inn in Gladin and told him she was going to help Sierra and Evan. He had no choice but to go with her. They usually ended up sleeping side by side over those few weeks. In Vin and Amina’s cave, in the tents on the way to Aron, in Di’s house. He missed the warmth of her body next to him, missed being able to reach over and wrap an arm around her, missed her sigh of contentment as she snuggled closer to him.

Even without all that, last night he’d slept like a log and he felt more rested than he had in weeks. Part of him felt guilty for it—he hadn’t tossed and turned, hadn’t had nightmares of her at the castle. It was nothing like being awake, when his mind would wander into that dark territory where he imagined William hurting her.

The door opened, and Sierra and Evan walked in. They looked rested, too, their faces bright, their hands clasped.

“Morning,” Evan said.

Dar nodded.

“Did you speak with Angela at all last night?” Sierra asked.

“No,” Dar answered. “Why?”

She told him that Angela had explored Wendy’s mind last night and explained all she found out. That Marisa was the one who’d given Grace the sense-dulling potion, that she believed the royal edict was genuine because the king was tired of the violence, that Tisha and Kilar were split on their attitudes toward magic folk.

“I can see that,” Dar said. “When William was questioning the servants about the sense-dulling potion, Tisha said it undermined everything they were working for. Kilar said he was narrow-minded.” He motioned to Evan. “And of course, he wants the ancient texts.”

“I’m not sure which one is more dangerous at this point,” Evan said, his arms crossed. “One of them thinks he can use magic; the other one wants to eradicate it completely.”

“And Jeshro… he thinks we can smooth this all over with the king, with the edict.” Dar paused, rubbing his forehead. “But it doesn’t change the fact that Tisha and Kilar both have power.”

“Too much power,” Sierra added.

Would Kilar tell the others in the castle that Grace had helped with the attack on Gregorio? She had no charges, but maybe she was being punished in some other way. He tensed as he thought of it, and he paced as he waited for Jeshro to arrive.

A few minutes later, Jeshro joined them, closely followed by Matilda and Angela. “Good morning,” he said. “I hope you’re all feeling rested.”

“We are, thank you,” Dar said. “Where’s Adrian?”

“He’ll be here soon, I’m sure,” Jeshro said, lowering himself into one of the armchairs. “We’ve spoken with the Avialies in Jolen. Some of them are returning home, but others are staying behind, waiting until I’ve met with the king.”

“What are Vin and Amina doing?” Sierra asked.

“They’re staying in Jolen,” Jeshro replied. “It’s quite wise, I think, especially if Lady Grace told anyone about Amina’s role in the prophecy.” He glanced at Dar. “Do you know if she did?”

Dar shook his head. “I think if she had, they wouldn’t have let Amina survive. So I think she knew not to tell anyone.”

Jeshro nodded, pursing his lips. “I hope you’re right.” He rubbed his hands together. “Well, I tried to have Angela contact someone in the castle, but they’ve blocked Zinna communication, so I sent a messenger to the castle to request a meeting with the king.”

“What do you hope to accomplish?” Evan asked.

“I want to see if this is genuine, if we can truly be assured legal protection if we are forced to protect ourselves. I remember he wanted us to reach a compromise at the last meeting.”

“If he’s still under the influence of Tisha, though, it might not last,” Sierra said.

“That’s what the meeting will be about,” Jeshro said.

Adrian came into the room. He seemed to have a frown permanently fixed on his face. Dar remembered when his wife died in Dar’s family manor. He’d never seen Adrian with another woman since then. Even with the curse lifted, Dar doubted Adrian would marry again.

Jeshro repeated his hopes for the meeting with the king for Adrian. Adrian’s frown deepened as he listened.

“I can give you three of my men for the meeting,” Adrian said, “if the rest of us can go after Kilar.”

Jeshro signed. “Another murder. More crimes and—”

“We can make it look like an accident,” Adrian said. “You said you have allies with the other magical families. We can use their magic.”

“Adrian, I want to work with them.”

“You’re being idealistic,” Adrian said, his voice sharpening. “I believe the king will compromise, but Tisha and Kilar? No. They’ve waged war on our family for more than a decade. One royal edict is not going to change anything.”

Jeshro stood and paced for a moment. He finally turned to Adrian. “I’m afraid you’re right. But I’m also afraid we’ll lose any ground we may have with the king if we keep acting like assassins.”

“That’s why it needs to look like an accident,” Adrian said.

“I said it yesterday,” Evan said, “but it’s still true. Kilar is going to do anything he can for the ancient texts.”

Matilda looked skeptical. “He threatened you, yes, but how do we know it’s something he wants badly enough to do anything?”

“He said he’d kill Sierra and Sashe and my mother—”

“I know,” Matilda said, putting her hands up. “I’m not defending him. I’m merely saying we don’t know he wants them badly enough to rely on another plan. You may be his only one.”

“I don’t know,” Angela said slowly. “From what Wendy knows of him, he doesn’t seem like a man to rely on one plan. He kept asking her about the Cosa’s ancient texts, too. I don’t think we have any, really, at least not like the Avialies.”

“He’s dangerous,” Adrian said, raising his voice. “Perhaps even moreso than Tisha. Tisha wants to banish us, wants to keep his people safe from magic, but we’re more powerful than him and we always will be. Kilar wants to find a way to use that magic even though he’s not born into this, and the desire for power always corrupts.”

“The things men will do for power.” Jeshro shook his head. “He must know there’s no possible way he will find what he wants. The magic is in the blood, despite what any silly story said.”

“But there’s Sierra and Grace,” Dar said.

“Well…” Jeshro trailed off. “They’re marked. They’ve had those birthmarks since birth. It’s not something they attained themselves.”

“I think he’ll use Grace, too, if he can.” Dar glanced from Adrian to Jeshro. “I’m with Adrian. Kilar’s at the castle, and Grace is, too. That’s where I want to go.”

“Will you give me a chance to meet with the king first?” Jeshro said. “Give me twenty-four hours. If he writes back and we arrange a meeting, I’ll request Kilar and Tisha be present.”

Adrian huffed in exasperation. “That could be days. We could be—”

Jeshro raised his hands. “Listen. Until we’re assured a meeting with the king, you do not carry out any attempt on Kilar’s life.”

Evan and Adrian both protested, but Jeshro continued, “You can investigate him. Gain information on his dealings. Figure out what he wants and how far he’s willing to go for it. Find out how well he’s protected. I give only the people in this room permission to do this. You may go to Renaul, but if you’re found, you will deny working within the wishes of the elders. Do you still have your poisons?”

Evan and Adrian nodded. Sierra and Dar exchanged glances. Dar didn’t like the sound of that.

“You will take it if you think we will be exposed. We must work with the king as much as we can, do you understand?”

“When can we kill Kilar?” Adrian asked, his eyes narrowed.

“When I say you can,” Jeshro said.

Adrian studied him, his jaw twitching. The Avialies always followed the wishes of the elders; it was the way of hierarchy, the way of the family. But Dar wondered if Adrian would go around Jeshro this time, if he would find a way to justify it.

“What about Grace?” Dar asked.

“You may look for ways to rescue her, too,” Jeshro said. “Find out how the prince is coercing her to stay there and eliminate those chances for him.”

Sierra’s brow furrowed. “Eliminate them?”

Evan motioned to Dar. “He was one reason she stayed, but now he’s out of the prince’s reach. Who else do you think he’s threatening?”

Dar shook his head, rubbing the bridge of his nose. “Her parents. Maybe Sashe.”

“I’ll kill that slimy beast if he touches Sashe or Grace,” Sierra muttered.

“I may get him first,” Dar said. He turned to Jeshro. “When can we rescue her?”

“When I say,” Jeshro said. “If we work with this king and make enemies with his son, everything will be undone when William takes the throne.”

Dar clenched his teeth. He glanced at Adrian. The thought of leaving Grace with that monster made him sick. He could easily justify going against Jeshro’s wishes if it meant keeping her safe.

 

* * *

 

Adrian’s men got ready to leave soon after the meeting with Jeshro. He and Evan chose three men to stay with Jeshro. Evan and Sierra walked back to their bedroom to pack up his things. She hated that they had just reunited and were already separating, but she’d be more useful with Jeshro as they spoke with their allies again and hopefully went to the castle to meet with the king in a few days.

Wendy, too, would stay with Jeshro at the manor with Matilda and Angela keeping watch over her. She’d made an escape attempt during the meeting, but Matilda and Angela’s Cosa magic together had revealed her as she’d fled through the corridors. Sierra doubted she would have been able to find her way out, anyway. The place was a labyrinth.

Back in their bedroom, Sierra shut the door. Evan went to his bundle of things at the foot of the bed to gather his pack together.

“Wait,” she said softly.

He looked at her, raising his eyebrows.

“You don’t need to be there for about an hour, right?” she asked.

“Well, no, that’s how much time we gave the other men,” Evan said. He smiled as she closed the distance between them. “Why?”

She looped her arms around his neck. “I think we should take advantage of that time.”

He bent down and kissed her softly on the lips. The kiss deepened after a moment, and he enveloped her into his arms. She stepped back, keeping their mouths together, and pulled him back towards the bed. He eased her down onto the mattress and grinned down at her.

There were so many things she could worry about as they went their separate ways yet again, but she wouldn’t think about them now. She pulled him close again, wrapping her legs around his waist and reveling the feel of his strong, solid body against hers. His hands found her hair and his lips her mouth, and they used every last minute they had together.

 

* * *