A Soul for Vengeance

Chapter 24



Once again, Kell awoke to an empty bed. That was nothing new.

The contented hum in his chest was.

After last night, he refused to keep his feelings for Zara a secret anymore. He would come clean to Bynn and ask his best friend for permission to marry her. The idea made him chuckle as he dressed. He, the last Prince of Ranello and future King, was going to beg a duke for his sister’s hand. But for her, he’d get down on both his knees and promise Bynn anything he wanted short of his crown.

Thankfully, he didn’t foresee such desperate measures. He and Bynn had been friends for as long as he could remember. With the marriage, they’d become brothers, forming an alliance cemented with blood as well as their friendship.

By the time he found Bynn, however, he got swept up in a dizzying world of letters and dispatches, in hustled preparations for battle, in an endless stream of questions that all required an answer from him. The sun had slipped below the tree line before he had a moment alone with his friend. He took a sip of the sour wine to steel his confidence. “Bynn, may I speak to you about Zara?”

“I was just going to ask you about her. Have you seen her today?”

He squirmed. If by today, he meant the wee hours of the night, then yes, he’d seen her. “No, I haven’t.”

“Neither have I.” He went to the window and looked toward her room. “It’s not like her to refrain from sticking her nose into our business.”

“Don’t belittle her contributions, Bynn.”

“Fine, I won’t, but I’ll also add that I’m worried about her taking on more than she should. For example, I don’t want her coming to Trivinus with us.”

“And what about her contacts in the city?”

Bynn came back to warm his hands over the brazier across from Kell. “If the Thallians see our armies marching toward the city, do you think we’ll be able to exchange messages with them?”

“You forget about the tunnels under the palace.”

“As if I can forget.” His friend shivered. “I hated waiting in the dark for hours that night,” he said, referring to the night they’d caught Gandor trying to turn Arden over to the necromancer.

“You’re exaggerating. It was an hour at the most.”

“Still, I’d be willing to navigate them again if it meant we’d have access to the palace. Too bad Arden collapsed them when she battled Sulaino.” He rubbed his hands, glancing over his shoulder to the window again. “I wonder if the river tunnel survived, though. I could see Zara coming up with some crazy plan to infiltrate the palace that way.”

“It would have to be a small group, though. The guards along the wall would easily spot anything larger than a few people.” He set his glass aside and took a deep breath. “Now, back to Zara—”

A knock interrupted him. Bynn went to the door and opened it to find Bianca standing there. She held out a piece of paper. “Zara asked me to give this to you after sunset.”

She scurried off as though the paper might explode any second now.

Bynn broke the seal and read the contents. His face paled at first, then grew mottled as he continued. By the time he reached the end, the veins in his neck pulsated. “What did you do to her?”

“What do you mean?” Kell snatched the letter from his friend and scanned the elegant writing.



Dear Bynn,

After giving much thought to our current situation, I’ve decided it would be in everyone’s best interest if I carried out my plan as designed. I’ll try to time my blow to the Triumvirate as the troops are scheduled to arrive at Trivinus. Please give my apologies to Kell and explain to him why it would never work between us. I hope you both will forgive me.

Zara.



“What aren’t you telling me?” he asked, his stomach dropping.

Bynn’s nostrils flared. “You first.”

“I believe that as the prince, I take precedence over you.”

“And I believe that since you’ve somehow done something that pushed Zara into this suicide mission, I deserve an answer first.” He snatched the letter back and crumpled it in his fist. “What is going on between you two?”

Kell forced his anger and worry down into the pit of his stomach. Now was not the time to let his emotions dictate his actions. This was a time for diplomacy, and if he wanted to get information, he had to be willing to give some in return. He met his friend’s gaze, his voice calm and steady as he said, “I asked Zara to marry me last night.”

Bynn flew to his feet with a curse. It took several passes across the length of the room before he managed a civil word. “How long?”

“How long what?”

“How long have you two been—” He caught himself, his hands shaking until he clenched them into fists. “How long have you been involved?”

“Months.”

Another curse, followed by quicker pacing. “You can have any woman in the kingdom, but you have to go after my sister. Why?”

“Because there’s no one else like her.” He stood, his words growing momentum with each syllable. “Because she’s smart and resourceful. Because she’s willing to risk her life to keep our people fed while we hide in the camp and squabble over politics. Because she’s the heart and soul of this rebellion. And because I’ve discovered a dozen other reasons to love her.”

Bynn actually looked sorry for him. “You can’t marry her, Kell.”

“Why not?”

“Because—” Bynn caught himself again, this time looking at the letter. A wince of pain tightened his features. “Zara was severely wounded by the Thallians, Kell.”

“I know,” he replied, recalling the pale coils of knotted skin that crisscrossed her otherwise smooth stomach. “I’ve seen her scars.”

“You’ve seen her scars?” The veins on Bynn’s forehead popped out now, and his teeth gritted together to keep what looked like another stream of curses locked inside his mouth. “Damn it, Kell. She’s my sister.”

If he’d been the one who seduced Zara, he would’ve gladly taken the punch Bynn teetered on giving him. But that wasn’t the case. “She’s the one who came to me, not the other way around.”

“Sweet Lady Moon, and now she leaves me this mess to clean up while she goes off to Trivinus to get herself killed.” Bynn sank into a chair and raked his fingers through the hair along his temples. His shoulders sagged as though he were carrying a load far too heavy to bear. “I don’t know how Zara feels about you, Kell—she never told me—but I can tell you why she can’t marry you. When the Thallians wounded her, they pierced her womb. She can’t have children.”

“That doesn’t matter to me.”

“Well, it should,” Bynn snapped. “You’re the last of the Sanguazur family. If you don’t produce a legitimate heir, your line dies with you, and that dog Fermo will pounce on the throne like a bitch in heat.”

Kell sat back down, letting Bynn’s news sink in. He’d been so focused on winning Zara’s heart that he’d never considered something like children. And he wanted children with her, almost as much as he wanted her.

Bynn reread the note still in his hand. “When she heard your proposal last night, she must have decided it would be better to sacrifice herself than hurt you.”

Guilt slithered into his heart and darkened his mind in shadows. When he’d asked her to marry him, he never thought it would lead to this. “And what is her plan?”

“She’s told you about the kokalla the Thallians use to control our people, right?” When Kell nodded, Bynn continued. “She’s been collecting a stockpile of it with the intention of sneaking into the castle and using it against the Triumvirate. And if she’s caught, they’ll kill her.”

“But she’s smart, Bynn. There’s always the chance she won’t be caught.”

“Maybe, but who’s to say she’ll be safe once we launch the attack on the city?” He threw the note into the brazier, staring at it as the flames turned it to ashes. “I pray to the Lady Moon she’ll be safe.”

“Why aren’t we riding out after her now?” Kell started for the door. “If we hurry, we might still catch her.”

Bynn caught his arm before he stepped outside. “She’ll always be one day ahead of us. Besides, we’re needed here. You were right in saying Zara’s resourceful. If her plan does work, then it will make taking Trivinus back much easier.”

“And is there a chance she’ll be safe, too?”

Bynn’s eye swam with emotions he restrained from spilling over, even though his face grew more lined with worry than Kell had ever seen. “I hope so.”

“Me, too.” He offered a prayer to the Lady Moon that when all this was over, he’d still be able to marry the woman he loved.