Aren watched him go. Maybe Iria’s parents would be secretly relieved when he busted her out of prison. They would never see her again, but at least they would know she wasn’t rotting away in a cell for the rest of her life.
They walked out of the neighborhood and back to the center of town. Galo asked an old man for directions, and he pointed them to a line of small identical homes at the edge of town. There were rows of them, perhaps housing for warriors or other city workers.
They found number fifteen and Aren knocked. A young woman with wild dark curls and a round, cute face answered the door.
“Bethania?” he asked.
She looked him up and down. “Yes?” she said hesitantly.
“We’re friends of Iria’s. We—”
Bethania leaped forward, grabbed Aren’s hand, and yanked it out of his pocket. Her eyes widened as she stared at his Ruined marks.
“Aren?”
He nodded, swallowing down a sudden wave of emotion. Iria had told her about him.
She nodded at Galo, still holding Aren’s hand. “Who is this?”
“Galo. He’s from Lera.”
“You two are insane,” she muttered. She dropped his hand and stepped back. “Come in, come in. Before someone sees you.”
Aren and Galo stepped inside, and Bethania closed the door behind them. She ushered them into a small sitting room at the front of the house and gestured for them to sit on the couch. Papers were spread out all over the table in front of it, and Aren leaned forward to study them.
Bethania sat in the chair across from them, reaching over to shuffle the papers into order. “I’m working on Iria’s appeal. She’s only allowed one, so I’m doing as much research as possible.”
“How do you know Iria?” Aren asked.
“We dated a couple of years ago. We’re friends now.”
Aren blinked, surprised, and wondered if perhaps he’d read Iria completely wrong.
A smile twitched at the edges of Bethania’s mouth. “Don’t worry, she dates both men and women. She told me all about you, in fact.”
Galo made a sound like he was trying not to laugh. Aren felt his face warm.
“You’ve seen her since she came back?” Aren asked.
“No, only at the trial. But I saw her briefly after she came home from Lera the first time, before heading to Ruina. She told me about her time in the castle and the jungle with you and Em.”
A lump formed in Aren’s throat. Iria had told Bethania about him even before their time together in Ruina. He’d still been guarded and suspicious of her back then.
“You know I’m not here to help with an appeal, right?” he asked.
Bethania sighed and rubbed her forehead with two fingers. “I was afraid of that.”
“Would an appeal work?” Galo asked.
“If I could . . .” She trailed off, then pressed her lips together. “No. It would take a miracle. And Iria’s already been attacked once in prison. I’m not sure she has that much time.”
“What?” Aren sat up straighter. “Is she all right?”
“I heard she was injured, but not too seriously. Some guards claimed it was an accident, but they didn’t even bother trying to hide the truth.”
“Then I need to get her out as soon as possible,” Aren said. “Do you know anything about the prison? How hard would it be to break in?”
Bethania looked from him to Galo and back again. “It’s just you? And a Leran?”
“Yes.”
“He’s the most powerful Ruined alive,” Galo said.
“Still.” Bethania appeared skeptical. “She’s in the most secure prison in the country.”
“I can take out thirty warriors just by looking at them,” Aren said. “If I can just get an idea of what the prison is like, I can get her out of there in minutes.”
“And take her where?”
“Lera.”
Bethania winced slightly. She clearly didn’t like the idea of Iria leaving for Lera forever.
“It’s her only option,” Aren said quietly. “You can’t tell me she’d rather stay in a prison in Olso for the rest of her life?”
Bethania shook her head. “No, she wouldn’t. And from what I heard, they forced her back to Olso? She’d already decided to stay in Lera?”
Aren nodded.
“Then you should take her back to Lera.” She leaned forward, rubbing her palm across her forehead. “You’re going to have quite a time getting in. And out. But I think I can get you the general layout.”
“Any chance of help on the inside?”
“None.”
“Has there been anyone else?” Aren looked around, like they might pop out. “Anyone interested in helping Iria?”
Bethania waved one finger in a circle. “This is it.”
“Seriously?” Galo asked. “She must have had friends. They all deserted her?”
“In their opinion, she deserted them first.” She met Aren’s eyes. “Honestly, I’m glad you’re here. I don’t think she has anyone else.”
Aren blinked to keep back the sudden threat of tears. “Let’s get to work, then.”
TWENTY-SIX
CAS PUSHED OPEN the door to the north wing of the castle and stopped. A common room stretched out in front of him, and the two guards sitting in faded red chairs scrambled to their feet. It was evening, almost dinnertime, and the guards were out of uniform, in loose, comfortable clothing.
“No, don’t get up,” he said quickly. The guards didn’t sit. He’d never been in the guards’ quarters before—he figured they probably needed a space to relax where they didn’t have to worry about the royal family—but he wanted to find Mateo without having another guard fetch him.
“Can we help you with something, Your Majesty?” one of the guards asked.
“I’m looking for Mateo. Is he around?”
“I think he’s in his room, Your Majesty,” the guard said. “I’ll take you.”
“No, that’s fine. Can you just tell me which one it is?”
The guard hesitated, like he wasn’t sure if this was a test. He slowly pointed to the hallway to Cas’s right. “Down that hallway, last door on the left.”
“Thank you,” Cas said, turning on his heel and walking down the hall. He stopped at the last door and knocked.
“What?” Mateo’s voice called from inside.
“May I come in?” Cas asked.
The door swung open and Mateo’s eyes widened when they settled on Cas. “I’m—I’m sorry, I didn’t—”
“I know, you weren’t expecting me.” He bit back a laugh.
“That’s an understatement.” He stepped back, brow furrowed in confusion. “Do you want to come in? Or should I come out?”
Cas stepped into the small room, which contained only two small beds, a desk, and a wardrobe.
“Did you and Galo share a room?” he asked, realizing suddenly that he’d never been in Galo’s room when he lived down here.
“No, rooms are assigned by the captain of the guard. I was assigned to this one months ago, when I first arrived.”
Cas perched on the edge of one of the beds. “That must have been tough, trying to have a relationship when you both have roommates.”
Mateo let out a breath as he sat on the other bed. “Are you here to tell me bad news?” he asked, his words rushed. “Because I know Galo didn’t come back with Em, and someone told me he’s not dead, but he’s not here.”
“It’s not bad news,” Cas said. “I mean, it’s not good news, but—” He cut himself off before he terrified Mateo. “He went to Olso with Aren.”
Mateo blinked several times. “He went to Olso. With Aren,” he repeated slowly.
“Aren is breaking Iria out of prison. From what I understand, Galo offered to help.”
“Iria?” Mateo’s expression grew even more incredulous. “He doesn’t even know Iria! I know Iria better than he does—I traveled to the southern province with her and Aren.”
“I don’t know any more than you do. Galo said to tell you he was sorry, but he had to.”
Mateo made an annoyed noise. “He had to. Of course he did.” He flopped back on the bed with a moan. He quickly sat up again. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to be rude.”
“Mateo, I’m not here as the king. Do whatever you want.”
He dropped back on the bed dramatically. “It’s just dumb. We were running for our lives for weeks, and now, when we’re finally safe, he decides to go back out again. Stupid savior complex.”
“Does he have a savior complex?”
“Yes. He’ll deny it, but he definitely does. It’s how we ended up together.”