I hold him, doing what I can to steady him. It takes him a while to compose himself. But he does, and without any fuss and brushing away my apologies.
“It’s done.” He drags in a labored breath. “I’ve countered the enchantment, so the band will not shrink—and since the bands are linked, neither will its partner. But the original enchantment is woven deep within the material. My magic will only hold it off so long.”
“I understand. Thank you, Ruza. I’m so grateful for everything.” I bite my lip, unable to stop my eyes from wandering to the raw skin at his neck, the heavy chain locking him in place. “Couldn’t you… couldn’t you all leave?” I ask. “If you’ve made an opening, can’t you use magic to free the chains and go?”
“You are not the only one choosing to stay and fight,” he replies.
Before I can say anything, new voices come from down the hall. More guards.
“Go,” Ruza tells me, and I scrabble back to the passage before they can spot me. “Lei?”
I turn back, couched in shadows. Ruza’s hazel eyes are determined.
“We’ll keep the passage through the wall open,” he tells me. He gives me the same inscrutable smile. “Just in case.”
SIXTEEN
LEI
LEI-ZHI!” MISTRESS AZAMI’S VOICE RICOCHETS OFF the marble walls. “Stop dragging your heels! That is not how the Moonchosen should walk.”
I roll my eyes, resisting a smirk. The Night House mistress sure knows how to play her part. Her glower prickles the back of my neck as I follow Commander Razib and my guards back to my room after a lunch with the King.
It’s been four days since the blast. While Madam Himura recovers from her injuries, Mistress Azami has been chosen by the King to watch over us. Though we’ve not had time alone to discuss what happened that night, it’s comforting to have her around, a reminder of how unaware the King is to how deeply the rebellion has rooted itself within the court. And with our bracelets free from his influence, I’m no longer shackled by my fear of hurting Aoki—any more than I already have, that is. Still, I haven’t worked out the rest of my plan. I’ve made allies and nullified the bands, but I have yet to figure out how to get the girls and the Demon Queen safely out of here.
Then of course, there’s the tiny matter of killing the King.
We hear the commotion before we turn the corner.
“You all saw!”
“I was cleaning it, which was your chore to do in the first place, in case you’d forgotten.”
“I don’t take orders from you.”
“Blue, calm down, I’m sure Chenna didn’t mean—”
Commander Razib’s hand moves to the hilt of his sword. He hastens us on, toward where the pair of guards outside our door are looking uncomfortable, clearly unsure whether they should be intervening. The arguing voices grow louder. Commander Razib throws the door open and waves at Mistress Azami.
“Control them!” he barks.
Mistress Azami folds her arms, leaning casually in the doorway. “Oh, this? Just a frivolous dispute, you know how women are. Better to let it blow over. My girls do it all the time. The Night Houses are a constant battlefield, I swear my girls do more arguing than–”
“Mistress Azami.”
Though her gray canine eyes narrow, she says in a clipped tone, “Yes, Commander.” Then, with an almost imperceptible wink in my direction, she pushes off the wall and strides inside. “Girls! Silence, now!”
With an impatient growl, Commander Razib shoves me after her.
It doesn’t take long to see what the girls have been fighting over. A pool of water has spread into the rattan mat from the bathing tub in the far corner of our room, where a large crack has split its side. Chenna and Blue are standing off, Chenna calm, Blue hunched over and bristling with indignation. Aoki and the twins hover close to her, as if ready to grab her if she decides to launch at Chenna—which she looks likely to do any second.
Though Chenna, Zhen, Zhin, and Aoki dip their heads respectfully as Mistress Azami approaches, Blue points at Chenna. “She broke it.”
“I’m not interested in who did what,” Mistress Azami snaps. “The tub is ruined, and we will have to find a new one, as well as water. Blue, Zhen, Zhin, Aoki—clear this mess. Chenna, come with me and Lei-zhi to the storerooms.” Then she spins on her heels, marching the two of us from the room.
Commander Razib looks surprised to see us again so soon.
Mistress Azami waves a hand at him. “Like I told you. Silly female squabbles. What did you expect cooping six girls up in one room? We need to fetch some supplies from the storeroom.”
“We’ll send for maids,” he starts.
But Mistress Azami is already off, Chenna and me right behind. “A waste of time,” she shoots over her shoulder. “Lei-zhi needs to be ready for the King in less than one hour. Anyway, a bit of manual labor will do the girl good. Gods know she’s too spoiled for her own sake.”
Commander Razib glares at me as he gestures to the guards to follow. “Yes,” he says. “She is.”
The storeroom isn’t far. The guards take up station outside as Mistress Azami leads Chenna and me in. A Steel caste maid is gathering some materials from one of the shelves, and she bows when she sees Mistress Azami. Then she straightens, catching sight of me. Her feline eyes go wide.
“You dare look at the King’s Moonchosen?” Mistress Azami rumbles at her, and the girl scurries off with her tail tucked between her legs.
I raise my brows. “Enjoying this a little too much, aren’t you?” I say, low, so the guards can’t overhear.
Mistress Azami gives me a steely look in response. Checking the guards are still at their stations, she leads us to the back of the storeroom where a row of tubs line the wall. They remind me of the mixing barrels back in our herb shop, which reminds me of Baba and Tien—which in turn brings a fresh wave of the worry that is always there.
I hope Wren is keeping them safe.
I hope Wren is safe.
“Fill these buckets with water!” Mistress Azami shoves wooden buckets into our arms, bringing us to a fountain in the corner of the room where water is pumped up from heated wells beneath the palace. Under its noisy splashing, she whispers, “Nice distraction. I suppose it was you two who planned this?”
Chenna and I swap a pleased look.
“We thought we could use some time alone to talk,” I say.
“Quite right. I hear Madam Himura’s recovering well, so we might not have much more time together.” Mistress Azami narrows her eyes at me, though her look is not unkind. “So. Lei. I was surprised to be called as your chaperone, given how I helped arrange your escape.”
I hesitate. “And I appreciate you doing that, but… I couldn’t go, Mistress Azami. Not like that. Not when it meant putting the girls in danger again.”
“I understand perfectly.”
“You’re not angry with me?”