That was too much.
“Know each other?” she snapped. “How well do I actually know you? Do you want to tell me what you’ve actually been talking to those courtiers about all week? What that family from Parna really wants from you?” Her last word rang in the air, and then there was absolute silence in the room. The shock in Tristam’s expression slowly turned to guilt, and any last hope of a misunderstanding slowly faded away.
“How did you find out?” Tristam had the look of a criminal who’d just been handed his judgment.
“When were you planning to tell me?”
He stared at her, and several times his jaw worked as if he were about to start speaking. “You may or may not believe me, but that was the real reason I wanted to talk to you today. I knew I couldn’t keep putting it off, but I couldn’t find the courage to actually say it.”
Kyra stared at him without response.
Finally he sighed and collapsed back against his chair. “Everything I’ve told you about that family and Parna is true. They are rich and powerful, with a great deal of resources. Our manor at Brancel has been falling more often to Demon Rider attacks. In addition to our manor, we’re responsible for the protection of a small hamlet nearby, and we take those duties seriously. With our resources stretched thin, we’ve not been able to protect them. The family from Parna could help us…if we were family as well.”
“What’s the lass’s name?” Kyra asked. She wasn’t quite sure why it was important, but she wanted to know.
“Cecile,” he said reluctantly. “She’s the fourth daughter of Lord Salis of Routhian. They don’t live far from Brancel, actually, but they swear fealty to Parna. I’ve never met her, but everyone says she’s pleasant.”
The name had sharp edges that dug into her chest. “And you have to accept this alliance?” It occurred to her that maybe she shouldn’t assume Tristam opposed the marriage.
Tristam stared at the table in front of him. “It’s complicated. I’ve already brought disgrace on my family by losing my rank as a knight. I’m unlikely to gain any position of political influence because of that, at least in the near future. The only way I can serve my family now is through a marriage, and the Routhian household cares much less about my disgrace than any house of Forge would. And we do need help.”
She thought she’d been upset when she first learned the news, but it was far worse to hear Tristam talk about it, to hear him actually considering it, when two months ago, they’d held each other in the forest and kissed. He was expecting her to say something, but she couldn’t. Moment by moment, the silence between them stretched longer.
“Kyra, please say something. This is not…something that I would choose.”
He wanted her to talk to him? What could he possibly expect her to say? Kyra finally managed to clear her throat. She tried for a smile, but it didn’t quite work. “I shouldn’t be surprised, I suppose. That’s why I broke things off in the first place, wasn’t it? I guess I’d not expected to be proved right so soon.”
She saw in Tristam’s face the precise moment her words sank in, and felt a perverse pleasure as her jab hit home. She wanted to be alone. Kyra pushed her chair back from the table. “I should go.”
She left before he could stop her.
The sun had completely set now, and Kyra was glad for it. She didn’t want anyone to see the expression on her face as she rushed through the courtyard, making for the Palace gates as quickly as she could. At least the grounds had calmed now from the midday frenzy, and there were fewer people walking the torch-lit pathways. Kyra kept her head down and her steps quick. She needed to get out.