A Queen of Thieves & Chaos (Fate & Flame, #3)

“All they’ve done is try to kill us so far.”

“The beast last night did not, and it knew what you were. Can you imagine if you had the might of it with you?” Her green eyes widen.

I don’t know what the rift passage even looks like, but having that massive body sitting in the middle of it would have to be a deterrent. “Neilina would think twice.”

“All would think twice. You must explore this. I will search for what I can within the pages, but I believe Lucretia will be our better source. And remember, those soldiers and lords waiting in that room for you? They do not have the depth of knowledge into caster affinities and fates. They do not know that the end of the blood curse goes hand in hand with opening the nymphaeum door. They do not know what the nymphs are capable of, both good and bad.”

“Neither do we.”

“And that is what you must find out. You are the only one who can do this, and you can’t if you are at the rift.” With a gentle squeeze of my wrist, Gesine glides down the steps, pausing to offer Zorya a pleasant smile—as if the warrior isn’t scowling—before they leave together, side by side.

“The witch’s bravery last night was commendable, I will give her that,” Jarek grumbles, falling back in line beside me as we climb the stairs toward the war room, where untold confessions await.

I hesitate, the weight of the coming conversation settling on my shoulders. “Listen, Jarek, there are some things we’ve never talked about, things you’re likely going to hear very soon, and I’d rather you hear them from me first. You’re my commander, after all.” I add after a beat. “And my friend.”

He sighs heavily. “Tell me, Romeria, do I look like a simpleton?”

An urge to crack a joke stirs, but I squash it. Now’s not the time for deflecting serious topics with humor. Not when I’m so nervous about his reaction.

He peers over his shoulder at me. “Do you think I haven’t noticed things?”

“Like what?”

“Like how you healed a fatal merth sword wound that no one should have walked away from. How you crumbled a cave’s worth of stone to save that mortal imbecile. How you ignited a ring of fire to protect mortals in an execution square in Norcaster. My favorite, though, how you launched me in the air without laying a hand on me.” He lists all the ways I’ve demonstrated my caster affinities as if he’s been cataloging them.

I don’t miss that each example is of a different affinity.

Four, to be exact.

“Or how about how your blood unlocked a kingdom sealed for tens of thousands of years, and now, according to that crypt snake, you’ve released the nymphs?” A grim chuckle sails from Jarek’s lips as he stalls at the landing to meet my wary gaze, dark humor glinting in his.

“So, you aren’t just a pretty face and a good time, is what you’re saying.”

“Give me some credit, Romeria. I have pieced together enough. I may not know the how or the why, but when the fates are involved, that hardly matters.”

“And you’re still here.” I bite my lip. “Why are you still here?” Jarek despises Ybarisans and Mordain in equal amounts, which I’m both, and he would do anything to protect Islor, which I’ve now endangered. And yet he’s stood by my side for weeks, saying nothing.

His jaw grits as he yanks the door open.

I guess we’ll finish that conversation later.

“… no reason to doubt my claim, after Braylon’s actions last night,” Kienen says, heat in his tone. “If the princess would only—”

The discussion cuts off as I step into the war room to meet the circle of stony faces. My heart pounds in my throat, but I lift my chin. “I’m sorry if I’m late. I needed a little extra rest.”

“No need to apologize.” Zander’s expression yields nothing.

“That’s a first,” I tease dryly.

That earns the smallest twitch at the corner of his lips.

Lord Telor stands at the far end of the map. His sallow complexion leaves me wondering if I’ve done enough for him.

Zander once told me to offer Lyndel’s lord as genuine a smile as I could fake, but there’s no need to fake it now. I’m relieved that I was able to save his life, even if he was here to take mine. “I heard you’re up.”

“Thanks to you, it would seem.” His responding smile is tight-lipped, but I can’t expect him to kiss my feet. I was enemy number one up until last night. Maybe I still am. Or maybe he’s more focused on how his own son tried to kill him.

Beside Telor and Kienen are Radomir and Elisaf. “Where’s Abarrane?” She’s not a friendly face, but she’s a female one. Now, I’m surrounded by men.

“Resting after a long night with the prisoners,” Zander says.

Telor’s jaw tenses. “The Ybarisan says my son has been working with you and your people. Is this true?”

And the Princess Romeria charade begins anew. “Kienen warned me of your son’s betrayal only moments before the attack. If not for him, you would be dead. Zander, too, likely. If he says it’s true, then I believe him.”

“Are you maintaining that you were not aware of whatever arrangement was made between my son and your brother?” Telor’s tone is sharp. “I find that hard to believe.”

Not so hard if you knew the truth.

“The Princess Romeria who crossed the rift was well aware of Neilina’s scheming and the key players involved, but the princess who stands before you was completely unaware of it,” Zander answers for me.

“Is this the ‘memory loss’ we’ve been hearing about? Atticus said you might claim innocence based on it.”

I meet Kienen’s gaze. It’s the same calculating one he wore when I asked him what his affinity was to. I’ve seen it more than once now. He doubts who I am, and yet he spoke up when it mattered last night. He joined the fray and helped stop Braylon from getting away. He stood shoulder to shoulder when that dragon landed, even as he mistrusted me.

I see why Tyree had lies readily available to feed Kienen. Lies that Kienen could stomach, because he knew the soldier wouldn’t stomach the truth of what the Ybarisan crown was tasking them to do.

I’m not asking him to keep going down that path. I’m asking him to help me fix what Ybaris has done. Do we really need to feed him more lies to get him to do that? Besides, it’s too late for that. He’s too smart; he’s seen too much. Eventually, he’ll decide that Ybaris’s ruling family no longer deserves his loyalty.

I wish I had more time to feel him out, but we don’t, and we can’t risk losing him or the Ybarisans. They might only be two hundred and fifty-four out of an entire nation, but they’re a start.

“Yes. And no.” Gesine’s counsel rings in my mind, but I can’t keep up this charade anymore. “What I am about to tell you, I haven’t openly admitted to anyone—”

“Romeria.” Fear floods Zander’s voice as he warns me off.