“He’s more forgiving than I would be,” Mateo muttered.
Aren glared at him. “And she’s more forgiving than I would be.”
“What does Cas have to be sorry for?” Mateo asked.
“Sitting back and letting his people murder us? His father killing her mother? Kidnapping her sister and experimenting on her for a year?”
“Cas did none of that himself,” Violet said.
“Staying silent in the face of horrible atrocities is just as bad as actually committing them,” Aren said.
“I don’t know if I agree with that,” Mateo said.
Aren opened his mouth to shoot out a reply, but Galo got there first. “Cas would agree with you,” he said to Aren.
“Really.”
“Yes.” He didn’t elaborate.
“Have you checked on him recently?” Violet asked after a brief silence. “Is he doing all right?”
“I went up not long ago. Em said he woke up for a few minutes and was actually lucid.”
“Good.” Violet pushed her chair back. “Can I sleep on that sofa tonight?” She looked at Aren.
“Do you mean will I rip off a few of your limbs while you sleep? Probably not. Give it a shot and see what happens.”
“Aren.” Violet said his name almost wearily. He hadn’t realized she’d learned it. “I’m exhausted and I’ve spent the last few days taking care of our sick king and sneaking him out of a heavily guarded fortress. Can I sleep on that couch or not?”
He recognized her exhaustion. The kind that came with being on the run and losing everything.
“You can sleep there,” he said quietly.
“Thanks.” She shuffled back to it and plopped down.
Aren motioned to the stairs. “You guys go up and take the second bedroom. I’ll be down here all night. No one’s getting to Cas with Em around.”
He’d thought the guards would put up a fight, but Galo stood and extended his hand to Mateo. “Feel free to wake me if Cas needs anything,” he said.
“I will.”
Their footsteps disappeared upstairs, followed by the quiet sound of a door closing. Aren sat back in his chair, running a hand down his face.
“She’s your queen now? Emelina?” Violet asked. She was stretched out on the couch, her face turned to him. She’d tucked her hands beneath her face.
“She’s one of them,” he said.
Aren watched as Violet curled her legs into her chest. He’d started a fire, but the room was still chilly.
He let out a long sigh as he got to his feet. He grabbed a blanket off a chair and tossed it over her. She stirred, pulling it up to her chin.
“Thank you.”
“Sure. I was … uh, I was being a jerk earlier. I wouldn’t actually hurt you.”
“I appreciate that.”
He turned to find Iria standing in front of the open door, an odd expression on her face. She tilted her head, looking from Violet to Aren.
“No warriors,” he said, striding to the door. “Sorry. Em was clear. No warriors in the house.”
“I came to see if you needed anything.”
“We’re fine.”
She lifted her chin to look into his eyes. She always did that. She stared into his eyes with such intensity it made the hairs on the back of his neck stand straight up.
He wished she would stop. It was easy to ignore how pretty Iria was when she was across the room or surrounded by warriors. But when she stood in front of him and stared at him like that he lost control of his senses.
He rubbed the back of his neck and turned his attention to the floor. “Is there something else?” The question came out harsher than he’d intended.
She took a step back. “Sorry. No. I’ll see you tomorrow.”
He shut the door behind her, turning at the sound of Violet’s laughter. “What?”
“You really are a jerk.” She rolled over so she was facing away from him. “Some girls like that, I guess.”
FIFTEEN
EM OPENED HER eyes to find Cas smiling at her.
She drew in a quick breath, bracing her hand against the mattress as she sat up. Sunlight streamed in through the window, and voices drifted in from downstairs.
“How are you feeling?” she asked.
“Terrible.” He smiled as he said it. “But better.”
She pressed her hand to his forehead. No fever. It had broken late last night, and he had fallen into a deep sleep. She’d dozed off with her palm against his chest, to make sure it didn’t stop moving.
Cas caught her hand as she pulled it away and brushed his lips across it. He tucked it close to his body. “Where am I?”
“Vallos. Half a day’s ride south of the fortress. A small town called Sacred Rock.”
“Why are you in Vallos? What happened to going back to Ruina?”
She tucked her legs beneath her and told him what Jovita had done. How they’d begun building a new life in Ruina when she attacked. She told him about August, and the warriors outside.
She left out the part about August wanting to marry her.
“I’m sorry, Em,” he said softly when she was finished. “I tried to stop her. I tried to convince people that the Ruined would leave us alone if we stopped killing them.”
“I know. And we were. I’d ordered everyone to stay in Ruina.”
He cocked his head. “You ordered?”
“Oh. Yes. I’m, um, the queen, actually. One of them. Olivia suggested forming a diarchy.”
Cas’s lips slowly turned up. “Very impressive, Your Majesty.”
She nudged his leg with her foot. “Stop it.”
“Yes, Your Majesty.” He laughed when she wrinkled her nose at him. “You can call me ‘Former Majesty.’ Has a nice ring to it, doesn’t it?”
Em’s smile faded. “You’re still the king, Cas. You just need to show Jovita you can’t be beaten.”
“What do you think the warriors outside would have to say about that?”
She had no reply, because he was absolutely right. The warriors had no interest in returning Lera to Cas. Just persuading the warriors not to kill him had taken some doing.
“I think I’d like a bath,” Cas said. “Is that possible?”
“Sure.” She slid off the bed. “I doubt you’re strong enough to do it yourself, though.”
He lifted an eyebrow. “Was that an offer to help?”
Her face warmed. “That was an offer to get Galo.”
He sat up slowly, bracing his hands against the mattress. “Yes. Please. I will definitely need the help.”
“I’ll get him.” She walked to the door.
“Em.”
She turned. Cas’s face had grown serious.
“Am I safe here?” he asked. “Should we be worried about the Vallos army attacking? I can’t imagine they’ve forgiven you for killing their princess.”
“We should definitely be worried about the Vallos army attacking. But I have Ruined and warriors on watch. This is probably the safest place for you right now.”
“Thank you, Em.”
“Of course.”
“Come back later?”
“Absolutely.” She pulled the door open and walked into the hallway. The voices downstairs stopped as she descended, all heads turning to her. Aren sat at the kitchen table alone. Mateo, Galo, and Violet were in the living area.
Galo jumped to his feet. “Is he all right?”