“Here is a small sampling.”
The emperor screamed. It was a long, drawn-out screech, like a soul shattering, ripping away from its body. His head thrashed, but even that was all the movement he could afford with the bone witch standing there, her dark eyes aglow. But she showed no sign that she enjoyed this man’s suffering.
“Remember our last meeting? You belittled me for my lack of spine. You said I should not hesitate to dirty my hands if it was the only way.”
Her lip curled.
“You must be proud now. Did you choose the blighted because you knew bone witches have no access to their minds?”
“Lady Tea!” Princess Yansheo’s face was pale.
“Tea,” the Heartforger said, his face strained. “Stop it.”
“You told me once that the emperor deserved to die, Khalad. What makes this moment any different?”
“Whether my death changes anything is not important,” the man said, almost in a whisper, “but whether you allow my death to change you is another matter entirely.”
There was a momentary pause as the asha released her hold on the emperor, who fell to his knees before her, still gasping. “Did you cause the blight in these men?” she asked again.
“No,” the emperor wheezed, still fighting for breath. “I swear.”
“Your vows mean nothing to me. Khalad, monitor the rest of the Daanorians for any additional changes. Take this filth from my sight.”
“You’re different, Tea,” the Heartforger told her, still troubled.
She grinned. “And it does my heart good, Khalad, to know that you will never change.”
10
That evening, the people of Odalia gathered to witness the formal betrothal of the crown prince and the First Daughter of Kion. My voice rose over the din of the festivities without much effort.
“That was a low blow you took with the princess,” I told Fox. “Even for you.”
“No. Maybe.” Fox rubbed his nose. “I wasn’t thinking.”
“You were nicer to whatshername. That girl from Tresea you liked who preferred that other jerk, Maharven—”
“Her name’s Gisabelle. I don’t know why you remembered that ass’s name and not hers. And I didn’t know she was a princess when we first met.” Fox’s voice was testy; he was clearly eager to end the conversation.
“How could you not know she was a princess?!” Several people turned to look at us, and I lowered my voice.
He colored. “I never paid much attention to royalty.”
“That’s a terrible excuse, and you know it. You’re my familiar. How did I not know any of this?”
“I don’t have to tell you everything about my life, Tea.”
I wanted to argue that further but relented. Hadn’t I done the same thing regarding the azi? “At least tell me how you met Princess Inessa.”
He paused. “A public teahouse. She was dancing.”
“Dancing?”
He fixed his eyes on something in the distance. I could feel the emotions he often kept at bay, how raw they felt.
“Even veiled, she held the eyes of every man in the room. She said she had an overbearing mother and that night was the first time she’d snuck out. I thought she was a merchant’s daughter.”
I remembered finding Fox in a heated argument with a girl at the palace while I was a novice. I hadn’t known her identity to be Princess Inessa until later, and that was over two years ago. “And you’ve been…seeing each other since then?”
“Not after this engagement.” Bitterness seeped into him, lodging in my own throat. “Can we talk about something else? Or get away from all this?” He gestured at the revelers. “All this noise is giving me a headache.”
A hand landed on my shoulder. “And here’s our errant asha!” Zoya’s voice boomed. Uncaring of the widening circle around us by the crowd wary of asha, Zoya smoothed the wrinkles on the sleeve of my hua as a smiling Althy appeared beside her. “We’ve been looking all over for you!”
“Where’s Mykaela?” I asked.
“Resting, on Polaire’s orders. She’ll be here once the ceremony starts, but she needs to relax until then.”
Another figure beside them caught my attention, and my eyes widened. “Likh?” I asked disbelievingly. Unlike the other asha, who were dressed in elaborate hua and beautiful zivar, he was dressed in the black clothes more typical of Deathseekers. His long hair was pulled back, and despite his attire, he still looked exceedingly pretty.
I bounded over to give him a fierce hug, and he made a soft, little squeak at my exuberance. “Have the asha-ka made their decision?” I demanded. “If you’re wearing that because they’re forcing you to become a Deathseeker, then I am going to rip—”
Likh shook his head, waving his hand as if that could dissuade my bloodlust. “They’ll make their ruling next week. But I thought I ought to get comfortable, just in case.” Though he smiled, his silver heartsglass was an erratic display of blue and silver.
“We’re not going to give up on you that easily,” Fox told him.
Althy nodded. “We’re on good terms with the head of the Deathseekers. Zahid’s more flexible than the association when it comes to rules. If the prince and Zahid’s support is not enough, then we’ll figure out some other way.”
“You always do, Althy.”
We turned to find Mykaela standing before us, smiling, her hand on Polaire’s elbow and Kalen following close behind them.
Polaire nodded at me, our previous fight still rankling in the air between us. “You are not to wander around on your own in this crowd,” she lectured her best friend.
“I think Lady Mykaela can make her own decisions,” I said before thinking.
Polaire’s eyes flashed fire, but Althy stepped in. “We have other duties to attend to, such as the forming of the guards and seeing to the security.”
“Polaire’s been more domineering lately,” I noted sourly after the two had moved off.
Mykaela seemed amused. “Many of my old tasks she has since claimed responsibility for. Her nose has been in every nook and cranny of the palace, ensuring things run according to plan.”
“That’s a terrifying thought.”
“It keeps her occupied. She enjoys it, for all her complaints.”
“But how have you been?” I felt guilty. I had been so busy with my responsibilities that I barely had time to talk to Mykaela beyond a few minutes each day. “I don’t want you pushing yourself, Mykkie.”
She ruffled my hair. “I never do. I trust you’ve been sleeping well yourself?”
I made a face. “I haven’t gone back to the prisons. As much as I want to.”
“Thank you, Tea. I know that was hard for you to agree to.”
I sighed. “Can’t I—not even one more night so I can—”
“Tea.”
“Fine.”
She laughed. “Shall we go? There’re some people I’d like you to meet.”
“Ah, Lady Mykaela,” Kalen began, faltering slightly. “Lady Polaire told us to stay here.”
“And I am telling you that I have a small matter to attend to elsewhere.” It was easy to dismiss Lady Mykaela’s frail condition and forget her forceful character. Her voice took on the tenacity of steel. “It would be a shame to leave you behind, Kalen.”
It didn’t take much for him to give in. “But of course, Lady Mykaela.”
“Pushover,” I murmured in a voice that wasn’t as soft as I thought it was, for Kalen shot an irritated look my way.
Zoya grinned. “Waiting is boring anyway.”
“And Likh?”
Smiling, the young boy nodded.
“Excellent.”
I fell into step beside Likh. “How are you holding up?” I whispered.
Likh shrugged. “As well as can be expected. Kalen and the others are nice. Many of the Deathseekers support my appeal. I’m not used to the attention.” His ears colored.
“The asha-ka are going to see things our way, even if I have to box them around the ears until they do.”
Likh giggled. “That’s a terrible image, Tea.”