My brother moved quickly in battle, but he seemed paralyzed as the princess approached. The crowd went quiet.
“You told me I was useless because I couldn’t protect myself or my fiancé.” Inessa planted herself before him, one hand on her hip. Her heartsglass wobbled between unsteady blue and deep maroon, but she lifted the sword and pointed it at him. “Teach me then. Teach me how to use a sword.”
“Kalen would make a better instructor.”
“Kalen is busy seeing to Tea.” I turned red at her remark. “You are the only fighter here who can match his skill.” Inessa lifted her face, defiant, and threw the sword at his feet. Her other hand came up and tugged at her collar again. “Or are you not good enough for a princess?”
There was a long silence. Finally, Fox spoke. “Pick up the sword.”
Inessa paused, her turn to be wary.
“Pick it up, Princess. When facing an opponent in battle, the last thing you should do is throw your only weapon at his feet. Bravado only gets you killed.” Fox sheathed his own blade and picked up the wooden sword. “Put your dominant foot forward, grip the sword like this, and don’t lock your elbows. I said do it!”
The words cut through the air like a whip, and though Inessa looked both alarmed and murderous by this sudden change in attitude, she hurriedly complied.
Being a bastard to her isn’t going to help, I told Fox.
That’s not my problem.
Sometimes I want to throttle you.
Get in line. It’s a long one. “Now stab me.”
“What?” the princess asked.
“First rule of swordsmanship. You take the pointy end of that weapon you’re holding and try to stab me with it.”
“Shouldn’t we put a stop to this?” Mavren whispered to Alsron.
“You try. I’m not going to put myself within sword range of either.”
“Do they know each other?” Ostry asked me. “I didn’t realize.”
“It’s a long story.”
The princess’s technique needed work, but her strength was surprising. Her blade rammed hard into his side. She stopped, panicked. “Why aren’t you defending yourself?”
“Because you don’t want to harm anyone, and that will kill you. Until we wean you of that fear, you’re useless in a fight. There is no room for hesitation in battle, Inessa.” He paused. “And if you want to vent any frustrations you might have at the moment, I’m the only person in Ankyo who can take it.”
I could see Inessa was tempted by the offer—for all of two seconds. She raised her sword and threw it. The sword whizzed past Fox and clattered against the wall behind him. To his credit, my brother didn’t blink.
“I wish I could,” Inessa informed him quietly, breathing hard. “I’d like to. But even if I wanted to hit you, the only trouble that would cause is to Tea. I won’t hesitate if it comes to a fight. But I don’t want to always be a victim. Teach me to be useful. Please.”
A reluctant smile found its way to Fox’s face. “You have a good throwing arm.”
“But very poor aim,” she informed him, and he started to laugh.
Kalen waited long enough to ensure neither Fox or Inessa were going to kill each other, then quietly withdrew. I caught up to him by the entrance to the palace.
“Are you going to ignore me from now on when we’re not sparring?”
He ignored me. I grabbed him by the elbow.
“Can’t you at least let me apologize?”
“Why? So you can do it again at the next opportunity?” His voice was cold.
“They’d torture you if you stayed behind! They’d execute you, duke’s son or not!”
“That’s my decision to make!”
“No, it’s not!” A few people stared, but I was too caught up in my own emotions to care. “You know you could do nothing for Prince Kance if you remained behind, and he would’ve never forgiven us if you got yourself killed for the most idiotic of reasons!”
“You do not speak for Kance!”
“Yes, I do! His last request was for you to protect me, and I am making damn sure you carry that out! Kance wants you alive, Kalen, and so do I! I want you to be with me for as long as we can be together. I don’t want you to die, you ass! I had a choice between letting you kill yourself and keeping you alive but having you hate me for the rest of your life, and I chose the latter!”
The Deathseeker paused.
Emboldened, I pushed on. “And even with that, I still want you to like me. If not as a friend, then as allies working to make sure Prince Kance is safe. So yes, I’m selfish. I’ve always been selfish. That won’t change anytime soon. And you may not like me, but you’re my bodyguard now. And if the only way I can stop you from throwing away your life is to compel you and everyone in Ankyo, I will if I have to!”
The hall was silent by the time I was done. I was not making any new friends with my words, but I was too focused on Kalen to care. I wove Heartshare briskly, and his eyes widened.
“This is the rune Polaire cast over Mykaela.” My voice was quieter, reassured that no one else could see. “It’s used mostly for healing, but it also grants one person control over another willing spellbinder. The only way I can think for you to forgive me is to put myself in the same position I put you in.” I guided the rune toward him; it hovered over his heartsglass. After a moment, he accepted, the rune flaring around him before disappearing.
“I’m not going to dispel it,” I continued, “which means you can choose to take control anytime you like. Go ahead. I’ll submit to whatever you want.”
The Deathseeker stared at me, and his silver heartsglass shifted to a bright, brilliant red. Why was my offer making him madder?
“This is the least sincere apology I’ve ever heard. Did you think I was going to take you up on your offer? To do what? Clean the barracks for me?”
My cheeks burned. “I’m trying my best! I don’t know any other way!”
“Do you know what I really want, Tea?” He stepped closer. “Do you want another look inside my head?” He forced my chin up so I couldn’t look away.
This was different. He was different. He was using me as an outlet but for an anger that was, oddly enough, no longer directed at me. “If you knew what I was thinking, would you still be so willing?”
We were still, him and me, staring at each other, my breathing embarrassingly loud. What does he mean?
“I don’t need the rune. If you promise to stay out of my head,” he continued, in a lower voice, “then I will obey Kance and protect you with my life. That’s all the apology I want.”
His animosity had retreated. There was a strange gravity to his words.
“I promise, with all my heart,” I said softly. “I’ll never do that to you again.”
He placed a hand on top of my head—easy to do given his height but annoying to be on the receiving end of given my temperament. He drew closer again—too close—and my heart sped up.
“Apology accepted. For now. Inept as it was.”
He walked away. This time, I didn’t chase after him. He didn’t reject the rune but neither did he take me up on my offer.
The spell continued to hover between us, along with all my other unspoken questions. But though I tried to lift my fingers to dispel the rune, I couldn’t find the courage to carry out the act.
? ? ?
The room allotted for me at the palace was three times as large as my old room at the Valerian—staying at my asha-ka would not have been prudent. As I walked in, I was stunned to see it filled with beautiful hua of every fabric and color. My dresser overflowed with countless zivars where all kinds of gemstones shone. From within the hidden depths of my mind, the azi stirred, curious at the glint of jewels. Zoya was in the room, a dreamy smile on her face.
“What’s going on?” I sputtered.