As though we were friends. As though he cared about me beyond the control I exerted over him.
“It doesn’t matter why you answer me, or tell me the truth. Only that you do.” I spun and left the room, and when the door fell shut behind me, I slumped against it and sucked in a heavy breath.
“Your Highness?” Sergeant Ferris approached, cautiously. “What happened?”
“Call an emergency meeting of the wraith mitigation committee. When is the soonest I can address them?”
“First thing in the morning, Your Highness.”
I hated waiting even that long, but the delay would give me time to figure out what I intended to say.
“What shall I tell them the meeting is concerning?” Sergeant Ferris glanced at the door beyond me. “Him?”
“We need mirrors.” I lifted my eyes to his, and offered the hand mirror to him. A tin-backed shard of glass dropped to the floor. “It won’t be enough, but it’s the only chance we have.”
“For what?”
“To stop the wraith.”
PART TWO
THE DRAGON CROWN
THIRTEEN
AN ICY BREEZE fluttered through my bedroom as the clock tower struck four.
Darkness moved on darkness, and I was out of bed with my daggers drawn, every piece of my body groaning in protest. “Announce yourself or I’ll kill you.”
“I’m sorry.” It was Black Knife. The prince. “I didn’t mean to startle you.”
Everything startled me now, but I didn’t want to tell him so. I just sheathed my daggers and dragged a blanket from the bed to wrap around my shoulders like a cape. My nightgown afforded little in the way of modesty. “I should be apologizing to you.”
In the far corner of the room, the prince was a motionless black shape. Only the glint of moonlight on polished leather boots and the slither of silk on silk gave him away. He’d dressed as Black Knife to come sneaking over the rooftop, just as I’d done. My heart squeezed.
“But I don’t think there’s any way to properly convey my regrets.” I glanced toward the light switch, but this was better in the dark. It was easier to think of him as Black Knife and not the prince. “I’m afraid of the wraith boy. I don’t know what he is, or how to stop him, and I’m terrified of what he’ll do next.”
Black Knife crossed the room, a shifting heat and presence. A gloved palm cupped my cheek, hesitantly. “I don’t blame you for what happened.”
“You’re the only one.” It took everything in me not to lean into his touch; he was warm and solid, and like this he was my friend. But he was also Tobiah, and meant for someone else. I pulled back, and he let his hand drop to his side. “What about the memorial?” I asked. “Will it affect your ability to take the throne tomorrow?”
“I had the memorial completed in the palace chapel last night. It was small. Private.”
“That’s for the best.”
“There was no choice. My enemies would have protested my enthronement otherwise.”
Another apology sat on my tongue, but I couldn’t make it emerge. I’d almost cost Tobiah his crown. “Do you have many enemies?”
“Everyone here has their share. Worry about yours, not mine.” He spoke kindly, though he shifted away from me. “Tell me why you want a mitigation committee meeting called.”
I pulled my blanket tighter around my shoulders. “The wraith boy thinks we have no time at all before the wraith floods the Indigo Kingdom, and because right now, after the Inundation and the cathedral collapse, the committee will need to listen and explore every option available.”
“Then let’s do this right. List every point you want to discuss. Give me warning so that I can help.” He sounded like the prince, but nothing could break the spell of this boy in those clothes. The way he moved, and the way he wanted to do what was right: those were qualities I’d grown to admire in Black Knife. “I think you’d go rushing into this with your convictions and good intentions, but one of the more difficult lessons I’ve learned about politics is patience, and planning, and knowing that no matter how good you are at both of those, there’s always someone who’s better and willing to go further. Unfortunately, my uncle is very good at it.”
“I don’t need to be rescued from Prince Colin—”
“I’m not trying to rescue you, but I am trying to help you succeed. There’s a difference.” He moved to the balcony window. “You have a hundred enemies, Wilhelmina. Thanks to your magic, the wraith boy, your various identities, and your connection with Patrick Lien, there’s a lot going against you.”
Did I have anything going for me?
“Let me help you, Wil. You don’t have to do this alone.” With that, he was out the window, a black blur on the balcony, and then gone.
He was right. I did need to plan the committee meeting, just as I’d have planned anything with the Ospreys. I needed to understand what actions would get me the results I wanted, take all variables into consideration, plan for possible counteractions. I needed to strategize.