The Mirror King (The Orphan Queen, #2)(97)

“My brother Herman is dead.”

I’d known, but hadn’t been able to tell Prince Colin without revealing the notebooks. “I’m sorry,” I said. “He was a well-respected man, I know.”

Prince Colin glanced toward the window and gathered himself. “The riders were delayed because they had to travel throughout the kingdom for information. The others were killed during their journey.”

That thought chilled me. I’d sent those men to their deaths.

“Glowmen—bigger than any we’ve ever seen in the city—took out most of the Flags, while wraith beasts rampaged through Thornton and Greenstone. The Hawksbill wall held for a night, but eventually the beasts got through. Hawksbill and the King’s Seat are gone.”

“What about the evacuation routes?” My question sounded flat. Lifeless. Because I’d known, hadn’t I? No word from Tobiah. No word from the Ospreys. And even if the king had often been slow to reply, Connor had written every day.

The first day I hadn’t heard from Connor—that had been worrying. But the second. The third . . .

“Most of the routes were blocked,” Prince Colin continued. “Either filled with wraith and creatures, or the stampede of people escaping. Everyone looked for the king, but he wasn’t at any of the evacuation points. His guards couldn’t find him. Someone thought they saw him at the house where your Ospreys were living, but when they followed, it was empty. They’re all presumed dead.”

Numbly, I reached for Melanie’s hand and squeezed. Connor. Carl. Theresa. Kevin.

James’s hand fell on my shoulder, his fingers curled and white at the knuckles. His cousin. His best friend. His king.

Gone.

I placed my free hand on top of James’s, and for a long moment sat connected with these two people: my best friend, and Tobiah’s. The grief surged between us.

We’d all known, in a way. None of us had wanted to say anything, to be the one to voice the awful thought lest we be the one to make it come true.

Prince Colin glanced between us, his gaze settling on James. “Many people were sent to Hawes. Your mother, the king’s mother. I’ve sent riders to investigate.”

Then Hawes was still safe? “How far has the wraith come?” My voice sounded hollow.

“It’s spilled out of the valley. We know that,” Prince Colin said. “There isn’t an accurate picture yet, but from what I gather, about half of the Indigo Kingdom is already under.”

Half.

The wraith was coming so fast.

Because of me? Because of Chrysalis?

“I’ll leave you alone for a while.” Prince Colin stood. There was a soft, strange tilt to his tone. “I’m sorry.”

“We don’t need your pity,” I whispered. “We don’t need to hear how sorry you are. Everything you say is a lie.”

He lifted an eyebrow. “I am not a monster, Wilhelmina. Skyvale was my home. Terrell and Herman were my brothers. Tobiah was my nephew. Francesca is my sister by marriage. I’ve known those families my entire life. If you think this news doesn’t affect me, you are mistaken.

“And before you find some way to blame me, remember that you are the one who chose to leave your friends behind. You could have stayed with them and helped them survive the wraith, or you could have fought to bring them with you. But you did neither of those things. Instead, you followed me here because you wouldn’t give up the kingdom you haven’t seen in ten years.”

I was on my feet before I realized, Melanie’s and James’s hands thrown off, and my fingertips brushed my daggers. “I chose my kingdom over my friends. It’s what a good queen would do.”

Something unidentifiable flared over his face. “And where is your kingdom without your friends, Your Majesty?”

He turned and left the room.

It was hard to believe the Indigo Kingdom was gone.

The timing was sadly appropriate. News of the Indigo Kingdom’s destruction came just days before the ten-year anniversary of the One-Night War.

The Indigo Kingdom was gone, and half a year ago I would have celebrated. Now, all I felt was empty.

“We need to tell the others.” I closed my eyes, but my mind conjured up memories from the wraithland: a vast, wasted world where trees had teeth and animals grew to terrible sizes. I remembered the white mist that glowed, obscuring everything, and the way it reeked acrid and burned my nose.

I shook away the images of Connor, Theresa, Carl, and Kevin struggling to survive in a place that looked familiar, but would eat them whole if they took one wrong step.

“If Skyvale is gone,” I muttered in James’s direction, “that means the barrier is gone.”

He nodded and didn’t say anything.

Two of the Queen’s Guards waited at the door, Matthew and Cael, though I was unsure when they’d shown up or how much they’d witnessed. “Fetch Paige and the Grays. I need them immediately.”

Both young men snapped and thumped their black-gloved fists to their chests. Their boots stamped on the thin rug as they disappeared down the hall.

“They’re soldiers, not pages.” James’s reminder held no heat. He was lost in his own grief.

I sank into the chair Prince Colin had abandoned.

Pale sunlight angled through the windows as dawn broke. Dust motes drifted through the bands of light, and I mourned the lives my friends would never get to have.