Lady Smoke (Ash Princess Trilogy #2)(58)

“That is what everyone thought,” Erik says, idly taking a glass of red wine from one of the servers. I wonder if anyone else is looking close enough to see how the glass quivers in his hand, the dark liquid rippling like the surface of a pond when a school of fish swims beneath. “Imagine their surprise when the last emperor’s youngest daughter returned to them after being held by the Kalovaxians for two decades. And imagine her son’s surprise when she passed her claim to the throne on to him.”

He pauses, but no one else speaks. “The son was me,” he adds. “In case that wasn’t clear.”

“You have my congratulations,” King Etristo says dryly. “But the fact remains that Goraki is a wasteland with no money and no troops. You are trifling with our time.”

Erik shrugs, though his eyes dance across the room. “Your requested sum has been brought, Your Highness,” he says, looking back to King Etristo. “I left it with your son when he greeted me with the same questions you’re asking now. He counted it himself before allowing me into the palace. I’ve as much right to be here as any suitor.”

King Etristo lifts a thick gray eyebrow. “And how much is left in your coffers after that expense, Emperor?”

Erik’s mouth twitches. “Enough,” he says, but he doesn’t elaborate. Instead, he turns to me and offers me his free arm. “If I might have a moment of your time, Queen Theodosia?”

It takes all I have not to seem too eager when I agree, though that excitement is quickly dampened when Dragonsbane follows us to a secluded corner of the pavilion. The eyes of the other suitors trail after us, but none of their gazes are darker than King Etristo’s.

“It’s good to see you again, Erik,” I say to him, casting a look at Dragonsbane a step behind us. She makes no effort to hide her disapproval. I turn back to Erik. “Or should I call you Emperor now?”

“You can call me Erik if I can call you Theodosia,” he says with a small, grim smile. “All of this title business is tiring, isn’t it?”

“Only when it comes to friends,” I say. “You can call me Theo.”

“Alas, I can’t shorten Erik any more without it sounding ridiculous,” he says with a dramatic sigh.

When we reach the sofas clustered in the corner, I let go of Erik’s arm and sink down into one. “If we’re done being clever,” I say, “would you like to tell me what you’re really doing here?”

Erik’s bravado slips as he sits down across from me, leaning forward with his elbows on his knees. He glances warily at Dragonsbane when she sits down next to me.

“Can she be trusted?” he asks.

It’s a tricky question but I can’t imagine Erik would have anything to say that Dragonsbane shouldn’t hear. Besides, if she thinks I’m trusting her, it will be easier to keep other things secret.

I nod.

“How’s S?ren faring?” he asks, lowering his voice. “I’d imagine he’s not used to being a prisoner.” Though he keeps his words indifferent, there’s a flicker of real concern behind them. They are brothers, after all, and friends besides.

“He made an exceptional prisoner, actually,” I tell him, leaning back against the plush cushions.

“Made?” Erik asks, eyes widening. The careless facade slips another inch. “He’s not—”

“He’s not a prisoner any longer,” I clarify. Relief streaks across his face. “He has his own room here, no chains. I wouldn’t recommend he try to leave, but I don’t think he wants to.”

If news of S?ren’s pivot surprises Erik, he doesn’t show it. “Vecturia changed him,” he says. “It changed many of us, but S?ren more so, I think. Most of the Kalovaxians didn’t see the Astreans as people—they saw weapons. When S?ren gave the order—” He breaks off when he sees me flinch. I can’t help it. I don’t want to know about what happened next. I don’t want to hear details of how horrifically my people were murdered. I don’t want to hear about how bad S?ren felt when he gave the order to kill hundreds of my people and thousands of innocent Vecturians who were only protecting their home.

“How did you feel, Erik, when you watched Astrean men and women forced to destroy themselves to protect you?” I ask instead, my voice coming out like tinder just waiting for a spark.

He doesn’t answer right away.

“I’m glad that we can finally speak frankly, Theo,” he says finally, his voice quiet. “Honesty doesn’t come easily for me, after so many years with the Kalovaxians, but I’ll try.” He takes a breath. “By the time Vecturia happened, I think I was numb to the suffering of others. I was nine when we left Goraki, when I watched my home burn to the ground. Even before that, I watched the Kalovaxians treat my people the same way they treat their Astrean slaves now. The Kaiser beat my mother in front of me, and when she tried to rebel against him, he made me watch while a man sewed her mouth shut. It’s not a good answer, that I was too numb, but it’s the truth. I am sorry for what happened, truly I am, and I will do everything in my power to keep it from happening again.”

I’m stunned to silence, but Dragonsbane isn’t.

“And what power is that?” she asks him. “King Etristo is right—Goraki has nothing to its name anymore. There are no more expensive silks to sell, no more goods at all as far as I’ve heard. You can’t have much of an army either. It’s estimated that less than two thousand Gorakians survived the Kalovaxian invasion. Is that number false?”