The Storm Crow (The Storm Crow, #1)(12)

Footsteps sounded, and I barely had time to step back before the hilt of Kiva’s sword struck the man in the temple. He crumpled against the wall.

I panted, heavy breathing mixing with Kiva’s. Blood stained her arm scarlet to the shoulder.

“It’s not mine,” she said in response to my horrified expression. “Get inside. I’ll send someone for the guards.”

I stumbled out of the alley and into the tavern, collapsing into the first booth I reached. Sounds and colors blurred, and I blinked rapidly. Movement at my side made me flinch, but it was only the barmaid setting a glass of water on the table. She muttered a quiet, “Your Highness,” with a swift curtsy.

I felt my head with numb fingers, distantly registering my hood had fallen. Then I gulped down the water.

As the adrenaline faded and understanding struggled to settle, an aching in my stomach and shoulder took its place. Two men at the table beside me subtly shifted their chairs, placing themselves between me and anyone who might come through the tavern door. Some deep, raw part of me glowed at the gesture.

The tavern door swung open, and Kiva entered, pale skin flushed and glistening with sweat. The men let her pass, and she dropped into the seat across from me, her eyes dark.

“The man I fought escaped.” Her voice quavered. “The other one is in custody.”

“Who were they?”

“I don’t know, but I don’t think they were thieves.” When I only stared, she hesitated, then paused as the barmaid brought her a glass of water. She pulled it toward her but didn’t drink. “I think they were trying to kill you, Thia.”

A chill jolted through me, and I wrapped my arms around my middle. “Why?” My voice barely crested a whisper.

Kiva shook her head. She hadn’t touched her water, though she was squeezing the glass hard enough to crush it. “The guards I met are sending men for us. We’re to wait until they show.”

I nodded numbly. Her words felt distant, like a story someone told about a friend. Only the chill clinging to my skin despite the room’s warmth hinted it had even happened.

The guards brought fresh horses when they arrived, and we rode back surrounded by people. My mind churned with every step. Could this have something to do with my engagement to Ericen? The news wasn’t public yet, but that didn’t mean no one knew, and there were likely to be a lot of people who disagreed with Caliza’s decision. But to kill me to prevent it?

Sighing, I slowed my horse and dropped back to ride beside Kiva. Her hands gripped the reins so tightly, she looked like she was trying to strangle them. When I spoke, she jumped in a very un-Kiva-like way.

“What is it?” I asked.

Her head snapped up, eyes focusing on me with such intensity that I drew back. When something was wrong, the last thing Kiva wanted was to be asked what it was. Especially not when it could make her look weak in front of someone. But the guards were far enough away that they couldn’t hear us, and I couldn’t stay quiet when something so clearly weighed on her.

Her gaze softened, and she let out a quiet breath. “Sorry. I’m fine.”

It was what I’d expected her to say. I didn’t push her. Rather, I laid a hand on her arm, feeling the tension in her body break. It lasted all of a second before she sucked her emotions back inside, straightening. She wouldn’t let someone report back to her mother that she’d broken down.

We rode in silence the rest of the way back, but I stayed beside her the whole time. She’d talk to me when she was ready.

*

The chair I sat in was rigid and uncomfortable. My stomach was already a little sore from the punch I’d taken, and the sudden absence of all the adrenaline had left me hollow.

A dark oak desk stood before floor-to-ceiling windows across from me, two glass doors flung open behind it to let in the evening breeze. A guard stood on either side of the entrance, and Caliza paced behind the desk, the circlet glinting on her head. The vein in her temple was on full display.

Behind her stood Captain Mirkova, her arms folded. I sat in one of the chairs on the other side of the desk. Kiva hadn’t been allowed in.

I wished Caliza would yell already, but she seemed to have forgotten I was there. When another minute passed and she still hadn’t spoken, I stood. “Well, this was a wonderful talk. I’ll just—”

“Sit down.” Her voice was like a thunderclap.

I sat.

When I’d first gotten back to the castle, she’d hugged me like she hadn’t seen me in years. But her joy had given way to a stone-cold fury I knew too well.

“What were you thinking?” she demanded at last. “You were nearly killed.”

I crossed my arms. “I’ve gone into the city a thousand times and no one’s ever bothered me. How was I supposed to know today was the day someone would attack me?”

“You’re not. That’s why you should have taken sufficient protection.”

“I had sufficient protection. I had Kiva.”

Captain Mirkova snorted. “My daughter, while skilled, cannot defend you against an entire city.”

I leveled the captain with a sour glare. When we’d returned, instead of asking how her daughter was, Captain Mirkova had started demanding answers, criticizing, and yelling.

“Do you understand what you almost cost us?” Caliza asked. “You jeopardized more than your own life; you jeopardized our chance at peace with Illucia, at securing this kingdom’s safety.”