Heart of Iron (Heart of Iron #1)(64)

“Then why didn’t you tell anyone about the tracker?”

“I messed up.” It was the only answer he could give. “I—I didn’t know she’d come herself. I thought she’d send one of her commanders. And I knew you would throw me off the ship if I said anything. I had to find out what happened to my father. Believe me, if I could pry this from my wrist, I would, but if I did, it would cut the nerve endings in my sword arm.”

And then I wouldn’t be able to fight off Erik, and the thought of being helpless against Erik made his chest tighten with panic.

“Oh, forgive me if I don’t feel bad for your precious sword arm,” she snapped icily.

“Please, Ana. I will get Jax out of here, you have my word. My mother has won her game a hundred times before, but she won’t win this one—I promise.”

Ana hesitated, but he knew she was smarter than anyone gave her credit for. She knew he was right and came to sit down beside him. “I still don’t believe you, but I don’t have a choice.”

He untied the basket of food, unwrapping the silverware, and studied her. “It’s more than just Jax, isn’t it?”

She nodded. “Whatever took control of the Tsarina and killed Di is still out there. It knew my name—it might’ve known I was the heir to the kingdom, too.” She riffled through the food until she found a jar of olives, twisted it open, and popped one into her mouth. Empress Celene loved olives, too. “It told Di he should have let me burn. I think it was there the night of the Rebellion.”

Robb sliced up the bread and took a wedge of cheese from a small wheel. “But Rasovant said all the Metals who stormed the North Tower were destroyed—”

“How can Rasovant be sure of that?”

He shoved the piece of bread and cheese into his mouth. “He was the only survivor—until you.”

She blinked.

“On the night of the Rebellion, he was called to the North Tower when the Metals stationed there attacked—he said they wanted to kill the Goddess. Um, you. Then a fire broke out and everything went to shit. Rasovant barely made it out himself.”

“Don’t you think it’s odd that he’s the only survivor? And all we have to go on is his word?”

“Ana, he saved us from the Plague.” He’s a hero, one of the kingdom’s best. Why would he lie?”

“Because he wasn’t a hero when he created the HIVE. If he just wanted to control Metals, why did he give them free will in the first place?”

“Maybe he wished for the best?”

“But not every Metal tried to kill me—”

“Who’s to say the malware after you isn’t a Metal he created? If they were all HIVE’d, this wouldn’t be a problem.”

She slammed down the jar of olives. “If they were all HIVE’d, then Di would have never existed.”

He looked away, uncomfortable. “I’m sorry. You’re right.”

She mumbled something under her breath and grabbed the bread knife, spearing a slice with a little too much force. He tried to imagine that it wasn’t his head, but it was hard to think of anything else. “Even though I can’t remember it, I need to find out what really happened the night of the Rebellion. So if you were going to investigate, where would you start?”

“Probably the visitation logs from that day? You seem dead set on disbelieving the Iron Adviser, so we can check there first. Who came to the palace, who left—maybe we can pin down what happened that night and who met with the Emperor, and which Metals were in the Tower when they attacked. The palace’s libraries should have some sort of record-keeping archive.” He cocked his head. “I can start there.”

She raised a single black eyebrow. “You?”

“Yeah, me.” He met her gaze. “I want to know just as much as you. For some reason my father thought he had to run as far away from the palace as possible. I want to know why.”

“So do I. I’ll start nosing around to find some info on Rasovant and your father, and you figure out a way to free Jax.” She outstretched her hand. He looked at it blankly. “Well? Are you with me or not, Valerio?”

“To the end.” He took her hand, and they shook.

She grinned, snagging another piece of cheese. “Don’t say things you don’t mean. . . .” Her words trailed off as Eros’s second moon drifted into view above them, casting a silvery light across the garden. And one by one, the small white buds around them bloomed to soak up the moonlight.

Her lips parted in awe. “Moonlilies?”

“They are the Goddess’s flower.”

She plucked one and stuck it behind her ear. “What do you think? Do I look Goddess-like?”

“You look—” The moonlight glinted against a pendant around her neck. It was slightly melted, a shadow of itself, but it was still there. A snake eating its own tail.

His heart began to race. “Where . . . where did you get that? Around your neck?”

“This?” She touched the pendant. “It’s my good-luck charm. I’ve had it as long as I can remember—”

“Ananke?” an old, crackly voice called from across the garden. The Grand Duchess ducked beneath a low tree limb, eyes flickering across the grove. “Ah, it seems you have company.”