Reign the Earth (The Elementae #1)(44)

“Good night, my queen.”

Kairos led me down the steps and out of the hall, and Zeph was waiting. He inclined his head and let us go several feet in front of him, but I still didn’t dare tell Kairos of what Calix had let slip the night before until we were truly alone. Kairos filled my nervous silence with chatter and, when we got to my chamber, led me out onto the balcony as Zeph shut the door behind us.

“Now,” Kairos said, glancing around us on the empty balcony. “What did you want to tell me?”

I leaned closer to him. “The king said that he has a spy in Rian’s ranks. His name is Tassos.”

“He told you his name?” Kairos asked, narrowing his eyes.

“Yes,” I said. “It was an accident. We were arguing.”

Kairos shook his head slowly. “No, I don’t think it was, little sister. The king is far too calculating to tell you something like that by accident. He’s testing you. Trying to see if you’ll tell Rian. Or perhaps if I will.”

“But doesn’t Rian need to know there’s a spy in his camp?”

Kairos crossed his arms. “I would hope Rian always assumes there’s a spy in his camp and acts accordingly. It’s what I would do. And it’s the only way they keep the leader so well protected.”

I watched my brother. “Is the leader Kata?” I breathed.

He considered it but shook his head. “Doubtful. Whoever the leader is, they are exceedingly careful. Kata shares Rian’s reckless streak, in my opinion.”

“Do you know who it is?”

His eyes flicked to me and away, and I gasped. “No, I’m not certain,” he said quickly. “I have my suspicions. But I can’t share them, especially since they’re unconfirmed. And not with you.”

That stung, but I thought of my husband questioning me the night before, and I nodded. “I understand.” And I did. I couldn’t tell Kairos that Calix had been the one to kill the islanders, and Kairos couldn’t share this with me. Not only were we fighting to keep each other safe, but marriage had also fractured my loyalty. “You should probably go, before my husband returns.”

Kairos nodded with a sigh, kissing the top of my head before going back into my chamber and out.

Calix didn’t return soon. I spent a long time on the balcony, thinking about my conversations with Galen and then Danae.

Calix had been the one to murder the islanders. He had killed Kata’s family, and he nearly killed Rian, who had been in the islands during the massacre.

I wanted to confront him about it. I wanted to tell him I knew, to demand an explanation.

But more than that, I wanted to do something good. I wanted to do something meaningful, and I knew that if I could just make him see that it was an easy solution, I could get him to agree with me about the mill.

The sound of the door closing drew my attention, and I saw Calix, smiling at me. “I was trying to surprise you,” he said.

I didn’t stand from the bench, the one I liked, closest to the edge so I could see out over the strange and moving water. He came to me, sitting on it, tugging my chin to him, but I pulled away.

“Wife?” he asked.

I shook my head, still unsure, still hesitating between what I wanted to say.

“Galen said things went well at the Erudium.”

“Yes,” I said quietly.

“You should go back there tomorrow. It’s a good place for you to be seen.”

“No,” I said, and then shook my head again, but this time I had made my decision. “I saw the grain mill, and the women and children waiting for food behind it. It’s wrong,” I said, looking at him. “Those women who stand in line for days—this is not the life they want.”

He opened his mouth with a scowl, but I remembered what Danae had told me.

“They want to serve the God,” I continued. “They want to serve their country. The God has been trying to show us what he wants—he wants women to feed their families and serve. And I believe he wants me to lead them to it.”

Calix watched me suspiciously. “You wish to pound grain?” he asked.

I looked at my hands. “If I must. But I believe the Three-Faced God wants me to serve by helping women serve their country.”

“So you want women to work.”

“Yes.”

“And the Three-Faced God told you this?” he asked, his eyes narrowing.

I drew a breath. “I can’t claim to know,” I said. “But this idea came to me when I thought of how I might serve.”

“But you don’t believe in the Three-Faced God.”

This stopped me. I didn’t; could I lie outright about such a thing? “How else could I come by such an idea?” I asked, my voice hushed.

He scowled, standing. “I suppose that’s true. The women work in the factories—and we pay them?”

“Paying the women would mean they have money to spend. And money for tax,” I added.

“Hm. The labor will not interfere with raising families,” he insisted.

“The children are meant to be at the Erudium anyway.”

“But if a woman is with child, she will not work,” he said.

It seemed a small concession. “Of course not.”

He drew a slow breath. “Very well, wife.”