Rise of Fire (Reign of Shadows #2)(30)

I ducked my head, so overcome with relief that tears burned my eyes. The senseless killing would stop. I wasn’t foolish enough to think Tebald’s motives altruistic, but the fact remained that he was helping me save lives. For that I was grateful.

I sucked in a breath, relief warming a path through me. “Thank you,” I murmured. It was everything I wanted, after all . . . for Cullan to know I lived so that he would end his bloodthirsty hunt to find me. That had been the goal. Now if he wanted me dead, he could come after me directly. And maybe he would. I swallowed against the bitter lump in my throat, thinking of Chasan’s warning.

I gave myself a hard mental shake. It didn’t matter. The importance of my life waned when held up against scores of others. All those girls, faceless innocents, would not die because of me. The only monsters they had to fight were the ones we all had to fight.

Besides, I would be long gone from here before Cullan’s men showed up. I was uncertain where to go next. Could I continue on to Allu? Continue the journey I had set out on with Fowler? It seemed so long ago since we’d left my tower.

I didn’t need to go to Relhok anymore. Not unless I was ready to lay claim to my throne . . . if that’s what I wanted to do. Did I want my throne? Did I need it to be mine? I had to sort out what was right—not just for me but for the people of Relhok. I winced. I knew that Cullan at the helm of the kingdom wasn’t what was right or best for anyone. Even Fowler, his son, knew that.

“You’re quite welcome.” Tebald looked at me. I could feel his stare, cold as an icicle. I’d have to get over that. Perhaps it was just the way of kings—to stare so hard that their gazes felt like blades scraping the flesh back from your bones.

We continued to eat, the conversation flowing more naturally, except from Chasan. He sat beside me, detached. “And how is it you come to be with Prince Fowler? That’s quite the coincidence. To say nothing of unusual,” he murmured after some moments. “Considering that you claim his father murdered your parents, he is the last person I would suspect you to ally with.”

I bristled at the word claim. “You doubt the manner in which my parents died?”

“A great many died in those early days of the eclipse.” He shifted in his chair beside me and I sensed his shrug. “I’m not saying you’re lying. Only that you could be mistaken.”

The king spoke through a mouthful of food. “You don’t know Cullan as I do, son. Of course it’s true. He was always overly ambitious.” He snorted and slurped at his goblet. “Indeed, I know Cullan and I knew her parents. Traveled to Relhok often as a young man. I didn’t spend my youth sequestered inside this city. I rode the expanse of my kingdom and beyond, learning my allies as well as my foes. You’ve done nothing of the kind. It’s limited your understanding.”

I did not mistake the veiled insult. It was a cutting insinuation that Tebald was better than his son.

Chasan did not miss it either. “I was not given a choice,” he quickly replied. “I’m not allowed a stone’s throw from this castle without fully armed guards. Otherwise I might know Lagonia and its neighbors better.”

Tebald grunted. “You’d be dead. And I cannot afford to lose my only son. You’re too valuable.”

Valuable. Not loved or cared for. He was a commodity. The sleeve of Chasan’s tunic rustled slightly as he lifted his arm. “We can’t have that, can we, Father?”

“No, we can’t. Your responsibility is to live and further our line.”

“I will remain ever dutiful and not step out of your prescribed boundaries.” Despite the very correct words, derision threaded through his voice. The king did not miss it either.

“Scorn my rules all you like, but you’ll stay alive. You and your sister. Our legacy will not die out. Isn’t that right, Princess Luna?”

My head snapped up; I was unaccustomed to being addressed by my title. I wasn’t certain how to reply. And what did I have to do with any of it? “I’m certain you shall all continue to thrive here. Your fortifications are remarkable.”

“Indeed. And now that you’re here, we’re assured of that. Tell me, Luna, do you value duty?”

I felt as though the question was a test. The thought of my parents flashed through my mind. I knew from Sivo that my father believed in serving the people and that his responsibility as king was for that very purpose. Then I thought of myself, and what it was that I should do with my life. Especially now that the kill order would be lifted. Surely I was meant to do more than survive. There had to be more than day-to-day survival. What was my purpose?

Sivo and Perla predicted that I had a great fate. I didn’t quite know what that fate was, but here I was sitting at the king of Lagonia’s table—and he had just sent a missive out declaring me alive to Cullan.

I was starting to believe they might be right.

“Yes,” I answered. “I believe in duty.” I just needed to figure out what it was.





TWELVE


Fowler


I WOKE WITH a groan.

Agony clawed through me in unrelenting waves, twisting everything inside me to a fine edge of pain. I attempted to prop myself up on my elbows, but failed, collapsing back down with a shudder.

I sucked in another breath, my chest rising high as my eyes flew wide. A swirl of color greeted me, but I processed nothing. I blinked, attempting to focus.