The Shadowglass (The Bone Witch, #3)(61)
“Her letters could easily be a plant, created to soften our stances and put us off our guard. I understand that Tea is a friend, Inessa, but I have a responsibility to do what is best for Kion, as will you when you take my place. You cannot let your heart rule your head in these matters, especially when she has shown no signs of conciliation toward us. She may still nurse a grudge, despite her accusations. And she may have spared most of us from death, but there were deaths all the same. She is losing her self-control. What do you think, Fox?”
“Whatever her intentions, it is the results that matter, Your Majesty. She threatened Kion, and now she may threaten Odalia. If she turns against us when we reach the Hollow Mountains, then do not hesitate to take her down.”
“You can’t!” Inessa gasped.
“Is that why you’re so willing to give Tea the benefit of the doubt, Inessa? Because her death will result in Fox’s?”
The princess trembled. “We need to find another way.”
“You have to be prepared for the eventuality that there may not be another solution.” Love had scrubbed the roughness from Lord Fox’s voice. “I died a soldier once. If I can protect you, then I’d do it all over again.”
“Idiot,” Princess Inessa lamented as we left the throne room. Already the orders for the army to start for southern Odalia had been given. “She’s your sister! There has to be another option! There has to—there must be a—”
Quietly, I stole away. But before I did, I saw Lord Fox framing Princess Inessa’s face with his hands, murmuring words beyond my hearing. He wore a look I have seen men adopt when they venture into the thick of war knowing they would not return—and finding their peace in it.
Lady Zoya waited at the entrance to the palace, her face set. Beside her was the largest man I had ever seen. His beard was carefully combed and long hair pulled back from his face. A wicked-looking hatchet hung from his side.
“We leave in half an hour,” the asha said abruptly. “No word if you’re to come with us, Bard, but it would be best to prepare anyway.”
“Bard?” the tall man boomed. “Drychta, from his looks. Will Althy allow him into battlefields in the first place?”
“They’re allowing you, Rahim, and you aren’t in the army either.”
“Bah. Tresean men fight whether they wield sword, hoe, or needle.”
“What’s going on?” I asked, alarmed.
“Shadi went ahead to warn Fox, so he’ll be hearing it soon enough. They’ve sighted the azi, and it’s heading for the Hollows as well. This time, Tea’s making no attempts at hiding.”
14
Pigeons were sent to King Kance’s army, informing them of the city-states of Yadosha’s willingness to “aid the Odalians in their attempts to eradicate our misguided desert brothers and the Faceless’s mortal cesspool couched in human form”—First Minister Stefan was elected for skills other than his diplomacy—and arrangements were soon underway for the rest of the Yadoshans’ departure. The men celebrated preparation for war in the same manner they celebrated their daeva hunts; Lord Knox told me, only half jesting, that cheerful bloodlust was a cultural trait.
“They’re able warriors, at least,” Khalad pointed out. “Kance may soon find himself outmatched and outnumbered, especially with a Faceless lurking among the Drychta. They’ll help to even the odds.” He frowned. “I can’t believe Kance would go to war without informing us. Surely he would err on the side of caution.”
“I may be the reason he did not ask Kion for assistance.” I was quiet. The Yadoshans had been reluctant to give us leave for Mithra’s Wall ahead of their soldiers, as the fighting would be much diminished after the azi had had its way. I’d finally agreed to Lord Stefan’s proposal to choose warriors to accompany us on the back of the daeva, and a short brawl had broken out over who would receive that honor. Kalen, bless him, had taken it upon himself to sort the men to spare me the headache.
Khalad smiled at me. “Kance would never let his personal feelings get in the way of a logical strategy. Whatever he might think of you, he would never let it cloud his judgment, especially if his kingdom’s on the line. He doesn’t think ill of you, regardless of what he’s said in the past.”
“You were present the last time Kance and I’d talked. He didn’t seem ready to let go of his bitterness.”
“Things change, Tea. He’s changed. I’ve had the chance to talk to him in the last few months. I think that once the initial anger had passed and he had more time to assess his father’s condition and understand the circumstances that led to it, he realized why you did what you did.”
“He never reached out to me.”
“Kance is a kind man, but kings have pride too. He manages it better than I ever could.”
I wanted to change the subject and seized the opening. “Is pride stopping you from talking to Likh?”
Khalad blanched. “Did he tell you?”
“I have eyes, Khalad. Remember all those times when you chided me about my crush? Karma is a swift, unforgiving mistress.”
He cleared his throat. “I don’t understand him, Tea, and I thought I was good at figuring out people. He gets mad at me for things I have no control over, and blows up when I try to help. The runic wards are for his own protection. He can’t simply undo them whenever he feels like it because he’s an asha who can. You’ve scolded him before, and so has Kalen, but he never blows his fuse with you two the way he does with me!”