He sat forward, rubbing his thumb along the textured parchment. “No, not yet. I want to gather everything we can first, and then present all the facts to him when his counselors can’t dismiss the evidence.”
“Okay.” I bit my lower lip. His gaze settled on my mouth, and my stomach tightened. I knew my duty, and I knew his. Yet I couldn’t push him away. “Are you busy now? I can show you what else I’ve found.”
He deliberated only a moment. “Show me.”
We pored over the books together as I caught him up on what I’d learned so far. He picked up another book and cracked it open, and we sat together in silence as we searched for anything else on the mages I’d missed that could be used against them.
“Look here,” he said, and pushed the book closer to me. Our shoulders touched again, and a shiver ran down my spine. I shook it off, hoping he wouldn’t notice, wishing I could ignore the feelings he stirred. “It says that Gero was the Black Mage’s brother, and that they both passed their magic on to their sons. Gero’s son, Kais, formed the magical barrier in the Ice Deserts so no one could leave unless they were pure in heart or summoned by another.”
Gero’s brother was the Black Mage? I closed my eyes and twirled the end of my braid. “So…the Black Mage’s son was the Gray Mage, wasn’t he?” I didn’t need to see it on the page to know it rang true.
That meant Graymere was my cousin…sort of. My skin crawled at the thought of sharing blood with that monster. That’s why he’d said what he did to Aleinn. That’s why his first step after being freed from the Ice Deserts was to come after my family.
“He was,” Enzo said. “But what is this key it talks about?”
“What?” I leaned in. Along the side of the block of text, in the margin, was a faint, handwritten note.
Two make up one, the key to the door. Two kingdoms to hide, to be found nevermore.
I put my chin in my hand. “The two kingdoms must be Hálendi and Turia. The first king of Riiga hadn’t left Hálendi when the mages’ library was formed.”
He rested one hand on the back of my seat and the other on the table. The sunlight filtered down from the window, wrapping us in a quiet embrace. One I never wanted to leave.
“My father told me a story once,” Enzo started, staring at nothing. My shoulder nearly touched his chest, and I barely breathed so I wouldn’t startle him away. Did he realize how close we sat? “That when the mages came—I think he meant Kais, not…not Graymere—Turia was ruled by Queen Oriana. My father told me that she formed the first friendship with the king of Hálendi, even went on a journey with him to see the Plateau, to decide what land she would give him. My father said we must strive to maintain our friendship with Hálendi. He didn’t say why, only that it was important—”
“Your Highness,” a young girl stood, out of breath, next to Enzo. “Yesilia sent me to fetch you.”
He nodded, and the girl hurried off. Enzo reluctantly rose.
Right. The war at the border. For a few blissful moments, I’d forgotten that there were soldiers at the pass, fighting because my father and brother were dead. Because they believed me dead.
“I’ll see you soon?” he asked as he began backing away. Something flickered across his face, and it was the same expression Ren wore when he needed to tell me something I wouldn’t want to hear. But maybe I was just reading my own emotions in his face.
Perhaps Enzo could be my ally in figuring out how to stop the war, how to defeat the mages. The desire to tell him who I was swelled until the words filled my throat.
Chiara laughed with her tutor, breaking me from my thoughts.
The weights stacked on my shoulders pulled at the muscles in my neck. I hated that there were people dying on the border, but bringing the mage—or mages—into Turia would make everything worse. No, if I wanted to tell Enzo everything, I would have to destroy Graymere first.
I lifted my chin and nodded. “Soon.”
“First, you’ll put one arm around my neck and pin my arms with your other,” I instructed Chiara. After the lessons with her tutors, we’d gone back to her chambers, and now she stood in front of me fidgeting with a pair of trousers she’d borrowed, rocking from one foot to the other. Mari watched from Chiara’s bed, excitement lighting her eyes.
“If your attacker is behind you, where would he be vulnerable?”
She scratched her neck. “His face?”
“And his stomach! Elbow him there!” Mari bounced up and down.
I smiled at her exuberance. “Yes, those are both options, but only if you can get enough leverage. You also have the arch of your attacker’s foot, the knees, and the groin. But overall, to escape, you’ll need to either offset your attacker’s balance, or cause him pain.”
Chiara took a shaky breath. Learning the basic principles of hand-to-hand combat had been her idea. I’d practice with her as much as she wanted if it meant she could get out of a bad situation going forward.
“Surprise will be your best weapon.” I had her hold me from behind, and demonstrated slowly as I explained. “Lunge to the side, hook your other leg behind both of his, and either toss him over your leg, or roll him onto the ground.” I started the roll so she got the idea, but didn’t finish it, as I didn’t want to hurt her.
“Then what?” She stepped away and put her hands on her hips. Determined to see it through.
“Well, you either run or you fight. Your best bet would probably be to run, because you’re usually unarmed and hopefully you’ll be familiar with your surroundings.”
She nodded, as if storing the information away.
“Okay, let’s practice.” I smiled with reassurance as I wrapped my arms around her waist, pinning her arms. “What are you going to do?”
She screamed loud and high, and the door burst open, a very flustered brother charging in, followed closely by Luc. Sword half-drawn, Enzo skidded to a stop so fast that Luc ran into him. I let go of Chiara and Mari jumped off the bed in front of us and pulled what looked like a dull kitchen knife out of her boot. When she saw it was just her brother, she lowered the blade and started laughing.
Chiara snorted, trying to contain herself, and then I lost it. It wasn’t until the three of us girls had tears streaming down our faces that we finally caught our breath. Luc rolled his eyes and retreated into the hallway, snapping the door shut behind him. Enzo stood with his hands on his hips, sword back in its sheath.
“Do I even want to know what is happening in here?” he asked, looking between us. “And I don’t think you should have that knife, Mari.”
She shrugged and tucked it back into her boot. “I need to be prepared for anything.”
Which only made me laugh harder. With the weight of what was coming looming over the palace, it felt good to have something to smile about.
“Leinn is teaching me how to defend myself,” Chiara said.
Enzo folded his arms and nodded. “That’s a good idea. How is it going?” He guided Mari back to her perch on the bed and sat next to her.
Mari imitated him, doing her best to look stern.
I gave Chiara a questioning look. “Ready?”
She smiled and nodded, turning to face Enzo. I moved around behind her and put my arms around her again, pinning her. She made gentle motions, trying to mimic what I had shown her. But she couldn’t get me off balance enough to throw me. I sighed and let her go.
I caught sight of Enzo holding back a laugh. Inspiration struck.
“Your Highness,” I started. He stopped laughing. “Come over here and grab your sister from behind.”
His eyes got some of their spark back. He stalked around behind Chiara, rubbing his hands together mischievously. She shifted, and her eyes darted to mine.
“This will be good,” I told her. “You can see how much force will be required. I give you permission to do whatever you c
an to break free. Outside of this practice, you’ll only have one shot to get away.”
“Take him down!” Mari was back to bouncing on the bed.
Enzo wrapped his arms around Chiara, engulfing her, and pinned her to him. I smiled as she squirmed, testing his grip. A shiver raced along my skin when, unbidden, my mind slipped back to the farmer’s cottage when I’d woken with Enzo’s arm around me. I refused to let my mind wander any further.
Chiara struggled for a moment, but she didn’t lunge far enough to the side. She pushed her head back against his chest and stomped on his foot, but not hard enough.
“You are stuck. And now he knows your tricks.”
Enzo let her go, and she looked at the ground, discouraged.
I put my hand on her shoulder. “Chin up, Chiara. It was a good first try—it takes some time to learn this. We are practicing now so you can escape when it really matters.”
She looked up with determined eyes. “Show me.”
I tugged on my braid. “What do you mean?”
She pointed to me and her brother. “Enzo, grab Leinn. I want to see how to get away.”
Mari stood up on the bed, arms in the air. “Yes! I want to see Leinn take out Enzo!”
My eyes widened. “Uh, I’m not sure that would be—”
“What’s the matter, Leinn? Afraid you won’t be able to beat me?” Enzo smirked, green eyes sparkling.
I rose to the challenge. “We’ll want a little more space. Chiara, you might want to step toward the wall.”
She skipped to the bed with Mari and bounced next to her. I gestured for Enzo to approach. Before we even touched, his warmth engulfed my form, and then his solid arms came around me.
“Ready?” he whispered in my ear. I shivered, and a laugh rumbled through his chest.
I tried to focus. I did. But he smelled like books and sunshine and, faintly, of crisp apples. I’d sparred with hundreds of men before, but no one had ever incapacitated me with their scent alone.
Chiara leaned over and whispered something to Mari, who giggled. I snapped back into the moment. All right, they wanted to see how to get out of his grip? I’d show them.
I lunged hard to the side, throwing Enzo off balance, then slipped my other leg behind both of his. We were in a crouch now, and I hooked my arms under his knees, then used my hip as leverage to toss him backward hard enough his feet flew over his head and he landed on his stomach. He hit the ground hard and coughed, forehead pressed against the rug.
“Yes,” Mari whispered, almost reverently. She and Chiara’s jaws had gone slack.
“You don’t have to go easy on me, Your Highness,” I said, smirking down at him.
He groaned and stood, then rubbed the back of his neck. “You were poisoned yesterday—”
“They won’t go easy on your sister.”
He looked over at Chiara and Mari, then back to me. “Again.”
I stepped up to him.
“Are you sure I won’t hurt you?” he whispered as he rewrapped his arms around me.
I tried to focus on what he was saying instead of his embrace. “I’ll be fine.”
He tightened his hold and widened his stance so I couldn’t pull the same move again.
This time I kicked my heel up to his crotch, but he moved his hips back before I connected. I lunged to the side while he was off balance and slipped my leg behind his. Before I could toss him again, he adjusted his hold and tickled my stomach. I shrieked a laugh at the unexpected contact and he rolled us back, caging me underneath him.
I should have thrown my fist at his throat, should have done something, anything, besides let him pin me, but his green eyes held me captive. The rest of the room faded. His gaze flicked down to my mouth. My breath caught in my throat. I grabbed a handful of his shirt, inching him closer. For once, I found myself okay with being trapped.
Mari finally broke the tension by yelling a battle cry as she climbed onto Enzo, trying to wrestle him off me. I jolted out of the moment, rolled them both to the side, and sat up.
The door opened, and Luc stuck his head in. “Enzo? We’ve really got to get—” He stopped when he saw us all on the ground.
Chiara walked over and whacked her brother on the back of the head. “You cheated.”
He cleared his throat and stood, throwing Mari over his shoulder. “Sorry, Luc. Just teaching my sisters a lesson.” Mari tried to break free but couldn’t escape his grip.
Luc’s eyes flitted to me, still on the ground, and then back to Enzo. “What kind of lesson?”
I groaned and stood, then extricated Mari from Enzo. “Just teaching Chiara to defend herself.”
Luc’s frown was warm and genuine. “Good idea.” Then he waved Enzo out. “We’ve really got to go, diri.”
“Go?” I asked, tucking my hands in my pockets.
Luc ducked back into the hallway. Enzo glanced between his sisters and me like he couldn’t make up his mind what to say. “I just came to let you know that our departure has been set: we’ll be leaving tomorrow.”
His words caught in my mind. Mari folded her arms and sat on the floor, and Chiara’s smile melted away.
“You’re leaving?” I asked, feeling more blindsided than I probably should have.
“My father, mother, and I are going to Lord Hallen’s estate to…meet with some courtiers.”
My brow furrowed. The Hálendian army was attacking at the pass: Why would the prince heir leave the palace? And why hadn’t he mentioned this when we’d spoken in the libra— That look. Like he’d wanted to tell me something.
Chiara rolled her eyes and fell into a chair by the empty fireplace. “We aren’t in court, Enzo.” She turned to me. “Because the Hálendian princess is dead and he didn’t choose someone at the ball, our parents want to throw Lady Cynthia Hallen at him. Esteemed Councilor Hallen’s daughter.”
My head jerked back to her casual reference to my death. “Oh, uh, of course,” I said to cover my awkwardness. From the way Chiara had said Cynthia’s name, it sounded like she approved of her as much as I did.
Enzo tipped his head toward me subtly. “Chiara, that’s no way to talk about the princess—”
She shrugged, but her voice softened. “She never bothered to answer anything herself, and she never came to visit, even though her brother did. I’m glad you don’t have to marry her.”
I snapped my jaw closed, and my cheeks heated. Then another part of Enzo’s announcement registered. “You and your parents are leaving the palace? For how long?”
He winced and rubbed the back of his neck. “The estate is only one day west of Turiana—”
“One day,” Chiara interjected, “and yet they are leaving Marietta and me here.” She huffed and folded her arms.
“It’s going to be a special form of torture, I assure you. Especially when there are…other pressing matters I need to attend to.” He watched me intently, trying to communicate something with a look, but I was already moving toward the door.
“Excuse me, Chiara. I’ll let you speak to your brother privately.” I bowed and walked stiffly out of the room, letting the door click shut behind me. The mages must be my focus now.
My chest ached at the thought of Enzo courting the beautiful daughters of the Turian nobility. My little room down the hall waited for me, a sanctuary from a future that would never happen, memories I would never have if Enzo wed another. But something uneasy sat in my gut. A whispered warning.
I turned back toward Chiara’s room just as Enzo exited, and we barreled into each other. He grabbed my arms, steadying us both.
“Sorry,” I said, looking up at him. His hands tightened almost imperceptibly, then he blinked and released me.
“Did you forget something?” He tipped his head to Chiara’s door.
“Something doesn’t feel right abou
t this,” I said.
Enzo looked at Luc, who was speaking with someone down the hall. He grabbed my hand, and the contact startled me so much I let him pull me around a corner and into a small sitting room, where he quietly closed the door.
He took a few steps away from me, then stopped, his back to me. Golden light illuminated every corner, every shadow in the room. A sofa and chairs were positioned near the windows, but we stayed by the door.
His shoulders rose and fell with a sigh. “The council prefers Cynthia, but”—he faced me, looking pained—“nothing will be decided right away.”
“It’s not that.” Though that was part of it. I was jealous of a woman I’d never even met. I rubbed the spot beneath my rib cage, where the tethers used to be. “I don’t have a good feeling about you and your parents leaving the palace. Someone tried to poison me and compromise Chiara only yesterday, and we don’t know who. We don’t even know where the mages are, or what their plan is. You’ll be on the road, an easy target for anyone to attack.”
He sighed. “It has to be done.”
My jaw clenched. “But it doesn’t make sense. Why not invite them to stay here?”
“Because troops are amassing at the southern border. There have been reports of villages inundated with Riigans and mercenaries from the Continent.”
“Riiga is readying to attack?” My mind raced with the implications. Could they have somehow known Hálendi was about to break the peace? Or did they act when an advantageous situation appeared?
“Koranth has been meeting with nobility, and we don’t know how much influence he’s gained. My father fears Ambassador Koranth will push me into an alliance with Riiga if another match isn’t set.”
“So you’re going to Hallen’s estate to keep Koranth and those loyal to him out of the decision without starting another dispute.” Yet another mess caused by my silence. He needed a betrothal to keep Riiga away. And I was right here. But, of course, my own throne separated us. “Enzo, I—”
Fear choked me. Visions of the mage’s power—how he’d held everyone frozen, his blade across Aleinn’s throat—rose in my mind. It could be Chiara next. Or Enzo himself.
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