The Exalted

by Kaitlyn Sage Patterson

  Since the founding of the Empire, Alskad has been ruled by the singleborn...but the new heir to the throne carries a secret that will change everything

  When an assassin’s bullet takes the life of Queen Runa and allows an impostor to steal the throne, Bo Trousillion is forced to flee the empire that is his birthright. With few choices left and burdened with a secret that could disinherit him, Bo pursues an alliance with Noriava, the Queen of Denor, but the devious royal ensnares him in a trap and demands a huge price for her aid.

  To the south, Vi Abernathy—Bo’s secret twin—joins a ragtag army of resistance fighters, determined to free Alskad and the colony of Ilor from the control of the corrupt temple and its leaders. But as Vi discovers a strength she never knew she had and prepares to rejoin her brother in Alskad, news of the coup and Bo’s narrow escape arrive in Ilor.

  Determined to rescue Bo, Vi sails to Denor with the rebels at her side and a plan to outwit Queen Noriava, knowing there’s only one way she and Bo will be able to save the Alskad Empire—together.

  Praise for Kaitlyn Sage Patterson and The Diminished

  “Bo and Vi are fierce, complex characters, and I couldn’t devour their story fast enough!”

  —Amy Tintera, New York Times bestselling author of Ruined

  “Rich world-building... An intriguing premise and well-constructed setting anchor this fantasy debut.”

  —Kirkus Reviews

  “Strong and imaginative world-building and complex characters...with a splash of swoony romance and a thrilling conclusion.”

  —Zoraida Córdova, award-winning author of Labyrinth Lost and The Vicious Deep trilogy

  “Readers are in for a wild ride... Patterson serves up an adventurous story with plenty of opulence in a richly designed world.”

  —School Library Journal

  “Life and death, right and wrong, love and grief—Patterson’s debut explores the dangerous nature of a world entrenched in dualities.”

  —Natalie C. Parker, author of Beware the Wild

  Kaitlyn Sage Patterson grew up with her nose in a book outside the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. When she’s not staring off into space and trying to untangle some particularly troublesome plot point, she can be found in the kitchen, cooking overly elaborate meals; at the barn, where she rides and trains dressage horses; or with her husband, spoiling their sweet rescue dogs. The Exalted is the sequel to her first novel, The Diminished.

  www.KaitlynSagePatterson.com

  Books by Kaitlyn Sage Patterson

  The Diminished

  The Exalted

  Kaitlyn Sage Patterson

  The Exalted

  For Iya, always in my heart.

  Contents

  PART ONE

  CHAPTER ONE

  CHAPTER TWO

  CHAPTER THREE

  CHAPTER FOUR

  CHAPTER FIVE

  CHAPTER SIX

  CHAPTER SEVEN

  PART TWO

  CHAPTER EIGHT

  CHAPTER NINE

  CHAPTER TEN

  CHAPTER ELEVEN

  CHAPTER TWELVE

  CHAPTER THIRTEEN

  CHAPTER FOURTEEN

  CHAPTER FIFTEEN

  CHAPTER SIXTEEN

  CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

  PART THREE

  CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

  CHAPTER NINETEEN

  CHAPTER TWENTY

  CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE

  CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO

  CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE

  CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR

  CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE

  CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX

  CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN

  PART FOUR

  CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT

  CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE

  CHAPTER THIRTY

  CHAPTER THIRTY-ONE

  CHAPTER THIRTY-TWO

  CHAPTER THIRTY-THREE

  CHAPTER THIRTY-FOUR

  CHAPTER THIRTY-FIVE

  CHAPTER THIRTY-SIX

  CHAPTER THIRTY-SEVEN

  CHAPTER THIRTY-EIGHT

  CHAPTER THIRTY-NINE

  CHAPTER FORTY

  CHAPTER FORTY-ONE

  CHAPTER FORTY-TWO

  CHAPTER FORTY-THREE

  CHAPTER FORTY-FOUR

  CHAPTER FORTY-FIVE

  CHAPTER FORTY-SIX

  CHAPTER FORTY-SEVEN

  ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

  Part One

  “Let the burden of vengeance rest solely on my shoulders, for what has passed cannot be undone. I am the wrath and the fury. I am the fire and the brimstone. I am the hammer and the sword. Seek justice in each choice you make, for no one is safe from my watchful gaze.”

  —from the Book of Dzallie, the Warrior

  “From death, new life is born. The ashes of our loss fertilize my earth, turning dust to soil and loam to life. The lives of all my people, twin and singleborn alike, pass in the blink of an eye. With each breath, you grow closer to me, and to your eternity in the halls of the gods. Take comfort in death, for each passing feeds the cycle, bringing forth new life.”

  —from the Book of Teuber, the Earthbound

  CHAPTER ONE

  Vi

  “It’s strange, to remember a time before I met you, before I knew you were there at the other end of this connection. For most of my life, I assumed it was my twin, pulling me toward the afterlife, but now it gives me a comfort I’d never imagined, even as you travel across the ocean, even as the light between us grows fainter by the day. Deep in my heart, I harbor that flicker of you, and I know that I’ll never be truly alone again.”

  —from Vi to Bo

  For days after my brother’s ship disappeared over the horizon, I watched the sea. I spent hours on the balcony of Mal and Quill’s house in Williford, staring out over the rooftops at the vast span of open water that swelled between my twin and me. Though I’d once again upended their lives, Mal and Quill had made space for me, had taken care of me with a generosity so fierce, I teared up if I thought too much about it.

  As the sun set on the fifth week since my brother’s departure, I leaned back in my chair, bare feet up on the railing as the sun sank below the horizon. The air buzzed with a chorus of cicadas, and somewhere down the street a fiddle sang, harmonizing with a chorus of trilling birds. Sweat pooled irritatingly in the crook of my elbow. Mal and Quill’s housekeeper, Noona, insisted that the shoulder I’d pulled out of socket wouldn’t heal unless I kept the arm strapped to my chest in a sling for another two weeks. My shoulder hardly ached at all anymore, but it was easier to argue with a stone wall than with Noona when her mind was made up.

  I froze as a flash of white by the gate sent my heart racing. The Shriven, the knives in the temple’s belt, prowled the streets in greater numbers every day, but I was safely hidden in the Whipplestons’ house. Safe, at least, until the governor granted the temple the right to begin ransacking folks’ homes.

  Then one of the puppies I’d brought with me from Plumleen, the house Bo and I had barely escaped from with our lives, tumbled out of my bedroom and onto the balcony, yipping and shattering the illusion of fearful stillness on the balcony. A moment later, Quill appeared, the lamp he carried bathing us in a golden glow.

  “Learned how to read in the dark, have you?” he asked, grinning down at the open book in my lap.

  I flipped the book closed and treated Quill to a sharp glare, tempered by a smile I couldn’t keep from my lips whenever he was around. No matter how upended and useless I’d felt as my shoulder healed, Quill�
��s presence always brought a shine of joy to my days. “It wasn’t dark until a few minutes ago.”

  He leaned down and kissed the tip of my nose. “I knew you could see in the dark. Part bat, part girl, just as I suspected. Next thing I know, I’ll come out to find you hanging from the rafters by your toes.”

  “Hush,” I said with a laugh. “Is Mal back?”

  “He and Curlin are playing brag in the sitting room. Supper’s almost ready. Do you want to come down?”

  I made a face at the mention of Curlin’s name. I wasn’t entirely convinced that I’d been right to insist we not leave her in the woods behind Plumleen Hall. Quill set the lamp down and leaned against the railing, crossing his arms over his broad chest and studying me intently, as if he could see into my treacherous heart.

  “She’s trying, Vi. And she’s lost just as much as you have. More, even.”

  I bit the inside of my cheek, frustrated. “Trying doesn’t erase what she’s done. The promises she’s broken. Trying doesn’t bring back the dead.”

  “Curlin used to be your best friend,” Quill insisted. “You can’t keep punishing her for her desperate choices. She’s remorseful. She wants the same things you do. You both want to see the temple fall.”

  “It’s just not that easy to trust her again.”

  Quill knelt next to my chair and cupped my cheek in his warm hand. I leaned into his touch, despite my irritation. He was right, and I knew it. “It’d be easier if you spoke to her. If you tried, Vi.”

  “I’m not the only one who could make an effort,” I sniped, then immediately felt a spike of guilt at the expression on Quill’s face. Before he could open his mouth, I put up a hand. “I’ll try. Promise.”

  “Good. Then come downstairs. Noona’s made a feast.” Quill scooped up the puppy and the lamp and I followed him inside, glancing one last time over my shoulder at the gate. I didn’t see anyone, but I knew better than to feel safe when I’d spent so much of my own life hidden in shadows.

  We found Curlin and Mal in the sitting room, glaring at one another over a table littered with coins and cards.

  “Who’s winning?” Quill asked.

  Mal’s smile lit the room. “I don’t think Curlin understands that the game’s about lying. Or if she does, she’s truly terrible at it.”

  Curlin huffed and threw her cards down on the table. “I fold. This game is aggressively pointless.”

  I crouched just inside the threshold to pet the mama dog, awkward and unsure where to look. Thankfully, Noona appeared a moment later, wiping her hands on her apron.

  “Food’ll get cold if you lot keep dillydallying,” she chided. “Let’s go. You girls won’t heal if you don’t feed those bodies of yours.”

  My eyes slid to Curlin and found her looking back at me with a small, tight smile. Noona’s tone was so like the one Anchorite Lugine had used to berate us when we’d taken too long to clean our plates as brats. The smile I returned was half-hearted at best, but it was something. It was a start.

  * * *

  After a supper taut with long silences and weighted looks exchanged between the Whipplestons, Curlin caught my eye and raised an eyebrow. I could have pretended not to see the look, ignored the question painted across her face as clearly as her tattoos, but I knew it was time. The moment we’d cleared the table, after Noona and her brother retreated to the kitchen for their evening pot of tea, I blocked the door before Mal and Quill could escape.

  “Maybe the four of us could go out to the garden—”

  Curlin cut me off with a sharp shake of her head. “Upstairs. One of the rooms at the back of the house.”

  Mal furrowed his brows, shooting quizzical looks around the room, but Quill seemed to understand immediately.

  “We’ve got time,” he insisted. “The both of you still have weeks of healing ahead of you, and we still haven’t made contact—”

  Mal heaved a deep sigh and ran a hand over his face. “Quill. They’re right. It’s time.”

  “Well past time, I’d say,” Curlin agreed.

  “Fine,” Quill said, snagging a bottle of wine off the bar cart. “Upstairs, then. Mal? Glasses?”

  Mal, frowning, collected four long-stemmed crystal glasses and followed his brother, refusing to meet my eyes. Curlin tugged absently at the bandage covering her bicep and the wound that had nearly killed her. “You know what it is your sweetheart’s been keeping so close to the chest?”

  I shook my head, wary, as my mind churned with the possibilities. Had he found the rebels and kept it from us? Or could he have heard from Bo? What was he hiding behind that perfect smile?

  “He’s got secrets, Vi. I can promise you that.”

  I rolled my eyes, but my stomach was in knots. “I’m sure he’ll tell us what we need to know.”

  Curlin shrugged and followed me up the stairs. At the end of the hall, lamplight spilled from Quill’s bedroom door. I walked past my room and down the corridor, hopping over the squeaky boards between Quill’s room and mine without thinking. Behind me, Curlin snorted, and the hot flood of a blush washed up my neck and burned bright spots on my cheeks.

  Mal stood at the window as we entered the room, lifting the edge of the curtain to peer out into the dark night. Quill was perched on the corner of his bed, but hopped up to hand Curlin and me each a glass of wine the same gold as his eyes.

  I sank into one of the two overstuffed armchairs that flanked Quill’s bookcase, and Curlin leaned against the wall just to my right, positioning herself so that her injured arm and mine were side by side. I didn’t think she even realized she was doing it, putting the two of us in a defensive position like that—the instincts earned from years of the Shriven’s brutal training would probably never leave her, though I hoped the haunted look would someday fade from her eyes.

  “Well,” I started, “what’ve you got to tell us? Have you found the rebels?”

  Mal crossed the room and locked the door, reaching out to give Curlin a reassuring pat on the shoulder as he passed. She danced out of his reach, glaring. “Out with it,” she spit.

  “Finding the resistance has never been a problem,” Quill said, staring down at his hands, knotted together in his lap. “I’ve known where they are all along.”

  I narrowed my eyes at him. “What do you mean?”

  Quill took a deep, shuddering breath and met my searching gaze, his golden eyes glitteringly bright in the light of the sunlamps.

  “Several years ago, when my brother and I first started coming to Ilor with Uncle Hamlin, I saw the way that the laborers here were being treated, and it grated at me. But when I learned that the temples were contracting laborers to grow philomena, I knew I couldn’t stand by and watch. Like everyone else in the colonies, I remembered what’d happened the last time folks farmed philomenas. I had to do something.”

  “Do what, exactly?” My mouth went dry. I knew what was coming. I could feel the anger burbling in my belly, ready to erupt just as soon as he said the words.

  “I had the resources and the ability. I knew I could make a difference. And I’d started to. Dealing in contract labor gave me connections in places I wouldn’t have had access to otherwise, and I made sure that the folks I placed were either well cared for and happy or got away clean.” Quill paused and gave me a small, sweet smile that I could not—would not—return.

  “And then you came along. You turned me on my head. Gods, you turned the whole of Ilor on its head. There’s not a soul in the colonies who doesn’t know your name. And then, when you stayed behind after Bo—”

  “You lied to me.” I cut him off. Frustration bubbled up in my chest, threatening to set me alight. I wanted him to come right out and say it. Tell me what it was he’d been hiding from me all these weeks.

  Quill, to his credit, kept his eyes on mine, though a muscle in his jaw twitched, betraying the sting in my words. />
  “What, might I ask, are they saying about me?” I spit.

  Crossing his arms over his chest, Quill glanced at his brother, whose eyes were on the toes of his boots, offering him no help at all. With a deep breath, Quill said, “That you’d hardly been in Ilor for a moment when the man who’d bought your contract was dead and his estate razed. There are rumors that you harnessed some kind of power from being diminished and have turned that rage and hate into magic. They say that you’ve taken over the leadership of the rebellion and that you plan to end Alskad’s grasp on the governance of Ilor.”

  I snorted, and laughter spilled out of me. It was absurd. All of this was absurd.

  “I know the truth,” Quill said, “and it was hard even for me not to get caught up in the rumors.”

  “What’s the truth, then?” Curlin asked, her voice steady, far more measured than I could manage at the moment. I shot her a grateful look.

  “I know where the rebellion is camped. I’ve always known.” Quill hesitated. “I’m one of its leaders.”

  I blinked back furious tears. “Why didn’t you tell me this sooner? Don’t you trust me?”

  “Because it’s not just about me,” Quill said. “There are hundreds of people whose lives depend on my keeping their existence secret. If I’d just shown up in camp with you, they’d have panicked. I have to convince the rest of the leaders that you’re a useful asset.”

  “They think we’re a liability,” Curlin said bitterly, and my heart wrenched at the truth in her words. How I could’ve been so clueless before was beyond me. I was no one. I was utterly useless to the people I wanted to help, and the Whipplestons had spent weeks trying to protect me from that truth.

  Mal nodded. “We’ve been going in circles for weeks, trying to figure out how to keep you safe. To keep them safe.”

  “It’s not your job to keep me safe,” I spit. “If I’d wanted to be wrapped in cotton wool and put away on a shelf, I would’ve gone back to Alskad with Bo. I’m here to do something. To make a difference. And if you can’t see that, then maybe it’s time for me to leave.”