Total pages in book: 201
Estimated words: 191006 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 955(@200wpm)___ 764(@250wpm)___ 637(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 191006 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 955(@200wpm)___ 764(@250wpm)___ 637(@300wpm)
Gasps fill the room.
“I wasn’t going to drop her,” I mumble as another wave of shock washes over me.
“I didn’t think you would.” But he remains where he is, his hands lingering on me, his imposing form too close for my comfort.
I keep my eyes on the embroidered collar of his tunic as my cheeks flush, unsure what else to do or say except, “Thank you, Your Highness.”
“How old?” he asks softly.
The unexpected question throws me off. “Only a few days,” I stammer, adding a breathy, “Your Highness.”
“Her name?”
I calm my nerves as best I can. “Suri.”
He hums, and I feel it deep inside. “That’s a beautiful name.” After another beat, his hands slip away. He steps back. “You and your children may return to your quarters.”
I find the courage to meet his gaze again. “Thank you for showing us your mercy.”
He offers an almost imperceptible nod, but his expression is somber. “I hope when the time comes, you will show me yours.” With that, he spins on his heels and strolls away, heading swiftly for a door in the back as if he can’t get out of here fast enough.
“What did I tell you, a show of power.” Corrin sidles up to me, Lilou in her arms.
“He asked for her name,” I whisper.
“And which did you give him?” A hint of panic touches her tone.
I peer down at the tiny, innocent face in my arms, relaxed in slumber once again. “The one we agreed to.”
Not the one I anointed her with in the wee hours, moments after her birth.
A traitor’s name.
CHAPTER SIX
ZANDER
“You are surprised by the witch’s betrayal?” Abarrane’s tone carries its typical scorn. I can always count on my Legion commander to mock me the first private moment she finds. In this case, Elisaf’s presence doesn’t stay her sharp tongue.
“Nothing surprises me anymore when it comes to these casters and the lengths they will reach to ensure prophecy fulfills itself. That does not mean I cannot be furious.”
Our voices echo through the tunnel in the mountain wall that separates Ulysede from the outside world. The first time we walked through here, these fifty paces felt like five hundred. But already the distance between the two portcullises is narrowing, the sense of the waiting danger beyond growing every hour since Romeria informed me of Gesine’s secret message to Mordain.
An hourglass has been flipped, and it is spilling sand. How quickly? How long before Mordain’s guild knows all there is to know about Romeria? Gesine could not say. But she freely admitted to securing paper, ink, and seal from Bellcross’s sanctum when they retrieved Ianca and tasking one of Freywich’s mortals with delivering a note to the priestess upon their arrival in Bellcross with Lord Rengard. From there, the priestess who kept Ianca hidden would know what to do.
“If it’s any consolation, that is an impossible journey. Maybe the bird died over the rift,” Elisaf offers.
“As impossible as Stonekeep lending itself to prophecy and giving us this?” I wave a hand around us. When Gesine had suggested there was more to this mountain than a sheer rock wall of ancient nymph writing, I laughed in her face. I will never make that mistake again. “She spelled the message for travel and is confident it will land in the right hands. She has proven more than capable of achieving her goals, so we must assume her scribes will soon know where to look for us.”
“Are you worried what they will do when they find out we have a key caster?” Abarrane asks, more somberly.
“I am worried about many things, Mordain and otherwise.” I sigh. “Gesine is adamant this Master Scribe is prudent. But if it should reach the broader guild, we must assume it will travel to Neilina’s ears shortly after.” And then she will know her daughter the princess is dead. What will that mean to her? “In any case, it is only a matter of time before the world knows there is a key caster again. This secret was never going to remain ours forever.” But I’d hoped long enough to allow me a chance to regain my crown and right all that’s wrong in my realm.
Abarrane scowls. “We have Neilina to worry about, and Atticus to worry about, and now this poison. We do not need an army of witches after us too.”
All the more reason for me to leave the safety of Ulysede behind. But for the first time in my life, I’m paralyzed by indecision. Every choice I could make, every direction I could take, feels like the wrong one.
“I am ready when you are, Your Highness.” Abarrane draws her sword as we approach the second gate where three legionaries stand guard, and it prompts Elisaf and I to draw ours. “Any movement tonight, Loth?”
“Nothing yet, Commander.” Loth stands sentry next to the lever, an arrow nocked in his bow, ready to fire. “We sensed something earlier, but it vanished.”