We were not lovers yet, I reminded myself. I needed to be more flirtatious, less inquisitive. How would Eonaî have handled it?
Ahead, a carriage even larger than the one that had brought us from the harbor to the Mountainside Palace stood motionless on a narrow pathway made of rocks. Behind stood four electro mages, recognizable because of the blue of their clothes. Their magic would power the engine, setting the wheels rolling and the carriage moving.
The most senior mage, based on the embroidery on his jacket, held open the door of the carriage. One of the Emperor’s Dogs unsheathed a short blade, best for fighting in enclosed spaces. Silently, he stepped up into the carriage. Tallu stared off into the distance, toward the high walls that surrounded the Mountainside Palace. His eyes narrowed briefly on something, and I glanced over to see Terror landing on one of the nearby trees.
The raven began preening its wing, silently observing us with one unblinking eye.
“It is safe, Your Imperial Majesty.” The Dog stepped down, and I was reminded again of a shadow moving back into position. He bowed low, and Tallu mounted the single step, settling into the darkness of the carriage.
I glanced at the only one of the Dogs that I recognized, Sagam, raising my eyebrow in question.
The last thing I wanted to do was offend my betrothed with a simple protocol mistake. Smart. Be as smart as Eonaî. How could I have ever assumed that learning how tokillthe man would be more important than listening to Lord Fuyii drone on about the correct order in which to enter a carriage?
Sagam dipped his chin just slightly, and I took the step up. Sagam and one of the other Dogs crowded in behind me. There were only two benches inside the carriage, and even though it was larger than the one I had been in only a day prior, I still had to duck my head.
I couldn’t turn to glance at Sagam to see where I should sit, and before I had to make the awkward choice of sitting next to Tallu or across from him, the emperor slid over just enough for me to understand I was to sit next to him.
Settling into the soft seat, I watched as both of the Dogs took the bench across. I could hear movement outside, and the electro mages shut the door firmly.
No one spoke. The carriage made a single jerk, then began moving smoothly, the wide wheels crunching over gravel until it came to solid ground. The windows were no more than narrow slats set in such a way that they let in light without giving any visual of the outside world.
“Is the soothsayer far?” I asked.
Lord Fuyii hadn’t mentioned one.ThatI knew for certain. All Fuyii had said was that marriages happened at the emperor’s discretion. So, what discretion was Tallu using?
“Not far.” Tallu didn’t turn to look at me, so I studied his profile, the long line of his nose, sharp cheekbones that gave way to a plush mouth. Good. It was good that I was attracted to him. I could fake that, obviously, but it was better if, when I looked at him, I was already thinking what he would be like in bed, tousled, mouth half open in a moan.
Tallu’s eyes cut to me, the russet color making my stomach clench, making something in me shiver. Tallu’s eyes, even the slightest glance, made me feel like he could see inside me, like he knew my intention.
I swallowed.
All too soon, the carriage eased to a stop with barely even a jerk, and I heard more shuffling outside, someone moving across the roof of the carriage, someone else jumping off the side. No one spoke, and I bit my tongue to keep from a snarky comment.
I could do this. I could hold my tongue. But Yorîmu had only trained me to stay quiet when I was fighting, when I was lying in wait, when the trap was about to be sprung. Even she knew that she couldn’t quiet me permanently without removing my tongue.
“So, do we stay in here until your guards have cleared the entire city or just the mile around the carriage?” I raised both eyebrows, and Tallu kept his face straight ahead.
At first, I was sure he was annoyed, the flat press of his lips going pale again. Then, like watching a borealis wolf unfold from sleep, I saw the corners of his lips curve up, although his eyes stayed straight ahead, staring at his Dogs.
“Usually, the two miles around the carriage. And even then, they subdue only the people most dangerous to my safety. Children under the age of one and the elderly are allowed to stay.” He glanced at me again, and it was like receiving a nick from a sharp blade. For a moment, I was too shocked to do anything more than gape.
The door opened, and Tallu rose, moving out into the light. Standing, I bent my head to follow him through, surprised when he reached for my hand as I stepped out.
Part of me wanted to ignore the offer. I was no blushing rose. I wasn’t Eonaî, trained since birth to be the ideal imperial bride. But Ineededto be. I needed to learn how to get close to him.
I put my hand on top of his, feeling the warmth of his skin, my nerves alight as though I was touching one of the lines of electricity the Dogs had released earlier.
In my chest, my heart beat too fast.Now. Now. Plunge my blade into his chest and be done with this tension.
That was foolish. My job had been to do the killing and Eonaî’s to make sure the infighting would destroy the Imperium. I needed to know who all the power players were, who wanted power and would try to seize it as soon as the emperor died, so that I could stoke them all into a burning inferno that would consume the entire Imperium when I finally made the killing blow.
On the ground, Tallu released my hand and strode into a dragon’s mouth.
Eight
We were deep in the mountains, and someone had carved the head of a dragon into the mountainside, shaping its eyes from dark stone that glimmered in the sunlight, its scales delicately painted with blue and silver that contrasted the green forest around it. The mouth was open, so large that Tallu’s head didn’t even brush the stalactites hanging like sharp fangs from the entrance to the cavern.
Turning around, I saw the spread of the Capital City below us in a valley between the mountains. Buildings and houses spread up into the crevices of low hills like water in reverse. On our journey from the north, I had only seen a glance of the city when our carriage had stopped briefly to give the electro mages a chance to rest.
