“The Watchmen barely care enough to feed any of the Vedrans. Much less see if they are comfortable or freezing to death. The prisoners are lucky enough to all be thrown together into a cell to limit how many of them perish under that circumstance. Enid and Wellyn are alive, and I suspect it is because they’ve had each other this whole time. But I am not going to lie to you, Anelize. They will not return the same way they once were. None of them will.”
Of course she knew that.
She would have been deluded not to know that such a thing was possible. For people like Enid and Wellyn who had only ever been as warm as the sun itself, there was no feasible way that they wouldn’t be broken by the horrors they were forced to endure.
Aeric reached across and gripped her hand in his where she eyed the leather glove that he’d slipped on. The same way allthe Watchmen were made to wear. His touch felt foreign with that glove, but she knew the truth of him laid beneath that armor. The very one he loathed to step into every day.
“I will set them all free,” Aeric promised her.
She turned to look out the window, watching as the stars twinkled in the dark skies and the full moon illuminated the way forward.
The journey to Castle Rime was longer than she’d expected it to be. Being born and raised, restricted primarily within the impoverished district, she never realized how vast Elvir was beyond the narrow alleyways and the ailing folk that surrounded her all of her life. Now she was seeing more than she’d ever cared for.
They took winding, sloping roads that led them out of the port and into the upper district. As they entered the heart of the city, Anelize stared up at the several homes that lined the streets where the nobles resided. Like the ones near the port, the imposing homes she saw were also built with structural framing, though they were well kept, not a crack in sight. No thatched roofs ready to cave in on themselves either. There were no beggars taking up residence along the streets or orphans running about.
They passed through a larger plaza with towering buildings and stalls where she caught sight of many merchants and vendors calling out to patrons with big genuine smiles on their faces. The few nobles she saw walking along the streets had been dressed in thick fur coats and finely woven wools. There hadn’t been a beggar in sight, nor a single person looking as though they would keel over at any given moment from starvation.
“They have all of this, thanks to the king, while hecondemns the rest of us to starve and fight overruens.Yet none of these people seem to care, do they?” she murmured as they rode past a family of three that stepped out onto the stoop of their home. The little boy dressed in thick clothing to ward off against the cold, wearing an innocent smile on his face as his father carried him in his arms.
“Why should they?” Aeric’s words made her look at him. His dark eyes trained on the window. “Give a dog food from the day its born and it’ll follow you blindly. Try to take it away, and it’ll sink its teeth into the very hand that fed it. The king knows it, and he knows how to manipulate his people with false promises and riches in exchange for the nobility’s favor. The same with the impoverished who believe that killing Vedrans for the sake of being rid of a disease is justified. If either were to turn against him, there would be riots across the city. Even then, it wouldn’t ever be for those who have suffered, it would be for their own selfish gain.”
Perhaps, with Castian’s devotion to changing the order of the way Madacians have lived until now would inspire some change. She wanted to believe that.
“What do you know about the king’s physician?”
“He is an interesting fellow, though inept is the kindest word I can use for him. You’ll find out why soon enough. It’ll be easy working with him, he often likes to keep to himself which will give you a window of opportunity to do what needs to be done. Pay attention to the gossip you hear and steer clear of the council. They like to circle the king like vultures at all hours of the day. If you see or hear anything about Councilman Santir, do not let your curiosity get the best of you.”
The expression on his face was unyielding, his words coldas he spoke of the councilman. Years of resentment reflected in his gaze.
Anelize had heard stories about Esna Santir. He was the head of the council and the so-called mastermind behind all of the clever ways on how to punish the Vedrans. It was he who encouraged the king to begin burning them on the pyres rather than burying them and risk overflowing their graveyards with bodies.
The carriage eventually came to a stop, the sound of men talking muffled through the windows until the door was pulled open. A young man wearing black Watchman leathers stepped into view, his eyes scrutinizing as he eyed her then looked to Aeric, when the latter asked, “Is there a problem?”
“C-Captain Maren! I did not know it was you in this carriage. And who might this be?”
“She’s an apothecary from the upper district, requested by Horia himself. I’m escorting her to the infirmary. Unless you have any objections,” Aeric challenged, his voice cold and asserting. Clearly, his mask had slid into place far faster than the twins had.
“O-of course not, captain. My apologies,” the Watchman stammered before backing away, waving a hand before the sounds of more men announcing their captain’s arrival reached them. A few moments later, the coach was being led through the wrought iron gates of a large stone archway where she caught sight of more Watchmen patrolling along the wall walk.
As they continued forward, she heard Aeric say, “Don’t look at me like that.”
Anelize blinked, turning her gaze back to him to find a grimlook on his face.
“Like what?”
“Like I’m a Watchman,” he rasped, even as he maintained that mask of indifference. It mattered not when she could see the resentment for who he was in his eyes. “I can handle being looked at that way by anyone else. But not you.”
Anelize fought the urge to lean forward, aware that there were Watchmen everywhere who could easily peer into the windows and see them.
Instead, she said, “I see you, Aeric.”
A small smile tugged at his lips. “And I you.”
25
They exited the coach and found themselves within the inner bailey filled with Watchmen and horses alike, and fires burning along the braziers that lined the walls of the compound. Across the bailey, Anelize noticed a large three-story building she realized must be the keep where all the Watchmen reside.
Her eyes scanned the black armor and weapons that the Watchmen kept on them and silently relished at the sight of bruises and injuries the majority of them seemed to bear.
