Page 106 of Queen of War and Ruin

A noise slips out of my throat before I can stop it. Acelina puts her hand on mine. For a heartbeat, our eyes meet.

And I realize there’s something locked up inside Acelina, something wild and deadly that’s kept her alive all these years in Malrik’s court.

This place hasn’t broken her.

“Thank you,” I manage to whisper.

She nods like she’s just let me borrow a handkerchief, then looks back over her shoulder. I see Petrys’s shadow on the gravel path.

“If you see him,” Acelina whispers without looking at me, “give him my gratitude.”

My mouth opens, but I can’t think of anything to say. Acelina nods politely, then turns and walks down the path. I hear her say something to Petrys. I can’t make out the words, but her voice is soft and friendly, like always. And then Petrys walks over to me, his hand still on his sword, like those feral wolves might suddenly jump out of the bushes.

“What did she want?” he asks.

I shake my head. And then I tell him everything.

Petrys insists that I walk through the garden as we talk, so the story comes out in whispered fragments. Petrys doesn’t say much, and every time I look at him, he steps back, his expression cold and formal.

I want to scream. My eyes climb the palace walls, tracing the bright windows as they throw the sunlight back into the garden. Which one of those rooms holds Zarek?

And what in the gods’ many names are they doing to him up there?

The closer we get to the palace, the more crowded the gardens become. I smile and nod at every elegant gentleman and lady we pass. Some of them nod in return, although no one actually speaks to me. Some part of me wonders why. Is it because I’m the princess of Marion? Or because they think I started the war? Or maybe they just don’t like Blayne.

“There you are!” a voice snaps.

I glance up, startled. And there’s Blayne, stalking across the garden like he was summoned by my thoughts. He scowls at me in a way that reminds me of my father.

Blayne grabs my arm and yanks me toward him.

“Where in the hells were you?” he growls.

I open my mouth. Blayne turns to Petrys, rage scrawled across his features.

“Were you alone?” Blayne spits. “With my wife?”

“My lord—” Petrys begins, in an icy voice.

“They already say I can’t control you,” Blayne snaps, spinning back to me, his face red with rage. “If there is even a hint of a rumor about my child⁠—”

Petrys steps forward.

“My lord,” Petrys says again, in a voice as cold as the mountains, “the lady Lilias was summoned to the garden to meet with Princess Acelina.”

Blayne steps back. My arm aches where his hand grabbed me. Petrys lets his fingers rest once again on the pommel of his sword.

“I was never alone with the lady,” Petrys continues, his icy voice formal. “As I am sure every gentleman in this garden would attest.”

My back stiffens as Blayne sniffs and glances to either side of Petrys. From where I’m standing, I can see a handful of people in the garden, in clusters of two and three, all pretending not to stare at us. The princess of a fallen kingdom, her guard, and the spy desperate to join the nobility.

Blayne turns back to me. For a heartbeat, I wonder if he’s about to apologize for causing a scene.

“Why would the princess want to meet with you?” Blayne asks.

So much for an apology.

“She wanted to offer her congratulations,” I say, as politely as I can manage through my clenched jaw. “On our upcoming marriage.”