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“I need to get home,” I say. “I need to talk to Bard. Did Gabrio mention if he saw him?”
“Lake, you cannot travel yet. You must eat and rest, or the bridge might kill you. It is not a journey for someone so weak.”
“But Bard’s probably wondering—”
“Bard is dead, Lake. He died the day after we took you.”
I can’t—I don’t—I’m not… “What did you say?” It can’t be what I think I heard.
“Why do you think Master is here when he has sworn to serve you and Bardolf? He was only able to cross the bridge because Bardolf is gone—Master’s vow required him to come. And I am grateful he did. Master picked up your scent near the Blood King’s palace and led us to you—a very difficult task considering you were running in zigzags around the forest. We could hardly keep up.”
Were those the thudding sounds I kept hearing? The giants were running after me.
I look at Master, who has his polka-dotted head resting on his huge paws. Master, the dog who always goes apeshit, eating through doors, tearing through furniture when he’s separated from us. Master, who stayed by my side every second after Grandma died. How a dog makes a vow, I don’t know. But in this moment, I don’t care.
My eyes fill with tears, and I look up at Alwar. “Are you sure? Is Bard really gone?”
“That is what Master said.”
Alwar speaks dog—another thing I can’t deal with right now.
“I don’t understand. How did Bard die? The doctor said he would be okay.” Oh, God. Did I kill him? Please, please no. My stomach twists into a painful knot, and my heart squeezes in my chest.
Alwar looks at Master, then me. “Master says the No Ones took him. He must’ve broken a vow.”
“What vow?”
“Master does not know. He says Bardolf’s nephew came by the house with some other humans, looking for you. He overheard him mention that Bardolf disappeared from the hospital. Gone in the blink of an eye.”
I press my hand over my heavy heart. “I-I can’t believe it.”
Master comes over and lays his head in my lap. I stroke his soft ears absentmindedly.
I try to imagine what a world without Bard and Grandma means, but I can’t. I can’t see a life where they’re not in it. I’m shattered.
“What was Bard?” I ask softly. If he was taken by the No Ones, he wasn’t human.
“Bardolf was one of us, more or less. He and the members of his family crossed the bridge before the War People took the vow prohibiting it.”
“He was a giant?”
Alwar nods. “I did not care for the man. He stopped following my commands, or the War People ways, long ago. Even went to school to learn how to cook disgusting human food. But he was still a subject of mine, and I honor him for watching over you as long as he did.”
He was a giant. I let it sink in. It finally makes sense why he hated modern ways, like using a coffee maker. “Wait. So Bard was my bodyguard?”
“He was not your servant.” Alwar narrows his sapphire blue eyes. “Bardolf was there to look after our interests in the Norfolk family. Where do you think the diamond came from?”
“That was you?” I’m not sure if I should be touched and grateful, or leery.
“I have no need for diamonds or money, but I have always looked after your family. This is why I asked Bardolf to ensure you were not impregnated by a weak, unworthy human male, like that degenerate you took as a lover in school. Bardolf ensured his treacherous ways were revealed to you. We need someone who can strengthen the Norfolk bloodline, not dilute it.”
I can’t believe what I’m hearing. “You had Bard spy on me.”
“Not spy. Look after. There is a difference. After your mother died, you became my last hope of regaining the throne. That hope was you opening your legs for the right human male. Someone bigger, stronger, and faster than the prior Norfolks.”
I cringe at Alwar’s words. “You saw me as your broodmare.”
Alwar stares but doesn’t reply.
I’m too furious to talk anymore. I nudge Master off my legs, lie back down, and turn my back to Alwar.
“Lake, do not be upset.”
“What’s there to be upset about? My mom died for you, my father died because of you, my grandma lied about everything, and Bard is dead. Now I find out that he promised to make sure I fucked some big guy and have strong babies, who would someday grow up to be offered up as gladiators to die in your silly monster war.” What’s to be upset about?
“This is not silly.”
I look over my shoulder. “You are silly. You and this entire fucking place are ridiculous.”
“We have honor.”
“I need sleep.” In other words, go away.
