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Nylah and I sat around the large table in a conference room when Ren and Lucia entered. Ren looked solemn. He wore casual attire—comfortable pants and a tunic—where Lucia behind him looked like she was ready to host a royal dinner.
“Thank you for coming,” he said to us warmly. He pulled out a chair for Lucia, who sat down, eyeing the two of us.
Ren sat down next to her, but he turned slightly away from her. He rang for a servant and ordered tea, pitchers of water, and plates with finger food for us to snack on.
It looked like it was going to be a long afternoon.
“We need to discuss the probability that these attacks are directly from Palgia,” he continued after the servants brought in his orders and we were alone again. He looked at Lucia. “We keep looking at other sources, but what if this is already the war we’ve been waiting for?”
“Is the attack from Palgia that imminent?” Nylah asked.
Ren opened his mouth to answer, but Lucia spoke before he could say anything.
“Why is she here?” she asked, looking at me.
Ren seemed irritated. “Ellie is an integral part of the war.”
“Because she’s the one that’s being attacked? It might be easier to offer her up and get it over with, have all this trouble end. Don’t you think?” She smiled as if it was a joke, but it didn’t reach her eyes.
I shifted uncomfortably in my seat. Next to me, Nylah bristled with anger, too.
“That’s not happening,” Ren said bluntly. She pouted, but he continued talking without paying attention to her. “Ellie is a crucial part in liaising with the humans.”
I nodded. Nylah had mentioned this to me a short while ago, and I wanted to do what I could to help. A lot of the free humans lived in the Uprain Mountains between Jasfin and Palgia.
Lucia snorted. “And since when can the humans help us?”
“The humans in the mountains interact with Fae from both kingdoms,” Nylah explained, talking to Lucia simply as if she were a child. “If Ellie can gain knowledge from them, it might help.”
“Humans don’t trust the Fae,” Ren added.
Lucia rolled her eyes and huffed. “I can’t see why. We’ve been nothing but good to them, taking care of them, giving them jobs. They’d be nothing without us.”
“And a lot of humans are slaves,” I pointed out. “There are few free humans in the Fae villages. I wouldn’t trust the Fae, either, if I didn’t know what it could be like here at the palace. It’s only now that Ren is on the throne—”
“Whatdid you just call him?” Lucia sneered with narrowed eyes. “Ren? That’sYour Highnessto you.Who do you think you are, you little cretin?”
I wanted to respond, but it was Ren who got there first.
“That’s enough!” he barked. “I told her she could call me Ren. She’s on our side, Lucia. Not everyone in the palace is a threat.”
“You can understand why I’ve been wary, my love,” Lucia said in a small voice. “With so many attacks, who can feel safe anymore? And it all started with her arrival.” She pointed a slim finger in my direction.
“We’re going to figure out what’s going on, but she’s going to help us, no matter which way you want to look at it. Ellie isn’t leaving.”
Lucia huffed and sat back in her chair, sulking like a child. She was manipulative, and I had the idea she was used to getting what she wanted. Ren wasn’t indulging her whims, and it looked like she wasn’t happy about that.
“Where were we?” Ren asked, looking back at us.
“It’s no secret King Falx of Palgia has wanted the resources in Jasfin,” Nylah said. “I’m sure he’ll stop at nothing, and now that he’s getting more and more powerful, I think it’s right to ready ourselves for an attack.”
“What do we have that they don’t?” I asked.
Lucia responded, “Everything. Don’t you know that?”
“There are mines with magical gemstones in them,” Ren said, ignoring her.
“And the rich lands where they could farm, the luscious forests and running water,” Nylah added. “Jasfin is a rich land, looked after by its citizens for centuries, where Palgia just let their country go to ruin. The Conjurite magic has been a big part of their demise. The dark magic brings death and destruction—even if it can take a long time.”
