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“Forty percent. You’ll still have the lion’s share once Kenter gets its cut. Isn’t that right, Duke Valerian? What resources willyouwrest away from my kingdom and my people?”
The duke rose, unfazed by the king’s withering glare. “Twenty percent of the output from the mines, and Rivosa’s support in our war for independence—chiefly troops, trade, resources, and naval vessels. I have need of fifteen thousand men or more.”
King Domhnall clenched his jaw, but nodded. “I can give you ten thousand at most. I’ll not be left without a standing army while you’re off campaigning, lest my old enemies decide to turn their sights on my throne,” he said with a sidelong glance at the Erdurian princes.
“That will do, Your Majesty. The rest can be arranged when we meet to write the precise terms of the agreement.”
“Very well.” Finally, the king turned to Riona. “Your future is yours to decide. Go where you choose and marry whom you wish, but from this day forth, you are no longer welcome in this kingdom. You will leave Innislee once you are strong enough to ride, and if you set foot on Rivosan soil again, you will be greeted as a traitor to the crown. Have I made myself clear?”
“You can’t do that,” Auberon said, stepping forward. “What about the betrothal?”
He waved a hand in dismissal. “Take her to Erduria if you want, but you will receive nothing more from me than I have already agreed to. She committed treason, and I owe her nothing. She is no niece of mine.”
Although the words stung—striking deeper than Riona would have expected, given all her uncle had done—Riona was careful not to let it show. She was an exile, a traitor to her kingdom.
Auberon objected again, but the king ignored him. As he walked out of the room, he gestured over his shoulder for Master Kaiden and the rest of the Rivosi guards to follow. Once they had left, Auberon whirled around, fuming, and let out a string of decidedly un-princely oaths.
“Something tells me this isn’t going to be an easy peace to maintain,” Drystan said with a sigh.
Auberon gaped at him. “You have been insistent upon securing a marriage alliance since the day we set sail from Torch. How could you not press him into promising Lady Riona to you?”
“I will not force a woman to marry me against her will,” Drystan said, shooting his brother a look. He turned to Riona. “You have done great things for both our countries today, my lady. If you wish to accompany us to Erduria, my father will grant you a place of honor in our court. And…if youdowish to marry, you can still aid your kingdom from Erduria’s throne.”
Riona saw nothing save for the shadow that passed across Auberon’s face as he listened to his brother speak, his gaze steadfastly trained on the wall. Even now, without the need for a marriage alliance, he would still stand aside and allow her to marry his brother if she decided she wanted the throne more than she wantedhim.
She opened her mouth to tell him what a fool he was to think that remotely possible, but her father stepped forward before she could speak. “If you would, Your Highnesses, Your Grace, I would speak with my daughter in private.”
Almost as one, they rose and left the room, Aeron and the others trailing behind them. As she passed, Faylen set a hand on Riona’s shoulder and gave it a comforting squeeze.
Only her cousin lingered, waiting until the last guard had left to say, “I had no idea what my father was doing. Cathal… That servant… Your mother…” A pained look swept across Prince Domhnall’s face, and he took Riona’s hands in his own. “I am sorry you have to leave, cousin, but know that nothing like this will ever happen again. It is the Creator’s will that my father wears the crown, but I will see to it that he will be king in name only. Amaris and I will take on the duties of running the kingdom, and I will enlist my mother’s aid in negotiating the terms of our debt with our grandfather. We will recover from this.”
Riona squeezed his hands and forced a smile. “I trust that you will. Good luck, Domhnall.”
“And to you.” He pulled her into a tight hug, and Riona ignored the flare of heat that shot through her chest when his doublet brushed against the fresh wound above her heart. In the face of everything else, the blood magic had faded to a dull throb. “Your exile won’t last forever, Riona. When Amaris and I ascend the thrones, our first act will be to revoke your banishment and welcome you into Innislee. In the meantime, you will be greatly missed.”
Her heart broke as she said, “Try to visit.”
He bowed deeply, then left the room. When they were at last alone, her father turned to her, looking as if he’d aged ten years since the night began. Suddenly, the walls Riona had built around herself crumbled. She threw her arms around her father’s neck and held him close, breathing in his familiar, earthy scent.
“Oh, my girl,” he breathed, his voice thick with emotion. “My darling girl.”
“Was I wrong to do this? Have I just doomed us all?”
“No.No,” he said fiercely, pulling back to look her in the eye. “My brother set us on this path long ago. You have made mistakes, but in the end, our kingdom will be the better for it. You have ended a war today, my love. Remember that. Your mother would have been proud.”
Tears stung Riona’s eyes. Her father took her hands and guided her to the nearest settee. “Tomorrow morning, I will resign my position on the council, and we will start anew elsewhere. We can go to Beltharos and petition the king and queen for positions in their court. We can sail to the Selannic Isles and serve your grandfather. We will make the best of this.”
Riona allowed herself a moment to picture it—packing up her fine jewelry and gowns and riding to Beltharos, or setting off on a ship bound for the Isles. They could start new lives there. She and her father could serve in one of the courts, and perhaps Riona could even join a dance company and give lessons to the children of the city. They could forget all that had happened here and all that their king had taken from them.
Yet it was a dream, and nothing more. The war with Erduria would finally end, but it would take years for Rivosa to recover from its debts, and the people would need strong leaders to defend their land. Amaris and Domhnall wouldn’t be able to manage it on their own.
“Stay here and remain on the council,” Riona said, her chest tightening when her father’s face fell. “Enlist Lord Winslow’s help, and teach Amaris and Domhnall how to rule. Queen Blair won’t be able to guide them on her own, and we need someone to keep the king in check. I’ll do what I can to help from afar.”
“Where will you go?”
Riona smiled then, hope and possibility swelling within her. For the first time in years, her future didn’t feel like something to dread. “I’m going to Erduria.”
ChapterSeventy
