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She had thought he’d been speaking in the abstract, referring to their countries’ bloody histories, but the gravity with which he had said it hinted at an old, deep wound. Every so often, he’d let his guise fall. The look on his face the first time she had played his mother’s song. The way he had said her name when he discovered her in the mine. The sound of his voice as he sang to her in a dark theater. And it was those moments—those rare glimpses of the man behind the court mask—that had made her fall for him.
For Caelan. Not Auberon.
Riona glanced at the bowl-shaped altar at the front of the prayer room. The moment she had arrived at the chapel, she had been struck with the memory of her uncle kneeling before the altar after Cathal’s funeral, the words he’d spoken returning with perfect clarity:If the world were just, the man who committed this crime would suffer for it a thousand times over. But you and I both know the world is rarely that fair.
He hadn’t been mourning a friend. He had been wrestling with the guilt of ordering that friend’s murder.
Her chest tight and her body aching, Riona returned the dagger to its sheath and rose with a grimace. She left the royal chapel and followed the cobblestone path past the royal apartments, to a wide natural overhang that jutted out over the street below. A waist-high wall surrounded the overlook, and Riona set her hands on the cool stone as she gazed out at her city, warm golden light bleeding from the windows of the buildings that sprawled before her.
“I thought I’d find you here.”
She turned as her father emerged from the shadows between two castle buildings. “You always come here when you need to think, just like your mother.” He slipped an arm around her shoulders and pulled her close. They stood in silence for several moments, staring out at the city, until her father asked, “What did Prince Auberon say to your offer of marriage?”
“Who said I was going to speak with Prince Auberon?”
He fixed her with a knowing look. “I’m not blind, my dear. Everyone can see how much that boy loves you. So what came of it?”
Her chest tightened. It had not been wise to threaten Caelan, but after everything that had happened these past several weeks, rage had been her only refuge. It was all that had kept her from shattering. At that moment, she had wanted to hurt him as deeply as she was hurting.
“Nothing. Whatever had been between us is over now. We will never marry.”
He stiffened at her tone. “What did he say? If he hurt you—”
“Nothing like that. It’s over, and there is nothing more to it than that.”
He pulled her closer, pressing a kiss to her temple. “I’m sorry. But I have some news that may lift your spirits. I spoke with Prince Domhnall and Amaris, and they are going to petition the king to limit your exile to Innislee, rather than the whole of Rivosa. If he agrees, you will be granted Lord Farquar’s title and estate. You would oversee the ruling of his sector, and perhaps in a few years, you’d be welcomed back to the capital with a place on the king’s council.”
“Would the king allow it? I’m not eager to face another attempt on my life.”
“Give him some time to cool down, and he will come to see reason. You have ended the war with Erduria and secured us allies who will fight to defend our land. It won’t be any time soon, but one day, you will have a place as one of the king’s advisors. It’s what you’ve always wanted, no?”
She hesitated. Thatwasall she had ever wanted, but now that he had finally said it, the words felt wrong. Riona shrugged off her father’s arm and turned back toward Innislee, her fingers digging into the stone wall as she gazed out at her beautiful, ancient city. This was her home; it was all she had ever known until the day she’d left to become Percival’s bride.
But now that she had seen the corruption that festered at her kingdom’s heart, she knew that she could no longer stay here. She loved her people and her country, but she wanted no part of her uncle’s plots. She could never sit on his council knowing that he had orchestrated the attack on her mother’s ship, that he had ordered Cathal’s murder, that he and Lord Farquar had sent men to kill her. As long as he sat on the throne, Innislee would never be her home. She couldn’t look at the city without seeing the ghosts of those she’d lost.
Her uncle was beyond redemption, but he was steadfast in his opposition to his enemies, and he would stand against every foreign army who sought to claim the mines. Queen Blair, Prince Domhnall, her father, and Amaris would rebuild Rivosa in the wake of his destruction. Together, they would save her kingdom from ruin.
They didn’t need her help—but she knew someone who did.
Riona turned back to her father, a look of grim determination on her face. “I know what I must do now.”
ChapterSeventy-Two
The Liar
Drystan was waiting in the sitting room when Caelan arrived at the house they shared, the rest of the rooms dark and quiet. He’d sent a few of their guards to ready their ship for the journey back to Erduria, while the rest—along with Vick and the brothers from the mine—would accompany them north once the treaty was signed. The prince looked up from the sheaf of parchment before him as Caelan dropped into the nearest armchair and said, “Have the king sign the treaty as soon as possible. We may have peace between our countries, but I have been quite reliably informed that we’re no longer welcome in Rivosa.”
“‘No longer’ implies we everwerewelcome,” Drystan responded dryly, toying with the fletching of his quill. “But that can be arranged. I’m working on the wording of the treaty as we speak, and I can have it signed tomorrow, Creator willing. Will Riona be joining us in Erduria?”
Caelan fixed him with a look that conveyed exactly how amenable she had been to that suggestion. “No. I’m sorry I wasn’t able to secure you the wife you wanted.”
The prince pushed the parchment aside and set his quill down next to the ink pot. “I wouldn’t want her as a wife if it would be torture to you both. I couldn’t do that to you.”
He shook his head. “It’s a wonder you’re so kind, having been surrounded by men like this all your life.”
“Just because I didn’t force Lady Riona into marriage doesn’t mean I cannot be ruthless when necessary. We have peace with Rivosa right now, but should the king step one foot out of line—should we hear so much as a whisper of retribution for what has happened today—I will personally see to it that King Domhnall loses his head and his crown,” Drystan said. “His son may not be a friend of the Empire, but he doesn’t share his father’s thirst for Erdurian blood. It wouldn’t be difficult to persuade him to maintain our shaky alliance, especially when he’s neck-deep in grief.”
Caelan scoffed. “Prince Domhnall doesn’t love his father that much. He can’t, after what he learned today.”
