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“Because she’s here.” Cassia paused while Benedict took that in. But not too long, Lio noted. Before Benedict had time to wonder what this would mean for Flavian’s ambitions, she asked, “Are you ready to welcome our princess home?”
Benedict went pale. “Me, Your Ladyship? I am the least worthy man in all of Tenebra to be the first to behold her.”
Cassia shook her head. “No, Ben. You are the best choice. No one’s welcome could be more powerful than yours, don’t you see?”
The knight drew in a shaking breath, then drew himself to attention. “Yes. Yes, I understand. And I will thank the gods for this opportunity to atone.”
“You have nothing to atone for. All you need to do is show her who you really are.”
Benedict was still reeling, his aura a clash of shock and guilt and courage, when Solia appeared in the pavilion.
Her traversal was one of the most subtle Lio had ever seen. The difficult spell left no sign of strain on her face. She was suddenly standing between the Hesperines and the Ashes, her fire magic banked just under her skin, emanating warmth and a faint glow.
Benedict staggered backwards, a prayer flying from his lips.
“Do not be afraid, Ben.” Solia extended a hand, giving him a gentle smile.
He fell to his knees before her. “Your Highness. What act of the gods is this? Are you—?”
“I am no apparition.” She took his hand.
At her physical touch, he startled. “You’re alive.”
“Basilinna.” Eudias spoke the age-old title, which the Mage-King’s daughter had first borne, the epithet of a princess of the royal line. The mage slid his hands into his sleeves and inclined his head.
“I thought…” Benedict’s voice was thick. “All these years. I believed my father had slain you.”
“Iris made that sacrifice in my place.”
He gasped as if someone had dealt him a blow to the gut. “Words can never express my regret, Your Highness.”
“Cassia tells me you are a man who speaks through your deeds and lives with honor.”
“Her Ladyship does me too much credit, but I assure you, I would sooner die than break my oaths.”
“A time is coming when you must choose which oaths you will keep and which must be sacrificed.”
Eudias took a deep breath. “I understand that. Princess Solia, let it be known that I do not condone the Aithourian Circle’s involvement in the Siege of Sovereigns. There are mages who will not tolerate the abuses the Orders commit as King Lucis’s ally.”
“Thank you, Mage Eudias,” Solia replied. “Ambassador Deukalion has told me much of your bravery on Tenebra’s behalf.”
His ears reddened.
“Rise, Ben,” Solia bade him. “I ask no promise of you tonight beyond this: tell your liege lord I am here, and attest to the truth of my return. We have no time for doubts. Decisions must be made that will affect the future of the kingdom.”
He hesitated. But then Solia showed him what was in her other hand. A fig.
A kindness to her friend. A political masterstroke. The lines between friendship and schemes were already blurring, even as the divide between Ambassador Cassia and Lady Circumspect widened.
Solia wrapped Benedict’s fingers around the fig.
He rose to his feet, his head bowed. “Yes, Your Highness.”
KYRIA'S HANDMAIDEN
Cassia’s first chance to get Ben alone came near midnight. He had sat at the table for hours, talking with Solia as if confessing to Angara herself, listening to everything she patiently explained to him about her escape and her life since. It was a heavily edited narrative. Solia breathed no word of Cassia’s claim on the throne, as they had agreed.
The hours were long, with Lio within reach but untouchable. She needed to feel his hand in hers. To smile without reservation at his and Eudias’s clever conversation. To simply look into his eyes without feeling as if they were being watched. The slight distance between their bodies left her parched.
