AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Radomir draws his in reaction, backing up.
But Zander holds his up unthreateningly, allowing the polished metal to shine within the firelight.
Shock slams into the sapling’s face as he catches his reflection in the blade. His sword clatters to the ground as he reaches up to grope his cheek with his fingers, as if to confirm the reflection is his.
Sympathy pricks me. I once found myself doing the same thing, the night I took off my ring in the apothecary and saw a stranger looking back at me in a mirror—my face in this new world.
“Is this real?” Pushing the cowl off his head reveals a mane of lush brown hair to replace the stark white from before. He studies his hands as if they’re someone else’s.
“You wanted to see the sun again, didn’t you? That was the deal you made with Queen Neilina.”
“To see its beauty … feel its warmth.”
“Within these walls, that will happen.”
His mouth gapes as his attention flickers between me and his reflection. And then an unexpected sob wrenches from his throat and he drops to his knees. “You have no idea what this means.” Tears stream down his cheeks.
Despite the evils his kind has committed—what they are—watching this moment softens my heart for the wretched man. Even for a moment.
“I think I can imagine.” Zander’s jaw tenses, not unaffected by this raw display of emotion either. He has wished for an end to the blood curse for centuries, but he’s never been deprived of the sun’s warmth. He wasn’t visibly transformed into a monster.
“I never expected …” Radomir’s words break off with breathless laughter. “Neilina honored our agreement, after all.”
Zander and I share a look, and he nods. He’s figured out what I have: that Neilina promised the saplings she would have their curse reversed. But she can’t do that without summoning the fates, and the fates do not reverse summons granted. The only beings who can effectively undo what the fates have done … are the nymphs.
“Queen Neilina did not honor anything. I doubt she ever had plans to. She doesn’t even know this place exists.” I’m sure she will soon, though.
Radomir’s focus shifts to Gesine. “This was Mordain then, caster? You have done this for us?”
“No. I am not capable of such a feat. Nor is Mordain as a whole, beyond our ability to share our knowledge of prophecy. If you are looking to thank someone, look no further than to the queen of Ulysede.”
“This city has a queen? Where is she?” He looks around. “Can I meet her?”
“You already have.” Gesine gestures at me.
I harden my resolve, knowing that what I’m about to say is a death sentence if either Kienen or Radomir so much as twitch in the wrong direction. “Queen Neilina and I no longer see eye to eye on the right path forward for Ybaris and its people. Whatever bargain you made was with her, not with me. This”—I gesture at his face—“is my gift to you, but it has strings attached.”
Realization forms on Radomir’s face, and I hold my breath, waiting for his reaction.
He drops to his knees. “How can I repay you for this extraordinary gift, Your Highness?”
I steal a glance Zander’s way. I can’t read his face, but it doesn’t matter. We don’t have time to waltz around the truth. “I need an army.”
CHAPTER TWELVE
ATTICUS
“Are you trying to defeat me or dance with me?” I tease, deftly stepping out of reach of Kazimir’s sword.
“Certainly not the latter. You’re a terrible dancer.” He dives forward with another mighty swing. Our blades meet with a noisy clang that echoes far past the borders of the sparring court this early in the morning, but I spin, and in a short second have the tip of my sword pressed against his throat.
Kazimir has fought in the king’s army by my side for decades. He’s an exceptional swordsman, both in practice and on the battlefield. But even he can’t challenge me the way Zander can.
“The captain should be mindful of injuring His Highness, now that we do not have a healer handy.”
Tension grips my body instantly with the grating sound of that voice. My brief respite is over. “Lord Adley! You are interrupting my morning sword work. This must be important.” I infuse casualness into my voice to hide the fact that I’d like to cleave his head clean off his pompous shoulders. With a chin jut toward Kazimir, I hand my blade off to a servant, exchanging it for a towel to wipe the sweat from my nape as I close in on my future father-in-law.
He’s dressed as finely as usual—with gold thread woven through his fitted silk vest, as if he thinks himself king. “I received word about your ordeal last night and thought it imperative to see you immediately. Terrible thing to have to worry about within the castle walls.” He emphasizes that with a furrowed brow. “Has the captain of the king’s guard apprehended the culprit yet?”
