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“By the time I returned to the manor house, Grey had already fled, along with most of his followers. When I made it inside, only the Constantines were left. It seems your brother was sick of debating who would be the next heir, and he didn’t want to wait to take his turn after his grandmother and father either.”
“Ignatiuskilled them all?” Costas asked in barely more than a whisper.
Nik hesitated and then nodded his head. “His guards did, at his command. I tried to stop them, but I only arrived right at the end, and Ignatius ordered his men after me immediately. My power and training gave me the advantage—even over three of them—but the guards were able to keep me occupied long enough for Ignatius to finish the task himself before he also attacked me.”
I thought of Barnabas, who had nearly made it the door, and shivered. I still couldn’t fathom how Ignatius could have done such a thing to his own family. The Constantines might have been the manipulators, but in the end, they had been just as twisted by their behavior as their victims.
“So, to be clear,” Hayes said, his gaze trained on Nik. “One of the Constantines murdered the others due to some sort of internal family conflict. You were only responsible for killing the aggressor and his two guards after they attacked you as well?”
“That is correct.” Nik held his gaze, his expression confident. But I could read something else lurking behind his apparent calm. Something about that night still tormented him, and whatever it was had been standing between us ever since.
“I’m sorry for your loss,” Amara said formally to Costas. “But I am glad Tartora had no hand in it. I hope you won’t hold what happened against our kingdom.”
Costas nodded slowly. “I wish I could disbelieve Nikolas’s account, but Ignatius was always so hungry for power. It always seemed foolish and unnecessary to me—what difference did it really make which of us ruled the family? But I could never convince him of that.”
I nodded slowly. Even in my short time on the island, I had overheard an ugly argument between Ignatius and his father. There had clearly been no love lost between Ignatius and his relatives.
“As a healer I can assure you that Nikolas speaks the truth,” Clay said, his voice gentle. “But I understand if you might prefer one of your own to confirm that. There may not be healers of strength left on the island, but even the weakest healing ability can truth tell.”
Costas shook his head. “That won’t be necessary. At first I was driven by shock, but I’ve had plenty of time to reflect since those first initial moments. As much as I regret every aspect of the situation, my family are guilty of terrible crimes. They lived a life of violence and deception, and I cannot be surprised they met the same sort of end.”
“Yes, Ignatius made his choice,” I said. “And he paid the ultimate price for it. He didn’t know anything about Nik’s presence on the island and had no idea what sort of opponent he might face. But I believe the ultimate blame lies with Grey. If he hadn’t been deliberately stirring the situation up in preparation for his own coup, then Ignatius might never have made such a move. And Grey is still out there.”
I looked to Amara. “What’s been happening back in Tartora?”
She sighed. “We haven’t seen any sign of Grey. When neither you nor Nik made any contact—” she paused to throw a disapproving look at both of us “—our whole party made our way to the crevasse to arrest Grey. You can imagine our surprise to find it completely abandoned. We were still debating what to do when Costas turned up.”
“The route to the crevasse is the simplest,” he said, “and since I was on my own, that was important. And I think a subconscious part of me was fleeing toward Aunt Chloe as well. Grey had said she was dead, but I still hoped…” He fell silent.
“Grey himself must have taken a different route,” Amara said. “He never arrived at the crevasse. You can imagine our surprise when Costas showed up instead—and our even greater astonishment when he told us everything. I’m not sure if I was more shocked to hear about his family, the island, or your whereabouts.”
I blinked, trying to imagine how that conversation had gone.
“You told them everything?” Nik asked Costas, and he nodded.
“There didn’t seem any point in holding back. My family and our old life here are destroyed. The Constantine healers betrayed the townsfolk in the worst of ways, but they did look after them physically. Without them, the islanders are vulnerable. They need help, and I’m hoping Tartora will be willing to provide it, despite everything that’s happened. Because none of it was my people’s fault.”
I nodded vigorously. “Yes, the people need help.”
We had made it through the most important exchanges of information—the ones that couldn’t be delayed—and I couldn’t wait any longer to fill them in on the dire situation currently unfolding on the island.
But Amara spoke before I could continue. “You’ve been looking after them, haven’t you.” She didn’t voice it as a question.
Tears sprang to my eyes. “Nik and I had no way to leave the island. But even if we did, we couldn’t have just abandoned the islanders. These people have been affected by what was done to them—they can’t think as proactively as you or I. And all their strong healers have been murdered. I’m only one person, but I thought I was at least better than nothing.”
The words taunted me. I’d given myself a job and failed at it within two weeks.
“Delphine.” Amara’s voice was gentle as she wiped the single tear running down my cheek. “I know you would never abandon a whole town in need like that.”
I gulped, trying to hold back any further tears. “I wanted you to have a reason to be proud of me this time. But—”
“Don’t worry,” she cut in. “I was the one to send you to Grey, and I even had the crown’s permission to do it. And you couldn’t have foreseen ending up trapped on this island. No one would consider you to have abandoned your apprenticeship—especially given we were separated for only a short time.”
“My…apprenticeship?” I tried to follow what she was saying. Did she think I was crying out of fear of being branded a reneger? Was that why she had hurried after me at the first opportunity?
Becoming a complete outcast from society in all its forms would certainly be something to cry over, but the thought hadn’t even occurred to me. My mind had been too full of everything happening on the island. And while the best of help had just arrived, even more was still needed.
I glanced dubiously into the harbor where the shredded remains of their boat still floated.
