Page 49 of Kept

The flash of hesitation in her eyes gutted me. “Never,” I whispered. I bit down on my thumb and gently pressed it between her lips. “I will never hurt you in anger, my lady. Never. Levu.” The blood vow snapped against my skin. I let it settle, then pierced my thumb again. “Kesh,” I murmured, touching my blood to her tongue.

Her eyes widened, and she lifted a hand to her scalp. “You healed me.” The wonder in her gaze dimmed, replaced with worry. “You shouldn’t be using the bly’ad so soon after yesterday.”

“I’m fine. Your magic restored me.”

She stepped back and hugged her waist. “The sex didn’t work. Midian spoke in my head, and then he appeared to me.” She darted an anxious look at Varick. “And I saw Valen again. The Sithistran army was killing everyone in the village.” Tears sheened her eyes. “I don’t know if it was the future or just another trick.”

“Midian lies,” Varick said. “You can’t trust anything he showed you, sweetheart.”

“Yes, but…” She looked miserable as she shook her head. “We never thought the Sithistrans would attack, but they attacked Lar Katerin. What’s to stop them from coming here?”

We all fell silent. Because we knew the answer. Nothing.

Given looked at me. “You can sense lies. Can’t you just question Lar Guna?”

It was a smart question. I wasn’t surprised she’d thought of it. “I can, yes, but this is one situation where senses are notoriously unreliable. When someone is plotting a coup, they typically don’t think of it as a coup. If they’re a true believer, they genuinely think they’re doing something for the greater good. Artur is more devout than most. He was prepared to defy my father to save Nor Doru.” I sighed. “That said, I don’t need my senses to compel his honesty. I can speak the bly’ad to force the truth from him. But once I do that, word will spread quickly. The lords who planned to go along with Lar Guna’s plot might flee or even attempt to raise an army of their own. The kingdom is already in a state of turmoil. The last thing we need is more instability.”

Her shoulders sagged. “Well, fuck,” she muttered, and it was so unexpectedly charming I couldn’t help my grin.

“Politics is a messy business, princess.”

Varick grunted. “I prefer the battlefield. Much simpler.”

I nodded. “And less bloody.”

Pounding on the door made all three of us jump. I cursed under my breath and called, “What is it?”

“News, Your Grace. The troops from the Wastes have arrived. The Council would like to meet immediately.”

The Council that was probably plotting to overthrow me.

I raised my voice again. “Tell the lords I’ll be with them in a moment.”

“Yes, Your Grace.”

As the footsteps faded, Varick and Given and I stared at each other. Then Given took one of Varick’s hands and joined it with one of mine. She grasped each of our free hands so the three of us formed a circle.

I squeezed my fingers around theirs and spoke under my breath. “We go together.”

Varick nodded. Given mouthed in everything.

I nodded back, and I gave Given’s hand another squeeze. Whatever we were walking into, we’d do it together.

I just hoped we weren’t walking into a trap.

* * *

Ten minutes later, I walked into an antechamber off the Great Hall with Varick and Given on my heels.

Artur of Lar Guna stood at the head of a long table, his head bent as Captain Radu pointed at something on a map. Another knight I recognized as the commander of the regiment from the Wastes stood on Lar Guna’s other side.

“…and we could probably enter here, my lord,” Radu was saying.

“Enter where?” I asked.

Every lord at the table looked up. An uncomfortable silence descended. Radu looked around the table of lords and frowned. Sergiu of Lar Bassa appeared just as perplexed as he swung his gaze between me and Lar Guna. But he was the only one. The rest of the lords wore the unmistakable air of guilt. None could hold my stare. I listened for their heartbeats and heard a chorus of collusion.

Lar Guna offered me a tight smile. “Welcome, Your Grace. We were just discussing options for retaking Lar Katerin.” He gestured to the Wastes commander. “Captain Drago says we should strike the city before the humans get word of our reinforcements.”

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