Page 240 of Kingdom of Ash

Ancient enemies of this city. “And?”

“They do. But at a cost.”

“One that shall not be paid,” the Lord of Anielle snapped.

“Let me guess: territory,” Aelin said.

Chaol nodded. Hence the tension in this room.

She tapped a foot as she surveyed the Lord of Anielle. “And you won’t give one sliver of land to them?”

He just glared.

“Apparently not,” Fenrys muttered.

Aelin shrugged, and turned to Chaol. “Well, it’s settled, then.”

“What is settled?” his father ground out.

Aelin ignored him, and winked at her friend. “You’re the Hand to the King of Adarlan. You outrank him. You’re authorized to act on Dorian’s behalf.” She gestured to the map. “The land might be a part of Anielle, but it belongs to Adarlan. Go ahead and barter it.”

His father started. “You—”

“We are going north,” Aelin said. “You will not stand in our way.” She again let some of her fire kindle in her eyes, set the gold in them burning. “I halted that wave. Consider this alliance with the wild men a way to repay the favor.”

“That wave destroyed half my city,” the man snarled.

Fenrys let out a low, disbelieving laugh. Rowan snarled softly.

Chaol growled at his father, “You’re a bastard.”

“Watch your tongue, boy.”

Aelin nodded sympathetically to Chaol. “I see why you left.”

Chaol, to his credit, winced and returned to the map. “If we can get past the Ferian Gap, then we continue northward.”

Past Endovier. That path would take them right past Endovier. Aelin’s stomach tightened. Rowan’s hand grazed her own.

“We have to decide soon,” Sartaq declared. “Right now, we sit betweenthe Ferian Gap and Morath. It would be very easy for Erawan to send hosts to crush us between them.”

Hasar turned to Chaol. “Is Yrene anywhere near done?”

He leaned an elbow against the arm of his wheeled chair. “Even with the few survivors, there are too many of them. We’d be here weeks.”

“How many injured?” Rowan asked.

Chaol shook his head. “Not injured.” His jaw tightened. “Valg.”

Aelin frowned. “Yrene’s healing the Valg?”

Hasar grinned. “In a manner of speaking.”

Aelin waved her off. “Can I see?”

They found Yrene not in the keep, but in a tent on the remnants of the battlefield, leaning over a human man thrashing upon a cot. The man had been restrained to anchors in the floor at his wrists and ankles.

Aelin took one look at those chains and had to swallow.

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