Page 183 of Mother of Death and Dawn

I clamped my jaw down hard on the fabric.

And then I pulled at the chain as hard as I could, sawing my wounded back against it, feeling my flesh rip deeper and deeper and deeper.

I counted the first few strokes before I lost track. Blood pooled around my knees, then hands.

I stopped when I lost consciousness.

CHAPTERSIXTY-EIGHT

AEFE

Finally, I was called to court. Meajqa summoned me to the library to meet with the rest of the court. He came to get me personally, which was unusual.

“I’m here myself because I need to confirm that you will not attack the king if I bring you to see him.”

He was dead serious.

I did not know if I wanted to make that promise. I said, “I’ll try.”

“I don’t know that I can accept that answer, my vicious, mysterious friend.”

“You have no choice but to accept it,” I snapped.

Meajqa cringed and, reluctantly, beckoned me to follow.

As we walked down the halls, I counted all the things I would scream in Caduan’s face. I imagined what it would look like to get him on the ground. When I was Reshaye I would have simply killed anyone who made me feel so powerless.

But when I finally saw Caduan’s face, I didn’t want to kill him. Because when I walked into the room, his eyes immediately found mine, as if he had been waiting for me. He looked… relieved.

Like he was happy to see me. Like he had missed me.

Our gazes met and lingered for a long moment before he cleared his throat and turned to the rest of the table. Luia and Vythian were there as well, and I wondered if I imagined the fact that they were watching the two of us with just as much abject curiosity as Meajqa was.

That went away as soon as Caduan spoke.

“Vythian’s spies have come back with important information,” he said.

Everyone was now all business. Vythian nodded gravely. “The Zorokovs and other leading Threllian Lords have been communicating with Ara.”

Meajqa’s face went as cold and still as stone. He set his wine glass down.

“Theywhat?”

“They have been sending letters to Ara.” Vythian gave us a pointed stare. “To the Aran palace.”

The Aran palace. The Aran queen. Nura.

Meajqa said, sweetly, “Well, why would they be doing a silly thing like that?”

“Do you want what I know or what I think?”

“Both,” said Caduan.

“I know only that the letters are being passed through Threll to get to Ara. I know that at least three of them—likely more—have been passed to the Aran crown. I do not know the contents of these letters. I do not know exactly how many there are. They are being carefully hidden, and extreme measures have been taken to make sure they remain that way.”

“Encouraging behavior from an ally,” Meajqa said.

“Indeed. There are a variety of reasons why Threll might be in contact with Ara. But that brings us to what I think.” His face went colder. “I think they are betraying us.”

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