Page 53 of Kingdom of Feathers

She hesitated for a moment, then nodded, pulling her bottom lip between her teeth as if desperately trying to keep her emotions in as well as her words.

Without thinking it through, Basil reached over and laid one of his hands over hers, where they were folded in her lap. He heard the shuffle of the guards’ feet outside the door, but neither of them actually entered, and he did his best to ignore their disapproval.

“The war isn’t your fault, Wren.” He didn’t even notice he’d dropped her title until after he spoke, and the princess didn’t call him on it. “If that woman was speaking the truth, someone was actively trying to provoke conflict, and they played all of us for fools. You certainly can’t be blamed for being among the first of their victims.”

To his astonishment, Wren’s eyes suddenly brimmed with moisture. Sensing that she needed a moment of privacy, he released her hand and looked back down at the page. But his thoughts were on her, and the intensity of the emotions that came through every time she let her guard down. The princess might not say anything, but it hadn’t taken long for him to realize there was always a lot going on behind those eyes. And she had clearly been through a great deal, some of it probably self-inflicted, if her unnecessary guilt over this account was anything to go by.

“The question,” he said briskly, surprised by the gruff note in his voice, “is where this extra power actually came from. And who was really behind the attack.” He looked up, and was pleased to see that Wren had regained her poise. “Who was this madwoman?”

Wren leaned over him again, rifling through the pages. She pointed at one in the middle of the pack, and Basil skimmed it quickly. It was another report, this one the result of an investigation into the woman who had killed the princes. She was a disgruntled former employee of the crown, hired to provide minor magic-related services. She’d been relieved of her position six years before the attack because of misconduct, and had appealed to the king without success. Apparently she was known to be unbalanced, but hadn’t been considered dangerous because—

“Her power was assessed as weak to middling?” he read aloud. He looked up at Wren’s piercing expression. “There can be no doubt she had help, then,” he mused. “From someone much more powerful than herself. But it definitely wasn’t us.”

He ran a hand over his face. What a mess. He was convinced King Lloyd wouldn’t be ready to negotiate a true peace until he believed that King Thorn hadn’t killed his sons. And it seemed that in order to clear his father’s name, Basil would have to discover the true source of the extra power used by the enchantress. But he didn’t know anything about such things. He’d had no idea one enchanter evencouldgive their power to another to use. Or possibly multiple enchanters, judging by the strength of the curse.

He saw that Wren was watching him with an expression that hovered somewhere between hope and frustration, and he forced his own discouragement down.

“Well,” he said with determination. “It seems our task is to discover who’s been plotting against our two kingdoms, so we can end this misguided conflict between us. And we’ll probably have to do it quietly, as neither your people nor mine are likely to be on board. Still, between us, we should be able to make some progress. Want to fix this together?”

Wren didn’t need words to express her response. The dazzling smile that lit her face and made her dark eyes shine, told Basil all he needed to know.

Chapter Fourteen

Aha!

Wren’s silent exclamation roused her companion, and Lyall gave a sleepy honk.

What is it?He glanced around the darkened room, his eyes alighting on Wren’s half-burned candle.What time is it? You should be sleeping.He flapped his wings guiltily.And I should be out on the lake with the others.

Sleep in here in the warm if you want, Wren shrugged.No one will mind.

Lyall sighed into her thoughts, shaking his graceful head rapidly as if to clear it.I can’t bring myself to do it, not when Caleb refuses to even though he can hardly float straight.

Yes, Wren agreed, her tone a mixture of fondness and exasperation.I wish I could convince him not to be a martyr.

So what’s your revelation?Lyall asked, still sounding drowsy.Are you still researching combined power?

Wren nodded, her eyes remaining fixed on the page on her lap.

Lyall extended his neck, leaning down for a closer look at the page.Is that from the records room? I thought you’d trawled through every record in the castle even vaguely related to magic years ago.

I have, confirmed Wren.And I’ve just finishedre-trawling through them. What I’m looking at now is from Basil’s records.

Basil, is it?Lyall fixed her with an uncomfortably human look.

Wren just rolled her eyes. She knew most of her brothers were still suspicious of Basil—and more protective of her than ever—but she didn’t have time for Lyall’s quips right now.

That’s his name, last time I checked, she deflected. He sent an express to his sister back in Tola two weeks ago, asking her to send him anything on combined power, and her reply arrived this afternoon. There wasn’t a lot, but we thought we’d split it, make sure we don’t miss anything. Look here.

She pointed at an entry on the page, and Lyall blinked at it, looking for the moment no more intelligent than a standard swan.

What does it mean?

Wren sighed, impatient of her brother’s lack of knowledge. Most of the boys had shown an unsatisfying disinterest in her and Basil’s research. Caleb was on board, of course. And Ari was theoretically supportive, but utterly uninterested in the dry details of magic theory. Both Averett and Conan, however, were determinedly insisting that Basil was a snake in hiding who was perfectly aware that his father had planned their supposed murder, and Lyall and Bram seemed to be reserving judgment.

She wished Basil was there—he would understand the significance of her finding. She briefly considered looking for him right away, then remembered that it was past midnight.

Probably not, then.

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