Page 32 of A Cage of Magic and Darkness

“Absolutely not. I don’t know how the people of Askos will react upon discovering you not only still alive, but actually being here, in the castle. Don’t you think they have enough to worry about?”

“Why would me being alive be something for them to worry about? Haven’t you even considered that they might find this happy news? Yes, their king is dead, but the prince still lives.”

I shoulder him out of the way. “The princess lives, also, and I am the one they’ll be expecting to see.”

“At least let me come as one of your guardsmen, Princess,” he says. “I can wear a cloak to cover my head. No one needs to know who I am. Isn’t it better that you have more people at hand? More men to protect you?”

The truth is, I can’t force him to stay here. He’s a free man now, isn’t he? He can go wherever the hell he likes. Not that he seems to have any intention of leaving Highdrift. The place is his home, just as it is mine. I can hardly send him away either.

I have no idea how this is going to work in the long run. The castle can’t be run by us both, can it? Brother and sister? I search my mind to think of other kingdoms that are run by siblings. Okay, maybe we’re not blood related, but technically, when my mother married his father, we became brother and sister.

There is one kingdom where a brother and sister have married and rule together, but the thought makes me cringe inside. Blood relatives marrying is never a good idea for the children. Ruarok and I are not blood relatives, however. There isn’t a single shared blood cell between us.

I shake the thought from my head. No, I do not want to marry Ruarok. The man is half Incubus. I imagine how unhappy that wedlock would be, with him fucking every castle staff member around. It’s always accepted that kings have their mistresses, but this would be on a whole other level.

My heart twists at the prospect. Ruarok having sex with everyone behind my back. Everyone would know about it, too. I’d be pitied and shamed, and that was the last thing I wanted.

“Fine,” I say. “Come, but wear a cloak and keep your face hidden. I can’t have this excursion turned into a parade on your behalf.”

“Thank you, Princess.”

Balthorne joins us. “The guards are ready, Princess.” He completely ignores Ruarok. “I have the pouch of coins also, as you requested.”

Ruarok arches an eyebrow. “Coins? For whom?”

“The people, of course,” I snap. “They’re in need of our help.”

“So you’re giving them the castle’s gold?”

Balthorne frowns in concern at our interaction, but he doesn’t interrupt. It’s not his place to offer his thoughts unless they’ve been requested. Ruarok might have been locked away for ten years, but he’s still the prince.

“They have far more need of it than we do. Do you begrudge them a few coins?”

Ruarok clears his throat. “That’s not the reason I’m concerned. People carrying large amounts of money on their person will only open them up to thievery.”

“What do you suggest? That we do nothing? They need to be able to pay for a new home, or at the very least, rent rooms so their families have a roof over their heads. Having people in the streets will only lead to chaos. People who are left to struggle aren’t good for the city as a whole. They’ll have no choice but to steal, and that will lead to violence. People who understand they will be looked after are peaceful people.”

He ducks his head in a half-bow. “I understand, Princess.”

The truth is that money will only go so far. Gold means nothing if there is no food left for people to buy.But we haven’t reached that stage, not here, not yet. Back in Torremora, the rot took the fields and countryside, so there was no grain to harvest. That was when things started getting really ugly.

I’ll find a way to stop it before we reach that point. I have no idea how, but there must be a way. If there isn’t, the future doesn’t bear thinking about.

We set off. I want the people to understand that I’ve been where they are, at least in part. I’ve gone through the rot destroying my home. I can empathize with how frightened they are.

I have two guards leading the way, Balthorne and Ruarok bracketing me, and several more guards bringing up the rear. They carry the banner of our kingdom, the dragonfly, with its wings so like our own, and it flutters in the breeze. There’s a chill in the air today.

As we head down the winding road that leads into the city, Ruarok falls into step beside me.

He lowers his voice and darts his gaze toward Balthorne. “Who is that man?”

“He’s head of my personal guard.”

“He wants to fuck you.”

“No, he doesn’t!” I’m offended by the suggestion. “I’ve known him for years. We are more like siblings.”

Ruarok snorts. “Even if he thinks of you like a sibling, that doesn’t mean he isn’t also thinking of fucking you. After all, my father married your mother, so doesn’t that also make us siblings?”

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