Page 56 of Of Songs and Silence

Finally, I speak up. “Jopali received no fate he did not bring upon himself. I told him not to attack. I warned him what would happen, but he wouldn’t listen.”

I had been given less than a minute to make the decision of whether to hurt my own people or let them hurt Kala. It hadn’t been a choice at all. I will add their names to the list of people I have killed, that Iwillkill to keep her safe.

Everyone in this room knows that I have only achieved my rank because of the hard decisions I’ve had to make. It’s something that Lani has always understood better than most. Insisted on it, even.

Which makes me wonder if Jopali was acting on her orders. Her eyes narrow when they meet mine, and I know she suspects something else is at play.

“That may well be,” she bites out. “But you have yet to explain your position on the girl.”

She’s choosing her words carefully, having seen how I reacted to the subtle threat.

Clenching my jaw, I resolve to be more careful. I am not sure what I can tell them yet, but for now, I need to stall for time.

“I could hardly let myself be overtaken when the king knows I am capable,” I explain. “We can’t take on Cepheus yet, unless one of you has a plan to attack right when his guard is at its strongest?”

Silence greets me, but no one argues. Lani might technically be the leader here, but even the rebels are not immune to the rules of trial by combat. And I have never lost yet.

I just need to keep it that way.

CHAPTERTHIRTY-THREE

MELODI

My aunt stayed most of the night to help me work on my shields.

She taught me how to take certain thoughts and lock them away into a chest in the back of my mind where not even the king can reach them. She didn’t say that, of course, but the implication was there.

She didn’t say anything else about my father, either. Not that I asked.

It’s a strange feeling, mourning someone I never knew. I wonder how my mother survived, and why she bothered to build an empire on land if she was grieving and trying to stay alive.

I add that to my growing list of questions, trying to tamp down the rampant anxiety I feel once my aunt leaves me alone. It continues late into the morning, like a thousand fire ants marching across my skin.

It’s more than my questions, or even my fear. It’s the same gnawing, empty feeling I get when Ari is too far away for too long.

Finally, I can’t stand it anymore. I promised him I wouldn’t open the door to his room again, but I can’t seem to help myself. I knock once, twice, but there is no answer. Finally, I crack the door open, quietly calling his name—hoping if I can at least see him, talk to him, some of this frustrating feeling might abate. But he isn’t here.

Napo stretches from where he’s laying in the window, his dark eyes widening happily as he takes me in.

“Where is he?” I ask, and he shrugs an annoyed tentacle before swimming through the door into my room. Whether he’s irritated with me, or Ari, I can’t quite tell, but he’s soon happily trying on one of my tiaras and ignoring me.

Closing the door behind him, I swim to the front door. Where Ari usually stands guard, there is instead a young woman with emerald braids and rose-colored eyes. She wears the outfit of all the Warriors, a sharply cut vest that shows off a deep V of cleavage. Her striking features are carved into a serious expression.

“Where’s—the Commander?”

She dips her head sharply in a formal bow. “He didn’t say, Kala. Only that he will return shortly. I will accept any punishment you feel is necessary for the disappointment.”

My lips part in horror, though why I should be surprised at this point is beyond me.

“That’s—” I start to sayridiculousbefore I realize I will be insulting the king. “There is no punishment,” I tell her instead. “Please tell the Commander I wish to speak with him when he returns.”

“Yes, Kala.”

“Thank you…” I trail off until she supplies her name.

“Lieutenant Noa.”

“Thank you, Lieutenant Noa.”

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