7
Valen
No one complains about my decision, but I get the feeling not everyone is on board.
Zana and Delkin head off to research the process of transferring magic, while Celpin and Guria argue about the finer details of how, when, and most of all who will go to the other courts. I sent several of the other guards to gather the best scholars at the estate and put them to task researching the Omen of Ice prophecy. If there’s something somewhere that we missed—something that mentions fire—then we need to know about it.
As I make my way down the hall, Tania falls in step beside me. “That was bold. Putting your foot down like that.”
Haven’t you heard? I stop and turn, winking. I’m the monarch. I could ask Celpin to crawl around on all fours and bark like a dog for an entire day. I bet he’d do it. In fact, we should go find out…
“Please try to be serious.”
What fun would that be?
I sigh. She’s right, of course. She’s always right. It’s adorable but also a bit irritating. Do you think I was wrong? About seeking out the other courts, I mean.
“Actually, I don’t.”
But you don’t think it will work.
“I’m not sure.” She shrugs. “But I’m proud of you for making the hard choice.”
Yeah? Proud enough to—
“Don’t push it, Valen.”
Okay, okay. You’re right. There are more important things to deal with. Like finding a solution to Celpin.
“Solution?”
I trust him, but only so far. I don’t want him in charge of the guard. I need someone who can think with a clear head. Someone critical. Logical…
Celpin is loyal and devoted, but he’s also rash and quick to anger. At the time I appointed him, he was the only one remotely qualified. I never intended for it to be permanent.
Now, we’re sending out a party to try and make contact with the other courts. The council doesn’t know it yet, but I intend to lead it. If I’m going to be away from the estate, I need someone I can trust to handle things here without starting a civil war in my absence.
“I don’t know who you intend to replace him with. As far as I can tell, he’s the most qualified.”
He’s actually the second most qualified…
Tania’s expression softens. She was never a fan of Celpin taking the position, either. She voted for someone else… Someone I refused to consider. Until now.
It’s time I had a chat with Kopic.
…
Tania has the freedom to come and go wherever she wants on the estate. There’s no nook or cranny that’s off-limits to her. So, when she wandered down to the catacombs several days after we returned from Ventin, I was a little worried. Not because there was anything there she shouldn’t see, but because the walls have a mind of their own, and though they’d been kind to me, I’d seen their ruthlessness over the years when others ventured down.
It turned out my concern was for nothing. The catacombs welcomed Tania, showing her things they hadn’t even shown me. While she was down there, she came across Kopic. He was banished to the catacombs days before I returned to the estate. The walls wouldn’t permit him to leave unless I said so. I haven’t been down there since getting back.
It’s a visit long overdue.
I run a finger along the stone walls. “When did you see him last?”
“Yesterday,” Tania says. “He seemed in good spirits.”
We head down the stairs. The sound of the walls shifting is familiar and oddly comforting. I spent so much time down here as a child. It was meant to be punishment, but I felt safe here. Protected.
“What are you going to say?” Tania asks.
“I don’t know yet.”
Tania has been trying to get me to come down here since we returned from Ventin. She’s convinced Kopic had no idea Liani had been subjecting me to panashere.
I want to believe he was ignorant, but I’m not sure I can. He was my aunt’s closest guard. Her confidant. How could he not have known the truth? That she’d been using me…
Like they know exactly why we’re here, the hallways shift and open to a room where Kopic sits on a chair in the center. Aside from that single piece of furniture, there’s nothing else. A small pang of regret washes over me. Kopic and I always clashed, but I thought of him as a friend.
An annoying, tattletale, buzzkill of a friend…
I lean against the doorframe and fold my arms.
Kopic flashes Tania a tentative smile. His dark skin and spiky white hair are accented by striking eyes and a hulking frame. His commanding presence and no-nonsense attitude made him a magnet for the fairer sex…too bad he’s too devoted to his job to notice. “Nice to see you again, druid.”
“Kopic,” Tania says with a nod. She seems genuinely happy to see him.
“So you finally convinced him to come down and talk to me, huh?” Kopic crosses his legs at the ankle and fixes his gaze on me. He’s wearing a clean tunic and pants—no doubt delivered to him by Tania. I think it’s the first time I’ve seen him out of uniform in my entire life.
“Actually, this was Valen’s choice,” she says.
He glances between Tania and me, brows high. “Does that mean you believe me?”
“I don’t know,” I say.
Kopic frowns. “I was loyal to the Winter Lady. That’s no secret. But I had no idea what she’d done. I never once saw anything to make me doubt her intentions toward the people—and toward Orbik—weren’t true. As for what she did to you…” He exhales and stares at me. “I swear I had no idea what she planned.”
My aunt convinced me I was the most important thing in her life when all she really wanted was my power. She kept me fed and clothed and happy so she could harvest my magic for herself. I realize now how badly I want to believe Kopic. I need to believe that everything in my life hasn’t been a lie.
I’m afraid to, though.
Kopic slumps back into his chair. “I know how it must look to you. I suppose if our positions were reversed, I would be skeptical as well.”
Tania leans against the doorframe. She’s looking at Kopic with a mix of pity and regret. “I believe him, Valen. He didn’t know what Liani was really up to.”
I trust Tania’s gut over my own. She’s more grounded, less impulsive. I focus on my old friend. On the Fae I’ve known my entire life. “And what would you do? If you were me?”
“I would be cautious, obviously, but I would also look at our history.” Kopic dips his head for a moment, and when he looks up at me, his face holds the same sincere expression I’ve come to know so well. “We’ve had our differences, but you know, as I do, that I look on you as a brother.” He snorts. “A reckless and often irritating brother.”
“ That …I can believe.”
“What changed your mind?” He sits up straighter and squares his shoulders. All business. “You haven’t come until now, so I assume there’s a reason? If you still aren’t sure you trust me, but you’re here, something must be very wrong…”
Kopic’s instincts are impeccable. Sure, his sense of humor is as horrible as drinking tepid, dirty water, and his idea of fun is enough to bore someone to death, but he’s sharp and he’s strategic. He sees the world differently than others. If we’re going to do this, I want him on my side.
“What do you know about what’s going on?” I ask.
“Tania filled me in on some of it. Aphelian is out for revenge because of what Servis did to her. To the druids.”
“There’s more to it than that. We have three months to figure this out and fix it.” Gods, three months isn’t enough. Truthfully, six months wouldn’t be enough, either. If I had a decade, I’m not confident I could produce a safe solution for this mess.
“So why come to me?” Kopic asks.
“I’ve made a decision about how to deal with our problem, but it’s complicated and risky. Things are going to get messy, and I need your help to keep it all together.”
Kopic looks between Tania and me. “I don’t understand. She’s one druid. Send the whole Winter Guard after her. Problem solved.”
“She isn’t just any druid. She’s powerful. We need a plan, not just an army. Something smart.”
Kopic nods. No questions asked. “Tell me about the decision you made.”
That’s the thing that did him in. His blind faith. He believed in Liani so fully that he never looked too hard at anything she did, never questioned anything she said. But right now, I’m grateful for it.
I explain our theory about the other courts and the plan to sway them to give us aid. Tania tells him about the tree and Aphelian’s cryptic note about the Omen of Ice embracing fire. Kopic listens, face impassive, and when I’m finished, he nods. Just once.
Then he says, “You have my loyalty, Valen, and my sword… I will do whatever you need me to.”