Chapter Forty-One #3
I snap. “It’s a terrible thing. Brakkar is independent. It has its own people, its own culture. And they’re our ally.”
Felix laughs hard at that, and though I’m not surprised to see Seth join him, I am surprised that Mama Adama does as well.
“Oh, Larry. I should have known you’d put all those pretty ideas in her head.
You’ve made her soft. Girl, we share when we can.
” She fills a bowl of stew for me and cuts off a breast of chicken, dropping it inside.
“But we take what we must. If I were in Adria’s shoes, I would do the same.
She has people to feed. It’s how things are done. ”
And from what Zara told me, even gold won’t remain a solution for long.
I imagine someone in the Alchemists’ Guild, likely Hypatia, told her what Zara told me: the phoenix cypress will run out at the rate we’re using it within the decade.
Solving the issue of making more of our lands arable could take a generation or several.
But taking someone else’s arable land? With the right army, that’s doable in a few months. A couple of years, maybe.
But at the cost of our souls. Ronan would never agree to it, as much as he loves Selara, because he understands that Brakkar loves its people too.
“If wanting better for the world than the way things are done makes me soft, so be it. I may be soft, and I may be na?ve, but I will not accept the slaughter of an innocent people to save us from our own mistakes. And I will not sit back and watch it happen. We’re going to the capital to stop Adria for once and for all.
” I look at Mama Adama, addressing her directly.
“And we’ll do it with or without your help, but when the end comes, you may wish you were on the right side. ”
“And what side is that?” asks Mama Adama, serving up the rest of the stew.
I rise to my feet, feeling the new power surge through me. I nearly stumble when I feel its pulse through my magical energy, but I push it down, regaining control. “My side. Ronan’s side. We will win. Doubt me at your peril.”
Mama Adama stares at me, the ladle in her hand unmoving. Then her wrinkled face cracks into a huge smile. “Oh, she is a fiery thing. You were right, Larry. You were right.”
“Isn’t she fun?” says Octavia. “Mama here is just messing with you. Of course we will help. We were already talking about how to get rid of those elixirs before you arrived. But we do need a favor from you before we go. We need someone who can get into the Alchemists’ Guild, and we’re not welcome in the castle. ”
Seth’s hand moves reflexively to his sword. “You don’t mean—”
“Xu Fushi,” I say. “He can get us in.”
Octavia heads back to the cottages to fill Quinn—and Ronan—in on the plans while Seth and I head to Castle Pyka to meet with Karis about enlisting Xu Fushi.
“No,” says Fushi from behind Karis’s chair. “I’m not going back there.”
“Fu,” snaps Karis, and he straightens his posture. “You will do what you must for my people. You have sworn me an oath.” She strokes his arm intimately, and my mouth falls open as he kisses her hand. They’re together.
Seth makes an amused chuckle, which becomes a cough when I elbow him in the side. I’m sure he’s glad that Taran’s ex-lover has moved on, but I’m going to need him to keep it together in Fushi’s presence if we’re going to survive this voyage.
“Very well,” he says. “I’ll get you into the Guild, but then you’re on your own.”
Karis’s grip tightens on his arm.
“I’ll get you into the Guild, and then I’ll help you find the elixirs and destroy them.”
“And you’ll help us get back out too,” I say, afraid that if I don’t specify that, he’ll leave us there with a bunch of angry alchemists and the members of Adria’s army that are sure to be guarding their stockpile.
“I can get you out of there, but not out of the city.”
“We already have that arranged.” I skip over the part where we’ll be killing Adria on the way out. The fewer people who know about that plan, the better.
“And Ronan?” asks Karis. “The God-King will stay to lead his legions?”
I nod.
“I must say I’m surprised he’d let you go on your own. Congratulations on your nuptials, by the way. I heard it was quite lovely.”
I force a smile, hoping that this secret will strengthen my shadows, which are all I’m likely to have once I’m away from Ronan. “It was. I can see that you understand that sometimes distance is needed for the cause.” I gesture at Xu Fushi, turning the moment around on her.
“I’m glad to hear you noticed. It would have been a shame to have to say goodbye without a kiss.” Then she kisses Xu Fushi shamelessly hard on the lips, practically pulling him into her lap in a way that makes me blush and turn my head.
“Do not disappoint me,” she says to him as she lets him go. And fuck, I think he actually likes it.
Beside me, Seth is so giddy he’s practically glowing.
I pray to the gods to give me the strength to keep these two apart during our voyage because I need them both alive. And if Seth opens his mouth even once, we’re all doomed.