Chapter 15 #2
“We are all, perhaps, lucky that my cousin did not choose to attend this meeting. Emperor Tallu, your words cut as sharp as blades. You may not have violated the terms of hospitality, but I believe it is in your favor that King Inor is not present to hear them.” Vostop’s smile was slightly strained, and he raised his cup, toasting Tallu before drinking it.
“You have also not eaten. And until you do, the rules of hospitality are not in place.”
The words were so explicitly a warning that I tightened my hand once on Tallu’s before releasing. I stabbed my fork into the first food I saw on the plate, shoveling a piece of gamy meat into my mouth and chewing.
It was salted and flavored with herbs that cut the tough texture. Beside me, Tallu split open a piece of bread, putting it into his mouth and swallowing it almost without chewing.
I finally raised my cup to my lips and drank deep. The spiced drink seemed to fizzle on my tongue, a sweet aftertaste cutting the heat.
Vostop exhaled, relieved. He smiled at Tallu again. “There, now all is set. Hospitality offered and accepted.”
Tallu took another bite, his jaw working for a few breaths. When he swallowed, there was a guarded interest in his expression. “How long do you intend to hide in the mountains, Koque? There are a great many who would be relieved upon your return to the Imperium.”
“Would you be relieved, Tallu?” She fixed her gaze on his, then looked away, her eyes catching on the forest in the distance.
“Yes.” Tallu looked down at his plate, choosing another morsel.
Koque smiled thinly. “Such a relief to hear that you still bear me such affection.”
“Is it so hard to believe?” I asked, genuinely curious. “Nearly everyone speaks of you with great affection, Empress Koque.”
Koque turned to me, and there was a slight twitch in the corner of her mouth. “It shows that you did not grow up in the Imperium that you believe every word someone says.”
“I believe very few words anyone says in the Imperium.” I took one of the pieces of flatbread and dragged it through a spicy dip that Vostop had put next to it. “What happened to Prince Hallu?”
Koque said nothing.
Across from her, Tallu’s eyes narrowed just slightly. “Are two of the bodies returned to the capital real?”
“Again, I know nothing about what was taken to the capital.” Koque lifted her cup but found it empty. Vostop leaned over, refilling it from the carafe. I took another drink from my own cup, the sweet chocolate flavor taking precedence over the spices on the second sip.
“It seems, Empress, you know very little,” I said.
“You do not know who killed Emperor Millu. You do not know how they did it. You do not know why your survival was covered up and two innocents were sent to take your place in the mausoleum. But as a mother, you cannot tell me you do not know whether your own son is alive or dead?”
“Are you now implying that I killed Emperor Millu?” Empress Koque lifted her chin, her smirk turning into a soft shake of her head. “Why would I want to kill him?”
“You knew who was coming. When my sister arrived, there would be someone else occupying the empress’s quarters.” I let my eyes trail over Koque. She was gorgeous, beautiful beyond most comprehension, but she was older than my sister. “And you had to know that my sister would be more to his liking.”
“I am not sure what you are implying, Prince Airón. It seems to me you have a grave misunderstanding of my husband’s interest in me.
I can assure you that a bond such as ours would not have been so easily broken.
” She glanced at me, letting her eyes trail from the top of my head down to where the table masked the rest of my body.
“Even if your own beauty was a fraction of your sister’s. ”
“I imply nothing,” I said mildly. “I am merely pointing out that it is impossible for the Imperium to have two empresses. And, in the north, we are not taught to lose to our elders once we begin playing a game. My sister would not have yielded to you out of respect for your age.”
The corners of her lips lifted again, and she looked from me to Tallu. “Well, Tallu, you have finally found someone who matches your ability to cut straight to the heart.”
She still had not said whether her son had died, but I thought maybe her silence was statement enough. Unless her safety was contingent upon the Imperium believing Prince Hallu lived.
Tallu seemed to arrive at the same conclusion. Either his brother lived, and Koque was keeping it to herself for some strategic reason, or his brother was dead, and she didn’t dare risk the Shadow King’s fury if she revealed his play too early.
“I am glad you have found safety here, in the arms of our dear ally, Krustau.” Tallu tapped a finger against the delicate cup in front of him, the thin stone ringing like a bell when his rings struck it.
“However, I cannot rest easily with the King of Krustau denying me sight of my heir. My brother is very dear to me. We cannot leave without knowing he is safe.”
Koque’s eyes dropped to Tallu’s finger. Everything he had on was from his father’s closet except for his jewelry. The ring was the shape of a dragon, twisting from his first knuckle down to his palm, where its tail curved around the back of his hand.
“Then take comfort, Tallu. As his mother,” her eyes lifted to me, and she tilted her head, acknowledging the hit, “I can guarantee your brother’s safety. My son lives. He is healthy and well. He is ready to take the golden crown of the Imperium, should the need arise.”
“We may hope it does not arise soon,” Tallu said, a wryness in his lips.
“Although I suppose we can’t guarantee that,” I said, dragging the flatbread through the dip again, enjoying the spicy aftertaste when I swallowed. “Given that we don’t know who killed Emperor Millu. How cold would one have to be to leave him screaming in death?”
An assassin was quick. Anything else was torture. And what kind of wife would torture her husband?
Maybe that question answered itself. The kind of wife who was married to Emperor Millu and knew her position in court was going to disappear too soon.
“Then we will leave, having assured ourselves of my brother’s safety,” Tallu said, standing. “It is always a pleasure to share a meal with you, Empress.”
“With my husband dead, there is no need for you to allow me the title.” Koque kept her eyes fixed on Tallu’s ring. “As your consort pointed out, the position would have been taken from me soon enough.”
“Oh, no,” Tallu corrected. “It is yours. We both know how you secured it. Unlike my own title, no one can claim that you did not earn the one you bear.”
“I would say that I cannot wait for our next meeting,” Koque said, “but I fear this may be our last one. If you do not intend to yield your throne, the King of the Shadow Throne has informed me that any future visits will not be as… hospitable.”
“We would never wish to endanger your stay at such a comfortable venue.” Tallu looked down at her, and she raised her chin.
They did not resemble each other. There was nothing familial in the lines of their faces, but something of her expression echoed on his face, as though he had imprinted on her as a child, learning her way of negotiating the court.
“If you intend to leave, I will take you myself,” Vostop said. He stood, bowing to Empress Koque before opening the door. Asahi stepped forward first, the tension drawing his body taut. Tallu and I followed behind.
This time, when we passed by the rooms in the palace, they were empty. No dwarves lingered or laughed.
The blood mages had grouped together, waiting just outside the entrance to the palace, stretching the length of their connection with Tallu.
Seeing them all grouped together made me aware of how many had faded since we began our journey.
We had started with over a dozen, and now a mere eight remained.
“This way.” Vostop gestured, leading us back into the tunnels we had taken to get to Mountain Thrown City. Once inside, we reached a lake I was sure we had walked around, but instead, Vostop took us through a separate tunnel. We skipped the massive room with bats and stalagmites entirely.
“How did General Maki find his way here?” I asked, interrupting Vostop’s monologue about the history of one of the caverns we were passing through. In the distance, I could hear a rumble of conversation and the bright, clear sound of a hammer striking against stone.
“General Maki?” Vostop showed his teeth, the gleam of white visible in the soft fluorescence of moss growing on the walls.
“I understand that you and Empress Koque exchanged letters while you were stationed at the Imperial Palace and after.” I thought again of the stack of them I had found in Koque’s things.
“It makes sense that she would come to you for help given how close the two of you had been. But General Maki had no such connection to King Inor, did he?”
“I cannot speak to whatever connections my cousin has,” Vostop said tactfully. He paused, turning. Asahi tensed.
We were in a narrow passageway, the walls on either side a gleaming limestone that seemed lit from within, gold veins glowing in the pale stone.
Vostop leaned close, his voice barely more than a murmur.
“I will say this: General Maki did not come up the mountain pass, the way you and Empress Koque did.”
Then he laughed, turning, and began to speak loudly about how valuable the stone on either side was.
The rest of his conversation was equally shallow, but it passed enough time that we were back outside the caves before I had a chance to think of more questions.
Outside, sunset was painting the sky, and the shadows on Tallu’s face were deeper, turning his frown into a glare. The two boys who had taken our horses had them ready, and Asahi checked them over as Sagam and I took our weapons from the bear statues.
It was a palpable relief for me to strap my blades back on, ready again to face whatever enemies would try to attack Tallu. He took his single sword, the narrow blade fitting against his hip. When Vostop tried to speak to him, he seemingly ignored the words.
“You may not believe this,” Vostop said, “but Empress Koque eagerly awaited your visit. I’m glad you were able to relieve her concerns over your safety.”
Tallu didn’t answer, mounting in one motion and spinning his horse in a quick circle before digging his heels in. As he galloped down the mountain, I raised a hand in goodbye, turning to follow Tallu. By the time we were out of sight of the dwarven arch, Tallu had pulled his horse to a slower pace.
The narrow path widened, and I came up beside him. “So, what do you think?”
My horse sidestepped under me, and I took a moment to get it back under control. When I turned to look, Tallu had the back of one hand pressed to his nose. He pulled it back, and I saw blood.
“Tallu!” I pulled my horse short, but Tallu didn’t stop his, so I kicked my horse just briefly, darting in front of him before stopping again. He was forced to pull his reins or risk an accident.
I turned my body, facing him. “Tallu. What’s wrong?”
“The air is too thin for me. I can feel my heart beating twice as fast for every breath I need to take.” Tallu shook his head again. “And I could not trust the food.”
I thought about how I had watched him eat. After the first bite of bread, each subsequent one had been chewed over and over again so that it looked as though he was eating more than he had actually consumed.
“We should rest. We can stay the night here.” It wasn’t even the worst place that Tallu and I had ever spent the night. “Think of it as a reminder of the first night we spent in each other’s company.”
At the reference to the night we had spent escaping from the Dragon Seer’s temple, Tallu let himself smile briefly. “We cannot stop here. We are still inside Krustau’s borders. It is too dangerous.”
Frustrated, I turned my horse, heading down the mountain first. Over my shoulder, I called, “As soon as we get to the bottom, we are stopping, borders or no.”
By the time we reached the base of the mountain, it was dark, the moon luminescent. We took a rest, the horses accepting bags of feed while Sagam pulled snacks out of his saddlebags. Asahi found a lantern in his and lit it.
Asahi turned his head, examining the light. I could hear his voice as clearly as if he had spoken.
“Do it now. Do it now. Do it now.”
“Asahi?” I asked.
“We should keep moving,” he said. “It is dark, and I do not trust the dwarves not to follow us.”
I finished eating the dried meat, following the rest back onto their horses. With Asahi in the front, we took the path around the lake. I was so focused on Asahi that I missed when something leapt out of the darkness, taking down Sagam’s mount.