Chapter 8
After what I judged to be an hour, and when I’d rifled through the bag, rationing the food inside to last me through the night (and okay, after I devoured the chunky slice of chocolate cake I found in five bites) I got out of my crying corner and stretched my arms, my legs.
If I had to stay down here, I might as well train.
I’d gotten a little lazy since Valour and Baby showed up, and focused so much on magical training that I slacked on all my physical workouts.
I’d usually practise manoeuvres with a sword or twin daggers, but Kier hadn’t thought to pack any comfort weapons in my bag.
Or he was trying to keep me alive by not giving a woman compelled to kill herself anything sharp and stabby—six of one, half a dozen of the other.
I ran through the motions I last practised under Celandrine’s tutelage, and firmly shoved my mind away from thoughts of who that bitch turned out to be.
If my punches were a little messy, my kicks imprecise, I could forgive myself.
She might have trained me for use against her Bluescale enemies, but this was my skill now, and I’d use it to destroy her.
That thought centred me enough that I settled into the routine, my body alternately flowing through the room like water and cutting like a dagger.
After what must have been thirty minutes of training, I felt better, grounded.
And hungry again. Turned out chocolate cake was delicious but not an effective workout food; who knew?
I was about to rip into the cinnamon banana bread Kier packed for me when a grating of stone on stone made my head snap up.
He hadn’t even lasted an hour without me.
I grinned, turning towards the arch, but it was a different entry that opened now, six down from the arch Kier took.
Did they all open to different parts of the castle?
And how, since the chamber was circular? Magic was probably the answer to that.
I crossed the carved floor as the wall at the back of the arch swung open and—
“Calanthe?” I blurted, staring at the woman who stepped into the Chamber of Truths. She wore a floral lemon dress that sat beautifully against her brown skin, her hair longer than the last time I saw her months ago, almost down to her waist now.
“Letta,” she exclaimed, nothing but warmth in her voice, her face as she broke into a smile.
She raced across the room to me, not caring to let the door fall shut, and flung her arms around me, ensconcing me in her warmth and friendship.
She was the first friend I ever had in the goblin lands, the first person to care for me, to really listen, and I’d missed her.
“Where were you?” I asked, wrapping my arms around her. “I looked for you when I got back to Lazankh. I thought maybe you’d left in the months I was away.”
“I was with my girlfriend,” she said, practically bursting with excitement.
I remembered what she told me about her ex being vile because Calanthe was a halfling, and a little pang went through my chest. Any children Kier and I had would be halflings, too.
But if anyone treated them badly because of it, they’d meet the other end of my dagger.
If Kier’s dragon didn’t swallow them whole first.
I had a smile on my face as I pulled back, taking a long look at my friend. Happiness was there in the crinkles around her hazel eyes, the glitter in her irises, the smile she couldn’t keep off her face. “I’m not surprised you found someone,” I said, giving her a squeeze. “You’re a catch.”
She scoffed, batting my shoulder.
“I’m serious. This gorgeous face, and all those curves, plus your kind heart? I’m surprised half the kingdom isn’t in love with you.”
That earned me an eyeroll, although I thought she might be blushing, her smile even bigger. “Oh, enough with the charm, your highness.”
I gave her a narrow-eyed stare. “What did I say about that title?”
She shrugged, winding a lock of brown hair around her finger. “It’s been so long, I thought my friend privileges might have been revoked.”
“Nope. We’re besties for life.”
Her smile this time consumed her whole face, creasing her eyes into half moons. She threw her arms around my shoulders and gripped tight. “I was so worried about you when His Highness exiled you. I wanted to lay into him, but all I could do was call him a fool.”
“You called Kier a fool?” I echoed, trying to imagine how brave she’d have to be for a maid to insult a prince. “What did he say?”
“‘I know,’ but in a really miserable voice, like he was suffering without you. That’s around the time he sent people out to find you and bring you home.”
“I honestly thought they’d been sent to kill me,” I admitted with a wince. “I might have given several of them a concussion via a branch to the head.”
“Ouch. Where were you all those months? No, wait, I brought food.” She unfastened a tan leather satchel from her waist and held it out to me. “There’s all the essentials—tea, chocolate, snap biscuits, and those little brain things you like in cheese sauce.”
“I believe they’re called pasta,” I said dryly, gratefully accepting the food.
And hey, it wasn’t dumpling soup so I could eat it without sobbing into my food.
I didn’t want to be reminded of that lonely time without Kier, or how it felt strange and a little empty now without the Haar.
If he’d still been around instead of inside Kier, both sides finally melded back together, he’d have come to sit with me down here.
But it was better, Kier was healing. I just missed him.
“There’s not a lot of furniture down here,” I said, crossing over to the Mother’s statue. “Or, you know, any furniture. But we can sit here.” I perched on the plinth Gaia stood upon and dug into the pasta, moaning at the taste of peppery cheese sauce. “Welcome to my humble abode.”
“It’s lovely,” Calanthe said sweetly, though unable to hide the dubious squint to her eyes. “I really like what you’ve done with the place.”
“Ah yes, the dust. I’m glad you noticed; it took me forever to string it up every-damn-where.”
She snorted, fiddling with the sleeve of her dress where I could make out a glimmer of a gemstone bracelet. A gift from her new beau, perchance? “Now tell me where you’ve been.”
I shoved another mouthful of pasta into my mouth and said, “I ran away and joined a players troupe.”
“No way.”
“Absolutely yes way. They’re great people. A little crime-y but with hearts of true gold. You’ll like them a lot, especially Cherish. She’s really kind, too.”
Calanthe batted her hand at me. “I’m not that kind. I just have basic goblin decency.”
If only she knew how rare basic decency was. I opened my mouth to tell her just that, but she spoke first.
“Oh! How could I forget? I smuggled this out for you. It seemed important.”
She extended her hand and in her palm was a thick gold band with a square diamond stamped into the metal.
“Baby!” I exclaimed, snatching the ring from her and holding it tight to my chest. It was the ring I stole from Farrang’s office, the ring my feline creature burst from.
I slid it onto my thumb, and felt immediately better when it settled against my skin, power humming through me for a moment before it was swallowed. Ah, Kier did mention that magic struggled to form here. I tried to summon Baby and failed, but at least I had him close again.
“Did you see another ring with this? My wedding ring?” I asked Calanthe, cradling the ring to my chest like I’d hug Baby.
“No, just this one.” Calanthe was watching me strangely.
“You’re right, this is important to me. I stole it when I broke out of a really huge dick’s house. Thank you.”
She tried to keep a straight face, then burst out laughing. “Sorry, I know you were being serious, but really huge dick is not a very serious phrase.”
I shoved her shoulder, unable to keep a grin off my face. It felt good to have my friend back. Now I had everyone—Kier, my troupe, Calanthe, and Rook. Xiona didn’t count because she wanted me dead. Even the wound of missing Natasya had begun to heal, though I was still furious at what she did.
All that was missing now was Valour.