LI | THE ENEMY OF MY ENEMY
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Celvene frowned. Had Oriel never considered Aleksandr might be working with Zelphar, or did they only speak of the ball's potential attack? "Is it an open invitation?"
"No, but I wouldn't be surprised if Aleksandr opens it to the general public right before as a way to show his kindness and to unite the kingdom.
" They lifted their hands and scrunched them into air quotes, rolling their eyes at the last part.
"If you're going to wait to expose him until tomorrow, you're going to need to do it right after the party starts.
There's no telling when he'd plan the ambush for.
My guess would be well into the ball so everyone is delirious after drinking wine. "
Their gaze slid to Melantha. "And considering how his last ball went, I would be wary of him sending a few soldiers in before the real attack.
Did you ever hear how Aleksandr played it off?
He said it was an attack on our kingdom by the enemy and he wouldn't let them get away with it.
Once you were gone, he kicked up his feet and did even less than he did while you were here.
He's gotten smart. He knows what people want to hear, and it doesn't seem like any of them pay attention to the castle and its military when they have more important things to worry about, like surviving the day. "
Melantha pursed her lips but said nothing.
Celvene laid a hand against her forehead; her headache hadn't relented, and the red haze that had been lurking in the back of her mind had crept into vision.
Her heart was racing, and she couldn't tell if it was because of the revelation or because of the corruption magic returning.
Even now, with it sitting on the edges of her vision, she felt. .. different. And not in a good way.
She lifted her head. "If I see Aleksandr, he'll be dead by my hand if I'm merciful. He's betrayed this kingdom."
"And if you aren't merciful?" asked Melantha. Celvene could detect a hint of trepidation in her voice.
Celvene shrugged. "Prison. But you've seen how clean those cells are."
Melantha clasped her hands together, leaning back on her heels. She said nothing, yet everything was etched in her facial features: a tight brow, a flicker of a frown, and squared shoulders. She wasn't pleased with what Celvene would do.
Celvene narrowed her eyes. "He's a swine, Melantha. You know that."
"Yes, but... he's still my father. I just..."
"He's also trying to kill this kingdom and me," said Celvene pointedly.
"If you're concerned about ethics, killing him is far more merciful than the alternatives.
If you'd like, I could inject him with runespowder and throw him into a cell.
Or I can swim down and lock him into an underwater jail, if that's more your style. "
"I get it, Celvene," Melantha said, turning away. "But you wouldn't."
"Excuse me?" Was Melantha seriously implying Aleksandr didn't deserve death for betraying the kingdom because Celvene's parents loved her?
Melantha fanned her nostrils, face turning red. "Forget I said anything. Sorry. I'm sorry. That just slipped out. Just... please do not torture him. I don't know if I could stomach letting that happen, even if he deserves it."
Celvene clamped her mouth shut without another word, glaring at Melantha. Maybe Celvene's parents were good to her, but she'd been separated from them for years. At least in some twisted logic, Melantha could see her father again—even if he died after.
For all Celvene knew, her parents were dead, lost to the winds of time.
But some part of her understood Melantha.
Even if her parents were awful people, she wasn't sure she'd be able to stomach both admitting that fact and watching them die.
Melantha had already been brave when she'd admitted Aleksandr wasn't a good man.
The worst part is Celvene knew she'd already forgiven Melantha. The girl simply never thought before she spoke, and in that regard, Celvene knew she was no better than Melantha.
"Did you get evidence against anyone but Ziel Rui?" Oriel asked.
"No," said Celvene. "I haven't read what she did, but I can't imagine it was good. She stood against Aleksandr when I spoke to her, but she could have been acting. I want concrete evidence to get her to help me, lest she ends up on the streets if she's lucky."
"And what exactly do you plan to get out of her?" Oriel said. "If she stands against Aleksandr, he wouldn't have trusted her with any vital information. To his credit, he can see when people don't trust him. I watched him outcast soldiers from the army for it."
"I'm sure they're happy he did that. But Ziel Rui implied she'd help me. She didn't trust Aleksandr, and even if I don't trust her, an enemy of my enemy is my friend."
She unraveled the scroll, scanning the contents.
The scroll was fresh, as was the ink, though the parchment wasn't dated.
If Celvene had to guess, this particular event happened recently.
And, as she expected, it was nothing too bad in the grand scheme of things: tax evasion and petty theft.
Something Ziel Rui certainly should have faced consequences for, but something Celvene could ignore until after she confronted the woman and garnered any information she possessed.
Oriel pressed their lips together. "I can't stop you. But take this."
They tossed something through the air, and Celvene had to drop the letter she was holding to catch it.
She hadn't even seen Oriel move to grab anything.
They'd thrown a necklace, a golden chain with a chunky azure stone hanging from it.
Metalwork crawled around the surface of the stone, keeping it snug in place.
When Celvene raised it to the light, it shimmered a lighter blue.
"A cloaking pendant?" she said.
A small smile crossed Oriel's face. "I had enough spare parts lying around to make one.
I'm no smith or enchanter, though, so it's not going to be as effective as a direct spell.
The second you clasp it around your neck, you'll be able to change forms at will as long as you're holding the stone. You can remove it the same way."
"Can I become invisible?"
"If I was better at this, yes, but I'm not. So you're only going to be able to shape shift."
Celvene touched the stone with a hand, imagining herself to have lighter skin, dull green eyes, and a head of blonde hair. When she looked to the mirror, she looked exactly how she pictured, and her stomach churned.
"This is odd," she said.
Melantha nodded in agreement, and she stared at Celvene. She couldn't blame Melantha. She looked bizarre.
"I'll agree the appearance you picked is odd, but if you're able to play the part, no one will care. You look convincing, and from what I've heard, you act convincingly as well. Confronting Ziel Rui should be easy, depending on what you're looking to get out of her."
"That's part of the issue. I'm not sure how much information she has, if any, and whether she'll talk."
"Most would talk if you show up with proof that they've broken the law. You just need to promise her you won't arrest her," Oriel said.
Celvene pursed her lips. "And if I don't intend to keep that promise?"
"Then you're lucky you're not wearing your face right now.
If you're a good enough liar, she won't have any ties to you.
But you have to be careful. It wouldn't take a genius to connect the dots between someone showing up with evidence against Ziel Rui to get information and your grand exposement at the ball tomorrow. "
"Well, I guess it doesn't matter if she does. Assuming the kingdom pays attention, Aleksandr won't be able to take my power anymore. And I'm not planning to expose what she did as well."
"These fine details are going to get to your head if you keep thinking about them," Oriel said, flourishing their hand towards the door. "Go. You're wasting valuable time, and if you want tomorrow to go as smoothly as possible, you're going to want all the time you can get."
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