23. Summoned #3
He folded over, elbows jabbing his knees, head in his hands.
It didn’t have to be like this. He’d tried not to let himself think too much of Imalroc when they’d been occupied with getting Uralta safely to Hammond, but it was impossible to ignore the unaddressed part of Etiana’s plan to follow Uralta south.
If they went to the Southern Felds… Imalroc would be there too, somewhere.
He could look for him. He just didn’t know if the battleboxer would want to be found.
Rerdas mopped his eyes with his sleeves and sat back to stare at the fountain.
If he assumed the worst, Imalroc loathed him and never wanted to see him again.
But… it hadn’t felt like that. The last time they’d been together, he’d drifted to sleep with a strong arm folded around his waist, fingers carding gently through his hair, as if he were something precious.
If there were a chance, even a small one, that Imalroc might not be entirely finished with him…
If they could see each other and talk, perhaps…
He shuddered. There weren’t enough apologies in the world for that conversation.
But Imalroc’s voice was already in his mind, his glare as hot and present as the sunlight lancing through the gaps in the wisteria vines.
He’d called Rerdas a coward during that last night, when Rerdas had first sought him in the attic.
A coward didn’t fight for what they wanted.
And he knew what he wanted, so badly it stopped his breath. If he didn’t find Imalroc and see what might happen, he’d live in uncertainty the rest of his life. He had to discover if they could rebuild something.
A burst of giggles drew his attention, and a pair of girls burst from beneath a rhododendron. Children dressed for court, their hair caught up in ribbons and flowers, and their fine clothing smudged with dirt from crawling around in the plants.
They darted away as soon as their minder called for them, although they were running in the opposite direction of the irate voice.
Rerdas chewed at his lip. It wasn’t unheard of for children to be at the palace, but it was exceedingly odd if their parents had brought them along in response to a summons.
“Nothing like the light of youth to make an ugly girl look passable,” Hassindra said behind him.
Rerdas sprang off the bench and whirled before he could help it.
The crown princess gave him a pickpocket’s smile. She leaned against an intricately carved arch on a shadowed veranda, one of her omnipresent cups tilted in her hand.
Rerdas shot a glance around the courtyard, looking for her ladies-in-waiting or guards.
“Hello, huntmaster. I must say, you’re not the sort of man I expected to find lurking in the shadows staring at young ladies.”
“I… Those were children, not—” Rerdas sputtered at the accusation, despairing as he saw her smile widen. She was trying to rile him, and it had only taken a heartbeat. He tried to recover. “Your Highness. I am honored to be in your company once again.”
Hassindra was close to the last person he wanted to run into in the palace. Etiana was far better equipped to deal with this viper.
“We have missed you. Umber especially. He wouldn’t shut up about you for a time.” She slurped from her cup. Rerdas was willing to bet his life her drink was wine or something stronger.
“Lady Toriem and I had an unfortunate incident arise with our battleboxer. We were long delayed in Drida.”
Hassindra stared at him until he had to fight a powerful urge to squirm in his boots. “Well,” she said at last, “you are here now.”
“At the queen’s invitation.”
“Pity.” Her nails clicked against the ceramic cup. “I rather liked you.”
“What?” His pulse staggered. A few casually slung words from Hassindra, and he was staving off panic. He tried to calm himself. She liked to play these games, that was all. She was a cat with a mouse. A fucking dragon with a mouse.
“I assume you are about to become the latest in a long line of idiots Kuraya suspects of spying. It’s getting quite out of hand. You can tell her I said that when she strings you up.”
“You’re... you can’t be serious.”
“Tell me, why would Kuraya summon entire families to the palace? What use would she have for the squalling brats of anyone with a title?”
“I... don’t...”
But he did know. Children were leverage. Corralling them in one place ensured that whatever Kuraya did, the nobility would not dare rise against her. The realization drained through him like cold water. “Is His Grace here?” he whispered.
“Of course. They all are.”
“All, Highness?”
“Anyone who doesn’t want to be beheaded. And a fair amount that will be chopped to bits regardless.”
He almost took off running. “I am afraid I must leave your charming company, Highness.”
“If I were you, I would not waste my time looking for Umber. He doesn’t have the spine to protect you from Kuraya. I’d scamper back to your cousin and slip out of the palace while there are so many still coming in. Run along.” Hassindra sloshed her cup in his direction.
Rerdas was already backing away, out of the courtyard. He bowed and turned in the same movement, nearly breaking into a sprint. Her parting words chased him back into the palace.
“Hurry! You’ve a lovely neck for the blade!”