Chapter 3
SPARTA
Sonah’s head pounded. She was sure the throbbing at her right temple was fast enough to burst a vein. She stared at Duke Ovenno as she struggled to still her trembling.
“Sonah! Come, please, join us,” King Altos said with a smile more like a grimace. When Sonah turned her gaze to him, she noted how stiff he seemed, how tight his face.
She jerked out of her trance when she felt Jenos’s hand at the small of her back.
“Lady?”
In silence, she moved on leaden legs, her steps heavy as she made her way to the table. With his guests already seated, Sonah was unsure of where she should sit.
Duke Ovenno stepped behind the chair at King Altos’s right side and pulled it out. The loud grating of the chair against the marble floor made her flinch.
Looking to the king for help, Sonah soon realized none was forthcoming. Altos dropped his gaze, his lips pinched as he stood, waiting.
Sonah walked until she stood beside the seat Duke Ovenno was still holding, her eyes not daring to meet his. When she moved to sit, she shuddered as he pushed the seat in for her.
Her eyes lifted to meet those of the duchess. The woman’s face was ashen. Her hand shook as it lifted her crystal wine glass to her pinched ruby lips.
“Now,” King Altos said brusquely after taking his seat, “as Duke Ovenno is still your… guardian, he and the duchess have come to take you home.”
Sonah blanched. Cold flashed over her and the blood left her face.
While she’d been the Royal Taster to Crown Prince Lerek during her time at the White Palace, she was thought to have been Duke Ovenno’s daughter. Now, months after the assassination of the crown prince—no, it had been Isher who was murdered—the ruse was no longer necessary.
So why come here? Why continue this game?
“To that end,” the king continued after an awkward pause, “you will return with him—”
“What?!” Sonah shot to her feet, her chest heaving as she stared in horror at the king. “You would—”
“Silence!”
Sonah stood for a long moment after the king’s bellow, then quickly sat.
She alternated between fear and rage. She had not gone so far as to think of him as a friend, but she had thought King Altos would at least have fought harder for her.
But he seemed more than fine with handing her over to the very man who had set her up as a pawn in a madman’s palace.
The quiet thickened as Altos gestured for the servants. Sonah fumed, the sounds of plates and glasses and cutlery filled the taut silence around them. With their work completed, the servants vanished, save for a footman standing far enough behind the king’s chair as to be out of sight.
“Dear Sonah,” Duke Ovenno said, his booming voice making her cringe. “I regret I was unable to come to the White Palace after…”
Sonah lifted her eyes enough to glare at King Altos, who was watching her with a glare of his own.
“You continue this—” Sonah flung out a hand, almost knocking over her water glass. She righted it and turned her glare from the king to the duke. “You continue this farce even now? I will go nowhere with you.” She turned her narrowed eyes to Altos. “I hope—”
The king stood so abruptly his chair crashed to the ground before a servant scurried over to pick it up. Sonah flinched but otherwise did not back down.
“If you’ll excuse us, Ovenno,” King Altos ground out. Pulling Sonah’s chair out roughly, he seized her wrist, all but dragging her out of her seat. Sonah gasped, her face hotter than the sun as she rushed to keep up with the king’s stride.
She hadn’t been looking where he led. Thrusting her into a room she’d never been in before, Altos slammed the door shut before rounding on her with fury blazing in his eyes.
“There’s more going on here than just Duke Ovenno coming to Sparta,” Altos seethed as he stepped dangerously close to Sonah.
She had the wherewithal to shrink back. “You know I am aware they are not your parents. I had hoped you’d also know I would never put you in harm’s way.
You are very important to me. To Sparta.
But I need you to play along so we can find out what exactly is behind this unexpected visit.
Why he’d have the audacity to come here in the first place! ”
Sonah was taken aback by the fury punctuating his words. She’d known the king long enough to form an opinion of the man she believed was shared by all who knew him.
This was not that man.
Altos must’ve seen something on her face because he blinked as if waking from a trance and took a step back.
He ran a hand over his mouth and took a deep breath.
“I need you to play along. And I need you not to defy me in front of them. You will not like the consequences, Lady Sonah. I promise you will not.”
Sonah’s eyes stung with tears, turning the king’s face blurry. She gave him a curt nod. An endless moment later he turned, cursing under his breath as he strode to the door, yanking it open with enough force, the wind from it cooled Sonah’s hot cheeks.
Quickly wiping the few traitorous tears escaping her control, Sonah rushed to follow the king.
As Sonah retook her seat, she dared a look over at him. King Altos was a master of disguise. No longer the wrathful sovereign he’d been a moment before, the man at the table now looked jovially over at his guests and gestured for them to eat.
Across from her, the duke began to eat as he spoke of how happy he was to see Sonah again. The conversation made her ill, as did his stupid smile.
“Sonah,” Altos said, his voice kinder than his countenance, “your… parents will remain at Arestia for a few days before you all leave together. I will have Commander Antonius and a contingent of his men escort you back with the duke and duchess when it’s time to leave.”
“That’s not necessary, Your Majesty,” Duke Ovenno said with an oily smile. “I’ve men of my own capable of escorting us. As you know.”
The king’s smile could wither freshly budded wisteria. When he deigned to respond, his words were harsh.
“If I trusted your men over mine, I wouldn’t need to send my best warrior to protect Lady Sonah. You’ve proven once you’re incapable of guarding her.” His lips twisted in a derisive smile, Altos lifted his wine goblet in a mock salute. “It wasn’t an offer, Ovenno. It is my command.”
Sonah barely heard. The loud buzzing in her ears had taken over almost all of her hearing. She sat there, numb, her eyes dropping back down to her plate filled with food that made her nauseous. Her lip curled as Duke Ovenno chimed in, his loud voice grating on her nerves.
Sonah looked across at the duchess. She swore she had seen sympathy there before the older woman dropped her gaze.
“May I be excused?” Sonah asked abruptly, interrupting the duke.
Sonah did not wait for King Altos to respond before she pushed away from the table. “I feel terribly ill.”
Color bloomed in the king’s neck and cheeks, but he waved to Jenos, who came quickly to her side. Catching her elbow in his large hand, he guided her away from the table.
As they made their way to the doors, Jenos grunted. “That was not wise.”
Sonah was beyond caring. She needed to lie down for a bit.
And prepare for her midnight meeting with Prince Lerek.
Daris was honest with himself that the tension with Heylisia and being surprised by the simpering duke and his wife were not what bothered him.
It was that gods damned dream.
It had been over a month since the events in Seleste. Longer since Terena had fought him over his betrayal. And while he hadn’t killed Prince Lerek, he hadn’t told her about his role in those events.
She had every right to be angry. To hate him.
He hated himself for it.
The door swung open behind him and Daris turned, with rage at the intrusion ready to be unleashed on whomever made the unfortunate mistake of bothering him.
He stopped cold when King Altos entered.
The king paused when he saw the look on Daris’s face. He glanced at the scattered papers, then back at Daris. Closing the door behind him, the king turned with a scowl.
“I need you to ready a company of your men,” he said, stepping further into the room. Daris straightened. “The duke will leave in two days’ time, and you are to go with them.”
Daris remained silent as he watched his king.
“As you’d thought, they’ve come for Sonah Yahn,” the king added, his hard eyes narrowed. “There’s been another development.”
“You’ve heard already?” Daris asked, crossing his arms across his chest. He trusted Jason’s discretion and would not suspect him of circulating the news of Heylisians moving through Ibros.
He could only assume it was the scout who’d returned, but he was still annoyed word had spread before he’d had time to plan a response with the other officers.
“Heard what?”
“Heylisians have crossed into Ibros. The duke forgot to mention it?”
The king’s face darkened. “That insolent weasel. No, he failed to mention an army at his back. Fuck.”
“What did you mean, then? What other development?”
“I received word from the northern king yesterday,” King Altos said. “I put off responding, but with Duke Ovenno’s arrival and demands, I’m glad I did.”
“What’d he say?”
“Either the Fates play games with us, or the plan is unfolding as it should,” Altos said absently. He turned back to face Daris. “The king is on his way here. For Sonah Yahn.”
Daris smothered the curse burning the back of his throat and closed his eye for a beat before responding.
“Terena?”
“He did not say. I will send him a note after this, but I cannot think of a way to stall the duke until the king’s arrival.
Duke Ovenno is still under the impression we do not know who Sonah really is, and I’ve done nothing to disabuse him of the notion.
So here’s how we’ll play it to our advantage.
I’ve told him you’ll be joining Sonah as her escort.
Pick ten of your best to go with you. I want to know what that fool is up to, and with you in his castle, you can monitor him and his dealings as well as protect Sonah. ”
“And the army in Ibros?”
“Let me worry about that. Your concern is Sonah.”
“Sire, I don’t think—”
“You are Sonah’s guardian,” Altos said, narrowing his dark brown eyes. “You will go with her. If I can convince the King of Olympus to send Terena Luca after you two, Sonah will never reach Ovenno.”
Daris’s heart stopped, then sped up painfully. Carefully schooling his features, he stayed silent as he waited for Altos to say more.
The king looked at him for a moment before he nodded and turned away. He walked to the window and stared out, his back to Daris.
“It is not going well for them,” Altos continued. “I believe the duke and his allies seek to use Sonah for the same purpose as us.”
The king turned back to him and smiled at the look on Daris’s face.
“Aye. I believe they wish to bait Terena to their side. To lure her into their war against Emperor Solon. To use gods to fight against the emperor’s growing power. Somehow, he has managed to find gods of his own.”
“Impossible,” Daris said before he could stop himself.
“That was my thought as well,” Altos said with an arch of his eyebrow. “And yet the duke brought news of a situation prompting his journey here.”
The king paced back to the window and stared out in silence. Daris waited, fists clenched at his sides.
“The emperor has reclaimed Ravos. Duke Ovenno was not forthcoming with details, except to say the emperor sent General Peleon to treat with Duke Ravos. It was a ruse. The general had someone with him who had powers similar to Terena. This… god, was with Peleon. They were sent with a message for Duke Ravos’s allies. ”
“What message?”
Daris felt a prickle of unease slide down his spine as the king shook his head.
“Duke Ravos was the message. He was dumped outside the gates of Calla. Ovenno’s men found him after the morning shift change.”
Daris’s blood went cold. Calla was the capital of Ovenno. If Solon’s men could get that close to the duke and not be seen…
“They killed him?” Daris asked, steeling himself for the answer.
King Altos rubbed his eyes with his thumb and forefinger, then opened his bloodshot eyes, staring at Daris with resignation.
“They melted his face. The duke said they didn’t even know it was him until after the healers revived him. He told Duke Ovenno the emperor has gods fighting for him, and that they are coming for him and Duke Aurora next. He died shortly thereafter.”
There was a loud ringing in Daris’s ears. A long time passed before the king spoke again.
“We have to send Sonah with them, Daris,” Altos whispered.
“We’ve no choice now. The northern king has threatened war if we do not return Sonah to him and Terena.
I’d rather he visited his wrath on Solon than Sparta.
You will go with Sonah, ensure her safety.
I don’t want Duke Ovenno getting any stupid ideas about leveraging her for amnesty. ”
Daris opened his mouth to speak but Altos held up a hand to stay him. “Terena will come for her, Daris. I want you there when she does.”
“She hates me,” he bit out, his eyes on the ground in frustration.
“Aye, well, hopefully some of what she felt for you before remains and she’ll listen to you when you explain about Lerek. It’s time. We’ve no choice.”