“Really? I thought that since you guys were queens now you’d get your own cabin.”
“We have limited space.” Em shrugged. “Besides, I’d prefer you nearby.”
He bumped his shoulder against hers with a grin. “Anything for my queen.”
“Anything? Because I’d like a hot bath and a huge meal with some fig tarts, please.”
His stomach rumbled. They’d been surviving on nuts and seeds and the fish they’d caught in the river. Food was going to be a real problem soon. Not much grew in Ruina. “You and me both.” He grabbed his canteen off his belt and took a sip. “There were some advantages to being in Lera, weren’t there?”
Em nodded wordlessly. She was obviously trying to keep her expression neutral, but something dark passed over her features whenever Aren mentioned Lera or Cas.
He didn’t understand Em’s affection for Cas. He didn’t want to understand it. She would never see him again anyway. At least, he hoped she would never see him again. He didn’t want to see any Leran ever again. It was best that Cas was gone, even if it made Em sad.
The wind blew across the back of his neck, making his skin prick, and he swiped at it, rolling his eyes at the sky.
I know, I know, he said in his head.
The wind didn’t let up, like it was positive he knew nothing. Like it knew he wasn’t listening to his mother’s words on repeat in his head: The kindness you show others comes back around for you one day.
The wind was right; he wasn’t listening to his mother’s words. He’d been kind his whole life, right up until his parents were murdered and his home burned to the ground. Action had made life better, not kindness.
He stole a look at Em’s somber face again. They’d been friends since they were toddlers. They could usually talk about anything.
He opened his mouth to tell her that, but the words died in his throat. He always lost words when he needed them most.
They reached the cabins, and Olivia emerged from one in the middle. “The old ones are better,” she said. “The new ones are smaller.”
“We should take one of the smaller ones,” Em said. “It’ll just be me, you, and Aren.”
Olivia blew out a breath of air. “Fine.” She winked at Aren like she wasn’t actually annoyed. She looked a lot like Em, with the same olive skin and dark hair, but a smaller, more fragile version. It was hilarious, considering.
A flash of movement caught his attention, and his head snapped to the left. Two men were scrambling out of the last cabin. One was injured, dragging his left leg behind him, and his friend held on to his arm. They walked away from the mines, to the sparse trees to the north.
“Seems we have some stragglers,” Olivia said.
“Leave them,” Em said. “They can barely walk.”
Olivia set her lips in a hard line. “Did they let us go when we could barely walk?” She gestured at Aren. “Did they let him go after burning half his skin off?”
Aren tucked his hands behind him, suddenly acutely aware of his wrecked flesh. He didn’t actually mind the scars that covered much of his upper body—they were a reminder that he’d survived the raid on the Ruina castle, despite the Lera king’s best efforts—but he didn’t particularly want to be held up as an example of how bad things could get.
He shrugged when Olivia looked at him expectantly. Honestly, he hadn’t planned to chase down those miners. The chances of them making it alive to Vallos on foot were slim at best.
“I guess not,” Em said quietly.
“Let’s go have a chat with them,” Olivia said, turning to Aren. “Are you in?”
He met her gaze. Her eyes were alight with excitement. Maybe because she was still rejoicing in her freedom. Maybe because she was delighted at the idea of hunting and killing. He wasn’t sure he cared which one it was.
“Of course.”
Olivia jumped and looped her arm through his. “Em, are you and Mariana good to go back and let the rest of the Ruined know we can move in? Aren and I will start cleaning cabins after we take care of those two.”
“All right.” Em looked at Aren. “Be careful?” It came out as a question, and Aren wasn’t entirely sure why. He nodded.
Olivia tugged on his arm, leading him in the direction of the two men.
“Honestly, they should have left already,” Olivia said as they walked. “If they hung around this long they’re clearly too stupid to live anyway.” She giggled.
He figured the men hadn’t left because they were too weak to travel, but he didn’t bother pointing that out. Olivia was right. The hunters never cared if a Ruined was slow or weak or injured. They killed indiscriminately.
Aren ducked under a tree branch and the two men came into view. They were moving even slower than before, and the injured one glanced over his shoulder. His eyes widened as they met Aren’s. The man quickly turned away, ducking his head like he thought that would save him. Like if he didn’t strike first, Aren wouldn’t attack.
“I’m glad we have this opportunity. I want to show you something.” Olivia cleared her throat, lifting her chin to call to the men. “Excuse me?”
The men turned slowly. Aren could pinpoint the moment they found the Ruined marks curling up Olivia’s neck. His own Ruined marks had mostly disappeared beneath his scars, but a few new ones stood out against his dark skin. Fear seized the mens’ faces so intensely he could almost feel their heartbeats speed up.
Maybe he could feel it. His Ruined power had changed and shifted since spending so much time around humans. Sometimes it was like he could feel their fear, their pain, the relief when he let them go. Ruining the body required him to focus not only on the other person’s body, but also his own, and it was almost like they were one when his magic bubbled up.
“We’re … we’re leaving,” the younger man sputtered.
“You.” Olivia pointed at the older man. “You seem tired. Why don’t you sit down?”
The man wiped a shaky hand across his forehead and didn’t follow the order.
“Sit,” Olivia repeated. The man’s legs flew out from under him and he crashed to the dirt with a yelp. Olivia pointed to the younger man. “You. Just stand there for me.”
The sinking feeling in the pit of Aren’s stomach deepened. He could still leave. Olivia could do this on her own.
“I’m going to teach you how to ruin the body without exhausting your own,” she said.
His attention snapped back to her. “I didn’t think that was possible.”
“I can do it. I don’t think all Ruined are capable of it, but I bet you are.”
A spark of hope filtered in through his uneasiness. The exhaustion that followed any use of his magic was his biggest weakness. It made it impossible to use his power in some situations.
“Focus on his arm. Don’t do anything yet.” She gestured at the younger man.
Panic flitted across the man’s face and he whirled around, preparing to make a run for it.
“Nope.” Olivia pointed at him again and the man’s body jerked back toward them. He was rooted to the ground. She put a hand on Aren’s back. “Go ahead.”
He focused on the man’s arm, his own arm tingling. He couldn’t exactly see the bones, but he knew where they all were. He could snap each of them individually, if he wanted.
“You feel it here?” Olivia ran her fingers over Aren’s right arm.
He shivered. “Yes.”
“Separate it.”
He cocked his head. “How?”
“Don’t let yourself be a part of it. This is about him, not you. You’re stronger than him. He can’t control you. Don’t let him. Repeat it in your head.”
You don’t control me. You don’t control me. He repeated it over and over.
“Don’t make a move until you’ve separated yourself from it. Remove your emotions. He doesn’t deserve any of your emotions.”
Something snapped inside of him with those last words from Olivia. Of course this man didn’t deserve his emoti
ons. Not his compassion. Not his sadness. Not even his anger.
Aren’s body went cold, the tingling sensation disappearing from his arm. The world around him went quiet.
Everything was numb. Everything he’d been feeling for the past year—gone.
That was so much better.
He never wanted any of it to come back. He wanted to hang on to this feeling forever.
“That’s it.” He could hear the smile in Olivia’s voice. “Do it.”
She didn’t have to ask twice. He shattered the man’s arm. A scream echoed through the forest.
Aren didn’t feel different. He was usually weak and uneasy after doing that. But there was no exhaustion. In fact, he felt better.
“Again,” Olivia said. “Whatever you want.”
Aren lifted the man clean off the ground, tossing his body a few feet away. The older man scrambled up and Aren made him stumble over his own feet. The man grunted as he smacked face-first into the ground.
“You going to take care of that?” Olivia asked, pointing to where the young man was trying to run away.
Aren had snapped necks before, but this one was so easy he almost didn’t realize it was done. He barely gestured at the man. Then the man was on ground, his neck twisted and his body limp.
“Feel like you could do a hundred more?” Olivia asked.
“Yes,” he breathed.
She waved her hand at the older man. He wasn’t sure what she’d done, but blood splattered out of the man’s chest and hit Aren’s cheek.
Olivia grinned, rubbing her thumb over the splatter. She wiped the blood on her pants, then put both hands on his cheeks. “Good?”
He curled his fingers around her arms, locking his gaze on hers. “Yes. So good. Thank you.”
“You are very welcome.” She bounced on the balls of her feet. “I knew you could do it.”
He blinked, still in a daze. The numbness had started to wear off, and something else was invading his chest. He suddenly wished he’d run away earlier. He wished he hadn’t listened to her, hadn’t killed that man.
Olivia looked so happy. She still had a wide smile on her face, like she couldn’t see his sudden discomfort. He didn’t think he’d been hiding it.
Perhaps she just didn’t care.
He tried to pull away from her, but Olivia rose up on her toes and leaned her forehead against his. “You are I are going to make a great team, Aren.”
SIX
CAS DIDN’T GO to the site of his mother’s death after Jovita brought it up. He spent a few days locked in the castle, attending pointless meetings where everyone just yelled at one another.
But mostly they yelled at him for refusing to attack the Ruined.
He retreated to his room after the most recent meeting, which had ended with Jovita angrily stomping out. Danna and General Amaro had followed her.
Galo and Violet accompanied him into his room, closing the door quietly behind them. His room wasn’t much—two lanterns on the wall, a small bed, a desk, and a wooden chair in the corner. Violet sat in the chair. Galo began pacing.
“If Jovita implies you’re insane one more time, I won’t be responsible for my actions,” Galo said.
Cas sank down on the bed with a heavy sigh. “If she says it enough times, everyone will start to believe it.” They already believed it. He could see it in the eyes of the advisers, in some of the soldiers. He didn’t know what to do about it. Insisting he hadn’t lost his mind would only make matters worse. Only crazy people had to defend their sanity.
He let out a short laugh and Galo gave him an exasperated look.
“Laughing at nothing will not help your case,” the guard said.
“No one with any sense thinks you’ve gone mad,” Violet said with a roll of her eyes. Cas had seen that eye roll many times in just a few days. She didn’t hide her disdain for Jovita well. He liked that about her.
“Then I think there were quite a few people without any sense in that meeting,” Cas said.
“No kidding,” she muttered. “You need to put an end to this talk.”
“How?”
“Throw Jovita out of the meetings. Remove some of the advisers from their positions. Just because they served your father doesn’t mean they’ll be loyal to you. Clearly.”
“We’re at war,” Cas said. “I’m not sure it’s the time to throw Lera leadership into upheaval.”
“Too late. We’re upheaved. And you’re not going to get anywhere by being nice to all of them,” she said.
Galo looked from Cas to Violet, obviously impressed.
“Let me talk to some of the advisers. Julieta and Danna aren’t convinced that—” She stopped suddenly as a rumbling sound echoed through the fortress. It was low at first, and then slowly grew louder. Yells accompanied the noise.
Cas jumped to his feet and flew out the door, Galo and Violet close behind. The sound was coming from outside the fortress. He jogged down the stairs and pulled open the front door. The gray sky was overcast, the sun completely obscured.
A crowd was gathered around Jovita, who stood on top of a box not far from the front door of the fortress. The people were all stomping their feet in unison, a chant beginning to rise up from the crowd.
“Kill the Ruined! Kill the Ruined!”
“Louder!” Jovita yelled. She looked over her shoulder at Cas. “Your king is present!”
“KILL THE RUINED! KILL THE RUINED!”
Cas marched to Jovita. He grabbed her wrist and tugged her off the box.
“What are you doing?” he hissed.
“I’m showing you what everyone wants.” She yanked her arm free. “As king, you’re supposed to follow the wishes of your people. Not do whatever you please.”
He looked at the crowd again. All the hunters were there, as were many of the soldiers. But most of the king’s guard hadn’t joined, and plenty of soldiers stood on the outskirts, worry etched across their features.
“This is what you want, not the people,” he said.
She swept her arm out to the crowd. “What do you call this?”
“I won’t discuss this again. We’re not attacking the Ruined.” He turned to address the crowd. “Disperse—”
“Kill the Ruined!” Jovita yelled, stepping in front of him. She nodded to General Amaro. The general moved forward, a grim look on her face.
Hands closed around Cas’s arms. He twisted around to see two large soldiers behind him. He tried to pull free. They held tighter. He heard Violet gasp.
Jovita turned to face him again. “I’m sorry, Cas. We can’t have a mad king while we’re at war. You need time to rest and recover, and if you won’t do it willingly, I’ll force you to.”
Cas looked from Jovita to General Amaro. “Not wanting to attack the Ruined doesn’t make me mad.”
“You won’t listen to reason,” General Amaro said. “Your father took a strong position with the Ruined, and now is not the time to change that policy.”
“We’re in this mess because of my father! Both my parents died because of their hatred of the Ruined.”
“Your father died because of Emelina, and your mother died because of you,” Jovita said.
Her words cut him completely in half, and for a moment he wondered why he was still standing when half of his body was crumpled on the ground.
“Just take some time to rest, and think,” Jovita said, her voice softer. “I can lead in your place until you’re feeling better. I don’t mind.”
Cas let out a hollow laugh. “I’m sure you don’t.”
The edges of Jovita’s lips twitched, but she managed to hold back a smile. “Please take King Casimir to his room. Lock him in for his own protection.”
The soldiers pulled Cas backward. He twisted in their grasp, trying to break free.
“Please don’t make a scene, Your Majesty,” one of the soldiers murmured.
It was too late. Everyone in the area was staring at them. Some of the hunters smirked.
Ga
lo made a move like he was going to lunge, but Mateo pulled him back just in time. He whispered something in Galo’s ear that made his face fall.
Cas’s shoulders slumped. There were too many on Jovita’s side. There was no point in resisting.
Jovita stepped up on the box again. “My soldiers have reported seeing numerous Ruined on their way to Ruina. Our first order of business is to take out as many as we can. We need to stamp out the alliance between the Ruined and the warriors.”
The crowd cheered as the soldiers dragged Cas up the steps of the fortress.
“I’m only sending half of you,” Jovita continued, “because we need plenty of people here to protect the fortress. Those with the most pins will go. You will kill all Ruined, no questions asked.”
More cheers rose up as Cas entered the fortress. They grew quieter as the door closed behind him.
“KILL THE RUINED!”
SEVEN
OLIVIA STEPPED OUT of her room and walked quietly past Em’s bed. Her sister was still asleep, curled up under the blankets.
Sunlight had just started to stream in through the windows and into the dusty living room. It was a small, pitiful cabin. The couch had probably been there for three generations. The kitchen table sat only two people, and a good kick would have killed the thing for good. She let out an annoyed sigh as she pulled the front door open.
Aren was waiting for her just off the porch. He had a sword at his hip, but she hadn’t bothered with a weapon. She never needed one.
He nodded at her as she approached. The area around the cabins was mostly deserted, except for Ivanna, who was on her knees in a patch of brown grass not far away. Her hands were pressed to the ground, her eyes closed and her lips moving in silent prayer.
“Let’s go,” Olivia said as she began walking. She’d cleared a few hunters away yesterday, but she’d yet to check the area south of them.
Ivanna opened her eyes and looked from Aren to Olivia as they passed her. “Where are you going?”
“Hunting,” Olivia said.
Disapproval flitted across Ivanna’s features, but she said nothing. Olivia glanced at her over her shoulder as they walked away. “Ungrateful,” she muttered.