“We have shelters set up.” He turned to Violet. “Will you have someone take them to the kitchen for a meal, then to the shelter?”
“Of course, Your Majesty,” Violet said.
“Thank you for bringing the message,” Cas said to the woman. Violet opened the door to relay instructions to the guards.
The woman bowed to Cas again as she left. The boy trailed after her, his eyes round as he stared at Cas. His mouth was now smeared with cherry.
Violet shut the door. Cas strode across the office to his desk and flopped down in his chair. “How long until my next meeting? And what is my next meeting, by the way? Have they narrowed down candidates for my secretary? You shouldn’t have to know all this.”
Violet walked to his desk and sat down in one of the chairs placed in front of it. She’d been indispensable in the fortress, and had proved to be an even more powerful ally as they worked to secure Cas’s power as king. “Yes, they have a couple of candidates. You’ll meet with them soon. And your next meeting is in half an hour with me and the new governors. They’ve found Jovita.”
Cas looked up quickly. “They found her? When?”
“We just received word. A few soldiers are following her, discreetly, like you asked. But she’s amassed an army of hunters and former soldiers who betrayed you—a small army, but it’s bigger than when she left Lera a few days ago.”
“And you think this army . . . is to attack me?”
“You, and the Ruined. Perhaps not in that order. She’s headed west, which is worrying us.”
“Why?”
“Because there’s nothing west, except the jungle. Until you get to Olso.”
He took in a sharp breath. “You think she’s going to make a deal with August.”
“We can’t be sure. She could just be planning to hide in the jungle for a while. But our messenger said she’s showed no signs of stopping yet.”
Anger bubbled in his veins, more intense than he had expected. Jovita had already lost to the Ruined once. She’d sent hundreds of Lera soldiers to Ruina to be slaughtered by them. She’d lost to Cas, too, when the majority of Lerans had aligned behind him. But she refused to accept defeat, even at a point when Lera was in danger of being attacked by Olivia.
“Would they be able to kill her? The soldiers who are following her?” Cas asked. The words popped out of his mouth so suddenly he was almost surprised to hear them.
Violet appeared surprised as well. “I’m sure they could, if you gave that order before she reached the Olso border.”
He should have killed her himself, when he had the chance. He’d told Em that he would, then he’d hesitated until it was too late. He would have saved himself a lot of trouble by just getting rid of her.
The thought startled him, and he looked up at Violet to see her wearing a slightly alarmed expression. His anger must have been apparent.
“We’ll discuss it at the meeting,” he said, dropping his eyes to his desk.
“Sure.” Violet stood. “Is there anything else?”
He kept his gaze on his desk, pretending to examine a list of refugees in Royal City shelters. “Is it possible to find out—for sure—if Jovita was the one who poisoned me at the fortress?”
“We could certainly try. You don’t think it was her?”
“I do, but she always denied it. I’d like to know for sure.”
“I will see if anyone has information.”
“Thank you.” Perhaps it would be easier to order Jovita’s death if he knew, definitively, that she had tried to kill him. Surely that would help ease the uncomfortable feeling in the pit of his stomach. She deserved to die. He just needed to be certain of it.
THREE
GALO WAS A fantastic, diligent, and admirable man. At least according to his parents. The praise was unexpected and, surprisingly, unwelcome.
His father beamed at him from across the dinner table. Galo had only been home a few hours, but already he’d seen his father smile more in that time than he had in his entire life.
His mother placed a tray of fruit for dessert in the middle of the table, putting a hand on Mateo’s shoulder for a moment as she did it. Galo had never brought home a boyfriend before, and his parents seemed thrilled with Mateo. But they seemed thrilled by everything Galo did at the moment.
“Will you be making any changes to the guard now that you’re back in the castle?” his father asked.
“Um.” Galo shifted in his seat. He was most taken aback by his father’s exuberance over his job as captain of the king’s guard. He’d been a perpetual disappointment to his demanding father, and when Galo had left three years ago to join the guard his father had said something along the lines of I guess you won’t be able to find anything better.
But now Galo had the highest job of any guard in the castle, and even his father couldn’t find something to complain about.
“I haven’t thought about it much,” Galo lied. “We’re still adjusting.”
“This is delicious,” Mateo said, chewing on a mango and clearly trying to save Galo from this conversation. He knew that the last thing Galo wanted to talk about right now was the job of guarding Cas. It was part of the reason Galo had come home.
“There’s plenty more if you want,” Galo’s mother said with a smile. It was true—the kitchen was well stocked with food, the house untouched by war. Galo’s parents weren’t wealthy, but they’d always had enough to eat and a comfortable home.
He hadn’t been sure it would still be standing. He’d left Royal City yesterday fearing the worst, actually—that his home was gone and his parents were dead. But the Olso warriors had never ventured very far north, instead focusing their resources on the two largest cities, Royal City and Gallego City. His hometown, Mareton, was the same as it had always been. The people there wouldn’t have even known there was a war going on if it weren’t for messengers bringing word from other parts of the country.
“I’ve heard the Ruined are still in Lera,” his father said. “The king isn’t really going to let them stay, is he?”
His mother leaned forward and lowered her voice to a whisper, like there was someone who was going to overhear and judge her. “I don’t wish them ill, but I really think they should go back to where they came from. They just don’t belong here, you know?”
Galo had been wrong—the last thing he actually wanted to talk about was the Ruined. His parents had never hated the Ruined, but they’d also never spoken particularly kindly about them, and Galo found himself feeling uneasy. The extermination of the Ruined had always made Galo uncomfortable, but now that he knew them, it was embarrassing to hear his parents speak about them in such careless ways.
“King Casimir has a close relationship with Em—with Emelina Flores,” he said. Cas had made it clear he had no intention of hiding his affection for Em. “And they don’t have a home to go back to.”
“Surely they can rebuild,” his mother said. She took a piece of fruit from a plate that had been hand-painted by Galo’s grandmother. It was easy to tell the Ruined to rebuild their entire lives when they’d lost nothing themselves.
His father seemed to read the expression on Galo’s face and quickly changed the subject. He asked a few more questions about the last few weeks—Cas’s poisoning, their trip to Vallos, the march back to Royal City—until Galo caught Mateo trying to hide a yawn, which Galo used as an excuse to retreat to his room.
He said good night and took Mateo’s hand to lead him to the back of the house, where his room was. It was small and bare, with only a bed and a wardrobe. He didn’t come home much.
Galo sat heavily on the bed with a sigh. Mateo kicked off his shoes and flopped down on his back next to him, running a hand through his dark curls.
“Your parents like me,” Mateo announced.
“Everyone likes you,” Galo said with a smile.
“Well, yes. But your father disapproves of everything you do, so I thought that might extend to me.” Today was the first time
Mateo had met his father, but Galo had told him stories.
“Apparently he doesn’t disapprove anymore,” Galo muttered. “Is it weird that all the praise made me uncomfortable?”
“Yes.” Mateo gave him a hard look. They’d had this conversation before.
“I’m just saying that Cas got captured and stabbed and poisoned recently. Maybe I’m not actually that good at being a guard.”
“Would you stop it with that?”
“Remember when Aren said I wasn’t doing a good job? He kind of had a—”
“Who cares what Aren thinks?” Mateo interrupted. “That guy is the worst. And the entire guard is to blame for Cas being captured. You can’t keep taking responsibility for that. Plus, you weren’t even there when he was stabbed.”
“Because I let him get captured.”
Mateo made an annoyed noise. “And Jovita didn’t let you near Cas when she was poisoning him. There was no way for you to stop it.”
“Because I let him get locked up.” Galo scooted back to lie down next to Mateo.
Mateo rolled onto his side, draping an arm over Galo’s stomach and resting his head on his shoulder. “Not everything is your responsibility, Galo. You don’t have to save the whole world.”
“I have to save Cas, at least. It’s my job.”
Mateo snorted. “Please. You have to save everyone. It’s your most endearing and most annoying quality.”
Mateo might have had a point. It was even how they had gotten together—Galo had helped Mateo save his brother from being shipped off to join the hunters. Galo had barely known Mateo at the time, but Galo had taken the risk anyway. Of course, Mateo’s dimples had also played a role.
“Besides, you’ve saved Cas. He’s back in his castle, protected every minute of the day. You succeeded.”
Galo wasn’t so sure. Cas was alive thanks to Em, not him. Thanks to Aren, of all people, who helped them get out of the fortress and away from Jovita without a fight. Everyone on the guard knew it, and Galo had noticed the way some of them stopped talking when he entered a room. He knew many of them thought he wasn’t qualified to be captain of the guard, that Cas had just picked him because they were friends.
Galo hated to admit it, but maybe they were right. He was already overwhelmed thinking about all the things he needed to do as captain, and half of them he wasn’t even sure how to do. Cas’s previous captain was dead, as was the last captain of the king’s guard. Captains usually had at least a decade of experience, not three years of service and convenient connections to the royal family.
Not to mention that Galo hadn’t planned on being a guard forever. There were good parts to the job, but it was often dull and repetitive. He might have quit in his first year if it weren’t for his friendship with Cas and the fact that his father would have never let him live it down.
He slid his arm around Mateo’s shoulders and gave him a squeeze. “I think I’m going to step down,” he said quietly.
“Don’t be an idiot,” Mateo said affectionately.
“I’m serious.”
Mateo lifted his head with a start. “You’re really considering stepping down as captain?”
“Yes. I think I’m going to ask to leave the guard entirely.”
Mateo sat up, a baffled look on his face. “I think that’s an overreaction.”
Galo sat up as well, crossing his legs and leaning back against the wall. “There are people who could do better. And Cas needs the very best right now.”
“Is this some sort of weird reaction to your father being proud of you? You shouldn’t give this up just because of him.”
“It doesn’t have anything to do with him. It’s about what’s best for me, and Cas. They’re rebuilding the guard; it’s the perfect time for a new captain to step in. I can be of more help elsewhere right now.”
“Where?” Mateo asked with a frown.
“I don’t know. But doesn’t this”—he gestured around the room—“make you feel strange? That both our homes were fine, like nothing ever happened?”
“Strange like relieved? Yes.”
“No, like . . . we got incredibly lucky. Buildings in Royal City are gone, everyone who lived in Gallego City is still displaced, all of the people in Westhaven had to run for their lives, and the Ruined lost everything. I hadn’t even thought about it before, but Cas said Em went back to the site of the castle in Ruina, the place that used to be her home. It burned to the ground. The entire country burned to the ground.”
Mateo just stared at him.
“I just feel this incredible sense of guilt, and I don’t know where to put it. But I know that staying on the guard isn’t the best choice right now.”
“Now is the time you should stay on the guard. Nothing is safe.”
“It’s better to do it now, when there’s a break from the madness.” If the past few months had taught him anything, it was that the quiet times never lasted long. There was always more danger right around the corner.
Mateo gave him a look like he still didn’t understand. Galo hadn’t expected him to. He’d been a guard for three years; Mateo had only joined a few months before Em arrived and everything crumbled. He hadn’t been around for the boredom of the years that had come before, the ones Galo hoped would come again.
“What are you going to do instead?” Mateo asked.
“I have no idea.”
FOUR
EM HAD RESCUED three more humans since the fire. It was getting ridiculous.
Two she’d found hiding in a barn. They’d screamed when she discovered them, screamed again when they spotted her necklace and figured out who she was, then stared in confusion when she told them to shut up and run. She wasn’t sure they would make it very far.
The other was simply wandering down the road like an idiot, and she’d turned him around and told him to go back to Royal City. He’d smiled and agreed, then patted her on the head.
It had been a weird few days.
Em walked out of her bedroom and through the quiet house she was sharing with Olivia. The house was one story, with a large seating area, kitchen, and dining room visible once you walked through the door. At the back of the house were three bedrooms and another room that had been turned into an office. From what Em could tell, the people who lived here were teachers. They had walls and walls of books, and the office was full of textbooks and papers and essays.
Em walked into the dining room and slid into one of the chairs. She put her cheek on the large wooden kitchen table and spread her arms out on top of it. She always ate breakfast alone, at this big table. It sat eight, yet it was always just her. She was surprised Olivia hadn’t secured her own house away from Em, but perhaps she figured this one was so big that they could avoid each other.
A yell sounded from outside. Em didn’t move at first. Screams weren’t unusual. They hadn’t been for over a year, but they were especially common with Olivia around.
She considered just going back to bed. She couldn’t be responsible for what she didn’t see.
She stood, slowly. That excuse would never work. She didn’t even believe it.
Em walked to the door and stepped outside. Their house was on Market Street, in the middle of Westhaven. At the end of the street were a bunch of shops and food carts, now abandoned and looted by the Ruined.
Olivia stood on the street, surrounded by about twenty Ruined. They were all on horses, ready for a journey.
Em looked around at the Ruined. They were the ones who had clearly aligned themselves with Olivia—Jacobo, Ester, Carmen, Priscila, and several others who were very powerful. It wasn’t surprising that they’d chosen Olivia. Em had barely spoken to most of them since she became queen. They were never going to follow a useless Ruined.
“Going somewhere?” Em asked.
“Yes.” Olivia mounted her horse.
“Are you coming back?”
“Of course,” she said shortly.
Olivia didn’t look well, despite the days of res
t and quiet in Westhaven. Her olive skin was splotchy, her dark hair limp and thin. Em wasn’t sure if Olivia wasn’t sleeping, or if the constant use of her magic was finally catching up to her.
“She’s going to attack the town to the south,” a voice said from behind Em. She turned to see Aren walking to them. He stopped next to Em and looked at Olivia. “Fayburn. Right?”
She just stared at him.
“I heard Jacobo and Ester talking about it last night.”
Olivia sighed loudly, and cast a disapproving cast at Jacobo and Ester.
“What?” Ester didn’t look the least bit ashamed. She was several years older than Em, with a long, pinched face that frequently looked annoyed. Or perhaps that was just how she always looked when Em was around. She’d never made a secret of her disdain for useless Ruined. “Is the plan a secret? Do you need Em’s permission?” The words were a challenge, which Olivia clearly recognized. She squared her shoulders.
“Of course not.”
“What’s the plan? Attack random humans for fun?” Aren asked.
“Keep underestimating me, Aren. I’m sure that will work out so well for you in the end,” Olivia said. Aren stiffened. He and Em both knew better than to underestimate Olivia.
“I’m going to take over every big town between here and Gallego City,” Olivia said. “Starting with Fayburn.”
“That’s”—Em pictured a map of Lera in her head—“at least five towns, maybe ten, depending on what you consider big.”
“Perfect. I plan to invade each one and kill most of the humans. Maybe you can draw me a map, Em. You know Lera so well.” She said the last sentence like a dare. Sometimes Em was sure Olivia knew that Em was no longer on her side. Other times, she was certain Olivia would never suspect that Em—or any Ruined—would betray her. Not on such a large scale, anyway.
“What’s the purpose of that?” Em asked. “Just to kill everyone?”
“No. The survivors will run to Royal City. Then we’ll take over towns to the north, until we have them all trapped in Royal City. The south is half deserted now anyway, so we’ll worry about that later. Then all of northern Lera will belong to the Ruined, and we can decide what to do about Royal City later. Perhaps we’ll let them live there for a while. They could be useful.” She gestured at Aren. “Aren’s found a good use for humans, after all.”