A Queen of Gilded Horns (A River of Royal Blood #2) - Amanda Joy Page 0,29
Enki and Iriki to Ydara’s Pass to watch for Lord Baccha. Tell the rest of the Elderi we meet at midday.”
Enki and Iriki were just a few years older than Ysai’s twenty years. The twins, her mother’s nephew and niece, were loyal to her. Per Baccha’s note, he was on the way here now. If the Hunter came by way of the pass, which was most likely, as it was the safest way into the mountains from Myre, they would notify her first.
But the Tribe’s rangers, who searched the mountain for intruders each day, would report to the Elderi first.
No matter how many mornings Ysai woke before dawn to ride through the A’Nir with them, she had not yet gained their favor.
Understanding her dismissal, Arsa inclined her head. “As you will”—Ysai arched an eyebrow and the older khimaer quickly added—“Mother.”
Before Arsa ducked out of the tent, Ysai held up a finger. “Oh, Arsa, one last thing. Would you have Ashé saddle Hawk? I assume the meeting will take up most of the rest of the day. I need to make my rounds first.”
Through the shadows, Ysai saw the rage that flickered across Arsa’s avian face. “Would you like me to accompany you?”
Arsa often took wing when Ysai left the relative safety of the camp for the foothills around their valley, trailing her from above.
“No need. I’ll ask Farrad.”
When the tent flaps fell behind Arsa’s feathered backside, Ysai snorted.
That last order had been petty, but it was no less than Arsa deserved, the way she’d savored telling Ysai about the mysteries of Godling magick. One of her great-mothers in generations past had been a Godling. All the Elderi and their descendants, Ysai included, could trace their line to such power.
Among the many pages of notes her mother had left, the instructions on dealing with Baccha were at least simple. She just needed blood and the Hunter would be hers to command.
As long as the Elderi did not undercut her authority at every turn.
There lay the greatest danger. That one of the Elderi would use the Hunter as a tool to ruin her plan.
A reckless plan that required the entire Tribe to venture far south into their homeland for the first time in centuries. A plan the Hunter might have been instrumental in, had he not become distracted in Ternain. Her mother had devised the plot in the weeks before her death, and Ysai had built upon it.
She’d made the mistake of telling the Elderi when their contacts in the capital sent news of King Lei’s death. Ysai had believed the timing was perfect—they could take advantage of the power vacuum in the army. But when the Elderi protested at their lack of resources in Myre and decided they could make no more moves until they saw a clear path to the throne, she knew she’d miscalculated. And worse, damaged their confidence in her irrevocably.
She would use the Hunter to reverse that damage, somehow, and she’d need his help to chart a new path. And be rid of the human Queen and her daughters for good.
Perhaps she could use his weakness for humans against him. His connection to the descendant of the Usurpress, Raina, would pose a threat, depending on where his loyalties lay. If Baccha thought to put Princess Eva above the Tribe, Ysai would simply have to compel his every move. Let him convince this Princess they would back her for the crown and then, once they held the capital, steal the throne right from under her.
It was exactly what they deserved. Humans had stolen their country and caged their people. They were not to be trusted.
The Tribe would not bow to a human Queen. Not now. Not ever.
Ysai gathered the broken shards of her cup and left her tent, the image of a throne she’d never once seen held bright in her mind’s eye.
Chapter 6
Aketo
He tried to make sense of the last minute.
He kept replaying it over and over in his head. Stuck in a loop in his memory even while he leveled his sword at the horned man and seemingly human woman who’d come rushing toward them from a door that swung open just ten feet away.
A door so neatly hidden in the estate’s high walls that none of them noticed it before Eva began her climb. Or after she fell.
He’d reacted first, leaping to his feet as Falun cupped Eva’s face with shaking hands and pressed an ear to her chest, listening for her heartbeat.