A Queen of Gilded Horns (A River of Royal Blood #2) - Amanda Joy Page 0,38

some otherworldly beast. He was—

Stay alive, Baccha’s voice whispered through my mind and then he thrust me out—back into the river. I opened my eyes to find I was standing waist-deep in water by the river’s edge. I pulled myself from the water and, exhausted by the mud sucking at my feet, lay on my side in the dirt.

Well and truly trapped. Though at least I wasn’t dead.

Chapter 8

Aketo

Aketo stood in the hallway outside the healing chamber, watching Anali and Lady Lirra attempt a civil conversation.

They were like two cats just perched on the edge of violence, but he doubted they would come to an actual argument. The Captain’s pride wouldn’t stand for such a breach in decorum. Lady Lirra had welcomed them into her home, and fed them. They had to respect her.

A few minutes earlier, Tavan had come by to check on Eva’s progress. Two days had passed and Eva still hadn’t woken. Though her body was completely healed, Tavan insisted her mind was still tender. Tavan’s assessment must have passed right in and out of Lirra’s ears, because she asked if there was a way to wake her, just in case they had to leave at a moment’s notice.

When the healer admitted that it was possible, Lirra had exuded such relief that Aketo was stunned. She maintained a strong appearance, but her anxiety had increased tenfold in the past days.

Though Aketo, Osir, Falun, and the rest of the scouts searched the Plain for Queen’s Army soldiers before dawn every morning, it still wasn’t enough for Lady Lirra.

Now she was making demands. “Send a few of your best scouts out onto the Plain. Not a few miles like you usually do.” They went quite a bit farther than a few. “Far enough that we can be certain your arrival has not drawn attention.”

Leaning against the wall opposite Aketo, the Captain studied Lirra. “Do you truly believe we’re in danger? Immediate danger, mind you, the kind that necessitates me risking soldiers who don’t know how to survive on the Arym Plain.”

“Those most magically gifted would be safe,” Lirra said. “Predators on the Plain have a gift for sniffing out magick and learn to avoid it.”

“I’ll consider it, but for now we’ll wait and watch to see if anything changes. You said there was something else you wanted to speak about?”

“Yes”—Lirra’s mouth tightened, as if she tasted something foul—“I spoke to one of your soldiers yesterday. She said your . . . prisoner has been returning her food untouched. We all heard her crowing at dawn. I’m surprised she can find the energy.”

Aketo snorted. “Don’t expect thanks from her. It’s not as if she’s here by choice.”

Kelis, newly assigned to keep an eye on Isadore, had told him the same thing in passing. This morning Isadore had demanded to see Eva, but Anali refused, citing Eva’s incapacitation. He knew they all expected him to deal with Isadore, but he couldn’t leave Eva’s side to placate her sister. Isadore would only continue such a stunt if it served her, which was exactly why he’d decided to pay her no mind.

“I only brought it up,” Lirra began through clenched teeth, “to ask you if there is something you plan to do about it. I would not want the Princess to think I am starving her sister. No reason to engender more ill will.”

Anali’s normally gray eyes darkened to obsidian, stark against the dense fringe of her white eyelashes. The annoyance in her gaze was unmistakable. “Ah, so you’ll shove someone off a wall, but draw the line at starvation. I’m sure Eva will appreciate the distinction.”

Even Aketo felt a thrill. Most of the time, the Captain kept her emotions on a tight leash, and right now her rage and sense of duty balanced on a dagger’s edge. Lady Lirra’s explanation of what happened when Eva climbed the wall had not satisfied Anali. Aketo suspected she would hold a grudge even if Eva forgave the Lady of the House.

“I certainly hope she will,” Lirra murmured, her tone light.

He stepped between them as Anali pushed off the wall. Despite her casual act, Lirra’s hand curled around her belt knife the moment Anali shifted.

“I will check on her,” Aketo said, already regretting it.

It was a short walk to the bedroom where Isadore was being kept. Eva’s family only used the eastern wing of their home; the west had been boarded up after King Lei’s letter. The halls were decorated with mosaics or hung with tapestries