lifting it from her lap. “I cannot tell you how grateful I am to hear that, my love.”
“My darling, our lives are now so entwined that they are as one. What troubles you, troubles me. Do not hurt me by saying otherwise.”
“Yes of course, I would not dream of it.” His hollowed eyes drifted away from her to stare into empty space. “As you know, I could not join you for dinner last night because of a pressing mission given to me directly by Commander Vittorio.”
“Yes, your first official mission as captain, my volshebnik. Though it saddened me to be denied your company, I was so proud to hear that the commander has begun to put his trust in you so fully.”
“It was a… delicate mission, as it dealt with a revolt here in Izmoroz.”
“A revolt? Like… some sort of uprising?” Naturally, the peasants would be nearly as dissatisfied with imperial rule as the nobility. Had they already grown so miserable that they were preparing to throw off the domination of the empire? And had such a demonstration already shaken Sebastian’s faith in his beloved Vittorio? This could be even better than she’d expected.
Sebastian said, “I suppose you could call it an uprising of sorts… but that seems far too grand a word for it. The men at Bledney Mines had grown weary of the terrible conditions in which they’d been forced to work.”
“Oh, I see. It was merely a workers’ dispute.” Galina strove not to express her disappointment. “Were you able to get everyone to come to terms?”
“Yes, I was, although unfortunately at… some cost.” Sebastian was silent for a moment, then said, “You needn’t worry, my beloved. Commander Vittorio was most pleased with my work, and insists that the benefits far outweigh the costs. In fact, he called the costs negligible and not something to which I should give another moment’s thought. And yet…”
He trailed off. His eyes still stared unseeingly at the space before him. Galina allowed him several moments of silence.
“And yet?” she asked, when it seemed he might not continue at all.
“And yet, I still see their faces in my mind. Especially that first one. He was so defiant. So angry. I didn’t understand why at the time. I thought he was merely being disrespectful and provocative to impress his fellows. Later I learned about the cruel conditions under which they were suffering, and I suspect it was that which drove him to such foolhardy desperation. But of course by then it was too late.”
There was something unsettling about the way he said it, but she forced her question to carry no tone of judgment. “Too late for what?”
“I killed them, you see.” His expression was disconcertedly tranquil now, as if merely recalling a dream. “Two of the miners. I boiled their blood until their bodies burst from the pressure. And it had been nearly… effortless.”
Galina forced herself not to stiffen or pull away, even as her stomach clenched and grew cold. Her betrothed had settled a worker’s dispute by brutally murdering the leaders. She was not surprised the commander found that an acceptable solution, but how could the sweet young man she had promised her life to even be capable of such an act? Had she so misjudged his character? Or was Vittorio’s influence over him even more profound than she realized?
Sebastian’s eyes suddenly focused on hers.
“Am I a bad person?” he asked.
Galina knew she could not hesitate in her response for even a moment, or else her silence would be its own reply. She also knew what his pleading, exhausted eyes really wanted. Not judgment, but absolution. On some level, perhaps beneath his own awareness, Sebastian knew that he had done wrong. Yet he was desperate for someone he trusted to confirm the commander’s pronouncement that his actions had been justified.
If she were to tell him the horrible truth, she would be placing herself in direct conflict with Vittorio for the battle over Sebastian’s soul. It was a battle she had hoped to wage later, when she was in a better position. She needed to be married to Sebastian, to live with him and have his heart and his trust so fully that her presence seemed as necessary to him as air. If she challenged Vittorio too soon, she stood a strong chance of losing not just Sebastian, but all her hopes and dreams for the future. Her parents might even suffer for her actions. They could be stripped of their titles, their