to stop. Vasili thought there was no other way because it was all he knew, but there was always another way, a better way. The right way. “We’ll stop this without spilling your blood.”
“How?” He left the dagger embedded in the desk and turned away, snatching up one of Yasir’s silk scarves from a chair to tie around his wrist. “How do I stop Amir, who by now has probably poisoned the entire Caville palace? How do I stop the flame from consuming me and everything around me? Tell me your plan, Nikolas. Tell me how to claim victory for Loreen when all I have is a horse, an overeager merchant captain, and you?”
“That’s not all you have,” Yasir interrupted. “There’s Roksana Yazdan.”
Vasili laughed. “She’s more interested in her ships than fighting a new war.”
“You clearly don’t know the Yazdans.” Yasir laughed, like everyone should get the joke, but his laughter faded beneath Niko’s stare. “They’ll not let the massacre rest. She’ll be back. And she won’t be alone. Nikolas is a Yazdan. Nobody can deny that. Maybe the Yazdans will fight alongside you if you let them?”
Niko wasn’t sure of the Yazdans loyalties, and from Vasili’s frown, neither was the prince.
“You have my ship,” Yasir added. “I know you think I’m here for the magic, and admittedly, it’s seductive, but that’s not the reason. I’ve drifted my whole life, lived on the fringes, until the war, until the elves threatened Seran. I’m not a soldier or a royal, but I have connections, and now maybe a little magic too. You don’t have just a merchant captain. You have access to all of Seran’s information. Amir doesn’t know this city like I do. He’s made an enemy of the family who rules this city. This isn’t Loreen. We don’t wilt here—we fight!”
Vasili tied off the silk bandage with his teeth and silently held Yasir’s gaze, then slid his attention to Niko. He was afraid. Niko wouldn’t have seen it before, hidden beneath all the prince’s layers. Hidden in his tightness. Afraid was good. Afraid meant Vasili finally cared.
“You’re not alone,” Niko said.
The prince turned his face away and ground his teeth. He didn’t trust easily. He could only rely on himself, but months ago, he’d told Niko he couldn’t do all this alone, and he was right. One prince wasn’t going to save the world from the elves or the flame. He needed allies, and he had them. If he’d just let them in. Just as Yasir had tried to tell Niko.
It was time to ask for help.
“The funeral,” Niko began, an idea forming. “You should attend as the Caville prince.”
“Doesn’t that defeat the purpose of my coming to Seran in hiding?”
“Show Amir you’re not afraid. Show the Yazdans you respect them. Be Vasili Caville, but be the Vasili Caville you’ve always wanted to be, not the beaten tool your father made you out to be.”
Vasili breathed in so hard his nostrils flared, and Niko was sure another verbal lashing was coming his way. Instead, Vasili asked, “And if Amir attacks?”
“He’ll do that whether you’re there or not. But if you are there, if you have visible allies, it will unsettle him. He won’t expect it, and when caught off guard, Amir fucks up. Once he’s on the back foot, we disable him and figure out what to do with him once he’s restrained. He can’t be that hard to bring down. He’s still Amir.”
Vasili glanced at Yasir.
The captain spread both hands. “It’s either brilliant or stupid.”
“A truly fitting description of Nikolas Yazdan,” Vasili acknowledged, almost smiling.
“I suppose we won’t know which it is until after the funeral,” Niko added, “if we’re all still breathing.” He grinned and grabbed the blade, freeing it from the desk. He showed it to Vasili. “I’m keeping this until you can both be trusted.”
“I’ll find another,” Vasili said.
Of course he would. He probably had multiples knives shoved up his ass. Niko pursed his lips, keeping the numerous insults locked behind them. “We all need sleep. It’s been a long day and night. No more sorcery.”
Yasir nodded obediently while Vasili glowered at having his blade taken away. Niko tucked it into his belt. Vasili might hate him, but having the prince not open a vein felt like a breakthrough. Now, all he had to do was ensure Vasili wasn’t the source of the flame to begin with.
“We’ll sleep here,” Yasir said. “I have a cot. I’ll sling up some of the crew’s hammocks. Agreed?”
“Agreed,” Niko