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The man’s face went as red as anapellifruit. “I am merely concerned for your safety, my lady.”

Ria eyed Tes, who glared at them with a tired, resigned kind of anger. “How far does the chain stretch?” Ria asked.

“No farther than the table,” the other guard said.

“Then I will remain here where she cannot reach,” Ria said. “The questions I wish to ask are of a private, feminine nature. Leave me with a knife if you need, butleave.”

Neither seemed inclined to ask what private questions she could possibly have for the captive; instead, they both made hasty exits, the final guard handing her a small dagger as he passed. Tes didn’t bother to hide her confusion, though. Frowning, the princess stood, a symphony of clinking metal accompanying the movement.

“Feminine questions?” Tes asked wryly.

Ria shrugged. “A fairly certain way to gain privacy. Fortunately, we didn’t have a female guard.”

The glare crept back over Tes’s face. “What do you want?”

“For you to tell me who you really are,” Ria answered at once. “And the truth about what’s happening.”

Tes plopped back down on the side of the bed. “I tried to help you, and this is what I got. I have no reason to tell you anything.”

Ria skimmed her gaze down the princess, taking note of the wrinkled, blood-stained clothes she still wore. In fact, smudges of dirt covered her face, and her hair was a tangled mess. A quick look at the retiring area revealed a distinct lack of water in the washstand. Hadn’t Toren ordered the captain to see to her health? Lying around in blood and filth wouldn’t exactly help that goal.

“I’ll make sure you are brought clean clothes and water,” Ria offered. That put a considering light in the princess’s eyes, but she remained silent. “You know, I might be the current royal consort, but I was a mere tailor’s daughter a few days ago. I know little about the Centoi royal family. No court loyalties or hidden schemes.”

“Everyone wants something,” Tes muttered.

“Oh, I do. I want to help Toren and Mehl. Theydidsave me from my abusive father,” Ria said. She held Tes’s gaze. “And for some reason, I don’t want to see you hurt, either. Maybe it’s my ignorance of politics, but I would swear you were telling the truth about wanting to rescue me. Do you think Toren will really believe the same?”

Tes’s shoulders slumped. “I know he will not. He’ll no doubt have me executed soon, if quietly.”

Executed? What had Prince Ber told this woman? “I can’t imagine why. I’ve only heard of one such sentence in his entire reign, and that was for a murderer who slaughtered two families before he was caught. Why do you believe the worst of Toren?”

“Ber said his brother is cruel and volatile, his magic a risk to all.” Tes lifted her chin. “I felt the terrible force of that magic myself.”

“Yet here you are, unharmed by it,” Ria pointed out. She thought back to their last encounter and smiled. “He even tried to help you when you were in such pain earlier. Don’t you remember him kneeling at your side? Your claim makes no sense.”

“A ploy, surely,” Tes said.

But she averted her gaze.

“Look, Tes. Or is it Princess Lora?” Ria shook her head. “Either way, I hope you’ll listen. Because if you don’t confess to what’s going on, there’s certain to be a war.”

“You’re exaggerating.” The princess glared at the floor. “And do not call me Lora. I despise that name. When possible, I do go by Tes. I didn’t lie when I told you to call me that.”

Well, then. There was surely a story behind those bitter words, but Ria wasn’t going to try to learn it. “Fine. But I wasn’t exaggerating. If you don’t cooperate—”

“Ber will save me,” Tes said firmly.

Gods, the princess was serious. She really thought the man was nearby, ready to charge in to rescue her. It was painted into every resolved line on the woman’s face. But unless he had the rare ability to teleport, that was impossible—so long as this latest news was true.

“According to the messenger who just interrupted morning court, Prince Ber is at the Centoi palace with your father. It seems he is very upset by your abduction.”

Tes’s entire body jerked as though Ria had stabbed her with the dagger. Then the princess leapt to her feet. “That is a cruel lie. He trailed us at a safe distance.”

So safe that the princess hadn’t seen him, Ria would wager. How many times had her father promised great things—kind things—only to go back on them without a qualm?

“What if you’re wrong?” Ria asked. “Because the messenger claimed that your father had been searching for you for three weeks. He sent missives around the kingdom and requests for aid to all his allies. Isn’t that an odd thing to do if he believed you were on your wedding trip? Think, Tes. What if no one is waiting to help you?”

Ria expected more anger. Instead, Tes crumpled into tears.