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Dak and and number of others had been unhappy about missing out, but Luc had told them Oscar and Deni had worked with Ava before and would be the best two to help. It was true, but it was also to keep the pool of people who knew her secrets to a minimum. And now he would have to reveal one more.

They had discovered the gardens after they’d snuck into the city, and had designated a meeting place. They had agreed a time to meet back here, and he was overdue.

As soon as he was among the trees, he removed his scarf, walked down the twisting path beside a small pond, and then gave a whistle.

He was answered by a whistle in return, and Oscar and Deni stepped through a curtain of vines and leaves.

“We were getting worried,” Deni whispered.

“I found Ava.” He held up a hand when their faces changed. “Only briefly. I couldn’t get her out, she was too well guarded, but I need to warn you about something now, so that you’re prepared.”

They both frowned, almost in unison, as if they couldn’t think of anything they didn’t already know.

“Ava is known here as Princess Ava Valestri.”

There was dead silence.

“It seems the queen is her aunt.”

Oscar gave an audible intake of breath.

“And the queen plans to execute her for treason when I come to fetch her, and kill me at the same time by arrow strike.”

“She’s a princess?” Oscar shook his head. “If a few days from now you came and told me she’s the Goddess Beris herself, I think I’d believe you.”

Deni gave a sudden, low chuckle at that. “I knew there was something about her from the moment I met her. She told me one day the story about her would change, but I didn’t suspect this.”

“So she gave herself up to stop the Kassian officer burning us and the hills with flare fire, knowing if she ended up here she would be in serious danger?” Oscar made it a question, but they already knew the answer.

“And the queen is really going to kill her own niece?” Deni asked.

“Yes.” Luc checked his weapons, tugged on the hem of his tunic. “As far as I understand things, I’ll be taken to the queen in the main square, where she’ll try to have me killed, and then she’ll execute Ava. It would be good if I had someone close to me on the ground and someone on the walls.”

They both nodded.

He touched two fingers to his left cheek. “You know my signal. Wait for it.”

He stepped back out of the greenery and ducked between the trees to loop his scarf over his neck again.

He had half an hour before he was due at the gates to speak with the queen, and he wanted to hear what the citizens of Fernwell had to say about the siege, their leaders, and the Rising Wave.

He wandered the city, looking for places to hide, places to run, places to hunker down, all the while keeping an ear out for what the people were saying.

Deni would be looking for high ground—perches that would give him a good angle into the main square.

Oscar would be blending in, finding a place that would give him a good view of the proceedings from the ground.

One thing that pleased him a lot was the lack of soldiers. There were palace guards, but not many, and only one unit guarding the gate.

The Queen’s Herald had thrown everything he had at the Rising Wave, and he had nothing left for Fernwell.

That suited Luc.

He found himself close to the square where he was meant to meet the queen and decided it wasn’t a bad idea to get the lay of the land but before he could turn down the main street toward it, a woman caught his eye. She was standing surrounded by a small group of people dressed in bright silks and brocade and they seemed to be giving her money.

“Go away now,” she said to them in a bored voice, and they left without a word.

Haslia.