RUAROK

A knock comes at my door.

I frown and glance in that direction. I don’t get many visitors.

“Enter,” I call.

The door opens, and a man steps through, shutting the door carefully behind him.

It’s Cirrus Planetree. The man has never liked me, and the feeling is mutual. He was the man who led my arrest all those years ago and forced me into that cage.

“What do you want, Cirrus?”

He stands with his hands behind his back, his head lowered submissively.

“I’m concerned for the future of the kingdom.”

I cock an eyebrow. “Aren’t we all?”

“Princess Taelyn has been lying around in bed ever since you returned from seeing the Mage, and she’s brought back no information that is of any use.

We need someone who is going to be decisive during these hard times, someone who is willing to make difficult decisions, and I’m worried that she is not that person. ”

“You are?” I wonder where he’s going with this.

He nods. “She’s made mistakes that have gotten people killed.

She gave money to those poor people in the city, and they were murdered because of it.

She took guards out into the wildlands, and they never made it home again, and for what?

Some mumbo-jumbo about love sacrifices from a crazy old Mage? ”

I bite my tongue, not telling him that visiting the Mage had been my idea.

I wonder how much this new opinion of Taelyn is down to her replacing Cirrus with Balthorne.

Cirrus used to be head of the King’s Guard, but now he’s what?

There is no King’s Guard, and Taelyn has made it clear that she wants Balthorne in that role.

Cirrus has found himself without a place in court and is clearly worried about his future.

Is it possible I have an ally here? I never would have thought it of Cirrus Planetree, but it seems that way.

“The princess has been through a lot,” I say, not wanting to appear disloyal. “She’s lost her mother and the king, and been put into a position she’s unused to. It’s understandable that she’d find all of this challenging at first.”

“So, you support Princess Taelyn in taking the throne?”

The frustrating thing about speaking to Cirrus is that he knows exactly who I am. While I might be able to pull the wool over the eyes of so many others, making myself out to be the loyal, subservient stepbrother. But it isn’t going to work. Cirrus isn’t so easily fooled.

“I support whatever is right for the kingdom,” I reply .

“If we don’t act soon, there may be no kingdom.

Another part of the city has been swallowed by the rot, and all the while, the princess lounges around in her chambers, doing nothing.

The people are beginning to talk, Prince Ruarok.

They’re getting nervous. They need to be able to look for leadership in these times, and I’m afraid that is something we’re sorely lacking. ”

I study his expression. I don’t trust Cirrus, but I can’t deny that he’s offering me something I’ve wanted my entire life.

“Do you really believe her incapable of running a kingdom?” I ask.

“The princess is responsible for that poor mother and her child being murdered in the street. She makes rash choices. She’s too emotional to be able to rule.”

I feel myself swell with power.

I am the true ruler of this kingdom. I’m the one who shares the Loftborn bloodline. She might be pure Fae, but she still doesn’t have a right to the throne.

“No matter what we think,” I say thoughtfully, “at the end of the day, it’ll be the people who decide who they want to crown. They love Princess Taelyn. They will want it to be her.”

“They have loved her,” he agrees, “but people are whispering in the streets. They’re not stupid. They can see what she’s done. It’ll only take a few more mistakes before they turn their backs on her.”

I press my finger to my lips. “Mistakes that will tarnish her reputation?”

His pale blue eyes glitter like ice. “Exactly.”

Does he know about the tension between Taelyn and me?

I can’t help but wonder. He’s one of these men who seems to have little ears everywhere, gathering whatever knowledge he can to use against people.

Is it possible someone overheard us together and reported back to Cirrus?

Perhaps when we’d been in the tent? It isn’t as though canvas is a great defense against noise.

I remind myself that this is exactly what I wanted. But, if that’s the case, why do I feel the knot of unease, like a sickness, deep within my chest? I do my best to ignore it and allow a slow smile to curl my lips.

“I think that can be arranged.”

“Good. I have people who can help to spread the word that Askos would be far better off with a king than a queen. When the time for the coronation comes around, the citizens of Askos will be cheering your name, not hers.”

“And I assume you will regain your position as head of the King’s Guard,” I suggest, making sure my suspicions are correct.

He offers me a sly smile and ducks in a bow. “Only if that should please his majesty.”