Page 170 of Scorched Earth

She hated herself for letting him go, but as she stared at the single black tower looming over Emrant in the distance, Teriana knew that she could not risk remaining. Not even for a friend.

Turning back to her crew, Teriana cleared her voice, then said, “Let’s go liberate our people.”

63MARCUS

Returning to where his discarded tunic lay in a pile, Marcus donned it, along with his weapons. He allowed himself one glance out the window. His eyes found the blue sails of Teriana’s ship in the harbor, the wooden version of the hair ornament that adorned her braid.

A pang of grief lanced through his chest, but it was vanquished by an icy wind of composure that blew across his mind, extinguishing the rising tide of emotion as he left the room. “Who brought the Maarin boy into the tower?” he asked those on duty outside her doors. “And where is Gibzen?”

The men exchanged glances, then one said, “Legatus Austornic, sir. He put him in the antechamber there”—he pointed down the hall—“then came looking for you. We told him you were busy, and he said to tell you the Maarin boy was in there.”

Austornicwas to blame.

A cold wind blew down the hallway, rustling the guards’ cloaks.

Is that a surprise?the voice asked.It’s not the first time Austornic used her against you.

The men shifted uncomfortably, the bare skin on their arms pebbling against the cold. “The Maarin boy was alone in the room. He must have climbed out the balcony. Sorry, sir. We didn’t think—”

“Where is Gibzen?”

“The Tribunus relieved him of duties, sir, but he was just here checking in. Might catch him on the stairs going down.”

Marcus’s eyes narrowed at Felix’s overstep. “Go after him. He has work to do.”

“Yes, sir.”

Marcus walked down the tower steps to the room he’d designated as his center of command, barely pausing to note that it had been cleared of all evidence of Grypus’s demise. He poured himself a glass of wine, then unrolled a map, setting markers on the edges to keep them from curling. His eyes settled upon the largest kingdom of the north.

Mudamora.

Gamdesh was his priority, yet Marcus couldn’t tear his eyes from the northern kingdom.

Healer.Lydia was marked.

What she was supposed to be was dead. Drowned, her corpse lost to an underground river without end, time having eaten her down to bones.

But she was alive.

The sudden compulsion to remedy that fact washed over him like a wave, nearly driving him to his feet. Instead, Marcus moved his focus to the nation that stood between him and the northern continent, tapping a finger on the capital city of Revat.

The door opened, and Servius walked inside. “What’s going on with Teriana? You’ve got four legions of men all gossiping like village matrons because she was seen racing to the harbor like a pack of Sibernese wolves was on her heels.”

“Nothing of concern to us.” Marcus rested his elbows on the table. “Felix will deal with her.”

Servius was silent for a moment, then he said, “We have a Gamdeshian emissary here to speak to you. If you want me to deal with him, I will.”

“I’ll speak to him myself,” Marcus murmured. “I’m rather interested in what they have to say.”

Vaguely, he heard Servius give the orders to those outside, but his mind was all for the xenthier path Bait had revealed. It would need to be excavated given the genesis was located beneath Celendrial, then it would need to be mapped to the Senate’s satisfaction. Mudaire was reported to be overrun with blight—a dead city—which meant logistical efforts would be required before it was viable for heavy traffic. No use to Marcus now, but soon enough.

Take Revat, and you can move on Mudamora.

He eyed the terrain between Emrant and Revat. A strategy began to build of how best to cross the distance between the two cities, all the information that had been fed to him by spies and reports rising from where he’d stored it away.

Men were filtering into the room, now. Zimo and Austornic, as well as other officers and guards. Austornic was looking everywhere but at Marcus, his guilt palpable.

But guilt wouldn’t get him out of this.