Page 5 of Shadow Throne King
“Rise,” Tallu said.
The doctor got to his feet, his expression sick with misery. He stared down at the ground. “I?—”
“Do not speak.” Tallu placed his hand flat on the table, his golden rings glinting in the light coming in from the tall window behind him. Backlit, he looked more statue than man, and his calm voice made Wituno twitch. “I should kill you. Your life is mine to take, do you understand?”
It wasn’t a real question, but Wituno nodded anyway.
“Know that I am watching you now. Know that there is nowhere you can hide if this was intentional. Know that if itwasan attempt on my beloved’s life… death will not come for you. I will.” Tallu’s eyes fixed on Wituno, and the doctor paled further. “Leave us.”
Wituno bowed so low he was nearly prostrated again. He formed a triangle with his fingers and raised them above his head. Then he backed out of the room, closing the door behind him.
“General Saxu,” Tallu said, his voice quiet. “I want your men also on the border.”
“They are,” Saxu assured Tallu. “They cover the border as well as they can. Our forces are depleted. If Your Imperial Majesty prefers, attacking one of the generals will increase our numbers. Some, like General Bemishu, have men with them who are still loyal to the Imperium. If they are given the opportunity to return to your forces because we have defeated Bemishu, they will take it.”
“You are very confident.” Tallu’s long fingers curled around his teacup. “Are you in communication with them?”
“I merely offer options,” Saxu demurred. He reached over and served Tallu some of the food his people had prepared. “There is a strong chance that the Shadow King doesn’t have Prince Hallu and is, in fact, provoking you into a battle that will deplete your numbers further.”
“Perhaps.” Tallu looked down at the dishes. “But it is not a chance I can take. If he has my brother, I must get him back. Send your men to the border. I want to know what is going to greet us before my husband and I set foot in the Lakeshore Palace. It would not do for me to suffer the same fate my father did when he stayed there.”
Saxu blinked, bowing low, and I couldn’t tell if he was shocked by Tallu’s decision to go to the fortress of a palace just across a lake from Krustau. He straightened, and his expression was blank. Tallu and I had discussed at length what needed to happen, what he needed to do, but this was the first time Saxu heard it from Tallu himself as a plan rather than a passing thought.
“You intend to meet the Shadow King?” Saxu asked.
“He has my heir,” Tallu repeated. His jaw clenched, Tallu stood, the motion shaking the table. He pointed at one of his Dogs, and I hid my wince at his choice. “You stay with Prince Airón.”
Tallu swept out, the remaining two Dogs with him.
When I glanced at Saxu, he stared after Tallu. Gracefully, he poured me a fresh cup of tea. “I wonder if, perhaps, you might speak to the emperor and discover whether his intention might be swayed. The King of the Shadow Throne isn’t known for his mercy, no more than a granite mountain might be merciful toward a man in a lightning storm.”
“You think he’s killed Hallu?” I asked.
“Someonewas entombed in the royal burial chamber. When presented with the bodies, they resembled the empress and Prince Hallu so closely that not even Emperor Tallu saw anything amiss. He recognized them as kin.” Saxu took a long drink of his tea. “If the emperor sacrifices what’s left of his men on a rescue attempt, a dead prince serves King Inor’s purpose as well as a live one.”
“But you believe the prince is dead.” I considered the complicated design on the teacup.
“I believe what my eyes have shown me. There is a child buried in Prince Hallu’s tomb.” Saxu watched me carefully. “The promise given by the Dragon Seer to First Emperor Wollu was that his line would unite the continent. Prince Hallu is dead; he cannot fulfill the promise. The promise has driven our empire. If Emperor Tallu dies without an heir…”
I sipped my own cup, not tasting anything other than smoke. When I stood to leave, I tried to ignore the wave of anger coming off the Dog at the door.
“Boro,” I greeted. “It is good to see you again.”
“I am, as always, verypleasedto be at your service,” Boro said. “Your Highness.”
“Of course.” I frowned and didn’t brush my hands over my weapons. Instead, I nodded at General Saxu. “I will discuss his intentions with His Imperial Majesty.”
Saxu showed me out, and I began the long walk back to Turtle House, knowing a man who wanted to kill me was at my back.
Two
The path to Turtle House was a common one, and on a normal day, there were courtiers and servants that walked along the lake and then up into some of the commonly used palace buildings. However, as the court splintered, some traveling to ally with General Kacha, some disappearing to their country estates or their houses in the city to give themselves more flexibility as they waited to see who would emerge as the leader of the Imperium, the palace grounds had begun to be less busy, with some pockets even feeling deserted. Whispers were heard more than laughter.
The number of servants had decreased at the same rate as the number of their masters, as they snuck off to new jobs in the city or back to their homes in the countryside. It should have felt like success, but it left me uneasy. Who was staying behind? What kind of person stayed with the dying imperial throne?
And if they were doing it out of loyalty to Tallu or me, what did that mean about us? Were we leading them straight into destruction at our side?
I crossed the bridge toward Turtle House and then through a small, hedged garden, my mind circling around the insects I’d seen. I could feel the ichor of one drying against my back andworried about Asahi and whether the doctor had been able to handle the unknown poison.