Page 81 of The Primal of Blood and Bone (Blood and Ash #6)

“Those who violently or…aggressively refused to swear allegiance to Atlantia had to be dealt with, but the others who simply refused? Minds are not impossible to change.” Casteel took a sip.

“They may have chosen wrong now, but they could choose differently in the future. We,” he said, glancing at Kieran, “knew you would’ve wanted to give them a chance. ”

I exhaled roughly, relieved and so damn lucky to have them both. “I do,” I said, knowing they would also want to give the mortals a chance in place of senseless slaughter.

“The soldiers could not be left to roam freely,” Kieran said.

“Obviously,” I murmured, my brow furrowing as Casteel reached over and nudged my plate.

It hit me when I picked up my fork. Had they been sent to the mines?

My grip tightened. Yes, some willingly chose to work the mines, which was using the word willingly liberally, but it did pay better than other jobs.

Prisoners weren’t generally paid by the Blood Crown, though.

And those who were sent to the mines as punishment were forced to provide backbreaking—and often deadly— free labor.

I seriously doubted there had been time to sift through the Royal Treasury to see what coin might be there to pay those sent to the mines.

No minds would be changed that way. “Please tell me they weren’t sent to the mines in the Elysium Peaks. ”

“They were given a choice,” Kieran began. “The mines or Harrowfeld.”

Harrowfeld was more of a penal colony than an actual city, located in the Niel Valley and closer to Three Rivers than the Willow Plains and Ironspire, where the citadel and military dormitories were located.

If Harrowfeld was an option, that meant General La’Sere had either seized it before arriving in Carsodonia or after I went into stasis.

Something else occurred to me then. “How are the prisons in Atlantia? I never asked about that.”

“Not nearly as bad as those you’ll find in Harrowfeld,” Casteel said, which came as no shock.

“We have more of a…rehabilitation approach for those capable of such, with several smaller colonies instead of one larger one. They’re normally stationed in or around our farming lands, which allows them to learn while serving their time. ”

“And are they paid for the work they do?”

“They are given a fair amount.” A faint smile appeared on Casteel’s lips.

“I know you probably don’t like sending them to the mines or Harrowfeld,” Kieran said, sliding his fork back and forth over his plate. “But at this point, that is the best we can do. Once things are settled, we can revisit the entire penal system.”

Exhaling slowly, I nodded. That was not something we could undertake while at war with the true Primal of Death. “So, that leaves the Blood Crown with roughly fifty thousand soldiers, right?”

“Give or take a few thousand,” Casteel said.

“What about the Royal Knights?”

“We have yet to uncover the exact numbers, even after checking those held at Ironspire. We only know that Isbeth claimed there were several thousand.” Kieran’s fork stilled. “Whether that is true or not is unknown, but it seems the remaining armies likely escaped north.”

“To Pensdurth? The port city isn’t large enough to house that many soldiers.” The moment I finished speaking, I tensed. “Masadonia.”

“It’s possible,” Kieran said quietly and then straightened.

“So, we need to consider all of that when deciding whether to send the generals back. I think we have to assume that the remaining armies now belong to Kolis. If I were him, I would aim for the most valuable cities. Beyond the capital, Oak Ambler, Pensdurth, and Masadonia, I would set my sights on Whitebridge.”

“And not Three Rivers?” I asked, surprised.

“Three Rivers may be larger, but to many, it sits on the cusp of civilization,” Casteel said, lifting his glass.

“With little else to be protected or gained, the farther southeast one goes. That’s not to say they aren’t aware of Spessa’s End.

We know they are, but moving an army east would be noticed. ”

“Unless they moved them from Masadonia,” I pointed out.

“True.” Casteel took a drink. “But any movement would be seen from Whitebridge—which gives access to both New Haven and Three Rivers, as well as the Western Pass, while New Haven has the mountains to the east and the Blood Forest to the west.”

“And Whitebridge south,” I murmured, my thoughts moving to the vulnerability of Oak Ambler. “An army, not a large one, could move through the northernmost territory of the Blood Forest and enter Oak Ambler the way we left it. It’s risky, but neither Whitebridge nor New Haven have eyes there.”

“We sent word to Cyr advising just that.” Kieran cast a pointed look at my plate, and with a roll of my eyes, I lifted a forkful of rice. “They are prepared.”

“My opinion is that we send Murin back to Whitebridge and have La’Sere take a portion of her forces to Oak Ambler to support Cyr.” Casteel set the bowl down. “The rest should remain here.”

I stopped myself from asking if it was necessary for General Aylard to remain. What Casteel said made sense. It was logical and gave us the best chance to protect what we’d gained. So, why didn’t it sit right with me? Why did I feel like we were going about it all wrong?

“I agree. I also think we should keep the fifty thousand in Padonia. As far as we know, our numbers there aren’t known.” Kieran turned to me. “What do you think?”

Some would think my opinion irrelevant since it was two against one, but I knew that wasn’t the case with them.

If I disagreed, they would listen. So, I thought it over and came to the same conclusion.

Their plans made sense. Yet, that vague feeling of unease still gnawed at me.

So, I thought it all over again. Still, nothing but a… feeling explained my hesitancy.

But I couldn’t make such important decisions on a feeling that neither I nor the vadentia could explain. “I agree,” I said.

Casteel’s gaze slid to Kieran, and he nodded as I took a slow sip of mulled wine, hoping it would wash away the lingering doubt and nagging fear that we were approaching this wrong.

Strategizing as if we were going up against mortals or even the Ascended, who shared the same outcome as we did.

Survival. The vamprys could not survive without mortals, which made them fallible and… reasonable.

Kolis on the other hand?

The vadentia was silent, but some deeper instinct nagged at me—one I understood even less than the Primal foresight. It warned me that Kolis would be anything but reasonable.