The soldier had a clear shot, but he didn’t take it. He passed Whythe by, leveling a swing at Peer instead. Despite having only one good arm, Peer deflected the blow.
Ko-Jin hastened back to his place in line, sword arm quavering.
“Who’s next?” Arlow asked in a high-pitched voice.
He was plainly terrified, so Ko-Jin said, “You, man. Go.”
Arlow needed no second prompt. He slipped away, and Ko-Jin’s old mentor Enton closed the gap on his left.
“You alright?” the other Cosanta asked.
“Can’t complain,” Ko-Jin ground out. His shoulder was on fire. The gallery was packed with men and still more were arriving, so that their enemy crashed upon them like an avalanche.
“Peer,” Ko-Jin said.
“What?”
Ko-Jin would like to have rolled his eyes at the man’s thick-headedness, but couldn’t peel his gaze from the enemy. “Go, man. You’re a weak link.”
“Whythe first,” Peer said.
Ko-Jin couldn’t answer right away; he was busy with another crude spear jabbing towards his abdomen. When he had breath to respond, he said, “I don’t think they’re trying to hurt Whythe.”
But why?
He glanced sideways at the man in question. Whythe wasn’t wearing Cosanta robes. He and Peer were both still dressed in the civilian disguises they’d traveled in. But Peer’s head was shorn, while Whythe’s shoulder-length hair was bound in a common ponytail.
He doesn’t look like a Chisanta.
Inspiration hit Ko-Jin full force, and he grinned. You were always so much more than able-bodied, Zarra had said.
Yes, he was. He had not always been strong, but he’d always been clever. Perhaps he needn’t die a hero’s death, after all.
“Fine, Whythe and Peer, go together.”
This left just Ko-Jin, Enton, and Avearra against a multitude.
“I’m going to step back for a moment,” Ko-Jin panted. “Hold them off.”
If any two people could thwart such a host, it was Enton and Avearra. Ko-Jin slipped behind them. He plucked the dagger from his belt and hacked off his braid, tossing the dark hair aside without care.
With shaking hands, he ripped at his robes. Buttons scattered across the floor. He wrenched the fabric over his head and flung his Cosanta garb away.
“Alright,” he said. “You two go. Now.”
“I’m not leaving you to die, lad,” Enton said. “It should be me.”
“I have no intention of dying,” Ko-Jin said. “Trust me and go.”
He and his old friend exchanged a brief glare. Ko-Jin flashed a smile, and his mentor relented.
Enton withdrew first, and Avearra followed on lithe feet, slipping without sound into the tunnel.
And then it was Ko-Jin, alone, standing bare-chested in nothing but wide-legged trousers, his black hair clipped bluntly around his chin. He was a small man with a twisted spine and a lopsided gait. He certainly bore no resemblance to the great General Sung, the giant these soldiers would have seen only from a distance.
He held up his arms from his sides, exposing his heart.
The men stopped, studying him.
“Quade ordered you to kill Chisanta,” Ko-Jin said to the room. “I am not Chisanta.”
They lowered their blades. They blinked. Men blindly following the orders of another, without their own free will, were not terribly sharp-witted.
Ko-Jin nearly doubled over in relief. He hadn’t known if this plan would work. And how embarrassing, if his last act before being run through had been to pointlessly disrobe.
He ducked into the passageway and pulled the door closed behind him. It clicked shut. They might try to follow, but first they’d need to figure out how to open the secret hatch.
Ko-Jin released the longest breath of his life. He laughed to himself, rubbing his face with his palms. He’d accepted his own death, had made peace with it. And now that he was not to die, everything going forward seemed a gift.
He didn’t intend to waste it.
Ko-Jin crawled through the narrow passage on his hands and knees. The others must be far ahead now, and he wasn’t certain which direction they’d gone.
Arlow would go back to Yarrow’s chambers to find his wife, however, and Ko-Jin supposed he should go there as well. They could all decide together what came next.
He scrambled through the dark until he hit an intersection. The prospect of climbing up that pole to the top of the tower was daunting, and after a moment he realized it was also unnecessary. He could pass unharmed dressed, or rather undressed, as he was. So, Ko-Jin took the first exit and then mounted the stairway on his feet.
He was so giddy at having survived that he barely noticed his aching body as he climbed. A guard stood outside the door, but they let Ko-Jin pass.
Chae-Na was not only awake, but pacing. She started visibly at the sight of him, her eyes flying wide. He wished he wasn’t bare-chested. A flush creeped up his neck.
He looked away, to find that Yarrow’s chair was empty. Bray also seemed to be missing. Two guesses where they went.
Arlow, Mae, and the baby were having a reunion in the far corner of the room. Veldon and Fernie appeared deep in conversation, and on the other sofa Whythe was examining Peer’s injured arm.
“Did everyone make it out?” Peer asked, his face streaked with tears of pain.
“Yes. I was last,” Ko-Jin said. He crossed his arms over his chest, trying to appear casual rather than uncomfortable. “So, what’s next?”
Chae-Na cleared her throat, still looking shocked by his appearance. Ko-Jin was glad their relationship had ended. Otherwise, this would have been pretty crushing.
It’s still a little crushing.
But it was only his pride that smarted; he was not seriously wounded. He realized, all at once, that he was no longer in love with the queen. A burden he hadn’t known he carried slipped off his shoulders.
When she spoke, it was in a brisk tone. “We’ve called for General Paeva to meet us here. Fernie will clear his mind, and then we’ll have him call in the officers below him…” She glanced sideways at Fernie, whose bloodshot eyes kept drifting closed. “It will take time, but eventually we can cleanse the city. In the meantime, Peer shall lead the Chisanta out of the Accord. For their safety, as well as everyone else’s.”
Ko-Jin turned to Peer. “So, where are we going?”
“We?” Chae-Na echoed, her eyes finally darting to meet his.
“Yes. I’d like to formally step down. I recommend Paeva to take my place. I studied with him in my teens, you know, and he’s a good man. Despite what Quade made him do.”
“You want to go?” she asked softly.
“Yes,” he said, too fervently to be polite.
But in this moment, he was glad for Veldon. He was glad he wasn’t tied to this woman, or this palace, or this city. It meant he was free.
No one could say he hadn’t done enough. And Accord didn’t need him anymore, not with Quade gone. Fernie was the key in all of this, not him.
He wanted nothing more than to walk away. The very idea caused his body to sag in relief.
“I was thinkin’ we’d all head to the Temple,” Peer said. “For a time, at least. While we figure things out.”
The Temple. It was where Ko-Jin had received his gift. Where he’d learned the Ada Chae. Where he’d met all his dearest friends. “When do we leave?”
The next two hours were devoted to preparation. Supplies were gathered by guards who could pass safely through the halls. Ko-Jin met with General Paeva, while a doctor tended Peer’s arm.
Saying goodbye turned into a prolonged ordeal. He tugged Fernie into a tight hug.
“Can’t believe you’re just leaving me here,” Fernie grumbled.
Ko-Jin mussed his hair. “You don’t need me. But I’ll be in touch.”
“You better be.”
He smiled weakly at Chae-Na, uncertain how to proceed, particularly with her husband
looking on with his uniquely cold gaze. She took his hands, bobbed onto her toes, and kissed his cheek. “Thank you. For everything.”
‘You’re welcome’ didn’t seem the right response, so he merely dipped his head. “Keep your eyes open and watch your back.”
“I will,” she said.
Arlow slammed into him, his parting hug verging on assault. He was more choked-up than Ko-Jin would have expected.
“I’ll see you again soon, mate,” Ko-Jin said, clapping his shoulder. “And on that day, I think I’d like to play poker.”
“Oh, afraid my gambling days are over.” Arlow winked. “My wife doesn’t approve.”
Ko-Jin kissed the babe on his tiny head, offered the room at large one final wave, and then slipped into the passageway after Peer and Whythe.
They met up with the rest of the Chisanta waiting in the lower levels, and Ko-Jin crawled blindly through the dark. He didn’t know who was ahead of him, but whoever it was, they smelt nice. Too nice, really, given the circumstances.
I’m leaving, he thought, his heart lightening by the second. It’s finally over. He had the sense that his spirit was tied to a string, and something was towing it along. He was on the right path.
For the rest of his days, Ko-Jin would grapple with what he’d done this past year. He was certain he’d never forget that one terrible, bloody day—not the sight of piled corpses, nor the sound of so many men dying by his order.
He would carry it all forward. But at least there was a ‘forward’ for him. He had a future in his sights.
The passage let out in the palace gardens. A hand waited to help him climb from the hole.
He took hold of it—a fine-boned hand, light brown and deft-fingered—and a current ran up his arm. His skin warmed, and it seemed the heart in his chest woke up after slumbering all his life.
When he was pulled free, he nearly collapsed into the woman who’d helped him. She was plainly Chiona, by her hair, but he didn’t know her face. She must have been on Quade’s side of the wall.
In the moonlight, he caught sight of sharp cheekbones, wide-set eyes, and a dusting of freckles across an objectively adorable nose.
They stared into each other’s eyes, and though he was standing still, it felt as if he were falling.
“I’m Ko-Jin,” he said, stupidly.
“I know.” She looked him up and down, her lips quirking into a one-sided smile. “They said you were handsome.”
Her tone suggested that they had it right. He nearly did a double-take at his own appearance, uncertain what she was seeing. He grinned.
“Put that smile away,” the girl warned. “We’re trying not to call attention to ourselves.”
She let go of his hand—his fingers tingled, deprived—and set off into the night.
“Hey, what’s your name?”
He hastened after her, barely noticing his twisted foot. The string round his spirit gave another solid tug.
Yes, he had a future in his sights. And it had just gotten brighter.
Chapter Twenty-Two
Chae-Na chewed on a broken nail as she watched Fernie. He’d worked his magic on the most essential people so far: General Paeva and his closest officers, the staff of the palace, and a contingent of guards for security.
But he looked ready to collapse.
“You’re clear,” he said wearily, to the last of Paeva’s men. “Now, try to stay away from those I haven’t gotten to yet. Don’t make me keep cleaning the same slate again and again.”
Fernie rubbed at his bloodshot eyes. “Who’s next?” he asked, but it sounded like a whine.
“No one, for tonight,” Chae-Na said. “You need to rest.” His look of gratitude was so fierce that she felt guilty for pushing him this far. “Thank you, Fernie, for all your hard work. Truly. We’d be lost without you.”
His cheeks flushed pink, but sleepiness drove the embarrassment from his face after a moment. He yawned, his nose wrinkling like a kitten. “Well, I’ll be right here. If anyone needs me.” And then he thunked back onto the sofa, and appeared to be asleep before his head hit the cushion.
“Huh,” Veldon said. “Don’t think I’ve ever seen someone lose consciousness so readily.”
“He’s exhausted,” Chae-Na said. She couldn’t imagine what it must cost, to delve into the minds of others. To, again and again, confront the shadow of Quade Asher.
Clea tucked her silvery hair behind her ears and knelt at Fernie’s feet. She unlaced and removed his boots, then draped a shawl over him like a blanket. There was such a tenderness in her actions, it made Chae-Na smile to see it.
“I’m fairly exhausted myself,” Veldon said softly, for her ear alone. “But I doubt I could sleep.”
They shared a look of understanding, because she was of the same mind. Her eyes itched from lack of sleep, but she was too on edge to relax.
Chae-Na had once again been at Quade’s mercy. She’d knelt before him. He’d touched her. And though, by any measure, she’d come away lucky this time—he had neither harmed nor violated her—it still called to mind the last time she’d been in his power.
The thought of his hands on her skin made the walls come crashing down around her. Bile churned in her throat.
Never again, she promised, and it was actually a comfort—because this time it was a certainty, not a hope. Quade could never conquer her mind again. He had been neutered.
A guard stepped into the room, slipping through a narrow opening and shutting the door behind him. With Arlow, Fernie, and Clea still here, they had to be careful.
“I’ve got a message for you, ma’am,” he said. He extended a slip of paper to Mae, and she snatched it from his hand.
“From Foy,” she said, her eyes darting back and forth. “Says there’s been some looting, but he’s sending the Men to patrol. Food stores are secured.”
Chae-Na settled into a chair. “We must devise a plan for transitioning from our siege state back to normal—or, at least, a new normal.”
Arlow plopped down on the seat across from her. Linton squirmed in his uninjured arm. “We’ll need to be careful through the winter. The harvest will have been interrupted.”
She propped her chin on her hand. “Yes. We can’t let people starve. Perhaps we should keep the rations going until spring…”
They had much to consider. Quade had opened the gates, and there was no reason to close them again. Farmers must be notified that they could once again sell produce at market. The trains and public carriage schedules must be reinstated.
There were two armies currently residing in her capital. Far more soldiers than a nation at peace would need, going forward.
And there were the lands that had been requisitioned for the war, which would need to be returned. Veldon would be useful in that matter.
Most importantly, she must spread the reach of her rule beyond Accord. She was queen of all Trinitas, but thus far had been managing only the nation’s capital. A royal tour would be necessary.
There was much to do, much to decide upon. She felt her spine straighten, energized by the prospect.
With Quade at large, her job had been to keep this city safe. To fight and protect. But now, with that threat neutralized, she could set about the business of ruling. And there was so much good she could do.
“I want to meet with my people,” Mae said. “I need to go to headquarters. They won’t understand why I’ve been gone so long.” She stood, placing her hand on Arlow’s shoulder. “You’ll have to stay out of sight anyway, so you can watch Linnie while I’m out?”
“I’d be delighted to, wife,” Arlow said, cocking one of his sardonic brows. “But he might find my nipples a little disappointing.”
Not long ago, Chae-Na would have been mortified to hear someone say the word ‘nipple’ aloud. Now, she only laughed into her hand. “I’ll send for a wet nurse. Mae, we’ll need to make some decisions tomorrow.”
“I’ll be back before lunchtime,” she said.
Ch
ae-Na glanced to the clock. It was the middle of the night. She knew she wouldn’t sleep, at least not yet, but she longed to bathe, to change into a clean nightgown. She’d never been so filthy in all her life.
But first, Chae-Na walked through the open doors to the balcony, placing her hands on the stone railing. She could remember jumping, without a care for her own death. Peeking down at the marble patio far below, she grimaced.
There was no question: it would have been a deadly fall. If it were not for Fernie, they would be mopping up her shattered body. It was a chilling thought.
She should give Fernie a commendation. Something grandiose, like the medal of valor. He would like that.
Chae-Na’s gaze drifted to the city’s walls. Even now, the Chisanta were probably crossing over those ramparts, fleeing the capital. Their mass exodus was the best answer to their current problem, but it left her off-kilter. She had grown dependent on the marked in a variety of ways.
Or, perhaps, it was just his exodus that made her feel wrong-footed.
Ko-Jin was gone.
His departure did not break her heart, as it would have a month ago. But she missed him already. A piece of her always would.
Her eyes searched the city. It was still and dark, but she was not deceived by the apparent peace. Quade was out there, lingering in the minds of her people.
It would be a long and difficult task, to erase him. But they would do it.
Quade.
That feeling—like the air was trapped in her lungs—returned. She bowed forward over the railing, trying to draw breath through her nose.
Veldon approached from behind, his warmth close at her back. His hand came to rest on her shoulder.
“I detest the idea that he’s still out there,” he murmured.
“Bray will see to that,” Chae-Na said. “But either way, he’s like a bad taste in your mouth.”
The word mouth made her think of his against hers, and she tensed.
Veldon’s deft fingers set to work on her neck. She leaned back against him and felt the steady beat of his heart.
He was a steady man. And she was grateful for him.
“Let’s retire,” she said.
He placed a warm kiss on her temple and she sighed. “As my queen wishes.”
The Complete Marked Series Box Set Page 142