We broke apart a few breathless moments later. I laid my head against his chest and let the tears roll down my cheeks. I needed to tell him what must be done now, what came next.
“Johai…”
Someone cleared their throat, and I turned to see Beau. I blushed to be caught like this with Johai.
“Princess Arlene is here, outside the villa gate, and she is requesting an audience with you,” he said without a hint of interest.
She learned of my disguise. It was not too surprising; half the court knew. I looked at Johai, and his expression gave nothing away. “Give me a moment, and I will see her.”
Beau nodded and disappeared out the front door.
“There’s something I need to tell you,” I said to Johai.
He shook his head. “Not now, there will be time later.” He kissed me once more, a sweet touch of lips and a promise of things to come, better things that could never be. I would keep it with me until the last moment, I decided. I grasped his hand and let our touch linger before hurrying out the door and to the princess.
She was waiting for me, wearing men’s garb once more. She was joined by two thick-armed men whose clothes were tousled, and one seemed to have blood splattered on his chainmail.
“Lady Diranel,” she greeted me with a bow at her waist.
I stopped on the last step of the front stoop and stared at her for a moment before replying. She does not pretend anymore. She knows who I am, and I suspect she has come here with a purpose. “How can I help, Your Highness?”
She smiled and said, “I need you to help me take back my kingdom.”
Chapter Twenty Four
I balked at her. I had no other response. Queen Celeste had murdered King Reynard, and she had the power of Danhad behind her. Who was I but a diviner afraid to use her powers? “I beg your pardon, what can I do to help you achieve such a goal?”
She faced me with a defiant tilt of her chin and her hands folded behind her back. She has not given up, and she plans to take back the kingdom just as it was in my vision. “You foresaw my father’s death. You also told me that my uncle would take the throne. I need your help to convince the council to revolt.”
I shook my head. I want nothing more to do with politics and the games the powerful play. Leave me do what I must, nothing more. “That is not how these powers work. If I look, I will only report what I have seen. What if the future is not what you think it should be?” I asked.
She fixed me with a hard stare. “Any future where my mother is not a puppet regent for your king would be acceptable.”
I looked out across the horizon, the clouds were gathering along the mountains. The sunlight struggled to force its way through. It’s too soon. I’m not ready for this. Perhaps once we’ve buried Jon and… What else? How much longer could I put off the inevitable? I had not only been denying my feelings for Johai, but I had been denying my powers. I was born for this, to guide the ruler and help shape history. Light fell onto the flagstones that lined the courtyard. Jon is dead because of me, and soon I will kill Johai. What good can I do for anyone? Everything I touch turns to ash. I glanced at Princess Arlene. She was standing with her hands on her hips, regarding me. She will not give up. She is determined enough to stop Adair. He is as much a part of this as Johai and I. The Order wants to bring forth the specter, Johai is the vessel. To kill Johai would thwart part of Adair’s plans. I tightened my hand into a fist and bit my lip. What do I choose? Do I keep myself apart and let things unfold as they may, or do I step up and do what I was born to?
“You would do better to not use my powers. They are more a curse than anything. Besides, I do not have a gilded tongue to sway people,” I said, half-hoping I could discourage her and let her make my decision for me.
She waved off my protests with a downward slash of her hand. “I do not care if you do not have a fair tongue. I need only for you to look into the future for me. If you do, I shall pay you any price you name.”
The one thing I wanted was Johai’s life. She could not grant me that. Johai was destined to die, and Jon was already dead. A voice whispered in my ear, You must go with her. It was madness. You are the unbroken circle. Fulfill your destiny. I inhaled sharply. Just like many of the crossroads I had stood at, the choice had been made for me, it seemed.
“I will help you, but I need time to prepare. We have suffered a loss this night, and I need time to collect myself and grieve.”
Outside, shouts echoed in the distance. The princess whipped her head down the street and reached for a sword buckled at her waist. One of the soldiers disappeared from sight, I assumed to investigate. We waited with bated breath, but the voices did not draw closer.
The soldier returned and said, “There is a company of twenty or more Danhadine soldiers coming this way. They’re knocking on doors.”
Princess Arlene turned back to me. “There is no time. My mother will not sit easy on her throne until I am gone. Her soldiers are already in pursuit of me, and once they have me, she will turn her eye on you as well. If we do not act now, then there may not be another chance.”
I looked back towards the house, where Jon’s body lay and Johai waited for me. There were things Johai and I needed to discuss, and the time was drawing closer every minute. I could feel it like an ache in my bones. The circle must be broken. Once Johai was gone, I would need an ally, and Arlene could be a powerful one. If we win the throne back, she can help me defeat Adair.
“I ask only one thing. When you are queen, I want you to help me dethrone King Adair.”
She looked me up and down before nodding. “Done. I, too, have a vendetta against your king. Now open the gate. We must get away before the soldiers find us.”
“I need a moment. I must tell my companions where I am going.” I held up my hand and motioned to go up the stairs.
Voices shouted nearby, a guttural war cry. Horses’ hooves clattered on the cobblestones.
“There’s no time for that. Take the girl; we must fly.” Princess Arlene turned on her heel and jumped into the saddle of her mount. The soldier forced the gate open and ran up the steps to me. I tried to run away, but I stumbled on the steps, and he caught me about the waist and hoisted me over his shoulder.
“Wait!” I watched the front of the villa recede as he took me out the gate. Beau heard the commotion and came out. He ran forward and met the second soldier with a ringing of metal. “No, don’t hurt him!” I cried out.
The soldier carrying me did not stop to linger. I did not see the outcome of the fight as we passed through the gate and he shoved me into the saddle of a large warhorse. The animal danced beneath me as the soldier swung into the saddle behind me.
“We cannot wait for him,” Princess Arlene said of the second soldier. She kicked her heels into her mount, and we flew down the street. My captor put his heels to the horse’s ribs. The animal shrieked and reared before galloping after Arlene.
We sped off through the city. Wind whipped through my hair, and the sound of hooves on the cobblestones echoed through my head. They will think I have been captured. Johai will be worried. What if he unleashes the specter’s powers trying to save me? I tried to shout to Princess Arlene, but the wind stole my words. Danhadine soldiers were everywhere. I heard the shouts of the citizens as they rampaged through the city. Our mounts were quick, and the riders capable, and we were able to outmaneuver them. From a distance, I saw foot soldiers carrying torches or fighting with the small folk. We travelled down alleyways and kept mainly out of sight. We headed downhill and away from the palace.
We were headed towards the city gates. I thought we were heading out of the city itself, but then we turned, and I saw familiar buildings and scenery. We were headed south towards the merchant district, where the playhouse was. We drove down the familiar roads and passed by the inn where I had stayed with Beau and Johai. It was engulfed in flames. The common people were running around, carrying bundles, and a child was screaming nearby. People were out on the streets
in force, and the atmosphere was one of a kicked hornets’ nest. I was shocked when we stopped in front of the playhouse.
“Why are we here?” I asked.
“This is neutral ground,” Princess Arlene said as she dismounted and walked up the front steps.
The soldier helped me out of the saddle, and I followed after the princess on wobbling legs. I expected the trilling laughter of Antoinette or Philippe to be arguing with Elenna, but they were not there. Antoinette had been slain in the attack at the palace, and Philippe had run, I suspected. Elenna greeted us in the entryway. She looked serene in a plain woolen gown and her hair loose at her shoulders in black ripples.
“Welcome, welcome,” she said in her melodious voice.
I drew up to her with a frown. “I would not have thought you would dabble with court politics.”
She smiled benignly. “I was asked to lend my theatre, and seeing as there is a war going on, we are not planning any plays at the moment.” She motioned to the empty amphitheater. Discarded costumes were tossed about, and an overturned dish of white powder was smeared across the ground.
She alone had stayed behind. Was it because of me, because of our shared fate? There was no time to question her. Princess Arlene hurried along to the amphitheater. I trailed after her. A few older men were gathered there and chatting in a close circle. They wore silk and velvet with golden chains around their necks. They were members of the council that I had seen at court before. One of them kept looking over his shoulder as if expecting an attack at any moment. The princess approached them. All four of the men bowed, falling to their knees.
“Stand; there is no time for formality while the capital burns.” She pointed in the direction of the palace and flicked her hand as if to brush off their reverence.
“She has a lot of passion, but I think she will make a good ruler,” Elenna commented.
I upturned my face to her. “Perhaps, but what I want to know is why you are doing this, really.”
She smiled again without answering. “I have to greet the others. Why don’t you relax for a moment? I know you’ve had a long night.” She glided away.
Does she know Jon died? How could she? Whatever the case, her calm demeanor was to be envied. She seemed unaffected by the chaos of the city, the looting and raiding and the burning buildings. Men arrived in a trickle after that. Some were dressed in finery. A few had their hair mussed and their chain of office askew on their breasts. One man arrived in his night clothes, with a servant hurrying after him carrying a jerkin and a doublet draped over his arm. Elenna showed them in, and they all went to Princess Arlene. They bowed to her, or a few even fell down on the ground and bowed with heads against the dirt floor. Before long, the chamber was full of men of many ages, several with men-at-arms joining them and hanging back at the edge of the theatre. The guards’ mail glittered in the dawning morning light that had broken through the cloud cover and was spilling through the top of the amphitheater and sending long shadows across the crowd.
Arlene took the stage. She had changed her clothes. She still wore men’s garb, which did not seem as strange as it did before. The doublet was a deep blood red with golden stitching on the breast and covered in small rearing horses. The jerkin was black. She wore a sword at her belt that was gold plated and inset with rubies. None of them seemed to be concerned by her masculine appearance, nor did they question why they were here. It seemed this was a prearranged meeting. Had Arlene planned all of this after I prophesized her father’s death? It seemed she trusted my words more than she had let on initially. Elenna came to stand beside me. She folded her hands in front of her and stared out across the crowd, with a small smile pulling at the corner of her mouth. She’s smiling like she knows something we do not.
“Good men, I commend you for coming here on the dawning of a day of great peril,” Princess Arlene addressed the crowd in a regal tone.
“What is your plan, Your Highness? We cannot let the Danhadines take over. Our sons and brothers died defending this land from them, and we will not let that bitch queen hand it over without a fight!” the man in the night robe shouted.
There were shouts of agreement from those gathered.
“We should not be gathering here. We should be out directing our soldiers, pushing back these usurpers!” another shouted.
“Silence!” Arlene thundered, and to my surprise, they fell silent. They did not mock or ridicule her as many of them once had. Now that Queen Celeste had betrayed the kingdom to Danhad, Princess Arlene was their only hope of maintaining their independence. She looked across the room and let her eyes meet each man’s one by one. “You are here because you know, as I do, that you have been betrayed from within. You know that while our king, my father, laid on his deathbed, devious plots were laid to destroy our kingdom!”
There were grumbles, both of disagreement and encouragement.
“I will put it to you bluntly. The king is dead, and it is because of my mother’s foul play. I have here one of her trusted advisors, who confided in me at great peril.”
Lord Eeland, the lord of the king’s privy seal, stepped forward. He glanced at the crowd and then at me before addressing them. “Her Majesty, Queen Celeste, was wooed by the enemy and convinced to poison her husband in order to secure the throne for the Danhad king. King Adair of Danhad has been told by a diviner that his wife, Queen Sabine, shall give him a son, one that is destined to rule over both our kingdoms. The queen tricked King Reynard into plotting to overthrow her husband, King Reginald, and then, once our good king was dead, Queen Celeste betrayed King Reynard and had him slain so she could rule for Danhad.”
Many shouts overlapped one another, and it took more than a bit of screaming to silence them once more.
“We should have her head on a pike!” one man shouted.
“Why are we wasting time? She should pay for her crimes. How dare she betray us to the ancestors-cursed Danhadines!” another voice called above the rest.
“Enough!” Arlene said with a booming voice that demanded attention. All eyes turned to her, and the voices died away. She paced across the stage. “I know you are angry, as am I. My own mother killed my father and betrayed us to our enemies. I want revenge just as much as the rest of you, but we cannot proceed like uncivilized barbarians. The fact remains, we are without a king, and if we are to do this, we must swiftly place a Neaux king on the throne.”
“Or queen!” someone shouted from the back, and more than a few voices agreed, but too many frowned and shook their heads.
There was a rumble of discontent that rippled through the crowd, and I could see they were divided on the issue. I could do little to ease the situation, but I felt the need to interject.
“You would be blind to ignore the leader this kingdom desperately needs,” I said, coming to stand at Princess Arlene’s left side. Princess Arlene may not have been a friend, but I would have been blind to not see that she was a born leader. She was the rightful ruler of Neaux.
“And who are you?” the man in the night robe asked. His servant was still fussing over his clothing and his hair, but he batted him away with his hand.
I bowed deeply and said, “I am Maea of House Diranel and a diviner, or in your tongue, an illusino. It was I that prophesized the child of two crowns, the boy whom King Adair plots to put upon your throne as your king and mine.”
“Why should we listen to this sorceress?” a shout interrupted me.
“Let her speak,” Princess Arlene said. “This woman led me here. She foresaw my father’s death and helped me to make plans to stop my mother.”
They glared at me with hate in their eyes. They do not trust me. I am a foreigner and, in their eyes, the face of the enemy. I took a deep breath. “I have dreamed of your kingdom and of the fall of all things.” The voices rose, but I pressed on, ignoring them. “If you do not stand strong against this Danhadine attack, then Neaux will fall.”
They scoffed and murmured to one another. I did not have Arlene’
s powerful presence that could hold a crowd. To them I was a foreigner and someone who had worked with the enemy.
“Listen to her!” Arlene said, lending credence to my claims. “She is the last daughter of the greatest house of soothsayers. A century has passed since her kind has been seen, yet she is here, and she has spoken to the king in his dreams, and she is here to guide our paths!”
They were wary, but the most vocal of the protests had stopped. Let them hear me. Let my words sway them, I prayed. Lead me to the truth. What am I to find here? I opened my mind and prayed the goddess would give me something to turn their minds to me, something that would help them believe me. Help them believe in Arlene. Elenna disappeared behind the curtain and then returned with a low dish filled to the brim with water. It was the same one they had used in the play. I found it rather ironic. The play had been about the first diviner, after all. Images danced across the surface, tantalizing and familiar. I looked away, even now hesitant to look into the water’s depths.
“Maea, daughter of House Diranel, I would have you look into the water and guide our course,” Arlene said in a commanding tone. There was no escaping it now. I had to look.
The basin was set before me, and I kneeled down beside it and swept my skirts back to get comfortable on the floor. I saw images of men with the oak of Danhad painted across their chest plates. They ran down the streets, swords brandished. Fire and smoke choked the sky, and the common people ran with fear in their eyes, clutching bundles of possessions on their backs and screaming children at their hips.
I closed my eyes and took a deep breath. Now was the time. I looked into the water fully and watched myself from above. It was disorienting until I slipped into the vision like an old glove. I leaned far over the basin, my hands grasping the edge. The cool metal felt like a balm against my sweaty palms. The men of the council watched me, eyes trained, waiting for me to awaken from my vision. I studied them. Many were rapt with attention. Many more were disinterested or chatting with their neighbors. All of them had the same feelings of fear and uncertainty. I regarded them all with detachment as a casual observer.
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