Illusion: Book Four of the Grimoire Saga

by S. M. Boyce

  He shook his head and returned the blade to her neck. “You’re wrong.”

  She laughed. “I’m not. You’re as vile as your father. But at least he could keep his end of a bargain.”

  “Carden’s dead. I’m the Blood of the Stele now. Whatever bargain you made with him means nothing.”

  Evelyn frowned. Braeden shifted his gaze to Gavin, who stared at the ground with his arms still clamped around Evelyn. She pulled at his grip, but he didn’t budge.

  “Call off your army,” Braeden ordered.

  “When you agree to uphold your end of your father’s bargain, I will.”

  “I won’t.”

  “You don’t even know what it is.”

  “Out of principle, I won’t uphold an agreement my father made. He was likely going to betray you anyway.”

  “You don’t know that!”

  “I knew him well enough to guess.”

  “Enough! I’ve had enough,” Gavin said.

  The Hillsidian Blood shot a blast of air at Braeden’s sword. It spun out of his hand and landed in the grass not far away. Gavin’s arms relaxed, and he released his hold on Evelyn. She jumped to her feet and rubbed her arms, backing away from them both.

  Braeden cursed and retrieved his sword. “What are you doing?”

  “I can’t hurt her,” Gavin said.

  Braeden shook his head and looked at Evelyn, who tensed. She glanced from Braeden to Gavin, spun, and ran.

  Braeden summoned the air into his hand and blunted the tip of the would-be arrow so it wouldn’t kill her. He aimed for the nape of her neck and released the blast of wind. Gavin tackled him. They rolled to the ground. Braeden punched the king in the face, knocking him to the dirt. He scrambled to his feet in time to see Evelyn arch her back and trip over a log. Her cheek hit the dirt. She lay on the soil, still as the dead leaves around her.

  Braeden glared at Gavin, who rubbed his jaw and stared at the ground. He wouldn’t look up. Braeden crossed to Evelyn and picked her up in his arms. He would throw her in spikes the first chance he got, but for now, she would be carried to the palace like the little princess she was.

  Braeden sat in the Hillsidian war room where Kara first met Gavin and Richard all those months ago. He seated himself at the far end of the table closest to the door, while Evelyn sat in the chair farthest from him, unconscious. Her head leaned over the back of the chair, her shackled hands in her lap. Two Hillsidian soldiers flanked her, while Remy and one of his Kirelm isen hunters flanked Braeden. He didn’t trust Gavin, not after the incident in the woods, and he would have his own guards—er, Kara’s—watch their new political prisoner as well.

  Firelight flickered in the room’s wall sconces, filling the room with orange light that danced over his charcoal gray skin. He grinned. He was starting to like his natural form, but he still caught nervous glares from the Hillsidian guards from time to time. He sighed.

  The dark night crept by outside. It had to be three in the morning. Braeden rubbed his eyes. At least they’d managed to get most of the Ayavelian army to surrender. Of course, he had no idea where Hillside would keep them. For now, they sat in houses under arrest, awaiting an answer as to what would happen next.

  Braeden wondered as much himself. Kara had gone to get Bloods Frine and Aurora to help reach a verdict as to what to do with Evelyn. Hopefully, the siege on Ayavel had gone well enough for them to spare a few moments to meet with him. And Kara—he let out a slow breath. When she’d heard Evelyn was in captivity, she hadn’t reacted. Braeden hoped she could keep her calm around the Ayavelian Blood, especially considering the queen had murdered several of Kara’s own. His jaw tensed. He wasn’t quite ready to deal with the possible fallout of the women’s next encounter.

  Gavin, on the other hand, was under the close eye of as many vagabonds as Kara could spare, both undercover and revealed. Braeden needed to know the Hillsidian Blood wouldn’t do anything stupid now that the love of his life was in well-deserved chains.

  None of this was supposed to happen. He grimaced. He’d been Blood all along. He must have been awoken during his battle with the Sartori poison—it was the only logical option. Legend had it a Blood’s awakening was painful, so he would have known the moment he became Blood—unless he was unconscious or fighting another wave of pain from something else.

  All the unnecessary death. The pain. The orphans. None of it had to happen. He rubbed his eyes.

  Evelyn’s head rolled to her chest. She mumbled something, blinked, and winced. Her eyes widened, and she stared at her lap—likely at the shackles around her wrists. “What have you done?”

  “Put you in your place,” he answered.

  Her head rolled back again, and she grimaced. She reached for her head, flinching as her fingers found their way to her scalp. She massaged her temples, whimpering.

  “They hurt, don’t they?” he asked.

  She glared at him out of the corner of her eye but didn’t answer.

  He continued. “Maybe you’ll think twice before using them on someone else, since now you know what it feels like.”

  “What do you want, Braeden?” she asked through gritted teeth.

  “I could go for a beer, actually.”

  She huffed. “You won, all right? Are you happy? Do you want to gloat?”

  “Not my thing.”

  “Then what?”

  “I want this to end,” he said.

  She stared at him, eyes narrowing as if she didn’t understand.

  He continued. “I want the hatred to end. The fighting. The locked doors and ‘attack on sight’ mentalities. We all live together in Ourea. We should act like it. I mean, look at Retrien. They’re nothing more than a legend now. And look at Ethos—almost nothing more than a myth. I wouldn’t believe they existed if not for the ruins. Is that what you want us to become? Nothing but a story?”

  She pursed her lips and leaned back in her chair. Again, she didn’t answer.

  Braeden stood. “You betrayed us, Evelyn. We can’t forget it. People died for your choice, and you must pay the price for their lives. Soon, Frine and Aurora will arrive. They, along with Kara, Gavin, and I, will decide what happens to you. I suggest you make an excellent case when the time comes. Be prepared to compromise.”

  She hesitated, eyes on his, but eventually looked at the floor. Her shoulders hunched, and she tenderly leaned her face into her hands.

  He expected her to apologize. He wanted to hear her mutter something, to at least see the beginnings of her regret. But she sat there, face in her hands, and said nothing.

  He turned to the soldiers in the room. “I’ll be back soon, and then you can go on break. You’ve all had a rough night, too. Until then, Blood Gavin is not to enter this room. Remy, find me immediately if he tries.”

  Remy nodded and set his hands behind his back, apparently ready to stay as long as it took. A rush of gratitude warmed Braeden’s chest, but he simply patted Remy on the back and slipped into the hallway.

  This would be a long night.

  Braeden managed to nap for about an hour before a nightmare kicked him awake. As he blinked himself conscious, he caught fleeting glimpses of the dream—Kara, with her hands around Evelyn’s neck; someone screaming; a burst of green light.

  He swung his feet over the side of the bed and rubbed his eyes. The warm air clung to his bare chest and tickled the hair on the nape of his neck. Sweat ran in beads down his back. He examined his hands and massaged the gray skin.

  He glanced around his old room. Nothing had changed. Several windows beside the bed let in the early morning. A red haze burned on the horizon, barely enough to light the first few inches of sky. Green curtains framed the glass, held open with golden tassels. A red-brick fireplace filled one corner. Two logs lay in the pit, charred from the last fire he’d set in the room. A dresser with five drawers sat beside it, filled with old gear and clothes. A wooden shelf filled one wall, every spare inch covered with silver weapons he’d collected on his travel
s.

  When he’d first walked in, he expected it to be in shambles—perhaps the aftermath of a tantrum once Gavin realized Braeden wasn’t what he’d claimed to be. But the room sat as he remembered it. Kara hadn’t been there to greet him, but he assumed she’d gone for food. Apparently, she still hadn’t returned.

  He grinned, remembering the time Kara knocked on his door and joked about needing a chaperone to enter. He rubbed his neck. She was only a friend, back then—a key to a lock he hadn’t figured out how to open. He smiled. At least a man could change.

  He grabbed a shirt from the dresser and pulled it over his head. He’d had his rest, at least all he would get until they sentenced Evelyn. His stomach twisted with nerves. He didn’t know how this could possibly end well for anyone involved. The only options he saw were to execute her and exterminate her entire race, or let the crazy woman free to rule a nation.

  He shoved his feet into his boots and slipped into the hall, tucking in his shirt as he headed for the kitchens. He’d get something to eat and ask the cooks to prepare something for the guards watching Evelyn. He grumbled. He should probably get something for the little princess, too.

  “Braeden!” a woman shouted.

  He twisted and glared up the hallway, nerves on fire. Twin ran to meet him, lifting her skirt as she hurried.

  “Twin, is everything okay? What’s wrong?”

  “Everything’s fine. Sorry if I scared you. Kara’s back with the Bloods. She even brought their generals and Garrett.”

  Braeden huffed. “I need food.”

  She paused, but her face relaxed into a smile. Her eyebrows curved a little, and she patted him on the back.

  “I’ll bring you all food,” she said.

  “Thank you.”

  “Stay strong, Braeden. You’re Kara’s rock right now.”

  His heart melted, and his shoulders relaxed.

  “Thank you,” he repeated.

  She gestured back the way she’d come. “Go on.”

  “Please prepare some food for the soldiers, too. They’ve been watching Evelyn all night.”

  “I will. Now go.”

  He nodded and made off in the direction she pointed. As he walked, he shifted. His body hummed, and the gray skin faded to olive. He shrank, muscles tightening as he returned to the Hillsidian form he’d once thought of as his true body. He no longer knew which he preferred, but tensions would be high without the added stressor of a Stelian in the room. He could swallow his pride and shift form long enough to debate Evelyn’s future.

  His body ached. His head weighed on his neck, begging to return to his pillow. But he soldiered on, ready to end what he’d started.

  Chapter 28

  Deliberation

  Braeden opened the war room door to find a full house of assembled yakona. Evelyn still brooded in her chair at the far end, while Gavin sat in the seat Braeden had occupied earlier. Kara leaned one shoulder against the wall, head turned toward the captured queen. Little pulses of green glittered beneath her skin, darting along her veins. Her arms crossed in front of her body, but Braeden could imagine the scars on her right wrist from the long-gone wrist band. Garrett leaned against the window across from her, eyes on the window behind Evelyn’s head.

  Only Frine acknowledged him when he entered—everyone else stared either at Evelyn or at the floor. Aurora and Gurien sat in the chairs near Kara, while Frine and a Lossian Braeden recognized from past war meetings sat in the chairs opposite them. Richard and the Hillsidian general Mino filled the seats to Gavin’s right. Quite a few places remained empty, but no one else needed to join them.

  “Did you secure Ayavel?” Braeden asked the Lossian Blood.

  Frine nodded. “We found a rogue isen army attacking Ayavel. After—”

  “Deidre’s army,” Kara interrupted without a sideways glance.

  Frine paused, eyeing her, but eventually continued. “After we overwhelmed the isen—quite a feat, mind you—the Ayavelian defense surrendered. I believe they were rather confused as to who they could trust. Much of the city is burned.”

  Evelyn whimpered.

  “She betrayed you, Evelyn, just as Carden would have,” Kara said.

  The Ayavelian queen kept her eyes on the floor.

  Braeden turned instead to the soldiers. “You may go. There’s food waiting for you in the kitchen.”

  They nodded and left without a word. After a few moments of shuffling, the door clicked shut behind them. Silence settled across the long war table.

  “I’m fairly hungry, myself,” Frine said.

  Braeden nodded. “Me, too. Twin’s bringing a platter or two for us.”

  No one answered. The room settled into silence once more. Wind rushed against the glass. The walls creaked. Timber bent in the gust.

  Braeden set a hand on Kara’s shoulder. She reached back and wrapped her fingers around his. She squeezed once, gently, and held him without a look backward. Her eyes remained on Evelyn, who continued to stare at the floor.

  “Stay calm,” he whispered.

  She squeezed his hand again in confirmation.

  The door swung open, and Twin entered with a silver platter. Bunches of grapes, cheeses, and breads lined half of the tray, while slices of ham, bacon, and seasoned chicken filled the other half. “Food’s here.”

  Braeden’s stomach growled on cue. Twin set the platter on the table, and hands reached for it within seconds. Braeden grabbed a chunk of bread and a handful of bacon before returning to the wall with Kara. She hadn’t moved. He offered her the bread, and she accepted. It sat in her hand, uneaten, as she stared at the Ayavelian Blood.

  “You need to eat,” he said between mouthfuls of bacon.

  She bit off a hunk of the bread and chewed in answer.

  Only Gavin and Evelyn remained in their seats, neither looking up from the floor. Braeden sighed—he couldn’t be hateful and eat while his prisoner watched. He picked up a slice of ham and a handful of grapes and walked to Evelyn’s side. Her eyebrows lifted as he neared, and her head followed. He raised the food in offering and set it in front of her. She resumed staring at the floor, but as he returned to Kara’s side, he caught the young queen reach for the meat.

  “I’m afraid we can’t avoid this any longer,” Frine said.

  Aurora leaned back in her chair. “What to do with our young Blood Evelyn?”

  “I’m your age,” Evelyn snapped.

  “Humph,” Aurora muttered.

  Braeden grabbed a bit of cheese from the half-full platter, his stomach still rumbling. “I know this isn’t easy. As with any decision we make, we must be absolutely clear on the consequences. What we decide tonight will have a lasting effect on Ourea, good or bad.”

  “It will have a lasting effect on yakona. Ourea will live on,” Garrett corrected.

  Every pair of eyes turned toward the muse. He focused the heat of his gaze on Braeden, and Braeden suppressed the desire to look away. He cleared his throat.

  “Very well,” he said.

  “To begin, does anyone have any suggestions?” Aurora asked.

  “Occupation of Ayavel and imprisonment of its Blood,” Frine answered.

  “That’s a lovely way to start a riot,” Aurora retorted.

  “Without a Blood to lead them, they won’t be much of a threat.”

  Braeden frowned. “Instead, they will grow resentful and learn to hate us in the same way Stelians hated all of you.”

  Frine groaned in defeat. “What should we do?”

  “I think we should get the whole story,” Kara said, her eyes still on the queen.

  The room hushed. Chairs creaked as royals and generals turned toward the Vagabond, but she said nothing else.

  “I agree,” Frine said after a pause.

  “Blood Evelyn?” Aurora prompted.

  Evelyn glanced upward, her eyes shifting across those in the room. She hesitated when she reached Garrett. “He has to go.”

  “You have no bargaining power here,”
Kara snapped.

  Evelyn flinched at her tone. Braeden rubbed his hands along Kara’s arms and redirected a healing technique into her body in the hopes it would help her stay calm. He’d used it once on her when they first met—a quick spell to get her to sleep. He doubted it would have such a strong effect on her now, but he hoped it would at least relax her shoulders. Her arms eased into his hands, and she leaned back into his chest. He let out a quiet breath of relief.

  Evelyn’s lips parted. She hesitated, but ultimately continued. “I won’t be in the same room as a drenowith.”

  Gavin smacked his fist on the table. The wooden planks rattled, barely contained in their nails. Kara flinched. Aurora gasped, and Evelyn jumped back in her seat. Twin and Richard both covered their gaping mouths. All eyes shot to Gavin.

  Braeden held Kara a little tighter and resisted the impulse to kiss her on the back of the head for comfort. She didn’t need those sudden movements. He marveled that she could contain herself at all. The first Vagabond must have been doing wonders in helping her remain calm.

  The Hillsidian Blood glared at Evelyn, looking at her for the first time since Braeden entered the room. “You violated our trust, betrayed us when we needed you most, and attacked my home. You will answer whatever question we ask.”

  Evelyn lifted her chin, but her eyebrows betrayed her. They curved upward like they always did when she cried. She had to be on the brink of tears. “You all are lost.”

  Braeden frowned. She’d said that in the woods, too.

  “What does that mean?” Frine asked.

  Her lips trembled, but she continued. “The drenowith control you, now. They own the Vagabond, and the Vagabond owns you.”

  Evelyn glared at Kara. Braeden’s grip tightened around Kara’s upper arms, but she didn’t move. She didn’t reply. He wished he could see her face, but for whatever reason, part of him knew it was best he couldn’t.