Winter of Ice and Iron
Page 59
Innisth drew in a slow breath and let it out. Then he turned to study Tirovay arrin Elin Raëhema. At last he came back to where the younger man stood. Then he knelt. Offering the young king his hands, he said grimly, “Take Eänetaìsarè, then. If you can.”
A warm, singing tension filled the room: Raëhemaiëth was rising.
Sharp-edged, ferocious, heavy with power, the Power of Eäneté rose in answer, filling the small room with a presence that seemed far too great for it to hold. And met Raëhemaiëth and all the gathered Immanences behind it.
Innisth flinched, despite all he could do, and for an instant he would have broken the young king’s grip if it had been possible. But Tirovay did not let go, and the moment passed. Raëhemaiëth slid around and through Eänetaìsarè, and when the king reached through his Great Immanent and took a ruling tie to Eänetaìsarè, still the Eänetén Power did not fight him. Only a little. A very little. Enough to show it could have fought much harder.
Innisth let out a breath he had not known he held. Then he said, “You have it. You hold it. Very well. May the Fortunate Gods have mercy on you if you do not keep faith, for assuredly I will not forgive it.”
“But I shall keep faith,” Tirovay answered. “As will you. Innisth terè Maèr Eänetaì, I will cherish your honor as my own and hold your lands in high trust.”
Innisth lifted his yellow eyes to meet Tirovay Raëhema’s darker, more human gaze. Then, because he would have demanded it in the king’s place, and so required it of himself, he bowed his head. He said with strict deliberation, “My lord.”
The king released his hands. “You have a great deal to do, Duke of Eäneté and Pohorir. Put your country in order. Bring the other Immanences under your rule, and all their lands, and turn them back onto the kinder path they should have taken all along.”
“My lord,” Innisth acknowledged distantly. He stood up.
“There are still pockets of Pohorins, I am told, in the Kosiran mountains and the northern Emmeran desert, and all along the coast. Living men, who did not die with the Irekay Power, but have not dared make their way home again. Or who now have no homes to which they might go.”
“I understand. I shall see to them.”
“Thank you.” Tirovay Raëhema paused for an instant and then added, “Kosir was struck the hardest, and Pohorir by far the least affected, by the war your country forced on us all. There will be starvation in Kosir before the end of the Wolf Month.”
Innisth met his eyes, faint amusement struggling to be born through offended pride. “I shall see to it, then. My lord.”
“Good. Thank you.”
“Is there anything else that you will have me do?”
The young king’s eyes touched for an instant on Kehera’s face and just as quickly flicked away. “No. Nothing else. Your people have mostly departed Harivir, but some few have been quartered in the city—Kehera can show you where. I’m sure they’ll be glad to see you.”
“I think perhaps they will,” Innisth Eänetaì answered. He offered his arm to Kehera. She came forward with a grave expression and a light step, set her hand on his arm, gave her brother a brilliant smile, and allowed Innisth to lead her out of the room and into the unfurling future that lay before them both.
Or perhaps it was Kehera who guided him, with the forceful determination she had gained from Eänetaìsarè joined to the quiet surety that had always been hers. On reflection, Innisth thought that more likely.
About the Author
RACHEL NEUMEIER is the author of several critically acclaimed novels, including The Mountain of Kept Memory, The City in the Lake, and House of Shadows. She now raises and shows dogs, gardens, cooks, and occasionally finds time to read. She works part-time for a tutoring program, though she tutors far more students in math and chemistry than in English composition. Visit her online at rachelneumeier.com.
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The Mountain of Kept Memory
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This book is a work of fiction. Any references to historical events, real people, or real places are used fictitiously. Other names, characters, places, and events are products of the author’s imagination, and any resemblance to actual events or places or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental. • Text copyright © 2017 by Rachel Neumeier • Jacket illustration copyright © 2017 by Marc Simonetti • Map copyright © 2017 by Robert Lazzaretti • All rights reserved, including the right to reproduce this book or portions thereof in any form whatsoever. For information address Saga Press Subsidiary Rights Department, 1230 Avenue of the Americas, New York, NY 10020 • www.SimonandSchuster.com • SAGA PRESS and colophon are trademarks of Simon & Schuster, Inc. • For information about special discounts for bulk purchases, please contact Simon & Schuster Special Sales at 1-866-506-1949 or business@simonandschuster.com. • The Simon & Schuster Speakers Bureau can bring authors to your live event. For more information or to book an event, contact the Simon & Schuster Speakers Bureau at 1-866-248-3049 or visit our website at www.simonspeakers.com. • Also available in an Saga Press paperback edition • Jacket design by Sonia Chaghatzbanian; interior design by Sonia Chaghatzbanian and Irene Metaxatos • The text for this book was set in Sabon LT Std. • Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data • Names: Neumeier, Rachel, author. Title: Winter of ice and iron / Rachel Neumeier. • Description: First edition. | New York : Saga Press, [2017] • Identifiers: LCCN 2017002583| ISBN 9781481448970 (hardcover) | ISBN 9781481448987 (paperback) | ISBN 9781481448994 (eBook) • Subjects: | GSAFD: Fantasy fiction. • Classification: LCC PS3614.E553 W56 2017 | DDC 813/.6—dc23 • LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2017002583