Page 80 of Reign of the Talon
Haneul’s eyes narrow further, as if he knows exactly what I am thinking.
I smile unpleasantly.
Iseul and I leave the stables, making our way back to the palace through the gardens. “Tell me,” I say, “what information have you brought back? What strategies does the opposing army employ?”
There’s a beat of silence before Iseul shakes her head. “Not much, I’m afraid. What about your informant? That one of Bomin’s?” She snaps her fingers, thinking. “Did we ever obtain his name?”
“General Lee Yongmin,” I supply. When Bomin was alive, he guarded the general’s identity closely, even from me. I did not mind, as long as the information was steady and reliable. Since Bang Bomin’s death, I have corresponded with the general, demanding his name. Too frightened to refuse, he gave it. Now he is held to his bargain with Bomin, despite the halji-dealer’s death. “His information is valuable, but he only knows so much. I do not know what the gods plan. Tell me, Iseul, have you heard anything?”
She shakes her head. “Truthfully, Lina, I didn’t even know the emperor was here. Intelligence was rather expertly contained.”
Displeased, I clench my jaw. “It was foolish of you to be captured in the first place,” I say icily, watching the Gumiho out of the corner of my eye. “I saw what happened. Distracted by that worthless, human boy on the battlefield of Seocheonkkotbat. I warn you, Song Iseul, the next time you display such foolishness, I will not be so lenient. Nor will I come for you again.”
Iseul seems to be gritting her own teeth. “I understand,” she says.
“Rid your heart of these worthless feelings for this worthless boy. They have inconvenienced me greatly.”
“I will keep that in mind,” Iseul easily replies, like the good soldier she is. “Now, may I be excused, Your MostExcellentMajesty? I’d rather like to hunt down a nice hanbok for myself, and perhaps even a nice bath.”
With an indolent gesture, I wave her off. She does smell in need of a wash.
CHAPTER FORTY-EIGHT
The Prisoner
The Dalgyal Gwisin has not shown itself since it scuttled into the icy woods. I know better than to be relieved. Yego is planning…something, and I must tread carefully. As I climb the final stairs to the next level, keys warm against my chest, I keep my grip on Rui’s firesword tight and sure, tossing a wary look over my shoulders into the shadows coating the stone in darkness. Yet there is nothing—no chattering of teeth, no glint of a wet, dripping maw—that meets my eyes. A feeling of unsettlement curls up in my stomach like a sleeping snake that will strike at a moment’s notice.
Is it possible that Yego wentaheadof me? That now it lurks in one of the higher levels, lying in wait, ready to take me by surprise? I try to ignore the faint, and ominous, throbbing of my bandaged head wound as the staircase ends, and I step into a bedroom from times long past. The décor, the soft cream blankets of the bed, the lace curtains and other furniture imported from the Northern Continent, the smell of honey scented oils… I know who this room belongs to.
Chara and Chryse wait for me, perched on a light pink love seat. Their eyes widen as their green eyes land upon me, and they stand in lithe, graceful movements.
“Lina,” they chorus.
Chara. Chryse… Are you real?Is it reallythem? This is not a memory like the scene in the gardens… It is something else, but I know not what.
Chara smiles mischievously. “That’s the question, isn’t it? I mean, for all you know, we might just be yourideasof us.”
“Oh, Chara, don’t torment her,” Chryse chimes in before giving me an apologetic wink. “We’re here, aren’t we?”
I swallow hard, blinking back tears, and Chara rolls her eyes, but she looks sad. “Oh, Lina, none of that. We never blamed you. You should know that by now.”
“Yet she doesn’t,” Chryse whispers. “Even now, after all this time, she doesn’t believe it. Not deep down, not really.”
“I suppose there’s one way to take care of that.” Chara stands, expression determined. “Lina, we never blamed you. It wasn’t your fault. There,” she says, hands on hips. “Now, if that doesn’t satisfy you, I don’t know what will. Fight back those tears, Lina. We have work to do.”
Chryse rises from her seat as well, striding to the corner of their lavish room, where a large gilded mirror stands on a wheeled platform.
I don’t understand, I sign nervously as the mirror approaches me, and I avert my gaze from my reflection.What is this for?
“It’s for you, honey,” Chara says gently. Her fingers nudge the underneath of my chin and tilt my gaze up so I stare at her, at her long-lashed green eyes and perfect, pert nose. The nose I always wished I had. “All of us, I think, had complicated relationships with our bodies.”
I can’t stop my lips from parting in surprise, and Chryse sighs. “Our entire function in the Talons was to be desirable,” she says, joining her sister’s side. “To be the epitome of lust. It’s what kept us alive and useful to Yoonho. Without our looks, we would have had nothing.”
“But we would have had everything,” Chara whispers.
A slow trickle of dread pools in my stomach.
“We kept it from you,” Chryse explains, remorse flitting across her face. “Things…happened during our assignments that we never shared with anybody but Yoonho, who made sure that they paid in blood and pain. We understand the pain of existing in a skin that feels like it doesn’t belong to you anymore. Like it’s…tainted.”
