Page 228 of A Kingdom of Wild and Power
‘The king has proclaimed you the victor,’ she said after a moment. ‘You have been exonerated. As a token of his gratitude, his son, Zaydan, will travel with us.’
‘His son?’ Alina echoed.
Mareena nodded. ‘Isla and Arena will come with us as well.’
Alina hesitated. ‘But the king won’t give me an army?’
Mareena paused, the bandages held loosely in her hands.
‘No,’ she said quietly. ‘He will not. Not for now. He has sent his son to inform him if the menace is real. If it is, they will back us up.’
‘It will be too late by then.’
‘It will.’
Alina gave a slow nod and turned to look at the opposite wall.
Fine.
She had come this far without an army. She did not need one now.
Her purpose was simple.
She would find Hagan.
And she would kill him.
Everything else… did not truly matter.
‘Before Saren… or whoever she truly was, died…’ Alina cleared her throat, the words catching awkwardly. ‘She said something about Isla and Arena.’
Mareena had risen to tidy the room, gathering bowls and cloths with quiet efficiency. But at Alina’s words she stilled, turning back towards the bed.
‘What did she say?’
‘That they aren’t…’ Alina hesitated, searching for the right words. ‘That they aren’t Dunayans. That they are messengers of the Sun God. That their names are Razia and Gabriela.’ She gave a short snort. ‘And she said the Sun God gave my mother his blood. That there’s divine blood in me, that’s why I didn’t die when I fell from the mountain.’
The absurdity of it struck her all at once.
Alina chuckled under her breath. ‘It’s ridiculous.’
But the laughter faded the moment she noticed Mareena’s expression.
‘You cannot possibly believe that,’ Alina said. ‘Why would the Sun God give my mother his blood? For what purpose?’
‘I am not entirely sure,’ Mareena admitted slowly. ‘But I believe Isla and Arena will have some explaining to do.’ Her voice softened slightly. ‘For now, do not trouble yourself with such things. You must rest.’
Alina sighed, leaning back against the pillows.
‘Has Kai told you how long until I can start training again?’ she asked once more. More than anything she wished to resume her lessons with Dawn—those brutal attempts to learn how to counter blood magic. She had not succeeded once. Every attempt had ended the same way: Alina collapsing into darkness while Dawn dragged her back to consciousness.
‘Rest,’ Mareena repeated firmly.
There was no arguing with that tone.
Alina watched as the phoenixian princess finished gathering the things in the room and quietly left.
The door closed behind her with a soft click.
