Page 107 of North Queen
He let go of her arm, but still clasped her wrist. She could feel the stickiness of blood as she clutched the shard of glass in her fist.
“Do you find me unbearable?” he asked.
“I find this entire situation unbearable,” she said coldly.
He brushed her closed fingers gently, and she found herself opening her hand, yielding her weapon. He carefully pulled the blood-covered glass from her palm and tossed it away from them.
“Perhaps you regret not leaving me to the Horseman’s poison.”
Frustration coursed through her. “Why would you say something like that? Why can’t you believe I don’t want you dead?”
“Because all my enemies want me dead, especially the North.”
“I’m not your enemy!”
His nostrils flared. “You were on your way to build an alliance with Aleon. For power, for their army—”
“For food!” she cried. “You want to know what makes Aleon worthy? What I need? It’s food! My people will starve without provisions for the winter!”
Mikael shifted in surprise, and then his face softened. She turned away to hide her emotion.
“And yes,” she continued, “Aleon brings the strength of unity—arms, soldiers, protection against a threatening kingdom, specificallyyou. I won’t pretend I don’t want that strength, because I do. I know the stories. I’ve seen the destruction you’ve caused. I want Mercia to stand tall against any foe.” She paused, and her voice came softer now. “But that doesn’t mean I want a foe to stand against. I want to protect my people. That’s why I accepted the marriage.”
The air settled between them.
“But you don’t want to marry the Aleon king,” he said.
She gave a defeated shrug. “What does it matter?”
“It matters if you would want to take my throne.”
Norah let out an exasperated breath.“I don’t want your throne!”
“Asmyqueen,” he added.
Her head jerked up, and her eyes widened. “What?” she breathed.
“You want to save your people. You want to avoid war between our kingdoms.”
Norah shook her head. “I don’t understand.”
“What don’t you understand? You’re betrothed to the Aleon king. I offer my own hand instead.”
“Why would you do that?”
He shrugged. “I break your alliance with Aleon. There is no war; I change fate.”
Change fate.How much did he know of his fate?
“Not only do I double my army,” he added, “but I gain the best archers in the world, access to Mercian steel, and a renowned fleet of ships. Kharav becomes a force even Aleon won’t challenge. And”—his voice came softer—“I wed a queen worthy in her own right. You’d be my salara.”
Norah felt light-headed. She wasn’t sure if she was hearing him correctly. “Why would I marry you?”
“So long as you align yourself with an enemy of Kharav, you’ll also be an enemy. You want to avoid a war? OnlyIcan give that to you. And…” he paused, waiting for her to look up at him, “you’ll still have whatever you require for the North—food, provisions, horses. My army, should you need it.”
“All this just so I won’t wed King Phillip? Why not just kill me to save yourself the trouble?”
He stepped closer. “Because I don’t want you dead either, North Queen.”
