Page 13 of War Queen
Norah gave her maid a yielding smile and reluctantly gave up the quilt. She took the parchment and walked to the fireplace. Lighting the corner, she watched the flame eat her words until she could no longer hold on to it. Then she released it into the fire, willing the Aether to carry her words to Alexander. Or at least to Samuel, the Mercian seer who could paint them for him.
That wasn’t how it worked, she told herself. Still, she wished it all the same.
Washed and dressed, Norah stepped out into the hall. Bhastian picked up behind her but gave her space. He was vigilant under the new threat of the blood-bird assassin.
The chill in the air reminded her that the last of summer was fading—gone too soon, just like everything else. The days came long and endless, but the months were gone in an instant.
Suddenly, Norah found herself at Soren’s chamber door. She hadn’t been paying attention to where she was walking in her blind thoughts.
She pushed it open.
After Soren had left, she’d put the room back together herself. She had set the furniture back in place, swept up the broken glass, and had the mirrors replaced. Clean linens covered the bed. It was ready for his return, whenever he decided to return.Ifhe ever decided to return. The worrisome thought tried to snake its way into her mind, but she pushed it back. Sorenwouldreturn. He wouldn’t abandon them.
Norah imagined him sitting inside, angry at her disturbance. And she smiled. She came here a lot. Her best thinking, calm thinking, seemed to come here.
She let herself fall backward onto the bed, and she stared up at the ceiling as her mind took over. She worried for Mikael—not whether he could stay strong in the face of mounting threats, but for his heart and his happiness. Soren’s leaving crushed him. It wasn’t that Mikael needed his presence. He’d managed quite well without him when Norah had taken the commander to Mercia. But Mikael felt abandoned now, betrayed by the one closest to him, and it was eroding his spirit. She couldn’t talk to him about it. She couldn’t talk to anyone.
Norah missed Vitalia. She’d been a true friend and deserved so much more than what fate had given her. What had been done with her body? She didn’t even know what Vitalia believed. Would she have wanted to be buried, as they did in Kharav? Or be sent by fire to the next life? Did Vitalia even believe in the next life? Norah cursed herself—how did she not know? Not that it would have changed anything, but she should know. Vitalia was her friend. Her eyes welled.
Her mind turned to Catherine. Had they killed her too? Surely not. The council had the authority to strip her of the regency, unlike with Norah and the crown. They wouldn’t have needed to kill her grandmother, but that alone didn’t ensure her safety. Catherine wouldn’t have gone quietly, and she wasn’t sure how much patience the council would have with her. Norah’s stomach twisted.
And Alexander. What had her letter done to him? She tried to push it from her mind—it was breaking her.
The door of the chamber opened, and her heart nearly leapt out of her chest as she bolted upright. Then Norah let out a sigh of relief as she recognized Adrian. “Hammel’s hell,” she said breathlessly. “You scared me.”
“I saw Bhastian and knew you must be in here.”
She had forgotten about Bhastian. He must think it strange she’d be in Soren’s room. She frowned.
Adrian looked around the room. “Whatareyou doing in here?”
Heat rose in her cheeks. “I just come here to think sometimes,” she confessed.
He eyed her skeptically. “Does it help?”
She paused for a moment, and shrugged. Then she let herself fall back on the bed again and reached over and patted the space beside her. She felt his hesitancy but smiled as his weight fell beside her, shaking the frame of the bed. They lay quietly, looking up at the ceiling.
“Mikael thinks I’ve put Alexander in danger by writing Phillip, by asking about his welfare.” She turned her head to face him. “I fear he’s right. I’ve shown he’s important to me.”
“Of course your lord justice would be important to you. It doesn’t take a letter to know that.” He turned his head toward her and met her eyes. “You don’t need to worry about Alec. They won’t kill him. They can’t.” He smiled. “Better men have tried and failed.”
She wished she had his optimism. Perhaps they wouldn’t kill him, but there were things worse than death.No—she couldn’t think like that. Adrian was right. Alexander was no stranger to peril. And better menhadstood against him—Mikael. And Soren. She gave a small laugh.
Adrian’s brow creased. “What?”
“Sorenreallytried.”
He smiled. “I know. But Alec holds the gods’ favor. If the lord commander can’t kill him, no one can.”
Gods, she loved him for saying that, and for settling the gnawing worry in her stomach. She felt herself favored by the gods to have a friend like Adrian. He was the only one she could truly talk to now.
“What if Soren doesn’t return?” she whispered. “I’m scared, Adrian. I can’t lose him too.”
“You won’t,” he promised. He rocked up to sit, then rose from the bed. “I have to go. Katya will be expecting me.” Since Soren’s departure, Katya had stepped in to fill a lot of his responsibilities, including monitoring the development of the earlies, the men in training for the Crest.
Norah sat up and raised a brow. “Don’t keep her waiting, then.”
He turned but stopped. “Oh, and, uh, I’d appreciate if you didn’t tell the lord commander I was on his bed. When he does come back. Because he will.”
