The Crown of Embers

Chapter 30

WE spend the next week repairing the ship and gathering foodstuffs. We make a rack of mangrove roots and set it in the sun to dry fish. A pile of coconuts becomes a mountain as we forage. I’ve always been handy with a needle, so I volunteer to repair a rip in one of the smaller sails. All the while, we are surrounded by the sounds of ax and mallet.

Hector is unfailingly polite to me, but I miss the way his warm gaze used to linger on my face, the way his lips would quirk when I said something that amused him. We renew our lessons in self-defense, carving out a space on the beach to work. He demonstrates the places on the human body that are most subject to pain. He shows me how to use my own body weight to throw an opponent to the ground. He explains how to shove a man’s nose into his brain with the base of my palm to kill him instantly and has me practice the motion on an unlucky coconut.

He does all this while managing to never touch me.

And though he says nothing, I’m certain he has decided to leave my service and go home to Ventierra. There’s a desperate focus to his teaching, as if he’s shoring me up with as much knowledge as possible before we part ways.

I dread leaving this place, for it means returning to all the problems I left behind, problems that have inevitably worsened. Our ruse has certainly been discovered by now. I hope decoy Elisa has survived and that Ximena is well. I worry for Rosario and his safety. And I cannot doubt that Conde Eduardo has maneuvered in my absence, that he has found a way to turn the situation to his advantage.

Too soon, Captain Felix declares us prepped and ready, and we weigh anchor and set sail for our rendezvous point in Selvarica. I stand on the quarterdeck, the wind whipping hair into my eyes, watching the island grow small. From this vantage, I can see that one of the mountains is shorter now, with a jagged peak, its zenith a crumbling ruin in the valley I destroyed.

During the voyage, we try to remove the manacles from Storm’s ankles. But the blacksmith cannot forge them open, the cooper cannot pry them open, and though I can make them glow warmly, I cannot force them open by magic. Storm grumbles at our efforts and finally snaps at us to leave well enough alone. “To all my other failures, I must add my failure as gatekeeper to the zafira.” He sighs dramatically.

“I don’t believe you mind so much,” I point out.

He cracks a rare grin. “Truly, I do not.” He pulls himself up to full height. “In fact, I will wear these chains proudly. However, I require salve and a bit of cloth to use as cushioning around my ankles. Silk, of course.”

“I think it’s an improvement,” I tell him. “I’ll never again worry about you sneaking up on me.”

“I hate you.”

I reach up to squeeze his shoulder. “I know.”

The wind holds, and it takes less than two weeks to make port in Selvarica. The land is as Tristán described it: lush and green and gorgeous, not unlike the island we come from.

As soon as we dock, we are greeted by a large complement of solemn-looking soldiers in full armor.

“What’s going on?” I demand.

“Conde Tristán sent us to escort you, Your Majesty,” says one. “This way, please. Quickly.”

Hector and Belén flank me as we hurry down the dock. Mara and Storm, who is cowled once again, follow behind, and Storm’s clattering steps cause dockworkers and fishermen to pause and stare. We reach a waiting carriage, and a soldier assures us our belongings will be collected and sent to us. Then he smacks the horse’s flank and waves the driver off.

A group of soldiers jogs alongside as we travel up a steep drive. I peer out the window and notice fortifications along the road. Temporary walls with arrow slits. A blockade on the side that could be moved quickly to block traffic.

“Tristán is preparing for war,” I say to no one in particular, and my heart thuds. I thought I was done with war. Forever done.

“I see Conde Eduardo’s colors too,” Hector says in a grave voice. “Tristán may no longer be in command of his own garrison.”

We reach a carriage house, where we are quickly unloaded and ushered through a servants’ wing, across an inner courtyard with marble fountains and tiled pathways and hanging plants, and into a long dining hall with an enormous low table, much like the one in my own council chamber where the Quorum meets.

A handful of people already sit on cushions around the table, and they look up when we enter. I am so very glad to see Tristán, Iladro, a few of my own Royal Guard, and . . . my eyes sweep the room looking for her. There! Ximena leaps to her feet and barrels toward me, arms outstretched for an embrace. I fall into the hug easily and gratefully.

She pushes me back to arm’s length, and her eyes are wet with tears when she says, “I’m so glad you’re safe and well, my sky.”

A puckered redness slashes across her cheekbone—a clumsily stitched wound that will leave a large scar. I point to my own cheek. “Ximena, what happened?”

“Later.” She guides me by the shoulders toward the table.

“And the girl?”

“Dead.” She sighs. “I’m sorry.”

I swallow hard against the sudden knot in my throat. Another innocent person added to my wake of bodies. I’m torn between writhing guilt, and gladness that Ximena survived.

Hector and his men greet one another in a fierce demonstration of backslapping. Then Hector and Tristán clasp forearms while Mara and Ximena embrace. Finally we all settle onto our cushions.

I lean forward, elbows on the table. “Tell me at once what is going on.”

Tristán rubs wearily at his temples. “Franco came after the girl,” he says. “It happened very publicly, with an arrow to the neck. We had no choice but to reveal that she was not you, that the queen still lived. As planned, Father Alentín began circulating the rumor among the priests that you were on a mission from God himself.”

“And Franco?” I ask.

“Disappeared.”

“Was he working alone or on Eduardo’s orders?”

“We don’t know.

Ximena says, “Conde Eduardo came south not long after we left Brisadulce. He began asking, in the politest way possible, of course, if you had abandoned Joya d’Arena. He claimed distress over your choice to pretend to court a southern lord, only to disappear. Without ever saying it straight out, he convinced a lot of people that the south had been dealt an insulting blow.”

All the decisions of the last few months are like a millstone about my neck. I don’t need them to explain the rest, because it all clicks together in my head until I am sick with it.

“The southern holdings were already in tumult,” I say. “They blame the arid north for draining the country’s resources. There has been talk of seceding, like the eastern holdings did.”

“Yes,” Tristán says.

“Eduardo wants a civil war.” I hide my hands under the table so no one can see how much they tremble. “He wants to be king of his own nation. It’s what he wanted all along. He tried to have me killed. When that didn’t work, he did everything he could to weaken me, especially in the eyes of the southern holdings. That’s why he was so set on me marrying a northern lord—to keep my southern alliances thin. That’s why General Luz-Manuel had Martín executed—to weaken and dispirit my guard. The two of them must be working together.” My heart pounds with certainty and dismay. “The general is the one who has ordered these fortifications, yes?”

The ensuing silence is heavy and thick.

I whisper, “What about Rosario? Is he all right?”

“We don’t know, Your Majesty,” Tristán says.

I’ll never forgive myself if something happens to the boy.

“Captain Lucio will have gotten him to safety,” Hector says. “At the first sign of trouble.”

Even as I meet his gaze and nod my thanks, I pray to God that he is right.

“So, Your Majesty, what do we do?” Tristán asks.

This is it, then. The moment I must think like the girl who led a desert rebellion and won a war for her husband. Like a queen.

I rise to my feet and begin pacing, worrying at my thumbnail with my teeth. I need allies. Resources. I must turn sentiment in my favor, at least long enough to stall the conde’s inciting efforts, long enough to prepare my own fortifications.

My pacing quickens. The first thing I’ll do is announce Conde Tristán’s nomination to the Quorum. Maybe it will bury the “insult” a little, bely Eduardo’s claim that I have abandoned the south. But that will only go so far.

Then what, Elisa? You need a demonstration of your commitment to the south. Something permanent. You need . . .

My head whips up.

I need . . .

I almost choke on grief and gladness and terror as my gaze snaps to Hector’s.

I need to marry Hector.

Inheritor of a southern holding much more powerful than Tristán’s. A war hero. The best leader I know. Before, marrying him would have been foolish, for he was already my staunchest supporter. But now that my kingdom is about to split apart, a very public alliance with him could be the thing that holds it together.

“Elisa?” he says softly. “What is it?”

I stare at him, at his precious face. I love his dark eyes, the way his hair curls slightly around his ears, his strong jaw, his beautiful lips. I know exactly what those lips feel like against mine.

I could ask him. Right now. But he might say no. Or I could command, and he would obey, but he would never forgive me.

But maybe, just maybe, I will ask and he will say yes.

How, exactly, does a queen propose? Is there an etiquette to observe? A document to sign? I look around the room in panic. Everyone gazes back, puzzled.

I hear shouting. Stomping footsteps, the ring of steel on steel.

Soldiers pour into the dining hall from all three entrances. They are dressed in the crimson and gold of Conde Eduardo’s countship.

Everyone at the table shoots to their feet, drawing their weapons, even as a strong arm wraps around my shoulders and the cold point of a dagger presses against my throat.

Eduardo’s soldiers ring the room. We are outnumbered three to one.

“Drop your weapons,” says a sibilant voice in my ear.

Hector looks to me for instruction, and more than the arm holding me captive, more even than the dagger at my throat, the desperation in his face sends terror shooting through me. Never have I seen him so frightened and helpless.

If they defend me, we will all die. But if the assassin kills me without a fight, maybe he’ll let them live. “Do what he says,” I say calmly. “Lower your weapons.”

They do, reluctantly, plunking them onto the dining table.

Without turning to face my captor, I say, “Hello, Franco.”

“Well met, Your Majesty,” he says with equal calm. “You have given me an enjoyable and challenging chase. Thank you for that.”

“How did you find me?”

“We followed the old lady.” Ximena’s mouth drops open. “We knew you’d rendezvous eventually.”

“Are you going to kill me, then?” I ask, preparing to send my heel into his instep, the way Hector taught me.

“Possibly not.” He steps back and lets me go.

I turn to face him. Up close, I don’t know why no one saw him for an Invierno. He is too tall, too preternaturally beautiful, to be anything else. His slicked-back hair is a shade or two lighter at the roots, and his eyes are a startling gold—a rare color among Joyans.

But maybe that’s why we never met, why he conveniently absented himself when I summoned him. Because more than anyone, I was likely to recognize an Invierno among us.

“Then what do you want?” I ask, even as I pray silently, drawing power through the earth, into the Godstone. It comes slowly, a mere trickle, but it comes.

“Don’t you dare,” says Franco. “If you try to work the magic of your stone, I’ll kill every single person in this room.”

And just like that, the power dribbles away, leaving me empty and hollow.

“Better. Now, if you want your people to live, you must come with me.”

“Come where?”

“Invierne, of course. As a willing sacrifice. It is very important that you come willingly, in accordance with God’s will. Failing that, my secondary objective has always been to kill you, which I did attempt, but you have proved wily.”

I don’t understand what my willingness has to do with anything, though I can’t help but note the eerie similarity to Leaf’s words about the gatekeeper. A living sacrifice. I’ll have to think about it later.

“You’ve been pulling the strings the whole time, haven’t you?” I ask. “Invierne meant to weaken me with a very public martyr and set the stage for a civil war. You want us to tear ourselves apart so you don’t have to.”

His edged grin gives me shivers. “We did say we would come at you like a ghost in a dream.”

“Does Eduardo know you’re an Invierne spy? Does he know he’s being manipulated?”

He shrugs. “He knows. But his ambition allows it. I have promised to rid him of you, another weak ruler in a long line of them. The rank fool thinks he betrays you in service to his country. So, Your Majesty, will you come?”

Ximena rises to her feet. Swords ring her neck instantly, but she puts her hands out, palms up, to show that she means no harm. “I have a better idea,” she says.

“Ximena? What are you—”

“The queen still has supporters. If you take her now, Joya d’Arena will rise up against Invierne. So take him instead,” she says, pointing to Hector. “If you let everyone go and take him, she will follow. Willingly. She loves him.”

I stare at my nurse, shocked and sick. What is she doing? What is she thinking?

“Is it true, little queen?” Franco asks eagerly. “Do you love that man? Such a thing would be even more pleasing to God—for you to follow, intending to give yourself up for him. No one has greater love than he who gives his own life.”

I hate Franco for quoting that verse, the one I used to heal Hector. Swords ring Hector’s neck now. His eyes on mine are steady but dark with fear—for me, not himself. He nods once, almost imperceptibly. He wants me to say yes. He hopes they’ll take him away, leaving me alone and safe. Don’t ever give your life for mine, he once told me.

Without breaking his gaze, I whisper, “Yes. I love him. Enough to follow him anywhere.”

And then Hector realizes his mistake because he gasps like a dying man and closes his eyes against the pain of it.

I turn to Franco, and my voice is clear and cutting when I say, “Hector is a Quorum lord. Taking him hostage is an act of war.”

Franco grins. “Stupid queen. We never stopped being at war, your country and mine. Invierne merely retreated.” He gestures to the men surrounding Hector, and they grab his arms and haul him roughly away from the table. Hector does not resist.

“You have two months,” Franco says. “I expect to see you in our capital by then. Come with no thought to returning, for this is pleasing to God. You may bring a very small escort, but no soldiers. Otherwise, he dies.”

“If you kill him, I’ll destroy you.” Actually, I think I’ll destroy him anyway. Yes, I most definitely will.

But Franco ignores me. “Let’s go,” he says to his men. To Tristán he says, “If your soldiers follow, he dies.”

They are halfway out the door when I cry out, “Wait!”

Franco whirls.

My anger, my resolve . . . it has melted into anguish, and all I can do is beg. “Let me say good-bye? Please?”

Franco looks back and forth between us, amused. He shrugs permission, and the soldiers loosen their grip on Hector.

I fly into his arms. He holds me close, stroking my hair, pressing his lips to my temples, murmuring words I can’t take in.

“I’ll come for you,” I whisper.

“Elisa, no.” He pushes me away, holds me at arm’s length. “Let me do my job this one last time. Take my advice.”

“I need you to survive this. Stay alive for me, Hector. Please? And be ready.”

And then they’re dragging him away, and it feels like I’ve been gut punched, for I can’t force my lungs to draw breath. I fall to my knees, clutching my stomach. God, how did everything turn out so wrong?

A hand squeezes my shoulder. It snakes around my neck, pulls me close. “I’m so sorry, my sky,” says Ximena. She draws me against her breast, the way she did when I was a little girl. I clutch at her bodice, taking in her familiar scent as she strokes my hair.

“I hope you find comfort in the fact that he sacrificed himself for you,” she murmurs. “As I always knew he would. He loved you very much.”

I lurch away from her and stare, puzzled, my skin crawling.

“Oh, my sky, the pain will fade. I promise. Just like it did with that boy from the desert. I know it’s hard to understand now, but your destiny is so glorious, Elisa. You are a bearer and a sovereign. Twice chosen by God. And someday, all this will pale in your memory.” She holds her arms out for another embrace.

I rise to my feet, wiping at tears I don’t remember shedding. I look down at my nurse. My guardian. The closest thing I’ve ever had to a mother. It seems as though she kneels at my feet.

“Ximena,” I say with imperturbable calm. “You have killed for me. You have kept things from me. You have sacrificed one of my dearest friends. You did all this without consideration for my will.”

Her black eyes are hot with conviction. “I have only ever done what is best. You’re just seventeen! You need—”

“I am a grown woman and a queen. And you are dismissed.”

She gapes at me.

“Go home, Ximena. To Orovalle. I’m sure Papá and Alodia can find a post for you.”

“No! I’m your guardian! Elisa, my sky, I love—”

“Tristán, would you please have my former nurse escorted to the nearest passenger ship?”

“At once, Your Majesty,” he says coolly, and he gestures toward a handful of men.

Ximena rises, smooths her skirt, then folds her hands together in perfect composure. As they lead her away, she glances over her shoulder at me and says, “I’ll always be your guardian. No matter what. It is God’s will.”

I turn my back on her, sickened and sad, but well and truly ready to be the queen my people need.

“Tristán. Are you still willing to take a position as Quorum lord?”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

I fish one of the Godstones from my pocket. It glitters more deeply than any jewel, in spite of its lifelessness. “Take it. It should fetch a high enough price for a whole garrison. I’ll validate it as an authentic Godstone from my personal collection, with a document bearing my royal seal.”

His fingers pause in the air above my hand for a moment before he takes it. “Thank you.”

I gesture for Fernando to approach, and then I pull out another Godstone and lay it in his palm. “Take this to Captain Lucio. Recruit more guards to defend the palace, if it is not overrun already. If it is, you must go into hiding and rebuild the Guard in secret.” I close his fingers around the stone. “Fernando, make me an army of my very own.”

“Yes, Your Majesty.” He stares at his fisted hand.

“Belén!”

He approaches, his face dark.

“You are now my personal guard. You will see to my safety above all else.”

He nods acceptance, then peers down into my eyes. “You’re planning something dangerous and brilliant again.”

In spite of everything, I smile up at him. Indeed, the threads of a strategy are patterning together in my mind, and I’m heady with the power of it. The kind of power I really need.

“I want messages sent to Crown Princess Alodia and Queen Cosmé,” I say to no one in particular. “Multiple copies, to be safe. See if they’ll agree to meet me in exactly three months’ time in Basajuan, for the world’s first parliament of queens.”

I resume pacing, right where I left off when Franco’s men barged in. “I’ll send a message to Ventierra, to Hector’s father, commanding that he reinstate Hector as his sole heir. And I need a proclamation—Mara, did my wax and seal survive our journey?” When she nods, I say, “A proclamation announcing my betrothal to Lord-Commander Hector, heir to the countship of Ventierra.” That should stall Conde Eduardo’s efforts to discredit me with the southern lords. All I need is a little time.

Mara hurries over and takes my hands. “Er, congratulations on your pending nuptials?”

I whisper, “He’ll be so angry when he learns I have engaged us without his knowledge.”

“Yes,” she says. “Definitely. But you’ll convince him.”

Belén says, “When do we all leave?”

“We all?”

“We’re going to Invierne with you, of course,” Mara says.

Of course, she says. As if journeying deep into enemy territory is no more than a quick jaunt through the market. I blink against tears. “I need a few days to make arrangements and set things in motion. Then we go.”

Clanking chains echo through the dining hall as Storm rises to his feet. “I’m going, too,” he says. He has been near invisible the whole time, huddled beneath his cowl. “You need a guide. And it’s time I stopped hiding like a frightened rabbit.”

I nod, knowing he offers in friendship this time, that he truly is my loyal subject. “The four of us, then.”

“You should have five!” Tristán protests. “For blessing and protection. It’s the holy number.”

I draw myself to full height, and my voice rings clear when I say, “The fifth place is for Hector.”