They both looked at her.
“Oh no, not me. I’m already in charge of one organization.”
“You can’t leave the position open—there will be civil war,” Timin said. “Who, then?”
Good question. She rejected the first name that came to mind and considered the Invisible Swords, then the vagrants. Orla would make a good leader. But that first name was truly the best choice.
Rendor met her gaze.
“Jayden,” they both said.
“But he’s not…” She couldn’t find the words.
“Not what?”
She sighed. “You’ve missed a lot.” But she had as well. “You’ve been recruiting for the Invisible Sword?”
“Yes. I had to prove to the Invisible Swords that my intentions were honest. I had to make amends before I could return.”
“You…” She was going to say he didn’t have to prove himself, but he did. Not to her, but to the rest of the Invisible Swords.
“Me?”
“Why didn’t you tell me what you were doing?” she asked instead.
He stiffened and the familiar stubbornness crept into his expression. “I had my reasons.”
Oh no, she needed a better answer than that. He could have avoided hurting her. Then why— Scorching sand rats. Why didn’t she think of this sooner?
“You suspected there was a traitor in the Invisible Sword,” she said.
“Someone had betrayed them to the priestess, and I didn’t think it was Banqui. But I wasn’t sure who it was, so I kept my plans a secret.”
While upset he didn’t trust her with his plans, she recognized that he’d been right not to. She would have told Jayden right away. The name stabbed into her and the exhaustion from…everything…caught up to her.
“Timin,” Rendor snapped. “See to her wound.”
The man had been standing there politely waiting as they talked, but he sprang into action.
Shyla waved him off. “I’m fine. It’s shallow.”
But Rendor was determined and there was no force that could counter a determined Captain Rendor. So she settled on a cushion and allowed Timin to clean and bandage the cut on her neck. Rendor ordered his men to carry Yates and the Water Prince to the black cells. And, she had to admit, that improved her mood greatly.
Hanif and Kaveri were fetched and updated.
Hanif slapped Rendor on the back and beamed at him when he learned of Rendor’s actions. It was a huge reversal of Hanif’s opinion of the man from when this all started and Shyla had gone to the First Room of Knowledge to find information about the Invisible Sword.
His reaction to the news about Jayden’s betrayal wasn’t as happy. “Jayden? Are you sure?” he asked in stunned disbelief.
“I’m sure.”
Rendor, though, didn’t say a word, just gazed at her in concern. She wondered if he’d suspected Jayden all along.
“You still need someone to rule,” Timin said. He’d been hovering nearby as if uncertain what to do.
The person would need leadership abilities, be able to organize the various tasks that were needed to run a city, and be incorruptible. Not many people had those qualifications.
She looked at her father. “You have lots of experience with—”
“Not interested,” Hanif said. “Besides, I’m a sworn monk. Jayden is the true leader of this city.”
“But—”
“I know what you said about him, and I know you read his soul. But did you look deep enough? Or did you just search for the answers you needed?”
Shyla opened her mouth to reply that of course she had, but then reconsidered.
“You should have learned by now that people are capable of changing.” Hanif glanced at Rendor, making his point. “Whether or not they choose to exercise that capability is up to them.” He smiled at her. “Perhaps you should look again.”
She huffed at her father in exasperation.
Unaffected, he said, “In the meantime, we’re willing to step into the leadership role until then.” He took Kaveri’s hand in his.
Kaveri gave him an unreadable look. “We are? That’s presumptuous, old man.”
He waited.
She sighed dramatically. “It better not take too long to find someone else, or I might get used to living like this. Do you know there are collection stations down here called water closets?” she asked Shyla in amazement.
Shyla laughed. The release of tension soothed her. One problem solved…at least temporarily. There was still the issue with the Heliacal Priestess and her holy army.
“Do you know what happened to the Invisible Swords after we were attacked by the guards?” she asked Rendor.
“They retreated to Orla’s commune. Zhek checked them over and they’re all fine.”
“I was hoping they continued with the plan.”
“Without you they had no way to get to the priestess.”
True.
“There are rumors that the priestess is preparing to attack the Water Prince,” Rendor said. “She knows you’re here and will not tolerate him having The Eyes. Her only strategy is to strike before he does and hope to catch him off guard.”
“Except she doesn’t know we’ve taken over so—”
“The advantage is ours.” Rendor grinned.
Hanif and Kaveri wanted to get started on familiarizing themselves with the job of running the city. They enlisted Timin’s help to show them the ex-prince’s main office.
Shyla stood to follow them. They needed to start planning their strategy for countering the priestess, but Rendor put a big hand on her shoulder, stopping her. “You’re exhausted.”
Not a question but a statement of fact. And she couldn’t argue as just standing up had been a colossal effort—not that she’d admit it.
“All right. But I want a big comfortable sleeping cushion,” she said, shuffling out of the throne room. If she never returned to this place, it would be too soon.
Rendor took her hand and led her to his old office. “Yates never used it, and all my stuff is still here.” He gestured to the sleeping cushion.
Remembering waking up here once before, she smiled. Rendor had been so upset with her. One of the many times since she’d known him. She collapsed onto it, sinking into the softness.
“Get some sleep,” he said, covering her with a fur.
She tugged on his arm. “Join me.”
“To sleep?”
“Eventually.”
His surprise lasted a mere heartbeat before his expression softened. “You’re exhausted.”
“But—”
He brushed his lips over hers. “We’ll have plenty of time later.” But he settled in next to her. “I’ll stay until you fall asleep.”
Resting her head on his shoulder, she pressed against him, fighting off the inevitable. The strong scent of Rendor filled her senses. And that reminded her.
“How did you beat Yates? The last time your injuries slowed you down. Or were you faking it?”
“No.” His grip tightened for a moment. “Not pretending at all. It was Zhek. He did…something…to my injuries. The monks did a great job saving my life, but Zhek tsked over my shoulder and hip and readjusted something. All I know is they were hurting pretty bad after that first fight with Yates, and Zhek made it all go away.”