“And what did you say to her?” My tone was flat, the best I could manage in that moment.
“She wanted to help, but we couldn’t let her, not without knowing what it would do to you.” Harlyn paused. “I didn’t say anything that wasn’t true, but I’m certain what I said was hurtful.”
At first I couldn’t answer her, or even organize my thoughts to speak. All this time she had deliberately concealed this information, no matter how many times I had asked, or even insisted that I knew she was holding something back. I wondered if she would have told me this much if Kestra had not come.
“Why didn’t you tell me this before?” I mumbled.
“To protect you.” She finished tying the bandage, then sat in a chair in front of me. “I meant what I said earlier, Simon. She could not be trusted then, no matter how much she loved you, and she cannot be trusted now. I’m here to protect my king, even if that means protecting him from himself.”
“You had no right to do that!”
If she noticed my anger, it didn’t seem to bother her. With an overly calm voice, she replied, “I had the obligation to do it. And I hope one day you’ll understand that.” She bit her lip as she considered what else she might say to excuse herself but must’ve come up with nothing. All she said was “We should join the others.”
That was the last thing I wanted, but if Kestra was going to be discussed tonight, I needed to be there. So I walked with Harlyn into a small dining room, where most of the Coracks had already gathered. I no sooner had taken a seat near Gabe when Tenger and Trina walked in with a boy our age with long black hair tied behind his back, reminding me of Gabe. But this boy’s eyes were sharper and darker, and seemed to be making a quick assessment of everyone present. I was assessing him too, wondering about his weapon of choice. Everyone in Antora had one, but he didn’t have the build of a person who was accustomed to the violent life in Antora. His hands appeared to be capable of work, but they looked too soft to be a farmer’s or a fighter’s, and he wasn’t well-dressed enough to be of the upper class. I was genuinely curious.
“Who is this?” I asked.
“His name is Joth Tarquin,” Tenger said. “Claims to know Loelle.”
Joth grimaced. “Actually, what I claimed is that Loelle is my mother. She sent me here with Kestra, for Kestra’s protection.”
That got my attention. “Protection from whom?”
Joth gestured around the room. “All of you.” His gaze returned to Tenger. “You’re the captain. You want to kill her and replace her with—” He pointed at Trina. “Replace her with you, is that right?”
“That’s not the plan,” Trina said, though I knew at least part of what Joth said had to be the plan. Tenger could not afford to let Kestra leave here, as unpredictable as she would be with corrupted magic. The only question was whether Trina was in on the plan.
Joth looked at me next. “You’re Simon. Do you still love her?”
The question stole the breath from my lungs. I hadn’t admitted my feelings aloud to anyone but Kestra. I wasn’t sure what my feelings were anymore, and I certainly didn’t know how she might feel about me.
“I want to see her,” I said, immediately angry with myself for making it a request, as if I needed Joth’s permission.
Ignoring me, Joth merely turned to Harlyn. “And you’re the girl that Simon is supposed to marry. I assume that hasn’t happened yet.”
Before Harlyn could answer, Tenger said, “You seem to know more about us than we know about you. What race are you and Loelle? Not Endrean?”
Joth scoffed. “We’re the Navan, or what remains of our people after we were scattered by war.”
“You have magic?” Harlyn asked.
“Yes, but it doesn’t corrupt like the Endreans’. Since we are working together, more or less, I need to tell you something. Even Kestra does not know this yet. I didn’t want to alarm her if it wasn’t necessary.”
“Yes?” Tenger stepped forward, arms folded.
“As Kestra and I flew here on that dragon—”
“My dragon,” I cut in.
Joth glanced at me. “As Kestra and I flew here on Simon’s dragon, about halfway between the forest and Highwyn, I saw an army just outside the capital, coming from the east. Their flags were white, but almost translucent, and they appeared to be armed for war.”
“The Brill,” Tenger said, then tugged at his beard. “How close are they?”
“Within the day,” Joth said. “Do they come as allies or enemies?”
“I don’t know.” Tenger eyed me with a warning to say nothing more to Joth, as if I would.
“Why didn’t you tell Kestra about it?” Trina asked. Maybe she didn’t get the warning glare of silence from Tenger.
Joth folded his arms and leaned against the wall. “From what Loelle has explained, it’s obvious that Kestra has only a few allies, and even fewer friends. I didn’t want to alarm her until I knew whose army I’d witnessed. Whatever the Brill are to you, they are no friend to Kestra.”
That was true enough.
Tenger said, “Kestra does have friends here, but we must know the truth about her. Has the corruption within her spread?”
Joth hesitated before saying, “The price of removing the curse from All Spirits Forest was high. Of course it has affected her.”
I sat up straighter. “She’s been taking in the curse? You lecture us on friends and allies and that’s what you’ve been doing to her?”
“What we’ve been doing is her best chance to succeed as Infidante, possibly her only chance. And Loelle has a plan to remove the corruption. If she survives—” He stopped abruptly, as if he had said more than he intended. Then he cleared his throat and said, “I’m sure Kestra will be exhausted once she is finished with Basil. I don’t want any of you going near her room. I’ll know if you do.”
“That’s not your decision,” Tenger said. “Basil was rescued by us and has information that we desperately need. The Coracks are in charge here, not you—”
“I don’t claim to be in charge of Basil or your general affairs,” Joth said. “But I am charged with Kestra’s protection and I do not trust any of you. So you will stay away from her room or pay the price for it.”
Gabe opened his mouth to object, but I asked Joth, “Are you guarding that room tonight, then?”
“I am, and when she is ready to leave, I will see that she gets away from here safely. None of you will stop us.”
“We wouldn’t think of trying,” I said, to shocked expressions from the others around me. I knew how it sounded, to be so quick to give up Kestra’s defense, not only to a stranger, but to a stranger who was ordering us around like hirelings. Even Harlyn nudged me, saying that we had no reason to trust this boy, and I didn’t.
But I trusted Tenger even less. I knew Kestra’s fate if she remained here. With my injuries, I wouldn’t be much help in protecting her, and I didn’t trust anyone around me with her safety. As frustrating as it was to hope for anything from this arrogant person, he was probably the best chance she had to walk away from here.