Joth’s face reddened, but he asked, “What details are those?”
“Obviously, I cannot allow you to take the throne without a challenge.”
He frowned. “Obviously.”
“So my first option is to bring the full power of the Alliance against you and your army of fifty civilians, stripped of their magic. I know you still have some half-lives to help you in the fight, but there are more of us than them. Based solely on the numbers, I will prevail.”
Joth didn’t flinch. “And your second option?”
“Tomorrow at noon, I challenge you to a duel, though you must agree to fight without the use of magic—nothing else is fair. The winner cedes his throne to the other.”
Joth smiled. “Ah, so if you defeat me, you expect that I will surrender the Scarlet Throne?”
“If the battle is only between you and me, we each preserve the lives of our people.”
“And when I defeat you,” Joth continued, “what is my reward?”
“The Halderian throne, with all our lands and our people.” I let the offer dangle in front of him for a moment, tempting him.
“I could kill you here,” Joth said.
“Which would mean I am no longer a problem for you, but that will not give you the loyalty and service of my people.”
Darrow turned and began addressing the others in the room. “I know that many of you here feel a loyalty to Joth because of all he has done for us. I also know that many of you are Halderian. Your king, Simon Hatch, is before you now. You may be grateful to Joth for making your lives possible. But it is time to bring your loyalties back home. You will serve your Halderian king.”
Silence fell in the room for a moment, until I saw the same white-haired man who had escorted us here go to his knees. Another woman at his side did the same, then three or four more people, then another ten. Another fifteen or twenty crossed one arm over their hearts and stared at Joth, their king. Just like that, I had taken almost half of Joth’s followers.
“Meet me in the courtyard at noon tomorrow,” I said to Joth. “Or you’ll never have the respect of those you claim to lead.”
“Sooner or later, they’ll all come crawling to me,” he said. “Noon tomorrow.”
“Until then, where is my daughter?” Darrow asked. “I insist on taking her away with me.”
“Who was the other girl you brought here before … Harlyn? I am told that she was last seen in pursuit of your daughter with a disk bow ready to fire. I expect that by now, one or the other is still alive. Not both.”
“Where did they go?” Anxious as I had been to confront Joth, that was nothing compared to thinking about any confrontation between Harlyn and Kestra. I added, “We want to find them.”
“Her father can search for her,” Joth said. “You will remain with us. If I am not allowed to use magic in the duel, you must not be given the opportunity to make any tricks against me.”
There was no point in objecting. I desperately wanted to go after Harlyn and Kestra, but he had just given me a perfect opportunity to observe him and better understand his vulnerabilities. If he was allowing it, then I needed to stay.
Darrow leaned in and whispered, “He will not keep his word, you know. He will cheat.”
“I’m counting on it,” I replied.
Darrow looked up, but I could not offer him an explanation here. So he merely touched my arm, then ran from the throne room in search of Kestra.
Or in search of Harlyn.
I wanted to believe there was a chance that both of them were still alive. But I knew them both too well to have much hope.
The difference between a disk in the pocket of the bow and a disk lodged in my chest was a slight nudge of Harlyn’s finger on the string. It would take so little for her to kill me right now.
I searched within myself for any magic that could make Harlyn regret her words. I found the powers but knew I lacked the strength. As it was, I had no choice but to obey Harlyn for now and, at my earliest opportunity, take a fierce revenge. I was already counting the minutes.
“Lift your hands where I can see them,” Harlyn instructed as I began to move. “I don’t trust you.”
“That’s wise.” I began to stand, then lost my footing and slipped again. Harlyn raised her bow. Alarmed, I said sharply, “Don’t you dare shoot me over a little slip! If you haven’t noticed, I’m not exactly at my best right now.”
“Maybe that’s a trick too,” she said.
“Maybe it is,” I replied. Once I was standing, I asked, “What now?”
Harlyn clearly hadn’t expected to still be on her feet. Her eyes darted leftward while she considered an answer, which was, “We will walk out of this palace together. There you will surrender to Simon Hatch, king of the—”
“King of the Halderians, yes, I know who he is.” I sighed. “But Simon is not available for surrender at the moment. He’s somewhere inside this palace, probably under attack by Joth’s half-lives.”
Harlyn’s eyes widened. “Do you know where he is?”
“Of course I know,” I lied. “Follow me.”
“If you’re leading me into a trap, you’ll pay for it,” she said as I began to limp forward.
I looked over my shoulder. “If this is a trap, I won’t give you that chance.”
I didn’t know Endrick’s palace well, but I suspected Simon was headed toward the throne room, for that was the direction where Joth had sent his half-lives. And the last person I wanted to see now was Simon, so I led Harlyn in the opposite direction, to the rear of the palace. This was where Endrick’s servants would have once worked, where the commanders of his armies would have quartered at night.
I paused there, mumbling under my breath about what I intended to do with this wing of the castle once my rule was secured.
“Who cares about any of that right now?” Harlyn asked.
I didn’t care. It was only a ruse to give me a moment to catch my breath as I began to feel whispers of strength returning again.
“Keep walking,” Harlyn said, nudging me in the back with her disk bow. “We have to find Simon.”
If she truly wanted to find him, then she was in the wrong place. He’d have no reason to be here, so far from the throne room.
One of the rooms nearby was larger than the others had been, with row after row of beds, and at the far end was a ladder headed belowground. That might be my only chance.
I peered into the room as a shout came from somewhere behind us. Harlyn pushed me forward, then peered out into the corridor. “Joth’s got his people on patrol. Kestra, we have to—”
By the time she looked my way again, I was halfway to the ladder. I had enough strength by then to upturn one of the beds between us. In nearly the same second, Harlyn shot at me. Her disk lodged into the mattress, releasing a tuft of feathers.
I grabbed the ladder but loosened my grip enough to slide straight down; then I yanked the ladder free and set it on the ground. The door that had been propped open by the ladder slammed shut, which I had not expected, but I used a little magic to keep it sealed. Suddenly, I was standing in near total darkness, save only for a few small clearstones along the walls of this tunnel.