He was alone in his office this morning, listening to the murmured sounds of the castle staff on the other side of the door. He understood his father a little better these days, as much as he hated to admit it. The king had been so outgoing, so friendly, to everyone. Cas had thought it was an act. Now he thought that his father was probably just trying to stave off the loneliness of constantly being surrounded by people who had to obey, not befriend, him.
A knock sounded on the door and he sat up straighter in his chair and tried to appear as if he hadn’t just been sulking.
“Come in!” he called.
Violet stepped inside, a smile on her face. “Galo’s returned.”
Cas jumped to his feet, relief coursing through his veins. “How is he?”
“Great. He’s at the gate. He brought Aren with him, and the guards weren’t sure he should be allowed in.”
“Of course he should,” Cas said, though he was surprised Aren had come. “Just Aren? Em didn’t come with them?”
“No, I’m afraid not.”
He edged around his desk and walked out of the office with Violet. “Let the guards and the staff know that Aren is always welcome here.”
“I’ll do that right away.”
“They probably won’t like that, will they? Do the guards hate Aren?”
Violet cocked her head in thought as they descended the stairs. “From what I’ve heard, he was very reserved when he was part of the guard here. No one really knew him. So they don’t hate him any more than they hated Em.”
Cas couldn’t help but take note that hated Em was past tense. He hoped it was intentional.
He walked across the front foyer with Violet, his guards falling into place around him as he stepped outside. Galo and Aren were standing on the other side of the iron gate. Galo waved when he spotted him.
Two guards pulled open the gate. Cas strode across the dirt and embraced Galo for a moment, then turned to Aren.
“Aren. Nice to see you again.”
Aren’s eyes skipped over the guards, all of whom were staring at him. He shifted uncomfortably, but he managed a small smile for Cas.
Cas led them inside and up to his office. Violet split off from them, taking instructions for lunch to a staff member.
Cas grabbed the door to his office and held it open for Galo and Aren. He stepped inside and started to close the door, when Jorge suddenly grabbed it.
“Your Majesty, may I suggest you go to a dining room, where I can put a few guards with you, out of earshot?”
“You may suggest it, but the answer is no,” Cas said. He suppressed a smile as Jorge tried to hide his annoyance.
“You’re making his life miserable, aren’t you?” Galo asked as Cas shut the door. “That’s the new captain of his guard,” he explained to Aren.
“I don’t know what you mean; I am pleasant and reasonable all the time,” Cas said. Aren snorted.
He took a seat in one of the chairs near the window, and gestured for them to sit as well. Aren stared outside as he lowered himself into a chair, his expression unreadable.
“Aren, I didn’t expect you,” Cas said. “If I’d known you could get away, I might have suggested Galo not go at all.”
Aren turned to him. “I didn’t expect to come either. But we needed Olivia to see me leave for a day or two.”
“Why?” Cas asked.
“We want to tell Olivia about the impending attack from Olso and Vallos,” Galo said. “Aren will say he heard about the troops while traveling, and he won’t even have to suggest Olivia go after them. She’ll insist on it.”
“What’s the point of that?” Cas asked.
“We’ve gotten over half of the Ruined to agree to step away from the battle, at a crucial moment,” Aren said. “Olivia and her followers will have a very hard time fighting on their own. It will solve two problems at once.”
“The army will likely take severe casualties, as will the Ruined,” Galo explained quietly.
Cas raised his eyebrows as he looked at Aren. “Are you all right with that? Is Em?”
“It was her idea. It’s our only option.”
“Has there been any movement spotted at the border?” Galo asked.
“Yes, we got reports yesterday of troops crossing the border. It’s a sizable army, over a thousand soldiers, but slow-moving. They have a lot of equipment with them. You should have time to cut them off in the jungle.”
Aren scrubbed a hand down his face. “That’s good,” he said, in a tone that didn’t sound like it was good at all. “But we’ll need to leave immediately.”
“And we could use some Lera troops as backup,” Galo said.
“I can’t spare many soldiers,” Cas said regretfully. “I can’t leave the castle unguarded, even with the army supposedly still far away. I won’t let my guard down.”
“I understand,” Aren said. “Our hope is they won’t actually have to fight, and if they do, it will be against Vallos and Olso. But we’d mostly need them to bring the Ruined to Royal City after the battle. We don’t know if we’ll have any horses or supplies. We may just have to run.”
“I can spare a few for that. And I’ll start making space for the Ruined. I think we still have some room in the guards’ quarters, and there are several other empty rooms.”
“You want to put them here?” Aren asked in surprise.
“That seems like the safest option, don’t you think?”
“What will the people here think? Will they consent to sharing space with Ruined?”
“They’ll just have to get used to it,” Cas said. “Besides, we’ll all be safer with the Ruined in the castle. You’ll be close if we’re attacked again.”
“And if you’re not attacked?” Aren asked.
Cas laughed. “I’d be surprised, but that would be nice.”
“I meant what happens to the Ruined?”
“We’ll find a place for you, of course. I can start negotiations with Em right away, and we’ll start settling you into Royal City.”
Aren nodded, but his brow was creased, his gaze on the floor.
“Is that not what you want?” Cas asked.
“No, that’s . . .” Aren swallowed. “That’s fine. That’s good.”
Cas suspected there was something more Aren wanted to say, but only silence followed his last words.
“We were hoping to stay one night, if that’s all right,” Galo said.
“Of course,” Cas said. “I’ll have the staff make up a room for you, Aren.”
Galo hopped to his feet and strode across the room. He opened the door and relayed instructions about Aren’s room to a staff member.
“Do you mind if I go now?” Aren asked as he stood. “I need to wash up.”
“Sure,” Cas said. “We’ll have some food sent up.”
Galo stepped back to allow Aren to walk through the door. “Do you want me to come with you?”
“I’ll be fine, thanks.”
Cas got to his feet as a thought occurred to him. “Aren.”
He was halfway out the door, and he turned to face Cas again. He raised his eyebrows expectantly when Cas hesitated.