“Let’s stick to the tracks as long as we can!” Aren yelled to Galo. Em had told him that the tracks led straight to the capital.
They rode until the sun came up. They abandoned their horses and went on foot since they would draw attention on the warriors’ horses, and at the moment, they were trying to blend in.
Aren could tell they were nearing the capital—he could hear the sound of voices on a nearby road, and he could sense the presence of a large number of humans nearby. A carriage passed them, and the coachman cast a curious glance over his shoulder.
Galo stopped, touching Aren’s arm. “Do you have something to cover your neck?”
Aren’s fingers flew to the Ruined marks there. He’d been stupid to forget about them. He’d gotten used to his scars covering them, but there were plenty that were visible these days. He dropped his bag on the ground and dug through it.
“I don’t think I have anything. I could rip up the blanket to make a scarf, I guess. Might look weird, though.”
“Here,” Galo said, gesturing for him to get up. He adjusted the collar of Aren’s coat so it was standing up, covering his neck. “Keep it like that and no one can see. You’ll just have to keep the coat on, even if you get hot.”
“Thanks,” Aren said. Despite the clear skies and sun, it was much cooler in Olso than in the Lera jungle. He stuck his hands in his pockets. He needed to keep those out of sight too.
They walked until the city came into view. The castle was to the east, its peaks rising high into the sky, visible even from a distance. The city stretched out below it, with buildings bigger than those in Lera, the sidewalks more cramped with people. The streets were dirtier than in Lera, but there were several men dressed in gray jumpsuits scooping up the trash and putting it in bags. One frowned at Aren as he tried to get to an apple core by his foot.
Aren stepped aside, touching his collar. There were more people than he’d expected.
“So what’s the plan?” Galo asked. “Are we just strolling into the prison? Do we even know which prison she’s in?”
“No. I need to find out which prison she’s in, and what it’s like. Most likely, it’s heavily guarded, and it will be tough for me to take on that many guards by myself. If they manage to corner me and get me in a cell it’s all over.”
“So we need someone to tell us which prison she’s in, and maybe the basic layout.”
“Right.”
Galo scrunched up his face as he surveyed the crowds around them. “Got anyone in mind?”
Aren released a breath. “Yeah.”
“Who?”
“Iria’s parents.”
TWENTY-FOUR
EM WOKE TO the sun in her eyes. She blinked, the room around her slowly taking shape. The Lera castle. Cas’s bedroom. He hadn’t closed a window last night, and the breeze rustled the curtains, letting in streaks of sunlight.
She turned. Cas was dressed but barefoot, standing at the half-open door and speaking softly to someone she couldn’t see. He closed the door and turned, his eyes lighting up when they met hers.
“I’m sorry. I was trying to let you sleep.”
“What’s wrong?” She propped herself up on her elbows.
He crossed the room and climbed onto the bed. “Nothing’s wrong. That was just Franco. I asked him to push our morning meeting to later.”
She lay back down with a sigh and rubbed her forehead. The sun peeking through the windows was bright. She’d slept late.
Probably because she’d barely slept at all since leaving Olivia. She’d been so foggy-headed yesterday that she barely remembered how she got to Cas’s room.
The Ruined were mad at her. And scared. Ivanna was dead, and Em had underestimated what a good job she was doing keeping the Ruined calm. Gisela might have taken Em’s head off yesterday, if Em were human.
“I need to go check on the Ruined. Did they eat? We need to find them some clothes, too. And I should probably scout the area around Royal City with a few Ruined tonight, to see if we spot Olivia. Maybe some guards should come with us? Do you think—” She stopped talking suddenly as Cas stretched out beside her and pulled her into his arms. She closed her eyes and buried her face in his chest, losing her train of thought. He smelled like the Cas she’d known when she was here as Mary. The air of the castle clung to him, with scents of fresh flowers and pastries and the ocean.
“A maid brought you some clothes, they’re in the wardrobe,” he said, his lips brushing the top of her head. “So feel free to dress and see the Ruined whenever you like. I’ll see what we can do about getting the Ruined clothes and other essentials. And you can go out looking for Olivia if you want, but I like you better right here.”
A smile crossed her lips. She didn’t think she’d smiled in days, but the smile came easier than she would have thought. His words last night—We’re together now. Everything will be fine—had seemed so naive at the time, but now, as she wrapped an arm around his waist and held him tight, they didn’t seem so far-fetched.
Guilt crept into her chest. She couldn’t stop thinking about Olivia’s words—You’re choosing that boy over me, over your people. She knew her sister was just trying to get under her skin, but the words still stung.
Because she had chosen Cas over her sister. And she would do it again. Like Ivanna said, it was bigger than that, bigger than just the two of them, but Em couldn’t deny that she was happy to see him again. She could push thoughts of her sister away when she was in his arms. She didn’t know what kind of person that made her.
She slowly untangled herself from him. “Can you give me a few minutes?”
“Of course.” He leaned forward and pressed a kiss to her forehead, then climbed out of bed.
He left her to get dressed, and Em found the clothes—her Princess Mary clothes—in the wardrobe. She pulled on pants and a soft blue tunic and tied her hair into a braid.
She found Cas waiting for her in his library, perched on the edge of a chair. They had so much to talk about that she didn’t know where to begin—the Ruined downstairs, Olivia, their marriage, stripping the monarchy of power. But she didn’t want to talk about any of it. So she kissed him instead.
He took in a sharp breath and stood, his fingers finding their way into her hair. She grabbed fistfuls of his shirt and kissed him like she might not get another chance. Maybe she wouldn’t. Maybe Olivia would burst through the doors in a minute and kill every last one of them. It happened to Em before. She’d hugged her mother good night and the Lera king broke down the door to the castle not two hours later.
She even considered pushing him back into the bedroom and taking off the clothes they’d just put on. They could lock the door and ignore all the responsibilities waiting on the other side of it for a day.
She pulled back, pressing a soft kiss to his cheek before stepping away from him. She wouldn’t do that to the Ruined. And she wasn’t even sure she wanted to have sex with Cas for the first time now, with this heaviness pressing down on her chest. She suspected she’d just be doing it to feel something besides sadness, and they both deserved better.
“I’m going downstairs to check on the Ruined,” she said. “Am I allowed to wander the castle freely? Are the Ruined?”