Bluewing (18 page)

“We use these things. We need them. How can we just give them to you?”

“You won’t have any need of them if the Farther threat is gone,” he said. “So I have every reason to want to help you accomplish that, if it will make you more likely to turn the PLD over to me.”

It was a valid point.

“I don’t trust you,” I said. “But you know that.”

“I’ve brought Ann back to you safely.”

“Then help us get Adam back, too.” It was a desperate gamble—what if he refused? What if I was asking too much too soon? If he wouldn’t do it, then our chances of ever seeing Adam again were slim to none. I held my breath, strangling silently in every second that he took to reply.

Korr ran a gloved hand down the edge of his cloak. He took minutes to answer. “I will help you recover the Thorns agent.”

“And help us expel Raine from Iceliss.”

“Nothing would give me more pleasure,” Korr said, looking past me at Ann.

I remembered Ann’s story about how Raine had ordered her execution.

“Do these things,” I said. “And we will give you the PLD.”

I reached out my hand and clasped Korr’s cold, gloved fingers in agreement. His grip was like iron. We shook once, and his eyes gazed into mine, searing me to my soul. Then he released me.

As easily as the exchange of a few words in the stillness of a forest, we had a new ally.

But I wasn’t sure that we hadn’t taken a snake into our arms.

~

“I don’t like this,” Gabe snarled, pacing from one end of the greenhouse wall to the other. “He can’t be trusted.”

“Which is why I
don’t
trust him,” I said for the fourth time.

“You shook hands! You made an agreement.”

“If he turns out to be a lying bastard, then I’ll have no qualms about breaking my agreement.”

“He’s going to betray us,” Gabe insisted.

I propped my chin in my hand and studied him. “You seem very certain.”

Gabe flushed. “I have no political aspirations, if that’s what you’re implying.”

“I wasn’t implying anything.”

He looked unconvinced. “Anyway, it doesn’t matter. Neither Korr nor I will have the crown even if the royal family is reinstated.”

“Who would?” I asked.

He sighed. “My cousin, if he’s still alive. His name is Bartimus, and he is my father’s age.”

“And if he is no longer alive?”

“Then...I would be in line to rule.”

That surprised me. “But why wouldn’t Korr be the first to rule if Bartimus were dead? He is older, is he not?”

Gabe shook his head. “I forget you do not know these things, because you aren’t an Aeralian. Korr is not my father’s child, and thus he has no claim to the throne even though he is technically a member of the royal family. He is not even a prince, merely a lord. It’s why he was not arrested or imprisoned when the dictator came to power.”

“Not your father’s child? But you look almost identical—”

“My father married my mother when Korr was small. We are half-brothers.”

“Oh.”

Gabe frowned. “But Korr is a smooth talker, and he has always had many supporters in Astralux. There are those who would rather see him than Bartimus—or me—on the throne. He has more experience politically, certainly, especially now that he stayed and made a place for himself while I ran away. And he was often dissatisfied with his lack of role when we were children. If he is the one who succeeds in overthrowing the dictator...”

He fell silent and stopped pacing long enough to hold my gaze. “You can see why I do not trust his motives, politically speaking. Whatever our personal differences might be, I have no reason to trust him with regard to the crown.”

“He said he didn’t want it,” I pointed out.

“And he could be a lying snake.”

“True.”

There was another pause.

“You didn’t run away,” I said. “You were arrested, then you were rescued. You’re alive now, that’s what matters.”

Gabe looked like he might argue, but instead he simply shook his head and started pacing again.

“Are you worried he might try to take the crown from your cousin?”

“I don’t know what he’s going to do,” Gabe said.

“Ann seems to think he’s trustworthy.”

“Ann is in love with him.”

Shock sizzled through me. “What?”

“Don’t tell me you haven’t seen the way she looks at him.”

“I...” Surely this was absurd. It was
Korr
. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“Don’t you?” His face softened slightly. “She hides it well, the way you do with Adam.”

The way you do with Adam.

“Gabe...”

He smiled sadly. “We won’t talk about that now. There’s no point, not with everything up in the air and a million different outcomes possible. A Watcher could slice me in half tomorrow. Adam could be dead in that prison. You could eat a bad batch of berries and die in your bed.” He laughed, short and harsh. “I won’t spend the few hours we know we’ve got fretting about the future, not when we aren’t even sure we have one yet.”

It was sensible and uncomplicated. I nodded. “All right.”

“But know this, Lia Weaver. I love you.”

Emotion glimmered in his eyes. He braced himself after he said it, as if waiting for a blow in response. I lowered my head.

“I love you, too. I’ve loved you for months. You must know that.”

“But is it enough?” He asked the question softly, and it broke my heart.

“It’s more complicated than that.”

“I...I know.”

A throb filled me. I wanted to go to him, to touch him, to cradle him close and say something, anything, to smooth away those lines on his face. The impulse was strong, bewildering. I did love him. It was
Gabe
. He had been the first person to ever awaken the fire of that sort inside me. But once awakened, it had gone on to burn for someone else, and I felt helpless against the conflagration. It hurt like crazy and it made me feel more alive than I’d ever felt before. But it was hurting other people, too. I needed to figure something out, and soon.

~

Ann had completely settled in by the time I made my way back to the cellar. She’d piled all the belongings she’d brought with her—mostly plain, thick woolen cloaks, socks, and dresses—in a sack beneath a cot that she’d pushed next to mine. I found her perched on the edge of the mattress, bent over a book that lay open in her lap.

“How are you adjusting?” I asked, sinking down beside her.

She closed the book and slid it under her pillow before answering. “It’s not exactly a palace,” she said, glancing around at the gritty stone walls.

“Well, technically it is,” I said.

A smile slid across her mouth at my joke. “But...it’s safe and warm and it’s where my friends are, and that’s about all I want at the moment.”

I reached out and touched her arm, glad she was with us now but unable to find the words to express it.

She studied me. “I meant it before when I said you’d changed. It’s hard to know how, exactly, but you’re different. More...open. Not softer, but—” She made a helpless gesture with her hands. “I don’t know how to describe it.”

I shifted, uncomfortable with her scrutiny. “We’ve all been through a lot. We’ve all changed.”

“I suppose that’s true.” She hesitated. “You still don’t trust him, do you?”

“Of course not.”

“Lia...”

“Ann. I’m not going to trust him until I have a solid reason to do so.” I changed the subject. “Have you seen your father since you’ve been back?”

She lowered her head, but I still caught a glimmer of the worry that flashed in her eyes. “No. Korr tells me he is kept busy at Raine’s beck and call just as before. At least he is alive.”

Did she know about his involvement with the Blackcoats? The truth hovered on my tongue. I took a breath.

“Ann.”

She looked up.

“Your father...I know something about him. Something I don’t know that you know, but perhaps you should.”

I told her what I’d seen, how he’d revealed his identity to me in order to gain my trust. She was very still, listening to every word as if her life depended on remembering them later.

“I can’t believe it,” she said when I’d finished.

“It’s true. I saw it myself.”

She breathed out shakily. “He’s not a traitor after all.”

“Or at least he’s a reformed patriot,” I said.

A painfully huge smile broke across her face, and she hugged me tight. I let my mouth soften into a smile as well. At least we had something to be happy about.

~

We had agreed to meet with Korr again the next day to make plans in the clearing, and this time, Gabe and I came alone. I’d thought it best—Jonn was exhausted from the previous day’s travel, and Ann...well, I didn’t know what was between her and Korr, but I wanted no distractions.

He was waiting for us just as before, standing in the middle of the clearing, still but ready for action.

“You’ve learned to move quietly in the forest,” he said to Gabe as we reached the edge of the trees. “You always were the noisiest when we played those hiding games as children.”

Gabe clenched his fingers into fists. I reached out and touched his arm.

“Don’t let him needle you. Stay focused. We need him to find Adam and free the Frost.”

Gabe nodded and let out a breath.

“Korr,” I said.

He turned his attention to me.

“We should probably find a better meeting place than this,” I said, glancing around at the trees. “It is hardly a secure location, not to mention the fact that we cannot properly examine maps and other materials with no table to spread them across.”

“What do you suggest?” he asked, in a way that indicated he knew I already had an idea in mind. “You do not trust me enough to show me where your people are hiding like rabbits these days, and I do not feel particularly enthusiastic about making the long trek to some forsaken ruin, either.”

“No,” I said. “Not that.” I took a deep breath. I’d rehearsed this several times, trying to get it just right—impassionate, casual, so that he couldn’t see how much I wanted it. “I was thinking my family’s old farm house.”

“Soldiers occupy it now,” he said.

“Yes, but surely you could do something about that.”

“I see,” he said, studying my face.

I didn’t breathe as I waited for his response.

“All right,” he said finally. “I will get the farmhouse.”

“Good.” I was light-headed, but I blinked and moved on. “And then there’s the matter of Adam Brewer’s rescue.”

“Yes. I will have to accompany you,” he said.

“What?”

“I am Aeralian. You’ll need someone who is familiar with Astralux.”

“Absolutely not. Gabe is Aeralian.”

“Gabriel is a wanted fugitive.”

He had a point there.

“Besides, you will need me if you want to get him out of prison.”

“We’ll discuss it once you’ve procured my family’s farmhouse,” I said.

He smiled, knowing he’d won. “Meet me there tomorrow at sunset and we can discuss the details.”

He turned on his heel and left.

AT SUNSET THE next day, I arrived alone at my family’s farmhouse to meet with Korr. My heart beat fast with nervous anticipation as I came within sight of the yard. It was marred by muddy tracks and garbage and overturned barrels, but it was empty. I crept forward, unwilling to trust just yet. I pressed my back to the wall of the house and peeked in one window.

The interior was dark and silent, the air tinged with dust where an orange ray of sunset came through the glass. The boots by the fire were gone, and the furniture seemed to have been straightened a little. I went to the front door and opened it.

“You’re here.”

I jumped at the sound of Korr’s voice, but I quickly composed myself so he wouldn’t see that he’d startled me. I slipped inside and shut the door behind me.

“I’m here, as I said I would be.”

It was a challenge.
I fulfilled my end, now you fulfill yours.

He smirked and indicated a chair at Jonn’s old table with one hand. “Shall we sit? I’ve made tea.”

I crossed the floor and sank into the chair across from his. I laid my elbows on the table and watched as he poured steaming water into two cups, then added dried mint leaves to steep. He set one cup in front of me, and I could smell the scent of mint curling up in the steam. It made me think of Stone.

“I need you to obtain passes for my people to get inside the village,” I said. “In exchange for the PLD.”

“Fine,” he said.

“And of course, we must have Brewer back safely.”

“This is going to be an arduous task,” he began. “Are you sure you’re up for it?”

I thought of the things I’d experienced in the last few months—chases through the forest, time travel, exploration of ruins, kidnappings, and numerous Watcher encounters.

“I am.” I spoke the words firmly.

“Good. We will begin at the Seam, a railroad track that forms the border between Aeralis and the Frost. We’ll jump a train there and disembark in the main Astralux train yard. From there, we’ll have to travel through the city to the north quarter, where they keep the prisoners.”

“Can’t you just take a carriage to Astralux?”

“I do not want my presence in the city to be known. I have certain people whom I’m trying to keep in the dark. If I enter secretly, then by all accounts I’ve had nothing to do with his disappearance. Besides,” he said with another one of his smirks, “this way is much more fun.”

I was not amused.

“And once we reach the prison?” I asked.

Korr smiled, a cold and calculating expression that made me shiver. “I have a plan.”

~

“I don’t like it,” Jonn said after I’d told him everything. “But I also don’t see any other way.”

They watched me, all of them—Gabe, Ann, Everiss, Jonn, Ivy—looking at me as if trying to memorize my features. As if trying to remember me. As if I was already dead.

“Korr knows what he’s doing,” I said, barely able to believe the words coming from my mouth.