I gave her a brief retelling of events, mentioning what I’d overheard in the wizards’ meeting. “Ronan knows Wolfson wasn’t responsible.”
“But he was still willing to take his old master’s mark. Played like a true wizard.”
I bristled in Ronan’s defense. “Wolfson is a murderer, a horrible beast. Ronan was right to make sure he’s defanged. And besides, he probably saved your life.”
Gwenyth sent me a long, penetrating look. “Warison might be the most merciful wizard in the land, but he’s still a wizard. I know he’s handsome and when his fine eyes are upon you, you forget the purpose of our cause, but try and remember this: if he finds out what you’ve done, he’ll kill you. He’s loyal to the king, not you.”
She was right of course. And I would have to face him as an enemy tonight. All other protestations died on my lips.
I wasrestless or perhaps just unsupervised, so before dinner, I headed to the stables, visible this time, under the pretense that I’d come to discuss dispatching Alaric to fetch some of Gwenyth’s relatives. I pretended I was beyond myself with worry, which might explain my lack of propriety should anyone wonder why a high-born woman had traipsed out to the stables instead of sending a message.
When Alaric saw me enter the stable, his mouth went slack with surprise, and apprehension flickered in his eyes. He thought something else had gone wrong. In the span of a breath, he squashed the emotion with a mask of cool, polite servitude.
For a couple of minutes, we spoke of Gwenyth. He rationally pointed out it was late in the day. By the time he readied a horseand packed provisions, he wouldn’t get past the village before having to stop for the night. He suggested waiting until first light and seeing how Gwenyth fared then.
Halfway through his protest, I waved my hand in front of my nose and insisted the smell of the stable was too overpowering for my delicate sensibilities. We moved outside to the shade tree, and I gave him the details I’d heard from the wizards’ meeting with the king.
When I finished, Alaric nodded as though agreeing to some command I’d issued. “Having all the visiting wizards in one place tonight is a bit of bad luck, but I don’t see that we’ve any choice except to continue as planned.”
“The wizards will all have alibis. They’ll know someone else is to blame, and they’ll search for me.”
Alaric shrugged. “But by that point, the king will be dead and our mission accomplished.”
I don’t know what I supposed Alaric would say. Of course, he would put the mission’s success above my safety. That had always been the case. And yet his words seemed to sink to the ground in front of me with a heaviness that dragged my heart with it. Alaric’s response made me feel small and uncared for. So very, very expendable.
“Cheer up,” he said. “You’ll find a way to escape. You always do.”
That’s because I’d never been pursued by twenty wizards and all the king’s men before. “Did you find someone else to act as an assassin like I asked?”
He sighed as though he knew I was about to become unreasonable. “No.”
I crossed my arms. “Are the leaders refusing to assign someone else? I need to have a word with them.” I’d agreed to come to Valistowe in part to keep Alaric from needlessly dying ina battle. The least the leaders could do was keep him safe for me now.
“I didn’t ask anyone. Very few renegades reside at Valistowe. I’m the best suited for the task.”
Or the most willing. Perhaps I should’ve been comforted that my life wasn’t the only one Alaric was willing to sacrifice to the cause, but I wasn’t. He’d ignored my wishes and hadn’t cared what his death would do to me. “What if I can’t carry through with taking Ronan’s mark? What if I find loyalties to people a stronger pull than the mission’s success?” Perhaps I said the words to hurt Alaric, to remind him that loyalties mattered to me.
His voice grew soft. “You know the importance of what you do. As you act, think of the many servants in the land. Think of averting a war.”
If any words could spur me to action, those were the words.
Alaric’s eyes didn’t leave mine. “I believe in you, Marcella. Remember that. Wear my belief like a talisman, like that shell and carved horse you always keep with you.”
Those. Yes. The bits of my life with Ronan that were forever with me. Those mementos and Alaric’s belief would be a fine comfort for me when we were both thrown onto a pyre.
Alaric bowed his head like a servant at the end of a conversation. “I shall await your signal tonight.” He turned and strode back to the stable.
I watched him go, then stalked toward the castle feeling worse than I had when I’d come.
After dinner,I went into the ballroom with the intention of keeping an eye on Mage Zephyr. I meant to follow him when he left so that no matter where he hid, I could find him.
Almost as soon as I stepped foot into the ballroom, Ronan intercepted me. He wore a light blue robe that made his eyes seem bright and piercing. How many robes did the king’s wizards own? All of them were so fine and formal and completely impractical.
He offered me his arm. “Will you stroll around the grounds with me? I don’t have long before it’s my turn to guard the king, and I’d prefer to spend what time I have with you.”
That would put an end to my idea of following Zephyr.
“You don’t want to dance?” I asked. Going outside alone with Ronan would make tongues wag, but I was a bit late to insist on a chaperone. I’d kissed him shamelessly last night.