Page 45 of To Save a Kingdom

Elessan.

He wrenched her off her feet, spinning her around.

The gelatinous goo released her. Her magic snapped back.

By the gods.

She blinked the tears from her eyes, allowing her forehead to rest on his pectoral as she centered herself. Taking several deep breaths, she reveled in his scent as her power settled into place.

Finally, she met his gaze as he brushed a few strands of hair out of her face.

His eyebrows drew together as he leaned closer. Holding her chin between his thumb and finger, he tilted her face left and right as though checking her over for injuries.

“El?” Her voice wobbled. Damnit. Swallowing hard, she cursed her weakness.

“You’re pale,” he said, his jaw tense. “And the circles under your eyes tell me you haven’t slept for days.”

She opened her mouth but didn’t know what to say. Her mind served up the memory of one possible reason she wouldn’t have gotten much sleep recently. Tsara and Elessan, in the hallway, kissing.

She braced herself, prepared to push him away when Elessan rounded on Zadé, his face contorted as he growled something unintelligible.

Zadé jumped, spinning on him with a scowl of her own. Her eyes were red and swollen, rimmed with tears that spilled down her face as she held Dalyor’s body close, now separated from the magic-sucking goop.

Aliya removed the earplugs from her ears.

Elessan’s lips pulled away from his teeth, putting his fangs on full display, as though he wanted to rip out Zadé’s throat. “You brought royalty—the human queen—into a labor camp for prisoners of war, without a full contingent of guards? Did you even think about what could’ve happened?”

Zadé glared up at him through glazed eyes. “Princess had plenty o’ protection.” She shifted Dalyor’s body to free one hand, which she used to point to herself. “Me.” Laying the corpse gently on the floor, Zadé shoved to her feet. Taking a deep breath and steeling her spine, she stepped toward Elessan. Jabbing a finger into his chest, she continued, “Yer just mad she won’t stay locked in her tower like a good girl while the men surrounding her concoct schemes as to how they can best use her to their benefit!”

Aliya blinked, frozen. She hadn’t realized Zadé had zeroed in so precisely on her own feelings. But she should’ve. As one of the elves’ top generals, Zadé had been around scheming noblemen for far longer than Aliya could imagine. Being half-human, she’d been viewed the same way Malkov’s aristocracy had seen Aliya—someone beneath them, but with enough positive attributes to make them a useful tool.

Elessan’s eyes flashed as he slapped Zadé’s hand away. “I do not expect Aliya to—”

Zadé raised her hand and cut him off with the stern authority of the general she was. “Shove it, Elsan. Keeping Princess locked away and sheltered will only make her appear weak in the eyes of her nobles, and a weak queen won’t last long.”

Aliya swallowed, shaking the final magical tingles from her fingers. Should she intervene? There was more truth to what Zadé claimed than she wanted to admit. Her inexperience and lack of connections and influence were already enough of a handicap. But this sepulcher was not the place to be shouting this out.

“And not only that,” Zadé continued, hardly bothering to draw a breath, “you made a cuckold out o’ her by gettin’ with Princess Tsara!”

Elessan froze.

Aliya’s knees locked as the pain of the memory washed over her, tightening her throat and making her eyes burn. She clenched her fists. He must’ve had a solid reason, even if she didn’t want to admit it. He deserved her trust, at least until they could sit down calmly and discuss it like rational adults.

“I did no such thing!” Elessan shouted. “I would never!”

“You did.” Aliya’s voice was so quiet compared to theirs, but it brought both elves to a standstill. She couldn’t meet his eyes, so she stared at his boots. “In the hallway. I was looking for you. I rounded the corner, and there you were—” The words stuck in her throat. Licking her lips, she tried again. “There you were, with Princess Tsara, and…” She swallowed. “I know what I saw.”

His expression crumbled as he stumbled toward her.

Aliya took a few rapid steps back. “I know you must’ve had your reasons, and I’m willing to hear them out, but not right now.”

He froze. “Aliya.” His voice was pained. “Let me explain.”

She shook her head. “When we get somewhere quiet where we can talk, I’ll listen. In the meantime…”

“Please,” he said. “Tsara caught me by surprise. I didn’t realize what she was doing and by the time I did… Well, she’s has never taken well to being told no, and the results can be… explosive.” He swallowed.

Aliya crossed her arms over her chest. Her heart twisted. She wanted his words to be true. For all the blame for their kiss to be laid at Tsara’s feet.