Page 63 of Between Two Kings

“A protest?”

“Yes.”

“A protest for what?”

But how to explain it? On the surface, the villagers were protesting the royals, lamenting the sudden drop in food now that the bloodletting had ceased. But a deeper undercurrent ran through their unrest, and ultimately, their wrath was directed at the basilisks—at Caspen.

“Without the bloodletting, there isn’t enough food to go around,” Tem said carefully.

Caspen listened with barely restrained anger. It radiated off him in waves, pushing against the edges of her mind. “They should have thought of the consequences before cutting my people open.”

Tem had nothing to say to that. In Caspen’s eyes, the punishment fit the crime. “Jonathan and Christopher are dead,” she continued, keeping her voice as calm as possible, knowing that it was Caspen who had killed them. “The villagers are angry.”

Caspen snorted. “Their anger is of no concern to me.”

“It should be.”

“And why is that?”

“Because they’re already protesting the royals. If they don’t get the response they want, they may take matters into their own hands. They may direct their anger here.”

Another snort. “Do you truly think the villagers can hurt us?”

Tem thought about the bloodlust she’d seen in their eyes—the way they’d stormed the guards on the steps of the church. She thought about how good Gabriel was at organizing. “Yes,” she said quietly. “I do.”

The first war between the humans and the basilisks had been won with mirrored shields, after all. It was the humans, at the end of the day, who had prevailed. Why couldn’t they do so again?

“If that is true, you should not have gone in the first place.”

“I didn’t mean to. It just sort of happened—”

“You should know better than to endanger yourself when you are the queen.”

“But I—”

Caspen placed his hands on either side of her head. “I love you,” he whispered, his breath fluttering over her face. “But I cannot protect you from every threat.”

“Nothing’s going to happen to me,” she insisted. “I promise.”

“You cannot make such a promise.”

Finally, Tem understood what this was about. Caspen was scared for her. He’d seen his family and his people get massacred by the humans for centuries. Now, with tensions rising, he didn’t want the same thing to happen to her.

“I’m fine, Caspen. It’s Gabriel that I’m worried about. And my parents.”

Caspen shook his head. “Your parents are under our protection. They will not be harmed.”

“And Gabriel?”

Caspen pursed his lips.

Tem squared her shoulders. “He’s my best friend, Caspen. I don’t want him to starve because of me.”

“He will not starve.”

“How do you know?”

“Because I will always protect those you love, Tem. And if you believe otherwise, you do not know me at all.”