Rayne hesitated, keeping his eyes locked on the remains of his own salad. He was afraid to meet Shey’s eyes. The man knew him. He’d be able to read the truth, and he couldn’t yet decide if it was safe to tell him. Rayne trusted him, but it was Caelan’s life that was on the line.
A soft beep of his phone had Rayne putting his fork down and pulling out his phone. It was only a brief message from Eno. He was on the university campus. Yes, that would be a good place to search for Caelan and Drayce, but there was no word of their discovery.
“Problem?” Shey inquired.
“Yes, but it is being investigated now.”
“Rayne, please let me help you. Even if you feel like you can’t trust my mother, you must know that you can trust me.”
Rayne frowned at him. “You would never help me if it meant betraying your people.”
Shey flashed him a smile. “Yes, but I know that you would never ask anything of me that would be a betrayal of my people. We are not aligned with the Empire. We will never be aligned with them or their puppet nations. You know this of me.”
Staring into Shey’s eyes, he had to admit that he did know this. He knew Shey. There was no doubt of his integrity or his sense of what was morally right. Shey was as dedicated to the honor and sovereignty of Caspagir as Rayne was to Erya. Just one of the reasons they couldn’t be together. Rayne was dedicated to Erya.
But Shey would never side with New Rosanthe. It was why Rayne had always struggled with the idea of the trip to Caspagir being a trap. Caspagir might not be as warm and inviting as Ilon, but that didn’t mean they weren’t trusted allies.
Rayne took a deep breath and prayed his instincts were right. “Prince Caelan is alive, and he is in Sirelis right now.”
The silence that followed Rayne’s announcement was broken by the loud clatter of Shey’s fork against his plate. His mouth fell open, but no words came out. He stood suddenly, tossing his cloth napkin into his chair. “We must go. We must—”
“There is a problem,” Rayne said evenly.
Shey dropped into his seat and frowned. “Yes, I’m sure there is. There are a hell of a lot of problems right now.” He shook his head and motioned toward his untouched plate of pasta and seafood. “But you must eat. I’m sure you’ve not been enjoying your usual palace fare recently and you’ve always been such a picky eater.”
Rayne frowned at his companion, but he bit his tongue as he pushed aside his empty salad bowl and pulled his plate closer.
A low chuckle wrapped around him like an embrace and Shey started to eat his pasta as well. “I’m not wrong, Rayne. I know you.”
“I’m not that picky.”
“Shallow Edge…that was you?” Shey gasped suddenly. “We just got a report from a Captain Hopewell that said the Empire had experienced some unexpected trouble one night and they were able to retake the base.”
“Yes, that was us. Sorry about that. A patrol recognized Caelan. We thought it best to eliminate them before they could send word about him to anyone else.”
Shey shook his head. “No, we are in your debt. Thank you. After what happened to Queen Amara and Erya, I have little doubt that New Rosanthe’s emperor has the same plans for us. It is only a matter of time. We need to be rid of them completely.”
“What are they doing in your kingdom, though? You said they took the base and then nothing.”
“Yes, and it doesn’t make any sense. They have been moving through the Ordas near our border. They strike quickly, take the base, and remain locked inside. Occasionally supplies are brought in through the Ordas.”
He and his companions had not seen the Empire in the Ordas, but that didn’t mean anything since the Ordas was so vast. It was unnerving that the Empire felt comfortable sending its troops through that region, though.
“What about your other borders? The one you share with Zastrad? Or even along your shorelines?”
Shey shook his head. “No. It seems they are interested in the Ordas.”
“This makes no sense.”
“What about your prince? What can we do to help?”
“We need information first. Have you heard anything out of Erya? We’ve been unable to get in contact with any of the military leaders. We don’t know where they’ve taken the stone.”
Shey offered up a weak smile. “We have a few people left inside of Erya, but news has been incredibly sparse. I think the remains of your military inside the city have gone underground and we are trying to establish reliable lines of contact so we can offer assistance.”
“Can you get us a secret meeting with your mother?”