Allegiance (River of Souls 3)

“She lives,” said Jannik Maier. “And now we must talk.”

* * *

NIGHT HAD FALLEN during the interlude she spent gripped in magic. Far to the north, along the valley, a faint blue and gray lined the horizon, but the skies above had turned to dark, with only a handful of stars visible through the thick clouds. Ryz itself lay asleep, except for one or two houses, their windows lit by the dull red of a dying fire.

Jannik Maier led Ilse away from the Rudny household, up the now-familiar path to his own, perched above the village. A house built for a wife and several children, now occupied by a solitary man. Ilse passed over the threshold and shivered at the thought of so many dead, and those who would never be.

A fire burned in the spacious hearth. There was no other illumination, except for faint starlight spilling through the half-open shutters, but she had not expected it. Candles and lamps were a luxury in Ryz.

Jannik motioned for her to sit. Ilse sank onto the bench by the fire, and watched with growing apprehension as he paced from one end of his house to the other. Just when she thought she would have to ask him why he had insisted on this interview, he swung around to face her.

“Karel Hasek returned today. He said there were no proper supplies to be had in Vlaky, so he went north to Dubro. There he learned any number of things he could not bear to keep secret from Ryz. Our king is dead. Assassinated by foreign spies, the rumors say. Rastov lies under strict rule by the army, while the council searches for the murderers. Since then, Duke Miro Karasek fled the kingdom to avoid arrest by the imperial representatives.”

He stared at her, angry. Ryz was a border village with mixed allegiance. For months or years, that mixture did not matter, but with the news of Leos Dzavek’s death, it did.

“I did not kill the king,” she said.

“But you knew of his death. I can tell by your face. Are you spies? That is what Karel believes. And if I know him, he’s said as much to the guards at Dubro.”

“I am not a spy.”

“Then what are you?”

She could lie. She could deny any connection with Leos Dzavek and his death. It was an unfortunate coincidence, the news of his murder and her arrival at the border, seeking passage into Veraene. Jannik might believe her. That he asked implied he did not wholly trust Karel Hasek’s accusations.

She folded her hands one within the other. Considered the past two months. These hands had killed. They had wiped the air clean of their acts, but she could not erase her own memories. If she had learned one lesson from her past lives, it was to confront the truth.

“I was there when Leos died,” she said softly. “I did not kill him. I would say he died because the gods wished it. Or he had lost his humanity. Or any number of grandiose reasons. But the truth is he died because he fought his brother, and this time, his brother won.”

His face went still in shock. He rubbed a hand over his face, then stared hard at her. “Do you claim to be innocent, then?”

“No, not innocent, but—”

“But you did nothing to stop it.”

Ilse shook her head. “There was no time. The jewels…” But she could not explain how the jewels worked their magic through Valara, so that they might gain their own freedom. “I did not,” she said at last. “I could not. In the end, I believe he accepted his death.”

“So you say.” Jannik spoke in a hoarse whisper. “What brought you to Rastov? Why must you cross the border?”

“Peace brought me to Rastov,” she said. “Peace takes me home again.”

She felt the weight of Karasek’s letter beneath her shirt. It was heavy from all the dead—Galena, Raul’s guards, Dedrick, and the many others who worked for peace between the kingdoms. Even her own death, four hundred years ago.

“He thought me a traitor,” she said softly. “He thought I betrayed him. That is why he had me executed, when he was a new king and we were at war with the empire.”

Jannik Maier flinched. “A fine revenge then, to watch him die.”

“It was not. It was…” Her voice broke and she felt the sting of tears in her eyes. “I never wished him dead. I wanted the end to war, then and now. I cannot tell you more, but this much I can swear: I bring a letter to Armand of Angersee, offering a chance for true peace between our kingdoms.”

A very long silence followed.

Jannik stirred at last. “I cannot tell if I should believe you. I wish … It doesn’t matter what I wish. My duty is to Ryz first, then the kingdom. You and Bela Sovic are a danger to us. You must both leave Ryz. Tomorrow.”

* * *

IT WAS A compromise of allegiance, Ilse thought later, alone in the barn, wrapped in several layers of blankets against the bitter cold. In the stall next to her, Duska blew a rattling breath, as if she shared Ilse’s conclusion.

My duty is to Ryz, then the kingdom, Jannik had said.