I bit my tongue to keep from saying the truth. She couldn’t possibly believe the things she was saying, unless … unless she did. Unless Endrick had done more than erase certain memories from her. What if he had replaced them with a belief that her happiness began and ended with obedience to him?
And if she truly believed that, how was I ever to convince her otherwise? To tell her that she had no Dallisor blood, but instead was half Endrean, just like Lord Endrick, and half Halderian, the enemy clan to the Dallisors. I’d never convince her that Lord Endrick had planned this marriage upon Basil’s promise to kill her on their wedding night. The lifetime of happiness she anticipated wasn’t even supposed to last until midnight.
Kestra spent the next half hour of our ride warning me that Lord Endrick’s armies would already be on our trail, that his oropods would eat me alive, and that if I happened to survive, I would be hung where the crows could make mincemeat of my body. Eventually, I stopped listening.
Despite her threats, I breathed easier once we passed the Sentries, the two enormous statues outside Highwyn, one that greeted visitors to the capital and the other that offered a farewell. From there, I planned to turn us east and stick to the coastline as much as possible. This route would offer us plenty of caves in which to hide until I figured out a way to restore her memories.
If there was a way. I might sooner darken the sun than break through Lord Endrick’s magic.
We were still within easy sight of the Sentries when I spotted our first sign of trouble, though it wasn’t what I’d expected.
Captain Tenger was seated on horseback beside a girl I didn’t recognize. Her naturally red lips, skin a shade darker than mine, and nearly translucent white hair immediately gave away her origins. She was from Brill, the neighboring country to the east. Brillians generally kept to themselves and rarely left their own borders. The exception to that rule was directly in front of me with a disk bow ready to fire and a lever blade at her side. Beside her, Tenger looked furious.
Good, because I was more than angry with him.
I halted my horse, then tightened my arms around Kestra. Her breaths had become shallow, as if she was trying to figure out whether Tenger was rescuing her or whether he was the real threat.
I knew the answer. He was a very real threat, absolutely, to both of us.
“How’d you know I’d be on this road?” I asked.
“We’ve got people stationed on every road out of Highwyn.” Tenger’s voice was usually stern, but that barely described the chill in his tone now. “You were told not to interfere tonight.”
“Yes, but I don’t take orders from you anymore,” I countered.
Kestra leaned forward. “Please, sir, if you are a man of honor, you will return me to my father.”
Tenger smiled and slid off his horse. He walked over to Kestra and took her hand. “My sweet young lady, I am Captain Grey Tenger, commander of the Corack rebellion. I offer my deepest apologies for all you must have suffered tonight. If you’ll come with me, we’ll make everything right.”
She started to leave, but my hand tightened again around her waist. “He’s no friend to you,” I warned.
“And you are?” She punctuated her question with an elbow to my gut. “You threatened to drag me behind your horse!”
Tenger chuckled, and this time it was genuine. “That’s the Simon I remember! Come back to the Coracks, give me your oath. I need you.”
I shook my head, refusing to look directly at him. Instead, I kept my focus on the Brillian girl’s disk bow still aimed at my chest.
“If you won’t join us, then we have a problem,” Tenger continued. “Obviously I can’t allow you to leave with Lady Dallisor. If you refuse to give her up, then I’ll have to kill you here.” His eyes darkened. “And I will, Simon. You know that I will.”
I did know that. Nor could I start any fight with Tenger right now. Even if I dodged a disk, which was doubtful, I wouldn’t risk Kestra getting hit.
Through gritted teeth, I said, “If you truly believe I’ve abandoned the mission, then you’ll never accept my oath.”
“I’ll never trust you again as I did before, that’s true.” Tenger brushed his hand over his
close-cut beard. “You’ll pay an extra price for leaving us the first time.” His eyes dropped to my sword.
“No.” My sword was not negotiable.
“Very well.” Tenger raised two fingers, ready to signal to the girl beside him. “This is Wynnow, a recent volunteer. As she is a Brillian, you can be sure that her aim is excellent. But will she have to hit Kestra to get you?”
I kept my arm tight around Kestra. Not to make her a target, but because I knew how much more danger she’d be in with Tenger.
Tenger had already tried to kill Kestra once, before she was declared the Infidante. Now that she was, he had promised to support her, but I knew he’d still rather see Trina in that role. I suspected the only reason he hadn’t yet ordered Wynnow to shoot us was because no one knew what had happened to the Olden Blade. Possibly even Kestra didn’t know.
“Make your choice,” Tenger said. “Enough stalling!” Wynnow raised her bow. All she needed was the order to fire.
“Take my sword, and accept my oath.” I hated speaking the words, but there was no other choice. “I’ll return to the Coracks and follow your orders, like before. But Kestra stays with me.”