Page 39 of Fate and Fury

She rolled her eyes. “You disrespected me. I showed you your place. You’re not the Kniaz, to whom I owe fealty; you’re merely one of his emissaries. So speak, already. This is growing tiresome.”

“I had every intention of speaking, before you used your…your…” He flapped an ineffectual hand in her direction, and she fought the urge to laugh. Her amusement must have shown on her face, because the man’s cheeks reddened. When he spoke, his voice was tight, each syllable clipped.

“I am Andrei Borodin, lieutenant of the Velikii Kniaz, nobleman of Iriska. These are my companions, also employed in His Grace’s service.” He gestured at the other two men.

“When the Dimi Nadia Dobrow and her Shadow paid a visit to Rivki on their way to the Magiya, to reveal what had transpired and to ask for aid, it was…quite revelatory. Imagine the Kniaz’s surprise to discover that you and your Shadow were responsible for defeating an army of Grigori single-handedly.” He raised his bushy eyebrows at Katerina, his gaze flicking behind her to Niko.

“We had no choice,” Katerina said, her voice flat. “They would have killed us.”

“Be that as it may.” He matched her tone. “Choice is one thing, Dimi Ivanova. Ability, another. When questioned, Dimi Dobrow informed us that your control of all four elements renders you capable of great things. The Kniaz is willing to forgive your deception, in this time of great need. He will pardon you and your Shadow, along with your Baba and your village.”

His lip curled as he gestured at the citizens of Kalach, so humble in appearance compared to the finery of Rivki’s denizens. But Katerina couldn’t care less about his contempt. At the knowledge that the Kniaz wouldn’t make them pay for keeping her secret, a weight lifted from her heart. Just as quickly, though, another took its place.

“If you’re not here to exact punishment,” she said slowly, “then what do you want?”

He folded his beefy arms across his chest. “Given the danger that is afoot, the Kniaz requires the best protection available. He demands that you and your Shadow ride back to Rivki with us at once.”

Katerina’s brain churned. Her stomach did the same, clenching until she feared she might eject the contents of last night’s stew onto the stones of the square. “Leave with you now? But it’s not—we still have a year until the second round of the Trials?—”

Andrei smirked, the satisfaction on his face unmistakable. “Not so brave now, are you? Come, witchchild. Pack what pitiful possessions you own. Have no fear; the Kniaz will supply you with satins and silks soon enough. Perhaps”—his gaze raked over Katerina—“he’ll want even more than that. He’s fond of spitfires, after all.”

Next to her, Niko snarled, the fury that emanated from him palpable. If he leapt to her defense now, it might trigger a violentaltercation that could compromise Kalach. Worse still, it would show Andrei that she needed her Shadow to defend her honor. And Katerina was perfectly capable of speaking up for herself.

“Why is it,” she said, giving Andrei her most charming smile, “that unimaginative, petty little men would rather envision a powerful woman on her back than on the battlefield? Because I assure you, should the Kniaz value me for my fire, I would rather it be for the flames I can call to my hand than the passion I might ignite with my body.”

The villagers gasped, and Andrei’s knuckles whitened on his palomino’s reins. “You dare to call me unimaginative and petty?” he said, his lip curling. “You will pay for that, witchchild. As the Kniaz’s right hand, there is nothing little about the power I wield.” He drew himself up, one hand on his smallsword’s hilt. “Call me names here, if you like, in the heart of your sanctuary. You’ll leave this village soon enough. And when you do, I’ll be waiting.”

The growl in Niko’s chest rose to a roar that filled the square. Before Katerina could stop him, he lunged for Andrei, throwing him from his horse. Then the two of them were wrestling on the stones, Niko in human form but so enraged that the growls rattling from him sounded as if they were ripped from the throat of his black dog.

Andrei’s horse, unsettled by the commotion, reared again and again. Its hooves came down repeatedly on the stones, mere feet from Niko’s head. The two other emissaries had drawn their smallswords, but their gazes flickered back and forth between the battle on the stones and Katerina’s fellow Dimis, who had come to stand behind her in solidarity. Their Shadows growled as one, the menacing sound ricocheting off the wood-fronted shops that surrounded the square.

Katerina threw Baba Petrova and the Elders a desperate glance, but they simply stood there, faces impassive. For themto call a halt to this would demean Niko, to suggest he couldn’t defend himself, and by extension, Katerina. It would weaken her Shadow forever in the eyes of these men and the others that served the Kniaz. To keep his position as alpha—as a Shadow worthy of fighting by her side—he must triumph on his own.

But if Niko persisted—if he couldn’t stomach the insinuation that the Kniaz wanted…

It was an insult, to be sure. But would a Shadow typically react with such vehemence, if he didn’t have inappropriate feelings for his Dimi? If he hadn’t bedded her the night of his betrothal, told her he had loved her all his life?

What had he said that night in the clearing?When you told me that the Kniaz wanted you, it took every bit of my restraint not to hunt him down, nobleman or no.

It felt as if every eye in the square had fallen upon her, as if they were all staring. As if they could tell. As if theyknew?—

Niko was on top of Andrei now, his blade at the man’s throat. But the man was fighting viciously, struggling to draw his smallsword.

If this oaf damaged a hair on her Shadow’s head, she would kill him. She wouldn’t be able to help herself. And what would the villagers and the Kniaz’s remaining minions think then?

Her magic rose, called by her rage and frustration, and she let it come. The wind bent the birch trees as it swept toward her, and she lifted one hand, shaping it, directing it. Concentrating hard, she wrapped its cold fingers around Andrei, immobilizing his legs, then his torso, then his arms. She left his head alone; it was worth it to see his stunned expression when he realized he couldn’t move. His eyes darted back and forth, terrified, and his hand rose to his chest, struggling to make it rise and fall.

A satisfied smile lifted Katerina’s lips. He deserved this and more, for insulting her and threatening Niko. Let him suffer. Let him wonder at what a Dimi and her Shadow could do.

“You’re suffocating him,” Ana whispered from behind her. “If he dies here, Katerina, there will be trouble.”

With a sigh, Katerina lifted both hands and called the wind once more. It came, blasting Andrei through the air. He flew into the grove of birches, and she resisted the urge to slam him into a tree. Instead, she dropped him—very kindly, she thought, given the circumstances—into a clump of ferns next to the path. He fell with a thump and a crash, and didn’t move.

“You’ve killed him!” one of Andrei’s companions howled. “Make no mistake, you will pay for this, witch!”

Her magic settled back inside her, satisfied and sated, like a cat curling up in front of a roaring fire. Katerina smirked, and Baba Petrova shot her an exasperated look. She ignored it. If Baba didn’t like how Katerina had solved the problem, thensheshould have intervened. This was what Baba got for standing there like a lump of coal while this moronthreatened her and suggested that the Kniaz take Katerina as…what? His replacement courtesan? His plaything?

Dimis could choose their own mates, true—but if the Kniaz choseher,refusing wouldn’t be so simple. Most would see it as a great honor, an act of service to the realm second only to serving in the Druzhina.

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