Page 134 of The Dragon Queen

“Yes, they will.”

This was the same man eager to use dragonfire to achieve his aims, I had to remind myself. He was not my friend, not anyone’s friend if I was truthful. I’m not even sure I knew what he was like as a person. My focus slipped to the many insignias on his dress uniform, the medals and honours pinned there. This wasn’t a man talking to me, a stand-in father figure. He was the establishment.

The same group that told me I couldn’t have the seamstress of my choice. The ones that refused to allow me to elevate some of the ladies of the keep to my court. It wouldn’t do to have commonwomen mixing with highborn ones, as if they were two different species rather than women born in different circumstances. I was discouraged from going to the keep, from attending classes with the other cadets, from doing all the things I had done up until this point, because the role of a queen was a full-time one.

My hand went to my chest because it was heaving now, fighting to take a full breath. My head started to spin as my lungs burned. My hands shook as I reached for the lacing of the corset, but it was buried under layers of fabric. I was buried under this dress. I wanted to move, pace, something, but I couldn’t.

“The king is seeing what he wants to see, because he can’t bear the thought of losing the two of you. This is why I’ve approached you, my queen, not him. In some ways, he’s just like his mother. Headstrong, where he should be pragmatic. Ruled by his emotions.”

“His heart, you mean,” I rasped out.

“The heart has no place in the running of government.” His lips thinned. “In peace or in war. I’m sure you are feeling emboldened after the victory at Blackreach. I admit, I may have been a little overzealous in my desire to win the day.”

A snort escaped me. I stared at him, wondering at the labyrinthine logic he was forced to use to come to that conclusion.

“But you were lucky, Pippa.” He stared at me steadily, not even looking away as Glimmer let out a low growl. “As was Draven. All of you were. It could’ve all gone terribly wrong, and then it would be Stefan standing in front of the altar today, not Draven. You think you’ve won the day and all you need to do is live happily ever after, but that couldn’t be further from the truth. Now is when the real work begins.”

He thrust the pen and the paper at me.

“You aren’t a child, so now is the time to put aside childish things. This marriage, the little… arrangement you have with the rest of the wing, it needs to come to an end.”

“No…”

“There are moves to give the Royal Riders greater freedoms.” Admitting this was almost painful for the general. “To allow them tolive out on their own land and raise a family. The fact that was enough to sway some many riders’ loyalty has not gone unnoticed. If they are to become bannermen rather than a standing army, then…” One brow lifted. “Each one of the wing would be based outside of the capital.”

“No.”

“Able to pursue a relationship with a woman that could give him her whole heart.”

“No.”

My voice was getting firmer with each denial.

“One who could be a real wife to him. Have children, build a home.” I was shaking my head violently, threatening to dislodge this damn wig. “Live a happy and fulfilling life. Do you want to take that opportunity from them?”

“No…”

I barely breathed that one out, my eyes starting to ache abominably.

“Sign the paper, Pippa. Sign it and free the men from a miserable fate. Sign and keep the country safe and secure, otherwise…” Just a tiny twitch at the corner of his lips. I’d never have caught it if I wasn’t watching him so closely. “I may be forced to use that cache of dragonfire Stefan is now working so hard to return to the family estate. For the protection of the country, obviously. Marcus Lighthands thinks he can use the power of the people to change Nevermere, but he has no idea what he’s messing with.”

I couldn’t have felt more cold if Glacier had burst in through the balcony and turned me to ice. My body shivered then, able to see clearly what he intended. My father always said that if all you had was a hammer, everything looked like a nail, and that was the general. I wished like hell we’d never gone to Stefan’s estate, never brought forth Aisenbran’s blood. It was a curse that lay hidden for generations for exactly this reason. Men saw the raw power of the weapons and couldn’t help but think of how it could be used to achieve their aims.

No matter the cost.

“I need to go,” I said, grabbing my skirts and feeling the weightof them and the train, tugging at the fabric but not moving an inch. The dress was a symbol of wealth and royal status, beautiful but utterly unmanageable without the help of my ladies.

“Pippa—”

“I need to go. I need to find Draven.”

“The king will confirm?—”

“Let him tell me himself.” I stopped, heart racing so fast I could feel every beat. I felt like a deer caught in a snare and the hunter was approaching. The general didn’t have a bow or a sword to drive into my heart. Just a pen instead. “Bring him here and get him to tell me what you just said. That…” I was going to cry. That knowledge had my teeth clenching tightly as I tried to fight the urge with everything I had. “That everything he said was a lie.”

“Now, Highness, I’m not?—”

He was using that tone men use to mollify women, but I wasn’t having it. We’d had this fight before, and I was done fencing.

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