Page 25 of The Blood Traitor

“You forget, your sister rules those armies now. And if they don’t yield to her, then her rebels will clear the way.”

She shook her head. “Jaren and Caldon will stop you. Ashlyn, too.”Caldon’s sister was the general of Evalon’s forces. From everything Kiva had heard, there was no way she’d allow Mirraven to succeed.

Navok grinned. “I’d like to see them try.”

Kiva changed tactics. “You don’t know Zuleeka. You speak of pawns, but now that she has the crown, she’ll never give it up.”

The dark look in Navok’s eyes deepened. “She won’t have a choice.” He downed the last of his liquor. “Whether she acknowledges it or not, your sister is merely keeping my new throne warm.”

Kiva snorted. Clearly the king had yet to witness Zuleeka’s death magic. Once he did, maybethenhe would realize he’d chosen the wrong sister to tie himself to.

“I can see this amuses you,” Navok said. “If you think I’m unaware of your sister’s...skills... then you’re sorely mistaken. But I’m not without my own weapons. One of which isyou, my dear bride.”

Any humor Kiva felt vanished at the reminder.

Before she could ask what he meant, he continued, his tone lightening, “Speaking of which, I have a wedding gift for you.”

He curled his fingers around her elbow, herding her forward.

“Come with me,” he said, uncaring that she was trying to tug her way free. “I think you’ll like this.”

Giving her no choice, Navok escorted her from his receiving room, the two Gray Guards who had been stationed outside the doors falling into step behind them.

Kiva still had so many questions, but after everything she’d just learned, her mind had gone blank, switching to survival mode. During their entire walk through the castle and down lengthy stone staircases, she remained silent, gathering her thoughts — and her courage — for whatever the king was leading her toward.

Only when they were deep underground did Kiva begin struggling anew, because she now realized where Navok was taking her.

The dungeons.

“Settle,” he murmured, tightening his grip. “I told you, I have a wedding gift for you. We won’t stay long — once you’ve met him, we’ll leave again.”

Him?Kiva stopped trying to free herself, her curiosity — and her dread — piqued.

After navigating a complicated labyrinth of cold stone corridors and passing numerous Gray Guards patrolling more cells than Kiva had ever seen in one place, including Zalindov, Navok finally came to a stop.

In front of them was a set of rusty iron bars leading to small space lit by a single luminium lantern affixed to the obsidian wall. In the corner of the cell was a thin pallet piled high with raggedy blankets — or so Kiva thought, until those blanketsmoved.

Suddenly, there was a man forming out of them, standing slowly as he realized he had company. He’d been roughed up by the guards, his weathered face mottled with bruises and swelling, and he was swaying unsteadily on his feet. To Kiva’s relief, there was nothing familiar about him, not his greasy shoulder-length dark hair with hints of gray, nor the unkempt beard that grew on his square jaw. His soulful brown eyes, however, were locked on hers — and wide with shock.

“Kiva?” he rasped, his deep voice barely audible from lack of use.

Unconsciously, Kiva stepped backwards, but she was halted by Navok’s hand.

“Allow me to introduce you to Galdric Shaw,” the king said, his handsome features entertained as he watched for her reaction. “As you may be aware, he was a close acquaintance of your mother’s. He’ll be able to tell you anything you wish to know about her from the ten years you were parted.” Navok gestured to the bruised man with his free hand. “Consider him yours to interrogate at your leisure.”

Kiva gaped at the man, now realizing exactly who he was — the once-leader of the rebels, her mother’s mentor and friend. She couldn’t believe he was standing before her.

Mostly, because he was meant to be dead.

Galdric was the first to realize she was gone, and he went after her, probably trying to stop her,Torell had said, when revealing how Tilda had snuck out of the rebel camp to head to Mirraven.But he never came back. All we found was his cloak, covered in blood.

Tor and Zuleeka had assumed Galdric had been killed by Tilda, claiming she wasn’t in her right mind toward the end. But whether or not Tilda had attacked him, he’d clearly survived, after which he must have followed her all the way to Zadria.

Kiva did a quick mental calculation, deducing that Tilda had arrived at Zalindov six months ago. That meant Galdric had been locked in Navok’s dungeon for half a year, presumed dead by the rebels, with no hope of freedom.

“Is it really you?” Galdric croaked out, staggering closer to the bars. His gaze remained locked on hers, and then he whispered, “It is. You have your mother’s eyes.”

All the breath fled Kiva as she realized this man had known her mother better than perhaps anyone. He knew how Tilda had changed from a woman who had never wanted to touch her magic, to someone who had used it freely to heal others, and then to the person who had succumbed to evil and become a monster. He’d witnessed her at every point in the journey. He had answers to questions Kiva didn’t know how tobeginasking.

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