Page 14 of The Prince and the Ice King

“Is that what you saw when you touched me?”

“I….”

Reardon turned to look at his friend, sitting on the edge of his bed. Barclay had brought him several more articles of clothing, traded out for the others now that they knew his size, but he’d decided to stick with the dark red and marigold doublet for now.

“Please don’t make me say it,” Barclay said, staring down at his knees. “I saw you, I’ll admit that much, and you were smiling, but I… I don’t know.”

“It can’t be all bad if I was smiling.” Reardon joined him on the bed, creaking the plush mattress as he sat. “You don’t have to say more. We’ll find out together, like we always do. I know that being here is the right thing, no matter what happens to me. I don’t suppose you could simply tell me about this place—the king, his people, the curse?”

“I don’t know everything, but I can’t say much. We’re not supposed to let certain things slip to the sacrifice the first few nights.”

“Why not?”

“In case you were a criminal. There have been some sent here, in the past, who deserved to be condemned.”

“We’re in trouble, then, since I’m such a heinous brigand.” Reardon chuckled.

Barclay chuckled too, but his posture was slouched and his shoulders tight with tension.

“Can you really not answer anything? Because I don’t understand how Branwen is master of arms but didn’t turn my sword belt to flames.”

Barclay had returned Reardon’s belt and the sword it had sheathed, which were both warm to the touch but not singed or marred.

His dagger was still missing, though….

“They can control their touch if it’s on something not living,” Barclay explained. “They still give off, well, heat for Bran, that tingly feeling around Liam, and so on, but they can choose to not alter objects. It’s things that are alive that are the problem.”

“Even plants? Birds?”

“Anything….” Barclay looked away, a shadow crossing his face.

“You’ve seen them? Kill things?”

“No,” he said fervently, as if desperate to defend them. “But it can be useful with pests. You’ll never find any rodents or insects here, aside from the ones we want, like bees for honey. And, well, there was a thief a few months back….”

“I saw him.”

Barclay’s eyes widened.

“He made a fitting lesson from the king.”

That caused Barclay to shiver as if the Ice King was in their presence now, and Reardon got the impression that the king didn’t walk among his people the way the others did. The lack of ice trails everywhere but in his chamber proved that.

“That’s it, then? Pests and people who threaten this place?”

“And….” Barclay trailed off once more, twiddling his thumbs in his lap. “Veryrarely, but… sometimes there are accidents.”

Reardon felt a stir of nausea, imagining statues made of ice or gold, piles of ash from fire and lightning, and the nothing left behind from those who wentpoof. “What do they do with—”

“Are you going to keep everyone waiting?” Zephyr appeared like a ghost, just suddenly there inside Reardon’s room. He must be able to pass right through the door. “Hurry along now, pretty prince,” he said, and vanished again just as quickly.

“Does he often do that?” Reardon rose from the bed with a scowl.

“Basically always.” Barclay followed suit. “You get used to it.”

“Should I…?” Reardon gestured back at his sword belt hanging from a handle on the wardrobe. “I mean, I usually have it for banquets. It’s part of proper dress.”

“Reardon, you’re not in Emerald anymore,” Barclay said with a slight smirk. “This is a nice banquet. I had mine last year, after all. But it isn’tproper. Come on.” He grasped Reardon’s hand to drag him to the door. “I’ll introduce you to my friends. You don’t have a specific place to sit. You can sit by me.”

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