Page 4 of The Queens and the Kings
Henrik’s eyes glittered. “The opposite is true, General. She was of great help to me, and I was grateful to repay, however small.”
His gallant words, spoken with a touch of frost, sounded like a reproach. Britt hid a delighted giggle. What Pedr would have given to hearthatdelivery!
General Helsing’s reply responded with glacial measure. “I am sure you’retookind. Britt, go to my office. Henrik, you have a visitor waiting for you. While I speak with Britt, you may speak with him.”
A touch of confusion twisted Henrik’s lips.
Him?
Who would visit Henrik here? His jaw shifted forward, a subtle giveaway that he’d fallen into deep thought. She had only recently understood the sign for what it was.
A snap of General Helsing’s fingers brought a young girl named Nina to her side. Nina beamed a bright smile at Britt. She returned it with a wink.
“Nina, please take Henrik to our other guest. Britt, with me.”
Henrik met Britt’s gaze with a silent question. Unseen Island formed an undeniable loyalty between them. Since their departure from that horrid place, he watched out for her with the intensity of a sea hawk. Her heart skipped a beat when she realized he soughtpermission. Sorely tempted to beg him to take her with him, she nodded him to his visitor instead.
He reluctantly peeled his focus off her. To General Helsing, he said, “Thank you, General,” and executed a perfect bow.
Following Nina’s footsteps, he strode across the open space, cluttered with chairs, and took Britt’s courage with him. Every Kapurnickkian present turned to watch him as he passed. He acted oblivious to their stares, but she knew he took each islander in. He commanded attention with a confident stride, the set of his shoulders.
Henrik glanced back once, gave her a firm nod, and vanished in a far hallway. Britt’s singing heart refused to calm. Blessed mermaids.
The man couldwalk.
General Helsing watched him go with a calculated gleam in her eyes. “Let’s get this over with, Britt. I have another, more important, meeting in thirty minutes.”
Chapter Three
HENRIK
Henrik struggledto take Kapurnick in.
Although he’d traveled the outer isles that ringed the main Kapurnick island and met with a few dragul Keepers, he knewnothingof . . . the undermountain. It stretched farther than fifteen ships of the line back to back, a hidden cache of humanity.
Out there, Kapurnick islanders reverentially spoke about Dragul Mountain, but he’d never known a worldexisted beneath. Did they keep the hollowed out space secret for a reason, or had he simply not discovered it?
Brilliant, quiet, luxurious, daunting. The descriptions swamped him, even as he eyed the rilly rocks and occasional security concerns. There weren’t many. As a stronghold, the Kapurnickkians had it in hand.
Also, the gold.
It . . . glowed.
The tiny flows of light sparkled against bedrock like thrown glitter. Or stars. Arcane, obviously. Until he spent a year touring around The Isles, he forgot the arcane existed. Theweird abilities it gave, folktale rumors of long-dead Arcanists, all existed as children’s stories on Stenberg.
If it was arcane, who maintained it? How did they find it? Was it safe to use it so . . . brazenly? The questions didn’t cease as he passed beneath sparkling window panes the size of a frigate. The rustle of papers, murmuring people, shuffling wings, drakes flying overhead with messages clutched in their talons, created a bustling yet cozy escape.
Pedr and his flotilla of arcane strangeness drove Henrik’s vulnerable position home. His Glory enslaved the soldats, turned them into killing machines, and cut them off from the wonders of the world.
Wonders likethis.
Nina led him to the far side, through a wide tunnel, and stopped at a brass door handle bigger than her fist. She gripped the outer edge and tugged it open. As the door creaked toward her, a familiar man appeared. He stood on the other side of a moderately-sized room, staring right at Henrik.
Sharp gray eyes, inquisitive stare, square face. The ready shoulders and thick arms were immediately recognizable.
Captain Arvid.
Arvid smiled. “Henrik,” he drawled. “It isgoodto see you again.”
