Page 40 of Knight's End
“Deceased?” It killed me that I had to ask it nonchalantly.
“Yes, Your Majesty.”
Another noble family smashed apart. My thoughts flew to Agatha and Willard. I realized that I didn’t even know if the pair had survived the attack on the castle.
Ryan took over after that—asking about what few Elven weapons we had on hand. “Get a contingent together. Take those Elven weapons with you; they’ll cleave through wish-created creatures,” Ryan advised. “Send any citizens here.”
The commander saluted again before leaving the room.
Shite, shite, shite.
“They think I’m dead and that they’ve destroyed our capital, but Raj is still sending people after our provinces?” I raged.
I didn’t hear Blue and Quinn enter the room until Blue walked up behind me. “I’m sorry,” he said. “My father’s a locust. He won’t stop until everything here is a wasteland.”
To my surprise, and his, my hand reached out and automatically clamped around his. But I needed someone to hold onto or I was going to lose it. I was going blind with panic and fury. I needed the warm, dry feel of his palm covering mine to anchor me. I turned and stared into his eyes, which reflected back my own agony. Was my country about to be lost? Were we completely without the hope of any ally? “We need help,” I ground out.
"The only other possibility is Gitmore," Declan said.
I froze and stared at him. "What on earth can we possibly give Gitmore to convince them to ally with us? My mother always said their queen was beyond unreasonable—"
A throat cleared behind me. But when I turned, I didn’t see another soldier. One of my least favorite people appeared. It looked like Jorad had survived the attack on the castle after all. I briefly wondered if Donaloo had unfrozen him or if the steward had fled the castle. He was so attached to these stone walls; I didn’t think it likely he would have left.
I turned to look at him, abandoning our current conversation. I might not have cared for Willard, but he was one of my nobles. The portly man had done me a good turn recently. He’d just lost at least one of his fathers to the djinn. And Jorad cared for Willard. “Did he make it?” I asked.
Jorad’s lips thinned and he gave a brief shake of his head.
Willard had been killed by the explosives in the noble’s wing then. Surprisingly, the thought that he was gone made my heart ache. I reached my free hand for Jorad, but he stepped back, staying formal and inclining his head.
“Did any of the nobles in the wing make it?” I asked.
“Fer, Orunta. The pixie Sunya. Duchess Kycee and her entourage left early so Connor’s family wasn’t even here during the attack.”
I felt like he’d hit me over the head with a log. “That’s it?”
Malia had been a traitor. Agatha was gone. Duke Aiden and his wife were also dead. Nearly half my noble families had been wiped out in a night.
“What’s the death count?” I couldn’t dwell on emotions. I needed to deal in numbers until the shock wore off. Then I’d figure out what to do next.
“One-hundred-ninety-three, Your Majesty.”
I nodded. “You’ll take care of funeral arrangements at the crown’s expense—”
Jorad nodded. “Already begun.”
I pressed my lips together and took a moment to regain my composure. “How many frozen?”
“Six-hundred-eighty two, including the entire kitchen staff.”
My hand started to fly to my neck, but I stopped it halfway. I had to maintain control of myself. “We’ll need to get food brought in for whomever shelters—”
“It’s been done.”
As much as I didn’t really enjoy him as a person, Jorad was efficient.
“How is it you weren’t frozen?” Declan called out.
I wanted to smack my scholar. Sometimes, tact was not his forte.
