Page 81 of If The Crown Fits
She opened her mouth to say something, but someone else called her name. Lara and I looked at Ray, who stepped into the circle. “Arthur wants to see you,” he said and Lara pulled herself free.
“This isn’t over,” she threw over her shoulder as she walked away.
* * *
“I think you’re right about not trusting Arthur,” Jack said later as we had a quick lunch. “He’s definitely up to something.”
“The problem is figuring out exactly what,” I replied. “The important thing is remembering that all of this affects Norrandale. And no matter what you do, somewhere, somebody is going to be angry.”
Alastor shoved a piece of bread into his mouth.
“What’s your father going to say?” Conner asked.
“Magnus’s death isn’t exactly a loss for Norrandale and neither would Lance’s imprisonment be. However, if Everness no longer has a monarchy, we have no idea what that could mean for its relations with Norrandale. If Arthur decides to rule, there is a chance of a peace treaty, but he could always decide to turn against us. Everness has a much larger army than Norrandale. It was part of the whole reason for our alliance.”
“But the people of Everness are starving,” Alastor said. “They need the farming lands of Norrandale. They need the grains and to be able to trade across the border.”
“Another war isn’t worth getting thousands of people killed.”
“What about Lara?” Jack asked.
“WhataboutLara?” I repeated.
“You and I both know all of us could be out of here tonight. We could sneak across the border and be back in Norrandale within a couple of days. But you won’t, because you’ve taken a liking to her.”
“It’s not that.” I tried to ignore Conner smiling like a child behind his food. “I suspect something and if it’s true we cannot leave Lara behind.”
“Suspect what?” Jack asked.
I sighed. “I can’t tell you.” They all looked at me in confusion. Even though I trusted these men with my life, I only had a suspicion and little to nothing to back it up. I could be very wrong about it all.
“Look, for now we stick with Arthur, at least pretend we’re aiding them in this rebellion. Until I can find out the truth, for certain. Then we’ll make a plan. There are dangers both in leaving and staying.”
“Just be careful,” Jack warned. “She betrayed you once. She might not hesitate to do it again, if her life should be in danger.”
Chapter 23
The Evernean Forest
Lara
I was carrying a bucket of water from the river when Ray came running up to me. “I need to talk to you,” he said. I hadn’t seen Ray so serious in quite some time.
I grunted as my arm ached from the heavy bucket. “Ray, I’m not exactly in the mood for talking.” It had been a long couple of days and I was looking forward to eating and falling asleep.
“This is important,” Ray persisted. “I wouldn’t be telling you if it wasn’t. You clearly haven’t slept or properly eaten in days and you look half dead.”
I managed half a smile. “Thanks for the honesty,” I muttered sarcastically. “What is this about?”
Ray looked rueful. “It’s about Cai.”
I rolled my eyes. “Seriously, Ray? I know you don’t like him, and at this moment, I’m not exactly fond of him either but—”
Ray wouldn’t let me finish. “This has nothing to do with me.” He stepped in front of me, forcing me to stop walking. “Look, you and Arthur seemed quite eager to strike up a deal with the guy and I don’t trust him, so I did a little digging.”
“You’ve been spying on the Prince of Norrandale?”
“No, of course not. Last night his soldiers had quite a lot more than their share to drink. Not that I could blame them. I would probably overindulge myself as well, had I been imprisoned by Lance. But the one who’s second-in-charge, Jack, we started talking and I asked him questions about how he managed to get such a high position with the prince. Long story short, he told me more than he probably should have, though I don’t think he remembers any of it today.”
