Page 22 of Vilest Things
Galipei has little reason to detest her, but he certainly doesn’t trust her either. Not enough to personally fetch her for some friendly company, even if he must feel lonely these days with Anton blocking him from speaking to August.
“What prompted this?” she asks. “Am I playing substitute Weisanna?”
Galipei stays quiet. She’s guessed right.
“The wall is coming down tonight to be rebuilt farther into Eigi,” he allows. A group of attendants pass by in the hallway, going the opposite direction. One of them, dressed in blue, waves at Calla, but she doesn’t recognize her. She waves back anyway.
“Ah. So you need me for manpower.”
“I have made it very clear to the council that we should not bring Leida out,” Galipei says, his volume dropping. “We put her in the most secure cell under the palace for a reason. She is dangerous.”
Leida’s cell certainly looked well-built, from what Calla saw in the surveillance room.
“Iwasn’t put there,” Calla says, a hint of chagrin creeping into her voice.
“You weren’t considered enough of a risk to warrant it.”
“Oh. Oh, wow.”
Galipei casts her a sidelong glance. “Are you… offended by that?”
“I murdered theking, Galipei. What else did you want from me?”
He mutters something that sounds likeHave mercyunder his breath. Galipei looks over his shoulder, checking their surroundings before speaking again.
“The situation you mentioned last night. It’s bigger than Rincun.”
All traces of humor evaporate from Calla’s manner. “There have been other attacks?”
“Yes. The news has taken a while to reach us, but it is the same as what you witnessed in Rincun. Barracks of palace soldiers simultaneously dropping dead.”
And that’s why they’re bringing out Leida for interrogation. If Calla thought the attack in Rincun resembled the Crescent Society experiments in San-Er, it is no surprise that others would come to the same conclusion. Especially if new attacks have hit provinces closer to the capital, provinces that are more important in keeping San-Er operational.
Unfortunately, Calla doubts they’ll get much from Leida. Even if the former captain of the guard knows something, she has been locked up since she was caught. She’s not the one orchestrating new movement against the throne in the provinces.
Galipei leads Calla past a set of ornamented double doors guarded by Weisannas, then around the corner. Rear door, as he mentioned. It’s a much more modest entrance, one that doesn’t even have a door handle, only a hinge that swings both ways.
“Stay on alert, Calla.”
They sidle through. Calla spots Leida in an instant. She’s blindfolded and handcuffed to a lectern at the front, her posture bristling with an alertness incongruous with that of a prisoner. If it weren’t for the Weisannas surrounding her, it might appear like she was preparing a speech, readying a battalion to charge at her command.
“Leida has proven before that she can jump without light, in any proximity,” Calla states dryly.
A large meeting table occupies the center of the room. More than ten feet of distance has been made for Leida in every radius, her lectern placed in the corner to give her a wide berth from the double doors, but councilmembers are oftentimes stupid, and if one of them gets up from the round table and wanders a bit, they will have gotten too close.
“Trust me,” Galipei says. A vein stands out on the side of his neck. “I’ve made it very clear how easily this could go sideways. Just keep your guard up where you can. We’ll be performing identity checks on everyone before they leave this room.”
Calla scans the meeting table. Venus Hailira is staring intently at her hands, seated on the far end. On the opposite side, Councilmember Aliha and Councilmember Rehanou are in quiet, intense discussion, their graying heads bent together.
“Fair enough,” Calla mutters. “Still risky, but fair enough.”
Galipei doesn’t bother countering that. He only repeats “Guard up,” and then goes off to inspect the main entrance. He’s got weapons hanging from his belt. Calla was given nothing. They could have at least offered her a baton. Even if Leida can’t break out of the room, she may still attack for the sake of it.
Calla brings her thumb to her mouth and bites down on her nail. Miliu blue. Weisanna silver. Tuoleimi yellow. There are people in this kingdom who have long been marked for attention. The thought should put her at ease, that there’s no chance Leida could escape and go unseen. But Calla lasted in the cities for a long, long time before she took herself out of hiding. She wouldn’t underestimate Leida’s ability to disappear either.
A low drum rolls down the hallway. Anton steps in through the main entrance, walking a beat faster than Otta Avia, who meets Calla’s eyes briefly the moment she enters too. It’s alarming how similar she and Anton look at present. August and Otta are half siblings; it would be only fair for them to bear a resemblance to each other. Now that Calla knows it is Anton wearing August’s body, though, it ishard for her to consider any alternative. Every reminder that he should be August is jarring to her senses, nauseatingly wrong and especially so when Otta gets onto the tips of her toes, whispering something into Anton’s ear. She’s wearing a red dress, the bodice made of a heavy brocade. Alongside each of Otta’s movements, the skirts follow suit like a tailed phoenix curling around her feet.
To the councilmembers, her proximity is a natural gesture from a sister. Calla forces herself to look away, knowing better. She can barely breathe past the fire licking up her stomach.
