Page 57 of Cage of Darkness
“A noble family would usethe king’s mourning to their advantage and overthrow him?” Were allnoble families so ambitious?
“Yes. And most noblefamilies control a portion of the army.”
No wonder Darmik chose his owncaptains and officers, not tying anything to the noble families.Although, they did have various regions within Emperion and dukescontrolled each one. Had Emperion ever faced any sort of uprisingin the past?
Kerdan stood. “Now, I have a questionfor you.”
Her hand had stopped bleeding, so sheset the handkerchief aside, curious to hear what he had tosay.
“You planned to marry whoyou thought was Prince Odar, even though you did not lovehim?”
She nodded, not sure where he wasgoing with this. People of royal blood had arranged marriages allthe time.
“Why?” he asked.
“Because it was best forEmperion. We needed Fren’s army to stop Russek.” Otherwise, shewouldn’t have entertained the idea. She was young and in no rush tomarry.
“What do you plan to do nowthat the marriage treaty is no longer good?” He startedpacing.
“Now who’s wearing a holein the floor?” she teased him.
“Just answer thequestion.”
“Odar and I are stillofficially engaged.” She pulled her legs up on the chair, wrappingher arms around her knees. She then proceeded to explain how Odarhad signed the contract as himself, and they were still undercontractual obligation to marry once his parentsconsented.
He smiled. “The prince is smarter thanI realized.” His pacing slowed. “Do you want to marry him? Now thatyou know his true identity?”
“Yes.” She couldn’tenvision being married to anyone else.
“Because you love him?” heasked. “Or because that’s what your kingdom needs?” He emphasizedthe wordneedsashe did before when talking about his own kingdom.
“Both.”
“Which comes first? You oryour kingdom?” He kept walking back and forth across the room. Hewas making her dizzy. Did he always do this when he was workingthrough something?
She examined her now-bruisingknuckles, unsure of how to respond to his question. He knew she’dbeen interrogated. That she would always put Emperion first. “Ithink you already know the answer.” She didn’t understand why hewas even asking.
“And what about Odar? Doeshe love you?” She nodded. “And does he put his kingdom before you?”Kerdan went over to the hearth, bending down and throwing anotherlog into the dying fire.
“Odar’s first loyalty is tohis kingdom.” At least, she was fairly certain it was. Although…hewouldn’t marry Princess Jestina of Telmena. To prevent theirkingdoms from going to war, he sent his brother to marry her. Hehadn’t planned to marry Allyssa until he actually got to know herand changed his mind. That deception still hurt. Odar had alsopromised to get her out of here no matter the cost. So, did he planto put Fren first or not? She honestly couldn’t say.
Kerdan remained crouched before thehearth, his back to her. “So, if the plan works, and the two of youmake it out of here alive, you’ll marry and unite yourkingdoms?”
“Yes. Is that what this isabout?” she asked. “Are you worried we’ll have too much power?”That they could stand against Russek?
“No.” He stood, his backstill to her. “It’s just…the two of you are in a unique position tomarry for love.”
She had studied enough about thekingdoms on the mainland to know this. “What about you?” she asked.He was a few years older than her and should be betrothed bynow.
“My mother’s death taughtme to hide my emotions and to keep my heart closed to others.” Hecame and sat on the couch across from her. “I will not marry forlove, but for political alliance. There are many powerful familiesin Russek. I will do what is best for my kingdom.”
“Keeping your heart closedoff from love doesn’t make you strong.” What did Kerdan live andfight for? Even when she planned to marry a man she didn’t love,she intended to open her heart to him with the hope they wouldeventually find love.
“It makes me stronger,” hereplied. “Everything I do is for Russek. It is my kingdom that Ilove. We have to stop this war and save our people from unnecessaryslaughter.”
“Agreed.” If he lovedRussek as much as he claimed, then they should be able to ensurethis war ended, regardless of the king. When she looked over at theprince, there was a sadness she either hadn’t seen or hadn’tnoticed before. The life he led was hard and bleak. Her heart achedfor him, his loneliness, and the difficult positon he wasin.
“What would you do ifanother alliance presented itself? A stronger and more advantageousone? Would you still marry Odar now that you no longer need to joinyour two kingdoms together?”
