Shadow Heir

“There are guards and magic users out there,” I murmured, thinking aloud. “Obviously enough to subdue an escape—or so Varia thinks. But she can’t be thinking past a single person trying to break out. What about all of us? If we managed to free the other monarchs here, we’d have a force of some of the most powerful gentry in this world. The guards here couldn’t stand against that. This palace couldn’t stand against that. Plus, there’d be such a commotion that my friends in the dungeon would probably be low priority.”

I thought I detected an eager glint in Volusian’s eyes, though his face otherwise remained typically smooth. “As much as I would love nothing more than to start laying waste to this place, I must point out that if my mistress truly wishes to lift the blight, you should probably first make sure you know where the talismans are. Your conquest of Varia will be more effective if you can strip her of those.”

“I agree. Except, we have no way of finding out. I mean, they’re probably in this palace, but it’s huge! Damn. I wish you could wander freely. We need someone to scope out this facility.” My breath caught as an idea came to me. I straightened up. “Volusian! Go to Dorian’s cell right now. You have to give him this message... .”

I quickly relayed it, and Volusian vanished. I bit my lip the entire time he was gone, praying Dorian hadn’t been taken to Varia yet. Why hadn’t I thought of this sooner? If I’d missed my chance, I didn’t know what we would do. I just hoped Varia had to take a bonbon break or have her dogs’ hair restyled between sessions. Even if Volusian did make it in time, this idea was still pretty shaky.

I jumped up when Volusian reappeared. “Was he still there?”

“Yes, mistress. I relayed your message. The Oak King said he would try what you asked and idiotically asked what he wouldn’t do for you.” A distinct look of distaste crossed his features. “He also said to tell you ... that he isn’t surprised at all that you’re planning a way out. He says he has never once doubted you and has the utmost faith in whatever you do.”

I almost smiled. “Boy, relaying something that sentimental was pretty terrible for you, wasn’t it?”

Volusian didn’t respond.

The truth was, Dorian’s warm words had unsettled me too—but probably for very different reasons from Volusian. Still wanting to conserve the power it took to keep him within the Yew Land, I sent Volusian away and then stretched out on my cot to wait. I didn’t know how long it would take to get results from my plan—if I’d even get them. I was also worried about Varia acting on her threats to start killing off my companions in the dungeon. I could only hope that like any good super villain, she’d give me fair warning and try to kill them in front of me in order to force my hand. That wasn’t a fate I wanted, but at least I could be reasonably confident they weren’t dead already.

Hours passed. The guards brought me a meager meal, again making me wonder what those in lesser accommodations had. I didn’t think Varia had reason to poison me, but I still summoned Volusian briefly to see if he detected anything magical about the food. He didn’t, so I took the risk of eating in order to keep my strength up.

I was just finishing the food up when something caught my eye in the tiny window near the ceiling. Spots, Alea’s falcon, had just landed. With a bit of maneuvering, he worked his way through the bars so that he could look down at me but otherwise didn’t leave the sill.

“Well, I’ll be damned,” I breathed. “You actually made it.”

My gamble had been that the Hemlock people would still be hanging around the throne room, hoping for an audience with Varia. In the message I’d sent with Volusian, I’d told Dorian to see if he could manage any private words with Alea when he went to see the queen. There were guards everywhere, but if ever there was someone who could cause distraction and misdirection, it was Dorian. If he pulled it off, I’d asked that he tell Alea to send her falcon to me. The only directions I had were to look for a small window on the third floor, but I figured Spots could fly from window to window in search of me—provided there were no enchantments on the windows. The entire plan had been tenuous, and yet, here I was, with a semi-intelligent falcon watching me expectantly.

“So, um, thanks for coming,” I said to Spots. He blinked and said nothing, not that I really could have expected otherwise. “Anyway. I know you have some connection to Alea. I don’t know if you relay messages through bird language or if she sees through your eyes, but I need you to convey something to her. Can you do that? Is there some sign you can give me?”

If staring without a sound was the way birds said, “Yes,” then Spots gave me a resoundingly affirmative answer.