Page 53 of To Kill a King

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Page 53 of To Kill a King

She did and the steel swept past him much faster. The swing felt a little more controlled, too.

He smiled. “Well done. Now, do it again, until it’s natural. Then we’ll switch to your other arm.”

Elessan plopped down next to an exhausted Aliya as she brought the last bit of quail to her lips. Her arms trembled from fatigue—she’d be sore in the morning, but at least now she was a little more confident with a sword. Tomorrow, he’d teach her parry and riposte. It was a good way to pass the time, and he had a feeling she’d need every skill he could teach her when the Arcane Inquisitor finally caught up with them.

To his right, Zadé shoveled down the final few bites of dinner.

He set his fork on his plate. “Aliya, we worked your upper body hard today. There’s a hot spring hiding about three hundred steps to the east. Why don’t you go soak, and loosen those muscles so you’re not too sore to continue tomorrow?”

Her eyes lit up as she gazed in the direction he indicated. “How do you know there’s a spring?”

He opened his mouth and snapped it closed. Admitting he’d drowned someone in it the last time he came through would do nothing but destroy the fragile whatever-it-was building between them. “I’ve been a messenger for a long time and have traveled this road before.”

She smiled through her exhaustion and stumbled off in the direction he’d indicated.

Zadé let out a “whoop!” and stood to follow.

“Not yet, Zadé,” Elessan said. “I want to talk to you about something.”

Flopping back down with a dramatic sigh and taking a deep swig from her water skin, she eyed him. “Sup, Elsan?”

“Aliya needs to learn how to control her magic.”

“So?” Zadé took another swallow. “Why’re yeh tellin’ me?”

He bit back a groan. She intended to be deliberately thick tonight, it seemed. Perhaps as punishment for delaying her soak in the hot springs. “Your aunt could teach her, if you introduced them.”

Zadé choked and fought not to spit her drink across the camp. “Yeh think I should do what? I ain’t talked ta the wench in almost two hundred years, and I aim ta keep it that way.”

The corners of Elessan’s lips hardened. “Aliya needs guidance. Cressida Brightleaf is the foremost expert in magical theory. Studying under her is the opportunity of Aliya’s lifetime. A skilled tutor is her best bet to learn to control her power.”

“Seems ta me yer girlfriend is doin’ just fine without my help. Her magic does what she wants, even if it’s not the way she ‘xpects.”

Elessan sighed. He really should let the girlfriend comment slide, but if he did, he’d likely never hear the end of it. “She’s married to the human king.”

Zadé spewed a mouthful of ale into the campfire and guffawed “And she ran off with you? She must be stupider ‘n I am. An’ I doubt the marriage’s still on, what with th’ treason posters, an’ all.”

“Royal unions are not so easily undone.” Except by execution. “If she does end up in power, wouldn’t it be nice to have an ally to the elves on the throne again?”

“What do I care about political crap?” She squinted her eyes and leaned in. “Do you care about it? I thought yeh was too smart for that…”

“Personally? No, I don’t at all,” he lied. It would be glorious, not having to skulk around the world doing the sun elf king’s dirty work. “But people who are important to me do. And I suspect your aunt does, too.”

“She prob’ly does.” Zadé thought for a moment. “And then Cress would owe me a favor fer introducing her ta th’ queen.” She sat back, crossing her arms behind her head and gave him a flat look. “Assuming we could sneak a human into Filathas in the first place, which we can’t.”

Elessan pursed his lips. “Aliya is…skilled with disguises. And she’s fluent in Elven. She can pass for a moon elf with a little preparation.”

Zadé tilted her head. “Tha’s fine fer her. Yeh won’t be able ta enter, either, since yer a mountain elf, ya know.” She raised an eyebrow. “Unless Princess can help with that, too?”

The lump in his gut solidified. “You don’t think we could convince them to make an exception?”

Zadé shook her head. “You sure you still wanna send yer girlfriend t’ Cressida if you can’t go with?”

He sighed as the weight of that thought settled on his shoulders. “Yes.” Maybe Princess Tsara could pull some strings to get him access, if he came up with a believable enough story. “And Aliya’s not my girlfriend.”

“Yeh want her ta be, though.”

He glared at her and turned away as heat crept into his face. Kicking the dirt at his feet, he said, “Your aunt’s the perfect person to teach her what she needs.”




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