Page 71 of Bright We Burn

“You will not like it.”

“Tell me.”

“Radu is in Tirgoviste. He has put Aron Danesti on the throne.”

Lada’s jaw ached, but she could not unclench it. “Our men in the mountains?’

“We hear nothing of them, which is good. It means they have not been found or betrayed us.”

“And what of the rest of Europe? How do they respond to Matthias’s bold move in taking me prisoner?”

“No one knows.”

Lada sighed. She had hoped that Mara would tell Radu, or someone who would spread the news. But Mara was Mehmed’s, and would do what she was told because that was how she stayed free and powerful. How different the world would be if only merit and skill were rewarded, if only ambition created results. Instead, it was a tangled mess of threads. Lada had tried so hard to stay out of that web, to owe her power to no one. But the closer she got to transcending the strands that had bound her throughout her whole life, the more the web tightened around her.

Oana continued. “As far as everyone else knows, you are still hiding in the mountains. Or underneath the beds of small children who refuse to obey their parents. But at least Matthias cannot kill you and risk the ire of your fan the pope.”

Lada pushed her head against the wood door, wishing the planks would part and allow her through. “Does the pope know where I am? Is there help there?”

“No. He thinks you are hiding as well.”

“How do you know all this? Have you taken a lover here? Are you playing spy?” Lada could not imagine such a thing, but then again, Oana was always surprising her.

Oana laughed, a deep, guttural burst like Bogdan’s. Lada was hit anew with longing to be anywhere but here. To be back in the mountains with Bogdan. At least she had made him stay there. He would have died, otherwise. She clutched the locket, which they had let her keep. It comforted her, knowing Wallachia was waiting. Bogdan was waiting.

Comforted and drove her mad in equal measures. What good was she to anyone here?

“I did not find any of this out myself.” Oana shifted to the side, cocking her head subtly to the left. Lada leaned against the opening and looked at where a man was sweeping the floor under the dispassionate gaze of a guard. She did not spend much time looking out the window, feeling it made her appear weak, but she should have paid more attention to who was out there.

Unlike most people, Lada had trained herself to notice that bland, blank face.

Stefan.

“He began working here two weeks before you were captured. They suspect nothing. I should go now,” Oana said with a smile. “You hold tight.” She reached a hand through the opening and rested one dry palm against Lada’s cheek. Lada watched her leave, careful to pay no further attention to Stefan.

For the first time since she had been locked up, hope fluttered in her chest. It was as small and fragile as the rodents twisted in macabre death by her bed.

Tirgoviste

WHILE RADU WAS GRATEFUL for Cyprian’s help, having him sit in on meetings was distracting. Pleasantly so, but distracting nonetheless. With all the upheaval, no one had questioned Cyprian’s presence. Radu had merely introduced him as a close friend and advisor. Radu’s men had accepted Cyprian without question. And Aron and Andrei were too busy scheming to wonder where he had come from. Fortunately the meetings were conducted in Turkish: Radu’s men did not speak Wallachian, and Aron and Andrei were fluent in Turkish.

“Radu!”

Radu tore his eyes from the teasing smile on Cyprian’s lips. “What?”

Aron frowned. “I said, how many do you think we should plan on for the celebration?”

Radu leaned back in his chair, struggling to keep his expression neutral. “I thought we agreed paying for that much food and drink as well as furnishing all the guest rooms in the castle was not the best use of resources right now.”

“We agreed on nothing,” Andrei said. “You said we need to get the boyars on our side. How else can we prove to them that we are in control?”

Radu strained to keep the incredulity he felt off his face. “The best way we can show them the country is under control is to actually get the country under control. My men are still in the mountains hunting down Lada’s forces. We have heard no word of her or her location for weeks, meaning any gathering of boyars is inherently risky. It is not like her to give us this much time to fortify. It makes me wonder what she has planned.”

“Perhaps she is dead,” Andrei said.

“She is not dead,” Radu snapped.

“How can you be sure?”