Duty-Bound [ Lore of Penrua: Book II ]

3

There had been a time, not so very long ago, when Mhera had thought she would never return to the Holy City. She had been resigned to living her life in Hanpe, the rebel city buried deep in the Duskwood, as a captive of the Arcborn rebels of Penrua. But if she had learned anything in her life, it was that things could change completely in an instant.

Now, she stood on the balcony of her childhood room. It was the vantage point whence she had watched as two imperial guards buried a tiny half-breed infant in an unmarked grave under the rose bushes. It had been her introduction into the dark underbelly of a world she'd thought she'd known. Mhera wondered if the poor thing was still there, or whether some gardener had upturned its little bones.

Her cousin Koreti had been a half-breed like that baby. Mhera had often reflected since she had learned of Koreti's true parentage on how lucky he had been to survive at all.

He had more than survived. He had become a king, and he was now poised to ascend to the Penruan throne. A wave of nausea washed over her, and Mhera closed her eyes, trying to fight back the panic. But Matei's words rose to her mind unbidden.

I will not sit the throne alone. I was not the only one who was crowned with a star.

That he'd suggested such a thing shocked her. Matei had all but ruined her life, had shattered the world she had known, had destroyed her peace once and forever, and now he wanted her to rule by his side? He had cared little for her opinions when he had torn her from her home and dragged her into the wilderness with a cursed magic spell.

But we are blood-bound. Even were I not to take the throne at his side, I could never go back to the Haven. I must stay by him, wherever he chooses to go. Or he must stay by me, wherever I choose to go. I could choose my own way at last. Can't I do that now? Isn't it right that I should get to decide for once in my life?

Mhera straightened, emboldened by the thought that she might, for once in her life, choose her own way...

...But then, she remembered the shining stars. Zanara had crowned them; it had been a miracle, or so the people believed. Could she truly believe the goddess had intended them both to rule? Mortals who believed they could divine the will of the goddess were fools.

"Are you all right?"

Mhera gasped and spun around. A dark shape loomed in the open doorway of her bedroom; she had not lit any spirit globes inside, and while it was late afternoon out on the balcony, her chamber was dim—but she recognized Uachi's voice.

The chief ranger of Hanpe still frightened Mhera, but as their uneasy acquaintance had been tested by circumstance, it had warmed just enough that she no longer believed that he hated her. And while he was a man twice her size and of a rough reputation, he had saved her life with a well-timed arrow, so she no longer feared him quite as much as she once had.

"Uachi?" she asked. "What are you doing in my room?"

"Relax, little gray lady," said Uachi, stepping into the golden light. Mhera wondered, not for the first time, whether the nickname he'd coined for her was meant to be friendly or cruel. He continued, "I was looking for you. Not snooping, I promise. Why...do you have secrets?"

Mhera blushed, much to her indignation. "No. You shouldn't sneak in. Knock next time."

"I did." Uachi cocked a brow at her, then moved to the stone balustrade. He leaned against it and looked out over the gardens. "You didn't answer. Figured you didn't hear me."

She hadn't—she had been too deep in thought. "I'm sorry. I'm upset."

"I can tell. And I know why."