The Wolf of Oren-yaro (Annals of the Bitch Queen Book 1) Page 34

  “Don’t you want to prove yourself?” Yuebek asked, giggling. “You’re letting your anger get in the way of good sense.”

  “I don’t care,” I hissed.

  He clutched at my fingers. “You should. This is your chance to show the world that you are a wise and sensible ruler, instead of this…heartbroken woman.” He spat the last two words out.

  I dropped him. He crawled back, his hands around his neck, before he turned around to face me once more. “You realize what I can do to your Rayyel?” he snarled. “And your son? Your precious son?”

  “I won’t know,” I said. “I don’t have to. I’m not going to let you leave alive.” I struck him again, a long line across the chest. The blade tore through the silk robes like butter. Yuebek looked at the gash, at the blood beginning to seep through his thin chest, as if he couldn’t quite believe it was there. He held up his ink-stained hands.

  “Two things.” He showed me his fingers. “One, I die, and you don’t find out where Rayyel is.”

  “One of your men will talk,” I said.

  He ignored me. “Two. I die, and word about your son gets out.”

  “I don’t know what you’re talking about,” I said. I moved to stab him.

  Yuebek grabbed the blade before it could sink into his body. I saw the blue glow appear around his bleeding hands and didn’t want for it to break my sword this time—I kicked out his legs from under him. He stumbled back, dropping the sword and then wildly reaching out. To my horror, his hands wrapped itself around my shirt collar.

  We fell from the rooftop and crashed onto another below.

  ~~~

  Dust coated the back of my throat and my senses were swimming. The roof we had landed on had caved from the impact, dragging us into a room with a pile of debris. I coughed and reached out for something to steady myself in the darkness.

  Instead, I felt a cold hand on my wrist. The shadows receded, revealing Yuebek’s face, glowing a faint blue. He was grinning from ear-to-ear.

  I reached out with my other hand to strike him. My fist slammed into an invisible barrier, which sent a shock from the tip of my finger bones all the way to my toes. I fell to my knees. Yuebek opened his mouth and he laughed like this was the most amusing thing he had seen his whole life.

  “I almost had you, you know,” he said, his eyebrows rising. “I was going to take you out on that street, in front of the whole city. Find out what that famous cunt actually feels like. But Ong, poor, babbling Ong, stopped me. I suppose we both have him to thank for that—we can do it properly, as man and wife. I do like them awake.”

  I spat at him. “You are the most presumptuous bastard I’ve ever met in my life.”

  Yuebek smiled. “Am I?” He stepped back, robes fluttering against the splintered wood and pieces of tile. He placed his hand around a torch on the wall. It lit up. He dropped my wrist and began to walk around the rest of the room, lighting the rest of the torches this way. In the light, I saw that we had fallen into the servants’ quarters, empty at that time of the day.

  “I could also take you now,” Yuebek said, returning to me. The unsettling grin was still on his face. “You wouldn’t be able to resist once I start.”

  I tried to pull away from him. I realized my entire body was frozen on the spot.

  “Presumptuous, you said?” he continued. “But that would imply that I’m overstepping my boundaries. I don’t believe I am. In fact, I think that after years of being patient, I’ve simply been inching my way back to where I truly belonged.”

  “What the hell do you mean by that?” I snapped. I was a little surprised that my mouth still worked.

  He stepped back with a flourish, revealing a piece of parchment in his hand. It was very old, almost grey. I caught sight of a red seal at the edge. “I didn’t want to tell you, not like this. It would have been nice if you had fallen in love with me in your own time. All those assassins…I had thought they would help drive you into my arms.”

  “You’re delusional.”

  His eyes flashed. “Ambitious. There’s a difference. You continue to insult me, yet even now, I am thinking only of your comfort. A thoughtful husband, Queen Talyien—even without everything else I am offering, it’s a step up from what you had.” He waved the letter at me. “Should I read it to you? Or do you want to read it for yourself?”

  I stared at him.

  “I’ll read it.” Yuebek cleared his throat and flicked the paper in the air. “Esteemed Fourth Consort—that’s my mother,” he said, glancing at me for a second. “I am honoured that you have not only acknowledged my proposal, but that you can see the good this will do for both of our nations. I have no doubt that your assistance will ensure my victory in this war. However, an unfortunate predicament has come up. Ikessar agents have infiltrated three of my towns, and Princess Ryia aren dar Ikessar is threatening mass slaughter of the common folk if we do not find a way to end this war. She is asking for the exact same thing I have offered you: if the child is a girl, as the healers have predicted it would be, she is willing to allow her to marry her son Rayyel.

  “I find myself in a curious position of having to ask an Emperor’s Consort to be patient. It is not my intention to turn against my word, but understand that the lives of many hinge on how I react to Princess Ryia’s offer. She is, in essence, conceding to me in this war—my blood will sit on the Dragonthrone, and our clans need not be divided any longer…provided, of course, that the child is a girl.”

  “Lies,” I said. “Everyone knows—”

  Yuebek held out a finger and continued reading. “I do not, of course, believe that things are as simple as Princess Ryia makes them out to be. The Ikessars do not give up this easily. She will have a trick or two up her sleeve, one that will see to my downfall and my clan eradicated from this world. I will not have my nation ripped apart because of some foolish woman’s pride.

  “Give me time. Our alliance is still my priority—I know full well that my army alone cannot hold my nation against those fools. But together? Only the gods can say of the power that will come from this union. When the boy Rayyel is dead, your son Yuebek is free to marry my daughter. Let me worry about the details. I will find a way to honour our agreement. In time, you will see yourself be mother to a Dragonlord of Jin-Sayeng.

  “If, contrary to the healers’ predictions, that the child turns out to be a boy, then there are other avenues we can pursue…”

  “Lies,” I repeated. “My father would have never sent such incriminating letters. In the first place, had they fallen into the wrong hands, it would have spelled disaster for both our nations. But then again, he wouldn’t have. He would have told me if he had. You’re lying. Again.”

  Yuebek smiled. He didn’t reply, but he began to hum. My skin prickled. It was the same tune the woman in Deputy Wanhe’s home had been humming, and it suddenly struck me where I had heard it from the first time: my father. He used to sing me that lullaby on the nights he took the time to tuck me in bed.

  I lunged. Perhaps Yuebek had been too distracted to keep up the shielding spell. I broke through it and struck him on the jaw. He fell back, and I grabbed the letter from his hands.

  It was my father’s handwriting.

  But then again, Yuebek had copied Rayyel’s, too. Without a word, I pushed the letter into the flames of the nearest torch. It quickly caught on fire.

  Yuebek swallowed. “There’s others,” he said. “Your father spent some time here, planning this elaborate scheme that would’ve seen your Rayyel dead before you ever laid eyes on him. Such a sharp mind, for his age. I think he had been expecting to live forever.”

  “I don’t believe you,” I said.

  “You don’t have to if you don’t want to,” Yuebek replied. “Everything is set in place. His death didn’t change that, although you made it all doubly difficult by marrying the blasted man anyway, and then making him disappear. How else did you think I was able to learn so much about you? Or make your guards turn against th
eir brothers?”

  “You bribed them,” I hissed.

  “Incorruptible, the Oren-yaro,” Yuebek said. “Or so they claim. I don’t know—I didn’t have to try, not this time. Those men were loyal to your father.”

  I heard someone call my name from the other side of the door. It sounded like Agos. Yuebek glanced away from me.

  I took the opportunity and darted for my sword, half-buried under the rubble. Yuebek rushed at me now, pelting me with something that I couldn’t quite explain, which felt like a breath of hot steam. But I didn’t let go of the hilt.

  The door opened. Agos crashed inside and struck Yuebek from behind. The tip of Agos’ sword caught at a torch, sending it spinning across the air. I saw Yuebek’s face turn pale as a spray of blood appeared on his robes, which disappeared as soon as they caught on fire. He opened his mouth.

  Agos kicked him away. A moment later, he screamed. Dying screams. His burning body crashed to the other end of the room, setting everything on fire.

  “We have to run,” Agos said.

  “All right,” I found myself saying.

  Outside the hall, Nor was bent over Khine’s body, her hands on his belly. “Keep pressing,” he was telling her, which was not easy because her own arm was in shreds. He waved at me. “Glad to see you’re in one piece. Not easy, having all of us limp after you. Did you take care of him?”

  I nodded. “Tell us what you need.”

  “More cloth,” Khine grumbled. “Stop the bleeding. Wine. Lots of wine. Some for the wound. Mostly for me.”

  “Does a sense of humour signify survivability?”

  “Not sure yet. Have to…observe.”

  “He won’t be walking out of here anytime soon,” Agos said. “Leave him. There’s a commotion outside. The way it all sounds like, he might as well be dead. How do you propose we walk him through those gates while Zheshan’s men wait to slaughter us?”

  “An oversight,” Khine said. “This was supposed to be a silent operation, after all.”

  We heard footsteps. I braced myself, pulling my sword closer to me.

  Lo Bahn appeared at the end of the hallway. “What in the blazing hells is happening here?” he thundered. “First Lamang disappears, and then I hear Zheshan’s men say something about an attack, and now I see you here…” He looked at us and his face tightened.

  I heard the beginning of chaos out in the grounds below. “What’s going on outside?” I asked.

  “Inzali had convinced me that Zheshan would double-cross me, so I thought I’d have my men ready. Their guards came in, calling about an attack, and came after us before we knew what was going on. Of course we had to fight back. I didn’t know it was you who would be using me. Yet again.” He snorted.

  “I’m sorry,” I said. “I’ll explain later. Can you help us get out of here?”

  “No, leave me,” Khine said. “If I die here, I won’t have to repay him.”

  “To hell with that,” Lo Bahn snapped. He grabbed Khine and hoisted him over his shoulders. “Is there anything else?”

  We left through the back gate, amidst an explosion of smoke and clashing swords.

  Chapter Twenty-Three

  The Aftermath

  Khine bled like a stuck pig all through the streets. At least once or twice, his entire body slackened and he would close his eyes, and I was almost sure we’d lost him. I stayed as close to him as possible, talking to him and trying to make him laugh, which was not easy with Lo Bahn’s sour expression in the way.

  It was a long way back to Shang Azi, but we finally made it to Lo Bahn’s mansion. Anya was there, looking as fresh as if she had just walked out of a dress shop, and Inzali, who met us at the front door. She barked for the servants to call for a physician before taking Khine upstairs, along with Nor and Agos. I wanted to follow them, but Lo Bahn cleared his throat.

  “Explain everything,” he said, a dangerous glint in his eyes.

  “I don’t know if I could.”

  “I just lost half my men in that skirmish. More, with my luck.” He sat down, Khine’s blood all over his robes, and pointed at me. “And by tomorrow, I’m probably going to learn that all my businesses have been shut down because I was fool enough to attack a governor’s office. Everything I had worked hard for, my whole life. Gone in an instant.”

  I closed my eyes for a moment and took a deep breath. When I opened them again, Lo Bahn was still staring at me. “I am at war,” I said.

  “No shit,” Lo Bahn hissed.

  “I won’t beg you for help,” I continued. “You’re a smart man. You know the depth of my need. I will say this: they know you’re helping me. Even if you throw me out on the streets and pretend you’ve never met me, they will come for you, anyway.”

  “Who are they?”

  “I don’t know,” I said. “Officials from your empire. My own people. My husband. Until I find myself back with my own people and learn who my enemies exactly are, my options are limited. But I can guarantee you that those bastards are less generous than I am. Sell me out, and I can’t say whether they’ll want to take your head for getting me this far. I am your sure ticket out of this mess, Lord Han.”

  “You’re the bitch who got me in it in the first place,” he said.

  I shrugged. “It is what it is.”

  “I should have you flogged. Stripped naked and left for the scum of Shang Azi.”

  I stared him down. “But you won’t.”

  “Woman.”

  “Queen.”

  A servant came scurrying towards us. He gave me an awkward bow first, before dropping in front of Lo Bahn. “Someone outside wants to see you, my lord,” he whispered.

  Lo Bahn nodded. The servant pulled open the main door and gestured.

  Gon Zheshan limped in, his robes in tattered shreds. There was mud and blood all over him.

  “Have you come to chastise me for that little mishap?” Lo Bahn asked. “Because I’m going to tell you right now, Gon, that if you think you can pin that whole thing on me, you’re going to have a fight on your hands.”

  Zheshan ignored him. He placed his hand on my knee and all but collapsed at my feet.

  “Prince Yuebek got to me,” he gasped.

  “What do you mean?”

  He opened and closed his mouth, like a dying fish, before he reached into his robes and pulled out a sealed letter. I took it.

  “I didn’t know, I swear, until it was too late. When Lord Rayyel approached me, I was only too happy to offer my assistance. An honourable man like that, a true nobleman—how could I say no? The assassination attempt happened, and frightened as I had been, I was ecstatic to think that I was useful to a true king, a Dragonlord of Jin-Sayeng. Me, a lowly governor of such a vast kingdom…” Zheshan swallowed. “After the incident at The Silver Goose, I received orders to have Lord Rayyel killed while he was under my care. In service of the Empire, it said. It seemed that Lord Rayyel was the target of the assassination in the restaurant in the first place.”

  I stared at him, unsure if I wanted to believe him or not. The man was chattering like a nervous wreck.

  “Go on,” I said.

  “I thought it was a trick, that Lord Rayyel’s enemies were trying to use me. What gain would the Empire of Ziri-nar-Orxiaro get from killing Jin-Sayeng’s monarch? They know it wouldn’t do anything. I told Lord Rayyel as much, bade him to stay away. And then a few weeks ago, Prince Yuebek arrived. He told me everything. About his plan to fulfill this bargain your father struck with his mother years ago. About Warlord Yeshin’s loyalists, who have been working with him since the beginning, who will do whatever it takes to carry out your father’s last wishes—they would see Lord Rayyel and Prince Thanh dead before your eyes, and you married to Prince Yuebek while you are yet young enough to bear him children. None of this is sanctioned by the Esteemed Emperor, but he made me understand what was at stake if I refused to work with him. Between my honour as a man and my responsibilities as a servant of the empire…I could not refuse
the prince, I could not betray him to his father, and yet…”

  Shaking, he pulled away from me. “It’s all right, Governor Zheshan,” I said. “None of this will happen. Prince Yuebek is dead.”

  His eyes widened. “No. You don’t understand. Prince Yuebek…the agan…”

  Lo Bahn frowned. “Now, Gon, perhaps we—”

  Before Lo Bahn could finish talking, Zheshan pulled out a sword and slid it into his own belly. I watched in horror as he collapsed on his knees.

  “Shit,” Lo Bahn finished.

  I looked down at the letter he had handed to me. After a moment, I tore the seal away.

  It was Rayyel’s handwriting again.

  Come see me.

  -Rai

  There was an address.

  I stared at it for a heartbeat.

  “What’s that?” I heard Lo Bahn ask. He peered over my shoulder. “That’s an inn,” he said. “North of the docks. What the hell does it mean?”

  “I think my husband wrote it.” I remembered Yuebek. How many others had studied us so closely that they could mimic my husband’s letters?

  “You think?” Lo Bahn snorted.

  “I don’t know anymore.” I folded the paper and looked at Gon Zheshan’s dead body. “Why would he kill himself?”

  “He was never one to do things that made sense. I’ve told him more than once.”

  “I’m serious.”

  “I was, too. But I’ll humour you. He must’ve felt like he had betrayed his lord.”

  “Wouldn’t that be your Esteemed Emperor?”

  “Kyan Jang is nearly two months’ travel from here,” Lo Bahn said. “I don’t think Zheshan had ever met him in his life. Whoever had his loyalty, it was someone a lot closer to home.”

  I looked at the letter again, at the neat handwriting and downward brush strokes.

  Come see me.