Page 4 of Between Smoke and Shadow
“Yes,” I say. I try to sound more confident than I feel. “Tomorrow, I have my final interrogation for the position of Lady Saskia’s handmaiden. Caleah has already been made Lady Viana’s, so once I’m promoted, we should be precisely where we need to be.”
“Why not Princess Tora?” Arnelian asks. Any trace of awe is gone from his features, replaced with his typical sneer. “You want close to the royals? Start at the top, I say.”
I press my lips into a firm line. If I were brave, I’d tell him to keep his stupid questions to himself. Vale certainly would, and so would Caleah. But I’m not like them, no matter how hard I try.
“The princess already has handmaidens,” I say instead. “Besides, she’s too likely to detect our deception. She’s a dangerous choice. Viana is easier, and according to Vale’s confidants, she’s likely to be Prince Harrick’s betrothed by the end of the season.”
“But—”
“Hold further questions,” Caleah snaps, voice hard. Arnelian shifts again, fading into the shadows. Caleah glances at Vale, the two of them sharing a concerned expression, before she gestures for me to continue. I don’t let myself dwell on that look, heavy with concern, as if they don’t think I can handle my new role here.
Clearing my throat, I force myself to continue.
“Lady Saskia is a close friend of Lady Viana. I will use my position to keep an eye out for any trouble. Caleah will work to find information, and I will keep her from getting caught.”
“Thank you, Rune,” Vale says with a nod. After checking with Caleah, who has nothing to report, Vale looks back to the semi-circle of rebels. “As for the rest of us, we will finally put our plans into motion. We will be smart and cautious, but we can no longertalkabout our future—we must now create it. Weapons, explosives, armor—we’re going to steal anything we can get our hands on.”
The rebels nod, but Vale’s words leave a heavy pressure in the air. He moves into specifics, assigning tasks to each individual. He’s mostly after weapons for now, but I imagine it will change as we progress. Once everyone has their assignment, he glances toward me and Caleah again.
“These women are risking their lives to find our escape. When the moment comes, whenever that may be, wemustbe ready.”
I force myself to act unaffected, as if the thought of dying for this mission doesn’t terrify me. As if I’m more confident in our faction than I am in anything else.
“You’re dismissed. Reveal nothing if you are caught,” Vale says. Without looking at us, he adds, “Caleah, Rune, hold back.”
The other members hurry from the room, leaving in groups of two or alone, and I suck in as many breaths of cool air as I can. When the final person leaves, once again sealing the door, the trapped heat crushes against me until I’m nauseated.
“Explain this text,” Vale says, placing the aged paper in front of Caleah.
She’d glimpsed it over Lady Viana’s shoulder during one of her study sessions, and after giving me detailed instructions, I went to retrieve it. I’d snuck into the library, ripped the 301st page from its spine in the dead hours of morning, and returnedit to its shelf. I ran straight here with my heart pounding, my stomach halfway up my throat, and the wrinkled text tucked into my underclothing. It wasn’t the first time I’ve risked my life for our group, and it certainly won’t be the last. I only wish I read well enough to understand it.
I look at the page now, at its weathered edges and worn ink. There are too many words, and I hardly recognize any of them. Vale tried to teach me to read when we first met. I’d been in the midst of reckless grief and he’d been desperate for an accomplice. I practiced for a while, but as our faction grew, my time seemed to shrink.
Caleah places her hand near Vale’s, her pale cheeks flushing when their fingers brush. She’s been smitten with him for nearly a cycle now, and I have no idea how he hasn’t noticed. Or maybe he has, and he’s not interested. It seems unlikely. Caleah is pretty. Red hair, brown eyes, chaotic freckles. She looks like a breathing masterpieceandshe’s brilliant, too.
“I know it’s not much to go on,” she says. Smoothing the edges of the worn parchment, she trails the text, pausing at the third paragraph. With a glance at me, she asks, “Do you know what this is?”
I look at the page, leaning toward it like I can will myself to be literate. Finally, I force myself to swallow and shake my head.
“It’s fromIllia’s Tome,” she says. “Theoriginalversion, that is. They’ve updated it a hundred times by now, at least. I assumed they did it any time laws changed or there were new procedures. I’ve only ever read the newest version.”
Now she looks at Vale, as if to confirm he’s still paying attention. He is, and by the look on his face, he’s already figured something out from the text. He’s several steps ahead of me—they both are. I wish I could say it’s an uncommon occurrence, but it’s not.
“Viana’s tutor was going over something in this original version, and I was scanning over her shoulder. That’s when I sawthis.”
She stabs in the middle of the page, over a hand-drawn chart. There are several numbers and a handful of words. I recognizemagicandcrown, but that’s about it.
“It’s a chart of Savoa’s magic during the first ten cycles. How much was collected during Lightning Season. How much was distributed to each sector. How much was stored for future uses.” Caleah pauses, dipping her chin toward Vale. “Notice anything about the numbers?”
“They’re…high,” he says. He raises his eyebrows, squinting toward the chart, as if he might be reading it wrong.
“They’reveryhigh,” she corrects. Her smile is broad as she looks at me. “According to this, we used to collectthree timesas much magic every cycle. Three times! So unless nature is collapsing and no one is concerned…”
Caleah looks between me and Vale, clearly waiting for an answer. I’m still scrambling to digest what she’s explained, but luckily for her, Vale is far ahead of me.
“They’re lying,” he says. He doesn’t bother to look at me, his eyes solely tied on Caleah. “They’re…butwhy? What could they possibly be doing with that much excess?”
“Who knows.” Caleah shrugs, folding the parchment in half. “Maybe they’re sneaking more magic to certain sectors. Maybe they’re giving more magic to themselves. Maybe the original numbers were skewed. Or maybe…there’s something sinister going on. Something we could use to our advantage.”
