Kiva’s hope faded all over again, before she reminded herself that she would just have to seek her own revenge against him. One day.
“So that’s it?” Jaren asked, his frustration clear. “He’s just allowed to keep on terrorizing the inmates? Poisoning them when he decides they need culling?”
“There’s no proof he did that,” Yisari said, a warning in her voice.
“I was there,” Jaren shot back. “Naari, Kiva, Tipp — we all saw the prisoners dying, one after the other. We all wondered if we’d be next.”
“And again, you have no proof that Rooke was behind it,” Yisari repeated, spreading her hands in apology. “He’s kept Zalindov’s denizens under strict control for over a decade — that’s longer than any other warden. It’s his word against yours, and without tangible evidence, we won’t sway the other kingdoms against him. They don’t want to see him replaced when he’s done such a fine job.”
“He’s a murderer,” Jaren snarled.
“His victims were hardly innocents,” Horeth said, before amending, “Most of them, at least.”
Jaren glared at the Grand Master, before turning to his mother and stating, “We need to re-evaluate our sentencing laws. I can’t speak for the other kingdoms, but I refuse to abide any citizen of this territory being arrested without a fair trial. There should be no innocents inside Zalindov. None. And the actual criminals who deserve to be locked away should still be afforded basic human rights.” He addressed the whole table as he finished, “If we can’t remove Rooke, then we should at least try to protect our own people inside those walls — and stop anyone who shouldn’t be there from being arrested in the first place.”
The council sat stunned after Jaren’s declaration — as did Kiva — but Ariana nodded at his side, a small, proud smile on her lips.
“I agree,” she said. Turning to Horeth, she ordered, “Meet with the Legal Guild and have them go through the Book of the Law to note what needs amending. Make this a priority.”
The Grand Master blinked stupidly for a long moment, but not even he was foolish enough to refuse a direct command from his queen, so he nodded stiffly in agreement.
Little puffs of air left Kiva’s lips as she realized how many lives might be saved if the laws were amended, but she couldn’t dwell on what Jaren had instigated — and how it made her feel — because the council meeting was far from over.
“What’s happening with the rebels?” Queen Ariana asked, moving the conversation along. “They’ve been quieter since Tilda’s death, but last night they abducted Kiva — presumably to bait Jaren. Are they rallying again?”
“Our newest intelligence is frustratingly limited,” Zerra said, her earlier smile gone, her freckled features now serious. “Ever since Rhune and Whitlock turned up dead, we’ve struggled to get our spies anywhere close to the inner circle, and not even they were able to infiltrate the main camp. It’s like the Viper and the Jackal have a sixth sense when it comes to loyalty.”
The Viper and the Jackal — Kiva didn’t need to guess who they were, but she was curious how her siblings had come to be known by such names. She was also disturbed by the reference to the two dead men, her stomach turning over at the thought of Torell or Zuleeka being responsible.
“It’s more likely that they have their own spies among us,” Jaren said with a sigh. “They don’t need a sixth sense if someone is telling them everything they need to know.” He scrubbed a weary hand down his face. “Gods, I wish Eidran were here. He’d know exactly what we should do, and who we could trust.”
“He trained Rhune and Whitlock, didn’t he?” Feldor asked.
Jaren nodded. “Their deaths hit him really hard. That’s why Naari and I made him come with us to the winter palace — to get him out of the city and keep him from doing anything rash. But even while we were gone, he was still brainstorming new ways to infiltrate the rebels.” Jaren paused, as if suddenly remembering something. “Just before we left, he was certain he’d found a secret meeting place here in Vallenia. He’d planned to go in undercover once we got back.”
Yisari’s dark eyes were eager as she asked, “Did he tell you the location?”
A snort of amusement left Jaren. “In the last half hour alone, I’ve been called both reckless and foolish. Do you really think Eidran would have given me that information, knowing what I’d do with it?”