“Good,” I say, and he sends back a confirming nod.

“Good.”

He takes a step, and anger begins to boil in my chest and propel my words. “You kidnapped me. It’s not like you’re trying to be my friend. I’m here against my will.”

“Because if we were here for any other reason, you’d consider me a friend, right?” He scoffs.

My cheeks burn. “No, I wouldn’t.”

He huffs as if he proved his point.

Arrogant little ass.

“You killed my men, Braizen!” I shout up at him. “Verdanian bodies rot in this Wood as we speak because of you and your bandits. Why would I ever consider you a friend? After what your crew did! After what your father did all those years ago.”

“My father?” He breaks in and finally faces me. Holding a hand to his chest, he leans down and speaks slowly, as if I’m a child. “Really, Idalia? After all these years, you still believe that? My parents wanted peace between our kingdoms! They invited you into our home, and they were prepared for you to live with us until we were…Until you and I…” His voice hitches, and he doesn’t say the word. Married.

“What should I believe, then? Would you have me blame my own father for my mother’s death? He loved her, adored her! He traveled to the land he hated most with the woman he loved wholly in hopes for a better future!”

Braizen’s laugh is cynical, and he wipes the tip of his nose with his thumb, a gesture of dismissal if I ever saw one. His eyes are now cold.

“So, your father is blameless while mine is a monster? Is that it? You’re completely convinced my father would do something so vile?”

All I can do is laugh. “Verdana is starving because of your father! We can barely trade goods with Aeradian because Vaskis sends his men to slaughter ours at the river! And Lachlan won’t deign to send his troops to protect us, fearing that our war will cost his men their lives. That’s the greed of the Baellilean people and the will of your King. Your father is too evil to let us have food! He’d rather women and children die daily of hunger than pull his men back for one day! So yes, I do believe your father is vile. I’m convinced he killed my mother. And I believe with everything within me that he’d do so again.”

Braizen stomps toward me and doesn’t stop until he is dangerously close.