“I’ll not hide my face from the dead.”

A weight dropped into Anji’s stomach, like a rock plunging into an icy river. She scratched at the back of her hand with one jagged nail. “The dead…” she trailed off, her voice quivering.

The Hawk shot her a scathing look and cleared her throat. “You’re to be tortured and executed. Publicly, I imagine. And I’m on my way to the biggest payday of my life.” She spared a glance for the man lying dead on the moss-covered ground not twenty feet from the fire. “I’ll not let you or anyone else stand in my way.”

A lump welled up at the back of Anji’s throat. She’d come all this way, braved the elements wearing nothing but laundress homespun and her father’s old coat, only to be dragged back in chains? Rolandrian had been a terrible king; everyone knew it—everyone talked about it, in the castle, on the streets. As a girl, she’d stayed up many nights listening to her parents talking about him when they’d thought she was asleep. The image of the two of them hunched together over stacks of paper at the oak table under their only window still burned in her mind.

The king of Yem had been responsible for every horrid thing happening in the world, so Anji had snuffed him out like a candle. She’d done the country and its people a favor, and in return she’d receive only torture and death.

But that couldn’t be. Yem wasn’t some backwater country like Dorodad, with no governance or order. Her parents, her aunt Belle, they’d taught her that much at least. Even the worst criminals were given their fair trial, just like everyone else.

“There’ll be a trial though, right?” Anji said, holding on to the hope like a drowning girl to a piece of driftwood.

The Hawk’s mask wagged. “No trial.”

“But the Senate—they have to—”

“Linura is your home,” said the Hawk. “You worked in the castle. Did you not notice the Senate were no longer in charge?”

“I wasn’t exactly invited to their assemblies,” said Anji. “Besides, servants aren’t allowed outside the castle.”

The Hawk’s mouth twisted. “Well, if you had ventured out, you would know the Sun Wardens hold near-total control of the Senate, and, by extension, Yem. With Rolandrian gone they’ve likely firmed up their grip.”

“Those psychos in the yellow robes?”

“All who worked in any sector of government will be under their influence,” said the Hawk. “Whether they know it or not.”