“We have to expedite things and get out of here,” I said. If Kiyo had talked to Alea, she probably would’ve mentioned me telling Spots that I would free her king. But, obviously, there was a lot more to the plan that Kiyo needed to be caught up on. I quickly explained about the other captive monarchs and how Volusian had been in contact with them. Kiyo’s eyes were aglow as he listened.

“That’s brilliant,” he said. “So long as they haven’t been badly treated, they’ll be a huge force to have on our side.”

I nodded. “Volusian didn’t give me the impression that they’d been physically harmed ... just that some were kind of defeated mentally.”

“Understandable,” said Kiyo. “But if they can fight, we may not need to figure out the key to the enchantment around the objects. You guys can just overpower it.”

“We talked about that too. It’s an option. Still, if there’s any edge we can get, I want it. I don’t want to go down there with my little posse of six or so, only to find out Varia used six hundred to cast her spell and that we can’t even come close to matching that.”

“I can ask Orj and the rest of the Hemlock group about it. Along with some dissidents from other kingdoms, it seems Varia has a number of malcontents within her own borders.”

That was a surprise. “Everyone I’ve met sure seems devoted, though. She’s massively powerful and controls lots of other kingdoms. Seems like her subjects would be happy about that.”

“They’re devoted because they’re afraid of her,” Kiyo pointed out. “And from what I’ve been hearing, the people in her own kingdom don’t always fare much better than those she subjugates.”

That also surprised me, since I regarded protecting my subjects as my main job as queen. Of course, Varia and I were coming from very different points of view, seeing as I also didn’t really feel the need to blackmail the innocents of other kingdoms with death and suffering in order to expand my empire. So, it was reasonable she and I would have different ruling styles in general.

“Well, find out what you can,” I told him. “One thing I know for sure—we need to get Dorian out before we launch our master attack.”

Kiyo shifted uncomfortably. “We might not have time for that. We can get him once everything else is taken care of.”

“We may not have the chance! The whole reason she’s holding him is to ensure my good behavior. If we start some commotion up here, he could end up dead before we get back to him.”