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Back The Bone Shard Emperor Save as PDF
Chapters (68)
  1. Cover
  2. Dedication
  3. Map
  4. 1
  5. 2
  6. 3
  7. 4
  8. 5
  9. 6
  10. 7
  11. 8
  12. 9
  13. 10
  14. 11
  15. 12
  16. 13
  17. 14
  18. 15
  19. 16
  20. 17
  21. 18
  22. 19
  23. 20
  24. 21
  25. 22
  26. 23
  27. 24
  28. 25
  29. 26
  30. 27
  31. 28
  32. 29
  33. 30
  34. 31
  35. 32
  36. 33
  37. 34
  38. 35
  39. 36
  40. 37
  41. 38
  42. 39
  43. 40
  44. 41
  45. 42
  46. 43
  47. 44
  48. 45
  49. 46
  50. 47
  51. 48
  52. 49
  53. 50
  54. 51
  55. 52
  56. 53
  57. 54
  58. 55
  59. 56
  60. 57
  61. Acknowledgements
  62. Discover More
  63. extras
  64. meet the author
  65. A Preview of "The Foxglove King"
  66. A Preview of "The Stardust Thief"
  67. BY ANDREA STEWART
  68. Praise for Andrea Stewart

The Shardless Few were cutting off shipments of caro nuts to the heart of the Empire – Ranami and Gio’s doing, most likely. Once it became clear that Imperial and the surrounding islands would not be receiving their regular shipment of caro nuts, governors would begin complaining to the Emperor. In the midst of a wet season, bog cough was prevalent. The only known cure was the oil from the caro nuts. If the Emperor could not ensure the flow of trade, the governors would lose confidence in her. And with her position already so precarious, the Shardless Few might be able to push for her abdication.

My sense of unease grew. I’d be here in the thick of it, ostensibly supporting the Emperor through the chaos.

I turned to the rest of my notes. It wasn’t just an update on the plans of the Shardless Few. Gio knew about the palace, about the myriad locked doors, about how Lin, like her predecessor, disappeared for hours behind them.

Look for a white-bladed sword in Lin’s possession, the letter said. Find it and steal it.

9

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Phalue

Nephilanu Island

It was strange being the one on the other side of the bars. Phalue unlocked the cell, setting the tray on the floor just inside. Her father watched her from the cot, hands clasped. He waited until she’d locked the door again to reach for the bowl of noodles. The lamplight caught on the curling wisps of steam. Somewhere in the cellar, she heard water dripping into a puddle. It was raining today, as it usually was, and moisture seeped inside despite everyone’s best efforts.

Phalue pulled a chair from the side and it scraped against the stone floor. For the first month or so, she’d had someone else bring him food. She had told herself she was too busy – and she had been. There had been records to sort through, items to sell, funds to redistribute, letters to send. If they’d done this the normal way, the transition would have happened gradually, and her father would have guided her the whole way. As it was, his most loyal supporters had fled, and Ranami was left to piece together all the scattered pieces of his governorship. And then there were the Shardless Few and Gio. Phalue had been unsure how to handle them ever since the coup. He wanted her dead. He wanted to take this island for himself and for the Shardless Few, the way he’d done with Khalute. It hadn’t been part of his plan to install Phalue as governor.