“You can’t do the same for me either, Kalen. I would have been all right staying at Kion.”

Kalen stared at me, his expression turning angry. “You want them to kill you? You’re giving up, just like that?”

“What else can I do? Being a bone witch is harder to relinquish than a title, Kalen! I can’t be selfish!”

“And you’re implying I am?” Kalen pushed his chair back. “This isn’t a game!”

“You can’t tell me not to speak for Mykkie and then speak for me!” I snapped before realizing this was brewing into a fight neither of us wanted.

Kalen came to the same conclusion; he slumped and sighed. “We’ll have all the time in the world to decide where to go after tonight. But it’s best we stay in Thanh and wait for favorable winds. Can we at least agree to that?”

I nodded meekly. “Yes. I can.”

“I’m just—” Kalen ran a hand over his dark hair. His voice softened. “I don’t want to see you hurt.”

“Kalen!” Lord Besserly bellowed, appearing out of nowhere to clap him on the back. “The ministers would like to talk to you about your cousin and Odalia.”

“I am no longer King Kance’s representative, Your Excellency.”

“Ah, is Kance as prudish about nobles being with asha as his blowhard of a father? I wish Telemaine a speedy recovery, by the way, but I always figured Kance would be a lot more lenient.”

“Our distance is for an entirely different matter, your lordship.”

“A pity. There are talks of him sending a considerable portion of his army our way, and while I trust Odalia and Yadosha remain in good standing, we’ve got every reason to be more than a little uncomfortable about his decision.”

“What? Kance is sending troops here? When?”

“We received a missive an hour ago. While you might not be representing Odalia in any official capacity, we thought you or Lord Khalad might be able to shed some light on his perplexing behavior.”

Kalen glanced back at me.

“While we have only the highest respect for the Lady Tea,” the duke said apologetically, “she speaks for the Willows, and this is a matter that doesn’t concern them—yet. I know Lady Tea is as knowledgeable about the politics of the situation, but there are protocols to follow.”

“We’re to talk about it here? In the middle of all…this?”

“We never discuss politics unless we’re at least half-drunk, Lord Kalen. That’s how we maintain our sanity.”

“Go with them,” I said gently. “And take Khalad too. I don’t know what Kance is doing, but you both know him better than anyone else. I’ll go have a talk with Likh…and we can speak again later.”

“I’ll be back as soon as I can,” he promised as they headed for Khalad.