The gates were open.
I could see a chink of sunlight streaming into the court — a slice of gold across the grass. And if I took a step forward from my post beside the door, I would be able to see the Shadowcat delegation which cast such a long shadow into that light. Isaiah and his most capable minions would still be harassing the bridge, but he had left behind a sizable force to protect his daughter and Kai's siblings.
And that force was now marching into our shiny new fortress for safe keeping. They weren't being quiet about it: the stamping of boots on tiles formed the tempo to my watch. It was a warm day, too. I could feel sweat trickling down my back and hear the low buzz of flies.
If I listened carefully, I could hear the exchange between Kai and the Instructor. But I resisted that temptation as much as possible, because my task was to guard the room — to stop eavesdroppers, not become one myself.
The gist of the conversation was obvious, though. There was an unmistakable drop in tone as the meeting came to a close, then the door swung inwards on oiled hinges. I stopped slouching to stand to attention as the Instructor stepped onto the balcony and let the door close behind him.
There was something blatantly wrong. His eyes were wide and wandering, his mouth hung slightly ajar.
"Sav," he said ponderously. "Sav, yes. I don't think I ...."
"Are you alright?" I interrupted, casting a sneaking glance at the oak-studded double doors. What could Kai have possibly said? We were winning. The fortress was ours. The skeleton guard were readying Evarlin against an assault which I was beginning to doubt would ever come.
The Instructor shook his head. "Oh, no. I'm terrific, actually. You know what he's gone and done?"
I waited expectantly, and his mouth stretched into a hesitant smile.
"He's made me Commander! Me, of all people! I can't think why, because I don't have an ounce of experience as a leader. No, you see, Eira Llewellyn led my patrol back in the day — and rightly so. Then Peyton after her."
Oh. Personally, I couldn't fault that choice: he was respected; he certainly had a flair for leadership, even if he didn't realise it; and he could be trusted. I told him truthfully, "I think you'll do just fine, sir."
"You do? Well, thank you, I suppose." He shook his head once again, this time in disbelief, then clasped my arm. "And thank you for keeping that boy alive. Truth be told, I've grown rather fond of him. Of all of you."
Then he left, rather unceremoniously, leaving me smiling to myself in a surprised, pleased sort of way. And I realised that, after all this time, I didn't even know his name.
I settled back to the boredom of standing perfectly still. Kai didn't really need guarding — because his cousin was with him, but I didn't have anything better to do. And this was my job, after all.
The door swung open again, and Kai slipped out before I could even turn my head. He flashed me a weary smile as he walked to the railing and sat down. Because we were on a balcony. It wasn't our balcony, but nostalgia welled up anyway.
He tapped the ground beside him. I sat down too, letting my legs hang over the empty space. I must have grown, because I nearly couldn't fit between the rails anymore. And maybe it was my imagination, but I could have sworn my shoulder rested higher on Kai's arm.
"Rhys?" I asked quietly.
His smile was wry. "I told him to take a nap, but we both know that isn't going to happen."
"And the regency?"
Kai's shrug betrayed every ounce of concern. Because if his cousin didn't agree, we were back to square one. I tried to think outside of the box without straying too far from reason. Kai needed a regent, and Rhys wouldn't stay long enough to fill the role. That easily, the solution presented itself.
"Does the law ever specify that the regent has to stay on the island?" I inquired. "I mean, I'm no expert but that sounds like a plausible loophole ..."
He gave my hand a squeeze and beamed as if he expected no less from me than the answer to all of his problems. "Perfect. Thank you, Sav. I don't suppose I could persuade you to take a job as my advisor?"
"No, no, no, I'm not ever leaving the patrol," I exclaimed. His smile took on a sadness and it struck for the first time that he would be leaving, and he didn't even have a choice in the matter.
The realisation must have been written on my face, because he said, "I always knew this wasn't permanent. But I've found my own replacement, and I don't think you'll have any cause to complain."
I raised an eyebrow, but he didn't elaborate any further. However nice or competent or amazing they were, I didn't want a stranger joining our patrol. Didn't want anyone to take Kai's place. Would they take over as leader, too? I certainly didn't want the job.
We fell into silence for a moment. Then Kai caught sight of the new arrivals and heaved a sigh. "I suppose Natalia is here?"
"Your fiancée?" I teased, but my heart wasn't in it. "Yeah. Nate's with her."
I found myself staring at Kai. His jaw was tight, his hand squeezing a little tighter now, his eyes empty. Something was up. It didn't take a genius to figure out what.
"This is the part," he began slowly, "when I would offer to break my engagement to Natalia for you and say to hell to with consequences. It happens in all the movies, doesn't it? And I always used to think how selfish they were, risking everyone else for the sake of their own happiness."
I felt panic frothing up, faster than I could handle. "Kai—"
He shook his head. "Please, just let me finish. I get it now. I understand that it's not for them, it's for the person they love, the person whose happiness is more important than a nation. The ultimate test of devotion, I suppose."
"Kai!" I cut across. "Don't you dare do what it sounds like you're going to do."
Kai flicked my ear, and I watched a little grin slip onto his face. "Sav, let me finish. I was about to say that I can't. Maybe it was the way I was raised, maybe it's just my conscience, doesn't even matter which. So I'm sorry — and I almost wish I could — but I can't."
"Well, good, because I think I'd hate you if you chose me over the whole island and started a war in the bargain."
He found that incredibly funny, for some reason, and laughed for a good minute straight. There was relief in it, too. Relief that I hadn't expected him to make such a crappy decision. The two of us were well matched, I realised, but romance was off the table, so...
"Friends, then?" I asked, extending a hand.
Kai grinned at me and shook it. "Friends," he agreed.
We didn't stay on the balcony long after that. Kai had to fetch his siblings and find them somewhere safe to sleep (Zara's patrol ended up standing guard), greet Natalia and deal with the thousand tiny matters which demanded his attention. Reunited with the rest of the patrol, I acted as a bodyguard for hours straight. Until Kai caught me dozing off and ordered me to bed — and I could hardly disobey a direct order, now could I?
***
I woke up to dawn light and an intruder.
I had found my room exactly as I had left it and happily tumbled into bed. It was the first time I had slept in days and days, so I didn't really appreciate it being cut short. Whoever it was hadn't been quiet about opening the door, and I cracked open an eye to see who dared disturb my rest.
Nate. He was leaning against the windowsill, dark hair tousled as if he'd just woken up himself, watching me as I groaned and rolled onto my stomach. It felt like I had slept for less than a minute, but the morning sun told me otherwise. A new day. And the first in a long time which we didn't have to spend running for our lives.
I wasn't wearing many clothes, I noticed abruptly. It didn't bother me as much as it should have, but I pulled the covers closer all the same. Not that Nate cared. He was more interested in the curtains than my bare legs.
"Morning, Sav," he offered tonelessly. I lifted my head from my pillow, threw it at him, missed, and watched the corners of his lips twitch. "You're needed in the courtyard. There has been a development in the situation on Holyhead."
"Development?"
This time I was shown a full satisfied smile. "Oh yes. Wyatt Rochester surrendered."
What? Why would he—? Oh, screw this, I thought. But no matter how much I pushed, Nate wouldn't say a word more. He tossed me a heap of uniform and waited quietly while I pulled on a jacket and harness. Then we began the long walk down to the courtyard.
Kai and his cousin stood amongst a crowd of guards, mostly the young ones, and they all watched the gate warily. I couldn't see anything out of the ordinary, let alone a Rochester on his knees. So what was all the fuss about? Nate and I took our places at Kai's back, but he hardly even seemed to notice.
Rhys threw me a wink but didn't offer an explanation. He seemed even happier than his usual happy self now he knew that he could go home soon. I might have been offended, had I not had more important things to worry about.
Becky's shoulder bumped against mine before a minute was up. "What's going on? D'you know?"
I shot her a look and tapped my forehead.
"There'd best be a reason I was woken up early, is all I'm saying," she conceded through the link.
"Well, don't look at me. I haven't been told jack. Where are the boys?" I meant Ben and Alex, of course. Half a patrol wasn't sufficient to guard a king, and as Zara's patrol was occupied, I didn't know who else we could trust.
"They were assigned to Her Highness an hour ago, so I don't— Ah, speak of the devil ..."
I severed our link as Natalia appeared in an archway, the boys at her heels like faithful dogs. She kept glancing over her shoulder as if she wasn't accustomed to guards — which she probably wasn't. But somehow, despite that uncertainty, she managed to radiate beauty and reassurance and all things queenly.
There was a reshuffle as we made room for her to stand beside Kai, and Ben and Alex slotted into place. Then we waited, until figures began to materialise in the woods beyond the open gate. I felt a shiver run down my spine. The Shadowcat army didn't march as an army, but rather walked apart like so many ghosts.
And they didn't pay us any attention. They simply drifted into the fortress on silent legs and dispersed. I saw Shadowcats sitting at the picnic benches, finding shady corners and generally making themselves at home. Maybe fifty of them passed before I recognised Isaiah, walking alone and undistinguished.
All he did was sketch a shallow bow and murmur, "Kaeden," before taking his place beside his daughter.
Great. Yet another helpful, friendly soul. Was everyone allergic to clarification?
I studied the faces before me. Isaiah didn't look overjoyed, but he didn't look as gut-wrenchingly sour as he usually did. Kai was a blank canvas, his arm intertwined with Natalia's — a display intended for the new arrivals. Then there was Rhys, grinning and struggling to stand still. Well, at least someone was enjoying themselves.
My eyes flitted to Nate last of all. And he happened to be looking at me, too. I felt my spine tingling again, but for an entirely different reason, and suddenly my gaze was dropping to the floor, looking anywhere except those watching green eyes. I could've sworn I heard the beginning of a laugh before he caught himself.
Someone screamed. That was the start of it, the jolt which made me look back to the gate and suppress a flinch. Crazy Jeff, of all people. Jeff, in his Shadowcat form, dragging a human being as if they were nothing but dead meat. And he was shaking so badly that he might be halfway to a fit already.
It was difficult to recognise Wyatt Rochester beneath blood and grime and a face twisted by pain — but, really, who else could it be? His shoulder was a mauled mess where Jeff's teeth were, but otherwise I couldn't see any serious injuries. Rhys was moving before I had finished deciding whether this would work out in our favour: he crouched down close to Jeff and slapped the ground.
"Jeff," he began, all stern like the guy wasn't sixty years his senior. "Drop."
A quiet, indignant snarl.
"Don't give me that look — you could keep the damn chew toy if it were up to me."
The Shadowcat bristled, but delicately extracted his jaws from Wyatt Rochester's shoulder and then turned his attention to the crowd. I felt those mismatched green eyes sweep past me and resisted the urge to flinch. Rhys caught a handful of Jeff's scruff, firmly steering him back towards the gate. Astonishingly, the guy didn't even try to resist.
"Too many wolves," Rhys said to Kaeden, avoiding the link for obvious reasons. "I'll take him for a run. You good?"
Kai's slow nod didn't quite seem to fit the situation. It was too solemn, too final. The detective part of my brain pricked up its ears. Their discussion had some deeper implication than
"Yes, thank you, Rhys."
The rogue's reply was a grin. A grin and an affectionate punch, before he shifted into his oversized tawny wolf, triggering a wave of muttering and exclamations. The sun was up, after all. I snuck a glance at Natalia, another shifter hybrid, and was surprised to see a little knowing smile spread across her perfect face. What did that mean? Could she shift in daylight too? Come to think of it, was her other form a cat or a wolf?
Jeff slashed his tail back and forth, torn between the crowd and his grandson. A hundred people who smelled like wolves, or a single wolf who smelled of nothing at all. He lifted a paw, put it back down, took one lingering look at us, and finally slunk through the gate. I released a breath I hadn't realised I was holding.
And that was the last time I saw Rhys Llewellyn (well, actually, the last time until a sunny afternoon in a mainland church, but that's a different story altogether). We had won; we were safe; there was no reason for him to stay, least of all the regency.
So we were left with Kai's step-father lying in a pool of his own blood, a rapidly dwindling rebellion and kingdom riddled with divisions. I could've sworn Kai held his head a little higher. Our mess had arrived, all neatly packaged with a bow on top, and all we had to do was clean up, tie any loose ends and enjoy the taste of victory. Soon, it would all be over.