Shady

That felt like a low blow. She didn’t sign up to take on the slave trade — she just clung to the first person to show her a scrap of ...

“It’s not my kingdom.” She was blushing harder now, gaze on the ground as she made herself as small as possible. Opinions were dangerous. Especially opinions like this.

Ky nodded. “Yes. That’s what he told me. That he wished everyone outlawed it, but the economics were too important for him to do it himself… awkward.”

Ky blushed a bit and nodded, unwilling to say anything that even had a hint of a critique of the king, and yet agreeing with her wholeheartedly.

Ky cringed and nodded. “That was very awkward, yes.”

She glanced at Tristan. He was playing a dangerous game. What if King Harold materialized to punish him. “He seems nice enough.”

Ky nodded. “And their egos are enormous.” She flushed a bit, realizing what she’d said. “In the East. Not here. The… the Reputations. Not here.” God she probably looked like ...

Ky nodded, too. “Fat good’ll do you with how emaciated they’ve made it over there. Burned fields and graveyards.”

Ky nodded in agreement. “There’s little to be gained from war… except for money, I guess. Power.”

Ky nodded. “A lot of hunger, too.”

Ky cringed. “War is rarely pretty.”

Ky nodded. So they didn’t want Tristan to know. She could work with that. “Yeah… I definitely wasn’t in a great spot. I guess I sort of unified them against ...

“Ah, yeah, that was, heh.” She smiled awkwardly. “… What did you hear about that?”

“Definitely not,” Ky said, forcing her tone and expression to get gentle again as she looked back at him. “I’m very different now than I used to be.”

Ky nodded. “I understand. I was very bad.” “You were not,” Zander scoffed. Of all the sisters, she was the least trouble. By a lot. She just caught any moving ...