"This was an elaborate plot to lure me onto Lur Alavian soil?” King Jeshi asked, stunned.

“I believe so, Your Highness,” Elurra answered. “My theory is she was trying to spark a war so she could target you, My Lord. She tried to have me assassinated in Amora right after she took the throne for the same reason. When she failed to kill me, she went after Kai.”

“Why lure me away from my kingdom?”

“She does not have enough power. She wants more Demons. Therefore, she needs another Kutsal Stone. She has already killed the king of Sheni and my parents for their stones, although my parents were clever enough to hide Lur Alava’s stone, so it eludes her for now.” She absentmindedly rubbed the snowflake charm dangling from her bracelet, the weight of the burden she carried pressing down on her shoulders.

They’d traveled a few hours before it got dark, and the king gave the order for the soldiers to make camp. The men didn’t even move off the path. They simply set up their tents in the middle of the road, cut down trees, and lit hundreds of small fires, cascading down the mountain like a trail of will-o'-the-wisps.

“Princess, you must be exhausted. You can rest in my tent tonight. I also offer you clean attire, although it is not fit for a princess, I’m afraid,” the king proposed.

“Thank you, Your Majesty. Anything clean is perfectly suitable, and I am humbled by your offer to share your tent. I could not ask for anything more,” Elurra replied formally, bowing at the waist.

“It’s the least I can do for you, after what you have done for Kai.”

He called for a servant, who was told to bring her to the royal tent and supply her with clean attire. The air in Amora felt warm and clammy compared to Lur Alava, but she observed no one else shared her opinion as she watched groups of soldiers clump together to conserve body heat around their cooking fires. She could see their teeth chattering in the dim firelight.

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“Where are my men?” Elurra asked.

“They have been assigned to sleep in the other tents, Your Majesty,” the man replied curtly.

“I would like to have a word with them while they prepare a space for me in the royal tent. Could you take me to them?”

“Yes, mi’lady.” The soldier silently escorted her through the camp until she spotted Snore and Plague sitting a short distance from the fire. Rowan was dominating the conversation and weaving sailor’s tales for the enraptured soldiers. Tristen and Terrin were listening to him, but as soon as Terrin saw her approaching, he excused himself. Anger flashed through her, but she kept it at bay as she called out to Snore.

“Princess! I didn’t expect you,” he said with a yawn.

“I did not expect to catch you awake,” she retorted with a smile.

“Truthfully, I would’ve been asleep if I didn’t dread nightmares after that Demon.” He shivered, and Plague sneezed anxiously. “It almost got me.”

“How?” She was curious to learn more about her two companions.

He averted his gaze and twiddled his thumbs a bit before answering.

“Being a seventh son doesn’t leave you much in the way of inheritance. With Plague being sickly and my sleeping problems, our family didn’t want us. We found our way working in the ports, but no one wanted us there, neither. Then we got roughed up one night and sold to that slaver. We’ve never been accepted nowhere until you picked us to come with you, Princess. But that Demon…” He trailed off sadly for a moment before continuing. “It reminded me of all the reasons I’m not worth much to anyone.” Plague rested his hand on Snore’s shoulder, and Elurra sat down beside the dejected man.

“I have never once regretted asking you to join me, and I did so because I believe you both hold more value than the sum of your flaws.”

Snore gaped at her, clearly speechless. Before he could find his tongue again, the king’s man appeared and told Elurra her accommodations were ready.

“I should be going then,” she said as she parted ways with her companions.

The servant led her to the largest tent in the center of the camp and held the flap open for her as she entered. It was a major improvement to the ground mats. There was a stuffed mattress for her on one side of the tent and dividers set up for privacy. She sank onto the bed gratefully, dismissed the servant, and was left alone. She lay down and wondered, not for the first time, what on Incari was wrong with Terrin. His silent treatment was really getting to her. She wanted to lie awake and brood, but a vision coaxed her into a deep slumber.