Stars May Fall (Stars May Burn #2)

8. Sophie

SOPHIE

I rolled over in bed, knocking Kasten’s heavy arm from my waist. He grumbled in response, still more than half asleep. The sun was peeking through the curtains, and my stomach rumbled for breakfast. However, with Kasten’s eyes still closed, I waited a little longer. He needed his sleep; he normally got so little. Who knew how many days and nights he’d gone without sleep last week. Besides, even after sharing his bed for the six days since we’d returned to Kasomere, I still couldn’t suppress the pleasure of watching him. And watching him was far simpler when his eyes were closed so the intensity of his returning gaze wouldn’t make me blush or look away. I could study his face for hours, and he wouldn’t even know.

Normally, I had to share him with unending responsibilities. Right now, I had him all to myself.

I smiled. I was in love with the terrifying general of Kasomere. And he was my husband. And he loved me. It all felt too wonderful to be true. Not to mention I had withstood Father, who’d had his lands confiscated as a result. And Kasten had exposed Lord Lyrason when he had got me the cure.

Everything was perfect. Together, we were invincible. For the first time in my life, I felt strong, and I hoped the heady feeling would last forever.

Kasten opened one of his narrow, deep-set eyes a crack. “What are you smiling to yourself about?” His voice was so groggy with sleep, it was barely intelligible. For some reason, I found that sweet and rolled into him so my back was flush with his chest and he could no longer study my expression. He placed his arm over me and pulled me in tighter, his nose nuzzling my neck.

“What were you thinking about, Sophie?” His voice became clearer and more insistent.

I wasn’t sure how to reply. My stomach rumbled noisily.

Kasten snorted. “Well, that’s one way to tell me. I suppose it's probably breakfast time.” He leaned up and looked at the clock. “Kingdoms, it’s eight o’clock. I can’t remember the last time I slept past five.” He rolled back to his side and propped his head on one arm. The other slid to the dip of my waist. “I always thought I would sleep worse with somebody else in my bed, not better.”

I raised an eyebrow, snuggling deeper into the pillow. “Maybe it's because you pushed your body so far beyond exhaustion last week. Or maybe it’s because you actually went to bed at a sensible time instead of drinking with Callum until four in the morning.”

He pulled a wounded expression. “I don’t drink with Callum until four in the morning.” He rolled onto his back. “He normally leaves around midnight.”

I snorted a laugh. Who could have guessed that Kasten had a sense of humor?

His expression fell abruptly, and he watched his hand as it stroked up and down my hip, wrinkling the silk of my nightgown. “I normally drink because it numbs the nightmares. I’ve had them for years. Normally, it’s a variation of being trapped somewhere, being attacked, and watching the people I care about get killed because I am not enough to save them.” He closed his eyes for a moment and blew out a breath as if dispelling an image from his mind. His hand kept stroking. “I still get them, but they’re not as bad if I’ve had a lot to drink. It also stops my worst fears turning over and over in my mind, preventing me from falling asleep at all. I haven’t slept through the night in a very long time.” He looked away, staring at the ceiling.

My throat constricted, and I sat up and found his hand. “I’m sorry you have to face that, Kasten.”

He shrugged. “It helps having you safe beside me. Being able to feel your peaceful breathing.” He pulled me back down into his arms, and I squirmed into a comfortable position against his chest. “Just having you here calms my mind in a far better way than alcohol.”

I kept hold of his hand, interlocking our fingers. My skin looked so pale next to his healthy sun-kissed tan. In the half-light, it seemed to have retained its sickly grey pallor. I wondered what would happen when we had to part again. The thought of him having to face his fears alone in the palace or on the battlefield filled me with dismay. He had been so badly injured at Whitehill. Nobody should have to go through that. “What will you do when you’re next sent away on a campaign? Won’t the next one be quite soon? Will you still go?”

He sighed. “Let’s not think about that yet. I want to enjoy our time together without thoughts of the future ruining it.”

I wished we could simply be left alone in Kasomere forever. I listened to the quiet cadence of Kasten breathing.

My stomach rumbled again. Kasten’s chest vibrated in a soundless laugh, and he loosened his arms from around me. I wasn’t sure I was ready for him to let go of me yet, no matter how hungry I was. I buried myself deeper into the mattress.

Kasten kissed the top of my head. “Come on. I need the bathroom, and you need breakfast.”

He untangled himself, and I watched him walk to the bathroom in his loose shirt and trousers, his hair ruffled and his feet bare. I couldn’t help another smile before I pushed myself out of bed, pulled on my silk dressing gown, and rang for my maids—the bell system had only been installed up to the fourth floor two days ago.

My wardrobe was still in my room on the second floor, and I normally went downstairs to bathe, rub lotions on my bruises, and then dress. Today, however, I wanted breakfast first. We could have it in bed together. I wanted to make the most of these leisurely mornings that might never come again. The last six days had been so lazy, but after all that had happened, Physician Harris had been very blunt, saying I needed rest and no stress. Kasten clearly needed that too. I was convinced the last week must have been far worse for him than me. I’d merely been unconscious. Who knew what horrors he had gone through to get the cure from Lord Lyrason.

When Lucy knocked on the door, I asked her to go to the kitchens and bring up breakfast for us. Once she was gone, I propped myself into a sitting position with pillows while I brushed my hair, listening to the floorboards creaking behind the bathroom door as Kasten washed. It reminded me of the time I had woken in his bed when I hadn’t fallen asleep there, before walking in on him changing his bandages in the bathroom. I had squealed, slammed the door, and held it closed on him in panic. How embarrassing. The memory still made my cheeks flush. Back then I couldn’t have imagined that I would ever feel so relaxed sleeping in Kasten’s bed.

I ran my brush through my hair again, though the knots were all gone, an uneasiness stirring in my stomach. I had wanted to discuss something with Kasten for the last few days, but I had no idea how to do so. Now I had almost recovered, and we were acting affectionately like a true husband and wife, surely we should be having marital relations? But I had no idea how to initiate such a conversation without it being acutely embarrassing, and I had the feeling Kasten would not initiate it himself out of fear of pressuring me. He hadn’t even initiated us having dinner together for fear I was only doing it out of duty.

My heart rate rose, and I could feel the blush deepen on my cheeks. With Frederick, relations had happened on our wedding night as expected, and then a few times a month afterward. But we had never discussed the topic, even indirectly. We both knew we needed to make a child, and as I failed month after month to conceive, his visits to my bed had grown less frequent. I had become increasingly numb to the whole situation.

But this was Kasten, and everything was different. I was more aware and more self-conscious with him, because everything meant more. While I had never found Frederick attractive, Kasten had captivated me heart and soul. The thought of our brief kisses going further… It felt like an entirely different world than my previous relationship. I glanced at Kasten’s side of the bed. I wanted things to go further between us. I really did. I wanted all of him, utterly and completely. It was exciting, but also terrifying because I had so much more to lose.

I clutched the bed sheets as the reality of what it would lead to settled around me. I would have to face the questions about my own fertility, having drunk those damaging tonics for a whole year. The idea of failing to bear Kasten’s child was far worse than failing to bear Frederick’s. And if I couldn’t bring children to the marriage, what was I meant to do with my life? I was already keenly aware of how much less I could contribute to our marriage than Kasten. The house was his. The titles were his. The money was earned by him. His ability to lead armies and be a tactician were legendary. He defended all of us from so many threats without even mentioning them to me. I had never deserved him.

I took a deep breath to calm myself. Now that Father and Lord Lyrason were gone, would I really turn to fighting my own mind? Physician Harris had told me not to stress, and I didn’t want to destroy this time of calm when we could both truly enjoy spending trouble free time with each other. Maybe I simply wasn’t yet ready for the next stage of our relationship when I would have to face the new worries. But maybe in a week or so—when I’d had longer to process recent events—I would be. I just wished everything wasn’t so complicated.

Right now, however, in our bubble of peace, I was determined to be happy.

Kasten opened the bathroom door, and I startled, letting my hair fall forward to cover my face so he couldn’t see how red I was after my train of thought.

Kasten paused in the doorway, wearing a fresh shirt, a towel around his neck. I peeked through my hair to see him frowning at me. I started brushing my hair again just to give my hands something to do.

“Are you all right, Sophie?”

I cleared my throat and looked away, lifting my chin. “Yes. I’ve asked Lucy to bring us breakfast in bed.”

He grunted and sat down on the covers beside me. The action only deepened my blush as I desperately sought to return my demeanor to calm and collected. The bed sagged beneath me as Kasten leaned in. “Sophie, what’s wrong? You’re acting strange.”

Should I share what I had been thinking about marital relations? It would probably be helpful for him to know. But I wasn’t sure how to put them in words, and the thought of talking about it out loud made my throat dry in embarrassment.

I dragged in a breath and set down the hairbrush on my bedside table. “I was…thinking…”

“Yes.” He dipped his head to catch my gaze in his, like he always did when he wanted to encourage me to speak my mind, as if he would do anything to unearth what I was thinking.

I licked my lips to keep them moving. “About how I am almost recovered. I only have a faint ache in my side and right arm now.”

Kasten frowned and started to fasten the cuffs of his sleeves. “If you are thinking about taking over running the household, you don’t need to yet. Callum and Mistress Rose have everything in hand, and Physician Harris said you must rest your brain.”

I nodded. “I wasn’t. I am very grateful for the time we are able to spend together.” My decision to say more wavered. Was it even worth it? The acute embarrassment just to say I wanted to wait longer when that was what he was doing anyway? He was likely waiting for a sign from me before progressing to the next stage of our relationship.

Kasten cleared his throat and shifted, awkwardly. “I interrupted you. Forgive me. What were you thinking?”

For a moment the words didn’t come, but Kasten didn’t speak either. He just waited, expectant. My skin started to prickle.

“Kasten, I…I…”

The door opened and I startled as Lucy and Beatrice walked in, each carrying a breakfast tray. If they noticed my floundering expression, they didn’t show it as they set the trays before us.

Beatrice bobbed a curtsy. “Ring the bell when you want us to clear it away.”

Lucy beamed. “Enjoy your food. The fruit was picked this morning.”

They both left the room, looking between us with girlish smiles.

I stared down at my tray and spooned the berries and fruit puree into the yogurt. Kasten still didn’t speak, nor did he touch his own food. He was still waiting for me.

I sighed and gave him a small smile, deciding to say something that meant more. “You are a good person, Kasten. The best that I have ever known. I wanted you to know that. You have done so much for me. Thank you for saving me from becoming a halfsoul.”

He looked away, and I knew he didn’t believe that he was good and didn’t know how to respond. If there was one positive thing I could do in our marriage, it would be to show him how amazing I thought he was.

I sipped my tea as if I hadn’t noticed. “Shall we have our usual walk in the garden after breakfast?”

He nodded but didn’t return my smile. Instead he reached for my second hand so he was holding both of them. “You know you don’t have to hide how you’re feeling from me, Sophie. I want you to tell me what you think.”

I nodded, smiling more fully now. “I’m fine. I just struggle to say how I feel about you, sometimes. How I feel about us. I’m grateful to be able to spend another day with you.”

His eyes lingered on mine for a long, searching moment before he lifted his palm to cup my cheek, his gaze turning tender. “I will always save you, Sophie. You don’t have to thank me for that. And I will always be good to you. You have nothing to fear.”

I nodded and took his hand in both of mine so I could turn my face to kiss his palm. I might not be able to share the tangle of my thoughts and my worries, but I felt like Kasten understood them all anyway.

We stepped outside into the overcast late autumn day, far warmer and more humid than I was used to in Adenburg. We had barely started our usual walk when Callum ran up to us. He’d been busy the last few days and distracted, but I wasn’t sure what he was working on. Even though he was in charge of running Kasomere while Kasten and I rested, I had no doubt he was working on new inventions.

His expression was cautious. “Kasten, can we talk?” He raised both his eyebrows meaningfully.

I looked between the men and inferred that he meant without me. I struggled with the rising feeling of rejection, which was ridiculous. The two of them had been close friends for all their adult life. They were allowed to have some time together without me. However, I suspected that whatever Callum had to say was important, and I wanted to know.

Kasten’s hand tightened over mine which rested over our looped arms. “We spoke the night before last. We need space, Callum. Can’t it wait a few more days?”

Callum sighed and pushed his hand back through his golden curls while shaking his head. “Kasten, I understand, I really do. But I want to explain my findings. I don’t think now is the best time to bury our heads in the sand. We’re giving our enemies the space to out-maneuver us.”

I looked up at my husband with a frown. “What’s going on, Kasten?” He’d explained very little detail about what had happened when I was imprisoned by Father and then heavily sedated. He’d said Lord Lyrason had been exposed and my father was dealt with. Was Callum worried about the king?

Kasten narrowed his eyes at Callum while he spoke to me, his arm rubbing the top of my shoulder. “I don’t want you to have to worry about these things so soon after your recovery. Physician Harris said you needed to rest.”

I straightened, my curiosity piquing. I wouldn’t let him shut me out again. “What things?”

Kasten’s face remained closed and stoney, so I turned my attention back to Callum. “I don’t want to be excluded, Callum. Can’t you explain whatever it is to both of us? Please?”

Kasten scowled pure murder at Callum. His friend smiled at me as if he were hoping I would insist on being included and plowed on anyway, holding his palm up as though creating a barrier to absorb some of Kasten’s glare. “I can keep things brief. Shall we sit at the table?”

He gestured to the white metal table and chairs on the main lawn and led the way toward them. I squeezed Kasten’s arm. “I’m fine. Honestly. I would rather know what is going on. We’ve had six days to recover. Remember we said we would face things together.”

Kasten inclined his head but said nothing, his expression solemn.

I hung back, causing him to stop. “Please, Kasten. Say what you’re thinking.”

His eyes flicked to mine and analyzed my face for a moment as if deciphering my emotions. “It’s not that I’m shutting you out, Sophie. I agree, I want to work together. I just asked Callum to handle things for a week or two for the both of us so we could concentrate on you becoming well.” He glared at his friend’s back. “I suspect whatever it is isn’t so urgent it can’t wait a few more days. When he discovers things or finds a problem he thinks he can solve, he gets too excited to not share it right away. I…I just wanted us to have space so you can fully recover.”

I understood that feeling of making a discovery that was too exciting not to share. I reached up and kissed Kasten’s cheek. He was back to being clean-shaven, so his skin was smooth. “You trust Callum, don’t you? Well then, let’s trust his judgment on this and listen to him. He probably has a good reason to be concerned.”

Kasten turned his attention back to me, and his face softened, almost becoming wary. Callum was still far enough ahead to be out of earshot. “Sophie, there is something I didn’t tell you, something I did to threaten Lord Lyrason into healing you. What Callum has to say probably relates to it.”

My mouth dried. “What? What haven’t you told me?”

He closed his eyes and looked down. My heart sank with trepidation. “Kasten?”

He must have heard the slight tremor in my voice as he opened his eyes immediately and placed his hands on my upper arms. “I don’t want you to worry, Sophie. But I…I took the starstone, and I used it in front of people. The king now knows I have its power, even if he doesn’t know what it is.”

I stared at him as his words took hold. The peaceful bliss I’d had the last few days shattered. My mouth dried. “But…but you said you would never use it. You said there would never be a big enough emergency. You wanted Callum to destroy it.”

He swallowed and looked intensely between my eyes as if trying to communicate without speaking. “I know. But I don’t regret it. I didn’t have a choice. I couldn’t lose you. Fenland comes second to you.” His eyes were pleading as if he wanted me to accept what he had done.

My chest clenched, and I pushed the heel of my hand to my eyes. “But it shouldn’t , Kasten. I don’t want to be the cause of the king seeing you as an even greater threat. I don’t want to be the one who puts you in danger. You shouldn’t have to give up everything for me.”

Kasten pulled me into an embrace and cupped the back of my head, bringing it beneath his chin. He held me in silence for a moment, then tilted his head down so his breath tickled the shell of my ear as he spoke. His voice was fierce. “Don’t blame yourself for this. You are my everything. There is no greater good when it comes to you, and I don’t care if that makes me an enemy of Fenland, the king, or the entire world. They have given me nothing. With this power, I will protect us from them. They will never have it.”

I pushed back so I could study his face, my heart pounding as I processed his words. “You plan to use the power again?” Fear rose up, cold and disorientating. “Kasten…”

My husband smoothed down the strands of hair that were drifting across my face. “We never told you before—it simply never came up—but when you use the starstone, well, it can only have one owner. It binds with your body. Your soul. I can’t hang it up again. I can never put it back in that secret room. Its power stays with me.”

I could only stare.

His brow furrowed in concern. “Sophie…”

I interrupted him. “I don’t understand. You mean you can access the power right now? There must be a way for you to remove it. You’re not even wearing the harness. Where even is it?”

Kasten shook his head with a half-smile that looked apologetic. “It doesn’t work like that. The stone, that translucent dome, was just its storage vessel. To access the power, you put on that harness which holds it directly over your heart, and you smash it. The power went inside me, and now I am its vessel. It’s not really kryalcomy. It’s something new, less controlled. There are no poles that you can move it down. It’s just raw power. The harness and broken stone were discarded.”

My heart raced as I stared at him. I trusted Kasten, I really did, but how could he hold this much power and not be changed by it? The thought terrified me.

Kasten stepped closer and cupped my cheek with a gentle smile. His voice was coaxing and his eyes were still pleading. “Callum always saw it as a good thing, since the power can’t simply be stolen from you.”

I pressed my hands to my mouth as I processed this. “But…but the king will never let you keep this power. Nobody will if they know you have it. They won’t trust you. Or they’ll want it for themselves. If you die, does the power pass on?”

Kasten looked down. “Callum has theories, but they’re all speculation. We’ve never had power like this before, and the only way to know for sure would be to see what happens when I die.” His eyes snapped back up mine. “But we will not let them test that. We don’t even have to let them know I still have access to it. They know nothing about it themselves.”

This wasn’t making me any calmer. “Kasten, the king already saw you as a threat to Prince Stirling taking the throne. Even if he thinks the power is gone, he’s not going to risk letting you live.”

Kasten hung his head to one side. “I know. I know. But I still don’t regret doing it.” Kasten stared out over the garden to where Callum was slouched in one of the seats, bored as he waited for us to join him. “And I now have the power to protect us. Protect Kasomere. Even end the war. I dare the king or Kollenstar or anyone to challenge us.”

My fear didn’t abate. I pressed my hand over his chest and could feel a slight thrum beneath my hands. I didn’t want to lose him to this. “You shouldn’t use this power, Kasten. Not unless you have an emergency where you have no choice.”

He tilted his forehead toward mine. “I also think that is wise. Power like this…I could get lost in it.” He gave me a small smile. “But I won’t. I’m in control. Most of the time, I’ve learned to ignore it completely. I fear, as does Callum, that if I make a habit of drawing on it, even just a little, that amount will only increase more and more over time. This way, I will only use it when I need it. We’ll make everyone believe it is gone.”

I studied his eyes for a moment and could see a trace of sadness there. Guilt stabbed my chest. This was all my fault. I took both his hands. “I trust you, Kasten.”

The corners of his lips twitched up into his typical subtle smile. “I know. And I don’t want you to worry about this. Not until we have a reason to, anyway. For now, I want you to rest and be happy.” He gestured over to Callum. “Shall we? If the conversation gets too much for you, we can tell him to postpone.”

I looped my arm back through his, but my mind whirred as we approached Callum. I had thought things were over. But the threats toward us were as bad as ever.

Callum smiled and leaned forward, clasping his hands on the table. “Don’t mind me putting aside my work and delaying my management of Kasomere while you two take a week to cross the lawn.”

Kasten raised an eyebrow with an unamused look. “What is it you have found?”

Callum placed a metal disk on the table. It was such a pale silver, it gleamed white. One side was frosted, the other smooth. Callum spread his hands dramatically. “This piece of metal is our greatest weakness, and also our greatest clue about what Lord Lyrason has been up to.”

Kasten eyed it suspiciously. “Enough of the theatrics, Callum. What is it?”

“Well—” He paused to steeple his hands. “As far as I can determine, the purpose of halfsouls is to harvest life or health, which is then stored in disks—the other end of their haemalcomy pole. The haemalcomy sucks it from the halfsoul until there’s none left and they die.” He jabbed the disk. “This is the kryalcomy device that was storing the parts of Sophie that were stolen. Mister Gregane and I extracted what was in there and channeled it back into Sophie. This disk has a huge capacity and stored those qualities from other victims too. Unfortunately, we had to extract all of them, so the life and health and whatever else belonging to other people was lost when it couldn’t return to its original hosts.”

I frowned as I looked at the disk, feeling disorientated that part of me had been in that thing. “Could you work out exactly what was taken from me? My…life source? It feels like it has to be more than that or people would just get weak and die rather than transform into monsters. Did you find out what other things?”

Callum scratched one cheek. “Not precisely, Mister Gregane wasn’t the most forthcoming, but the biggest part was certainly what I’d describe as ‘health.’ Until a kryalcomy collar was placed around your neck, your health and vitality was being sucked into this disk. You were dying. We had to reverse it. Other traits that seem to have been removed as well were compassion, empathy, self-preservation. You can tell that just by looking at a halfsoul. It’s what makes them similar to the Kollenstar soulless. However, there was also this.” He placed a black disk on the table and removed his hand quickly. “Things had been added to you which we had to take away, sucked back into this. Violence. At least, that’s the only way I could describe it.”

I blinked, trying to process the use behind such devices. “So if kryalcomy has two poles, one was me, the other was each of these disks. One to harvest health and humanity from me, the other to make me violent.” I stared at the black disk. “Maybe the lack of humanity and added violence was so I’d bite and infect others so life could also be harvested from them. Like how rabies is spread by making its host aggressive.”

Callum nodded encouragingly. “Exactly! My thoughts exactly!”

Kasten leaned forward, his finger curled under his chin. “But how did one pole of the kryalcomy get into Sophie? The halfsoul bit her. It didn’t put metal on or into her.”

Callum held up one finger. “This Mister Gregane refused to explain, but I can only imagine it is a form of haemalcomy where miniscule pieces of metal are bound to something that can spread from saliva into the bloodstream. To some sort of protein, perhaps. Maybe bound to an infection similar to rabies but less deadly.”

I sat up straight. “So that metal could still be inside me?”

Callum nodded. “I don’t know if your body has excreted it somehow or if it will be in there forever. There is much more information I would like from Mister Gregane and Lord Lyrason.” He picked up the two disks, balancing the black one on top of the silver one so he didn’t have to touch it for long. “And that is why, when he tried to leave with these disks, I held a knife to his throat until he handed them over. If one pole remains in your body, we must keep these safe or people could misuse them to perform haemalcomy on you at any point. Either to add things”—he held up the black disk—“or take qualities away.” He held up the silvery disk. “We should keep both of these safe, just in case, or destroy them.”

Kasten had grown tense as Callum spoke and rested one of his hands protectively on my knee. I put both my hands over my mouth in sudden shock. “I could still be infectious.” I turned to Kasten with wide eyes. “You’ve kissed me!” Realizing I’d said that in front of Callum made my cheeks heat.

Callum snorted a laugh. “You’re not infectious. Mister Gregane said the infectious stage only lasts a day and a half at the most. But he didn’t say if the haemalcomy substance, whatever it is, disappears from your body completely.” He waggled his eyebrows at Kasten. “Looks like Kasten thought that kiss was worth the risk of turning into a halfsoul, anyway. Such a selfless experiment.”

Kasten cleared his throat and appeared to be studying the disks with intense concentration. “Can you work out what they’re made of?”

Callum grimaced. “Yes and no. I’ve taken slivers off them for testing. I can work out the metal alloy components and even the temperature the kryal was heated to. But there’s other substances in it that I can’t identify. I suspect things extracted from bodies.” He shivered. “How one makes haemalcomy channel things like emotions and health, I still can’t fathom. I’m not sure I want to.”

Kasten grimaced. “Destroy them.”

Callum winced. “I thought about it. But what if there’s a time we want to give Sophie additional health? Maybe if she became very sick. Or what if her symptoms relapse?”

My heart shot to my throat. I stood up in alarm, my palms flat on the table. “I would never take health or vitality or anything from another person. Not even the worst criminal. Not if they were on their deathbed.”

Kasten looked at the disks, running a finger across his chin as he frowned in thought.

I leaned over the table to Callum. I couldn’t believe they were even considering this. “This isn’t up for debate. Destroy them.” How could anyone else’s life be considered less valuable than mine?

Callum’s lip twitched up as if amused to see me so forward and animated. “Fine. I will. Though I’ll want to keep the fragments for further testing.” He pocketed the metals.

Kasten didn’t react any further to the exchange. He just stared off into the rose garden. “But why was Lord Lyrason harvesting ‘life’ or ‘health’ or whatever it is? Is he trying to live forever? Is he ill? He has no close family.” He narrowed his eyes. “He’s only ever released one or two halfsouls at a time, and they rarely infected others. The latest ones did feel more violent, however. It has the feel of testing and experimenting.”

Callum nodded. “I suspect the end goal is for them to effectively self-spread like a disease, each one infecting several others before they die, all harvesting life into those disks. A plague of halfsouls.”

Kasten grimaced. “If he released a large group of them and they effectively spread, making more and more halfsouls, you’d need a whole army to get rid of them.”

I swallowed and wrapped my shawl tighter around my shoulders, which were suddenly cold. “With that much life harvested, would it be enough for somebody to live forever?”

Callum shrugged. “If the halfsouls replicated themselves on and on, it could be limitless.”

Kasten still hadn’t looked away from the rose garden. “What if it’s a war weapon? What if they’re testing the halfsouls to get them ready to release hundreds on Kollenstar? They’d spread, and Lyrason could use the harvested life in those disks to extend the lives of our soldiers or nobility or whomever he wanted. It could wipe out the whole nation.”

Callum tapped his finger on the table. “It’s a theory, though we have no evidence of anything on that scale. And I don’t think Lyrason could fit that many halfsouls inside his mansion ready to be released.” He gave Kasten a meaningful look. “But the more I think about it, the more I struggle to believe Lyrason was doing something this big on his own. If he wanted a long life for himself, he could have been far more simple and subtle. There would have been no need for halfsouls to infect and create more halfsouls, no need for such complicated experiments. He would just need to keep a few locked up.”

I tightened my grip on the edge of the table. “So you agree with Kasten and suspect that the king is involved after all?”

Callum grimaced. “Again, It’s a theory. It would make sense of why he was so eager for Lord Lyrason to sort out the problem while he distanced himself from it. But we shouldn’t assume that.”

Kasten sighed and leaned forward, resting his elbows on the table. “Maybe Princess Annabelle will get to the bottom of it. We’ve done our part in exposing and stopping as much as we have. She’s aware of our suspicions. I don’t want to be involved in Adenburg politics anymore.”

Callum snorted. “Don’t pretend every noble in Adenburg is not wetting their pants about you right now, Kasten. There is no way they are going to leave you alone. Not when people rallied to your name the second you took a stance against a single noble. Not when they saw a sliver of what you are capable of.”

I swallowed down my rising anticipation and nervousness as Kasten dragged a hand down his face. “Are you suggesting a solution, Callum, or just listing my problems?”

Callum grinned. “Neither. I just wanted to highlight the whole picture to you both before I handed this letter over so you understood what we were up against.”

Kasten and I straightened together in surprise.

I licked my lips. “What letter?”

He tossed a cream envelope with ‘General and Lady Batton’ written on the front in gold ink, and the royal seal still complete on the back. Kasten raised an eyebrow. “Let me guess, you used a hot knife to open the seal and read it, and then resealed it again.”

Callum looked wounded. “Well, you did want me to handle all your affairs for a week. I needed to check if it was important. You know how some royal decrees are nothing but fluffy nonsense. No need for you to use that tone of voice as if I did something wrong.”

Kasten eyed the letter wearily as I took it and cracked the seal. I would have never guessed it had been tampered with.

‘General and Lady Batton,

You are summoned to court on the last week of the month to discuss battle plans for the upcoming campaign. General, your presence is required, by order of the king.’

It ended with a huge, illegible signature that I assumed was the king's.

I handed the note to Kasten. My mouth felt dry. If the king was behind Lord Lyrason’s experiments, he was a man who would stop at nothing. And he would see Kasten as more of a threat than ever.

He had killed so many innocent people and would kill so many more. We couldn’t follow a man like that.

Callum leaned back in his chair. “So the question I’ve been waiting all this time to ask is: Are you going to go? Or are you going to prod the wasps’ nest even further and turn your back on the world?”