Page 133 of Obsidian Throne

Evander put a hand on mine, presumably his subtle way of telling me to calm myself.

“You’re suggesting imprisonment of some sort?” he interjected.

Theo nodded. “At Elk Estate.”

“Where he can regroup and do this all over again in a couple of years?” I asked.

“No, where I can ensure that he is sequestered and unable to act again.” Impatience crept into Theo’s tone. “Besides, it took him years to garner support for this, and once he is dethroned, he will not be able to again. He will see that.”

I wasn’t sure any part of Iiro would accept defeat, but he had, admittedly, been cautious in the past.

Cautious and patient and ruthless and calculating, in a way that put my entire family at risk. In a way that putEvanderat risk.

My parents had left Ava alive, and every one of us had paid for that.

Would this be the same? Iiro biding his time until he could hurt Evander again?

“You have not historically been the best person to recognize when Iiro is scheming,” I reminded Theo, drinking down the rest of my vodka before pouring another round.

When I sat down again, Theo met my eyes, defeat dulling his own. “Rest assured, Rowan, the days when I was able to harbor any illusions about who my brother is or the things he would do are far behind me.”

In spite of myself, I softened at his words. No one wanted to feel that way about their own family. I looked at my husband, who had donned his aloof mask.

It was impossible to tell what he was thinking, even for me.

“I assume you’re staying at least until the morning?” Evander asked.

Theo nodded again.

“Then, we can discuss this over dinner,” Evander suggested.

“We can.” Theo got to his feet. “Though, you should know these are not terms I will negotiate on.”

“Understood,” Evander replied.

And just like that, all of our plans began to take shape, with one monstrous, asinine, and completely ridiculous caveat thrown in.

CHAPTER EIGHTY

ROWAN

Dinner was brought into our private dining chamber. If the staff saw anything strange about the fact that we asked for serving utensils to fend for ourselves for the evening, they didn’t say anything about it.

Instead, once they made sure we had everything we needed, they dutifully left us alone. Evander brought Theo in from the office through the private door, gesturing to the chair across from me.

We helped ourselves to bowls of stew and a basket of bread rolls, eating in silence.

“What did you have in mind?” Evander asked after a few minutes.

“Something that will hopefully cause less bloodshed than another all-out war,” he said. “You need a way into the palace, and I can convince Iiro to invite you.”

That was exactly what we needed. It was easy to forget that Theo, too, had been raised to be in the military, to be a strategist, because of his blind spot where Iiro was concerned.

We went back and forth for the better part of the next few hours until we had a firm plan in place.

“And what about you?” Evander asked after a moment. “What happens when this is over?”

Theo met his gaze before shifting to meet mine.