Free Roads of the Righteous and the Rotten (Order of Fire Book 1) by Kameron A. Williams

ears in Snowstone Castle?” asked Anza, making it clear she was finished speaking on the previous subject.
    “Good news, Anza, good news,” said Stroan with a grin. “Tiomot and Dandil are at odds because of a small goldmine that was found in Cyana not long ago.”
    “A goldmine?”
    “Aye, and Tiomot has been raiding it.”
    “Of course the greedy king has.”
    “He has done it several times now, and Dandil won’t long tolerate it.”
    “There will be war between Snowstone and Cyana,”
    said Anza, sounding as if she were quite sure of it.
    “There may be,” Stroan said, nodding. “After the last raid Dandil sent a letter to Tiomot saying that his men were seen raiding the mine. He threatened Tiomot, saying there would be war between the two kingdoms unless Tiomot wrote a sworn testimony that his men had nothing to do with it.”
    “Will Tiomot write this letter?”
    “Well, Yuna said Tiomot didn’t want to.”
    “With that fool the war will come easily.”
    “Aye, but prince Tharid urged the king to send the letter, offering to take care of the matter himself.”
    “The lad has sense,” said Anza. “It’s him and the queen who, I believe, have kept Snowstone strong for all these years.”
    “So the letter will be sent.”
    Anza sat quiet a few moments, wearing a thoughtful grin. “Even without our efforts Snowstone and Cyana are nearly at war. Dandil knows it’s the Snowguards who are raiding his gold mine, but for sake of his pride he’s allowing Tiomot to deny the claim and stop the raids.” The woman chuckled. “But he’ll go to war if he doesn’t get the letter or his mines are raided again. We are going to make sure both happen.”
    “We can have someone intercept the messenger,”
    said Stroan, “but do you think the Snowguards will raid again?”
    “If they don’t we will make it appear as if they did, but we’ll give them time. For now, we will make sure that letter doesn’t get delivered.”
    “Do you want me to do it?”
    “No. The capturing of women, the assassination of a royal envoy—it is too vile for us. Our hands will be clean of such affairs so that when we come to power there can be no fault found in us. Let us be as puppeteers, pulling strings from the shadows behind the drapes.”
    “Aye, Anza. Then who?”
    “Another of the three. You may remember him from times past. Valak, a master of stealth. He would be the best for this job.”
    “Valak,” said Stroan, closing his eyes as he tried to remember the man. “Aye, he kills with knives. Where will I find him?”
    “He drifts between Karthin and Vaul, but he is a hard man to find, for he doesn’t like to be known of men. Hang a white cloth high in a tree, on a main way where it will be seen. If he sees it, he will come near that place.”
    “Very well. I’ll find him.”
    “Good.” Anza lay back and rested her head against the fur. “We have done much, have we not?”
    “Aye, everyone is working hard.”
    “I meant you and I,” said the lady, offering a smile that looked like gratitude and a bit of something else.
    “You have inspired us all to want much more than we have.” Stroan bowed his head.
    “Soon, Stroan.”
    “My lady?”
    “Soon we will descend from the clouds. We will no longer live in hiding. We will dine in the castle, and you will be the first prince of the new kingdom.”
    Once Snowstone was taken, and they were no longer bound by the duties required of them, Yuna would be at his side to share in that glory with him. Stroan could barely contain himself at the thought.
    It wasn’t long before he would break the news to Anza—that he and Yuna were in love—and ask her to send another in Yuna’s stead to gather their information. Anza favored him, he knew, and they had become something like friends in the years they had worked side by side, carefully planning and carrying out the necessary evils to bring about their new kingdom. As well as he had served her, and as well as he would