"You're Viloria," she repeated faintly. A sense of horror washed over her as the realization sank in.

Corax raised a brow and stared at her for a long moment. Then, to her surprise, he threw his head back and laughed. The older man pursed his lips in disapproval, but Corax simply waved him away.

"Felix," he said around a laugh. "And Julius." He sobered, his voice suddenly stern. "Tell them to sink the body. Properly this time. It does no good if it just washes ashore."

Cassia blinked at the callousness of his order, her gaze falling to the body at his feet. The corpse's blank eyes met hers, ruby blood pooling on the faded floorboards. Cassia gasped and her knees buckled as a terrible sensation of familiarity swept over her. She placed a hand on the wall to steady herself, the knife slipping from her suddenly nerveless fingers.

The sound as it hit the floor echoed strangely in her ears and her vision tunneled. She could see nothing but the dead man.

I've seen this before.

The thought drifted lazily through her mind before her legs gave completely and she slid to the floor, her neck suddenly boneless as her head lolled to the side. Distantly, she could hear words being spoken and she was vaguely aware of movement.

Her vision darkened as a black shadow passed over her, filling her with a sense of dread.

A rough palm scraped against her cheek and the world immediately righted itself. She jerked herself backwards, nearly falling over as she met a curious blue-green gaze. Corax was frowning, a small crease between his eyebrows appearing as she stood up. Her legs wobbled slightly, but Cassia locked her knees as Corax rose from a crouch.

His mouth flattened into a thin line as he looked at her. Her stomach was still churning, the nausea made worse by her hunger. Glancing around, she realized the other man had left. It was only her and Corax—Viloria—now.

She kept her attention riveted firmly on him, taking in the neat cut of his dark brown hair, the scars he carried. A knife hilt peeked out from the shaft of his boot, another was at his belt along with his sword. He moved with the well-muscled grace of a fighter—a soldier.

She should have known from the start. A man like him didn't play the guard dog. Not when he could be the wolf, instead. 

With a sigh, Corax leaned against the edge of the table, his hand resting lightly on its chipped surface. He studied her carefully, obviously considering something. He let out another sigh before he gave her a rueful smile. 

"Eyes like gold, he said," Corax began. "And more clever than what's good for her." He rubbed at his mouth, looking less than pleased. "That's how he said I'd know you."

Cassia swallowed against her dry throat. "He told me to ask for Caius Viloria. That he would be able to secure passage north."

With a mocking little bow, he said, "Well here you have him." He looked up, eyes narrowed to a wary expression. "How did you guess?"

"I'm more clever than what's good for me," she said, managing to keep her voice steady and dry.

That earned her a crooked grin as he pushed away from the table. Cassia turned her head away as he towered over her. Then he leaned down, picking up the knife she had dropped. He flipped the thin blade across his knuckles once before extending it hilt-first to her. Cassia hesitated for a moment before reaching for the weapon.

As soon as she took the knife, Corax's fingers latched around her wrist, dragging her forward, somehow managing not to impale himself. Cassia froze, her breath stopping as his lips touched her ear. She had very little doubt that—if she made so much as one wrong move—he could have the dagger out of her hand and in her heart in the time it took her to blink.

"Why don't we take this somewhere a little more private, hm?" Corax pulled away slightly, then tilted his head back toward where Titus' body lay.

Cassia raised an eyebrow, resisting the urge to pull away from him. She glanced at the body, afraid of suffering another of those strange fainting spells. When nothing happened, she said, "I don't think he will say anything."

A low laugh came from deep in his throat and he let her go, motioning for her to follow him as he skirted the body and made his way to the door. Opening it, he said, "It might be different where you're from, kitten, but I don't much like eating in the same room as a corpse."

Traitor that it was, her stomach growled at the mention of food, loudly enough for Corax to hear it. He gave her a shrewd stare, then simply left the room without so much as a nod or a 'by your leave'. Cassia hissed out a breath, closing her eyes and slumping back against the wall.

Her stomach growled again and her aching feet along with her tired muscles were trying to persuade her to simply sink to the floor. Her gaze once more flickered to the body. That strange, sickening sense that she had somehow known Titus was going to end up dead today swept over her again.

Cassia remembered her own desire to cut the beast's throat and shrugged the feeling away.

Footsteps filtered through the open door and she remembered what Corax had told Viloria to do. Or Viloria had told... Cassia sighed in frustration. It hardly mattered what he was called. The footsteps approached, joined by the low sound of mens' voices grumbling.

Not wanting to get caught in a room with more strange men and only a dagger to protect herself, Cassia scurried around the table, fair leaping over the blood to reach the door. She stepped cautiously into the hallway just to find Corax leaning impatiently against the wall. As soon as he saw her, he pushed off the faded boards and stalked away, once more waving for her to follow him.

Cassia's mouth pressed into a thin line as she resisted the urge to snap that she wasn't a dog meant to come so easily to heel. She growled low in her throat when she realized that, regardless of her previous station, she hardly had any other choice now.

And Corax seemed to enjoy that fact.

At the sound of her footsteps following him, he threw that arrogant smirk over his shoulder. Cassia idly played with the idea of chucking the dagger at his head, then reasoned that course of action would only result in the loss of her only weapon.

And...he was still currently her only hope for passage out of the city.

Cassia scowled, shooting a poisonous glare toward Corax's back as he led her down another cramped hallway, then up a set of rickety stairs. There must be something redeeming about the man. Otherwise Julianus wouldn't have left her at his mercy.

That not-exactly-hopeful thought was what allowed Cassia to continue following Corax deeper into the tavern, which was bigger than she had first realized. As they passed door after door, Cassia let herself wonder how exactly Corax would provide her with passage to Brunia.

Or...Soria.

This made her thoughts turn to the path she should take. Each had certain merits, loath as she was to admit that. Getting to the island as soon as possible was the more attractive of the two choices. But securing a peace treaty with the biggest enemy their empire had ever faced was nothing to sniff at either. A frown wrinkled her brow as she considered the fact that she might not have a choice if northbound ships were being searched.

Corax stopped suddenly and she very nearly ran straight into him. She stumbled backwards as the sound of a key turning in a lock snapped through the air. He pushed the door open, revealing a room soaked in darkness. He stepped to the side and gestured her forward with a mocking flourish. 

She responded with a simpering smile. "After you." She wasn't about to just blindly wander anywhere with this man.

He just rolled his eyes. "Don't flatter yourself, kitten."

Before she could hiss a retort, he strolled into the room. She hovered near the doorway, watching as his darker silhouette moved unerringly through the dark room. She glanced back down the hall, starting at the raspy burr of a match being struck. For a moment, she wondered briefly how he had managed to get a hold of the little sulfur-covered sticks invented in Soria, then wanted to roll her eyes at herself.

He'd all but admitted that he was a smuggler.

She edged a little farther forward as light bloomed from the lamp sitting on a modest table.

Corax turned his attention to the small hearth behind the table and she crept farther into the room, cautious as a spooked cat. The room was austere, bare save for a simple bed and the table.

For some reason, the room wasn't exactly what she had been expecting. It did rather match his harsh demeanor, however. 

A small crackling sound filled the air as the fire was set, and Corax pushed himself to his feet. He gestured for Cassia to sit, a long-suffering sigh coming from him when she hesitated.

Muttering something about overly suspicious women under his breath, he strode around the table and out the door, slamming it shut behind him. Not quite sure what to make of this, Cassia moved toward the fire, holding her hands out and sighing as warmth flowed over her frozen fingers. 

After another moment, she sank slowly into the nearest chair, staring blankly into the small fire. The relief of such a small comfort was extraordinary. Cassia closed her eyes, slumping back in the hard chair with a long sigh. The blade of the knife glimmered in the low light as she let it rest in her lap.

She must have dozed off because a loud clattering sound had her shooting up from her seat, looking wildly around. Her heart pounded hard in her chest as she shoved several unruly curls out of her face so she could see.

Corax snickered, pouring a dark red wine into what appeared to be a glass of fine crystal. Cassia inhaled slowly through her nose, trying to calm her rattled nerves.

A savory smell grabbed her attention, drawing her eyes down to the table. A bowl of hearty stew sat before her, accompanied by three slices of dark brown bread. Cassia blinked down at the simple fare, starting violently when a glass was placed beside the bowl. The red wine glimmered in the firelight, reminding her that she'd barely had anything to eat or drink all day.

She sat back down and snatched up a spoon before falling on the food like a hyena.

Another low laugh came from Corax and she spent a moment to shoot another glare at him. He propped his feet up on the edge of the table, idly swirling the wine in his own goblet. A little more sedately, Cassia picked up one of the pieces of bread, tearing it in half.

Corax downed nearly half of his wine in one go. Cassia cocked her head, waiting for him to make the first move. This seemed to amuse him. He ran his finger around the rim of his glass, obviously thinking a number of things over.

Cassia took another bite of bread before finally tasting the wine. It was less vinegary than she would have expected, and the crystal was as fine as anything she had ever used in the castle.

"You need passage north," Corax finally said, setting his glass on the table to scrub his hand through his hair. "That much he asked. That much I could have done... A month and a half ago."

Well that sounded less than promising. She closed her eyes briefly, resignation creeping through her veins. "They started searching northbound ships."

"Clever kitten," Corax purred, his irises like blue fire in the lamp light. He took another sip of wine. "Yes. Only military personnel are allowed to sail north. No civilians."

Cassia tucked a strand of tangled hair behind an ear. She couldn't very well pose as a soldier—not convincingly at any rate.

"And I'm not about to risk my ass to get yours smuggled on one of those ships," Corax continued, unrepentant. "Particularly seeing as how I won't get paid for my troubles."

"Right now," Cassia said, making him pause. He leaned back into his chair, skeptical. Cassia took another mouthful of wine before continuing, "You know who I am. You know the reward I could offer you when I reclaim my throne."

"I know who you are," Corax agreed. "But that doesn't mean anything anymore, Princess." He gave her a nasty little grin. "If you're here, that means your trials have begun. Which means that right now, you're about as royal as me."

"Yes." Her voice was chilly.

"And there's no guarantee that you'll even survive. If you die somewhere in the frozen north, I still won't get paid." Corax shrugged. "I'm not in the business of bad bets, kitten. Or charity."

She tapped her fingers against the crystal of her glass, thinking. "And...what if I said I'd rather take a ship west?"

Corax shrugged. "Still costs money, kitten. Money you don't have."

Cassia kept her face perfectly still, even as her mind raced. What did she have to offer him? How could she pay her way through the world? Was there any way to force his hand?

She took another sip of wine. "What of your promise to the general?"

It was a desperate gamble. One she didn't have much faith in. But the other options that had presented themselves to her only ranged from distasteful to abhorrent.

What little faith she had crumbled completely when Corax merely reached into the faded leather vest he wore, pulling a letter from a hidden pocket. He held it up, the parchment deep yellow in the firelight, a scarlet blob of sealing wax holding it shut. There was no crest upon the wax, nor writing on the envelope.

"The only promise he asked of me was to deliver this." Corax tossed the letter onto the table between them. "Nothing more."

Cassia didn't reach out for a long moment, not wanting to open it in front of Corax. But the temptation to read it was stronger than any possible embarrassment she might suffer. She needed to know what else he might have wanted to say to her. Was there anything he felt he could not have said to her face?

That thought broke her heart and she picked up the letter, carefully breaking the wax seal with her thumbnail. 

Inside was a single sheet of parchment. Cassia glanced up once to find Corax watching her impassively. She licked her dry lips before turning her eyes to an untidy scrawl.

My Queen,

There is not much left for me to say. Everything I have to offer, I have already given.

Cassia's eyes immediately began to burn and she had to blink hard several times before she could continue.

I understand that you are not allowed to accept aid. But, knowing Viloria, it will not seem so very much like any sort of help, anyway. He is a hard man, though he has his reasons for being so, but he will keep you safe. More importantly, he is a good man, regardless of the mask he hides behind. You don't have to like him—and I doubt you will—but you can trust him. 

She couldn't stop herself from scoffing, her gaze once more flicking up to the man in question. He was staring contemplatively down into another glass of wine, his eyes heavy-lidded, almost sleepy.

Trustworthy or no, the letter continued, Viloria doesn't often do things out of the goodness of his heart. There's still some debate among the men he served with as to whether or not he even has one.

Cassia couldn't help but smile at that wry humor she had so come to love.

Before you turn me down, Princess, just remember that this isn't aid. I am simply returning what is yours.

There was no signature. Just a ruby hair pin stuck through the parchment, the jewel on its end about the size of the fingernail on her smallest finger. The very pin he had stolen from her on the day they'd met.

Cassia laughed softly, pulling the pin free of the parchment. When she held it up, Corax's gaze zeroed in on the ruby. She spun the pin between her fingers, her smile growing as Corax slowly sat forward.

"I don't suppose this will make it worth your while?" she purred, suddenly feeling like she had the world between her fingers.

Corax tilted his head, a smile beginning to pluck at the corner of his mouth. He reached forward, stopping when Cassia tilted her hand back, keeping the pin just out of his reach. She smiled again as she placed the pin directly between them.

She folded the letter before slipping it into the bodice of her dress, where it rested against her heart.

"That'll pay for passage," Corax said, reaching across the table to pick up the pin. He studied it with the eye of a jeweler. "And a few...fees. But that's about it."

Cassia immediately narrowed her eyes.

Corax's smile turned downright sinister. "I suspect you'll be wanting to stay here while I find you a ship. Well," he corrected himself, "you might not want to. But I would advise it."

Something told her that Corax was right. The words of Julianus' letter seemed to warm against her skin. You can trust him.

"And what will that cost me?" Cassia asked coolly. Those options again ran through her head, making her stomach turn.

Corax bobbed his head to the side in consideration. His eyes traced along her shoulders, then roamed over her face and her wild hair. He frowned in consideration, then stood and came around the table. He kicked the leg of her chair out to the side, turning her to face him.

Her mouth was dry, but she refused to shrink away from him.

"I have been looking for a new serving girl," Corax said, though he sounded like even he thought that was a bad idea. But he just shrugged. "You'll get grabbed, and people will say ugly things to you. But you'll still be alive and in one piece by the time I find you a westbound ship."

Cassia blinked once in surprise. That...was not an option she had considered.

"I'll tell you what," Corax said, rapping his knuckles on the table. "Take the night to think on it. Sleep." He gave her a pointed look. "Wash up. Tell me something I want to hear in the morning."

He turned to leave, but Cassia shot to her feet, her hand flashing out to grab his arm. He stopped dead, going so still that a chill shuddered down her spine. But she didn't let go.

"Return my pin," she said quietly. 

She wasn't about to just let him walk away with the one piece of leverage she had in the world.

It surprised her when Corax turned around and threaded his fingers through her hair, tilting her head back. He pressed a kiss to the side of her mouth and whispered, "You are clever, aren't you, kitten? That's good. Fools don't last long out here."

Shocked, Cassia pushed him away, hissing as his fingers were tugged sharply out of her hair.

Corax winked before he strode out of the room, closing the door behind him.

Cassia reached up to rub at the back of her head, lips parting when her fingers met the warmed metal of the ruby pin snarled in her hair. Carefully, she untangled the pin, shaking her head in disbelief.

Slowly, she walked toward the bed and sat on the edge, twisting the pin between her fingers.

Then she closed her eyes and sank to the floor on her knees.

"Thank you," she whispered, tears seeping from beneath her closed eyelids. "Thank you for him." She pressed her hand to her heart, the letter crinkling slightly under her touch. "Watch over him. Guide his path back to mine."

As she uttered the words, they felt selfish.

Behind her closed eyes, she watched as he knelt before her, swearing himself to her service.

"Thank you," she whispered again, truly believing for the first time that the gods were smiling upon her.