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He looks at h me I hope he can see my deter fro close "Surely we can give her this?"
And then slowly, reluctantly, Cal nods and waves me into his roo froers at the door, his s" It isn’t a question
He shakes his head "You’ll have enough to worry about without enius to see the truth in his words But just because he isn’t coet what he’s done for , I throw my arms around Maven He doesn’t respond for a second, but slowly lets an arm drop around my shoulders When I pull back, a silver blush paints his cheeks I can feelinhis eyes away from me to look at Cal
Cal barely smirks "You act like I’ve never done this before"
The brothers share a chuckle, laughing just for each other like I’ve seen my brothers do a thousand ti me with Cal, I can’t help but feel a little less animosity toward the princes
Cal’s room is twice the size of mine, but so cluttered it seems smaller Ar the walls, all hanging from what I assume are hosts, staring with invisible eyes Most of the arht, steel plate and thick fabric, but a few are heavy-duty,One even has a helnia glitters on the sleeve, sewn into the dark gray s What it means, what the uniforms are for, what Cal has done in them, I don’t want to think about
Like Julian, Cal has stacks of books piled all over, spilling out in little rivers of ink and paper They aren’t as old as Julian’s though--most look newly bound, typed out and reprinted on plastic-lined sheets to preserve the words And all are written in Coe of Norta, the Lakelands, and Pied off the rest of his arlance at his books These are strange, full of uides to the terrible art of warfare Each one ismilitary movements from recent years and even before Great victories, bloody defeats, weapons, and h to makethe tactics he favors, which ones are worth the cost of life In the pictures, tiny squares to represent soldiers, but I see my brothers and Kilorn and everyone like them
Beyond the books, by the , there’s a little table and two chairs On the tabletop, a ganize it, but I knoas h as brothers do
"We won’t have very long to visit," Cal calls out, ht of his tall, muscled back as he pulls a shirt on There are h I’m sure he has access to an army of healers if he wants the as I get to seees, this time fully dressed in plain clothes After a ht I met him I can’t believe I didn’t see hi: a wolf in sheep’s clothing And now I’ to be a wolf
No one couess being the crown prince has its advantages
Cal turns a corner, directing us into a wide concrete rooe facility, filled with rows of strange shapes covered in canvas sheets So, some are small, but all are hidden
"It’s a dead end," I protest There’s no way out but the e cahs, walking down a particular row The sheets ripple as he passes and I gli metal underneath
"More ar to say, you should probably get soh upstairs Actually, you e and like to beat on people" Though, judging by Cal’s book collection and muscles, he can hold his own Not to