The Traitor's Game

Gerald conducts Kestra to the library to meet her father. Henry Dallisor commands Kestra to attend dinner and meet Sir Basil of Reddengrad, whom she will marry. Kestra wishes her father cared for her as more than a political pawn. Food and a bath are brought to Kestra’s room. To antagonize Trina, who refuses to bathe her, Kestra tips over the tub of water.

Simon finds Kestra in the gardens and accuses her of being “spoiled and selfish to the core” (114). Kestra reminds him she didn’t choose to participate in his plan.

She asks if Simon knew that Celia sent a letter to Henry pretending Kestra had agreed to marry Basil. Simon admits that the Coracks contacted Celia and engaged her cooperation.

Gerald brings Kestra to the library, where Sir Henry threatens to punish Trina for overturning the bath water. Kestra consents to attend the dinner if Trina is not punished. Her father prepares to strike Kestra and notes the raw spots on her wrists. He asks who did this to her, and Kestra responds that the people outside these walls hate them. Simon sees that Kestra is as stubborn and unyielding as her father.

Kestra returns to her chambers, where Trina helps her bathe and dress. Kestra reveals that Lord Endrick ordered a marriage between Basil and Kestra years ago, but she and her mother both protested. Trina tells Kestra her father is evil, as bad as Lord Endrick. Kestra fears that might be true. Trina says she’s never been accepted anywhere until she found the Coracks.

Kestra sneaks into the stables to search Simon’s satchel after she has sent him elsewhere. She finds a ring, some sketches, and the sack that the Banished brought to the inn. Inside is a silver key. Kestra takes the key to her room and hides it.

Simon escorts Kestra to dinner and thanks her for sparing Trina from punishment. Kestra wonders if they could have remained friends if she’d never accused him of theft. Kestra tells Simon that Trina is lying to all of them and he should question her motives.

Kestra is led to the small parlor where she will dine with Prince Basil the Fifth, heir to the throne of Reddengrad. Simon is expected to stand guard.

When Kestra asks Gerald why she has not seen him at Woodcourt before, he says he worked in the dungeons. Gerald says if Kestra ever needs help, she can ask him.

Basil is blonde, soft-looking, and courteous. He makes polite conversation and offers Kestra several compliments. She asks why he agreed to this marriage, and he asks her the same.

Simon is aggravated at watching Basil flirt with Kestra. Simon warns Kestra not to trust Basil. Simon insists that the Dominion must be destroyed, but Kestra answers, “Not this way. This is wrong” (140). Kestra says she doesn’t deserve what he is forcing her to do, and Simon replies that he didn’t deserve the whipping he got because of her.

Kestra admits the ring she accused Simon and John of stealing was found in her mother’s chair a week later. She apologizes for what happened. Simon tells her he was sent to the lowest cell of the dungeons and only escaped because he found a pit of sewage that led to a tunnel outside. He had to abandon John. Kestra says they called it the Pit of Eternal Consequence (141).

Simon admits what Kestra did was awful, but in the long run, she might have saved his life. After his escape, Simon met a man named Garr who took him in and taught him how to use a sword. Garr was rounded up when Henry Dallisor took revenge on the Halderians who kidnapped Kestra. Simon kept Garr’s ring and sword, and joined the rebellion. He admits he’s never comfortable when he kills people, but he does what is needed. Simon says he is a good person, and so is Kestra, but one of them is on the wrong side of this fight. Kestra says Simon is taking everything that is important to her. She leaves Simon to walk with Basil.

Kestra conducts Basil to the library, where she looks for the diary covered with pink silk. Basil admits that Lord Endrick wants this marriage because Reddengrad is powerful, and Basil fears Reddengrad would lose if Endrick waged war on them. Basil asks if they can marry quickly. Kestra agrees, reflecting that she will be leaving in four days, so the promise means nothing.

In Kestra’s room, Trina offers to undo her gown, but as her friend, not her servant. Kestra reminds her, “You’re going to kill me if I don’t do what you want. We’re not friends, Trina” (152).

While Trina is asleep, Kestra puts on a tunic and trousers and takes the silver key. She searches the house until she finds a knife, then goes to her mother’s rooms. Everything is the same, all her things in place. Kestra looks under the bed for a blanket her mother made for her. Darrow had told her she would find the truth about herself there. Kestra thinks, “Just once, I needed to see it, to imagine her holding it, holding me in her arms” (156).

Gerald enters the room. He says Kestra is playing a traitor’s game, trying to guess who to trust. He asks what she would do with the Olden Blade if she found it. Kestra guesses Gerald is a spy for the Halderians. Gerald gives her the diary covered in pink satin. He says he hopes Kestra is who he believes her to be, and that she must return the diary to Sir Henry’s desk by morning. Kestra uses the key to open the book and sees it is the diary of Lily Dallisor.

Kestra spends the night reading the diary and sobbing. Her mother reveals her fear that Kestra is in danger from the Halderians and Lord Endrick. Kestra hurries to her room and is surprised by Simon and Trina. She commands them to help her as she sneaks into the library. Before she can replace the diary in the desk, Sir Henry approaches, along with Lord Endrick.

Kestra reflects how the Endrean people were discovered in the Blue Caves of the Watchman Mountains, and the caves are said to hold the source of their magic. Lord Endrick was once handsome, but with every murder, he has become more gray and wrinkled. Kestra thinks, “Even the most callous person could feel his emanating cruelty” (169).

Endrick proposes that Kestra marry Basil the next day. When she refuses, he commands her to kneel and uses his grip glove to deliver incredible pain to the back of her neck. Kestra feels tortured. Endrick says she will marry Basil because he wants Reddengrad, and once she marries Basil, Kestra will help Endrick conquer the country. When Kestra refuses to obey, Endrick sends her to the dungeons.

Simon carries her to the dungeons, which are accessed through a thick door with a lock. Kestra thanks him for helping her, and Simon is surprised. He wonders if he knows the real Kestra at all. He realizes he has become her protector.

Kestra asks to be put in cell number four. The dungeons reek and are gloomy. Kestra is dismayed at the thought of entering a cell, and Simon says he will go with her. He realizes she had to get sent to the dungeons to search for the Olden Blade. Simon feels guilty for what he is forcing Kestra to do and holds her as she falls asleep.

As Kestra sleeps, Simon considers the ring Garr left him and the kind of man Garr had hoped Simon would become. Simon realizes his feelings for Kestra have softened, and he is concerned this will affect his mission.

Kestra wakes and shares the bread that was delivered to her. She tells Simon this was the cell where Anaya, Risha’s servant, was held before she was executed. Simon believes that magic is corrupting and insists that Anaya betrayed Risha. Simon reveals that an Endrean woman sought protection from Simon’s father, then killed him. Simon saw what happened during the war and says no Endrean can be good. Kestra wonders if there could be more Endreans in hiding. Simon hopes they are gone, saying, “Nothing in Antoran history suggested magic was anything but evil” (186).

They search the cell and find a saying that Anaya carved into the wall. They discuss what the words could mean, especially the line, “But All to Fool” (187). Simon tells the guard to ask Trina to bring Kestra a dress.

Trina brings a dress. Kestra wants to know what Trina is hiding from them. Trina overheard Endrick, Sir Henry, and Basil talking in the library. Lord Endrick has ordered Basil to kill Kestra after the wedding. In return, Endrick promises to protect Reddengrad. Kestra realizes her father listened to the plan for her murder and made no objection.

Kestra asks if Trina knows Thorne Halderian, the man who came to the inn. Trina says she joined Tenger and the Coracks because she was looking for a place to belong. Her father worked for the Dallisors and died working in the dungeons. Trina found his journals and shared them with Tenger. Trina believes if she can help find the Olden Blade, Tenger will accept her as one of the Coracks.

Kestra wonders if Tenger wants the blade so he can be the Infidante or the king. She decides she must know what Tenger’s motives are before she will give the blade to him. The three agree to work together to find the blade. Kestra suspects she is falling for Simon.