Book 4: Outside the Lines

Xandra

“He said he couldn’t live without it, Mother.” I lean forward over the breakfast I’ve been picking at. One of the twins—our son, perhaps—apparently hates the smell of the tiny fish I used to love. “Why did you select Tarrin as your base camp, anyway?”

“Proximity to the border.” She sips her tea primly, and I know she’s lying.

“And proximity to Lord Denidor’s manor?”

“He may have suggested this location because he was familiar with the townspeople.” She sets her cup down. “But that’s far from evidence, and if this costume has made you forget, you are the heir to now both kingdoms, in some ways. Entering the grounds of his manor could be seen as an act of war.”

“If we are caught.”

She scoffs. “I have perhaps never met a man more paranoid than Lord Denidor.”

“So there is no point in trying?” I stare her down, trying to decipher her hesitation. Finn says there is no point in arguing with her, that she’s resigned, but if t