Amnar

4785 Book One: Io

“You can’t choose who to be. You can only choose how to be who you are.”

Whispered conversations in dark kitchens, hidden swords and secret chambers: nothing is what it seems. Io’s life is about to be turned completely upside down, as is the world around her.

Io stood with her back pressed against the cold stone wall between the kitchen and the stables, listening through the narrow gap in the door. Behind her, in the stables, the horses stirred and shifted around their stalls, snorting softly in the gentle evening light shining through the windows in the outer wall. In the kitchen, Daar and Arandes were sitting opposite each other at the tiny table, the oil lamp between them. They met almost every night, sitting in the kitchen while Io tidied the stables, their whispered discussions a source of endless fascination for her, although she had very little idea what it was they were discussing with such intensity. Occasionally, Io left the broom by the door, as she did tonight, and listen in on the conversation. Daar had her back to the door, her blond hair tied in a plait down her back. Arandes, facing the door, was in a guard uniform: tunic and shirt, breeches, his sword resting against the table. Io watched him, holding her breath, captivated by his intense hazel eyes and dark looks. Daar, meanwhile, looked increasingly edgy and nervous all the time.