The Folk of the Air, #2
The Wicked King
by Holly Black
Contents
Chapter 1
Overview
Jude governs from beside Cardan’s throne while secretly controlling him, but the limits of that control are already showing. Cardan grants Grimsen the Smith a place at court without an oath, avoids Mother Marrow’s marriage trap only because Jude intervenes, and appoints Locke as Master of Revels despite Jude’s objections.
The chapter raises the stakes around Jude’s fragile hold on power: dangerous figures are entering Cardan’s orbit, court revelry is becoming harder to contain, and Balekin is trying to lure Cardan into a bargain from prison. Jude ends by choosing to confront Balekin herself, aware that keeping power may be harder than winning it.
Summary
Five months after Jude forced Cardan onto the throne of Elfhame, she stands beside him as seneschal while secretly holding the power to compel his obedience. Jude watches the court from the royal dais, exhausted by constant crises and aware that Cardan’s promise lasts only a year and a day. Jude’s goal remains keeping Oak safely away from the crown long enough to have a childhood, but Cardan’s comfort on the throne and his resentment of Jude make that increasingly precarious.
During petitions, Grimsen the Smith asks Cardan to end Grimsen’s exile and allow Grimsen to return to the High Court. Jude recognizes Grimsen as a legendary maker of enchanted metalwork and suspects a trick when Grimsen refuses to swear an oath. Cardan ignores Jude’s caution and grants Grimsen a forge, supplies, and a place at court, gaining a powerful artisan but leaving Jude uneasy about Grimsen’s lack of binding loyalty.
Mother Marrow then presents Cardan with cloth woven from spider silk and nightmares, claiming it can turn blades while remaining soft. Jude realizes Mother Marrow is trying to trap Cardan through his acceptance of “gifts” and intervenes, making sure the cloth is given freely and nothing more. Mother Marrow admits that if Cardan had accepted all she wished to bestow, he would have been bound by a geas to marry either Mother Marrow or Mother Marrow’s daughter, a danger that would have complicated Jude’s plan to eventually place Oak on the throne.
Locke arrives and asks Cardan to appoint him Master of Revels. Jude tries to stop the appointment because Locke thrives on trouble and has already hurt Jude through Taryn, but Cardan uses the public setting to block Jude from openly commanding him. Cardan grants Locke’s request, and Locke immediately promises an extravagant Hunter’s Moon revel in the Milkwood, stirring dread in Jude as the court’s already reckless mood intensifies.
Jude leaves the dais when the Bomb signals her from the crowd. The Bomb gives Jude another intercepted note from Balekin, Cardan’s imprisoned brother, who is trying to flatter Cardan into visiting the Tower of Forgetting so Balekin can propose a bargain. Jude decides to visit Balekin herself while ordering the Bomb to remain near Cardan, and as Jude departs she sees Madoc watching her, recalling his lesson that power is easier to seize than to keep.
Who Appears
- Jude DuarteCardan’s seneschal and secret controller; tries to preserve power and protect Oak’s future.
- Cardan GreenbriarNew High King of Faerie; resents Jude’s control while indulging courtly attention and revelry.
- Grimsen the SmithLegendary exiled smith; gains permission to return to court without swearing loyalty.
- Mother MarrowAncient hag; offers enchanted cloth while trying to bind Cardan into a marriage geas.
- LockeTaryn’s betrothed and Jude’s former lover; becomes Master of Revels and promises dangerous festivities.
- The BombCourt of Shadows spy; delivers Balekin’s intercepted message and remains to watch Cardan.
- Taryn DuarteJude’s twin sister; dances with Locke while estranged from Jude before her wedding.
- Balekin GreenbriarCardan’s imprisoned brother; sends notes from the Tower of Forgetting seeking a bargain.
- MadocJude’s foster father and former opponent; silently watches Jude from across the hall.
- Mother Marrow’s daughterYoung weaver presented as a potential bride under Mother Marrow’s failed trap.