Siku sat slowly on the arm of the nearest chair. “What?”
“You were almost taken from me by men and women who hated us. Why would I give them the chance to do so again? You were so young and innocent, and I never wanted you to ever be at risk again. I taught you the things which made you happiest, and I accepted the Duke’s proposal because he is as strong and true as his father was. I do these things, for you, my son.”
Siku rested a hand against his chest, gripping the ring tight. He wasn’t sure if he should be angry at his mother for keeping something from him again, or pity her for the constant fear she must have lived with ever since then. Every choice she’d made on his behalf had been borne from the moment Siku had been nearly carried out of her life. He couldn’t imagine what it must have been like, the horror and terror that must have gripped her.
Standing, Siku crossed to sit on the chaise beside her. Gently, he took her hand in his, giving it a squeeze. Her watery eyes crinkled at the corners before she turned her face away, wiping at them with her free hand.
“I’m sorry Mother,” Siku whispered.
His mother shook her head, clearing her throat harshly. “Don’t be. I have done everything I thought was right to keep you safe, but I have made you unhappy all the same. After this, there is hope that you can be a better ruler than I, and a better parent.”
“You’ve loved me, and cared for me, I think that counts for a great deal.”
She wasn’t perfect, but he didn’t think any one person could ever hope to be. His mother had reacted out of fear, and it had caused her to restrain Siku from realizing more of his own potential. Yet, even knowing his chances of growth had been restrained out of her fear, he could no longer summon the frustration and anger toward her he once had.
Queen Nilak let out a shaky laugh, patting Siku’s hand before drawing her own away. Her eyes still swam, but her lip no longer trembled, and Siku could see her drawing her self-control around her once more. In seconds, she looked as regal and beautiful as ever, the Queen, his mother.
“I should leave you to get some rest, the big day is tomorrow and we can’t have you exhausted,” she said.
Siku chewed his bottom lip. “Mother, before you go, can you answer me one final question for the night?”
She stopped her retreat at the door, her expression guarded. “Yes?”
“Have you ever been in love?”
There was a pause, as she stared at him in wonder. A small smile graced her face, and she looked down at her feet before she spoke.
“A southerner, he was dark of skin and had a wild laugh that I swear could shake the halls. We met when I was young and on an international tour my father had arranged for me. Cedric was his name, and he lived as fiercely as he loved. I cannot say if we would have ever wed, as he died before I could see him again. Sailors always take risks when they go out to sea.”
Siku smiled sadly, thinking of the independent and carefree Aputi. “And you never loved again?”
She sighed. “You will come to love Qinu, my dear, it may take time, but even you will come to love his gentle and loyal nature.”
Siku remained sitting on the chaise long after the spot where his mother had sat grew cold. He couldn’t say if he’d truly loved Aputi, but he knew that he wished he could have found out. Siku knew Qinu well enough, and perhaps he could grow fond of the infinitely patient and kind man, but he knew in his heart he would never love him.
Not truly.
“You look wonderful.”
Siku smiled graciously at the compliment, adjusting the folds of the formal coat, so they lay just right. Duke Qinu stood in the doorway, admiring him from a respectful distance as Siku made his final adjustments. Siku couldn’t help but think Aputi wouldn’t bother with such niceties and would have had his hands all over Siku despite there being a time limit.
Clearing his throat, he turned to the duke, who straightened under Siku’s gaze. The duke was by no means an ugly man, and in truth, Siku thought he was rather handsome in the classic sense. His cleanshaven jaw was sharply defined, his chin strong. His dark hair was cropped short, though it was a wonderful compliment to the man’s bright blue eyes. He was tall, renowned for his strength, and incredibly cultured.
And Siku felt nothing when looking upon him.
Duke Qinu extended a hand. “I believe they are waiting for us, of course, if you are ready.”
Siku took it, frowning down at their hands as they met. The Duke’s fingers were thick, and his grip was strong. Siku’s hand looked oddly out of place in the Duke’s grip, and Qinu’s fingers were oddly smooth for a man of the sword. Aputi’s fingers had been long and dexterous, capable of being gentle and holding tight.
“Is something amiss?” Duke Qinu asked worriedly.
Siku looked up. “My dear Duke, in all the times you wished to try to woo me, why not simply approach me, kiss me, or any number of other things?”
Qinu blinked. “It would have been rather bold of me to presume to push myself upon you, would it not?”
“Bold? Wouldn’t you have rather found out for yourself?”
Qinu looked around, bewildered. “You are the Prince, I would not dare.”
It was the sort of answer Qinu would be expected to give. To offend the royal family was to risk putting your head on an executioner’s block during some reigns, or risk extreme ostracization in others. His mother had never been that harsh in ruling, but no doubt Duke Qinu, who came from well-bred stock, would have seen it as far too presumptuous to try to lay a hand on Siku other than to politely guide.
Siku was tempted to see what the Duke might do if he were a little bolder himself. The urge flared and died as he looked up into Qinu’s polite confusion. The two of them would have more than enough time to see if Qinu could truly break from the stiff manners he’d been raised with. More so, Siku couldn’t bring himself to do more than allow Qinu to hold his hand, his stomach turning as he thought about the marriage bed awaiting them at night’s end.
“I hope I haven’t upset you,” Qinu said.
Siku gave him a reassuring smile. “No Duke Qinu, just idle curiosity.”
Fixing the smile upon his face, Siku followed close behind Duke Qinu, hand clasped within his. The sounds of their footsteps were slowly drowned out by the joyous sound of the celebration in the grand hall. Laughter and singing met them as they walked in silence, preparing themselves for the day ahead.
The room quieted as the two of them entered, with every head turning to face them. Of the sea of people before him, Siku could only spot his mother’s face, ahead at the dais where she awaited them. She was radiant in her robes of the purest white lined with silver, her hair pulled up into an intricate bun on her head.
Soft clapping came from the crowd, as both the rich nobles near the dais, and those of the commoners allowed to come and witness the marriage of their prince, all greeted them cordially. Keeping the same pleasant smile locked on his face, Siku waved to them as Qinu walked them to the Queen. Standing before her, they both bowed, and she returned the gesture with an incline of her head.
With that, they both climbed the stairs to her, to stand before the table. Siku took in a deep breath, preparing himself for the speech to come. His mother no doubt had been working on it for weeks while she went over every detail. Siku hoped she wouldn’t make a long show of it, as there was still the ceremony proper to perform. Before the whole of the nobility, and many commoners, he would stand and recite his vows to the duke. Only then would he finally be allowed to sit and drink himself blind to drown out the pain keening in his chest.
His mother rose, extending her arms in greeting. “Thank you, everyone, for being here on one of the happiest days a mother may have, the marriage of her child. It is my sincerest belief that the noble Duke Qinu will be a wonderful husband, and that he will treat the love of my life with the greatest care. Or at least, he had better hope he does.”
The last was said with a cheeky wink, which earned the expected chu
ckles from the crowd. Siku too laughed softly, but more at the suddenly worried expression on Qinu’s face. Again, he couldn’t help but compare the man to Aputi, who would have probably had something equally if not more clever to fire back with.
“For one day, my son will take the throne. And it warms my heart to see him wed to one so true, and so loyal, to a member of a family as old as our own. Duke Qinu, I welcome you to this little family of ours, and I pray you will sit on the throne as faithfully as your family has stood by our side.”
Siku watched from the corner of his eye as Qinu tried not to preen under her praise, only just barely succeeding. The duke’s family was old, and they were well known for their pride as well as their loyalty. No doubt, the duke’s family was overjoyed to finally have a chance to place one of their own on the throne.
It made Siku tired just thinking about it, and a pang of longing for the simplicity of spending his time with Aputi caught in his throat. With him, there had been no complications, no worrying about ulterior motives. There was never the fear that behind Aputi, there lay an entire family who schemed for even more than they had. Siku smiled, thinking that with Aputi at his side, he might never have to worry about the politics and games, for no one would have outsmarted him.
“And so on this joyous day, with the generous support of all here, I present to you…”
A commotion rang up from the back of the hall, cutting his mother’s speech short. Siku snapped out of his haze, his heart slamming in his chest as he swore he spotted a familiar face. The guards were moving in toward the noise, their armor plate clanking heavily as they hurried to the spot.
Before his mother could resume, a tall figure walked between the tables of nobility. Siku’s eyes widened, heart leaping into his throat as he spotted a familiar smirk. Joy and pain in equal measure poured into Siku’s chest as Aputi came to stand before the dais, arms behind his back and staring up at the Queen as if he was just another noble there for his due.
“Aputi?” Siku asked.
Aputi winked. “You and I will talk because there’s been a little bit of a misunderstanding.”
“What are you talking about?”
“I didn’t do it Siku, I would never have turned you in. I don’t know how Pukak got that ring off you, maybe at the bar, but it wasn’t me. I swear to you Siku, I wanted every last moment I could get with you. I wouldn’t have thrown that away for any amount of sekham.”
Before Siku could say anything, his mother angrily cleared her throat. “What is the meaning of this intrusion?”
Aputi snapped his attention to her, bowing low. “Good afternoon Your Grace, I apologize for the interruption.”
Queen Nilak’s eyes snapped to the back of the hall, and then down to Aputi’s common clothes.
“Then you are to blame for this ruckus?”
Aputi winced. “Apologies Your Grace, but it was the only way to ensure I could have my moment up here before you all. You see, as lovely as your speech was, it wasn’t quite accurate.”
“Is that so?” Queen Nilak asked icily.
The guards were coming, and Siku hissed. “Hurry up Aputi, whatever it is, hurry up!”
Aputi bowed. “I’m afraid that not everyone here supports this marriage, and some even actively oppose it.”
The Queen motioned to the guards, who took hold of Aputi. “That will be their loss then, now won’t it? Take him outside the castle grounds, I want him nowhere near this place.”
Aputi twisted his head around. “I lay claim!”
The entire room froze, with no one daring to move save to look at the queen. It was so quiet, Siku would swear the entire hall could hear the hammering of his heart as he gazed down at Aputi in shock.
His mother’s voice was thin. “On?”
Aputi yanked an arm free, pointing up. “Prince Siku.”
Aputi
A memory rose, of being eight years old, wandering into the kitchen where his mother and father were talking. He could clearly see them, she was breathtakingly gorgeous and trying not to laugh, while his devilishly handsome father smirked at her.
“It’s not funny,” she said, mouth working as she fought a smile.
His father chuckled. “Depends on how you look at it.”
“Your son organized a riot at school.”
“I mean, if we’re taking the teacher’s word for it, it was a snowball fight that got out of control.”
“They ended school early over it.”
“Niku.”
His father laughed. “I’m sorry, but I can’t be the one to punish him. I’m not sure how he got away with it, but we can’t even prove that he’s the reason.”
His mother sighed. “We know he did it.”
“But we can’t prove it.”
“You know he kept asking me why I thought it was him? It was like he was begging me to prove it.”
“And did you?”
“Of course not, he looked at me with those big eyes of his and I couldn’t bring myself to accuse him,” his mother said, sounding exasperated.
“Not even grown and already learned how to turn the charm on.”
“You don’t have to sound so proud.”
His father drew her close to him, his large hands closing around her waist. The stitch in her brow eased, giving way to a grudging smile. He grinned wide then, kissing her soundly with a pleased rumble.
She sighed. “He comes by it honestly. I can’t seem to stay mad at either of you.”
He nuzzled her. “But he’s got more brains than me.”
“Between his mind and that charm, that boy is going to grow up and charm an entire room or bring down the house.”
“I can’t wait.”
Snapping back to the present, his parent’s words ringing in his ears as the stunned hall of nobility stared back at him. The Queen looked as if someone had slapped her, and Siku was staring at him in open shock. Beside him, the stocky man Aputi figured was the Duke, looked furious enough that Aputi wondered if the man might attack him on the spot.
The Queen was the first to recover. “And just who are you, to try and lay claim to my son?”
Sensing the grip from the guards on his arms slackening, Aputi pulled free. No one stopped him as he turned to face her properly, brushing his clothes off and straightening. Now that he had everyone’s attention, his nerves tightened but his smile remained fixed. If there was anything he’d learned in both studying to enforce the law, then steadily breaking it, you never let anyone see the cracks in your armor.
“I am but a humble man, son of a dock worker, a wonderful mother, and hopefully one day, I can call myself a judge. My name is Aputi, Your Grace,” he said with another respectful bow.
“And what gives you the right to lay any sort of claim, let alone upon my son?”
Aputi took a deep breath. “By the Right of Claimant, installed by your great-great-grandfather in an effort to maintain the health of the royal line. By that right, any and all can lay a claim upon another, unwed individual.”
A frown drew across her forehead, and ever so slightly, she turned to the right of the dais. An older man, with what Aputi thought was a rather luxurious flowing beard, stood slowly. The man’s withered hands braced himself on the table as he stooped over it.
In a low, raspy voice, the old man spoke. “You have that right, but the Right of Claimant only applies when there is a justified claim.”
Aputi nodded to him as well, though not nearly as deep as to the Queen. “I do.”
“With what justification? Is this to say that you know the prince?”
“I do, we grew quite close in the few days he was staying with me.”
The old man raised a bushy brow. “You admit to keeping a member of the royal family in your home?”
“I didn’t know who he was until the royal guards arrived and took him away. It was another man who figured out who he was before I did, and reported it to the guards.”
There was only the one lie, and Aputi glanced
at Siku after he was done speaking. He knew the rest of the requirements for Claimant, and Aputi prayed Siku believed him. If the prince didn’t believe Aputi hadn’t been the one to report him, then everything was lost.
“Even so, your hospitality does not beget you a claim. The former King, in his wisdom, made sure there were more requirements than casual, or even friendly acquaintance.”
Aputi shot Siku an apologetic look as he continued. “I’m fully aware of the requirements, and I fulfill one of the criteria. There is a mark upon his shoulder, which no doubt still bears my scent.”
The Queen’s gaze snapped down to Siku who flushed red. At the questioning glance from the old man, who Aputi assumed was an advisor, Siku nodded, bringing his hand up to rest on his shoulder. The silence in the hall thickened as everyone near the dais stared at the blushing Siku intently.
The advisor was the first to speak. “You left a mark upon a man you barely knew, despite not knowing his true identity?”
Aputi stared at Siku as he spoke. “I didn’t have to know his identity as a prince, I had come to learn who he was as a man. That was more than enough for me, and always will be.”
Siku’s face softened, his dark eyes going watery.
“All the same, there is still one last matter,” the advisor continued.
Aputi took a deep breath, smiling at Siku as he prepared for what was to come. He had done everything he could, now the rest would fall in Siku’s hands.
“Your claim must be supported as well, by a judge, a member of the nobility, or a member of the royal family,” the old man continued.
Siku’s eyes widened, and the duke beside him let out a deep sigh of relief. The silence in the hall grew deafening to Aputi’s ears as he stared intently at Siku. The seconds stretched and Aputi’s heart plummeted as he watched Siku look down at his feet.
Claiming the ice Prince Page 13