The representative of Regne came forward, swishing his verdant cape behind him. His beard was trimmed in a fashion that outlined his strong jawline. As was tradition, members of his entourage opened a large brass chest, which contained various items made from a combination of wood and metal. Each item appeared to be meticulously handcrafted.
“I am sponsoring Magistrate Nicolas, father of Lady Nicole, to be the next ruler of Bariwon,” Uaithne said. “He will make a most excellent king.”
The crowd clapped politely at the presentation.
“And now, Governor Nash,” Caldre sneered, “you may go.”
Unabashed, the large ruler of Lebu stepped forward. “I have no box full of pretty rocks to show off,” he said loudly, “but what I do have to offer is what I consider to be quite the treasure. Rayne is one of the finest men I’ve ever known. He comes from a good family. He always thinks about others before himself. This is the kind of person we need on the throne. To that end, I wish for you all to hear from him.” With a wink at Rayne, Nash stepped back and allowed Rayne to speak.
Standing unflinching for a moment, Rayne gathered his thoughts while everyone looked on expectantly. So much had happened so quickly, and his mind was racing. Not only did it look promising that the charges against him were going to be dropped, he had also learned the identity of his mother. And now, here he was in the Shoginoc, being asked to give a speech. He knew he had no chance to win—Governor Nash had nothing to present except him. Perhaps, however, he could use this forum to address the problems he had discovered during his time as a royal guardian.
“I have no desire for power or wealth,” Rayne said quietly and somewhat cautiously. “I grew up on a farm with my father, and we learned to live off what the land provided. We were blessed not only to have enough for our needs, but we were able to share with others.”
Rayne gestured to the other participants. “These men have more experience in games of power. I, on the other hand, only have the knowledge I have been taught. My father always taught me to do what is right, no matter who’s watching, or if you don’t always see the end results of your actions.
“Very recently I was facing execution, and even though I was sad that my life would soon end, I had the knowledge that I had done the right thing, and for the right reason.”
Rayne motioned to the Hierarchy of Magistrates and continued, his voice becoming stronger and more confident. “My father had me study the Tome of Laws growing up. It was the one book we owned. We would read and discuss it often. The Tome of Laws shows a pattern of declaring a law, followed by the reasoning behind the law. It isn’t the words of the law that make it important, but the spirit of it.
“Laws of good intention are really of no use unless there are good people to enforce them,” Rayne said. “In my time as a guardian, I have seen people twist and turn the laws to the point where they have lost their spirit.”
Opening his arms wide, Rayne said firmly, “I implore whoever is chosen today to keep in mind the spirit of the law as they rule over our once-great kingdom of Bariwon. Help return it to the way it should be—a kingdom of peace.”
As he stepped back, Rayne was surprised to hear thunderous applause and cheers from the people in attendance. Even the Hierarchy of Magistrates was standing and clapping vigorously.
“Enough, enough,” Caldre said, trying to regain control over the crowd. “We have one more participant. Governor Eadward, the floor is yours.”
***
Sunshine’s knees felt weak after Rayne’s speech, but she fought the urge to sit down. Everyone in the crowd was on their feet, and if she wanted to continue to observe the proceedings, she needed to remain standing. The last several moments had been a rush of emotion for the young savant. Rayne was no longer in danger of being executed, and would probably be freed. Of course, she was shocked to learn that Rayne was the son of Queen Eliana. With all of that and the moving speech he had just made, Sunshine was emotionally overwhelmed.
The total lack of material offering from Governor Nash gave Rayne no chance to be selected, but she believed he knew that and instead used the opportunity to encourage change for the better. She wondered how all this new information would affect their future. Would Rayne stay on as a guardian? There was really no way of telling until the official court was held to clear him of the charges.
Rayne turned and gave Sunshine a smile just as Governor Eadward stepped up to address the crowd.
“Before I present the wondrous treasure I have to offer today,” Eadward said pompously, “let me respond to Rayne’s comments.” The governor pointed a finger at Rayne. “I knew Rayne’s father. In fact, his father took over for me as Eliana’s personal guardian. Instead of doing what was right, his father selfishly used his influence to seduce Eliana and convinced her to break the very laws he had sworn to uphold. Rayne speaks pretty words, but he is the result of that forbidden and unlawful union and cannot be trusted.”
Eadward turned away from Rayne and strutted forward. “I, however, faithfully served as a royal guardian for many years before I became the Governor of Erd and then Lewyol. Here is what I offer!”
Members of Eadward’s group opened three large, silver chests and displayed quite a number of silver and crystal items. Sunshine squinted a little to make sure she was seeing things correctly. On top of one of the piles were two silver goblets studded with rubies. Their design was fairly unique and looked familiar to Sunshine. It was with a feeling of outrage that Sunshine recognized these goblets as those she had seen in Caldre’s room.
Several in the crowd showed signs of approval at the riches offered. Using that as momentum, Eadward continued, “I am sponsoring myself in this Shoginoc. I will make the people of Bariwon do as they are told. There will be peace, by force if necessary. I can think of no one else who deserves to be king more than I.”
He stepped back with a flourish and waited for the crowd to respond. His face turned an unpleasant shade of crimson when he received only scattered applause.
Caldre stood. “The magistrates will now decide.”
The hierarchy left the stage, with Bertram helping the elderly Aldous down the stairs. They started on the right side, where Governor Uaithne stood proudly next to his offering.
After briefly looking over the items, they moved onto Governor Nash and Rayne. Bertram offered Rayne his hand and said something only the two of them could hear. The hierarchy chatted with Nash for a moment before moving on.
Stopping at Eadward’s group, Sunshine noted that several of the hierarchy stood with their arms folded and were frowning slightly. After spending the least amount of time with Eadward, the five magistrates walked out of the hall to debate the matter.
Sunshine found herself tightly gripping her robe, and then tried to force herself to relax. The crowd was shifting and fidgeting, anxiously awaiting the return of the hierarchy. They didn’t have to wait long before the men returned, climbed back upon the stage, and handed a note to Caldre.
Caldre opened the note and read it, his face void of any expression. He looked up and said, “The next king of Bariwon will be Eadward.”
CHAPTER 27
Alana stood silently among the crowd after Caldre announced that Eadward had been selected as king. Immediately after Caldre spoke, Eadward raised both hands above his head and let out a loud cheer, though he was in the minority.
“No.”
Eadward stopped and turned toward the sound of the voice.
Alana turned to face the stage as well and saw Magistrate Bertram standing, his hands placed firmly on the table before him. In the years she had lived in the castle, she hadn’t gotten to know Bertram very well. He tended to keep to himself, although she had noticed that he did have a close relationship with Sunshine. Bertram was often nervous and shied away from people when they spoke to him, but Alana knew that when the magistrate felt particularly strong about something, he could be quite persistent.
“Ignore the magistrate.” Caldre waved his hand
in Bertram’s direction. “It’s obvious that Eadward offered the most riches and is therefore the winner.”
“No,” Bertram said more forcefully. “I will not allow this to happen.”
“What?” Governor Nash shouted. “Let what happen?”
Alana noticed that unlike Bertram, Nash always spoke his mind.
“Eadward was not selected by the hierarchy,” Bertram said.
Caldre held the paper up. “This? You mean this? I knew you were joking when I read it. Eadward is clearly the winner. Any fool can see that.”
“Whose name is on the paper?” Nash demanded.
Alana felt the crowd swell up around her. She began to fear that things might become violent.
“Rayne was chosen to be the new king,” Bertram stated.
The crowd’s cheers overrode the protests from Abrecan, Eadward, and their supporters.
“Let me explain!” Bertram tried to shout, but his voice was lost in the sea of sounds.
“Quiet!” Daimh boomed, causing the crowd to settle down. “I don’t understand. Governor Eadward is offering more than Rayne.”
Bertram spoke firmly and clearly. “The Tome of Laws says, quote: ‘Whoever brings to the kingdom the most worth, as decided by the Hierarchy of Magistrates, will be declared the winner.’”
Pointing to Eadward’s offering, Bertram smiled. “It doesn’t define the word ‘worth’ in a material sense. Over the years, that is what it has become. But Rayne reminded us of the spirit of the law. To that end, we see in Rayne someone who brings to the kingdom the most worth—someone who is willing to lay down his life for what is right, without any thought of gain for himself. This is the kind of person we need to rule Bariwon!”
***
“It’s only been three weeks. Do you think enough time has passed?” Caldre asked, obviously worried.
Abrecan continued to stare at the fire that blazed in his modest room’s hearth. “It doesn’t matter,” he said in a quiet but hard voice. “I won’t allow this to continue any longer.”
“But I don’t think—” Caldre started to say.
“That’s right,” Abrecan cut him off sharply. “Don’t think! You just do as I say. Had you done your job correctly, Eadward would be king, and I wouldn’t have had to move out of my room to this oversized wardrobe.”
Caldre didn’t say anything after the rebuke. He just sat up straight in his chair and waited for Abrecan to continue.
“It’s bad enough they took down all the tapestries of me,” Abrecan growled, “but to lower the taxes and ask us to do some of the chores the servants would do is ridiculous. Plus, we haven’t had a decent feast since Rayne became king.”
He blew out a sigh of frustration. “And even more terrible is the king’s new bride. It sure didn’t take him long to marry her. She’s even worse than he is—always being overly nice to the servants and guardians. Rayne and Sunshine don’t have the slightest idea how to rule, and they won’t listen to my advice.”
Abrecan stood from his chair, walked over to his bed, and reached under it to remove an ornate sword. “I’m tired of the games and being subtle. I am going to take back this castle. Tomorrow after the king’s first court, I want you to free Ivor from the dungeon, then the two of you will go to Erd and gather as many men as you can and bring them back here.”
“I’m not sure—” Caldre started to say.
Abrecan shut him up with a sharp look.
“Are you sure you don’t want me to leave earlier?” Caldre asked after a long moment.
Abrecan shook his head. “No. Word has it something eventful is going to take place at court tomorrow. It could raise suspicions if you were absent.” Swishing the sword back and forth in the air, Abrecan said, “For too long, Bariwon has been ruled by words from a book. No, it ends here. I will take back this kingdom by any means necessary.”
***
Rayne squeezed Sunshine’s hand as they stood in front of the newly hung tapestry. “I think it was a wonderful idea to put it here in the hallway by our room,” he said. “I’ve always liked this from the first moment I saw it.”
She reached out to lightly touch the fabric. “It was hung outside the storage room for the longest time, but people here in the castle tell me it was one of your mother’s favorites. I thought you’d enjoy having it closer to our room.”
“I wish I knew what it was titled,” Rayne said. “Perhaps something about the large tree on that hill. Or maybe it’s something about spring or summer. I don’t know.”
Sunshine moved her hand to the clouds depicted on the horizon. “I wonder if the storm is arriving or leaving.”
“I would hope leaving,” he said. “Although I enjoy the rain, I’ve become rather fond of sunshine.”
His wife looked at him with a smirk on her face. “That has got to be one of the sappiest and most wonderful things you’ve said to me. How you managed to pull that off with one sentence is amazing.”
“Your Majesty,” Governor Nash said, bowing. “Pardon the interruption, but we’ve done as you have asked. Court is ready, and I must tell you, Councilor Abrecan is none too pleased.”
Rayne turned to the governor. “I’m sure he isn’t. Thank you, Nash. You’ve been a big help with this inquiry. And were you able to secure Daimh, Sullivan, and Caldre as well?”
Nash nodded his head. “Yes, Your Majesty. They are waiting in the main hall with Abrecan.”
“Thank you again,” the king said. “We’ll be right there.” He kissed his wife on the cheek. “Today we take a big step in setting things right.”
***
King Rayne sat next to Queen Sunshine on the modest dais in the main hall. Servants and crafters had worked almost nonstop since the coronation to change the main hall back to how it had been before Daimh became king.
Beside the thrones sat the Hierarchy of Magistrates, minus Aldous, who had passed away a few days following the Shoginoc. The castle priest’s seat was also vacant. In front of the king and queen sat Councilor Abrecan, Councilor Daimh, Magistrate Caldre, and Captain Sullivan. The four men were surrounded by guardians dressed neatly in blue and gold.
“We have much to do in this, our first court,” Rayne said. “We will be selecting a new member of the Hierarchy of Magistrates, as well as announcing who the church has selected as the castle priest, but first, we need to take care of some unpleasant business.”
“This is an outrage!” Abrecan said. “You have no right to treat us this way.”
Rayne leaned forward in his chair and stared at Abrecan. “You will remain quiet, Abrecan, unless you are asked to speak.”
Addressing the rest of the people in the hall, Rayne said, “While I was in the dungeon, I had the opportunity to get to know one of my fellow dungeon mates. He told me the very interesting story of why he was imprisoned. I have had him released, cleaned up, and asked him to attend this court.” With that, one of the side doors opened and a bone-thin man was escorted in by two guardians.
“This” —Rayne motioned for the man to come to the dais— “is Dougal. He was a guardian many years ago. He helped former Captain Wayte, rest his soul, investigate the deaths of Councilors Kenrik and Philip.”
Rayne watched Abrecan and Caldre carefully as he made this announcement. He noticed their eyes open wide in surprise.
“Dougal, will you please tell us what you and Captain Wayte found in your investigation?” Rayne asked once the former guardian reached the dais.
Pointing a gnarled finger at Abrecan and Caldre, the nearly toothless man said, “They were behind the deaths of Kenrik and Philip.”
“You have no proof!” Abrecan shouted, trying to stand up, but one of the guardians put a hand on his shoulder to prevent him.
“We had two witnesses ready to testify,” Dougal said, “but you killed one of them when Captain Wayte returned, didn’t you, Sullivan?”
Sullivan leaned away from Caldre and responded, “I was, just… well, I was just following orders.”
&nbs
p; “And I was thrown in the dungeon before I could say anything,” Dougal said.
Abrecan threw his arms up. “But it doesn’t matter! You have no proof aside from Dougal’s word. You need at least two witnesses.”
Rayne nodded his head in agreement. “Yes, that’s true.” He motioned toward the door and again it opened. This time a very old hunchbacked woman was led in by Governor Nash.
Caldre turned white as a cloud. “No!” he said under his breath.
“And who is this?” Abrecan demanded.
“This,” Rayne said, coming off his throne and helping the woman to a chair near the dais, “is the barmaid of the inn where Kenrik and Philip’s killers stayed the night before the attack. Dougal dressed in rags and pretended to be asleep when Caldre showed up at the inn. This barmaid was there too, cleaning the inn. Caldre paid off the innkeeper to say that it was Governor Elric, not Abrecan, who was behind the plan.”
Caldre shook his head. “No, she would be dead by now.”
“But I ain’t be dead, eh?” she said, her cloudy blue eyes glaring at Caldre. “I may be old, but I still remember that day. Hard to forget when the killings of kings was talked about.”
“But why didn’t you come forth before?” Bertram asked.
She shook her head. “I was afraid. The owner never came back. I took over the Rabid Dog Inn and hoped every day they wouldn’t come for me.”
The fear on Caldre’s face was unmistakable. “I was only doing as I was told. Abrecan was behind all of this.”
In response, Abrecan reached out and grabbed for Caldre but was stopped by the guardians.
“Magistrates?” Rayne said when Abrecan was under control. “What say you?”
The hierarchy spoke quickly among themselves, and then Bertram stood. “We find Abrecan, Caldre, and Sullivan guilty of murder. Following someone’s orders is not reason enough to commit such a heinous crime.”
The Hidden Sun (Bariwon Chronicles Book 1) Page 30