“Perhaps you'd prefer to hear my news in private, your majesty,” Jacinta suggested.
“I already know of the death of Prince Kirshov,” Alenor said, a little amazed that she was able to say it and sound so calm. Although she didn't know the details, the news had rocked her to the core. Grief mixed with relief and a rather uncomfortable dose of guilt warred for dominance in her heart. In truth, if anybody had asked her what she was feeling, she really couldn't have given him an answer.
“The Lion of Senet sent a messenger to inform us of the outcome of the … troubles … in Omaxin,” Rainan informed Jacinta before Alenor could. “I hear the High Priestess is dead, too.”
“Yes, your highness,” Jacinta confirmed warily. “She is.”
“Did Dirk Provin kill her?”
Jacinta glanced at the others in the hall pointedly before replying. “No, your highness. Dirk didn't kill her. Kirsh did.”
Alenor felt the blood drain from her face and realized what a fool she was for thinking this could be dealt with in an open forum. She should never have tried to impress anybody, least of all her cousin and closest friend, by trying to act like a queen. Or give her mother a chance to act like she was back at the helm.
“Leave us!” she announced, rising to her feet.
“Alenor,” her mother began. “Perhaps you should…”
“I said leave us!” Alenor repeated forcefully.
Rainan stared at her, obviously put out by Alenor's abrupt dismissal of the court, but she nodded silently and turned on her heel, followed by Dimitri and the rest of Alenor's attendants. Jacinta watched them leave curiously, turning to Alenor when the last of them closed the door behind them.
“What was all that about?”
Alenor sighed heavily and stepped down from the podium. “It was a mistake. Ever since we got the word about the Senetians pulling out of Dhevyn, my mother has been making noises about resuming the throne.” Alenor sat herself down on the steps leading up to the dais and rested her chin in her hands. “Am I a bad person, Jacinta, for not wanting to let her have her old job back?”
“Not if you think you're doing a better job.”
Alenor lifted the heavy crown from her head and placed it on the step beside her. “What really happened in Omaxin?”
Her cousin sat next to her on the step, silent for a moment, choosing her words carefully. “There was a battle. A very short, sharp and brutal one. I don't think Kirsh expected to come out of it alive. Or wanted to. Rees Provin died in the same charge. It wasn't until later they found Marqel. Dirk thinks Kirsh killed her just before he attacked. He was fairly certain Marqel murdered Antonov, too, although Kirsh wouldn't believe it when Dirk tried to negotiate with him.”
Alenor was silent, wondering what strange set of circumstances would make Kirsh kill the woman he loved. And he had loved her. Blindly and foolishly, perhaps, but he had loved Marqel the way Alenor always wanted to be loved by him. Maybe, in hindsight, she'd gotten the better end of the bargain. She lost Kirsh to Marqel, but at least she was still alive to remark the fact.
“I suppose we'll never really know why,” Jacinta added, watching Alenor closely.
She smiled wanly. “It's all right, Jacinta. I'm fine. I'm not hypocrite enough to pretend I'm a grieving widow, but I never wished Kirsh harm. The news that Rees Provin is dead is going to cause problems, though. Who is going to rule Elcast? I can hardly let Dirk have it. I mean, even if he wasn't Lord of the Suns, it's fairly old news by now that he wasn't actually Wallin's son.” She rubbed her temples, wondering if being a queen ever got any easier. “I guess Rees's baby son is the logical choice, but he's only a few weeks old … still, I can worry about it later, I suppose. Right now I have a lot more urgent things to worry about.”
“Like what?” Jacinta asked.
“Well, for one thing, I have your mother here demanding I release you from my service immediately so you can go home and marry Raban Seranov. I suddenly have a new cousin I didn't know about called Melliandra Thorn and Johan's widow to contend with. I have an entire country reeling from the shock of the sudden withdrawal of Senet. For every man out there cheering for freedom, there's another accusing me of ruining them with my shortsightedness. I'm afraid to let Alexin out of my sight for fear the Church will demand he be returned to Senet for execution as a heretic …”
“Well, that's one worry you don't have any longer,” Jacinta assured her. “Dirk's wiped the slate clean of charges against Alexin. As far as the Church is concerned, he is an innocent man.”
Alenor's smile widened. “You know, sometimes it's rather handy having one of your best friends as Lord of the Suns.”
Jacinta smiled, but there was an oddness about it. A hint of regret or bitterness, perhaps, that Alenor couldn't quite define.
“He said to give you his thanks, too, Allie. For trusting him. And he asked you to treat Mellie and Lady Lexie in a manner befitting their station.”
“Is he coming to Kalarada?”
Jacinta shook her head. “I don't think so. At least, not for a while. He's got a lot to deal with cleaning up after the Shadowdancers.”
“Poor Dirk. I keep trying to imagine what it must have cost him to do what he did. He never shared his plans with anyone, you know. Not even me. Not even when I asked him to. He was too afraid I'd get caught up in the backlash if he failed. It couldn't have been easy for him to find himself facing Kirsh across a battlefield, either.”
“I wouldn't lose too much sleep over how Dirk is coping,” Jacinta advised. “He was doing just fine when I saw him last.”
Alenor stared at her cousin, wondering at her tone. “Didn't you like him, Jacinta?”
Jacinta shrugged. “I liked him well enough.”
“But…”
“But nothing. He's doing just fine, Alenor. Don't worry about Dirk. Think about how you're going to propose to Alexin instead.”
“What?” she gasped in shock.
“You are going to marry him, aren't you? Goddess, Allie, I didn't spend all that effort covering up for you two with the dreaded Lady Dorra just so you can toss him aside as soon as you're a free woman!”
“But I never …”
“You never what? For pity's sake, girl, Kirsh has been dead for close on a month! What have you been doing?”
“But it's only been … Oh, Jacinta! Even if I wanted to… well, no, that's not what I mean, of course I want to … it's just … well, it's been such a short time. It's indecent!”
“Well, yes, I can see how it would be indecent for you to marry the man who was publicly condemned to die for the crime of being your lover less than a month after your husband murdered his mistress and then threw himself on a blade to avoid facing the consequences of starting a civil war.”
The queen frowned at her cousin disapprovingly. “You make it sound so … tacky, Jacinta.”
“Well, it is rather,” Jacinta agreed. Then she smiled brightly. “But I'd not worry about it too much, if I were you, your majesty. Give it a few months for the fuss to die down and the bards will be singing about you and Alexin as if it was one of the great love affairs of history.”
“What will they say about Kirsh and Marqel, I wonder?”
“The less said about those two, the better,” Jacinta suggested with a grimace.
“And what of you, Jacinta? Will they sing great ballads about you and Raban Seranov, someday?”
“Only if I don't murder him in our bed some night when I tire of his snoring. Or maybe they will sing about me because I murdered him in our bed one night when I finally tired of his snoring.”
Alenor studied Jacinta curiously. “You're making jokes again.”
“Am I?” she shrugged. “Strange. I don't feel like laughing.”
“I wish I could help you, Jacinta. You helped me find the only moments of happiness I've had in the last few years. But I'm barely dealing with my mother. I don't think I have the strength to take on yours at the same time.”
“That's al
l right, Allie,” Jacinta assured her. “There is a whole new world waiting for us out there. You're going to rule a free Dhevyn. I'm going to start a dynasty. Neither of us is going to have the time to worry about how happy we are.”
Alenor wondered, for a moment, why she wasn't feeling more afraid. She should be. She was young, untried and untested. Her mother thought her far too inexperienced to handle the job. Her people probably thought the same. But Alenor had a network of contacts her mother had never had access to. The new Lion of Senet was like a big brother to her and the Lord of the Suns was one of her best friends. The Baenlanders were no longer a problem, which meant their shipping would no longer be raided and for that matter, with the Lady Lexie's help, she might even have a chance of reining in the Brotherhood and doing something to rid Dhevyn of the corruption that had spread throughout its bureaucracy while Senet was in charge.
She could do this.
“You're right, Jacinta,” she said, giving her cousin's hand a reassuring squeeze. “There is a whole new world waiting for us out there.”
Alenor rose to her feet and picked up her crown. In her heart, Alenor knew it. She could rule Dhevyn and rule it well.
And she was going to.
Starting now.
ia had never seen the Lord of the Suns' palace and she was quite taken aback by its beauty when her carriage trundled through the gateway. The ancient building was a relic of a time that seemed more elegant, less brutal, than the world they lived in now. Seeing the palace helped her appreciate Dirk's fascination with learning as much as he could about the long forgotten people who had constructed it.
She was welcomed into the palace like an honored guest, although Tia still hadn't gotten used to people bowing and curtsying wherever she went. She wanted to put a stop to it, but Misha wouldn't let her. It was all part of the game, he claimed. Anyway, she had as much right to the claim of highborn as anyone did, he reminded her. Tia didn't actually think having Lady Ella Geon as a mother was anything to be terribly proud of, but she understood what he was trying to say.
Dirk was down by the lake. He was standing on the shore staring out over the water, his hands thrust deeply into the pockets of his trousers. He turned at the sound of her footsteps. He didn't look surprised to see her.
“They told me I'd find you out here.”
“And here I am …” He studied her for a moment and then looked away, as if he couldn't bear her scrutiny.
“You look well,” she said, thinking if she'd tried harder, she could have thought of something even more banal to say.
“So do you.”
“I have to say I'm a little disappointed, though. You know… Lord of the Shadows, Lord of the Suns and all that… here in the very seat of your power, I thought you'd be dressed like a monk or something.”
The briefest of smiles flickered across his face. “One of the advantages of being the boss. I get to set the dress code.”
“I saw Eryk up at the house. He seems a little … unhappy.”
“He's still trying to figure out what happened in Omaxin. And if he had something to do with Kirsh dying. We've gone to some pains to keep it from him that he was the one who delivered the poison to Antonov.”
“Poor Eryk.”
“He'll be all right eventually, and Caterina will help him through it. He just needs time.”
She studied him curiously for a moment. “You don't need a hostage anymore, Dirk. The Brotherhood contract on you has long been called off.”
“Caterina doesn't want to leave.”
“Really?”
He frowned at what she was implying. “It's not what you think, Tia. She actually suggested she marry Eryk.”
“You're kidding! Why?”
“From her point of view, it's an excellent match, I suppose. Eryk adores her and she gets to live in a palace. If she returns to Tolace, she'll end up married to a sailor or a Brotherhood man and spend the rest of her life cooking and cleaning and making babies. She's quite a pragmatist, our Caterina.”
“Or an opportunist.”
“If they're both happy with the arrangement, does it really matter?”
“I suppose not,” she agreed uncertainly. “But are you really going to allow it?”
“Not right away,” Dirk assured her. “For one thing, they're both far too young and naive to know what they want. Eryk certainly is, at any rate. Besides, it's a little too glib a solution for my liking. I'm sure Caterina means what she says now, but I don't want Eryk getting hurt the first time she spies some handsome fellow who takes a shine to her and she realizes how much better she could do. I told her I'd think about it. And that she could stay until I made up my mind.”
“Isn't that just making it harder on her if you eventually refuse her?”
“It won't hurt Caterina to have her mettle tested a little.”
Tia nodded in agreement, thinking they'd all had their mettle tested recently.
“How's Misha?”
“He's got a lot of work ahead of him,” she said. “But he's stronger than people give him credit. He'll manage. Landfall was rather trying. But we got through it.” She began to walk along the shoreline. Dirk fell into step beside her as they headed away from the palace. “Have you seen Alenor?”
Dirk shook his head. “Not since she went back to Kalarada.”
“She's married to Alexin now. I was in Kalarada for the wedding. It was quite a party. I expected you to be there.”
“I was in Elcast. Anyway, Alenor doesn't need me around to rule Dhevyn. She's more than capable of doing it on her own.”
“Did you know she gave Lady Lexie the Duchy of Elcast?”
Dirk nodded. “We corresponded a good deal about it. Alenor thought I might want it.”
“You didn't?” she asked curiously.
“Not even when I thought I was Wallin's son.”
“Then it was you who suggested Oscon of Damita adopt Rees's son as his heir?”
“No. That was Alenor's idea. Faralan wasn't capable of ruling Elcast on her own. She'll be much happier in Damita. Her baby is Oscon's great-grandson and with Baston dead, he needed an heir. It seemed the best solution all round.”
“And it saves Alenor from having to deal with a disinherited heir someday, bent on reclaiming his father's estates,” Tia observed.
“As I said, she's more than capable of ruling Dhevyn on her own.”
“Did you hear Alenor made Mellie her heir until she has a child of her own?” Tia asked, feeling a bit like a slave delivering a summary of the local gossip she'd heard around the village well.
“Then the next Queen of Dhevyn will be Melliandra Thorn,” Dirk predicted. “After what Marqel did to her, Alenor will probably never bear another child.”
They walked along the shore for a way in silence.
“Did you know Ella is dead?” she ventured carefully.
“Yes.” There was no emotion in his voice.
“She was poisoned. With ergot, Misha says. It wasn't very pleasant, by all accounts.”
“Not an undeserved fate, when all is said and done,” he remarked.
“Was it you?”
Dirk stopped at looked her. “Do you really want me to answer that?”
She thought about it for a moment, and then shook her head. “I'm sorry. I had no right to ask …”
“You still think I'm a cold-blooded killer, don't you?”
“Well, you see, that's the problem, Dirk,” she sighed. “I don't know what you are.”
He looked away, but when he looked back at her, his steel-gray eyes were just as unreadable, just as hard to fathom, as they had ever been. “I'm sorry for the pain I caused you, Tia. I'm sorry I hurt anyone. But I couldn't stand by and do nothing. And the battle isn't over yet. It's going to take years to undo the damage Belagren and Antonov did.”
She nodded, knowing he spoke the truth. “I thought about it, you know. I thought about how much I love Misha. I thought about how much good I could do as the wife of the Li
on of Senet. It all seems a little too perfect.”
“What's wrong with that?”
“I'm not sure. I suppose I don't want to finish up like your father.”
“You mean with my knife buried up to the hilt in your throat?” he asked, with more than a little bitterness.
“That's not what I meant.”
“Then what did you mean?”
She shrugged, not sure how to put her thoughts into words. “Lexie told me once I'd never understand what Morna and Johan shared unless I experienced it for myself.”
“Is that why you're here?” he asked, looking a little alarmed at the notion. “To rekindle what you think we had?”
“No. Lust brought on by isolation isn't love, Dirk. I had to meet Misha before I truly understood that, though.”
“Does he know you're here?”
“He suggested it. He's concerned about what will happen in the future if you and I can't get along.”
“You told him about us, didn't you?”
She nodded and then smiled, feeling a little foolish. “I think the day I found myself pouring my heart out to Misha about what a cad you were was the day it occurred to me who I really loved.”
Dirk didn't reply. They kept walking along the shore with nothing but the distant honking of an aggravated swan disturbing the silence.
“Misha's right, I suppose. I guess that's why I said I'd come. To clear the air. I don't know how you did it, Dirk, not really. I mean I understand what you did, I even think I know why, but how you could do all those terrible things and never let on to anyone, never share it …” She shrugged. “I'm not sure I'm saying this right.”
“I think I understand.”
Tia hesitated, not sure what else to say. “Perhaps we'll see you in Avacas for the coronation? Misha would like it if you came.”
“I think my presence is required. The Lord of the Suns is supposed to crown the Lion of Senet, I believe. I have to return to Avacas for the trial, in any case. Ella's dead, but Madalan and Yuri still need to be dealt with.”
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