A servant started to carve, but Arianna waved him away. She stood, grabbed the knife, and cut the meat herself. Then she served Lyndred and Bridge as if it were something she had always done.
Her hand on the knife looked so sure. Her grasp was correct, her movements easy.
“Is that enough?” she asked as she set a slice on his plate.
“It’s fine,” he said.
She set the knife down and returned to her chair. He got the sense that everything she did, she did for a reason, even down to cutting the meat.
The servants had all left. Bridge found himself staring at the knife.
“I don’t believe I said family doesn’t matter.” Arianna spoke conversationally. “I believe I said I only extend courtesy to those who deserve it. That’s a different thing.”
“Does Gift deserve courtesy?” Bridge asked.
“I’m not certain. He hasn’t informed us that he was coming. But perhaps there’s a reason for that. What do you think?”
Bridge wasn’t going to make the mistake of answering that. Instead, he said, “Someone sent for Gift. You know that. We told you when we arrived.”
Arianna ate a bite of meat, chewed, and leaned back in her chair. “So your point is if someone sent for Gift he’s entitled to courtesy?”
That hadn’t been his point, but he was willing to claim it. He nodded.
Lyndred was eating silently beside him. She kept her head down, as if she wanted to remain invisible.
“I wonder,” Arianna said. “I was ill, so someone sent for Gift. I suspect it was Seger. I suspect Seger of many things. Have I told you?”
“You think she harmed you.”
“It seems logical, especially with her quick disappearance.” Arianna cut her meat with the side of her fork. “Then she sends for Gift. She has known him for years. What if she and he have concocted a way to get me off the throne, a way that won’t involve the Blood?”
“How could you know that?” Bridge asked. “I mean, how could you find out?”
“I wouldn’t have, if you hadn’t told me about your Gull Rider all those months ago. And if your daughter hadn’t been seeing Blood.”
Lyndred brought her head up. Her skin was even grayer. “I don’t know what that’s connected to.”
“I know,” Arianna said. “That’s why Visionaries share their Visions, so we can figure these things out.”
“It’s still speculation,” Bridge said. “Not proof.”
“I know. But I no longer trust Gift, and I don’t think you should either.”
“I don’t know him,” Bridge said.
“None of us do any longer.” Arianna ate another bite of meat. She chewed slowly, watching him. “You once asked me about the swords.”
He glanced involuntarily at the swords behind her. So that was why they were eating here. She wanted to make a point.
“A Black Robe, a young one, came in a secret door when Rugad held this palace, and killed twenty Fey with a sword he pulled from the wall. Because he had this power, he diverted the Fey attention from guarding their Black King. Rugad nearly died that day. Later I heard that Rugad had taken a Red Cap and had him place his finger on all of the swords. Most didn’t even break the skin, but a few sliced off fingers with no effort.”
“Magic?” Lyndred asked.
“Of the Islander sort. Theirs seems to be concentrated on items rather than on people. But that’s not the point.”
“What is the point?” Bridge wanted this discussion to end so that he could eat.
“The point is that a single sword wielded by one man nearly toppled the Fey Empire. Everything about this Isle is unexpected. Our people were repeatedly defeated by believing that something was impossible only to be shown it wasn’t.”
“Our people?” Lyndred said so softly that for a moment Bridge wasn’t sure if Arianna heard her.
Arianna smiled. “I am half Fey, Lyndred.”
“And half Islander.”
“And when I talk to Islanders and say, ‘Our people,’ they know that I mean Islanders. I am speaking to Fey.”
“So you claim both?”
“I rule both, although it is, really, a specious distinction. I rule the Fey Empire. It happens to include Blue Isle. Keeping that distinction makes the Islanders happy and costs me nothing.”
But Bridge felt like she wasn’t really keeping that distinction at all. It seemed that she had become more Fey. Perhaps that was the inevitable consequence of being Black Queen. Or perhaps it was something else.
“I’m still not sure of the point,” Bridge said.
“The point is,” Arianna said slowly, as if she expected Bridge to have trouble understanding, “that surprise, not the Islanders, was our greatest enemy. All of this started as a discussion about Gift and what you consider to be my strange reaction to him.”
Bridge set his fork down. Arianna still held hers. Lyndred had stopped eating a while ago.
“You may think I’m cold to Gift,” Arianna said, “but I’m not. I simply can no longer afford to trust him. And I will not let anyone surprise me.”
Bridge frowned. Maybe he was as dense as Arianna thought. “Why are you telling us this? We can’t do anything about your relationship to Gift one way or another.”
The smile vanished from Arianna’s face. Her expression was hard and ruthless. For the first time, Bridge thought he was seeing the person that lurked deep down inside Arianna, the one that controlled her every thought and movement, the one she rarely let anyone see.
Arianna studied him for a moment, then looked at Lyndred. Her gaze fell so intensely on Lyndred that his daughter squirmed and looked to him for help. He didn’t move. Something else was playing here, something very important.
“Why am I telling you this?” Arianna was talking to Bridge without moving her gaze from Lyndred. “Because your daughter believes I’m Blind.”
Lyndred flushed. Inwardly, Bridge cringed.
“And since she believes that, I think she might ally with Gift. He might come here, tell her tales of the Black Throne and his hereditary rights, and convince her that I’m unfit to lead the Fey Empire. Oh, he might say I can remain Queen of Blue Isle, but he wouldn’t think someone who has never been off the Isle should rule the Empire.”
Lyndred was shaking. Bridge wanted to put his arm around her, but couldn’t. Not yet.
“Makes for a good argument, doesn’t it? I can think of a dozen others. And if he uses them, he might convince everyone that I’m unworthy.”
“He won’t kill you,” Lyndred said.
“No,” Arianna said. “He’s too smart for that. But if he convinces you that I can’t rule, and convinces your father, and convinces everyone else, what choice would I have but to step down?”
“You would do that?” Bridge kept his voice low and dry.
Arianna turned that piercing gaze on him. “Probably not. And then what would happen? A crisis of confidence as the Fey believe they are ruled by an incompetent. The Islanders are already rebelling. Imagine if Fey joined them. Gift doesn’t have to give the order to have me killed. There are a thousand ways to avoid the Blood against Blood and still manipulate the Empire. The last Black King knew them all.”
“Except in the end.” Lyndred spoke quietly. Bridge smiled at her. She had courage, his girl.
Arianna’s eyes narrowed. “You’ve said that to me before. I think you fail to realize that Rugad achieved his goal. He wanted Blue Isle in the Fey Empire, ruled by himself or a member of his family. He got both of those things. That is not failure.”
“He didn’t live to see it.”
“No one lives forever, Lyndred.”
This time Bridge shuddered. Arianna’s comment almost sounded like a threat.
Lyndred obviously heard it too. She squared her shoulders. “Forgive me, Arianna. I made a mistake. I always look on death as the ultimate failure.”
To Bridge’s surprise, Arianna smiled. “That’s because you have limitations, Lyndred.
To the most talented Visionaries, death is only the end of one road, not all of them.”
Bridge felt his mouth fall open. He had heard such things, but had never seen them. What did Arianna know that he didn’t?
“Are you saying Rugad’s not dead?” The words came out before he could stop them.
“Oh, he’s dead,” Arianna said. “His body burned near the Islander Place of Power. But his spirit lives on.”
“As a Mystery?”
“I don’t think the Powers consider a man killed in battle to be the victim of a murder.” Arianna cut more meat with her fork.
“Then how?”
“A man doesn’t die until his dreams die.” Arianna cut the last bit of meat on her plate. “And Rugad dreamed of extending the Empire to every part of the world.”
“You’re going to fulfill that dream?” Lyndred asked.
“Are you surprised because I’ve kept the Empire at peace for fifteen years or because I’m part Islander or because I share the dreams my family has always had?”
“All of that,” Lyndred said.
“Peace,” Arianna said, “is simply the resting time between battles. Islanders fought each other until one culture took over the Isle. And I believe a person should always pursue the dreams that make the most sense.”
Bridge was staring at her.
“Don’t look so shocked, Bridge.” Arianna ate the last bite of meat. “Wasn’t this what you came to Blue Isle to convince me to do?”
He flushed and silently cursed.
“Well, it’s true, Bridge. Our people will go back to war, just like they’re supposed to. I’ve been training Infantry, preparing armies, working with Foot Soldiers. You have Vision. Rather limited, but still good. You’ve also fought in several campaigns. I can make you a general and send you on the first wave to Leut.”
“Like Rugad sent my father to Blue Isle? To get me out of the way?”
“If only you were cunning enough to be in the way.” Arianna chuckled. “Lyndred, on the other hand, could become one of my most clever adversaries. When she grows up, of course. And since I’m currently without issue, I need to keep her here. You understand that, don’t you, Bridge?”
Lyndred frowned. Bridge recognized the look. He didn’t want his daughter to say anything more. He put his hand on her knee.
“I understand,” he said, barely keeping his anger in check, “that any Blind leader would keep the best Visionary beside her.”
Arianna’s face came alive as it never had before. Bridge could feel her anger. It was so powerful that he could barely prevent himself from sliding his chair away from the table.
“You will not say that again.” Her tone was low and threatening.
Lyndred’s knee was taut beneath his hand. His daughter was tense, maybe more tense than he was.
“Are you afraid of the truth?” Bridge said. “I’ve seen no evidence of your Vision, and everything you do shows me you have none.”
“I don’t have to share my Vision with someone like you.”
“Probably not,” Bridge said, “but you are talking about my daughter’s future, and I disagree with your choices for her.”
“I make my own choices,” Lyndred said.
Bridge continued as if she hadn’t spoken. “My grandfather, Rugad, the man you claim to admire, believed that everyone should experience war, even future Leaders. My daughter never has. She should be in her own troop, following someone else’s leadership, until she understands the impact battle has on everyone.”
The color in Arianna’s cheeks had grown darker. She shoved her plate away with such force that the rest of the dishes scattered across the table. Bridge’s almost landed in his lap. He didn’t try to catch it, thinking that would be exactly what Arianna wanted. Instead he slid back just a little and watched as the dish hung on the edge.
“Your daughter,” Arianna said in a voice so soft that it seemed at odds with her latest movement, “should be beside me. I learn from mistakes. And that judgment, that insight about war, was a mistake. Jewel died because of that whole idea that leaders must experience war. I will not make the same mistake with Lyndred.”
“I thought it was Fey tradition to send leaders into battle,” Lyndred said. “So that we could be warrior rulers.”
“You want to rule the Fey?” Arianna rose from her chair. Each movement had a power that astonished Bridge. It was as if she had more hidden reserves than any other person he’d met.
Lyndred looked up at her. It was a lazy movement, one that made all the threat Arianna was projecting seem ridiculous. “Of course, I want to rule the Fey.”
Bridge’s breath caught in his throat. Lyndred didn’t know what she was doing. She couldn’t. She had no idea how Arianna would treat her.
“But,” Lyndred said. “I’ll do so only if the Throne comes to me. And I’m, what? Fourth? Sixth in line? Then again, you were second. So anything can happen.”
The color had drained from Arianna’s face. Had no one ever challenged her before? “You mock me.”
“Yes, I do.” Lyndred stood. Bridge’s hand slid off her knee, unheeded. He wanted to grab her wrist and pull her back to her seat as if she were still a little girl. “I think you’re paranoid and dangerous. I think you have no idea how to rule our people. You tried peace, found that it wasn’t trouble-free like you thought, so now you seek to divert us with war. You’re not following any plan. You have no Vision. All you’re doing is trying to make sure no one dislodges you from a Throne you do not understand.”
“I would kill anyone else for saying that.” Arianna took a step closer to Lyndred. Lyndred didn’t move.
Bridge stood. He’d seen flashes of this woman in his daughter before, and he had a hunch that the little girl he’d nurtured would be gone forever after this night. The woman would have completely taken her place.
“Yes,” Lyndred said. “You would have killed anyone not of your family. And if you were as smart as our great-grandfather, you’d find a successful way to manipulate my death. Unlike the things you tried with Gift. Too nebulous. People don’t follow nebulous orders—and you can’t give an obvious one. Such a bind you’re in.”
This time Lyndred was the one who took the extra step. She was so close that she and Arianna nearly touched.
“You can’t kill me.” Lyndred’s voice was as soft as her cousin’s. Bridge had to strain to hear. “You can only banish me, and you won’t do that, will you? You want my Vision. You need it.”
Arianna didn’t move, but Lyndred smiled.
“Isn’t it amazing how much of our intelligence is based in our Vision? We rely on it so much. Even my father, who doesn’t have half the Vision I do, relies on it.”
Bridge frowned, not sure why Lyndred brought him into this.
“Of course, you can’t kill him either. He’s a blood relative as well. Is this the kind of rebellion you were afraid of from your brother? He has Vision, too, doesn’t he? He probably knows all about your Blindness. He has probably come home to save the Empire. You know the rules. Any Blind leader should step aside.”
“I am not Blind,” Arianna snapped.
“I don’t believe you,” Lyndred said.
Bridge’s heart was pounding. His daughter was standing up to the Black Queen. Fearlessly. He had never had that kind of courage. He wondered where Lyndred got it from.
“It’s not something I can prove in an instant,” Arianna said.
“I suppose not,” Lyndred replied, “and that puts you in quite a bind. I don’t believe you, and you can’t prove me wrong. Now your brother is coming. Perhaps you should get me out of the way so that my prejudices don’t influence him.”
“You’re free to go any time you like,” Arianna said. “It was your wish to stay here.”
Lyndred’s shoulders stiffened. She obviously hadn’t expected Arianna to acquiesce. “It was my father’s wish.”
“I’d be happy to leave this place,” Bridge said.
“You don’t get
a vote.” Arianna spoke to him without looking. “It’s Lyndred’s choice.”
His intervention had given his daughter enough time to think. He could see the difference in the set of her back. Her confidence had returned.
“Good,” Lyndred said. “If it’s truly my choice, then I make this one. When you proceed to Leut, I want my own infantry unit. I want to be a traditional Fey Leader. I have little hope of getting the Throne, but I do have hope of heading a country or an area. I want Leut. And I’ll take it.”
She paused as if considering something. “Unless you feel you need me here.”
Trapped. Arianna had to admit to the Blindness or she had to let Lyndred go.
“All right,” Arianna said. “You’re free to make your own mistakes. As soon as I have the troops ready to go to Leut, you’ll be with them. It does mean you’ll need to train.”
“Training’s fine,” Lyndred said.
“And what of your father?”
“I don’t need training,” Bridge said. “I’m the only one here who has fought in a war.”
“Ah, yes, the Nyeian campaign. Your actions were so effective.” Arianna turned toward him. She obviously knew how poorly he had done as an infantry leader.
He wasn’t going to defend himself, so he deliberately misunderstood her. “Thank you.”
Arianna made a soft sound of disgust. She stepped away from Lyndred. Bridge’s daughter didn’t move at all. Arianna studied them for a moment, then she said, “No matter what you chose to believe about me or my warnings, my brother will be here shortly and everything will change.”
“I know,” Lyndred said. “I’ve Seen it.”
And then she walked away. Bridge watched her go.
“Your daughter is headstrong,” Arianna said.
“Like my sister used to be.”
Arianna nodded, watching as Lyndred disappeared into the corridor. For a moment, the Black Queen of the Fey seemed almost lost.
“Your lecture on surprise,” Bridge said, “applies to my daughter. She will never do what you expect. And she certainly won’t do what you want. Not unless she sees value in it. Right now, she believes you’re Blind, and she will act on that.”
The Black King (Book 7) Page 12