Faces paled at the implication and seats were taken with haste. Jonrell turned back to Elyse. “Your Highness.”
All eyes went to the queen but she failed to move.
C’mon Elyse. This has to start now. Just a few words. Remember, you rule over them.
As if hearing Jonrell’s thoughts, she slowly rose. “I think your point was made, Brother. Please, sheathe your sword.”
Good. “Yes, Your Highness,” he said and obeyed.
A throat was cleared to the left and a man stood. “Your Highness, if I may. I would like to apologize for our…behavior and take the opportunity to welcome Jonrell back home after such a long time away. His return has caused us to forget ourselves.”
“Your apology is noted, Phasin. Have a seat,” replied Elyse in a flat tone.
Very good, Jonrell thought. Then he saw a slight shake of the queen’s hands and watched her quickly move them to her sides to conceal her nerves. Just a little longer.
“To Phasin’s point, I know everyone is eager to discuss the return of my brother and what that means. That was addressed moments ago outside the keep. Jonrell is dedicated to bringing peace back to our kingdom and has returned to aid us in the war I had hoped to avoid. I have given him command over all our armies and resources. He answers to no one but me. That is what his return means and there will be no further discussion on the matter.” Heads turned as whispers hissed through the council.
“Now,” Elyse continued, “My brother has already determined our first steps in response to Tomalt’s capture of Namaris. I will let him comment further on the matter.” Elyse took her seat.
“Thank you, Your Highness,” said Jonrell with a slight bow in the queen’s direction. “I will keep what I have to say brief for we have little time to accomplish the many tasks that need to be done. I have heard good things about what General Grayer has been able to accomplish in such a short period of time. Therefore, he will stay here in defense of Lyrosene and continue to train and prepare the bulk of our army. I will take with me a smaller force and any necessary supplies to Cathyrium. We will strengthen their garrison and that is where we will make our stand against Tomalt.”
“But wouldn’t it make sense to keep our forces together as one unit here since he is likely to march on the capital?” blurted out Vulira.
“No. It wouldn’t. Tomalt has greater numbers than we do and by splitting our forces he has no choice but to meet us at Cathyrium. Otherwise, he would have an army harassing his rear while he tried to take Lyrosene. Such a strategy would only work in our favor. By attacking Cathyrium, he then has a better advantage in numbers. Also, he wouldn’t have to worry about his lengthening supply lines,” said Jonrell.
“I beg your pardon, Your Highness,” said Vulira interrupting, “but this is madness. Our Prince is practically admitting that he will lose Cathyrium with this scheme.”
“That is always a risk,” said Jonrell, cutting in before Elyse could respond. “But I do not plan to lose anything. Cathyrium can be defended against Tomalt.”
“It sounds as though you already have worked out some of the details,” came a voice to Jonrell’s left.
Jonrell turned. “I have.”
“Perhaps,” said Adein, standing. “You could be more specific in regard to your strategy?”
“No.”
“But how can we advise you and the queen on such things if you would not share with us the details of your plan?” asked Adein. He gestured around the room to others who nodded in agreement to his question.
Jonrell chuckled. “You don’t understand. You are here to advise in your areas of expertise. You are not rulers. When it comes to matters of war, I take my advice from those men and women with experience I can trust.”
“Are you implying that we cannot be trusted?” asked Adein outraged. Several shouts rose in agreement.
Jonrell raised his hands and hushed the audience. Good, they are learning. “Not all of you have been tainted but indeed there are spies here in this very room.” Whispers broke out once again at the statement made.
“You’ve just arrived this day, Prince. Spies? You haven’t had time to gather the proof to make such accusations,” said Adein.
Jonrell suppressed a smile. Adein already worked to undermine his authority and turn the nobles against him. No doubt he was a catalyst in doing the same to Elyse. “On everyone? Perhaps not. However, my men are in the process of pulling information together on two of the most notorious offenders, nobles I had warned my father about years ago before I left Cadonia.”
“Well, please, you must tell us who these conspirators are,” demanded Adein. “I’m sure I speak for everyone here when I say that these people deserve swift justice for their actions.” Several nods were seen throughout the room.
“As you wish, My Lord,” said Jonrell with a mocking bow. “My men are currently confiscating your estate and the estate of your dear friend Vicalli.”
Adein’s face grew pale as his mouth hung open in shock.
Vicalli stood up in a rush of anger. “This is outrageous. How dare you compare me to this imbecile? I will not tolerate this conspiracy being led against me.”
Adein gathered himself and bolted toward the door. But as he reached the handle and swung the door wide, several guards greeted him. Two others came in to grab Vicalli who hadn’t stopped yelling, though his language had grown more colorful.
Jonrell called to the guards. “Please place the men in separate cells for questioning.”
One of the guards looked to the queen. “Your Majesty?”
Jonrell turned to Elyse and saw the shock on her face. She recovered quickly and composed herself as she cast a sidelong glance at her brother. “See to it, Captain.”
“Yes, Your Highness.”
“Wait!” cried out Adein. “What of my possessions?”
Jonrell answered his question while facing the rest of the room. The message served as a warning. “Due to the treachery of these men, all of their wealth, land, and titles will revert back to the crown. Their punishment will be determined once the extent of their treason has been discerned and their cooperation evaluated. This punishment will be extended to anyone else found guilty of similar crimes.” He paused for effect, letting his words sink in as he waited until the guards led Adein and Vicalli out of the chamber and shut the door. “Now, I want to reassure everyone here that if you are not guilty of anything you have nothing to fear. In fact, I would say that you have plenty of opportunity for gain. You only need to prove yourselves.”
“What exactly do you mean by that?” asked Phasin.
“The queen has decided to accompany me to Cathyrium.”
This time Gauge was the one to voice his opinion. “Cathyrium? Your Majesty, is this true?”
Elyse paled at the question and turned to Jonrell searching for an answer. However, he had to remain quiet. All eyes watched them. Any gesture would be noticed too easily, and to answer in her stead would only weaken the power he was trying to build back into the crown.
It all hinges upon these next few moments. How much is she willing to trust me?
“Your Majesty?” asked Gauge once again.
Elyse blinked away the confusion in her eyes, puffing herself up in her seat. “Yes, it is true. Once preparations are made, I will be accompanying our Prince to Cathyrium.”
“But Your Majesty, the queen’s place is in Lyrosene,” said Gauge
“My place is wherever I chose it to be. This is my kingdom, is it not?” Elyse asked in a stern voice.
Jonrell suppressed a smile once again. I couldn’t have said it better myself, Elyse. Gauge squirmed in his seat and Jonrell noticed the other advisors looking smug at Gauge’s discomfort. Interesting, I’ll have to talk to Elyse about his position at a later time.
After a moment, Gauge found enough words to respond. “Yes, Your Majesty. This is your kingdom. I did not mean to infer anything otherwise,” he said, bowing his head.
“I’m sorry, my Princ
e, but you spoke of opportunity,” said Phasin. “I don’t understand.”
“Well, I think it should be obvious, really. Those in this room will have far more time on their hands since these council meetings will be suspended in the queen’s absence.”
Another series of shouts erupted from the advisors and Jonrell was forced to calm the group of nobles once again. Vulira was the one to speak up this time. “These council meetings have been in place for over four hundred years. Would you abolish something instituted by Aurnon the First?”
“No. However, Her Majesty and I have discussed the validity of suspending such meetings for a period of time. After all, you can’t expect to hold a meeting with the queen in another city, now can you?”
“I suppose not,” Vulira answered after some hesitation.
“Of course not. But not to worry, we will not be parting to Cathyrium for several days. Before we leave each person in this room will be given a crucial task. While we’re gone, it will be necessary for each of those tasks to be fulfilled. And that,” he said, turning around the room to meet everyone’s eyes, “is where the opportunity lies.”
“The success each of you has with these duties will influence the likelihood of being assigned such tasks in the future. Naturally, if someone is unable to complete an assigned duty, well, we would have to question not only that person’s support of the crown but even their overall competence. And Her Majesty cannot have people like that share a seat on her council.”
Jonrell watched mouths hang open in shock and shoulders hunch forward. He also received several piercing glares that only made him chuckle.
If that is supposed to intimidate me, you are sorely mistaken.
He finally came to his sister’s eyes. “Your Highness, I believe that covers everything I wished to discuss at this particular time. Do you have anything to add?”
Elyse’s look was one of confusion even as she stood and dismissed the meeting.
* * *
What just happened?
Elyse sat back into her seat with as much dignity as she could muster, remembering her brother’s advice from last night. She and Jonrell had spoken briefly about what needed to happen today – how she should act and what topics to cover. “Trust me,” he said. “I’ll do as much of the talking as I can without taking away your authority. I only need you to trust my judgment and support me openly before the nobles.”
Despite the exhaustion from tossing and turning the night before, she had felt confident about what to expect. Once the meeting was under way, it occurred to her how few of the day’s details they actually discussed the previous night. She expected Jonrell to take some of the pressure off of her and buy time with the nobles as they formulated a plan.
But he did that and so much more, she thought, watching a disheveled group of nobles shuffle from the chamber. He completely turned the tables on them. The same group who had pushed and pressured her every chance they had since her father died were taken so off guard by Jonrell, that they simply crumbled before her eyes. They saw what happened to Adein and Vicalli. He set this whole thing up as an example to them. But how did he act so quickly?
She had so many questions she even found herself fighting not to argue with him. Cathyrium? What was he thinking? Yet, she kept her emotions in control, remembering what he asked of her. She backed him up when needed and did the best she could to hide her surprise when each new bit of information was revealed. He asked only for my trust, but it feels like I’m giving him so much more. She wasn’t sure why she went along with what he said, but she knew that if she did otherwise, it would have only made matters worse.
Elyse noticed that none of the nobles dared to meet Jonrell’s eyes as they left the room, except for one. Illyan. It was only at that moment that Elyse realized his booming voice had remained strangely silent throughout the council meeting. What is that snake up to? she wondered as Illyan approached her brother. The man had always made her uneasy, but after their latest confrontation when he brought up Sacrynon’s Scepter, she had grown especially distrustful of him. He seems to be everywhere and know everything.
The short man pulled a rolled letter from his robe and handed it to Jonrell while he whispered something that Elyse couldn’t make out. Jonrell nodded but otherwise gave little away as the advisor smiled with a devilish grin and left. He made eye contact with Elyse upon leaving and gave her a wink that sent a chill up her back.
I wonder if he is another of the spies that Jonrell mentioned, earlier. I’d be sure of it.
Jonrell turned back to his sister and smiled. “Gauge, would you excuse us? I would like to speak with my sister in private.”
“Certainly, my Prince,” said Gauge rising.
Elyse laid a hand on his arm. “No. I would like for you to stay.” Then turning to Jonrell, she added. “He is my chief advisor.”
“I understand, Your Majesty. However, I would feel more comfortable discussing certain matters with you first. If you wish to share our discussion with him, then that is your choice to do so.”
Elyse eyed her brother. “Very well. Gauge, I apologize.”
“There is no need to apologize, Your Highness. I will be waiting for you outside the chamber door,” he said.
After the door was closed, Jonrell smiled again. “That went well, don’t you think?”
Elyse stood up. “What just happened?” she asked, realizing how angry the show in the council meeting had made her.
“Well, you took the nobles off guard and sent a message that you won’t be pushed around. They won’t know what to expect next and that is a good thing.”
“You keep saying ‘you’ as if I was the one responsible for their change in behavior. You said everything while I just sat here and nodded and chimed in like some puppet. Is that why you don’t want the throne? Because you can just as easily rule through me without any of the blame?”
“Of course not. We talked about this last night. You can be a great ruler but I thought it best if you had help today. I can help you further while traveling to Cathyrium.”
“Yes, why am I to go to Cathyrium? Isn’t my place here?”
“That isn’t what you told Gauge.”
“I had to think of something.”
“You did well thinking on your feet. That was the perfect answer and it’s an attitude you need to have more often.”
“But I embarrassed Gauge. He didn’t deserve such treatment. He has been a huge help to me since Father’s passing.”
“I’m sure he has,” said Jonrell. “I find it odd that a man who was dismissed by Father years ago is all of a sudden your top advisor.”
“You said that Father was an awful ruler.”
“True. However, I don’t like how much power you have given him in such a short time.”
“Is that why you wanted him to leave the room?”
“Yes. I want you to think about how you distribute information. You should share only enough for your aides to do their jobs.”
“What if I choose to share more with certain individuals?”
Jonrell sighed. “Then so be it. You are the queen and I am at your command. Just be careful and remember all those things I used to tell you as a girl about how people manipulate each other.”
Oh, I haven’t forgotten. And after today, I wonder how much you’re manipulating me. “You still never answered my question about Cathyrium?”
“I’ll give you an answer later. Not now. You have to trust me Elyse.”
So, you keep saying. Yet you don’t trust me enough to let me in on your plans. “What did Illyan want? I saw him talking to you,” asked Elyse, changing the subject.
“Oh,” said Jonrell. “This,” he added holding up his hand to display the letter, “is a plan he has for bringing in supplies to Cathyrium. He said he would like to discuss some ideas he has on strengthening our lines.”
“I hope you aren’t actually considering his ideas.”
“I don’t see why not. I haven’t reviewed wha
t he gave me yet but I told him I would meet with him. Stockpiling supplies during a siege is crucial to our success.”
“Maybe you should remember what you said about people manipulating each other. His plans always give him an edge and fatten his purse.”
“I would hope so. Otherwise, I would really be suspicious. No one does anything for free. Everyone has an ulterior motive. The sooner you discover that motive, the better. Considering the risks Illyan will have to take to accomplish his goal, it only seems fair he is well paid.”
“Well, he also says he has the kingdom’s best interests.”
“I’m sure he does to some degree, but few men and women are that loyal to an ideal.”
“Gauge is.”
“Is he?” asked Jonrell, raising an eyebrow.
“Yes.”
“Interesting,” said Jonrell.
“Now what does that mean?” asked Elyse, growing agitated.
“Nothing, right now,” said Jonrell. “I’ve stated my opinion.”
Yes, you have. How can you claim to know someone so well when you’ve barely spoken to him and been gone for so long? The thought reminded her of another question, tugging at her mind. “How did you know Adein and Vicalli were spies?
“They were spies twelve years ago. Only Father failed to do anything about it. To prove they hadn’t changed their ways, I sent a couple of my men into the city a bit earlier and had them feed Adein and Vicalli some false information to see what they would do with it. We intercepted their messengers carrying the information to Bronn and Conroy.”
Elyse’s stomach twisted. “Are they planning to attack as well?”
“I doubt it, but no one can say for sure. Regardless, my move accomplished two goals. It removed the worst of your council and sent a message to the others.”
Rise and Fall (Book 1) Page 37