His brother gave a sluggish shrug. “When is Philippe not acting out?”
“So, what? You lot have just been letting him bully our father?” Perry’s voice rose with simmering anger. His lavender eyes darted around the table accusingly.
“What can we do?” Kaul asked with genuine defeat. “Philippe is the firstborn and the heir to the throne. If we were to do anything against him, it’ll be our heads on the chopping block the moment the crown is on his head.”
Jax shuddered. Even Philippe’s own brothers were wary about his ability to lead. She recalled a telling conversation she’d had with Duke Pettraud during her wedding festivities, how deeply he regretted Philippe’s elitist attitude, and at the time, it made her wonder if the Duke was having second thoughts about his son’s ascension.
“With his fortieth birthday come and gone,” Galahad said with a scowl, “he’s been more anxious of late, wondering when the throne will be his.”
Jax struggled to keep the surprise from showing on her face. Philippe had only just turned forty? Even though he acted like a child, his pompous appearance aged him in her mind, and she had estimated he was Perry’s senior by at least fifteen years. She marveled at the fact that the late Duchess Pettraud had produced seven children in a span of a decade.
“Was a timeline for his ascension ever established?” Jax asked, curious to hear whether or not Pettraud’s plan reflected that of the one she and her father had agreed upon when she was just twelve years old. Under her father’s tutelage, she would learn the political arena by his side and take over running the duchy when she reached her fortieth year. Unfortunately, those plans had been upended by her father’s untimely death.
All five Pettraud brothers shook their heads. “We joke that Father will die before giving the country to anyone, even his own blood.” Perry shared a somber look with her. “But we always assumed that in private, he and Philippe had determined a course of action.”
Jax was hesitant to ask her next question, given she was unsure how the present company would react. “This mysterious illness…you don’t think Philippe could be somehow poisoning your father, do you?”
Her question was met with raised eyebrows, but Lenora spoke first, shaking her head. “It’s not possible. I administer all medications and tinctures the Duke takes, and we have a horde of food and drink testers in the kitchens checking every meal.”
Jax frowned, shuffling through her mental stack of knowledge of all the poisons she had ever read about or encountered. “What about something that seeps in through his skin?”
Again, Lenora responded with a shake of her head. “Something like that would leave behind evidence of irritation.”
Galahad tapped his knuckles impatiently against the tabletop. “Philippe may be driving Father mad with his outbursts, but he’s not smart enough to plan something like this and get away with it for as long as Father’s been ill.” He offered Perry a sad smile. “We have to accept the fact that Father is getting old. Our family has a history of mental deterioration, something we seemingly keep ignoring.”
Perry stiffened in his seat, and his fingers clenched her own. “Mother always said those were just stories to scare us into behaving.”
Elias ran a hand over his close-cropped hair, a dark chuckle letting loose across his lips. “Leave it to Mother to shelter little Percival from any horror that got in his way.”
Ivan banged a fist against the table, the platters chattering in protest. “Don’t start something you aren’t prepared to finish, Eli.” His words were as cold as his intense stare.
“Taking her place, are you, now that she’s gone?” Elias stood, throwing his napkin on the table. “Luckily for Perry, Mother wanted to protect him. The rest of us, she just left to fend for ourselves.”
“Don’t speak about her like that!” Perry was on his feet now, shaking.
“What, and tarnish your perfect memory of her?” Elias stalked toward the exit, throwing a callous sneer over his shoulder. “Pull the wool off your eyes, Percy. Mother failed us all.”
Percy. Jax watched as her husband went pale at the use of his mother’s special name for him.
“How dare you—” Perry erupted, but Elias had already slammed the door shut behind him.
Jax didn’t know what to do. With the Duke no longer present, this had dissolved into a family dinner, and she wasn’t sure it was her place to get in the middle of the tensions raging from all sides of the table.
Perry sank into his chair, burying his forehead into the palm of one of his hands. “Anyone else want to come after me? I’m sure you all have grievances.” In a questionable parenting move, Perry’s mother, Penelope, had made it known to all her children that her youngest son was her greatest treasure.
“The thing that upsets me most is that you were the one who got to marry the jewel of the realm,” Galahad said with smirk, flashing a wink at Jax. “That’s really the biggest offense I can think of off the top of my head.”
Ivan had moved to stand behind Perry’s chair, a hand on his brother’s shoulder. “We had a father who pitted us all against each other. But you’ve got to realize, Perry, we grew up, and some of us grew to know better. Since you left, Gal, Isaiah, Kaul, and I…we’ve been able to make peace with the past, and Father has become a better man. I hope you can find it in your heart to do the same, and I hope we can show you how much we value you as a member of our family.”
Having witnessed the start of Perry’s reconciliation with his father nearly four months ago at their wedding, Jax wondered if her husband had it in him to offer the same forgiveness to his brothers.
Perry locked eyes with the Pettraud Captain. “And how do Philippe and Elias fit into all this newfound family harmony?”
Kaul snickered from across the table. “They don’t, to put it bluntly. But we try to maintain the peace because we all know how the Crown works. By virtue, birth order deems your birthright. So, we’re left in Philippe’s shadow.”
“Have you tried extending an olive branch to him?” Jax’s amethyst eyes swept over her brothers-in-law. “Take it from one who knows. Being the heir is a lonely existence.”
Galahad pushed his chair back and stood, beckoning everyone else to do the same. “Of course, but Philippe’s eyes are on the throne, and the throne only. Why don’t we all retire to the conservatory for a drink?” he suggested, changing the subject.
Lenora and Sabine, who for the most part had been silent observers of the Pettraud family drama, excused themselves from the group, with Lenora explaining, “We need to attend to Lady Astrid.” The women bowed and left the room out of a side door, while Galahad led the way to the main foyer of the castle.
Kaul’s voice reached Jax’s ear. “Sabine and Mistress Lenora are quite well-versed in our family’s issues.” He moseyed a few steps behind her as they walked down another lengthy passageway. “I couldn’t help but notice the wary look on your face as you watched them leave.”
Jax felt her cheeks grow warm. “I didn’t realize I was being so transparent.” She had not spent much time talking with Perry’s closest brother in age, even when he had been a visitor in her own home. At the time, he seemed content to remain in the shadow of Philippe and Elias.
“Most of us think of Lennie as an aunt, an honorary member of our clan.” Kaul clasped his hands behind his back as he matched her pace, making him look even more like a knobby tree branch. “She’s much more a maternal caretaker than the court physician we suffered through in our youth.”
“It’s wonderful that you all share a close bond with her.”
Kaul nodded, his expression thoughtful. “She was a great comfort to us when our mother passed away. She’s probably the reason why most of us can stand to be in the same room with one another.” He gave her a shy smile. “I’m sure Perry has told you we weren’t exactly the closest family growing up.”
Eyeing her husband’s sauntering figure a few feet ahead of them, Jax was hesitant to answer, not sure she wanted
to speak about this behind Perry’s back. “I’m ashamed to admit it, but he’s kept me in the dark about much of his childhood. He has a masterful way of avoiding my questions that dig too deeply into the past.” She studied the hurt flourishing in Kaul’s lavender eyes.
“I suppose if I were him, I’d want to focus on the bright future ahead, and not the shades of the past.” Pride slipped into his curled lips. “I’m glad my brother has found happiness with you, Duchess.”
“As am I.” She hid her disappointment that Kaul was not going to reveal more about the Pettraud family’s stormy dynamic.
“Sabine certainly seems to admire the effect you’ve had on him,” Kaul said, changing the subject.
Unsettled by his phrasing, Jax immediately asked, “Were they sweethearts before Perry went away?”
A sharp laugh burst from Kaul’s gaunt body. “Virtues, no! I think, of us all, Perry is the only one Sabine truly thought of as a brother.”
Envious relief fluttered through her.
Kaul answered her unasked question. “Probably due to the fact that as the seventh son, he was the most unlikely to ever inherit the throne.” His brows drew together. “I love her like a sister, but I dare say, the girl has a vicious streak of ambition.”
“I take it she has set her sights on your oldest brother?” As her words came out, she flinched at the young, lovely Sabine partnered with the slimy and significantly older Philippe.
Kaul stuck out his tongue in joking disgust. “I can’t imagine anyone wanting to be royal that badly.”
“Goodness, no,” Jax said with a chuckle, pleased with the easy banter flowing between them. Perhaps, with her guiding hand, Perry had a chance at repairing his strained relationships with his brothers. “Is their engagement formal?”
Kaul’s curls whipped across his face as he shook his head. “I think Philippe is hoping to secure a more advantageous marriage. He’s been stringing Sabine along for years, ever since she set her sights on him once she turned eighteen.”
Jax searched her well-organized mind, pondering over the eligible ladies of the realm. “Does he have someone in mind?”
“Well, he had hoped to woo your friend Lady Carriena at your wedding, but then word reached him about Duke DeLacqua’s money troubles. Those plans were quickly tossed aside.”
Jax staggered mid-step, distracted by the horrific thought of one of her best friends being forced into an arranged marriage with Philippe. Carriena had been relieved when Jax had purchased the Isla DeLacqua isles from her father, as being Duchess had never appealed to her. She was content in her new life, training to be a professor at the Academy. Wait until she hears about this…
“Now,” Kaul continued, “it’s a toss-up between Duchess Zaltor’s youngest daughter, or one of the Hestian Crown Prince’s sisters.”
Up ahead, the group Galahad had been leading disappeared through two arching glass doors. Jax’s conversation with Kaul had caused them to fall behind, so he ushered her wordlessly into the sprawling conservatory. The smell of earth and roots hit her with full force. A domed glass ceiling covered the circular space, allowing a glimpse of the star-speckled night sky peeking through wisps of clouds.
“This is lovely.” Jax breathed in the musty scent, laced with the sweetness of flowers. Distracted by the change of scenery for only a moment, she turned back to Kaul. “Has there been any headway on making a match?”
Kaul rocked on his heels. “I think the tensions in the realm have put Philippe’s plans on hold.”
Jax gave a sheepish shrug. “Perhaps another source of his anger toward me?”
In the briefest of moments, so quick Jax wasn’t sure if she had imagined it, a chilling darkness flashed through the man’s eyes. “You need to be careful, Duchess. You are among friends in this room, but be wary walking these halls.”
It took her a moment to recover from his warning, and in that brief time Perry appeared by her side. “Sorry to leave you alone with this bore for so long. Galahad was telling me about the archery wing Father installed. I simply must try it out.” He glanced from Kaul to Jax, his forehead scrunched in concern. “Everything all right here?”
Kaul’s foreboding expression evaporated on the spot. “I was just trying to get a bit of quality time with our new sister. Your Grace, it was a pleasure.” He bowed and ambled over to a gurgling water fountain, where Ivan and George stood in rapt conversation.
“Odd,” Perry remarked. “I’m surprised he’d take the initiative. Kaul’s always been rather quiet.” He wrapped an arm around Jax’s waist and pulled her close.
Sinking into the confines of his chest, she sighed. “I think you’ll be surprised how much your brothers have changed while you’ve been away, Perry.” She kept her words light and without a shade of accusation, as she did not want him to feel as if she were not on his side.
Although, as she replayed Kaul’s warning over in her mind, she wondered if some of them, like Philippe and Elias, had turned down a darker path.
Chapter Eight
A sommelier appeared in the conservatory moments later with a fine mead and wine selection. Two hours later, despite her fatigue, Jax felt wide awake as she watched Perry interacting with his brothers from the perimeter of the room. She’d left him to chat with the others while she glided around the indoor garden to marvel at the various flowers sprouting up from every available piece of potted dirt.
“Well, if anything, Ivan has proved he’s more than competent in his role.” George appeared at her side, taking a seat on one of the stone benches she’d claimed. “He gave me a full analysis of Pettraud’s resources, and said he’d increased training exercises at the barracks the moment he departed for Kwatalar with our escorts. They will be as prepared as they can be, should things turn sour at the War Council.”
She sipped the sweet mead sloshing around in the large goblet she held. “I desperately hope an army won’t be needed.”
“Have you figured out a diplomatic solution?” George stroked the scruff on his chin. “I can’t see Beautraud or Savant backing down. They started this with the intent to finish it.”
Jax ran a finger over the folds of her billowing skirt. “As much as it pains me to say, I think I’ll have to compromise with the brutes. For what they did, along with Duchess Tandora…trying to assassinate a ducal leader is punishable by death.” She met George’s intensely dark stare. “But I’ll offer a pardon on their lives, as much as they don’t deserve it.”
“How would letting them go resolve anything?”
“Well,” Jax said, shrugging, “they’d get to keep their heads, but not much else. In exchange for waiving the death penalty, they’d be required to forfeit their crowns and their lands to the War Council to be reallocated. All their power would be decimated.”
A smirk tugged at the Captain’s steely expression. “And that’s your compromise?”
“The alternative is certain death. Our armies would crush them.”
“Then why bother with presenting them the option to pardon? Why not just declare open war?”
Jax placed her drink on the stone beside her. “Regardless of our size and abilities, I don’t want to send our forces to attack.” She steepled her fingers together, leaning her forehead against her hands. “Even though we outnumber our enemies, some of our men and women will die on the battlefield. I don’t want that, not when it could be prevented.”
“Sometimes blood must be shed for a cause to succeed,” George said, momentarily placing a comforting hand on her back. “Don’t you think it’s dangerous to keep the likes of Savant, Beautraud, and Tandora alive? Won’t that spark a rebellion?”
She didn’t answer him for a while. Finally she said, “It would be a shame if something were to happen to them once the dust from the War Council settles, wouldn’t it, Captain?”
He went rigid in clear understanding of what she was demanding of her guardsman. “It would be a shame, indeed.”
Jax closed her eyes, her heart constricting i
n her chest. She was not a vengeful person. She did not believe violence solved anything. But George was right. Calculating, power-hungry minds like Beautraud, Tandora, and Savant could not be allowed to run free across the lands. Even without their wealth and standing, they would still have influence over pliable people, ready to be bent to their greedy will. “Whatever you do, remember their deaths cannot be tied to Saphire. That is imperative, George.” She grasped his forearm, her fierce grip conveying the desperate need for reassurance.
“It will be done, Duchess. On my life, it will be done.”
Holding a deep, promising gaze for a long moment, she loosened her grip and returned her hands to her lap. “I don’t want Perry, Jaquobie, anyone to be aware. Should their deaths be traced back to Saphire…I don’t want my husband or my friends involved. This is my responsibility, and mine alone.”
George stared forward. “You realize you are never alone, Jax. If it comes to that, I will take full responsibility. I will say I acted of my own accord.”
“No—”
He held a hand up to silence her. “It is my duty as your Captain, but also as your friend. I would never let anyone do anything to harm you.” His shoulders rose and fell. “You are the guiding light for so many people. If forfeiting my life allows you to continue to lead the realm to a brighter, better future, than it shall be done.”
Tears ringed her eyes at his utter devotion. “I wouldn’t be able to live with myself if something were to happen to you, all in the name of duty.”
His head whipped sharply to face her, a sense of urgency in his gaze. “No, Jax. You cannot think like that. You are too important to this cause to throw it away for one guardsman.”
“George,” she choked on his name, fighting back the tears threatening to fall, “you are more than just a guardsman to me.”
In a fluid motion, he wiped away the stray tear that broke through her emotional barrier. “I know,” he whispered. “But for the sake of the realm, I must be.”
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