A Pirate’s Life for Tea (Tomes & Tea #2)

5. Reyna

Chapter five

Reyna

T he stables were surprisingly crowded, considering many of the guests had spent the night after the ball and were just now retrieving their mounts. This would be fine, except Kianthe had prematurely summoned Visk and Ponder—the latter of whom was cute enough to draw a crowd of curious partygoers.

Visk took position behind his daughter, wings folded, gaze almost possessive. The few people bold enough to approach a baby griffon hastily backtracked when a full-grown one glared at them.

Ponder screeched indignantly because she loved attention, which sent Visk on a chittering tirade of his own. Reyna supervised this, but grew distracted when she realized Diarn Arlon was moving to intercept them.

She nudged Kianthe. “Your favorite person’s here.”

The mage followed her gaze, heaving a heavy sigh. “Great. More politics. Rich people are the worst.”

Reyna snorted, covering her laughter with a cough.

Diarn Arlon didn’t notice. He stepped gingerly through the muck near the stables, nodded to a few of his other guests, and stopped in front of them. Or rather, in front of Kianthe, something that didn’t escape Reyna’s notice.

“Have you connected with Bobbie yet?” he demanded, craning his neck behind them as if the constable had somehow beat them here. “The stablemaster is preparing her horse; there’s no time to waste.”

Reyna peered in the stables, sighting Lilac beside a beautiful white stallion. A stableboy was checking their hooves for any rocks or debris, and an older woman was hauling a saddle onto the steady horse’s back.

Kianthe must have realized Diarn Arlon was ignoring Reyna outright, because irritation flashed across her features. She tossed an arm over Reyna’s shoulders, pulling her close. “Arlon, you didn’t have a formal introduction last night. This is my beautiful bride-to-be, Reyna.”

Confident the griffons weren’t about to maul anyone, Reyna dipped her head respectfully. “It’s a pleasure to make your acquaintance.”

Diarn Arlon frowned at her accent. “Queendom. I heard the Arcandor was dating one of Tilaine’s personal guards, but I didn’t want to believe the rumor.” Now he huffed. “I expected better sense from someone wielding enough magic to be considered a deity herself.”

It was the absolute wrong thing to say, and Reyna winced—not at the words, which were nothing she didn’t expect, but at the way Kianthe warmed with the fervor of an uncontrolled flame.

“Say that again, slower.” Kianthe’s expression was dark, and overhead clouds gathered slowly, ominously. “Go on.”

Diarn Arlon had the decency to look alarmed. “Enough, Arcandor. Don’t be childish; you must have realized the image this puts forth in Shepara, in the Magicary. The risk we’ll all face if Tilaine finds leverage over you.”

The stable hand arrived with Lilac in tow. He took one look at Diarn Arlon’s expression and hastily pressed the reins into Reyna’s hands, then scurried back to the stables. Her horse stamped her hooves, looking mildly annoyed that she’d been removed from such luxury.

Kianthe didn’t take her eyes off the diarn. “Leverage would imply that the queen can manipulate Reyna.”

“Or that she can threaten Reyna to manipulate you .” Arlon crossed his arms.

Well, that fear wasn’t unfounded. Queen Tilaine operated an extensive network of spies, which meant that no one was truly safe from her reach. Last summer, Reyna had visited the Queendom’s Grand Palace to negotiate for her life, and it was only by sheer luck—and a dash of vanity—that she was successful. So far, Queen Tilaine was content to let her ex-guard play housewife to the most powerful mage alive.

But eventually, that pardon would come with requirements… and there’d be five hells to pay if Kianthe refused.

A problem for another day.

Kianthe scowled, dissipating the clouds overhead with a wave. “You’re one to talk about manipulation. From the moment I stepped into your estate, you had a job for me.”

“I—”

“Enough.” For this rare instance, Reyna used her Guard Voice: the loud, deep tone she’d perfected during her time in service. The word was imbued with authority, designed to make anyone nearby stop and listen.

It worked. Both of them glanced her way. She would never have spoken to a lord this way in the Queendom, but she wasn’t a guard anymore. She was the Arcandor’s future wife, and she would maintain a confident energy when handling problems. In one smooth motion, Reyna mounted Lilac, utilizing the height difference to gain more control.

Everyone was more confident on horseback.

She addressed Diarn Arlon first. “I may be from the Queendom, but do not question where my loyalties lie—and do not assume I’ll be so easy to threaten.” At this, she laid a hand on her sword, still tethered to her hip.

Kianthe smirked, crossing her arms. Smug, right until the moment Reyna caught her gaze.

“And Kianthe, there is merit to the diarn’s words. I appreciate your chivalry, but as the Mage of Ages you have a duty to every country of the Realm.” And Queen Tilaine would gladly keep Kianthe’s abilities for herself if she felt she could. Reyna paused, her tone purposefully neutral: “There are many rulers who would use your power for their own agenda.”

Diarn Arlon puffed in indignation. “Are you implying—”

“The point,” Reyna inserted coolly, “is that catastrophizing what may happen is an exercise in futility. Instead, let’s focus on our goal of the morning: finding your pirate.”

Diarn Arlon set his jaw. “Bobbie has the badge and paperwork needed to use full authority on my lands. Stay close to her, but at this point, I want the Arcandor taking point on this investigation.”

Reyna winced. Perhaps that would be their little secret; Bobbie wouldn’t be pleased to hear she’d been unseated.

“All right, then. My first command as lead in this hunt: stop telling us what to do,” Kianthe’s tone was vitriolic, and she waited for a long moment to see if Diarn Arlon would argue.

Of course, that’s when Ponder seized the opportunity to flee her father’s stern gaze. She flew onto Reyna’s shoulder, which made Lilac whinny and shift her weight nervously. Horses—one of many animals preyed on by griffons in the wild—hated them on principle. Lilac had not been pleased that Reyna added a second griffon to their little family unit.

Ponder knew this and gleefully took advantage of it. Even now she leapt off Reyna’s shoulder, landing solidly on the horse’s flank.

Lilac panicked, bucking with a terrified whinny.

Reyna barely had time to react, fear slicing up her veins. She’d been thrown by Lilac once, and if Visk hadn’t intervened it wouldn’t have been pretty. Now she grabbed the saddle to steady herself. Meanwhile, Kianthe seized the reins, Visk screeched a warning, and Ponder reluctantly took flight, circling high above.

Lilac stamped her hooves, eyes wide, but calmed down once Ponder was gone.

Diarn Arlon watched the entire exchange with exasperation. But instead of speaking, he just tossed up his hands and stomped back up the road towards his mansion.

“Good riddance,” Kianthe muttered.

“What happened? It sounded like a commotion.” Bobbie wove through a crowd of curious onlookers, offering a dismissive gesture to get them all back. They dispersed, but they’d certainly have a lot of gossip after this ball.

The constable approached, glancing grimly at the diarn’s back as he crested the hill to his mansion. “You didn’t anger the diarn, did you?”

Kianthe huffed. “Arlon could be taken down a few pegs. No one in Wellia challenges him, so it’s my absolute pleasure to remind him that he’s just one man standing before—how did he put it? ‘A deity herself’?”

“Don’t get any ideas, Key,” Reyna said, rolling her eyes. “You’re just Kianthe to us.”

“Shit. Didn’t expect a demotion so fast.”

Bobbie glanced between them, their mounts, and the baby griffon circling overhead. Her brows pulled together in worry, but she forced a pathetically bad smile for their benefit. “I’ll… get my horse. Give me a moment.”

Inside the stables, Reyna watched her stuff at least six skeins of yarn into her saddlebags. Amusingly, the constable seemed to have added an accessory to her uniform: on her left hip was her sword, but on the right, she had a leather sheath with three large, metal needles, each hooked at the end for crocheting.

“Wonder if she ever mixes those up,” Kianthe asked, following Reyna’s gaze.

She snorted, flicking her reins to get Lilac moving away from the crowds—and from Visk. “I wouldn’t be making jokes about the woman who’s single-handedly accessorizing your wardrobe right now.” She tugged off Kianthe’s new hat as she passed, then tossed it back with a teasing smile.

“Good point.” Kianthe fit it over her head again, her short, wild hair barely contained by the yarn. She mounted Visk. “Come on, Pondie. Follow Mamakie.”

Mama Key had become Mamakie at some point, and Reyna couldn’t decide if it was endearing or funny. A private smile tilted her lips as Visk spread his wings and leapt into the sky. Ponder followed slower, deviating over the river.

“In a few years, I’ll find you the best open pasture in the Realm and you’ll have plenty of time to relax,” Reyna murmured to Lilac. “How’s that sound?”

Lilac puffed dreamily, and she merged with Bobbie’s stallion into the stream of people leaving the estate.

The clouds became menacing around noon, and by the mid-afternoon, it began to rain.

The constable still looked exhausted: deep bags under her eyes, hunched over in her saddle. But her stallion picked through the uneven terrain near the riverbank, undisturbed as Lilac trotted alongside them.

“The rain will make this fun,” Bobbie mumbled, squinting towards the river.

High overhead, Kianthe bent over Visk’s side, barely visible through the pine trees. It looked like she was gesturing that she’d scope ahead, but it was difficult to make out her motions through the gloom. Rather than keep up the long-distance charade, Reyna tapped the moonstone strung around her neck. Kianthe had a matching stone, magicked to transmit messages through heat and physical taps.

Go ahead .

And a few moments later, Kianthe tapped a reply: Okay.

Bobbie scanned the skies, locating Visk and Kianthe as they picked up speed with Ponder not far behind. Once they were out of sight, she turned to Reyna. “Do you really think she’ll find the pirate faster than we can track her?”

“Considering Kianthe can just ask the river for tips, I’d say it’s a fair bet.”

Bobbie tugged her cloak out of her bag, hunching against the rain. “The river just… tells her things.” Disbelief slid into her tone. “I didn’t think that’s how magic worked.”

Reyna slipped on her new mittens. They were a deep blue yarn, matching her scarf, and were quite warm. They’d get wet quickly—she’d have to switch to an oiled leather set soon. But for now, they were nice. “Trust me, I was skeptical too. But I’ve seen it happen enough times to know that there’s some form of communication happening. Who am I to say she’s exaggerating the semantics?”

“That’s true,” Bobbie agreed.

Silence fell. Their horses stepped single file, with Bobbie leading and Reyna trailing behind. The terrain beside this stretch of river was relatively flat, with ample space between the pines. Deciduous trees were starting to speckle the landscape, vibrant leaves turning yellow in the late fall season. Here, the Nacean branched into several smaller sections as the water delved around the mountains—which made scouting for a ship very difficult. It didn’t help that a gloomy fog had yet again rolled over the river, thanks to the rain.

Kianthe, far ahead, would have her work cut out for her, but Reyna was content to ride along the river and chat with the constable.

“I’m curious to know why you’re pursuing a pirate on horseback.” Reyna broke the silence. “Why didn’t Diarn Arlon equip you properly? It’s hard to believe he wouldn’t have a ship to lend you.”

“He owns most of the ships on the Nacean, actually, so he has plenty.” The constable glanced over her shoulder, tossing her cloak over her horse’s flank. “I’m just not much of a sailor.”

“And yet you seem to know this pirate well.” A neutral statement.

“Not well. Not anymore.” Bobbie’s fingers fluttered against the crochet needles, but she set her jaw. “My mother is the sheriff of Lathe. My father stayed home to raise myself and my siblings, but none of us had a reason to do more than swim in the river. Serina—ah, the pirate—she had a different upbringing.”

Serina.

Not Serrie, then.

The name felt like she’d been handed a piece of gold and told to protect it. Reyna didn’t acknowledge it at all, just tucked this new nugget away and redirected back to Bobbie. That was where the constable seemed most comfortable, anyway.

“I see. It still seems odd that the diarn wouldn’t pair you with a sailor under his employ.”

Bobbie tugged the hood over her hair to keep it dry. It partially obstructed her face from view. “On this assignment, I requested to work alone.”

“To protect the pirate.” She purposefully didn’t use her name.

It was too much. Bobbie flinched. “I’m not protecting her. But if I don’t take point here, someone else will… and at least I’ll listen to her excuses.” A pause. “Even if they are irrational.”

“Irrational?”

“Well, yeah.” Bobbie clenched her reins a little tighter, scowling. “She always said she wanted to better her community, but here she is stealing from it. I just—I don’t know. It doesn’t make sense.”

“Hmm.”

They rode for a while longer, each sitting with their own thoughts. Below the trees, the rain wasn’t bad, but in bare patches it pelted Reyna’s face with an icy spray. She tugged her own fur-lined hood over her head, patting Lilac’s neck as the horse huffed in irritation.

Reyna couldn’t blame the creature; she didn’t want to be out in this weather either. Her eyes drifted upwards, to where Kianthe and Visk had returned and were gliding lazily through the clouds. They stayed low enough to remain in sight, and even from here Reyna could see the protective bubble that ensconced them.

Ponder had given up trying to fly in this weather, and was perched on her father’s flank, playing with his lion’s tail.

Visk didn’t seem to mind.

Bobbie followed her gaze. “So, you’re engaged to the Arcandor.”

“It’s a recent development.” Reyna smiled at the memory, thinking of the pinyon pine seed they’d planted along the back patio of their bookshop. She wouldn’t expect it to sprout during the frigid Tawnean winter, but Kianthe had spelled the seed—so it was entirely possible they’d come home to see it breaking ground.

Not that Reyna was ready to go home and check just yet. Even riding in the rain, this was everything she’d hoped it would be. The thrill of adventure thrummed in her veins.

“Congratulations.” Bobbie paused for a moment, then said hesitantly: “I didn’t know the Mage of Ages could get married.”

“Well, each one is different. And Kianthe delights in breaking the rules.”

Bobbie snorted, but didn’t remove her eyes from the river. The rain was picking up; it was getting harder to see, and the river rapids were responding to the wind, crashing against the riverbank and white-capping in the center of the river.

She seemed distracted, so Reyna seized her chance. “Do you have anyone like that? Or are you more of a solo rider?” The question was curious—Reyna truly couldn’t tell yet if Bobbie and Serina had a history, or a history .

Bobbie just sighed, massaging her brow. She slowed her horse a bit, checking Kianthe’s position over them as their mounts drew even. “I know what you’re hoping for, but you’re misreading this situation.”

Her tone sounded awfully familiar. It sounded like Diarn Feo, Tawney’s Sheparan lord, speaking about Lord Wylan, the Queendom counterpart. And even though Feo would never admit it, they found reason after reason to spend time with Wylan one-on-one.

“And how am I misreading?” Reyna asked.

“You think Serina and I were—um…” she cut off, stammering at the knowing smile on Reyna’s face. “We’re not. We were just friends. Old friends. Childhood friends, really.”

Say ‘friends’ one more time. Reyna mentally rolled her eyes, although her expression remained neutral, pleasant. She took pity on the constable and redirected the conversation. “Then Serina was raised in Lathe as well?”

She tossed the name in as another test.

It worked. Bobbie must be letting her guard down; she didn’t even flinch. “For a bit.” Bobbie turned so the rain didn’t pelt her face and shivered. “Serina’s parents were farmers, but… well, they weren’t very good at it. Diarn Arlon reclaimed their land when we were thirteen.”

Reyna frowned. “That sounds traumatic.”

Bobbie hunched over her horse. “I was there the day the constables marched up to their farmhouse. I’ll never forget the tears on her face, or how she screamed as her parents packed their belongings.” She shuddered, the action completely separate from the cold. “That’s why I became a constable. In Lathe, my mother knows everyone. Even when she’s delivering bad news, they know it comes with good intentions.”

“I’m surprised you didn’t want to be a sheriff like her.” Reyna raised an eyebrow.

“She’s got that job covered. I wanted to fix the constables from the inside out.” Bobbie laughed hollowly. “Feels like a kid’s dream, now.”

Interesting.

Reyna didn’t let Bobbie dwell on that. “What happened to Serina after that day?”

“Her family moved south to Jallin; I think her dad is a merchant now. He always loved sailing. That’s how Serina learned.”

Reyna chuckled. “So, instead of a merchant or a farmer, she became a pirate?” It sounded like something out of one of Kianthe’s adventure novels.

“She actually did try to be a farmer first. Two years ago. It went about as well as the first time.” Bobbie didn’t seem to want to dwell on those memories. “But the pirate thing might be my fault. I gave her a book about the Dastardly Pirate Dreggs when we were little. We’d sneak onto her father’s boat and pretend we were pirates on the open ocean.”

Childhood friends, indeed. Love took all forms, and Reyna was more convinced than ever that Bobbie loved Serina. Whether it was a romantic love or something more platonic remained to be seen, but a person in love was still prone to doing dangerous things.

Reyna would have to keep an eye on this.

The rain was getting harder now, and they’d found a patch of land where the trees receded. Reyna ducked over Lilac, who stamped her hooves in protest with every step. “Perhaps we should get our horses out of the rain, wait for a bit before continuing? Surely Serina isn’t sailing in this.”

Bobbie hesitated, squinting at the river as if Serina’s little sailboat might magically appear. But the only one who arrived was Kianthe. Visk thumped down beside them, and the rain in their circle immediately stopped. It was like all the drops were veering to avoid hitting them or the horses.

Bobbie held out a hand, testing the magic. “That’s a neat trick.”

“That’ll be on my tombstone. ‘Full of neat tricks,’” Kianthe said, spreading her arms wide.

Reyna pinched her brow to ward off a headache. “Mages don’t have gravestones, dearest.”

“Okay, then. Carve it into the tree that sprouts from my ashes.”

“I’d prefer not to carve that anywhere, much less on a tree.”

“Killjoy.”

Bobbie cleared her throat. “Sorry to interrupt, but—was there any sign of her?”

Kianthe heaved an exasperated sigh. “You aren’t going to like it.”

The constable straightened, both optimism and dread slipping over her features. “You found her?”

“Well, we weren’t far behind.” Kianthe rubbed her neck. “She’s downriver, but I think she accidentally went off-course. She’s heading straight for some intense rapids.”

“She can sail in rapids,” Bobbie said confidently.

“Sure. But I’d like to see her sail when her boat is careening off the waterfall at the end of the rapids.”

Reyna could have strangled her fiancée. “Key, why aren’t you getting her to safety right now?” The Arcandor’s impulsive choices were legendary, but Reyna really thought she could prioritize here.

“She’s sailing slow; we have time,” Kianthe exclaimed, offended. “No one’s going to—”

But Bobbie was already gone, kicking her horse into a gallop, mud flying in her wake. Kianthe caught it with a wave of her hand, magic twisting it into dried balls of dirt instead. She let them fall to the ground. “I was going to say that no one’s going to die, but yeesh. Okay then.”

“I confirmed they’re childhood friends,” Reyna said, pinching the bridge of her nose in exasperation. “And she’s in love, whether she realizes it or not.”

“By the Stone, everyone’s in love these days, aren’t they? I could write a book about all the love stories we’ve encountered since you left the palace.” Kianthe rolled her eyes, ignoring the irony of that statement.

Reyna pecked her cheek, then lifted Ponder off Visk’s back. The child was clearly sleepy, because she folded her wings and tucked her head against Reyna’s chest. She was warm, and it was very pleasant in the cold weather. “I would love to see you write a book. In the meantime, please make sure this isn’t the origin of Bobbie’s villain story, won’t you?”

Kianthe grinned. “Your wish is always my command.” And with a dramatic bow, she leapt onto Visk and urged him into the sky again.

Reyna sighed, remounted Lilac, and tucked Ponder inside her cloak. Ponder wouldn’t bother Lilac as long as the griffon behaved, and right now she seemed content to be warm and dry. “Come on, Li,” Reyna murmured to her horse. “I have a feeling the day’s not over yet.”

They galloped after Bobbie and Kianthe, with Reyna trying to ignore the growing dread in her chest.