Chapter 10 #3
Still, looking at her I couldn’t help but have the same feelings and questions I had had when speaking with Zolle. What drove her? What did she want? Why was she here and was it to betray me?
I marinated in the thoughts for long enough that when someone knocked on the door, it startled all of us except Irad?o, who shot me an annoyed look. The shadows under her eyes were darkening as the day went on; she was only getting more tired, and her temper frayed as her exhaustion rose.
The servant opened the door and spoke with the person on the other side. She closed it, then turned to me and spoke in a small voice. “Lord Sotonam wishes to speak with you, Prince Airón. What would you have me say?”
I could have her pretend I wasn’t here, but it would only serve to reinforce whatever idea Sotonam already had in his head.
“Let him in,” I said.
The servant bowed her head. She opened the door and let Lord Sotonam in with a small bow.
I watched him as he entered, surprised at how much larger he had looked when I had first known him.
My first few days at the Mountainside Palace, I had felt as though I was drowning, and he had been more than happy to scurry around and empty buckets of water onto my head.
Perhaps it was uncharitable for me to look him over and see the poorly applied makeup that was several shades different than his natural tone. It gave the impression of a mask, not quite covering his cheeks.
He lowered himself into a bow, his fingers forming a triangle reluctantly. It was deep enough for my station, but I caught sight of his eyes. I let him linger for a moment before nodding.
“Lord Sotonam.” I waited, longer than necessary, remembering how he had tried to press my old tutor, Lord Fuyii, for information about me.
Remembering that it was his servants Rute Sotonam had raped and tortured, and Lord Sotonam had done nothing to stop him.
Finally, I asked, “Why do you wish to see me?”
“Well—I—that is—” Lord Sotonam straightened slowly.
The flash in his eyes told me everything I needed to know.
He had not forgotten how Tallu had made him prostrate himself, nearly begging for his life.
“We were all relieved to hear that you and Emperor Tallu survived the burning of the capital and were safely at the Lakeshore Palace.”
“I am glad to hear that you found relief in our safety,” I said.
Lord Sotonam was more difficult than Lady Jolushi, who had played the game easily with me, as though we were two children passing a ball back and forth.
With Lord Sotonam I felt I always had to be cautious.
He would pass the ball back to me, but I could never be sure he had not replaced it with a venomous snake.
“And our endless gratitude for His Imperial Majesty’s generosity in allowing us to travel with him back to our estate,” Lord Sotonam said.
And there it was. If we traveled south by boat, we would neatly avoid taking him back to his estate which was far more west than the river ran. In mock puzzlement, I frowned.
“I do not believe the emperor has any intention of taking anyone back to their estates. In fact, it is the court’s duty to provide housing for His Imperial Majesty when it becomes necessary, is it not? It is not the emperor’s duty to provide for his court.”
“And House Sotonam will be more than pleased to oblige Emperor Tallu when the time comes.” Lord Sotonam glanced at the couch across from me, but I could see him make the calculation that it was not worth inspiring my ire by taking a seat without invitation.
“Should the emperor need housing at your estate, you will be the first to know,” I said.
Perhaps I had played the game too well, or perhaps Lord Sotonam really did think me an idiot, because his next words were hissed, and in the curve of his eyes I saw Rute Sotonam.
“We have been loyal! We deserve compensation for that. My province is in chaos. A mere commoner thinks that he has the right to run it as governor. His Imperial Majesty needs to come and set it right.” Lord Sotonam drew himself up, raising his chin. “That is—”
“I think you have made yourself extremely clear, Lord Sotonam,” I said, dropping any attempt at niceties.
Koque would have handled this differently, but she wasn’t here.
She had not had this man imply she was a barbarian from the north.
“You believe that because you didn’t ally yourself with the traitors Kacha or Bemishu, you deserve Emperor Tallu’s support of your reign.
You believe that he owes it to you. However you and I both know that neither Bemishu nor Kacha would ever believe you if you tried to come to their side.
They would sooner kill you and take all the money left in House Sotonam’s coffers.
You and Emperor Tallu were bound together from the moment he spared your life after finding out about Rute Sotonam’s guilt.
He owes you nothing more than he gave you on that day: your life, Lady Sotonam’s life, and all the rest of House Sotonam’s members. ”
Lord Sotonam paled, his eyes wide with anger. I could see him clenching his jaw, the movement creating wrinkles that turned to cracks in his makeup. When he opened his mouth, I held up a hand.
“You will not be able to use the emperor’s military for your own ends, and you should be grateful that I do not tell His Imperial Majesty of the great insult you gave him now.
” I stood, feeling my braids fall over my shoulders.
Lord Sotonam took a step back. “Do not think to crawl to any of the other generals. They will kill you. Your only path forward is to hope you can maintain Emperor Tallu’s favor. ”
“I thank you for your time, Consort Airón,” Lord Sotonam said, the words ground out through his clenched jaw. He turned, and at the door, the servant looked at him with wide eyes. She didn’t open the door for him, her breath coming quick.
Then, in her soft voice, she murmured, “Do not add further insult, when His Highness has granted you such grace.”
I couldn’t see what expression was on Lord Sotonam’s face, but when he turned, it was wiped clean. He bowed in front of me, his fingers forming a triangle, his bow so low that it unequivocally spoke to our difference in station.
This time when he turned, the servant opened the door for him. I looked at her, amused.
“Why should I need a guard when I have you?” I teased.
She flushed, a silver color rising high on her cheekbones, before she looked down.
The next two days were busy, and by the end of it, servants had modified seven large boats to be suitable for our travel. The one that Tallu and I would travel on had been given the most attention, while the others were merely adjusted so that the soldiers could travel comfortably on them.
What was left of the court saw us off, Lady Jolushi holding her infant son in her arms as they bowed, honoring Tallu.
I watched from the top deck as the last peaked roof of House Jolushi’s estate disappeared into the forest. Our ship had once been House Jolushi’s personal pleasure cruiser, and the number of rooms for entertainment spoke to how much Lord Jolushi had appreciated his pleasure.
Lady Jolushi had offered us musicians and other entertainers, but we had tactfully declined. Although Tallu’s servants had added to the luxury of his vessel, it was impossible not to realize the ships around us were heavy with soldiers and weapons.
Empress Koque eventually joined me on the deck; Prince Hallu ran around, nearly tripping two of General Saxu’s men where they patrolled.
“Prince Hallu told me of your promise to him.” She turned her head away from the expanse of dense forest, focusing on her son.
“I will try and help him the best I can,” I said.
“Is that why we are headed to Tavornai?” she challenged. I should have known that she would not agree as easily as General Saxu to the military benefit of acquiring Namati’s men and ships.
“Yes,” I said. She waited, and I waited, and several minutes passed before I gave in. “Tallu and Hallu are both cursed by their father’s guilt. The blood mages.”
Koque gasped, covering it by pulling a green fan out of her sleeve. I recognized the gold veins painted on it. She snapped it open, covering half of her face.
“Their fate is sealed, wrapped tight around them by Spider’s threads. I will free them.” I watched the green of the forest passing by. By nightfall, we would be days ahead of where we would be if we had gone by land.
“Spider, who lives in Tavornai,” Koque said. She was quick, eyes widening, face going pale. “You seek to kill another animalia?”
“I have done it once before. And only if Spider denies me the ability to cut these two fates. Two should not be that much to ask.” I remembered the thread I had seen, the way it had pulled tight around Hallu.
I could practically touch it and feel that no matter how sharp the blade I used, I could not break it on my own.
“Then I am glad we joined you on this journey. I will do anything I can to free my sons from such a horrible end.” She held the fan up until she had control of herself, only then snapping it closed and stowing it away again.
At lunchtime, she called out for Prince Hallu, and they went below deck again, leaving me alone.
I stayed above deck until dinnertime when I finally went below, eating with Tallu, Koque, and the Bemishu twins. We spoke of nothing, pleasantries exchanged in different ways until Tallu stood, declaring it time to sleep.
It was odd settling next to Tallu to sleep.
There was little chance of someone attacking us from within the ship, so most of the guards were posted on deck or other entry points.
The ship swayed and rolled. Saxu and Tallu had both decided we’d travel through the night, the captains Lady Jolushi had provided having said we were in a safe enough portion of the river that with electro lights they could do it.
I woke in the early morning when Na? jumped up onto the bed, her face next to mine.
“Something is on fire,” she hissed.