2. Laude
Chapter 2
Laude
“When can I tell Beatriz?” I sliced through a stem with gardening scissors and set another red hibiscus in the basket Jaime carried. We’d spent all morning going back and forth between the garden and the Giddelian palace because I couldn’t resist the beautiful blossoms. Arranging flowers had become the thrilling task I could call my own.
“Soon.” Jaime shifted the woven basket from one hand to the next. His fine tunic already had stains from all the work in the garden, and a leaf clung to his cropped hair. The green in his eyes popped with his we’ve-talked-about-this-before wide-eyed look. How he melted my insides into butter with his attentions after all these months. “Why don’t you focus on talking to the queen about your past?”
“Don’t change the subject. You can’t expect me to keep this secret from Beatriz forever.” I sighed. “And when she finds out that she could have visited Zichri this whole time, she is never going to let me hear the end of it and then—”
“Laude,” Jaime interrupted.
“When she finds out about Cosme visiting him and working with him while she had to sit back and only read his letters …”
“Please, Laude, hear me out.” Jaime placed a hand on my shoulder.
I spun toward him. “You’re going to remind me about King Ezer’s proclamation that Zichri not return until he holds a treaty, and I understand. But why should I get to know Dotado business, and see you, when she’s the princess? Who am I?”
Jaime set the basket on the grass and squared up to me. “You are the senorita I’m going to marry.”
“Senor? I don’t think I’ve agreed to such an arrangement.” I pressed my lips into a firm line, but the corners of my mouth betrayed me.
“No, you haven’t, yet.” His full lips went from smiling to serious in a blink. He scooped my sticky fingers in his and inhaled deeply.
My thoughts raced like waves battering the shore in a storm. Why was he acting so strangely, especially after mentioning marriage? Yes, we’d talked about it, but was he going to make it real? Would he ask me to be his wife?
Ai-yi-yi! I didn’t expect to be sweaty when he did such a thing. Red curls sprang in all directions in my peripheral vision. Should I tell him to hold his thoughts and race into the palace to fix my appearance?
“Laude, Laude.” Jaime’s forehead creased in question. “Did you hear what I said?”
I blinked several times, unsure if I should admit the truth. My mind had wandered, but for good reason. I bit my lip, and he nodded.
“I thought so. Laude, I love you.” His deep voice warmed my heart.
Water sprang to the corners of my eyes, and I tried to blink the tears back because I couldn’t miss a single second.
He smiled and wiped my cheek with his thumb. “You’d make me the happiest man if you’d agree to marry me. Will you be my wife?”
My hands flew over my nose and mouth, which didn’t do much to help me breathe. To think, only three months ago, I wouldn’t have been allowed to marry at all because of the rules about servants and blah blah blah. But the Ancient One answered my prayers.
Jaime reached into his pants pocket and pulled out a thin wooden box. “This was my mother’s, and I want to give it to you as a pledge.” He pushed the latch, and the wooden box yawned open.
A pearl necklace winked at me over dark blue fabric. I had never owned such an expensive piece before, though I’d spent plenty of time organizing the queen’s collection. My mouth opened to speak, but tears spilled down my cheeks.
“Is that a yes?”
I nodded my head while taking a quivering breath. Come on, Laude, try to speak.
“Can I clip this around your neck?” Jaime pinched the clasp with his fingers, letting the necklace dangle in the sunlight in all its iridescent glory.
I gathered my braided curls to one shoulder, and he fumbled to clasp the pearls around my neck. More watery trails made their way to my chin, dripping like rain off my jawbone. The cool pearls touched my skin, and I looked over my shoulder at him.
“Please tell me these are happy tears?” Jaime leaned closer, concern etched between his eyebrows.
“Yes, I am so happy that I can barely keep myself from bursting.” I hugged his torso, pressing my head to his chest.
His sturdy arms wrapped around my back, and I wanted to rock onto the balls of my feet to kiss his cheek, but I contained myself, mostly because the tears drained through my nose. This was nothing like the proposal I had imagined. I gazed up at him and laughed.
He chuckled in return. “Now, do I need to speak to the king to request your hand?”
My laughter subsided with the sobering reality that I had no parents to give me away or to present a dowry. The Giddelian palace had been my home since birth, and the lady’s maid had smacked my hands when I misbehaved. The queen had coddled me as a child. My origins had never bothered me before. So why, in my happiest moment, did it cast a deep shadow?
Jaime lifted my chin with his finger. “We’ll go to the king and queen now?”
“Yes, I can’t think of who else’s blessing we should beseech.” Sadness dripped into my tone, so I attempted to recover the jubilance. “And we should tell them when we plan to wed and oh! Where will we live?”
“That’s another question we’ve never settled.” He pressed his forehead to mine. “Would you be willing to live in Himzo? We could visit through the portal any time you like.”
It was as if my stomach became a boulder, but he wasn’t asking for anything unexpected, so I should consider his question. He had an occupation with Prince Zichri and lived comfortably. I, on the other hand, lived a dream in many regards. Queen Cottia always provided for every one of my needs, and as of late, my only task had been to keep Princess Beatriz company.
I met Jaime’s gaze and smoothed a loose strand of his hair back. He had always been kind and generous.
“Could I visit Himzo before making my decision?” I chomped down on my bottom lip, letting my front teeth run over my skin.
His expression broke into a warm smile. “Yes, we can visit first. And you can have all the time you want. I will always wait for you.”
Tingles swam in my chest, easing the weight in my stomach. “But Senor Jaime, I don’t think I could resist your charm for too long. Even if we must be vagabonds—wait—maybe we should be vagabonds instead, so we wouldn’t have to worry about all these kingdom problems.”
He tipped his head back. “Now, senorita, you tempt a man to ignore his duties.”
“So, we really could run away and get married and live in a faraway village where Giddel and Himzo affairs don’t exist? Of course, we would have a portal made to visit friends whenever we miss them.” I bounced on my toes and flashed my teeth.
“Then, will you be all right with us being wed after my next mission?” His arms stiffened their hold as if he held his breath.
“How long is your next mission? I mean, will we have enough time to visit Himzo? Or maybe it’s a long mission like all the months Prince Zichri has yet to return with a treaty? I should let you speak.”
“Well…”
His slow response was more than I could handle. “I think I might burst. Do we have a week or a year?”
He lifted the basket full of flowers and slipped his hand into mine. “The mission should take a month or two. Prince Zichri wants me to accompany him on a quest to find the Black Knight.” He tugged me along as we walked toward the path leading to the Giddelian palace.
“The Black Knight? Who is that? I certainly have never heard of such a person before.”
Our boots hit the gravel path, and Jaime’s handsome profile sobered. “He’s the leader of the New Alliance forming around the Agata Sea. We have our suspicions of his identity, but we’re not certain.”
“Couldn’t we leave the mysterious leader to Prince Zichri, Milo, Gonzalo, and Blas to uncover? Your friends have a good handle on political maneuvers.” I squeezed my fingers tighter around his. “Does that mean we’ll have to postpone our trip to Himzo?”
He shifted his jaw. “What if I took you tomorrow?”
I stopped mid-stride. “You’re going to take me through the portal? The one in Cosme’s room? The one your friend keeps opening and closing?”
“The very same one.” Jaime tugged me along. “But we need to visit the king and queen first to settle our betrothal, and I don’t want to wait until next month to ask.”
Though Cosme often kept a portal from Giddel to Himzo in his sitting room, the king and queen didn’t know how Jaime arrived or left the palace with such stealth. An official monthly visit allowed others to believe Jaime made the long trek once a month to keep Giddel informed about Himzo affairs and kept our connection to portal makers a secret.
Squealing, I skipped up the terrace and through the palace doors.
The empty back corridor provided a clear path to the king’s hall.
“What do Himzos wear? Will I fit in?” I spun in my turquoise dress, enjoying the way Jaime’s eyes glowed while watching me.
“One more thing.” Jaime stopped in front of the king’s hall doors. “I’m not sure it’s prudent to tell Beatriz every last detail.”
My nose scrunched. “What do you mean?”
“It’s just that, I wasn’t supposed to tell you about the”—he dropped his voice to a whisper—“portal, and Cosme believes it should stay hidden as much as possible.”
Lady Myla passed by with a tight bun at the nape of her neck and a condescending air befitting her station as head lady’s maid. She still hadn’t let go of her grudge at my elevated station.
“Excuse me,” I called to Lady Myla. “Is it possible to put the flowers in water for me?”
She scrunched her face into a grimace but tore the basket from Jaime’s grip. “I’ll see to it.”
Jaime and I stared at each other and waited for the click of Lady Myla’s heels to disappear. He made a face, and I resisted a giggle, so it wouldn’t seem like I was laughing at Lady Myla.
The moment the passage quieted, I blurted my question, “I can tell Beatriz about us? That hasn’t anything to do with Cosme or his people who make you-know-whats.”
“Yes, you can share our intentions and make plans, but please keep Zichri’s movements to yourself. I’m sure Princess Beatriz wouldn’t be indiscreet, but the more mouths that know, the greater the chance for information to slip.”
My lips smashed into a firm line. Jaime didn’t cause this breach between the princess and me, but these hidden affairs made it hard to maintain a close relationship with her. I felt like a liar.
Jaime knocked on the king’s fancy door and spoke in hushed tones to the majordomo. I caught the words ‘private’ and ‘important’ enunciated. I craned my neck to peek into the throne room only to find at least a dozen other townspeople waiting for an audience with the king.
We’d be here all day, and Beatriz wouldn’t need more than the morning alone with her letters. Too much time alone left her depressed, though I doubted she’d admit it to anyone. She needed a midday date with her Laude to digest Zichri’s words and intentions. And who was I kidding? I gobbled up those sweet lines about his undying affection for her.
The majordomo returned. “His Majesty would like to meet with you in the back room.”
My spine straightened at the favor King Ezer bestowed. The back room was reserved for the dignitaries he loved the most and for his children. I held Jaime’s forearm with an extra bounce in my step as we passed through the congested throne room. A man with a curled mustache shot me a side-eyed look, and I may have flashed him my teeth in a wide grin.
Passing the townspeople, the thrones, and the cherry-wood-paneled wall behind them, we entered a cozy room with armchairs, flickering oil lamps set on gilded tables, and a fur rug lending warmth to the cold stone floor. We approached the king in his red velvet seat. Beside him Queen Cottia leaned forward like she anticipated our message.
After all the pleasantries, formalities, and head bobbing, Jaime cut to the juicy question on the tip of my tongue.
“Will you allow me to form a betrothal with Laude?” Jaime kept his head bowed and gaze averted from the king’s face.
King Ezer snuck a glance at his wife. The laugh lines around his mouth deepened, which was a good sign. “Indeed, you may. When do you plan to take our Laude?”
Jaime patted my knuckles. The king had assumed I would leave without another question. Hadn’t Jaime given me a choice whether we should stay or go? Then again, how would we live if Jaime had to start his work anew with no connections and no status?
The bead of hope Jaime had given with our upcoming visit to Himzo soured.
“We plan to wed after the next Dotado mission.” Jaime kept an even rhythm to his voice, not giving away his sentiments.
King Ezer harrumphed. “Do you suppose I could get a hint of Cosme’s schemes?”
“You should discuss the plans with him, but I anticipate us needing no more than a month or two.”
Queen Cottia flew from her seat and hugged me tightly enough to steal another breath. “I am going to miss you.” Her sincerity clung to me like a stain on a white garment. The question wasn’t if I’d leave Giddel but when .
“I will too and Beatriz…” My neck burned as it finally struck me how completely everything would change.
“Does she know?” the queen asked, pulling away with the widest smile I’d seen on her face in ages.
“No, but I’m going to tell her soon. Please let me share the news in my own way and time because you know how she’s been all gloomy, and I don’t want her to feel like I’m abandoning her.”
Realization struck again, like Lady Myla’s screeching when she was in one of her moods. What would happen to Beatriz with me gone? How would I say goodbye after all we’ve been through? A lump of tears rolled up my throat and promised to keep me hostage. Telling her about my engagement might also need to wait. Two months of knowing I’d soon be leaving might torture her, seeing that she hadn’t any other friends. Maybe I could hold off on sharing the most exciting and terrifying news a little longer.