Chapter 9 #2
“Yeah.” I nodded. “Well… my country at least. There are plenty of countries with monarchs. Some with monarchs who are just figureheads, and they have parliaments that actually hold the power, but the king thing is definitely not something I’ve lived under before.”
“Perhaps you will be the one to best communicate with the Prime Minister, then,” Doria mused. “I’ve heard he thinks our ways are a little old-fashioned.”
“I can see that,” I chuckled. “I look forward to meeting him.”
Our topic of conversation shifted to much less serious matters for a while. I learned more about Enken’s passion for blacksmith work, and I shared a little about the work I’d done in the farm supply store.
A short time later, a footman arrived at the tent with a message. Roald scurried over to collect the message, and he delivered it to me.
“The Prime Minister of Valnar has arrived, sire,” Roald said, and he handed me the envelope.
“What’s it say?” Tenall asked.
“Oh, I’m rather interested to meet him.” Enken gazed at the closed tent wall as if he could see through it to the other leader.
I broke the seal on the envelope and quickly read the message.
“Eriz Hepper sends his regrets,” I explained. “He’s excited to meet us all tomorrow and begs our forgiveness for not introducing himself immediately. They had an issue on the road and have decided to rest this evening.”
“Oh, dear,” Doria murmured.
“Was anyone injured?” Serra asked.
I scanned the message again.
“It doesn’t say,” I said. “I’d assume everyone is fine.”
“Perhaps a broken carriage wheel,” Enken suggested.
“Yeah.” I nodded. “It says he’s very invested in the matter that brought us together, and he wants a clear head before we delve into business.”
“I respect that,” Enken said.
“As do I,” Doria agreed, and she stifled a yawn. “In fact, I think we should follow his lead and get as much rest as we can this evening.”
“It is getting late,” Serra said.
I’d been so enthralled by our conversation that I hadn’t realized it, but she was right. The sunlight streaming through the sheer panels in the tent had turned a russet shade of orange, and the light was rapidly waning.
“I’m very tired,” Yori said. “Between the travel, the rage, and then the sparring… I think I’ll sleep like a rock tonight.”
“Quite,” Doria let out a light laugh.
“And we all need to be on top of our game tomorrow,” Enken agreed. “Thank you for your hospitality, Ken. We appreciate your friendship.”
“So do I,” I agreed. “Get some sleep. We’ve got a big day tomorrow.”
We all said our goodbyes before Enken proffered his arm to his wife, and the pair of them left with a few of their guards a step behind them. I stood in the entrance of our tent to watch them go, and I lingered for a moment to have a look over at Valnar’s tent.
From the outside, it didn’t look all that different from the others. The Prime Minister had fully-armored soldiers standing guard outside the tent, and servants in matching uniforms moved in and out as they finished unloading the carriages.
I was eager to meet the only leader who’d been chosen by his people, but it would have to wait for tomorrow. Maybe we could walk over and introduce ourselves before we all gathered for the first official meeting.
Palchur stood nearby as he discussed something with Reggie. I checked in with Palchur, and he had a small update from the remaining nations. The royals from Kestran and Zall were set to arrive in the morning, so we’d probably begin around midday.
“Should we have food at the meeting?” I asked him.
“I don’t believe that was arranged,” Palchur said. “But it would be a good idea. Shall I speak with Master Gelm about arranging that?”
“Yes, please.” I nodded at the mention of my Master of Publicity.
Gelm had accompanied us to the meeting in case we needed his expertise on public relations and navigating this kind of diplomatic hodgepodge.
“Coordinate with Adelyn and Richard,” I said. “Doria and Enken’s advisor. I’m sure he’ll be happy to help.”
“Very good, sire,” Palchur said.
Exhaustion was plain in his voice, and I suddenly noticed the dark circles under his eyes. Palchur worked really fucking hard for me, and I appreciated everything he did, but he needed sleep just as much as the rest of us.
“Anything else, sire?” Palchur asked.
“Yeah,” I said, and I narrowed my eyes in a light-hearted way. “Make sure you get some fucking sleep tonight, alright?”
Palchur snorted with unexpected laughter before he cleared his throat and nodded.
“Yes, sire,” he agreed. “I have a few more things to manage, but then Captain Greer will be taking over for the evening. I promise to get some deep sleep tonight.”
“Good.” I smiled. “I want you, Vannesh, and Gelm at my side tomorrow. I’ll need your advice and expertise on all this.”
“Vannesh was finalizing his notes an hour ago when I checked in with him,” Palchur said.
“Excellent,” I said. “I’m sure the other royals will have many questions about what his spies have found and what can be confirmed.”
“That’s exactly what he was working on.” Palchur nodded. “I’ll check in with him before I turn in for the night.”
“Great,” I said. “I won’t take up any more of your time.”
“Very good, sire,” Palchur said. “Sleep well.”
“You, too,” I said. “Good night.”
I yawned and walked back into our tent. Tanell, Serra, and Yori were in the rear section, and they’d all begun preparing for bed. They were in the middle of changing into their sleep clothes, and the sight of so much bare skin sent a pleasant rumble through my veins.
A wide, thick mattress had been hauled in one of the carriages, and it now laid on the tough wool rug that made up the tent’s floor. It was covered in colorful blankets and several pillows.
The depths of comfort sang to me like a siren, but I wasn’t ready to turn in just yet.
I hadn’t seen Carissa since we’d arrived, and she wasn’t in our tent like I’d thought she might be.
Not that I should have expected her to be in our private quarters.
While Carissa had begun spending some time with us in our sitting room in the castle, she’d never gone into my bedchamber, and the rear section of the tent was essentially that.
“Carissa’s lady’s maid said she was quite comfortable with her accommodations,” Tanell said as she caught my eye in the small mirror in her hand. “She wished us a good night and said she’d join us for breakfast in the morning.”
“Oh, good,” I said, and my heart warmed. “Thank you.”
Tanell smiled sweetly at me as she finished combing her long blonde hair. On the other side of the space, Yori was busy twisting her dark hair into two long braids. She tied the ends off with two small ribbons, then plopped down on the mattress with a heavy sigh.
“I’m so tired,” she yawned.
“Me, too,” Serra said. “I hardly had the energy to prepare for bed.”
That seemed unlikely as I looked at her.
Serra was practically glowing. I wasn’t sure what she used to clean her face, but it always left her with a beautiful, dewy complexion that made her look like an angel come down from heaven.
She wore a floor-length silk nightgown in a soft shade of blue, and her silver-blonde hair hung in some kind of very loose two-strand braid over her left shoulder.
Tanell finished braiding her hair and set the hand mirror down on the top of her clothing trunk. Then she stood up, and we all joined Yori on the wide bed.
“Ooooh,” I moaned in relief at the comfort of the thick mattress.
I’d been a little worried that it was full of straw or something since it was technically our travel mattress, but it was just as comfortable and lush as the one back in the castle.
“Wow,” I sighed in surprise as I settled back against my pillow. “This is so comfortable.”
“It had better be,” Serra almost snorted. “It’s stuffed with goose down.”
“Wait.” My eyes bulged. “Wouldn’t that make it really heavy?”
Goose down was very soft, and while it was technically feathers, I knew how heavy a feather mattress could be after I’d helped a friend move one a few years ago. A mattress had to be stuffed very densely to actually be supportive, so there had to be hundreds of pounds of feathers crammed into it.
“It takes six men to carry it,” Tanell revealed.
“God,” I scoffed. “No wonder it takes a whole carriage by itself.”
“I suppose four could do it,” Tanell mused. “But they’d struggle.”
I chuckled but stopped suddenly when a soft snore escaped Yori’s sweet lips.
“She doesn’t fuck around,” I murmured with affection.
“Not when it comes to sleep,” Tanell agreed.
“Or food,” Serra added with a friendly smile.
“We should do the same,” I said and stretched my arms out to welcome my women into my embrace. “We have a huge day tomorrow.”
“Mmm,” Tanell hummed in contentment as she snuggled into my side.
Serra curled up on my other side, and Yori was a splayed-out starfish on the other side of Tanell. It only took a few breaths before my eyelids slid closed against the heavy weight of exhaustion, and I slept deeply until the light of morning crept between the tent panels.
“Good morning,” Tanell whispered, and she kissed my cheek.
My eyes were still closed, but I could feel Serra as she shifted on my other side, and a smile tugged at my lips.
“Mmm,” I hummed and stretched.
I’d gotten really used to waking up when my body was ready, and there was absolutely nothing I missed about a blaring alarm clock being the first thing I heard in the mornings.
“I love waking up next to you two,” I said.
I pried one eye open and found Tanell and Serra both looking down at my face with adoration in their gazes. Tanell smiled at me when I caught her eye, and Serra blushed like she’d been caught with her hand in the cookie jar.
“Adelyn will have our breakfast ready shortly,” Tanell said.
“Excellent,” I sighed and sat up. “And Carissa is joining us, right?”
“That’s what her lady’s maid said last night.” Serra nodded.