Chapter 26
Syla watched with a smile as Vorik whistled and walked around the new Freeborn Faction camp on the west end of Castle Island.
It was a mixture of coastline and rugged, rocky terrain that had never tempted farmers, but there were some relatively flat and open areas where the new inhabitants could try their hand at gardening.
Of all the stormers, Chieftess Atilya’s people had shown the most interest in that, and Syla would be curious to see what they planted in the spring.
The late-fall wind that whipped in off the sea didn’t lend itself to thoughts of gardens at the moment, and she pulled her fur-lined cloak tighter about herself as Vorik walked from person to person, handing out wedding invitations.
Technically, they were small jars of chocolate-hazelnut butter from Celena’s recently opened combination bakery and sweets shop.
As Vorik had explained, since most of his people didn’t read and write, small gifts were traditional, rather than the wax-sealed calligraphy-filled cards that Syla had distributed to her friends, family, and the island lords.
“A winter wedding is an atypical choice,” Sergeant Fel said from her side, where he’d been looming and scowling at any uninvited souls who wandered too close, “but I suppose I can guess the reason why.”
“To hasten the official union of our two peoples.” Syla extended her hand toward the Freedom Faction men and women and the huts they’d erected around a sheltered cove where they’d moored a few fishing vessels.
Theirs was the only tribe, if one could think of their coalition that way, that she’d offered land to on Castle Island.
The rest of the stormer tribes had been given spots evenly distributed throughout the Kingdom islands, all near coastlines so it would be easy for them to paddle out to reach their dragons so they could go hunting.
With a challenging smile, she’d looked Jhiton in the eye as she’d proclaimed that his Wingborn Tribe would receive the lightning-decimated lands around the volcano on Harvest Island.
She’d included the forests to the south of it where the dragons had hunted the eliok and trusted his people could find spots to garden and practice animal husbandry, but she believed the significance of the choice hadn’t been lost on the general.
He and his surly dragon had been entirely responsible for the battering of that land; now, they could be a part of healing it.
Vorik hadn’t minded; he’d been delighted that his tribe would be close to Castle Island, and he might have had delight in his eyes when he’d pointed out how easy it would be for him and Syla to visit his kin, especially his brother.
Syla hadn’t said anything, but she distinctly looked forward to not visiting Jhiton.
“Yes, I’m certain that was the reason.” Fel wasn’t so pointed as to look at her abdomen, and, after so few weeks, she wasn’t yet showing signs of pregnancy, but Syla had shared the news with Tibby, Teyla, and a few others, so she wasn’t surprised that he’d heard.
Given how often she and Vorik had shared romantic interludes with her bodyguard nearby, he probably could have guessed even if she hadn’t said anything.
“It suits me though.” Fel gave her a sidelong look.
“I was thinking I might retire after seeing you safely through your wedding.” He arched his eyebrows.
Asking if she would object? No, she’d been meaning to ask him if he wanted to go. It was just hard. As crusty as he was, he’d been such a faithful bodyguard—a faithful friend and advisor—along the way that she would miss having him around.
“Are you sure you’re ready for that? You’re not even sixty yet.”
“My body assures me that’s a suitable age for retiring from being bashed by weapons, hurled against walls, and having dragons try to light you on fire.
” He shifted to lean against a nearby tree, sticking his calf out to stretch it.
“My muscles hurt, my joints ache, and old wounds throb. And that’s on a good day. ”
“I do believe a less vigorous lifestyle might be nice for you, but I was thinking of offering you a position. As you’re aware, some have…
opened up.” Syla couldn’t keep from grimacing.
Even though she now knew who’d been responsible for the murders, she hadn’t succeeded in convincing the various lords and military officers she interacted with that she hadn’t played a role in them.
As both Fel and Vorik had pointed out, that wasn’t a bad thing, since everyone had fallen into line and nobody seemed to be angling to dispose of her at the moment—not when they worried they would be targeted for the next throat-slitting—but she’d never wanted a reputation for being a ruthless killer.
“Not General Dolok’s position, right?” Fel asked. “I know he’s requested retirement, too, but you’ve left him in command for now.”
“Yes, he did tell me he hasn’t recovered from his various ordeals and wants to leave the office, but I wasn’t going to ask you to take over his job, no.
Fortunately, he does seem to be done scheming against me.
When lightning utterly destroyed that lighthouse not thirty seconds after he walked out of it—he was lucky there—he took it as a sign that the gods wanted him to live in the Kingdom under my rule.
It probably helped that we drove out the storm god too. ”
“Good. It’s been twenty years since I served in the military, and I wasn’t an officer then.”
“I was thinking… Harvest Island needs a new island lord, someone who won’t be intimidated by having General Jhiton living on the other end of the island.
” Syla doubted Jhiton would spend that much time there—he and his dragon had flown off together after they’d both healed, and she’d only seen him twice since then—but she would like someone who could handle a lot and whom she could trust unconditionally as island lord there.
Fel’s mouth drooped open. “I’m not a landowner or lord or a former officer. Those are the people who are appointed as island lords. And… and… don’t they have to do the accounting for the whole island? And send reports to the monarch?”
“You’d have an accountant to handle the books.”
“What about the reports?”
“Goodness, Fel, you’re an intelligent man.
I’m positive you can write me a little note to tell me about the crops for the year and to let me know if the stormers are behaving.
And think how much your muscles will enjoy a life without constant battle and strife.
I bet dragons would hardly ever try to light you on fire. ”
“Island lords are considered politically important.” Fel looked darkly at her. “History is filled with accountings of them being assassinated.”
“But not by dragons.” Syla smiled brightly. “Once it’s fully repaired, the palace there will be lovely. It’s on a hill overlooking a beach. You wanted to retire someplace by the beach, didn’t you?”
“So I could walk naked on it without a care in the world. Island lords can’t be seen outdoors naked.”
“Yeah, but nobody wanted to see you that way anyway.”
“It was going to be a remote beach,” he grumbled.
“If you don’t want the job, it’s all right. I just thought I’d offer it. I suppose Relvin could take it if you don’t. I hear he doesn’t want to return to his family estate because his father was killed there. Bad omens abound.”
“You’ll not put that twit into a position of power. Besides, he certainly couldn’t handle General Jhiton showing up at his palace. He would wet himself.”
“Probably.” Syla clasped her hands behind her back and watched as Vorik, having finished delivering jars of treats, ambled up the slope toward them with Chieftess Atilya at his side.
“Did I mention that Aunt Tibby is heading to Harvest Island to help with the reconstruction of the city? A couple of dams were destroyed, too, and that’s caused flooding of some of the orchards near Hazel Harbor. ”
Of course, Tibby’s first order of business would be creating a new hidden chamber and moving the shielder to a location that the stormers didn’t know about and wasn’t near their camp; trust only went so far, after all, and Syla didn’t want to tempt any future insurrectionists.
She’d already worked with Tibby to move the shielder on Castle Island.
As safe as it probably was with a dragon occupying the nearby cave, too many people had known its location for Syla to sleep comfortably.
“The dragons and stormers had a lot of time to do a lot of damage there,” Fel said.
“Yes. I expect Tibby will be busy there for years.”
“Hm.”
“How was the meal you two enjoyed at Servanik’s Fine Dining the other evening? Did she call you a troglodyte?”
“She did not. I will consider your proposal.”
“Excellent.” Syla lifted a hand toward Atilya. “Good afternoon, Chieftess. I hope your people are settling in and find this area acceptable.”
“Any area that isn’t attacked regularly by wyverns and cloud strikers is acceptable. I understand there aren’t even lake krakens on any of the Kingdom islands.”
“There are not.”
“What a wondrous place. I’m pleased that you and the stormer tribes were able to come to an agreement.
” Atilya watched as Vorik stopped beside Syla and clasped her hand.
“I accept the invitation to your wedding. I suppose I should have known your marriage would be inevitable when you helped Vorik escape from my camp.”
Vorik raised a finger. “I refrained from drinking your drugged beverage and would have escaped on my own.”
“Afterward, you rudely forgot to tell your brother that you were safe and that he didn’t need to hunt us down and attack us.”
“Well, I was on another mission.”
“He was stealing shielder components from me,” Syla said.
“Yes, I’d say it’s strange that you’re going to marry him, but it makes sense politically.”
“Yes, political reasons are what draw her to me,” Vorik said.
“It can’t be your wit.”