Chapter 17 #2
“They don’t have to like it, they just have to do what they’re told,” Xavier said simply.
A cleared throat drew his attention to one of the aforementioned guards.
“Yes?” Xavier’s tone made no secret of his feelings about the interruption.
“Forgive me, Your Highness, but our orders are to remain with you at all times.”
“Captain Mitchell isn’t in charge,” Xavier informed him. “I have oversight of the team, including you.”
“I apologize, Your Highness, but I didn’t mean orders from the captain. I meant from His Majesty, before we left the capital.”
“Ah.” Xavier sighed, mastering his annoyance before turning a winning smile on Alina. “There my authority ends.”
“I don’t need guards,” Alina assured him. “I’ll be here with my aunt and uncle.”
He nodded, resigned. “All right, then. I’ll see you tomorrow.” He summoned his guards with a flippant wave of his hand. “Come along, traitors.”
Alina’s quiet chuckle followed him as he left the yard. He might be less interested by the day in pursuing Alina as a form of entertainment for himself, but there was still some sense of victory in knowing he could entertain her.
The team had moved along by the time he returned, so he and his guards proceeded to their lodgings, which fortunately weren’t far away. Xavier wasn’t surprised to discover that Captain Mitchell was at the end of his patience when the truants arrived.
“Your Highness, you absolutely cannot wander off alone,” the captain said. “What will it take for me to convince you of that?”
“Give me some credit, Mitchell,” Xavier said, in no mood for a scold. “I’ve been the model of diligence on this whole undertaking. I haven’t tried to slip away once, or neglected the investigation.”
“Clearly, Your Highness, we view recent events very differently.” The captain’s voice was dry.
“If you’re referring to the unfortunate night I spent trying not to decorate the desert floor with the contents of my stomach, I didn’t wander off intentionally,” Xavier said.
“I was walking around the site in company with my guards when the alicanto lured me away. I promise I had no desire to stroll off into the desert. And today, I told you I was going, and took four guards with me. No doubt I’ve done many foolish things in my life, but not this time.
I won’t tolerate being called reckless or irresponsible when I haven’t earned it. ”
There was a glint of anger in his eyes as he finished that speech, and he saw Captain Mitchell take note of it. When the other man spoke, his tone was measured.
“I’m not calling you either reckless or irresponsible, Your Highness,” he said. “But I urge you to be careful.”
“I am being adequately careful,” Xavier said dismissively. “I’m in no particular danger beyond the inevitable risks of my position.”
Captain Mitchell took a moment to reply. “There are many kinds of danger, Your Highness,” he said at last. “And part of my duty is to protect you from them wherever I can.” He looked around, his brows furrowing then smoothing out before he spoke again. “Where is Miss Alina?”
“She’s staying with her aunt’s family tonight,” Xavier said. “They live in the city here, and she preferred to lodge with them rather than at the inn.”
The captain thought this over, then nodded. It was clear he wasn’t sharing all his thoughts, but Xavier preferred it that way. The captain had been very cool toward Alina since the misadventure in the desert.
“My recommendation, Your Highness,” Captain Mitchell said, “is that we return to our regular base today. If we leave now, we can arrive not long after dark.”
“What?” Xavier stared at him. “No, we’re not doing that. We’re staying here at least one night, that was always the plan. This is our most promising lead, surely there’s more to investigate. Besides, I’ve just told Alina that she can spend at least one night with her family, if not more.”
“There’s no reason she can’t do so, Your Highness,” Captain Mitchell responded. “Since she’s with her family, it’s a sensible time for her to conclude her involvement with the investigation. I can send someone around to finalize payment for her services.”
“That is in no way your call,” Xavier told him, outraged by the suggestion. “Why in Ryki would she leave the investigation now?”
“We hired her to act as a guide in her own town,” the captain said. “But it hasn’t proved to be the center of our activity. This way she would be able to fully recover from her over-exertion while under the care of her family.”
“I’m not leaving her behind to find her own way home,” Xavier said shortly. “It’s out of the question.”
The captain wasn’t so easily deterred. “She would be safe,” he insisted. “Her connection to the investigation is known by many, which must provide its own protection. But also, she’ll be with family. Those targeted have always been on their own.”
“Why are you so determined to remove her?” Xavier demanded.
He hadn’t entered the small parlor intending to have this particular confrontation, but clearly it was time.
“What problem do you have with Alina, Captain? Your attitude toward her has steadily declined, and I can’t see any behavior of hers that would justify that.
She quite possibly saved my life in the desert, and instead of praising her for it, you’ve treated her like she’s one wrong move away from being thrown into the dungeon. ”
His words were greeted with heavy silence. It was a good sign. If Mitchell was going to deny the accusation, he would have done it immediately. Xavier waited for the real answer he sensed was coming.
“You’re right, Your Highness,” the captain said.
“My attitude has changed. But it’s not without reason.
Your initial response to her was so notable that I couldn’t believe she was a total stranger to you.
When we next sent a messenger to the capital with an update, I instructed him to make some inquiries.
He’s since returned to us, and what he learned concerned me. ”
“You were looking into my past?” Xavier demanded, outraged.
Mitchell stood his ground. “No, Your Highness. Into hers.”
“And what in Alina’s past concerns you?” Xavier asked, his eyes narrowed.
“The first thing of note,” Mitchell said, “is that beyond the occasional mention of living in the capital, she’s given no sign to any of the team that she once enjoyed the status almost of a noblewoman, and that she was known to be a friend of yours.”
“You talk as though she was trying to hide it!” Xavier protested. “Obviously I know all that. I could have shared it with any of you at any moment I wished. She would be mad to think it was in her power to keep it secret, so there’s no reason to accuse her of subterfuge.”
The captain refrained from pointing out that Xavier hadn’t shared it, and clearly hadn’t intended to.
“I’ve also discovered,” he pushed on, “that her family left the capital in a very abrupt manner, and that questions were raised at the time. Questions as to her father’s loyalty to the crown.”
“What?” Xavier frowned. He knew nothing of anything like that. “What’s the source of all this?”
“I can’t vouch for the sources,” the captain acknowledged. “I won’t be able to get the full picture until we return to the capital, and I can investigate further myself. But there’s enough evidence to encourage caution.”
“This is your idea of evidence?” Xavier said contemptuously. “Whispered gossip from unknown sources about events that happened a decade ago? If you found it so compelling, why didn’t you tell me all this immediately?”
Mitchell met his eyes squarely. “Because, Your Highness, to speak plainly, it was clear that you weren’t in a frame of mind to be impartial. I feared you would respond exactly as you are now.”
Xavier swallowed his retort, knowing it wouldn’t convince the captain of his judgment.
“As you can imagine,” the captain said, “I regretted not having warned you when I discovered that the two of you had disappeared into the desert. A situation which I still find suspicious.”
“Now who’s failing to be impartial?” Xavier said, frustrated.
“I take it you have some addled idea that if her father had a grievance with the crown, Alina might have been biding her time all these years to do my father mischief. And you think that she’s found an opportunity to do so through me.
But she had every opportunity to harm me in the desert, and she did the opposite.
That alone is enough to disprove your speculations. ”
“It’s true she didn’t harm you,” Mitchell said gravely. “As for whether she protected you with a shield all night—an improbable feat, from what I understand—we have only her word, since you were asleep.”
Xavier started to protest, but the captain wasn’t done.
“And harming you isn’t the only possible aim.”
Xavier took his meaning. “You think she’s trying to ensnare me?” He gave a hollow laugh. “Believe me, I have vast experience with that particular danger, and you couldn’t be further from the mark in this instance.”
“Your Highness,” the captain persisted, “you said you haven’t been neglecting the investigation, but you surely can’t deny that her presence is a distraction. All I’m urging you is to be careful where she’s concerned.”
“You’re an excellent investigator, Captain,” Xavier said, fighting to keep his temper.
“But your advice regarding my personal conduct is as unwanted as it is unsound.” He’d started for the door on the words, but he paused, half turning back.
“And you’re not in charge of this investigation, I am.
We’ll stay here in the city tonight, that’s my decision. ”
“Yes, Your Highness.” Captain Mitchell bent in a swift bow, his opinions hidden once again under a professional mask.