Chapter 22
The next day was a whirlwind of activity as Nelia and I worked our asses off to prepare the Palace for tonight’s reception.
We decided to go with dawn colors for the décor—gold, royal purple, and deep and pale pinks—to symbolize that we’d overcome adversity, and that our city had risen again to a new dawn.
The dead had been buried, the streets had finally been cleared of rubble, and the city was ready to rebuild and move on.
To my relief, just about everyone we invited had accepted despite being given such short notice.
By the time the last guests trickled in, the ballroom was absolutely packed with guests—more full than I could ever remember seeing it.
However, the conversation was subdued, rather than deafening.
There was an air of muted pride and a sense of accomplishment, mixed with lingering grief and exhaustion, which wasn’t surprising as there was still a lot of work to do.
The mage, shifter, and human council members were all present, as well as those humans and business owners who had risen to the occasion and provided exemplary service.
Solantha’s respective neighborhoods were hosting their own celebrations, and the entire city was sparkling with celebratory lights, the air filled with music and the sound of the occasional firework exploding.
We hadn’t allowed the citizens to light their own, due to the recent fires, but city officials had decided to put on a show, and we could see brilliant displays exploding over the bay from the windows lining the ballroom’s far wall.
“I am very glad you are around to organize these affairs now,” Iannis said in mindspeak as he surveyed the crowd. His hand slid beneath the hem of my reddish-gold silk gown, and sizzling heat rushed through my veins as he squeezed my thigh. “Perhaps I should put you in charge of them permanently.”
I stifled a groan. “This isn’t exactly what I had in mind when I agreed to become your wife,” I said to him.
“But you’re so very good at it,” Iannis said, winking.
One of the Maintown councilmen approached Iannis, engaging him in conversation before I could respond.
Done with my food, I wandered down to where Comenius and Elania were sitting, only a few tables away.
Rusalia was there as well, and they sat with Kardanor, chatting very enthusiastically together.
Rylan, once again in guard uniform, stuck close to my side—he considered the crowd a risk to my safety, no matter how carefully we had vetted the guest list.
“Naya!” Comenius greeted me with a big hug. “I’m so happy to see you are looking well.”
“You look beautiful,” Elania said, beaming at me. She was dressed in a gorgeous black velvet gown with a halter top, her hair done in one of its trademark updos, and glittering onyx jewelry at her ears and throat.
“Thanks.” I smiled back, then turned to Rusalia. “I love your dress.” It was pale blue taffeta, and with those blonde curls and large eyes, she looked very pretty.
“Thank you.” She smiled shyly, ducking her head a little. There was no hint of anger or resentment in her little face—she seemed like a normal ten-year-old, her eyes bright as she took in the splendor around her.
“Have you been treating your pa well?” I asked, leaning forward a little so I could meet her gaze.
She nodded. “I’ve been listening, and doing all my chores. Right, Pa?” She looked at him from beneath her lashes.
Comenius gave her a fatherly smile and patted her blonde head. “Yes, Rusalia. You have been doing much better since you came home…though we’ve still had a few fire-related accidents.”
As if on cue, Rusalia’s half-eaten steak burst into flame. She yelped, and I snuffed it out before anyone could notice. Even so, the smoke rising from the charred meat drew some curious glances from the guests at nearby tables.
“You, young lady, will be taking lessons in magical control here in the Palace for the next few weeks,” I told Rusalia. “Starting tomorrow morning at nine.” She stared at me, completely tongue-tied for once. “Is that understood?”
She nodded, her eyes wide.
“Do you mean it?” Com asked gratefully. “It would be a great help if you could arrange for a tutor, since her magic is too strong for Elania and me to reliably control.”
“She’ll soon learn to do that herself,” I assured him.
I was planning to teach her basic control myself, now that I had Fenris’s knowledge to draw upon, but I couldn’t tell him that in front of this crowd.
Later, she would be able to do an apprenticeship in the normal way, but those usually did not start until the mid-teens.
Mage children normally learned basic control and simple spells from their own families long before their apprenticeships began.
“Are you all right otherwise?” I probed, lowering my voice. “All those market carts that were set aflame…my offer for a loan still stands, you know.”
“Thanks,” Com replied, smiling, “but I’m fine. We’ve come to an agreement that allows me to pay the debt off in kind. Healing potions are very much in demand just now.”
“You weren’t joking about the magic,” Kardanor said, looking bemused. “Let’s get you another steak.” He leaned over and snagged the attention of a waiter, pointing at Rusalia’s plate.
“You’re looking quite handsome tonight,” I told him, admiring his dark red suit. He wore a crisp white shirt and a dark grey waistcoat beneath his well-cut jacket, and the golden chain of a pocket watch, tucked into his pocket, glittered in the light.
“Thank you. Nelia helped me pick the outfit,” he said. “Your assistant has excellent taste in fashion.”
We talked for a few more minutes before I moved on to the Shiftertown Council table.
“Sunaya,” Aunt Mafiela greeted me warmly.
She stood up and enveloped me in a hug, her floral perfume tickling my nose.
“You have done a wonderful job organizing this reception.” Her eyes glowed with affection as her gaze turned to Rylan, who bowed his head.
They couldn’t embrace, not while he was still in disguise as my bodyguard, but their eyes said all there was to say.
“Thank you,” I replied, grinning at the unwonted praise. It was still weird to be the recipient of such approval from her, but I was slowly getting used to having a normal relationship with my aunt.
“Yes, this is quite splendid,” the tiger-clan chieftain said. His orange eyes gleamed as he looked me up and down. “Perhaps you should help organize the Shiftertown Gala next year.”
“Somehow, I think Sunaya would rather jab a fork into her eye,” Lakin said, grinning. “I’m sure Lord Iannis had to twist her arm to get her to agree.”
“Not exactly,” I protested. “I was happy to do it for such a special occasion.” But really, I hoped people wouldn’t keep suggesting that I organize their events. With my luck, Iannis would make me the official event coordinator.
I stopped by a few more tables, including Captain Skonel’s, to thank him for all his hard work. He was sitting with his deputy and several crew foremen, and though he was still a bit haughty, he treated me with respect, as did the others.
“You should come back up here,” Iannis said. “We are about to begin the speeches.”
I returned to our table. Rylan pulled out my chair, then hovered close behind me while I faced the crowd. Iannis stood up, tapping his wineglass with his fork for order. He used magic to amplify the sound, and the rest of the room fell silent.
“Citizens,” he said in a sonorous voice that carried easily throughout the room.
“It gives me great pleasure to stand here with you all tonight. I am proud of each person here—you all have shown remarkable fortitude and courage these past few days, during Solantha’s most trying times since I became Chief Mage. Tonight, we are here to honor you.”
He raised his glass, and everyone drank.
Enthusiastic applause broke out, and I was pleased to see there wasn’t a single resentful person in the room tonight.
Everyone was in good spirits, despite all three races rubbing elbows at the tables.
The only thing that would have made this more perfect were if Annia and Noria were sitting with Comenius, and Fenris was up at the high table with us.
But I was determined not to let those losses dim my mood.
I’d spent enough time with my grief—tonight, I would celebrate with the others.
Iannis continued with his speech, calling up various members of society to present them with medals and flowers to thank them for their service.
He also called up Captain Skonel and confirmed his appointment as Captain of the Enforcer’s Guild, which was met with ecstatic applause from the enforcers present.
I was pleased to see that they were enthusiastic about the appointment—it was important the Guild be happy with their choice in captain, and not just the Chief Mage.
“Kardanor Makis,” Iannis finally called as we drew to the end of the ceremony. “Please come forward.”
Kardanor flashed a grin at Director Chen from his chair, then assumed an appropriately serious expression as he approached Iannis to receive his prize.
Iannis placed the medal around his neck, and Director Chen handed him the bouquet of flowers, as she’d done for the others.
I wondered if anyone else noticed the flush in her cheeks when Kardanor’s hand grazed hers, or if they just credited it to the booze, which was flowing very freely tonight.
“Mr. Makis is perhaps our most important guest here tonight,” Iannis said, addressing the crowd.
“Without his knowledge of architecture and building codes, and his persistence in bringing the compromised structural integrity of many of our buildings to our attention, we would have suffered far more casualties than we did. Even now, he is working tirelessly on plans to rebuild the city so that it can better withstand any future quakes and fires. To that end, I have officially appointed him as Secretary of City Planning and Reconstruction.”
There were a few gasps at this unorthodox pronouncement, mostly from the mages in the room.
But they were drowned out by the thunderous applause from the rest of the guests.
This went on for several minutes, with much cheering and whooping, before the crowd finally quieted down enough for Kardanor to give a short acceptance speech.
During the speech, he thanked Iannis, and promised the citizens of Solantha that as the first human Secretary, he would make them proud.
Afterward, he took his seat in between Cirin and Chen’s empty chair, and I noticed Chen was smiling brightly at him.
“I have another announcement,” Iannis said once the noise had died down again.
“There are certain members of the Resistance who, after learning the true nature of their organization and their leader, gave their loyalty to the Federation and put themselves in great danger to help secure our country’s future.
One of these men is Rylan Baine, a son of the Jaguar Clan.
He has worked tirelessly to save lives in the past few days, risking his own neck repeatedly in rescuing victims from dangerously damaged buildings.
As a reward, I now pardon him for all crimes against the State of Canalo, and I release him from his service to the Palace. Please come up, Rylan.”
The crowd gasped as Rylan stepped forward, then tapped the pin on his lapel to undo the illusion. A lump swelled in my throat as I watched him accept his medal and flowers, and I rushed over and folded him into a tight hug.
“Congratulations,” I whispered fiercely. “And don’t be a stranger.”
“I’ll visit often, I promise,” Rylan said.
He hugged me back, then went to Aunt Mafiela, who was standing now, tears streaming down her face.
The crowd erupted into deafening applause as Rylan embraced his mother, lifting her feet off the ground.
As I looked around the room, I caught sight of Nelia sitting a few tables away, and I had to bite back a laugh.
She looked flabbergasted, and not entirely pleased, about Rylan’s sudden transformation.
I had a feeling Rylan wouldn’t need to end the romance between them—she would be the one to kick him to the curb.
“Now for my last announcement tonight,” Iannis said, and the room went quiet again.
He turned to look at me, and I froze at the twinkle in his violet eyes.
“I am instituting a committee to reform the Enforcers Guild organization and pay structure.” Many of the enforcers cheered at this, though there were some folded arms and glares from a few senior foremen.
“It is important that everyone is fairly compensated, and that all crimes are appropriately investigated irrespective of bounty size. After due consideration, I am naming Sunaya Baine as chair of this committee, and she will choose six other members to help her, two from each race. They have six months to come up with a plan.”
My mouth dropped open in shock and horror, and it took a supreme effort to replace my expression with a pleased smile.
Thankfully, the crowd was already applauding again, giving me time to regain my composure.
But as I came up to accept my flowers from Director Chen, I shot Iannis a veiled glare from behind my smile.
There would be hell to pay for this later.
You’re not a simple enforcer anymore, a voice that sounded a lot like Resinah echoed in my mind, and I bit back a sigh.
But as I turned to the crowd to give my acceptance speech, I caught Captain Skonel’s eye, sitting in the back, and had to hide a grin at the look of sheer horror on his face.
He looked disgusted at the idea that he would have to defer to me now.
On the other hand, my friends and family were on their feet, clapping and cheering, their faces shining with love and pride.
I’m not just an enforcer anymore, I told myself, at peace with the idea now. I’m a champion for these people. For my friends, colleagues, and the underdogs of our city. And with that in mind, I squared my shoulders and prepared to give them one hell of a speech.