Chapter 3
With Benny curled up on her lap, Ro relaxed as much as she could in her sitting room. She was tempted to put her feet up on the low center table. Wasn’t very royal behavior, however.
Not that Gabriel would probably care.
He alone remained with her. Everyone else had returned to their own quarters. He was sitting on the couch, reading today’s edition of the newspaper.
On the back was a large advertisement for a leather goods store in town that was having a sale.
She’d been attempting to read a book, but concentration eluded her. In the moment, she felt very much like they were an old married couple. The thought both amused her and brought comfort.
Her lids were heavy as she stroked Benny’s soft fur, his purring vibrating through her. As tired as she was, as much as she would have preferred a long soak in the hot waters of the bathing pool, she couldn’t do anything until Uldamar returned from the kitchens with his report about Star.
He’d been gone some time, but she understood that at his age, it might take him longer. And he was undoubtedly as tired as she was, if not more so.
She tipped her head back and sighed. If she let herself, she would probably drift right off.
“Everything all right?”
She picked her head up to nod at Gabriel. “Just tired. I’ll be fine after a long bath and a good night’s sleep.”
“And Uldamar’s report.”
“That, too.” She gave him a quick smile. “Speaking of, I want to award him the Royal Badge of Merit. I need to speak to the council about that and get it in the works. He’s earned it several times over.”
Gabriel folded the paper. “He has indeed.” He paused. “If Ecclesia stays, will you make her Second Professor of Magic?”
“Absolutely. I hope she does. It would take some of the burden off Uldamar. Give him a chance to take some time off, if he wanted.” She thought of all that needed to be done.
“I want Anyka officially declared an enemy of Summerton. I want the truth told. That she and her daughter attempted to assassinate me.”
“That will close the door on any chance for peace.”
“I realize now that door has never truly been open.” As much as she wanted peace, she had to face reality.
“I’ll see that it’s taken care of.”
“Could you also send a request to Sam Silversmith? I’d like another of those daggers that he gave me for JT. I don’t care how much it costs.”
“Good idea. Any thoughts on when you want Nazyr and Valentyne transported to Starfall?”
She felt like that ought to be up to him, as it was his estate. “I guess whenever you feel the estate is ready for them. You’ll need some guards, I imagine. And staff. At least a cook and a housekeeper and someone to manage the estate as well as—”
“It’s all taken care of.” He was smiling.
“You did all that already?”
“When I was there last, yes. Those positions were filled, although they hadn’t been active.
It was a matter of sending word to the village that they were needed again.
The estate manager is a man named Onry Chamberlain.
I put him in charge of making the main house livable again. He seemed pleased to take on the job.”
She wrinkled her nose. “Was it in bad shape after so many years of having no owner?”
“Not terrible. But let’s just say it needed a deep clean, a good airing out, and some minor maintenance.”
“Why do I think it was worse than you’re letting on?”
“It wasn’t, I promise. No more than any estate that has sat vacant for a while. But they were all happy to know it would be occupied again. At least occasionally. Onry’s a good sort. I think he’ll keep Valentyne and Nazyr too busy to think about leaving.”
“I don’t think Nazyr wants to. Not if he’s telling the truth.”
“I agree,” Gabriel said. “He’s not the one I’m worried about.”
“Your brother.”
Gabriel’s eyes narrowed. “Yes. But a handful of guards should be sufficient to show him that his move to Starfall isn’t a holiday. Or give him time to plan his escape.”
“I hope so.” She knew how much Gabriel despised what his brother had done. If Valentyne ran from Starfall, Gabriel would feel personally responsible. He’d probably go after his brother himself.
“The cook, Nell Glover, knows her way around the kitchen. Between her stews, her pastries, and her breads, Valentyne will at least eat well. He’d be a fool to do anything to ruin this very lenient arrangement you’ve so graciously given him.”
“But you think he might.” She could tell by his tone. Benny hopped down and sauntered off into the bedroom.
Gabriel exhaled, long and slow. “He’s Valentyne. There’s no telling what he might do. If he’s smart, it’ll be nothing but work that mine and be on his best behavior. But he’s not smart.”
Somehow, her tired mind came up with an idea. She leaned forward. “Nazyr still has his magic. What if I told him he was allowed to use it to keep Valentyne from running? If such a situation were to arise.”
Gabriel rubbed his chin. “That’s not a bad plan. Nazyr would most likely be pleased to show his loyalty to you. So long as he understands it’s only in the case of such a situation.”
“Yes. Maybe tomorrow, you and I can go speak with each of them. And then get them transported to Starfall as soon as possible. I think it would be better if Nazyr is moved off the castle grounds sooner rather than later.”
“Agreed. If Anyka survives her wound and gets word that Nazyr is here and that he was instrumental in her downfall, she will put a bounty on his head.”
Ro had no love for the man, but she appreciated the help he’d given them recently and he was JT’s biological father. “Can he be moved in secret?”
“That should be easy enough to do. Perhaps he can even use his own magic to disguise himself.” Gabriel inched forward on his seat. “We could dress him as a guard and put him in the transport with Valentyne. No one would look twice at him. Or think we were moving two people.”
“That’s really good. I like that.” Ro laughed softly.
The apartment door opened and someone entered the foyer. Gabriel stood up. “Uldamar’s back.”
Ro got to her feet as well as the wizard came in. “You were down there a while. Everything go okay?”
Uldamar nodded. “It went well. So much so that I spoke with her longer than I meant to. She’s quite an interesting woman, your mother. She is most definitely not neph and I detected no other magic at play. She is who she says she is.”
With a sigh, Ro sat back down. That was settled then. “I guess that’s good. Better than thinking Anyka’s attempting to put a spy in our midst. Please sit, if you have more to tell us.”
Uldamar took the other end of the couch from Gabriel, who also returned to his seat. “Would you like my thoughts on this situation, your highness?”
“Very much so.” Ro was eager for input from anyone, frankly. She did not need another problem to deal with, and it felt like Star could turn into that very thing if anything went wrong.
“First, if I might ask a few questions. Your mother—”
“Please,” Ro said. “Call her Star. I don’t think of her as my mother, even though she is biologically.”
“I understand, your highness. Star is a lost child, in my opinion,” Uldamar said.
“From what she told me about herself and her life, she has never felt as though she truly belonged anywhere she was. Now, perhaps it’s bold of me to say this, but I believe that to be her fault.
She’s flitted from one place to another, never taking any responsibility that I can see. ”
“I’m a prime example of that. She handed me over to my Aunt Violet as an infant and never looked back.”
He frowned, his brows knitting together as his eyes filled with sympathy. “As hard as that might have been for both of you, I would say that we as a kingdom are grateful to Violet for raising you to be such a wonderful person.”
Ro smiled. “That’s because she’s such a wonderful person.”
“My thoughts exactly,” Uldamar said. “Might I ask what happened to your grandmother?”
“I’m assuming you mean Star’s mother. She wasn’t around.
Much like Star, she wasn’t married when she got pregnant.
I don’t know much about her. And Violet never talked much about her sister.
It was pretty obvious to me that Maggie, which was short for Magnolia, was persona non grata in that family.
She wasn’t to be talked about, and she certainly wasn’t someone to be looked up to. ”
“Your mo—that is, Star wouldn’t talk about her either. Do you know if your grandmother raised Star?”
“Like I said, I don’t know much about Maggie, but it’s my understanding that she disappeared from Star’s life when Star was eleven or twelve.
She had a slew of boyfriends but finally married a wealthy man.
He had enough money to send Star away to a girls’ school.
Star dropped out when she was sixteen and went her own way.
” Ro clasped her hands in her lap. She hadn’t thought about this family history for a long time.
She cleared her throat softly. “A year and a half later, she showed up at Violet’s with me in her arms.”
“I see,” Uldamar said, his tone gentle. “She was very young when she had you.”
“Yes.” Ro had been young when she’d had JT, but she’d still made something of herself.
“I apologize for asking so many deep, personal questions.” Uldamar’s expression held such empathy. “I only do so that I might understand Star better.”
He adjusted his robes. “Star isn’t about to go away. That much seems plain to me. She likes Summerton and she seems rather enamored with the fact that her daughter—which is how she refers to you constantly, your highness—is queen.”
Ro slouched to one side, resting her head on her fingertips. “Yeah, I got that sense, too.”
“Cutting her off could be disastrous. She wouldn’t take it well and I fear she would be more than willing to tell every citizen she crossed paths with exactly what you’d done to her. Regardless of how it was handled.”
Ro frowned. “I hate to agree, but you’re spot on. So what do I do about her?”
“I believe your son’s suggestion was correct. You must find a place for her. Some position that will keep her busy, make her feel important, and keep her on your side.”
“I need to think about that. Coming up with something that will keep her occupied without also making her feel like she’s got power is going to take some work.
I don't want her to get a big feeling about herself. Of course, she probably won’t last in whatever position she’s given, considering her track record. ”
“I understand,” Uldamar said. “I would be happy to help you come up with ideas, if you wish. Unless you’d prefer to think of another solution?”
“No, getting her a position of some kind is probably the best one, but it sounds as if that would require me to acknowledge her as my mother. Also, it feels like calling someone a doctor just because they took a first aid class. It’s not right.”
Gabriel’s brows bent. “Holding power often means making compromises. I hate that you’ve been put in this position, but Uldamar and JT are on to something.
Star needs to be occupied. Especially in light of everything else going on.
If Anyka doesn’t survive her injury and Beatryce becomes queen, Malveaux might fall into upheaval. ”
“Because the people won’t accept her?” Ro asked.
“I doubt the people will care, but those around Beatryce might feel differently. Namely, Anyka’s uncle, Ishmyel. If something were to happen to Beatryce, the throne would default to him. Beatryce has no heirs. Ishmyel is next in line.”