Sharon Shinn - Reader And Raelynx

“Which we hope will not be for a very long time.”

He looked suddenly tired. “I pray the gods at least let me survive this war. At least let me give her that much-a kingdom that is whole, if wounded.”

“I think I should stay in Ghosenhall,” Senneth said.

“And I say you should go to Danan Hall,” Baryn replied. “Attend your brother’s wedding. Your king commands you.”

ACCORDINGLY, five days after they had returned from Carrebos, Senneth and Tayse were traveling again. A much different journey this time, she thought. With just two of them to consider, they moved speedily and with utter efficiency. They were accustomed to each other’s strengths by now, so they never had to discuss where to make camp (Tayse always chose some easily defended site) or who would make the fire (Senneth merely had to glance at a pile of kindling). They could, if they needed to, communicate merely with glances and gestures, and whenever they came upon other travelers on the road, they always agreed by some wordless communion whether to pause and share information or simply ride on by.

Both of them were capable of long stretches of utter silence. Senneth found it easy to lose herself in her thoughts, and Tayse was always so interested in the terrain around them that he never seemed to lack for occupation. So they could have passed the entire journey without exchanging a word-but instead, they talked for almost every mile.

Tayse wanted to know if she was nervous about seeing her brothers again. Oh, I think I got past both nervousness and rage sometime last summer. But I wouldn’t say I’m excited at the prospect. Except, of course, for seeing Will . She asked how the Riders had taken the news of Amalie’s magical heritage. Quietly. I think some of them don’t care and some of them are still deciding how they feel, but not one of them would desert the king at this hour because of it. He wanted an update on Jerril’s success with the recruits from Carrebos; she asked if he thought the regent would be the commanding officer on the field when war finally swept into Ghosenhall.

They talked about Ellynor. “She seems cautiously happy to be here,” Tayse remarked. “As if she still thinks she might be dreaming the whole thing, or there might be a monster lurking somewhere in one of the shadows, but otherwise mighty pleased with her new life.”

They talked about Valri. “I’ve guarded some pretty dangerous secrets in my time, but I couldn’t have kept this one for so long,” Senneth confessed. “It makes me respect her more but also fear her a little. What strength of will she has! Anyone with that kind of determination is dangerous.”

They talked about Amalie. “She’s too young to bear the burdens that will be thrust on her if war comes,” Tayse said. “But there’s something unbreakable about her. I would be the first Rider to swear fealty to her if Baryn died.”

They talked about Cammon. “Something happened to him while we were gone,” Senneth said. “And I don’t know what.”

They were on Danalustrous land by now, having survived a very thorough inspection at the border, and needed only half a day to arrive at the Hall. Which is good, Senneth thought, since the wedding is tomorrow.

Tayse gave her a questioning look. “You think Cammon was physically hurt?”

“No. Something struck him to the heart.”

“Something more than the startling revelation about his princess and his enemy?” Tayse said in an ironic voice.

She laughed. “Something more.”

“Why do you think it?”

“Because he avoided me the whole time we were there-once he’d told me his great news, of course. You know Cammon. Usually he’s always underfoot, and even more so if any of us have been absent for any length of time. But we were gone more than two weeks and preparing to ride out again, and we only saw him for a few minutes now and then.”

Tayse reviewed his own recent history. “I hadn’t realized it, but you’re right.”

“And Justin said Cammon avoided him those last few days before you and I got back. And you can always find Cammon somewhere in Justin’s vicinity.”

“Do you think he’s hiding something that he doesn’t want you to discover? That he did something you would condemn?”

In a very soft voice she replied, “I think he’s falling in love with Amalie, and he can’t help it, and he doesn’t want me to know.”

Tayse shrugged. “So a mystic becomes devoted to the princess. That’s not such a terrible thing. If he loves her, he will serve her with all his heart.”

She gave him a wide-eyed stare. “I’m even more afraid that Amalie is falling in love with him. And he knows that, too.”

Tayse’s eyes narrowed. “Do you seriously think she would take him as her lover?”

“I think that both Amalie and Cammon have led such unconventional lives that something that seems impossible to us does not seem particularly consequential to them.”

He smiled. “Many men have dared to love women whom they had no reasonable hope of winning.”

She laughed, but grew instantly grave. “This is a little more outrageous than a serramarra and a King’s Rider! She will be queen, and he is nobody. You hold a respectable position that my brothers can admire, but Cammon can’t even claim that distinction.”

Tayse didn’t seem nearly as concerned as she was, which she found both calming and exasperating. “Say it happens. She takes him to her bed. What are you afraid of? That she will bear his child?”

“Sweet gods, I hadn’t even gotten that far in my calculations! No, I’m afraid that a number of her noble-born suitors might decline to marry her if it was discovered she had taken a lover.”

“You’re strangely moralistic for a woman who has defied every law of her own society,” he commented.

She exhaled a breath of laughter. “I am, am I not? Does that make me hypocritical? It is just that the laws I disregarded myself seem to have been designed to apply to Amalie.”

“And I would say she can contravene them with even more impunity. So she has a lover. So she has a dozen. Does that truly ruin her marriage prospects? A man who loved her, or a man who wished to be king, wouldn’t care at all.”

Senneth had never thought of it that way. “I suppose you’re right. But there are plenty of serramar who might care less about virginity and more about her choice of bedmates. If Cammon were of noble blood, they might not cavil so much. And if she has fewer candidates to choose from, I think it will be harder for her to find the right husband.”

He turned his head to give her a long, half-smiling appraisal. “And tell me again, please, why it is so critical that Amalie marries?”

She practically stared at him. “Because the whole kingdom is watching her and wondering if she is suitable to be queen! Because a stable alliance with a strong House will mollify the marlords-we hope-and help us stave off the possibility of war.”

“We are already going to war,” he pointed out. “There is a navy collecting outside of Forten City. Marry her off tomorrow, and Ghosenhall will still be under attack. Why does she need to wed?”

She absolutely had no answer for that. It had seemed to make such perfect sense, back when she and Valri and Baryn were talking strategy. Find Amalie a husband, show the marlords that she was a fit and fertile princess, strengthen the alliances, avert war. But if war were to come anyway…

“If you are so determined to get her a bridegroom, wait till the war is over,” Tayse recommended. “Reward some House that shows exemplary service to the crown. But I see no need for Amalie to marry where she has no inclination. At this stage, a husband could divide her loyalties and scheme to influence her in ways that you do not desire. She is young, yes, but she is already surrounded by advisors who are utterly faithful and united in their views. Why bring in another voice? Why bother with a husband at all?”