They hadn’t been seated long before a lithe, willowy woman in her early thirties arrived, pushing a silver cart laden with a variety of fruits, cheeses, and breads.
“Greetings, Your Grace.” The estate’s cook clasped her hands in front of her white linen gown, bending in a smooth curtsy. “I’m preparing some small glazed ham sandwiches as well, but thought this would tide your party over until they’re ready.”
“That sounds delightful.” Jax beamed. “It’s good to see you, Ellamae.” It had been only a few months since Ellamae had left the palace kitchens for her new post, but it appeared the sun and fresh air had treated the raven-haired woman well.
Placing the trays of appetizers on the table the group had claimed, Ellamae dusted her hands off in satisfaction. “Tonight, I’ll be serving smoked venison with royal jelly. I hope that is still to your liking, Your Grace.”
Jax already had a piece of gingerbread piled high with brie cheese in her mouth. “I can hardly wait,” she said, chewing through her embarrassment.
By the time Ellamae returned with the dish piled with shaved ham and buttermilk biscuits, the appetizers had been devoured down to the last crumb.
Despite all the eating going on, conversation flowed freely among the spirited group. Their successful escape from the palace and George’s encouraging recovery buoyed Jax and her friends, and an air of ease settled over the table. While their troubles weren’t entirely forgotten, it was nice to just enjoy each other’s company.
Charles was the first to rise from the table. “I should scrounge together some leftovers from the kitchen and bring them upstairs for George. He’ll likely be famished.”
Sabine rushed to her feet, sending her plate clattering. “I’ll come with you, Master Charles,” she squeaked.
Grinning, he flicked his wrist. “No need to call me ‘Master’, please. It makes me feel ancient.”
Jax tossed her napkin at her friend, who was several years younger than she. “That’s a forbidden phrase, Charles. We do not ‘feel old’ in this group.”
He bowed his head, his feathery blond hair obscuring his golden eyes. “Apologies, Duchess.”
Sabine scampered after Charles as he went to find George some sustenance, leaving Jax to enjoy Vita and Uma’s company.
“So much for reading by the pond,” Vita said with a snarky laugh, her mischievous gaze following their eager, young guest.
Uma reclined in her chair, stretching her neck back to catch every inch of sun. “She’s been wanting to go upstairs and sit in George’s room all morning. I’m surprised she even noticed the pond during our tour, she was so busy looking at the manor over her shoulder.”
A biting knot formed in Jax’s stomach as she listened to her friends joke about Sabine’s obvious infatuation with the Captain.
“Speaking of true love,” Vita said, her words yanking Jax’s attention into focus, “are you going to send word to Perry that you’ve gone into hiding?”
Her husband’s charming grin filled her mind and suddenly, all that remained in her chest was the ache of his absence. “I don’t want him to worry about me. He’s got enough going on at the moment.” I also cannot risk that information falling into the wrong hands or heard by enemy ears.
Vita cocked her head. “I suppose Perry isn’t as skilled as you are at prioritizing head over heart,” she scoffed.
The comment stung Jax more than she cared to admit. Of course, she missed Perry dearly, but what good would it do anyone if she sat around wallowing all day? They both had duchies to run, and the sooner they resolved all the political issues plaguing the realm, the sooner she could return to his arms.
Vita must have detected the hurt that flashed across Jax’s eyes. “I didn’t mean to imply you don’t care as much for him as he does for you…” She bit her lip as she scrambled to recover from her faux pas. “It’s just that Perry sometimes lets his emotions get the better of common sense. I-I was agreeing with your actions,” she stammered, her cheeks erupting with a violent flush.
Rising from her chair, Jax meandered over to the edge of the veranda, surveying the expansive meadow that stretched across the vast estate. “I know.” Over her shoulder, she gave Vita a tiny smile. “I sometimes wonder if that makes him a better person than I can ever hope to be.” She stared off into the distance. “How can I ever hope to be the partner he deserves if I have to hide so much from him?” As the words escaped her lips, she realized she wasn’t fretting over not telling him about her escape from the palace. Cornelius’s proclamation about his true reasons for giving the Duchy of Pettraud to Perry echoed in her ears. How was she going to spend the rest of their lives hiding from her husband the fact that his own father didn’t believe in him to succeed? That his own father had really entrusted the welfare of his duchy to a foreign ruler rather than his own blood?
Uma’s palm rested on her shoulder with a calming touch. “You are doing what you know to be best for your husband’s safety and success.”
Jax covered Uma’s hand with her own and squeezed it in wordless thanks. “I need to see to some business,” she announced to her friends, changing the subject. “I’ll come find you when I’m done, and you can show me the grounds.”
Vita’s crestfallen expression suggested she wanted to say more, but Uma gently shushed her and took her hand. “We’ve got a score to settle at the card table,” Uma said as she corralled Vita back inside.
After taking a few more deep breaths to satisfy her lungs, Jax wandered back inside the manor, finding the study Bernard had mentioned. Built-in shelves lined the four walls, packed with texts and scrolls, which Jax knew chronicled the Xavier family history. Many highlighted the great and noble deeds of Allonious Xavier during the Rebirth, filling Jax with pride at the role her ancestor had played in crippling the system of oppression established by the Ancient Faith. How ironic that the remnants of the once-corrupt religion now pledged to serve alongside Saphire as an ally in the upcoming war for equality and freedom.
Finding a clean roll of parchment, Jax settled in a chair facing the sweeping mahogany desk at the center of the room. She drafted a brief note to her court, stating that for her own safety, she would not be returning to the palace for some time.
I believe it is in Saphire’s best interest that I remain away from the palace, hidden from my enemies and allies. Should you need to contact me, you can send one of my father’s crowned falcons to find me, without fear of it being tracked. I will send any correspondence via the same route; however, I advise that our contact be limited. If the Ducal Guard finds anything conclusive about Raulph and the reason for his assault on the throne, please send a falcon immediately.
Rereading her looping script, she frowned at her vague report. Her courtiers would not be happy with her disappearing again without a word. She knew it was dangerous to keep testing the limits of their loyalty, but she prayed they’d understand. The palace had eyes and ears everywhere; if she had told them about her plans to leave the grounds, word would have traveled, regardless of how hard they strove to keep her departure a secret.
Fastening the scroll with her official seal, Jax moved onto her next task: informing Jaquobie of all that had happened. She wondered how much her High Courtier had learned through secondhand sources about her adventures this last month. She’d only just sent the War Council summons to the sovereigns a few weeks ago. Did the citizens of the realm know a potential war loomed over them all at her design? Jax shuddered at the rampant rumors that were sure to plunge the continent into chaos.
Knowing her message to Jaquobie could very well fall into the wrong hands, she forced herself to dance around the truth, using a code Jaquobie and her father had created back when there was an uprising of rogue nobles in Saphire.
I hope this finds you and Lysette enjoying the isles. Much has happened since we parted. You might find it amusing to hear I’ve discovered a few snakes in my garden. I’ve caught two so far. I think I know where they are breeding. I’m handling the ma
tter in the glen.
I hear this time of year the isles are full of singing birds. I find them annoying while at work, so please, do what you must to rid yourself of them. I think it is time to let natural selection take over, don’t you?
Jax suppressed a laugh as she read back the coded message. Anyone who intercepted this would think the scribe had gone a bit nutty, yet Jaquobie would know to equate snakes to an assassination plot, and that she’d figured out who was behind it. “Singing birds” referred to spies, and while she couldn’t be sure if Jaquobie would figure out that “at work” meant “at court,” she felt certain he would understand her reference that it was time for the people of Isla DeLacqua to select their own Governor Royale, and thus, the untrustworthy courtiers would no longer be required.
Jaquobie also knew the late Duke Xavier referred to Galensmore as “the glen,” and thus, would be the only person outside of her current company who would know where she was. She felt no hesitation in making him aware. Jaquobie had served her family faithfully and should he want to send his new bride back to the mainland for her safety whilst he dealt with the betrayal of the DeLacquan court, Jax knew he’d feel better knowing Lysette was under her protective custody.
Instead of pressing her family’s crest in molten wax to seal her note, Jax used the tip of her quill to etch a “J” in the wax with three lines hovering above it…another secret mark to depict the crown resting on her head.
Gathering her handiwork, Jax hurried out of the manor in the direction of the gatehouse stationed at the edge of the barrier. She had a hunch that Corporal Highriver had held onto the crowned falcon she’d sent earlier that morning. The bird’s speed and soaring height made it impossible to follow by foot or horse, and none of her father’s specially trained falcons had ever failed in a delivery. She’d send the letter to her courtiers by falcon, leaving Jaquobie’s coded message to be sent by a regular carrier hawk.
The tall meadow grasses licked at her skirts as she strode across the grounds. The chirps and hisses of invisible critters serenaded her as she made her way toward the barrier wall rising in the distance. With the manor well behind her, a startling thought popped into her head. This is the most secluded I’ve been since…well, ever.
At home in Saphire, she’d grown up with guards posted along every corridor, watching her from the shadows of every corner of a room. She had always been surrounded by people, whether they be advisors, servants, friends, guests…yet now, for the first time since she could remember, Jax felt very much alone.
Stopping in her tracks, she let her head fall back as she stared up at the cerulean blue sky. The sun had begun its afternoon descent on the western horizon, leaving a cloudless trail. Filling her lungs, Jax treasured the elusive sense of peace weaving its way through her. “So, this is what it’s like,” she said out loud, near giddy that no one else was around to hear her.
She wanted to lay down in the field, to stare up at the endless sky and wait for night to take over. She wanted to gaze at the canvas of stars against the indigo backdrop of darkness. Yet, the documents burned with urgency in her hand and coaxed her forward. Perhaps there would be time later to enjoy the solitude.
For now, the Duchess had things to do.
Chapter Eight
The door to the dining room splintered open just as Jax brought the sizzling smoked venison to her lips. She greeted the shadow emerging from the dark hall with a raised eyebrow, but motioned him to take a seat opposite her at the table.
The only one at the table to rise for the new arrival, Bernard dabbed at his mouth with his napkin. “Lord Brunovaris, I didn’t realize you would be joining us.” The Lord Chamberlain shot a questioning glance at Jax, as if asking if the man’s presence should truly be allowed.
Thanasis sank into the chair Jax had indicated, his lilac gaze calculating and alert. “Considering I have not made much of an effort these past weeks to be a part of this household, I place no blame on you, Lord Chamberlain.”
Bernard lowered himself into his seat on Jax’s left, confusion still lining his face. “I’m just glad to see you up and about, sir.”
A slight smirk unfurled on Thanasis’s lips at the allusion to his drunken habits of late.
On Jax’s right, Uma cleared her throat. “I don’t believe we’ve had the pleasure of formally meeting, Lord Brunovaris. I am Uma, the Duchess’s lady-in-waiting.”
The former Duke DeLacqua saluted her with two fingers. “I recall seeing you at the Duchess’s side during her wedding to Lord Pettr—Duke Pettraud. It is hard to forget such beauty.”
His flattery brought heat to Uma’s cheeks.
Their reluctant host chuckled before continuing. “And please, there is no need for formalities in this house. You may call me Thanasis, just like I’ve been telling the Lord Chamberlain to do since I arrived.”
Bernard’s face colored to mirror Uma’s.
“We are all friends here, after all,” Jax said, amused by the lord’s demeanor. “Thanasis, I’d like to introduce Vita Bellarose, my lady’s maid, and Lady Sabine Arceneaux. Sabine accompanied my delegation from her home in Pettraud.”
The DeLacquan raised a silver goblet to both women in greeting. “This table hasn’t looked so festive in, well, ever.” With a gurgling laugh, he tossed back his drink.
Bernard’s lips pressed together at the act. Jax imagined the poor Lord Chamberlain thought his charge was about to embarrass him. Julian and Martán, whom Jax had invited to partake in the festivities, shifted in their chairs with wariness at Thanasis’s behavior.
Lifting her fork to her mouth once more, Jax said, “We were just about ready to sample the delightful feast Mistress Ellamae crafted. You arrived just in time.”
Vita interrupted her enthusiastic chewing to snort. “Or there wouldn’t have been any left, your Lordship.”
Even with the appearance of the former Duke, the dinner was surprisingly jovial. Thanasis regaled Vita, Uma, and Sabine with anecdotes of letters he received from Academy instructors, lamenting the mischief his daughter and Jax had caused during their years in attendance. Keenly aware of the central person Thanasis omitted from these tales, Jax ate most of her meal in silence, grateful that he took on the burden of entertaining the group. She relived the memories Thanasis spoke of in her own mind, picturing Carriena and Aranelda grinning deviously by her side whenever one of their plans went awry. Whether it was sneaking into the headmaster’s private chambers to find his hidden bottles of mead or setting mice loose in the lecture hall so their exams would be postponed, her days at the Academy had been carefree and filled with juvenile escapades. How had it all gone so wrong for their merry little group?
“I nearly shot through the carriage roof when Carriena told me on the way home from Jacqueline’s wedding that she planned to return to the Academy to teach.” Thanasis’s raucous laughter jarred Jax’s senses. “I spent so much time reminding Carriena when she was younger of how incredible an opportunity she had to study there, the irony of it all nearly killed me.”
“Have you heard from Lady Carriena recently?” Uma asked. She had accompanied Jax to the Academy as her lady’s maid, but rarely ever involved herself in her charge’s shenanigans as the two women hadn’t grown close until Jax’s mid-twenties. “How is she settling into life as a professor?”
Jax reengaged in the conversation, eager to hear what her friend was up to.
Thanasis’s charming façade faltered for a moment, allowing a peek at his embarrassment. “I’m afraid I haven’t heard from my daughter of late.” He pulled at the collar of his tunic.
It was common knowledge among Jax’s friends that Lady Carriena never wanted to assume the throne of Isla DeLacqua and had been relieved when the duchy had transferred over to Saphire. However, Thanasis’s reaction suggested Carriena may not yet have forgiven her father for the mistakes that led them to seek such a drastic solution.
Sabine interrupted the uncomfortable silence that followed Thanasis’s admission with a c
ontented sigh. “These stewed potatoes are a treat.” Her obvious enjoyment of her meal turned to awkwardness when she seemed to realize that she’d disrupted a touchy subject.
Jumping to her aid, Vita scooped a bite of creamed spinach into her mouth and swallowed. “Indeed, much better than all the dried fruits we’ve been feeding you during our travels.”
Sabine’s blush deepened. “There is no need to worry. I’ve had more adventures since meeting Jacqueline than I’ve had in my entire life.” She giggled. “That more than makes up for the terribly bland food.”
An air of contentment drifted over Jax as she listened to her friends’ idle chatter for the rest of the meal. Uma, confident and strong, had grown into her role as lady-in-waiting perfectly. As for Vita, the aristocratic attitude in evidence when she arrived at the palace had all but vanished, as the young woman had learned to understand the importance of helping others rather than only one’s self. Sabine, who had been a stranger to Jax just mere weeks ago, seemed to blossom like a rose in the dawn away from the dreary confines of her former life as Cornelius Pettraud’s ward.
Bernard placed his fork and knife across his empty plate and wiped his mouth with a soft napkin. “I have some business to attend to for the evening, but before I depart, is there anything you ladies require?” He surveyed the Saphirian visitors. “You didn’t bring much with you.”
Uma and Vita shot feigned accusatory glances at Jax. “I think we’ll manage to survive,” Vita said with a wry snort.
A bashful grin plastered itself on Jax’s face. “Perhaps we can raid Lady Carriena’s closet for the necessary items. I’m sure she didn’t take all her garments with her to the Academy?” She looked to Thanasis for confirmation.
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