by Patty Jansen
In the evening, she and Henrik shared a meal with the three boys. From not having a family, Nellie had gone to being a favourite auntie for three lost boys.
Nellie didn’t venture into the kitchen until a few days later. To her sadness, Dora was gone. Apparently the Duke of Aroden had needed a cook. Nellie intended to write to Dora, but in a way, she was afraid to find out just how much her friend had been involved with the shepherd and whether she had betrayed Nellie, and if so whether it had been by choice or because she was scared. Maybe it was best to leave things as they were.
Almost everyone else was back working there, including Maartje, who looked like she had received a significant promotion out of the scullery and into the main kitchen. She was, she said, training to be a baker.
Nellie asked about Els, when she noticed that Maartje’s older sister was not there.
After his unwitting involvement in the poisoning of citizens for the shepherd had become clear, Mr Oliver had declared he had enough of ruling the shop. Who better to take over his legal gin distillery than someone who already knew everything about making gin?
Nellie had to smile when she heard people talk about “the handsome young Lurezian man” who now ran the distillery with his “fair-haired Scandian lady.” Gisele was more comfortable facing the world as Gerard.
Madame Sabine left the palace without further ado. After having boasted that she would go back to Burovia and her influential friends, or to Lurezia and her family who was related to the king, she chose to stay in town, moving into a stately house in the noble quarter. She was a strange woman.
The two boys continued to live in the palace and take lessons with Bruno. The council also wrote to neighbouring countries to find a magic teacher for the young prince.
Mistress Luisa came all the way from Senoza and arrived in town in the middle of a wave of people returning to the city after having fled on the shepherd’s strong “suggestion”. Her skin was as dark as Mustafa’s too-strong tea and her hair black and bushy. She spent long days with Bruno in a room in the palace cellar and he was always very tired after those sessions. He had so much to practice, and a lot looked like training the dragon like a dog: walk behind the prince, sit still when waiting, don’t frighten visitors.
Mistress Luisa assured Nellie that flying on the dragon’s back was a long time away, a feat reserved for only the strongest magicians.
Nellie had to smile at hearing that.
Other people who returned to town included Jantien’s husband. He brought stories of having fled murderous mercenaries. He’d been very lucky to survive. Many of the other refugees had never made it to their intended destinations.
After the death of Shepherd Wilfridus, two of the church’s senior deacons fled the city, leaving the church in the hands of a junior deacon and a couple of visiting monks. The church was in disarray.
Nellie went to the main church every day. She helped to clean and to pack up all of Shepherd Wilfridus’ possessions. In his house, at the back of the church, they found many books on magic.
A few days later, when she came to the church, a familiar figure greeted her.
“Shepherd Adrianus!” She ran to him and hugged him.
He told her he’d been taken to one of the monasteries and had seen with his own eyes how the Regent’s men stopped people leaving or entering the city. “They said it was because they wanted to stop magic, but that did not justify the cruelty I saw. I’m deeply ashamed that I ever supported such a man. I will need to beg the town for forgiveness.”
He did just that a week later, when during the ceremony that saw him elevated to head of the Church of the Triune, he sank to his knees facing the audience—and the church was full to bursting—and pleaded with them to forgive him and not to hesitate to tell him if he ever strayed from the path again.
Nellie and Henrik sat in the front row with Bruno, and after the service, they went to the shepherd’s house to ask him for a favour.
The following spring, everyone returned to the church for a service of a very different kind.
Before the eyes of the town elders and the packed congregation which included the young king, Nellie and Henrik exchanged their vows of marriage.
As recently instated head of the palace guards, Henrik wore his uniform. He’d decided that his beard was going to stay.
Nellie wore a pretty and elegant dress in pale blue, with hundreds of little beads adorning the skirt.
Henrik’s daughters and Master Thiele were witnesses. Casper and Frederick led the parade. Having just turned fifteen, Bruno signed the document.
He was fast turning into a knowledgeable young man, and rarely went anywhere without Mistress Luisa, who was about to start teaching other children. Nellie had been happy to hear that Anneke was one of them.
Their troubles were far from over. For one, where there were nobles and priests, there were scandals and scheming. That would never change.
The church had received a letter from The Most Holy Father of the Belaman Church, demanding that reparations be paid for the damage to the recently reopened church building in Saardam.
Madame Sabine had taken off suddenly. Rumours went that she had gone to make reparations with the Burovian king’s brother, whose new young wife Baroness Hestia had unexpectedly given birth not three months after their wedding. The nobles were outraged.
And people continued to be outraged at the newfangled exploits of the Science Guild.
But Mustafa reopened his animal garden and many people came through the gates to see and hear the foul-mouthed parrots. He even bought a plot of land opposite the entrance, where he built a house especially for Esme. At all times—except when she was taking children on rides through the city—she could be seen through the windows, and she would stick her trunk through the gaps to beg for carrots. And, in a happy ending for her, Mustafa hired Koby to help him.
The river traders started to return to the harbour.
And in summer, a letter arrived at the palace that spoke of an upcoming visit from a ship of the Eastern Trader office. The letter was short on detail, but Bruno was sure his father would be on board.
Saardam once more took its place as a hub where the world met and occasionally disagreed, but mostly got along just fine.
Thanks for reading
Thank you for reading the Dragonspeaker Chronicles. Have you read the Ghostspeaker Chronicles yet? That series covers the story of Queen Johanna and King Roald.
About the Author
Patty Jansen lives in Sydney, Australia, where she spends most of her time writing Science Fiction and Fantasy.
Her story This Peaceful State of War placed first in the second quarter of the Writers of the Future contest and was published in their 27th anthology. She has also sold fiction to genre magazines such as Analog Science Fiction and Fact, Redstone SF and Aurealis.
Patty has written over twenty novels in both Science Fiction and Fantasy, including the Icefire Trilogy and the Ambassador series.
pattyjansen.com
More By This Author
Quick link to all Patty Jansen’s books
In the Earth-Gamra space-opera universe
RETURN OF THE AGHYRIANS
Watcher’s Web
Trader’s Honour
Soldier’s Duty
Heir’s Revenge
The Return of the Aghyrians Omnibus
The Far Horizon (For younger readers)
AMBASSADOR
Seeing Red
The Sahara Conspiracy
Raising Hell
Changing Fate
Coming Home
Blue Diamond Sky
The Enemy Within
The Last Frontier
The Alabaster Army
Hard Science Fiction
In the ISF-Allion universe
Shifting Reality
Shifting Infinity
Charlotte’s Army
Juno Rising
SPACE AGENT JONATHAN BARTELL
Contamination
/> Observation
Extermination
Epic Fantasy
GHOSTSPEAKER CHRONICLES
(formerly For Queen And Country)
Innocence Lost
Willow Witch
The Idiot King
Fire Wizard
The Dragon Prince
The Necromancer’s Daughter
Ghostspeaker Chronicles Books 1-3
DRAGONSPEAKER CHRONICLES
The Bastard Prince
The Wizard Priest
The Dragon King
Epic, Post-apocalyptic Fantasy
ICEFIRE TRILOGY
Fire & Ice
Dust & Rain
Blood & Tears
The Icefire Trilogy Omnibus
MOONFIRE TRILOGY
Sand & Storm
Sea & Sky
Moon & Earth
Short story collections
Out Of Here
New Horizons
Self-publishing (Non-fiction)
Self-publishing Unboxed
Mailing Lists Unboxed
Going Wide Unboxed
Visit the author’s website at http://pattyjansen.com and register for a newsletter to keep up-to-date with new releases.
