The Iverneans? Well, they couldn't drive them out of the country, could they? Even if what they had tried was the height of impudence. Making overtures to a girl who was spoken for? The nerve! But they would leave soon, anyway.
Nobody cared what the Iverneans themselves thought about it, as long as they put on a brave face. So they had failed with Maria? Well, it's not like they were all that interested. And as for Wellster, well, at least they had a peace treaty.
Altres Lort pulled a diplomatic stunt and dumped the Iverneans on Milia. Let Her Majesty handle them. Milia didn't mind. She had her hands full with preparing for her son's coronation.
***
The coronation. A spectacular event sure to impress even the most hardcore skeptic. But what would it be like for a child?
Altres Lort needed to have a serious conversation about that with Aldon Peters. Just imagine: rituals, regalia, and a small boy who might not even bear the weight of the crown.
They would have to trim the sails and get rid of as much of the ceremony as possible while retaining the coronation's legal standing in the eyes of Aldonai and, most importantly, the people—the nobility.
Otherwise, some scumbag would definitely start protesting, start a riot, try to use the opportunity... Altres knew that he couldn't crush every last one of them. Human nature was such that someone would always want more power or money or maybe get a grudge like Alcine.
Therefore, everything must be impeccable.
Aldon Peters calmed the count, telling him that a shortened version of the ceremony already existed, even citing a few instances from history.
It wasn't the first time a child ascended the throne. He would be crowned, while a regent... Ostensibly, only one regent was supposed to exist at a time, usually the queen mother. But Milia...
Altres decided to talk to Her Majesty. As bad luck would have it, on his way back, he stumbled across Her Highness Lydia.
Now, that was a person he really didn't want to see. She managed to press all his buttons and caused him no end of frustration.
Altres had no idea why, not being especially introspective, and simply preferred to give her a wide birth, especially since their feelings seemed mutual, going by the glare of her grey eyes.
If anyone told Altres and Lydia that many a grand romance started off that way, they would have laughed it off. How could they like each other, that haughty bastard and that mousy librarian? Never!
But there was no one to tell them that.
Lily, who could blurt out something in that vein, spent all her time in the hospital, Miguel had fled the abundance of women and hid in the embassy, and Milia was simply too polite to say anything like that.
Altres gave everyone a polite bow and asked to be left one on one with Milia.
The ladies obeyed, pouring out of the door like a swarm of butterflies. Altres stared at the queen, silent, until Milia gestured at a chair next to her.
"Alt, sit down, please. You're scaring me."
Altres gave her a sad sigh.
"Milia, I'd like to talk about the coronation."
"What's there to talk about? Edwin will be king; you'll be regent...what's wrong?"
Something was, definitely. Like, say, the damnable Assembly, and then the aldon's hint...
Of course, Milia would be much more convenient for them as a regent than Altres. Yet he would still be the one to rule, and running to the queen every single time he needed to sign something would be chaos.
"That's what I wanted. But the Assembly objects."
Milia glared at him.
"Not likely! It's not their business. Altres, I trust you!" Then she added, softer and pleadingly, "Altres, dear, I'll never make it. I just can't! Lily keeps telling me I must be strong for my children, but I can't, not all the time. Sooner or later, they'll break me... I just know that nothing good will come of it. Please, don't make me do it!"
Altres felt relieved.
"Millie, do you believe in me?"
"Yes."
She didn't hesitate for a second. Milia really did have faith in her brother-in-law.
How could he throw her to those vultures when she was so helpless?
"Millie, I can handle it, but we'll need to put up a small performance for the Assembly."
Milia slowly nodded.
"I'll hate it, won't I?"
"Absolutely."
"But I have no choice?"
"We can't have it both ways."
Milia gave him a bitter smile.
"As Lily says, one time is better than all the time. What should I do?"
Altres paused for a few minutes and explained.
Milia argued for a while, but finally sighed and gave up. What else could she do?
***
And that's when Altres bumped into Lydia in a corridor.
"May I? "
"Go ahead, Your Highness."
The jester pulled off an especially spectacular bow, gallant and mocking at the same time. That used to be his job, after all. It worked well for Lydia, who hissed like a cat.
After something like that, containing herself was impossible.
"May I congratulate the new regent of Wellster?"
"Not yet, Your Highness. Maybe after the coronation..."
"Who cares? Everyone already knows who'll really rule," Lydia parried.
"The one who can handle this burden," the jester retorted, unwilling to give up. "The one who can, say, keep the neighbors who wish only the best for Wellster at bay."
His implication didn't go unnoticed. Lydia flared up.
"Are you the best for Wellster, then?"
"You'll have to ask the people."
"They've already given you a rather expressive moniker."
"And more than one, Your Highness. But didn't your subjects give you one, too?"
Lydia stomped her foot.
"My nicknames had something to do with my looks, and you... You're the King's Wolf!"
"And also the jackal, the butcher, the monster, lots of things," Altres agreed. "So what?"
"Really, why would you care?"
"I wouldn't, Your Highness, as long as Wellster exists."
"I'm sure that without you, it will be destroyed."
"It will be, or divided, at least," Lort shot back, unexpectedly pleased with their sparring. "Attempts have been made. Her Highness Maria..."
That struck home.
"Miguel really does like her!"
"Both Her Highness and her dowry, I'm sure," Altres said, narrowing his eyes. "Thankfully, the princess is a woman of integrity."
"What are you implying?" Lydia started hissing again.
That was too much.
Altres just couldn't resist.
"This."
The second kiss was no worse than the first, although quite a bit longer—there was no need to hurry.
They forgot all around them, and Lydia's ashen locks spilled over the jester's leather jerkin as if marking their territory.
They came apart only several minutes later.
Lydia leaned against the wall, breathing heavily.
Altres shook his head.
"That wasn't even an implication."
Slap!
The blow turned out to be surprisingly strong.
Lydia took off. As she marched, she imagined trampling the jester into the floor.
Rascal! Knave! Ill-behaved lout!
***
Altres rubbed his cheek.
That was certainly a novel experience for him. He supposed that Her Highness was similar to Lilian Earton in some ways, being clever and beautiful.
Still, she was a princess.
What are you thinking about, you idiot? You have an Assembly session ahead.
Altres pulled himself together and walked forward. He had a veritable mountain of work ahead of him.
***
"Lily, I have to talk to you."
Lily looked at Her Highness.
Lydia was pale with red blotches on her cheekbo
nes. She was pacing the room to and fro. What could have happened?
"Lydia?"
The princess sighed.
Mustering up resolve for that conversation took some effort, but she needed to talk.
She had no mother, her brothers were likely to turn a deaf ear to her turmoil in the best case, and in the worst, challenge Altres Lort. She wasn't sure how it might end, but it definitely wasn't anything good.
Whom else could she talk to? The court ladies? That wasn't even funny. Who in their right mind would present anyone with such a prime piece of blackmail material? And maids and ladies-in-waiting would be no better, either. No, she needed to keep her mouth shut. There was one problem: she couldn't.
She needed advice, and Lilian Earton was the woman for the job.
Lydia had already realized that Lilian was a decent human being with her own complex yet understandable codex of honor. If she gave her word, she would keep Lydia's problems secret.
True, two couldn't keep a secret, but there had been two sides in that kiss, so another person in on the story wouldn't change matters much.
"Lily, promise that you won't tell it even to your husband."
"Does it have anything to do with the national security of Ativerna?"
Friendship and politics didn't go hand to hand. She remembered the history of her own world.
Russian tsar Alexander the Third had said that Russia had two allies: its army and its fleet, while Lord Palmerston famously declared that England had no eternal friends, only perpetual interests. Here, the names of the countries were different, but the gist of the saying still held true.
"No," Lydia said, shaking her head. "It's...personal."
Lily tossed her head.
"Then, I promise. Anything personal will stay between the two of us."
Lydia all but collapsed into a chair.
"I kissed Count Lort today."
It was a good thing that Lily was sitting down and the furniture was solid enough, made from oak.
"Whom?"
"Count Lort."
"Altres?"
Lydia stomped her foot.
"Are you mocking me?"
"No, I'm just shocked," Lily confessed. "Do you like him?"
"He's arrogant, shameless, presumptuous, repulsive—"
"I get it. You do."
"Lily!"
"Lydia, honey, if you didn't, you would have brushed it off and forgotten all about it. It's not like it was your first kiss...or..."
Lydia was blushing furiously. Lily cursed and slammed her fist against the armrest of her couch. Nanook turned his head but quickly realized that his mistress was just angry and he had nobody to punish... Well, let them live, for now.
"Lydia, how come?"
Lily was looking at her with barely concealed sympathy. It all made sense, though. Lydia had been considered ugly up to a certain point, had lots of brothers, plus her title... Why would anyone court her? And then came Altres Lort with his kisses.
Ugh, he must have spoiled the poor girl's first-ever experience. Oh, had he?
"It was an accident," Lydia said through her teeth. "We had a fight. A big one."
"Does it happen often?"
Lydia faltered. Still, Lily wasn't embarrassed. Doctors were taught to do a lot of things, including gathering information, and they were as good as any detective, maybe even better. They would sink their teeth into a hapless patient worse than any piranha, biting down to the bone, but they would get the truth.
After all, that was the only way to learn the origin of the disease.
So Lily got to the bottom of the entire story, starting with the first kiss...and realized that she couldn't keep it secret from her husband. Not because she was bitchy like that—it's just that it really did concern Ativerna's security.
If Altres Lort was interested in Lydia—and he was, as he'd never kiss a random girl just like that, he'd find a different way...
If Lydia was interested in the King's Butcher—and she was, it was clear, considering how flustered she was and the fact that Altres Lort was actually a man who could spark any woman's attention...
Yes, he wasn't popular in Wellster; such was his job. No, not his looks; it was his job that prevented women from noticing how smart, strong, and loyal he was. Lily, on the other hand, could see him for what he was, and if not for her husband, might easily take an interest in him herself.
Appearance was a trifle thing; many handsome men and pretty ladies were empty shells.
Lydia, however?
Going by her frustrated snorting and sniffling, her shining eyes and nervously squeezed fingers, Lydia had noticed him as well. Lily had no idea if that would turn into anything more, but Altres was sure to become regent, and if Lydia...
Could Her Highness marry a regent? They might not have married her off to a common count; there was no shortage of them. A regent, though, was an almost absolute sovereign of Wellster for the next fifteen years or so.
That would be a good match; Lily was sure of that.
But what would she do? As a politician, she should derail that marriage. But as a friend?
She chose the second option. She was a woman and a doctor. She would never hurt Lydia. Instead, Lily embraced the girl and patted her head.
"Calm down, sweetie pie. Everything will be all right."
"Pie?"
"Yep, you're just as darling and pretty."
Lydia sniffled, but simmered down, drank herb tea with Lily, ate some cakes, and discussed Altres Lort in detail.
Lily wasn't sure if the princess was satisfied with the discussion, but at least she didn't look worried anymore. Then she went upstairs to mull everything over, recover some more, and pick the right course of action.
Lily, in turn, went to see Erando Losan. She wasn't going to break her word, not quite. Any personal matters would have stayed between her and Lydia—if, say, the princess had sinned with a valet. Count Lort, however, was an important man. She couldn't stay silent about him. That was a matter of politics.
She would have to spill the beans; there was no getting around that.
***
"So listen to me, Erando..."
As an attending physician, Lily had long since gotten used to addressing any of her patients by name. She was respectful enough but had no wish to waste time on titles and ceremonies.
She'd rather use it to apply a dressing.
Marquis Losan turned out to be quite interested in her news.
"Do you think it might grow into...something more?"
"I'm quite sure," Lily nodded.
"Hmm. Interesting. Thank you, Lilian."
Lily snickered.
So the country wouldn't forget her?
"Don't try to outmaneuver Lort, Marquis."
Erando grimaced.
"I understand that. Even an alliance like that can be made to benefit Ativerna."
"How?" Lily was sincerely surprised.
The veteran diplomat allowed himself to smile.
"There are certain ways."
Lily didn't pressure him for details. Whatever.
Maybe he was going to find someone to seduce Lort or Lydia; maybe it was something else. Sometimes, it was easier to stay ignorant. At least her conscience would be clean.
Lily understood that intrigues were an integral part of politics, and so were pitfalls and currents. So what? It was still better than dealing with someone like Robert Alcine. At least she had advance knowledge.
So should she also tell Jerisson?
That question didn't even occur to Lily.
Why wouldn't she?
***
However, she didn't. First, she had to deal with a ton of business during the day, and in the evening, she had to spend time with Miranda.
"Mama, why are people like that?"
"Like what? Walking on two feet? Talking? What do you mean?"
Lily put away the notebook she used to calculate the funds necessary to open a decent hospital in Wellster and looked
at her daughter. Mirrie sniffed and climbed in Lily's lap the way she used to do in Earton.
She, Lily, the big armchair, the fireplace, and two dogs asleep by their feet made up a peaceful sight.
"They're awful," the girl said firmly.
Lily chuckled.
"Honey, you're not alone in thinking that. As a wise man once said, the more I learn about people, the more I like dogs."
"He really was wise." Miranda sighed.
Lily pulled out a strand of her hair from under her daughter's backside (no matter how she braided it, it always got out) and drew the girl closer.
"What's wrong, little one?"
"Mama...do you know how many people died here, in the palace?"
"Many." Lily sighed.
Alcine hadn't played games, and neither had his mercenaries.
No, they didn't slaughter indiscriminately, but a lot of servants, soldiers, royal guards, and courtiers had lost their lives, not to mention the people who were tortured.
"I talked to the girls..."
"The princesses?"
"Yes. They're shocked."
Lily made a mental note to discuss it with Milia. The girls needed care and a mother, even if not a biological one. The queen had enough warmth in her heart for at least forty children.
"Why?"
"Several of their maids were killed. And Albitta... Mama, she really deserved death!"
"Why?"
Lily didn't doubt that she had. But why did her child think so?
"Jane said...she dared to ask their mother what would happen to them. Albitta visited them once."
"All right. So?"
"Albitta slapped her and said she didn't care about the girls' fate. They didn't care about her, and neither would she care about them. They would be either sold off into marriage, sent to a convent, or even killed off quietly."
Lily gritted her teeth. Damn it!
They were still little, the eldest one no older than thirteen, barely older than Miranda. Lily imagined anyone saying something like that to her own daughter. That person might get a chance to speak their mind, but not to survive afterward.
"I can see how the girls might not like that," she commented dryly.
Her mother's tone didn't fool Miranda.
"Mama..."
"I'll talk to Milia. You can tell your friends that nothing like that will happen to them. Milia is no monster. They will grow up in the palace with all the privileges befitting princesses and then marry. I can't promise all of them will love their husbands, but their opinions will be taken into account."
The Road of Kings: A Strong Woman in the Middle Ages (A Medieval Tale Book 8) Page 29
