His mother hadn’t forgiven Thibault, even though he explained how hard he’d tried. She left Talla to go live with her sister, leaving the unfinished cloth behind.
With a sigh, he took the cloth off the cage, revealing eight crows, each with a different-colored string tied to a foot. A bag of seeds and bread crumbs sat under the cage, and Thib fed the birds, murmuring to them.
“My darlings,” he said. “I have a mission for you tonight, so you need to be well fed. Eat your fill.”
While the birds attacked the pile of food, he went to the makeshift desk by the fireplace, a simple board lying across two stacks of bricks. A supply of thin pieces of parchment and quill pens lay in the center of the board.
After only a few moments, he’d written coded instructions to his men, a handful of spies scattered around the kingdom. When seven scraps of paper had been fastened, each one to a crow’s leg, he sent seven of the birds out from the small window in the upper corner of the room. By tomorrow night, the Elements willing, all would find their targets.
One last bird was left in the cage, a white piece of yarn around its leg. Thibault took the creature out, and it settled itself on his shoulder.
The last message was the hardest to write and the one he’d hoped he’d never have to compose. How could he tell a cloistered monk his brother was unfit to be King?
****
Dinner two nights after the royal family arrived at the Autumn Palace was not the event Mariana expected.
Traditionally, this meal was a way for important nobles to acknowledge the sovereign had arrived in the area and an opportunity for them to renew their pledges of fealty. According to Patroness Leonore Louise, the governess for both Ursula and Mariana, historically, whenever the King changed residences, some of the higher nobles would consider this a chance to rebel and attempt to take the throne for themselves.
To keep from having to quell rebellion every few months, the Kings of Valborough had begun inviting the highest nobles in the area to a Fealty Dinner. This served both sides, as the King would receive oaths of loyalty, and the nobles would receive, in turn, favors, land, or some other boon. During these dinners, if the noble family had done an extraordinary service for the crown, often a marriage would be arranged.
Before dinner, Mariana paced her sitting room, awaiting her father’s announcement it was time for the family to present themselves to the guests. She hated this waiting because she never knew exactly who would be in attendance until she stood in the dining room doorway to be presented.
Tonight, she expected several unmarried Presumptives would be here, along with their parents.
Both Mariana and Ursula were at least one year past their official debut into society, and neither had received a serious marriage proposal. Unlike Liliana and Ramone, the two children presumed most likely to be strong enough to take the throne on their father’s death, the two younger girls had not had engagements planned for them from the moment they were born.
Tonight would traditionally be the time the King and Queen would audition suitors for them. It wasn’t quite as blatant as that, but Mariana had seen what happened last year with this dinner, when Nicholas Walter, Rieravo of Tynan, spent the evening talking and flirting with Ursula, only to admit later he was engaged to Edwinna, the Dralless of Dickson who owed his uncle several months’ back rent.
The King, who had considered the Rieravo an excellent match for Ursula, had been furious, and the Dralless, now Rieravess of Tynan, had been snubbed at every ball and party that season.
Mariana’s parents would have to be thinking of getting Ursula settled with someone, and Mariana would come next. The King would want to make sure the men were loyal to him, and this dinner could be his way of seeing which men were suitable. The Progenna bit her lip and wondered who her father would begin grooming as a potential husband for her and whether he’d have to have a new, made-up title, too.
The curiosity had gotten the better of her, so she’d sent her maid, Jessamae, down to the formal library on a trivial errand to spy on the dinner party.
Just when Mariana thought the uncertainty would drive her to scream, Jessamae came into the sitting room and carefully shut the door behind her.
“Well,” Mariana demanded, “who is downstairs?”
“First, here is the book you asked for.” The maid handed her a worn copy of a history of Valborough’s battles with Clearlea. Mariana took it and tossed it onto the sofa behind her.
“I only told you to get that so you could pass the dining room. What Presumptives are here?”
Jessamae clasped her hands together low in front of her. “Frederick is here with his parents, Sahdeer and Sahdess Mindenwall.”
Mariana sighed. “I knew he was coming. He’s always at these things so he can sit at Ramone’s right hand and run and fetch whatever the Cognate Prince needs.” She shook her head. “No, Father wouldn’t consider him for me.”
“But for your sister, perhaps.”
“I’m not concerned about my sister’s marriage plans. I need to figure out what Father has decided for my future.” Mariana walked over to the fireplace. A small mirror hung over it. She couldn’t see her whole body because it was too high, but she took a good look at her face. “Do you think I’m pretty enough to make a good match?”
“Of course, Progenna.”
Mariana sighed. The maid loved her, so what else would she say? “Is there anyone else of interest downstairs?”
“George Evan, Margrave of Selwyn, is here with Pir Walter and Lady Alice.”
“George Evan.” Mariana thought about the Fauna Sensitive. He was about her age, and they had played together as children right here in this palace. Pir Walter, Sahdeer of Selwyn, had a large estate on the other side of the Byspell Lake. The ancestral home, Selkirk Manor, was not visible from the palace due to the size of the lake, but Mariana had visited it several times for balls and other parties.
If she could convince George Evan her affection for him was more than sisterly, perhaps they could make a suitable match. His Sensitivity was minor enough his father wouldn’t think it necessary to strengthen it, but the family was highborn enough for her father to accept.
Now Mariana tilted her head as she considered her reflection. “I think I will need to wear some flowers in my hair, Jess. Pink acacias, I think.”
Jessamae gasped. “Progenna! Acacias are used by women who expect a marriage proposal at the event they are attending. Wouldn’t a moonflower be more appropriate?” She hurried to a vase of those same flowers that sat on a side table.
“Those are for babies,” Mariana scoffed. “I am not a child. I am a woman, and I think it’s time George Evan realized it.”
Jessamae came back with a small gathering of the moonflowers. “These are lovely blossoms, and moonflowers symbolize innocence and delicacy.” She reached up to put the bouquet into Mariana’s elegant hairdo.
The Progenna roughly pushed her hand away. “No. I will not go into this dinner like a virgin sacrifice for my father’s schemes. Get me some acacias. There has to be some in the palace gardens. Mother made Ursula grow some in case one of us found a suitor this season.”
Jessamae opened her mouth, and Mariana knew another protest was coming. The maid might love Mariana like her own daughter, but she was superstitious. She believed the Sensitivities were blessings from the Elements, and that plants and animals conveyed messages from Heaven as well.
“Do as I command.” Mariana didn’t like treating Jessamae the way her father and mother treated the servants, but right now, her future was more important than the maid’s feelings. Later, when she’d made a good marriage, she’d see Jess came with her as head of the household staff.
Jessamae hurried out of the room, muttering under her breath. Mariana waited until she was sure the other woman wouldn’t be coming back immediately, then rushed through the door to her bedchamber.
She had to get out of this gown that made her look like a child from the schoolroom. Tonigh
t, she would show the unmarried men present there were things even an Insensitive possessed that could make them forget their Abilities for a time.
Jessamae’s task of getting the flowers was only an excuse to keep the maid from finding out about the box Mariana took from under a pile of clothes in her closet that were designated to be given to charity.
The box held a stash of face paint Mariana had sneaked out of Ursula’s or Liliana’s closets when the Princesses weren’t around.
The Queen never allowed Mariana to wear powder or paint to enhance her looks, saying she was too young. However, Mariana had practiced with her smuggled treasures at night, when she was supposed to be sleeping.
Tonight, she made herself look like a woman, and she was grateful that the first time her parents would see her like this would be in a room full of guests. They wouldn’t make a fuss.
Later…well, she’d deal with that then, and if things worked out the way she hoped, by that time, George Evan or another son of a high noble would have made his interest in her clear enough her parents would forgive the deception.
Chapter Four
The Queen’s social secretary, who had planned the seating arrangements, was a stickler for protocol, so Mariana was the last member of the family to walk into the dining room, usually on the arm of some older Margrave or Sahdeer who stood in for her father. As an unmarried woman, it was considered inappropriate for her to walk into a mixed-gender gathering alone.
Liliana and Nigel had just entered the dining room when Mariana slipped into the waiting area, right behind Ursula, who saw her and gasped. “What have you done to yourself?”
Mariana ignored the question because the sergeant at arms, standing in the dining room doorway, began announcing Ursula’s name.
“Princess Ursula Genevieve Adorra, third Heir Presumptive to the throne of Valborough, and George Evan, Margrave of Selwyn, son and Heir Presumptive of Pir Walter, Sahdeer of Selwyn.”
The young man in question stepped into the dining room doorway from the side where he’d been waiting, and Mariana scowled.
This wasn’t right. George Evan was their age, not an older noble. He should never have been Ursula’s escort unless he’d…
Her heart fluttered. Had he made an offer for her sister’s hand? Was there going to be an announcement tonight?
Mariana’s gloved hands clenched into fists. No, that couldn’t be right. As far as she knew, Ursula and George had never even danced together. An offer couldn’t have been made yet. None of the required protocol had been observed.
She narrowed her eyes. She still had a chance. With gritted teeth, she pulled off the gloves and stuffed them into a nearby potted plant. Then, shaking her head to clear it of angry thoughts, she stepped to the mark to wait her announcement.
“Progenna Mariana Willowmina Angelica, daughter of the King, and her escort, Pir Leo, Sahdeer of Valentine.”
Her blood ran cold as the nightmare of her childhood stepped into the doorway, offering her his arm.
Without her gloves, she would actually have to touch him, and he would see her naked fingers. Her feet felt like they were made of lead, and she couldn’t take the required step toward him.
“Mariana.” The Queen’s stern voice cut through the fog that filled the Progenna’s mind. She had to take Pir Leo’s arm and walk into the dining room.
Years of nobility training served her well as she forced her mouth into a smile and curtsied to him. He’d turned his head so his remaining eye seemed to examine her painted face and immodest dress, stopping at her naked fingers as she reached for his arm.
She refused to meet his gaze when she wrapped her hand around his elbow. Surely, whatever he thought about her display was something she didn’t want to know. Her actions were not for his benefit.
A moment later, he faced the King. Mariana held herself proudly and gazed out at the assembled guests. They stood in the doorway without moving for several seconds, then he pressed his arm against his side, trapping her skin against him. Kissing her fingers would not have violated protocol, but he apparently felt holding her naked hand was enough.
Swallowing, but keeping a calm, serene expression on her face, she allowed herself to be led to her seat in the exact center of the left side of the long dining table.
As Progenna, she was forced to straddle the line between being of the Royal Family and having no claim to the throne, so she had to sit farther away from the King than the rest of her siblings. Tonight, this didn’t bother her as much as it normally did. Any repercussions from her appearance would have to wait until later.
To the right of her place stood Pir Walter, Sahdeer of Selwyn, who was George Evan’s father and the Minister of Finance. To Mariana’s dismay, Pir Leo took his place on her left, closer to the King.
Sahdess Bella Valentine, Pir Leo’s daughter, an unfortunate-looking girl with a hooked nose and severe, manly features, sat several seats to the right of Mariana on the other side of the table. Lady Alice, Pir Walter’s wife, sat directly across the table from her husband, with her father, Stanislas, Rieravo of Comeaux, across from Mariana.
As the King raised his wineglass to begin the Fealty Ritual, Mariana realized the protocol secretary had surrounded her with old men, one of whom had begun to grow senile. The Rieravo of Comeaux didn’t raise his glass as the other diners did. Instead, he carefully examined the silver utensils, lifting the salad fork close to his eyes, as though studying it.
Mariana watched him, even with her own glass raised. The King was reciting the standard toast to the men who had chosen to remain in his service even though his court had moved to this part of the kingdom. No one in recent memory, or indeed, in the last several hundred years, had dared break faith with the King merely because he desired a change of scenery.
The Rieravo slipped a dessert spoon into his breast pocket just as King Jonathan finished his speech.
“Long live the King,” Stanislas cried. Mariana grinned as the sentiment was repeated up and down the table.
After the toasts, the meal began. Servants brought the first course, a fruit platter for two diners to share. Mariana was grateful when the serving woman placed the platter between herself and Pir Walter, forcing her to turn away from Leo.
“I was happy to discover you and your family would be at tonight’s celebration,” Mariana said as the Sahdeer cut up a small pile of strawberries for them to share. “I didn’t know if you had come from Aldlake yet.”
“Progenna.” Pir Walter slid several slices and a stem of grapes toward her. “You must know we enjoy the Autumn Season here in the Byspell District.”
More likely, they wanted to be close to the seat of power, but Mariana didn’t voice her thoughts. “Is your lady wife planning to throw any balls at your lovely estate? The Sahdess, is, as I remember, a superb hostess.”
“Thank you, Progenna, but I believe we will not be hosting any festivities this season. As you can see, my wife’s father has come to live with us. The Rieravo’s lands…” The Sahdeer’s voice trailed off, and Mariana saw his eyes flit toward her father and then back down to the fruit platter, which apparently had become endlessly fascinating.
“You were saying something about Comeaux’s land?” Mariana prompted.
The color had drained out of the Sahdeer’s face, and Mariana glanced at his wife. She was not listening to the Margrave on her left, with whom she was sharing her meal, nor was she paying any attention to her father, who had taken all the grapes from his platter and arranged them in a line in front of him.
She watched her husband with an equally pale face, her food untouched.
Mariana saw a silent conversation flash between their eyes, and while she couldn’t catch all the meanings, she knew Pir Walter and Lady Alice were afraid of something.
“Progenna.” The Sahdeer of Valentine caught her attention, and reluctantly, she faced him.
“Sahdeer?”
“I heard a rumor you and Darius of Sasoin are no longer…spending time
together.”
Mariana pressed her lips together and forced herself to look at his face. “Darius realized his responsibilities on his father’s lands require more time than he has been giving them, to the detriment of the property.”
Pir Leo smiled, a crooked, nearly grotesque expression. “I am gratified to hear this. Your time would be better spent with a man of a higher rank.”
“Thank you for your advice.” Mariana saw the servants approaching with the next course, a fish tart. She stifled a sigh of relief when each diner got a single plate.
When she was halfway through her fish, and the wine steward was replacing their glasses with new ones for the meat course, the Sahdeer of Valentine spoke again. “I don’t know if you’ve heard, but I am interested in redecorating my private quarters at my estate on the other side of the royal forest.”
“How interesting,” Mariana said. She took a sip of the new glass of red wine so she wouldn’t have to comment further. Why was he telling her about his redecorating plans? That was something his daughter, Bella, should be concerned with.
Glancing at the woman in question, Mariana saw Pir Leo’s daughter staring at her with something like annoyance on her face. As far as Mariana could remember, she’d barely spoken two words to the woman in her entire life, so there was no reason for that emotion.
“I have always admired your sense of color, Progenna,” Valentine continued, clearly unaware of his daughter’s attention. “I would be interested in hearing your opinion of what would be best in the bedchamber.”
Mariana stared at him, shocked at what he was suggesting.
“Am I hearing you correctly?” Princess Ursula called from the other side of Pir Walter. Her voice carried over all other conversations in room, and a moment later, silence filled the room. All eyes were on her.
“Princess?” Pir Leo said.
Ursula leaned forward to glance at Mariana, who saw stifled laughter in her older sister’s eyes. “I believe I just heard you invite my sister to see your bedchamber.”
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