Daughter of the Disgraced King (23 page)

“So? Who does?”

“Right, but different people react differently to it, yes? Artair
gets mulish and arrogant. Arrigo gets mulish and sullen. Mayra pouts, but then
usually gives in. Ailsa gets stubborn, too, but . . . differently than our
esteemed siblings. It . . . stiffens her resolve. If I push her now, she’ll dig
her heels in and everything’ll just get harder. Whatever Prince Savyon’s done
or said is enough for now. Let him stew in it.”

“But—”

Jathan gestured with his chin back out to where Ailsa stood
talking with her parents. “Watch. Can’t you see how every time he tries to talk
to her she grits her teeth? No. Ailsa needs to be given enough space to work
things out for herself. I need to just be a friend, for now. That’s the long
game.”

“Not easy, though.”

Jathan’s eyes flicked back up to Rishiart’s, blazing. “I
never said it was going to be easy. Just necessary.”

Ailsa blew out her breath and braced her shoulders before
crossing the avenue. It had been three days since her outburst with Sav, but
her stomach still churned with the mixture of suppressed anger and betrayal. She
hoped Jathan would greet her when she stepped through the gates of the Imperial
Palace. Jathan’s glib attitude could be irritating, but he usually had a way
of easing her tension and she was very nervous right now at the thought of
meeting Sav again.

She’d avoided talking to or even seeing Sav since that
dinner, mostly because she was worried what would happen if they argued like
that again. Ailsa was a little scared at the thought of what her magic
could
have
done. Making steps out of the hedge was one thing. That hadn’t done
anyone any real harm. But as hard as the trees had been whipping in the wake of
her anger, what else might have happened if her bodyguard hadn’t given her a
little separation from Sav? She didn’t want to find out.

She didn’t have any choice about meeting with Sav this time,
though. She’d been summoned by the emperor to attend a strategy meeting
regarding Far Terra. Sav would certainly be there. There’d be no way to avoid
him. Well, at least they wouldn’t be alone.

She took an involuntary step back when she looked up and saw
Sav, not Jathan, waiting for her by the gate.

Sav stepped forward, one hand outstretched. “I wanted a
chance to talk to you before we join the others.”

Ailsa raised her chin and bunched her fists, fighting to
control her temper. “What more do you think we have to say?”

Sav bowed his head. “I needed to tell you I’m sorry. I . . .
had no right to ask that of you. It’s just . . . when I saw you with
him
. . . I panicked.”

“What? Like you panicked and asked me to marry you three
days before I left for the Institute? Panic doesn’t seem like a very solid
foundation for . . . anything.” Certainly not for a marriage. Not for a reign,
either, come to that.

Sav took a step back. “Yes. That, too. When it comes to you,
I . . . don’t seem to be able to help myself.”

“Seems to me, your proposal has a whole lot more to do with
you
than it does with
me—or us
.”
It should be
us
, surely, if it’s
to be worth anything.
Ailsa started past him. She knew the way to the
emperor’s office, even if Jathan wasn’t here to greet her.

The door to the emperor’s office stood open. Ailsa knocked
anyway.

“Enter,” the emperor called from within.

Ailsa stepped through the door and was surprised to find
that only the emperor and her father were present. Even Jathan wasn’t there. It
was going to be a smaller meeting than she’d expected. She sat down on the
little sofa next to her father. Savyon stood in the door behind her. The
emperor gestured for him to come inside and close the door.

“Now that you two are here, we can get started,” the emperor
said. “From what I’ve learned from each of you and the reports I’ve had from
both Rishiart and Arrigo, it’s clear to me that the situation in Far Terra
cannot be allowed to continue as it is. King Ewart must be forced to a
different course. Our job, here, is to try to decide how to accomplish that.”

Sav fidgeted on the far couch. “You wouldn’t replace Father,
would you?”

The emperor turned to him. “The treaty gives me that power,
but it certainly wouldn’t be my first choice.” He smiled dryly. “Deposing a
monarch sets an undesirable precedent. I hope we can come up with some less
drastic plan.”

“What then?” Sav asked.

“Well, I want ideas from all of you on that. Ideally, we
should find some way to hem him in and reduce his choices to those we want him
to make.”

“How do you propose to do that?” Papa asked.

The emperor smiled. “My first choice would be to install you
as a sort of chief advisor. One that he can’t ignore. The power behind the
throne, if you will.”

Papa grimaced. “A shadow king.”

The emperor opened his hands, implicitly accepting the designation.
“You know the land, the barons, and the problems. And you know how to rule
properly.”

Papa squared his shoulders. “I never planned . . .  Well, I
suppose I had a hand in making this mess. It’s up to me to do what I can to
clean it up. It’s certain Far Terra won’t survive long the way it’s going.”

“Part of your job would be to train Prince Savyon here to
replace both you and King Ewart, eventually. That is, after he’s had a year or two
of training, here.”

Papa nodded acceptance of that. “I’ve already started
teaching him a little. It would be easier to be able to do it openly, rather
than in secret.”

Sav let out his breath. Had he ever really doubted that he’d
still be the heir, Ailsa wondered. Apparently so.

“So,” Papa said, “how do we plan to hem Ewart in? He won’t
react well at all to force.”

The emperor frowned. “There’ll have to be some force, if
only to keep the barons in check. We can’t have a repeat of what happened
eighteen years ago. Arrigo is already in place for that. I’ll send him more
forces before we put any plan into action. For the rest . . . ?”

Papa cocked his head to the side. “Strategically, the first
move would be to separate King Ewart from his power base—those barons who
remain loyal to him and would oppose you. Force will only take us so far,
there. We also need a carrot to pair with that stick. We need to offer them
something King Ewart can’t. But I don’t know what that would be.”

“Hmm.” The emperor turned slightly to look at Ailsa. “I
think that’s where you could help us, Princess Ailsa. That is, if you’re
willing.”

Ailsa darted a look at Sav. He couldn’t be planning to make
Sav’s proposal an imperial request, could he? “Willing to do what?”

“To go back to Far Terra as a green mage.” The emperor’s
eyes flicked to Papa. “From what Sandor has told me of your life there, I’ll
understand if you choose not to. Even I cannot compel a mage. In this, I wouldn’t
force you, even if I had the right.”

Ailsa relaxed.
Oh, that.
“I always meant to go back
to Far Terra when my training is complete. Far Terra needs a green mage. Especially
one who cares enough about Far Terra not to give up when things get difficult.”
She turned slightly, so that she faced the emperor more directly, pleading. She’d
been thinking a lot about this lately. She had a foot in both Far Terra and
Terranion, now, and she wanted to keep it that way. “At least . . . at least
part of the year. I thought I might come back here during the summers. You can’t
really do much outdoor work in the summer in Far Terra, anyway.”

The emperor smiled. “That sounds like a very good plan to
me. Any time you spend in Far Terra will be a great help.”

It wasn’t really quite what she’d been planning—what Jathan
had suggested on that mountain ridge looking over the desert. Ailsa would
rather attempt this work as a team, with Jathan beside her. “But . . . do I
have to do it alone?”

“Well, I
hope
that as we get things sorted out in Far
Terra, more mages will be willing to go there. Perhaps on a part time basis, as
you suggest. It may be necessary for you to lead the way, however.”

Ailsa swallowed and nodded. “It’ll be a year or two before
my training is complete, though.”

The emperor smiled. “If we can formulate a satisfactory
plan, I think I could arrange for you to return home sooner—before next summer
at the latest—just for a visit. It need only be long enough to put on a display
of your powers. A demonstration that will give the barons something to think
about.”

Ailsa swallowed hard. The emperor was asking her to make
herself conspicuous. Just the sort of thing she’d been avoiding all her life.
And not here, in Terranion, where Jathan had half convinced her it was safe to
do so, but right under King Ewart’s nose. Could she do it? More, could she do
it without Jathan to back her up? Probably. If she had to. But she’d really
rather not.

The emperor broke the silence of her long pause. “Your
father and possibly Prince Savyon would travel with you, of course, along with
enough guards to ensure your safety. I don’t intend to trust King Ewart with
your wellbeing.” He looked directly at her when he spoke that last sentence.

Ailsa caught the inference at once. For some reason, the
emperor didn’t want to say so openly, but he believed King Ewart was
responsible for the man on the coach. The same man who’d accosted her at the
Solstice Ball. She nodded her understanding of the subtext and drew a deep
breath. He’d misunderstood her hesitation, though. More important than her
bodyguard right now was the knowledge that at least Papa would be beside her to
shore up her confidence. Sav . . . well, maybe Sav could serve to make her
angry enough not to care. “I think I can do that.”

The emperor sat back in his big chair. “There is something
else.” He looked between Ailsa and Sav, who were studiously not looking at each
other. “Can you two work together?”

“Of course they can work together. They’ve been friends for
years,” Papa said.

The emperor raised an eyebrow. “They haven’t seemed very
friendly the last few days.”

Ailsa bit her lip and looked across at Sav. “We . . . had a
disagreement. But we both care very much about Far Terra,
in our own ways.
”

The emperor clapped his hands on his knees. “Good! Then let’s
get down to details. The first question would seem to be when.”

Papa chewed his lip. “If the point is to impress as many of
the barons as possible in a short time, then the Winter Ball would seem to be
ideal. Nearly all of them will be there.”

The emperor sighed. “I’d hoped we’d have you here longer,
old friend, but you’re probably right. That would also coincide with a
scheduled break in Ailsa’s training.” He nodded. “Yes. I think we should plan
for that. What else?”

~

When the meeting ended, Savyon waited outside the door to
the emperor’s office while Ailsa said her goodbyes to her father and promised
to spend more time with him and her mother. Leaving, she narrowed her eyes at
Savyon and tried to sweep past him.

He made a grab for her arm. “Ailsa, you were right. We could—”

Ailsa pulled her arm from his grasp and turned to face him. “No.”
She shook her head firmly, mouth set. “We should try to just be friends, the
way we used to be.”

Savyon choked as if he’d been kicked. “Ailsa—”

Ailsa held up her hand to stop him. “Sav, please. I’m
trying,
if only because Far Terra needs both of us. It would really help if you’d
just not argue with me anymore.” She paused. “Probably the best way to achieve
that is just not to talk to me at all for a while longer.” She turned away from
him and walked briskly up one of the many paths through the garden. Not the way
she’d arrived.

Savyon swallowed and took a step to follow her. He couldn’t
just let it end that way. He
needed
Ailsa.

“I wouldn’t do that, if I were you.”

Savyon whirled to come face to face with Princess Mayra,
standing at the end of another one of those garden paths.

“Of course, it’s none of my business,” Princess Mayra went
on, looking after Ailsa’s retreating form, “but it doesn’t look like what you’ve
been doing so far is working. Mother always says that if something doesn’t
work, you should try something else, not keep doing the same thing over and
over.”

Savyon stared down at his empty hands. “I don’t know what
else
to
try.”

Princess Mayra cocked her head and studied him for a moment.
“Well, maybe I can help. Tomorrow’s Starday.”

“So?”

“So, Ailsa, Jathan, and I usually go riding on Starday.”

Savyon ground his teeth.
Jathan again!

Princess Mayra’s smile was slightly secretive. “Now, I
could
ask you to come along, as my guest.”

“How would that help? She doesn’t want to talk to me.”

“Well, precisely. See, if you were my guest and paid
attention to me, well . . . you might just make Ailsa jealous.”

Savyon blinked as that idea sank in. “Do you think that
would work?”

Princess Mayra shrugged. “I don’t know. It couldn’t be any
worse than what you’ve been doing, could it?”

~

Ailsa took the path that led around the palace to the
stables. She’d go check on Pearl—and maybe Diamond.
They’d
never let her
down and Pearl had always made her feel better at home when things got
unpleasant. So, usually, had Sav—back then. She shook her head to clear it of
those thoughts.

Pearl whinnied as soon as Ailsa started down the long aisle
of the stable towards her. Diamond, in the box stall next to her, tossed his
head in greeting. Ailsa smiled. She paused to scratch Pearl’s ears and got a
nose push in her back from Diamond. That made her laugh. She ended up with one
hand raised to each horse, their heads leaning out over the stall doors, noses
nearly touching. Pearl extended her nose a little farther to lip at Ailsa’s
pocket.