A Beast's Tale

Chapter 62

I much preferred Ivetta's quiet method of waking me up to Clavis' creative solutions. Depending on his mood, I was in for anything from a mild irritation to a beheading attempt. The next morning would have been the latter, if I hadn't told him Ivetta was worried about him. I knew that would put him in a good mood and spare me the before-breakfast sparring match.

"Good morning, Chev!" he crowed, clapping his hands. "It's a beautiful day, and you were the one who wanted to go first thing in the morning! Better get up, or I'll leave you here and beat you to Ivetta!"

I groaned and sat up, rubbing my eyes. For him to be this chipper, he must have received a good report about the refugees.

"Wow. I didn't think that would work so well." He grinned and threw the curtains wide open. "If I were Ivetta, what would I be doing right now?"

"Not asking foolish questions," I grumbled, climbing out of bed and heading toward the bureau. I stayed here often enough to warrant keeping an extra set of clothing on hand.

He laughed. "You're right; how silly of me! I should ask her instead, and I'll do that as soon as we get back. We should make it before five o'clock if we leave within the next hour."

"What did Eyepatch say about her?"

There was a pause before he answered. I had my back to him, but I knew his smile had dimmed.

"Only that he was looking forward to meeting 'his' little dove. I was thinking about it, and isn't it possible her mother wasn't Garnetian, but an escaped Obsidianite noblewoman promised to a member of the Imperial family?"

"Yes, but that would not explain her pregnancy or Eyepatch's claim of ownership."

"Maybe she was facing execution for infidelity. As for our friendly worldwide disaster's claim, he's a possessive man with twisted logic. If he sees something he wants, it's his. Normally, I'm happy to let him have his way, but in this case..."

In this case, I would see him dead before I allowed him to have Ivetta.

I needed a look at her father's journal. The Obsidianite noblewoman theory had its merits, but when I recalled what Ivetta had told me about Bloodstained Rose Day and her mother's terror, the Garnetian theory remained the stronger of the two. The reaction Ivetta described was that of a woman who had already survived one Obsidianite invasion and couldn't cope with another. Then again, both theories could be correct. Perhaps her mother had escaped Obsidian the first time by fleeing to Garnet, and Garnet's fall had forced her to flee a second time. Whatever the truth of her story might be, the woman was resourceful. She and Ivetta wouldn't have survived this long otherwise.

What did Gilbert know about her?

The question nagged at me during breakfast and our return ride to the palace. Cyran had stayed behind to help the refugees settle into their new surroundings, leaving me as Clavis' only audience, and for once, I welcomed the distraction his endless chatter provided. The information about Obsidian buried within his tale of rescuing the oppressed townspeople would be useful later, and the tale itself was interesting.

When he'd arrived, he'd learned that many of the people were in prison because of a failed revolt. The nobleman in power had crushed it and, to set an example for the rest, had sentenced the leaders to death. Clavis concocted a ridiculous plan, convinced the remaining free citizens to go along with it, and then left Cyan in charge while he sabotaged the nearby weapons manufacturing facility. When he triggered an explosion there, the overconfident nobleman sent most of the guards in town to contain the ensuing fire, allowing the townspeople to instigate a prison break and mass exodus into the wilderness. Clavis followed, setting a few more traps along the way to cover their tracks and slow any pursuers further, and that had bought him time to guide them into the ruins and their network of tunnels.