Figurehead

fifty

"Who is this from?" Dein asks. We stand a few steps from the doors and from the guards, and Roa stands in front of us with her eyes flicking between the ground at our feet and the crowns on our heads. She seems unable to stay still, her weight shifting from one leg to another, her right hand rubbing her left upper arm.

"Roa?" I prompt, and she starts.

"Oh, right. Right, right," she stammers. "A former adviser named Liur." Dein straightens.

I glance at him, then at the trusted messenger. "Thank you." She nods, dipping her head and almost bowing in her earnestness before turning on her heel and walking away.

The guards nod to us as they part and open the doors, but their masks don't shift and they don't speak.

"Who's Liur?" I ask, as the doors thud behind us.

He takes us into the office before answering. I sit in one of the chairs as he snaps the seal and drops the broken pieces into the fire. "One of the elder Escatin who told me about the Sirdiu and told me to appoint a second heir."

Oh. He crosses the small space and sits next to me with a sigh. "Was it his seal?" He nods, unfurling the parchment and smoothing it flat with his palm on the desk in front of us.

He manages a smile. "It's written in Janmier, too, so it's definitely him." I glance at the writing. Practically old-script. While Dein reads, I carefully remove the crown from my head of hair, looking at it more carefully for the first time.

It's slightly more complex than the one Dein wears. Parts of the golden ring are twisted, overlapping like part of a simple braid, or like twine. Like Dein's, there are engraved swirlings of old-script in the gold. I run my fingers over the gentle ridges; I know some old-script. Everyone does. But not that much.

Queen. Wife. Escatin. I recognise these three. But there are others I don't.

I set it carefully down on the table, glancing at Dein. He's mouthing some of the words as he appears to re-read the message. "What does it say?" I ask quietly.

He blows out a breath, glancing at me. "Liur comes from Vrendust." He nods when I furrow my eyebrows. "He had to evacuate at a young age. And now that part of it is getting rebuilt, the people there have managed to select three Council members."

My stomach flips. Things have certainly been changing. It won't be much longer before other provinces select their Council members. Can these people be trusted? I can only hope and pray so.

"Did he say they can be trusted?" I ask tentatively.

He sighs. "No. But he didn't try and warn me against them, so," he shrugs, "who knows?" His eyes skim the message again. "According to Liur, they should be here in a few days." He looks at me. "How many days would it take for a message from Vrendust to reach us?"

I smile faintly. "We returned here from Vrendust, by foot, in a day."

He blinks. "It felt like so much longer than that," he murmurs. I nod.

"So how many days, do you think, before the first Council members arrive?" I sigh. Before the weight begins settling on our shoulders?

He rolls the parchment up again. "Two or three, it says, but since we received the message so soon, maybe only one or two." He frowns. "They could even show up tomorrow." He takes the sealing clay and wets it before taking a piece and winding it around the rolled-up parchment, placing it on the desk and leaving it to dry.

He sighs, turning to focus on me. "One day, two days, and then it all really begins, huh?" I murmur. "My queenship."

He tilts his head, smiling a little. "Your queenship began long ago." At the look on my face, he grins. "I know what you mean. Would you feel better if I said your queenship began at first light with something like this?" Just as he finishes speaking, he leans forward and kisses me.