An Affinity For Fire

31. Clover

The Lapisalis Prince hadn't been lying. Sunsets in Ocassus really were quite a spectacle.

She'd missed the first two, since the rain and clouds had been relentless. But on their third evening at the Lapisalis household, the sky was relatively clear, which left the sun's descent into the Western sea visible in all its glory.

As she sat at the edge of the cliff, watching the sky fade from crimson to indigo, she heard the gentle, rhythmic swishing of the thick grass as someone approached. Turning, she saw Leo trudging through the field towards her.

"Any luck?" he asked, crouching beside her, but refusing to sit in the wet grass.

"No," she replied, knowing that he was referring to her endeavours in The Capillaries throughout the day. Since the rain had stopped, she had ventured into the markets, scouring the streets for any merchants or vendors who might sell siren tongues. After a vigorous search, she had come to the conclusion that Bryn was right - there was no commonplace trade for siren products, other than saliva for medical purposes. "You or Tarry had any progress?"

"You'll have to ask Tarragon yourself," he said. "He's barely left his guest room. I think he's still grappling with his conscience after ... well, you know. As for me, I haven't achieved anything particularly helpful, siren-wise, but I do have a small amount of good news."

She lifted her eyes to meet his. "What's that?"

"My father sent a messenger kestrel. We no longer have to worry about getting you and Tarragon into Dormis. You've both got official invitations to the Dormisian Quarternal Festival."

Clover straightened up. The Quarternal Festival was the largest, most exrtavagent social event in the realm. As a child, she had daydreamed about sneaking into the festival when it was next hosted in Ortus, which wouldn't happen until she was twenty-seven. Not even in her most ambitious dreams had she imagined she would earn a legitimate invitation, particularly in one of the other kingdoms.

"How in all Hells did your father manage that?"

Leo shrugged. "It wasn't hard. After the incident at the engagement party, half of the Ortusian guests dropped out. Tarragon was already borderline for the first round of invitations, so he made it onto the backup guestlist by default. And, apparently, it was easy enough pulling strings to get you on the list, too."

Her flare of excitement was extinguished by memories of the engagement party. "So, who is actually coming?"

"The King and Queen," Leo said. "Their daughter is staying back with her younger son, to mourn her husband's assassination. Her older son is going, but he's not a mage, so that's not so bad. Most of the Queen's family, A couple of the King's cousins, and their children and grandchildren." He paused, taking a heavy breath. "Marram's mother and sister have pulled out, but she and her father are still coming, to settle the engagement."

His face crumpled, as if the words had left a sour taste in his mouth.

"You don't want to go through with it," Clover said. It wasn't a question.

He sighed. "Until recently, I thought I could get away without marrying for at least five more years. I'm the second child, I was never going to get the inheritance, so it didn't matter so much whether I married young. But after Ellery-" he swallowed.

Clover squinted through the growing darkness. She could make out the pain in his expression.

"Leo," she said gently, "What happened?"

His eyes were fixed blankly on the sea as he answered. "My father is the second child, too, but he's always tried so much harder for the inheritance than my uncle, so he still has a hope. He just needs a valid line of succession. My sister Ellery was lucky enough to fall in love with someone of an appropriate standing for marriage. After they got married last year, it seemed that the Monfort inheritance would fall from my grandmother, to my father, to Ellery, to any child she had. So, when I was told about a potential engagement to some Ortusian girl I didn't know, I thought I could just go to the party, get to know her and turn her down if I didn't like her. But then-" he stopped, closing his eyes briefly before pressing on. "During one of the attacks, someone stabbed Ellery in the lower abdomen. She'll live, thank the Fates, but the physicians say she'll never bare children. So, if I don't get into a position where I can produce heirs, the inheritance will probably fall to my uncle. Which, of course, is all my father cares about. Not his daughter, who nearly died, or the dozens of others who will continue to die." He sat back with a bitter laugh. "We could have cancelled the engagement party to focus on the rebel situation, but no. And now look what's happened."