“Or maybe they were too stupid to take the time to learn.”
I use my foul mood as fuel to carry me all the way to the long hallway that leads to Fortiss’s inner chambers, and Caleb salutes me with a reassuring grin as he remains on the stairs. He’s not a warrior lord or the master of his own house—at least not yet. I sorely wish he was, so I could have him by my side in meetings such as these.
One day.
But for now, he has his own work—returning with Marsh to the coliseum to train the newly banded warriors of the Protectorate and their mighty—if not gargantuan—Divhs. Since these Divhs don’t stand higher than the walls of the coliseum, and that structure is far enough away from the heart of Trilion that their training won’t scare anyone, he’s been able to make progress quickly without disturbing the peace. Caleb’s strict no-roaring rule has also helped.
Almost reflexively, I glance up to see the huge glass doors that lead out onto the overlook of the First House. On this side of the castle, a wide deck sticks out over a sheer cliff, giving any who have the opportunity to stand there access to the open plains that stretch from the First House all the way to the coliseum. In the intervening weeks since the Tournament of Gold, the long grasses of that plain have rebounded, making the plain into a constantly moving ocean beneath the starlit sky. One night not too long ago I ran down this corridor out onto that deck and into those stars, praying with all my might that Gent would be there to catch me. I feel worlds apart from the girl I was that night. My problems haven’t gone away, though. They’ve just gotten different.
Gritting my teeth, I turn into Lord Fortiss’s inner chambers, nodding at the guards that stand respectfully to either side of the door. I remember this short hallway all too well, the alcove where I hid, terrified, as I first saw the creatures summoned by Rihad’s dark magic. That night, Rihad was alone in his chambers by the time those creatures were summoned, and I knew he was the enemy. This time the councilors are assembled with Fortiss, as well as representatives of the Fifth, Second, and Ninth Houses. Warriors all, not house leaders. All of them are men save for Miriam, and all of them turn to look at me in my warrior’s garb with reactions ranging from hostility to interest, with something far more dangerous in between.
My problems have definitely become different. Different…and decidedly worse.
“Lady Talia, good. We’re all here,” Fortiss says, giving me a hard, intent look that feels like a hand reaching out to me—as a warrior? A comrade? Or maybe something more? Questions that will have to wait as he glances around the room. “It appears we’ve run out of time.”
Chapter 11
Ifeel Tennet’s eyes on me, but I don’t meet his gaze. I don’t want him here, confusing my already hopelessly tangled emotions. If I had the choice, I’d send him off to the sandworms of the south, never to be seen again.
That thought brings a sincere smile to my face as Fortiss jabs a hard finger at councilor Miriam.
“Today has been a day of unexpected truths, it seems. How long have you known that we’ve had leadership of the houses amassing in Trilion, staying at our inns with barely any indication of their rank and station? During our grand banquet tonight, I’ve had three separate runners tell me that the lords of half the Protectorate’s households are within a mile of the First House, yet are they here? Have they approached? No. They’re waiting to do so all at once. Not a bad strategy, if you needed a strategy to speak with the lord protector. Which youdon’t. How long have you known?”
Before giving the councilors a chance to reply, he turns to the warrior representatives. “And what of your houses? Are your lords coming as well? Can I trust you, or am I surrounded by liars?”
“Lord Fortiss,” Miriam interrupts, but the warriors respond to this accusation with speed and force. To a man, they stand forward, crossing one hand over their chest, fists clenched at their heart. Not Tennet, of course, though he watches them with interest as the Fifth House warrior speaks. “Lord Protector Fortiss, be assured our houses know well the danger we face, and we have keenly felt the dagger of Lord Rihad’s betrayal. Our houses stand with us. As to the rest of what you ask, I can’t say. We’ve been here. Our men and horses have been here. We have no knowledge of what’s going on in Trilion.”
“Agreed.” The Ninth House warrior’s tone is more measured, the set of his jaw tense. He’s a cautious one, I think, with good reason. There’s been too much death at the First House not to be cautious. “But who is coming? If the lords of the houses are assembling, then warriors are not enough. We have no standing here.”
“You don’t, if the Fifth and the Ninth are in Trilion,” Fortiss agrees. “That’s yet to be determined. Apparently, some of these men have been traveling over a week to get here, some merely days, and I suspect that pace is only possible because they switched out horses in every major town along the way.” He turns his gaze to my father. “Sort of like you and Lord Tennet, Lord Lemille. The timing is curious, no?”
He doesn’t give my father a chance to reply but turns back to Miriam. “And that’s only the houses that decided to come—or that we’ve seen so far. What of the ones who didn’t? This doesn’t feel like men rallying to support the Protectorate. This feels more like a coup.”
“Strong words, and hasty ones,” Miriam returns. “Especially since no one has come forward yet.” She eyes him with more than a little curiosity. “If we didn’t know the lords of these houses were assembling in Trilion, how did you?”
“While you have been holed up pondering the details of succession and proper transfer of power, I haven’t been idle,” Fortiss snaps. “Trilion fell under the purview of the lord protector, but its management has long fallen to me. You don’t run a city for any length of time without understanding how to get the information you need about who is entering, who is leaving, and what they’re doing while they’re here. We’re not talking about large delegations, we’re talking about small companies of men—the lord, a few of his top warriors. With the first runner, I didn’t put it together, because the houses were traveling under no banner or house colors, as if they were common merchants. But by the third alert, I knew. So many merchants wouldn’t happen to be arriving all at once, not like this.”
I can’t help myself; I have to speak up. “But why waste their time with all this? If they had an issue with you, with your leadership or your proposed plans, why not just come to the First House and talk with you directly? Lord Rihad may have run the Protectorate as his own private fiefdom, but I suspect he didn’t when he first took power. There’d have been collaboration, cohesion. There’s no reason why the houses wouldn’t expect the same of you.”
“Except Lord Fortiss has already given them reason to doubt the viability of traditions.” Tennet stands with his hands at his hips, his thumbs tucked into the heavy belt that’s weighed down with precious metal and the empty scabbard where his personal weapon would normally hang. As a guest in the First House, he may not carry a knife or sword. But in all other ways, he looks exactly like what he purports to be—entitled, experienced, male. A warrior of the Protectorate, first-blooded and firstborn. He meets my gaze.
“Don’t get angry with me because I say what everyone else is thinking. I wasn’t here, Lady Talia. I didn’t see your feats ofprowess on the battlefield, I heard about them second- and even third-hand. None of the lords who are gathering in Trilion saw them either. Blood and stone, your ownfatherhas disavowed you, as well he should, according to the tradition of the Protectorate.”
For him to mention my father with the man standing right there sends a wave of fury through me, quick and hot. I can barely keep from choking on my own outrage, but Tennet’s still not done.
“No woman may claim a Divh, no woman may stand up in battle to defend her house. And yet before us we have a woman who does both.”
“That’s right!” I snap back, my voice ringing out across the room. “Not only stand up, not only claim, but I did those things andwonthe tournament. I have a right to be here as much as anyone else in the Protectorate. I would argue,moreof a right. My family suffered a mortal blow when Rihad ordered my brother’s death. I did what I had to do to protect my house.”
My father utters some low, guttural noise, but I don’t have time for him. My focus is only on Tennet, and he doesn’t back down. If anything, he leans in. “And I would argue that there are a dozen old men and more than a few young ones who would contend thatnoneof this was yours to do. What’s more, they’re the ones in power, by order of the Imperium. You’re not.”
“You’ve made your point,” Fortiss says, but to my massive irritation, he doesn’t refute Tennet’s words. Instead, he turns to Miriam and Dolor. “You think this is a coup attempt? We don’t have time for that if we have enemies converging on our western borders.”
“I think it could become a coup attempt,” Miriam says. “I think most likely they are discussing that possibility as one of the potential outcomes. You’re very new to your position, Fortiss, and to Lord Tennet’s point, your feats of bravery in oustingRihad are acts that the lords can easily get behind, particularly those who chafed under his rule. Even those who benefited from the former lord protector’s favor will likely welcome a change of power in the wake of their loss of men and Divhs. For despite their support of Rihad, those houses still suffered losses they didn’t tacitly agree to. Rihad acted alone in that regard. So, you, as the new lord protector, would at worst, ordinarily, merely be considered a pawn in the larger political game they are more used to playing.”
Fortiss’s lips twist. “Your confidence in me is overwhelming,” he says dryly, but he motions her to continue.
“But you’ve already demonstrated that you’re not blindly cleaving to tradition. The idea of elevating anyone to the position of lord of a new house without calling the Protectorate leadership together to discuss the merits of that decision is bad enough. The fact that Talia is a woman, takes things to an entirely different level.”
