“Will you tell the emperor that?”
“It will be relayed, but not by you. Your duty remains here on the island.”
Soren knew it was too much to hope that he’d be assigned his old border again, but with the crypt emptied, there was nothing left for a warden to guard. Still, he tried not to be disappointed. “I would be of better use in Ashion with the war effort.”
Delani snorted. “I have it on good authority Eimarille hunts for her brother, and I’m not inclined to give her what she wants.”
“I’m not?—”
“I’ll believe what I want,” Delani said, cutting him off. “Because to ignore the fact staring at me with the same gray eyes in a face with similar features as a purported Ashion queen would risk what the wardens stand for, and I won’t break the Poison Accords like those before me apparently did.”
Soren snapped his mouth shut, teeth clacking together. “I’ll do my duty.”
“Of that, I have no doubt.”
It was as much a dismissal as any, and Soren left the governor’s office wishing for a world that didn’t end at the shores of an island in the middle of the Celestine Lake. He wanted—more than anything—a road that would lead him back to Vanya. That was a prayer he had no right to speak, because wardens were Maricol’s starless, nameless children, and there would be no star god to hear his words.
It didn’t stop Soren from dreaming of Vanya that night and waking the next morning aching for the touches that had seemed so real in the middle of the night.
Two
VANYA
The Tirsha River fed the sprawling tropical rainforests that Oeiras overlooked, that vast green canopy hiding dangerous revenant wild beasts. The port city sat at the mouth of the river and was known for its trade with the Tovan Isles, the same way Seaville was known for trade with E’ridia in the east. Unlike that city, Oeiras now held the honor of the Imperial family calling it home while the palace was rebuilt in Calhames.
The House of Dayal oversaw the surroundingvasilyet, a House that had thrown its support behind the House of Sa’Liandel during the Conclave before the Dawn Star had given her blessing. That was more than some other Houses had done, and it was one reason why Vanya Sa’Liandel, of the House of Sa’Liandel, had chosen the Imperial estate in Oeiras over all others to temporarily rule out of.
While Vanya could have stayed in his House’s ancestral estate in Calhames, he’d needed to escape Solaria’s capital and all the terrible memories that city held for him these days. More than even escaping heartache, he’d wanted to protect his daughter. Oeiras wouldn’t have been his first choice to return to, but of the major cities he could temporarily rule out of, Seaville was held by a House whose loyalty was still in question, Karnack was too close to the northern border and the war happening in neighboring countries, and Bellingham would never be an option.
So to Oeiras they had gone, and Vanya had been tasked with turning a temporary residence into a home. Unlike the last time he and Raiah had resided in Oeiras, Vanya and thepraetorialegionnaires were well aware of the threat fromrionetkasand had planned security accordingly. He did his best to shield his daughter from the threats aimed at their House. Raiah was the brightest start of his day, and that never changed.
“Papa!” Raiah cried out as she raced across the inner courtyard, her long hair flowing behind her in thick waves. The white robes she wore were perhaps an inch too short, courtesy of the growth spurt she was going through. She was all legs even at five years old, and Vanya had a feeling she’d take after him in height rather than her mother.
Vanya scooped Raiah up into his arms and tossed her into the air, causing her to shriek happily. He caught her easily and held her close. “How is my favorite girl this morning?”
Raiah wrapped her skinny arms around his neck and pecked a kiss to his cheek. “I’m your only girl.”
“Ah, yourvalidewould argue otherwise.”
Vanya tucked Raiah against his side and carried her over to the table set with a family-style breakfast spread. Taisiya Sa’Liandel, of the House of Sa’Liandel, sat on the low bench built beneath a curtain of flowering vines, watching them approach with a smile on her subtly scarred face, mouth dragged down at the left corner. She’d survived a poisoning on her wedding day while her husband had not and spent much of her days since then at a coastal estate.
She’d returned to Calhames before the start of the Conclave last year, becoming Vanya’s advisor as was her right asvalide, the matriarch of the ruling House that held the Imperial throne of Solaria. She’d stayed with them when Vanya decided to move the Imperial court to Oeiras, making her the only person he trusted with Raiah these days after the betrayals that had come to light last year.
He no longer had a majordomo for his household, reluctant to bring a stranger so close to his family again after Alida’s treachery. Taisiya handled the running of the household for now, capable of doing so only because the Imperial estate here was smaller than the Imperial palace had been, meant to hold a family and not a government. Still, he knew it could not be her duty indefinitely, not with her age and other duties bearing down on her.
“She wants to join you when you meet with the Tovan Isles ambassador today,” Taisiya said, the rasp of her voice familiar. In her youth, she’d been one of the most revered theater singers in the country before fervere stole her voice and her husband. But she’d survived, voice ever altered, speaking as if she’d smoked tabac all her life when she’d never touched it.
The loose curls of her graying auburn hair were similar in shape to Raiah’s, styled today in a coiled updo held in place by hair combs made of pearlescent shell and inlaid with jewels. Her gown was a teal color, the light robe layered over it a pale gray that was almost white. It reminded Vanya of the waves in the port, and he knew the homage was done on purpose. Taisiya would be joining him when he and his other advisors met with the Tovanian ambassador after breakfast. Raiah would be otherwise occupied.
“I believe her tutors would protest Raiah missing her lessons,” Vanya said as he sat on the bench opposite Taisiya, letting Raiah go so she could sit beside him.
“But Papa!” she protested. “I want to see what you do.”
Taisiya reached for the teapot that held the strong red she favored, pouring herself a cup and then one for Vanya. He handled pouring Raiah her favorite chai, setting the cup beside her empty plate. “You will, but for now, you have lessons.”
She pouted at him, brows furrowed in a way he knew she was trying to come up with an argument that would get her way. Raiah was as strong-willed as they came, despite the horrors she’d lived through in her short life. “Lessons are boring.”
“Lessons until you are seven. Then you will be old enough to sit with me in court some mornings,” Vanya said. It was never too early to learn how to rule, but he wanted her to have a childhood a little longer.
