“Jewelry.” I paused and recalled the countless hours I’d spent in the workshop.
A tall guard jogged up from the shadows. “Your Highness, you’re needed inside. The royal common room.”
“Very well,” Ryder replied without question and gestured to me. “Please see that Audryn makes it inside.”
14
RYDER
Everyone at the table turned and stood as I moved through the doors. I gestured for them to sit. Keeping my face steady, I racked my mind. What meeting had I forgotten? With so many things on my plate, I was barely keeping afloat. I struggled to even make time for the women, though at least I’d reduced the number of them over the last week before Audryn's arrival.
Getting her here had taken longer than I’d expected. Not wanting to delay any further, I’d taken matters into my own hands. I wasn’t proud that I had ordered her garden to be destroyed, but she’d left me with little other choice.
Repairing the damage in a matter of hours at least confirmed her land magic was powerful. Though I couldn’t be sure it wasn’t her friends who’d done the mending since it was fixed under the cover of night. If it were her, at least she was wise enough not to attempt the repair again once I placed Hunt and Fisher to stand sentry.
“There are several situations requiring your immediate attention,” Leanna said, redirecting my train of thoughts. “And since you were preoccupied, I began the meeting to give you anadequate amount of time with your …” My sister feigned a cough, her clear tell that she was full of shit.
“I am never too busy to deal with matters that affect my kingdom, though I appreciate your ongoing effort.” I narrowed my eyes at her. She was occupying my father’s chair.Mychair. A discussion was needed, but it would need to be held in private. A family dispute in front of others revealed weakness and, with my father’s failing health, that was the last thing we needed.
“Anything I can do to help.” Leanna’s voice was airy.
“Thank you for waiting,” I announced, my jaw clenching. Leanna stood and vacated my seat. She took the chair to my right, the one I’d sat in for nearly my entire life with my father at the head. At my father’s insistence, she’d started attending meetings, but that was the first time she’d held one in my absence.
“Your Highness,” Commander Tashe began, “this evening, several ships were lost en route to their destinations.”
Each set of eyes moved to me and awaited my response, but I sat silently. If I’d learned one good thing from my father, it was that more information was divulged from uncomfortable moments of silence than any line of questioning. I’d applied the rule to nearly all aspects of my life.
Tashe continued, “The weather continues to be an issue, and with the aging fleet and lack of weatherproofing, they simply can no longer handle the trade route as they used to.” He took a breath. “This doesn’t take into account the number of attacks from the islands. We simply don’t have the means to defend ourselves at sea.”
Leanna quirked an eyebrow at me. She had likely processed the information before I was even aware of the meeting. Maybe she’d even formed a solution; meanwhile, I was forced to construct one on the spot while everyone watched me scramble for it.
“Sir, we need more crude—not only for weatherproofing,but for incendiaries as well.” Tashe tapped a finger on the thick wood. “Our supply depleted months ago, and we’ve not been able to continue with the same tenacity as we once had.”
“How many boats were lost?” I asked, and nearly everyone's eyes dropped to the table in front of them.
“Six fell to weather and two to attacks,” Tashe said, “each with over fifty men aboard.”
Shit. We’d lost nearly four hundred people in one night. Rivale hadn’t gone to war in decades, but with a loss so great, it certainly felt as if we were in a battle. Perhaps it was a war waged against resources rather than fae.
“Why did they not defend themselves from the attacks?” I asked anyone willing to answer.
“They did—well, to the best of their ability,” Tashe replied. “They fought valiantly with bow and arrow, but they were dealing with an invasion from the sky.”
I scoffed, “Surely there were Divine wielders on board to protect themselves.”
Several at the table stiffened while others adjusted nervously in their chairs.
“Well, yes, Your Highness, but given their choices”—he hesitated—“death was the only certain outcome. Whether they could not defend themselves from the attack because of inadequate weaponry or were punished upon return for wielding magic against the king’s orders. Their fate was death regardless. It is far more honorable to fight for one’s kingdom than against it.”
“Did you make the request for additional crude? Or did you nearly stand by and let all of your fae perish?” Leanna questioned the commander.
Tashe had the foresight to see the impending issue more than a year prior. My father denied his request because of his own personal need for crude, one he’d never explained to me. My sister sat in on meetings, but she didn’t have full access toeverything on the back end. Only those with clearance viewed orders, missives, and plans.
“Yes,” Tashe said simply, keeping his gaze on me. I couldn’t override my father’s allocation of resources, and he knew that. I could only assuage each disaster after it occurred.
“Your Highness,” Captain Vexley spoke up, “not to add more to your plate, but it appears there’s been a resurgence by the resistance.”
“Are you dealing with it?” I asked. He was the most competent leader I’d had the privilege of working with.
