Chapter Four
Freddy
Present…
“Your wife has no friends.”
Shea’s statement accompanied the sound of his footsteps crunching over the gravel of the narrow path that ran along the length of the stone wall separating the palace grounds from the world outside. He had changed into clothes more suitable for traveling and carried a canvas bag slung over one shoulder.
Freddy pushed off the wall he had been leaning against as he waited. “She has a husband now, which is arguably better than a friend.”
“Not if her husband is just as clueless about her whereabouts as her nonexistent friends.”
“What makes you say she doesn’t have friends? Lizzie can be quite delightful if she chooses.”
Shea huffed and dropped his bag to the ground, rubbing at a spot on his right shoulder. “Well, apparently she has been choosing quite often not to be. I knew after last night that the male population of guests would likely be harboring ill feelings, but it seems that she is universally disliked by all of Alfred’s guests. According to them, she’s snooty and cold and altogether too blunt to be polite. I get the feeling that it’s only Nedra’s position as one of the trade leaders of Eukarya that things haven’t escalated to the point of war in some cases.”
“Surely it can’t be that bad.”
“She compared Prince Jacques’ face to a dumpling.”
Freddy snorted, not bothering to hide his amusement. “She’s only saying what the rest of us are thinking. That spoiled brat had it coming.”
Shea lifted a reprimanding eyebrow. “The reason the rest of us don’t say what we’re thinking is exactly because we’re trying to avoid causing offense at a national level.” His face turned suddenly solemn, and his visible eye took on a distant look. “War isn’t something to take lightly. An insult at a gathering like this is far less satisfying when it leads to the loss of human life.”
“You’re quite the downer this morning.” Freddy blew out a long breath. “I just can’t think of Lizzie as being the kind of person to willingly create conflict. She’s always been too empathetic for that.”
“Empathetic? Are we even talking about the same person?”
“When we were younger,” he amended. “Of the two of us, she was the one who would jump in to diffuse tense situations because she hated seeing anyone feel scared or upset. Afterseeing him in his own home, I can imagine living with Alfred as a father would do that to a person.”
“Well, she may have been that way as a child, but she certainly isn’t now.” Shea crossed his arms and looked at him closely. “I know this is hard to hear, but I worry that your memories and loyalty to who Lizzie once was have blinded you to the reality of who she is now. People change, Fred.”
Freddy shrugged, keeping a smile on his face and doggedly pushing past the ache in his chest. No matter how hard he tried to ignore the pain of Lizzie’s cold dismissal or tell himself it didn’t matter, he couldn’t deny that he missed her.
And the fact that he loved her made it hurt all the more.
“They do.” He kept his voice light. “But never without a reason. And until I can figure outwhyLizzie suddenly went cold, I’m not giving up on her.”
Shea said nothing for a moment, studying him with a quiet, thoughtful air. He nodded slowly. “Alright. I’ll support you. But as your friend and as a commander, I need you to know that there is no shame in retreating from a fight, especially in one that will only end in permanent damage.”
Freddy grinned. “Can’t retreat; we’re married now.”
“Fred.”
Shea was not amused, and Freddy immediately lost his grin, tempering his expression. “I know, I know. But I really believe that there’s a deeper answer to all of this.”
“And you can drop the facade. You don’t have to be happy all the time.”
His nose wrinkled. “Why on earth do I keep choosing friends who are such sticks in the mud? First Hadrian, and now you. You certainly don’t pull any punches.”
“Sometimes the truth hurts. Any good soldier will tell you that a little pain from an offensive strike is much better than fighting through a siege.”
“I’m going to just smile and pretend that I understood that metaphor. And for your information, I happen to like smiling and I want others to be able to smile too, so I choose to be happy. There’s always a silver lining somewhere, you know?” Freddy gestured between them. “Like this whole situation, for example. When else would we get the chance to travel together? Not to mention the fact that now you have a legitimate excuse for not returning home right away.”
“I might not ever return if we can’t figure out where this bride of yours went.”
Freddy reached down and retrieved his own bag and the lute he had acquired for his disguise. “Oh, that’s not a problem. A little birdie told me that she was heading north to Anura.”
