Our current morning council meeting was already tense. We’d recently made our decree for Unseelie magic to be legalized. The news media had gone ballistic, and frankly, so had some of the people. There’d been a few protests in front of the palace since the law was passed, and I hoped we could calm some of the tension.
The meetings were held in a circular council room in one of the stone towers of the palace. Banners hung on the walls. Our Circle, as well as Emma and I, sat around a large wooden table placed in the center of the room.
Emma was tired, sipping at her morning coffee like it was her lifeline. There were bags under her eyes, and she had been tossing and turning beside me one too many nights.
I worried this was all too much for her, but there was no turning back now. My eyes centered on an empty chair on the opposite side of the table.
Lady Magdalina was missing, curiously. I wasn’t sure where she went, and even as king, I dared not to ask. She did as she pleased, and I knew wherever she was, it was for our effort. Always, Lady Magdalina would put our cause first.
She’d taken Finlay with her, wherever she went. Secretly, I was pleased. Finlay was always stirring up trouble on the council. He had the right idea, but the man was a poor diplomat. He and Lord Gray’s arguments took up copious amounts of precious time that we needed to get things done.
“Looks like the blowback from the Unseelie decree isn’t as dastardly as we expected,” Lord Eryk said. “The griffin Faction is in support, and although the other Factions have voiced their disagreement, none have moved to do anything in opposition. It appears there were more mixed-blood fae hiding within the city than we thought.”
“Of course there were,” Emma said, rubbing her eyes. Her frankness hadn’t changed.
“We do have a few vocal opposers,” Lord Eryk continued. “We would do well to placate them now, before they gather followers. We don’t need another uprising.”
“I think we can keep the people happy if everyone remains fed and well,” Lady Bella suggested. “No one will listen to these opposers if nothing dramatically alters the people’s day-to-day lives. We can integrate Unseelie magic without too much fuss if everyone continues to have the resources they need. The only question ishow.”
As we all knew, Malovia was broke. I’d taken a look at the royal treasury funds before we’d started that morning, and nearly cringed at how they’d been drained. Gabby and Elijah had spent all the treasury’s coin on growing their massive army, which Gabby had taken with her once she’d fled Dolinska. What was left was hardly enough to pay our own soldiers, and prop up the healthcare system we’d recently got running again. Taxes were low this year, due to so many being unemployed under Elijah’s reign— or, otherwise, killed off by the riots or his policies. We needed a way to fund our forces, and keep the country running.
“What do you expect us to do? Our mightiest landholders have fled. Lord and Lady Gramer have turned their backs on us,” Lord Bennett announced. “I stopped by their estate this morning to find them gone. As one of their abandoned servants told me, they took the family fortune, and went to support Gabby.”
“It is no wonder,” Lord Gray blustered. “We can’t make allies when we are killing the daughters of nobles.”
“It had to be done,” I said gruffly, and Lord Gray fell silent.
Chastity had been executed the morning following the coronation, as I’d promised. I watched her head roll in the execution yard of the palace, and felt nothing. I disliked that my rule had to begin in such a way, but unfortunately, I had to set an example. No attack on the queen’s life would be tolerated, and hopefully, Chastity’s death would dissuade others from making an effort to end Emma’s existence.
Lord and Lady Gramer had pleaded for their daughter’s life, but I failed to allow them to sway my decision. As such, we’d made two more powerful and rich enemies, ones who now supported Gabby’s claim to the throne.
“We need to find another way to bolster the treasury,” Emma announced.“Withoutdepending on the funds of nobles.”
“I’m sorry, my queen, but the system hasn’t been set up that way,” Lady Renia replied. “For centuries in Malovia, nobles have contributed to the monarchy by providing gold for the treasury through the money their lands, crops, and businesses generate. Without these millionaires supporting us, and with many of them dead or with Gabriella, how do you propose we remain in the black?”
“We can’t keep relying on the generosity of others,” Emma stated. “Yes, these nobles contribute to the treasury, but at what cost? They have too much power to influence the monarchy, and the laws of the country because they hold the pursestrings. They give us money because they know they have power over the council and the throne.”
“The queen has a point,” Delmare stated. “The monarchy needs to be concerned with generating its own money. The kingdom is on the verge of collapse. We can’t wait for the wealthy to decide if they want to support Gabriella, or us.”
“And how do you propose we do that, Lady Irena?” Lord Lockett asked, crossing his arms. “Make gold fall from the sky?”
“Nah, we’ll just pull it out your ass, Lockett,” Stefan drawled.
“Lord Slasky!” Lady Raelinn snapped. “This is a civil court, please.”
Stefan was a lord now, and he was good at it, but he had a tendency to let things slip that he shouldn’t. I shot him a glare, to tell him to shut up, and he shrugged carelessly.
I took control of the council by leaning forward. “Originally, when the fae came to Earth, we did not make our riches by land. We made them by trade,” I stated. “Elijah shut our borders during his reign, but it’s time to open them up again. Fae objects are rare in most supernatural communities, and expensive to obtain. We can take advantage of that.”
“And what if these races use our own objects against us?” Lord Gray asked. “They know we’re in a time of civil war, and vulnerable.”
“The other supernatural races have their own problems,” Emma objected. “The Elementai just resolved a civil war of their own, and aren’t keen to go to war again. Our greatest enemy, the Miriamic Coven, is facing some sort of crisis, though we can’t be sure what yet— our spies can’t get close enough to the town’s protective ward to make it out, but there’s definitely chaos in Octavia Falls. They haven’t even responded to our request for a treaty. Needless to say, the witches are preoccupied.”
“What about the Midnighters?” Lady Ursa spoke up. “The Celestials, or the Atlanteans?”
“The vampires and angels are our allies. The merpeople don’t wish to seek war, they never have, and I don’t see why they would start now,” I said flatly. “And don’t humor me with ideas of the Astromancers attacking, either. They’re such a secluded society it’s laughable they’d come out of their city long enough to see what we’re doing.”
“Elijah insisted there would be another Great Supernatural War. We know things between the races have been tense, since the last supernatural world war ended eighty years ago,” Lord Bennett said. “How do we know another won’t happen again?”
