Page 37

He nodded.

“You’re welcome.”

After eating,when no one knocked on his door, Kaerius paced restlessly around the suite, picking things up and putting them down again. He wanted to teach Marin and Brighton more signs, or ask someone to tell him the words for the many objects he had never seen before. He wanted to ask for explanations. Why did Marin think marrying one of her own people was not a good option? How might he prove himself worthy of her admiration and love? How horrified would she be when she realized his true mouth was full of sharp teeth rather than these strange, flat things? Would she think his tail lovely or merely strange?

He spent a great deal of time peeling small strands of wood off the sections laid ready by the fire and feeding them to the flames one by one. He was sorely tempted to pick up one of the burning embers, just a small one, just to see what it would feel like. It must be like sunlight in one’s hand, bright and glorious and alive! What would it taste like? Would it spill light and heat and joy through his bones so that he was as light in the air as he was in the water?

But he merely put his finger closer and closer, slowly, until he could feel the danger of the heat, and pulled away.

At last, as the light was fading, a knock finally came. A dark-haired young man in a uniform stood there. “Prince Kai? I’m here to escort you to dinner.”

Just a moment. Kaerius pulled on the stockings and socks and then laced the boots. He pulled on the vest and jacket which had been selected for him and ran a hand through his golden hair. Then he stood before the young man and smiled, gesturing at himself with a glint of mischief in his eyes.

The youth looked a little confused. “You look quite nice,” he said at last. “Is that what you were asking?”

Kaerius beamed.Yes, it was, and yes, I do look gorgeous, don’t I?He gestured toward the hall, indicating he was ready to go.

The stockings and socks on his feet in the new boots were much less painful than the old boots had been, but it was still uncomfortable to walk so far. Kaerius ignored the pain in favor of matching his strides to those of the energetic young soldier.

A few minutes later, the soldier stopped at a set of doors inlaid with fine lines of gold depicting the palace on the rocky seaside cliffs, with a stormy ocean picked out in intricate silver inlay. Kaerius studied the design surreptitiously, admiring the detail and glitter of the precious metals against the smooth, dark wood.

“Here you are, Your Highness,” said the soldier with a bow.

Thank you. Kaerius strode through the doors, seeing Marin, Brighton, and the two foreign lords already within.

Marin rose to greet him, a courtesy that apparently irritated both Ralph and the Severtian lord.

“Prince Kai!” she said, as if delighted.

Your beauty astounds me anew. He bowed elaborately, adding flourishes to the form he had learned so quickly from Brighton.

Marin blushed. “You’ve met Lord Ralph of Boravia already,” she said.

Ralph sneered and gave a resentful half-bow to the silent prince.

“This is Lord Adam Galbraith, of Severt. Lord Galbraith, Prince Kai.” Marin’s voice had a faint edge of concern.

“What an honor to meet you, Prince Kai,” growled Lord Galbraith, as if he were utterly disgusted by Kaerius’s very existence.

Kaerius raised one eyebrow and smiled slowly. He clicked his teeth at Galbraith, and his smile widened when the man’s arrogance flickered for a moment.

The princess nodded to a servant in the corner, who exited the room for a few seconds before returning with a plate of food and fellow servants bearing more plates, glasses, and bottles of wine. The table was easily large enough for twelve people, but apparently only these four were to eat, for Marin indicated that Kaerius was to sit at the opposite end of the table from her, and the two lords were seated on either side, facing each other. Brighton stood a few feet behind Marin, his hands clasped loosely behind his back in a parade rest position; though Kaerius didn’t know the name of this position, he instinctively recognized it as an unthreatening but ready pose. Apparently Brighton was not to eat with them, and Kaerius shot him a questioning glance. The guard nodded acknowledgement but said nothing.

“So Prince Kai, you’re from a foreign land across the water.” Lord Galbraith’s voice was thick with annoyance and contempt. “I suppose you’re attempting to make your suit to Her Highness? It must be difficult to convey your meaning without the use of your voice.”

Kaerius blinked.Not as difficult as it would be with your personality.

Ralph said, “We can’t all be as abrasive as you are, Galbraith. I suppose you can get away with it because of your physical charms.”

The Severtian lord paled and then flushed, which was particularly unbecoming. Though he was not exactly ugly, he was hardly a specimen of masculine beauty, with a crooked nose, thin lips perpetually in a sneer, thinning hair pulled back from his shiny forehead, and the beginning of a paunch on his thinframe. Seated across from Ralph’s smug, handsome face and broad-shouldered strength, he looked petulant and outclassed.

“Well,” he said, as if struggling to find words in his fury. “I’m sure Her Highness is wise enough to see through the temporary charms of her other suitors. At least we Severtian nobility are not known for our cruelty to our own subjects.”

Ralph smiled serenely. “Ask any of my servants if I am cruel. They will answer that I pay on time and well, and my requirements for service are lighter than those of my countrymen.”

“You probably threatened them into saying whatever you want!” snapped Galbraith.

Ralph shrugged one shoulder in careless arrogance. “What of it? Does it matter? It’s still true.”