Page 35 of The Second Marriage

“Sejun will keep me out of trouble,” Taral said, and drew Iniya into an embrace and pressed a kiss to her dark hair. “Be well, all of you.” He kissed the baby, and knelt to kiss the girls, who understood that he was going away for a long while but didn’t seem particularly concerned by the notion. Then they mounted their horses and were off.

* * *

Their procession grewin size as they travelled down the valley. Where the road turned north to Barun, they stopped to water the horses and to wait for a delegation from Merek to join them. It seemed that Sejun knew some of the people who rode up, as he leaped to his feet and began waving as soon as the vague shapes in the distance drew near enough to have recognizable faces. That was good; now he would have company on the trip and wouldn’t have to rely on Taral or the one book Taral had bargained him down to. They didn’t have the horses to carry any baggage beyond the essentials.

By afternoon they approached Barun fortress. The road crossed the river and curved around the side of the outcrop where the fortress sat. A smaller path split off from the road to climb the spur, and a group of people waited there, holding banners in Barun’s colors of purple and red. At the front stood Queen Shanoli, and behind her, a banner in his hands, was Jaysha.

A cold wave of nausea passed over Taral’s body. He must have known that he would encounter Jaysha, but he hadn’t let himself think about it, or maybe he had assumed he would only see Jaysha at a distance, from across the courtyard. As if distance would somehow soften the blow.

After thirteen years, Jaysha looked just the same.

Taral dismounted his horse and planted his numb feet on the stone pavement. His legs walked forward and he bowed to Shanoli. His mouth spoke the words of greeting. He kept his eyes fixed on her face as she welcomed them to Barun and invited them to stay the night in the fortress. He made all the appropriate replies. When Shanoli turned and led the procession up the path to the fortress, Taral took his horse’s reins in his hand and followed.

Sejun came up beside him as they walked. “What’s wrong?” he asked in an undertone, so that no one else could hear.

“Nothing,” Taral said, like a fool. Sejun frowned at him, and Taral said, “We can talk about this later.” He was sure Sejun could guess.

Barun was as tidy and well-kept as Taral remembered. The murals in the entry looked as fresh as if they had been painted a week ago, and the flagstones of the inner courtyard were scrubbed clean of dirt. Shanoli’s steward escorted Taral and Sejun to a guest room on the top level, where Taral dropped his bag on the floor and sat on the bed as if all his limbs had abruptly turned into stone.

Sejun sat beside him and laid his hand on Taral’s knee. “That was Jaysha, I take it, standing with the queen.”

“Yes.” Taral set his own hand over Sejun’s. “I’m sorry to be so—to react in this way. I didn’t consider that he would be here.”

“And what if he travels to Chedi with us?”

Another thing Taral hadn’t considered. He closed his eyes. “Any connection I had with him ended a long time ago. Neither of us will behave in any inappropriate way.”

“I know you won’t. That didn’t cross my mind. Taral, please look at me.” When Taral did, he said, “My only concern is that you’re distressed.”

“I haven’t seen him since the ritual to dissolve our marriage.” Memories of that day flooded his mind; he pushed them aside. “It was a shock to me. That’s all. Please don’t trouble yourself.”

“He’s very handsome,” Sejun said. “And tall.”

“Don’t tell me you’re jealous,” Taral said, shocked afresh that Sejun might experience any pang of possessiveness on Taral’s behalf.

“No, nothing of the sort,” Sejun said, after just enough of a pause that Taral was certain he was lying.

Taral considered how he felt about that. Somewhat strange, but not in an unpleasant way, as Sejun didn’t seem the type to make a dramatic public scene. But Taral didn’t want him to think there was any chance that Taral might dishonor their bond and their marriage.

Before he could say anything, Sejun sighed and said, “Forgive me. You shouldn’t need to worry about my feelings now. Yes, of course I’m a bit—well, I’m not sure how to say it. To know that you loved him, and that...” He stopped and looked away, his mouth tightening.

Taral could fill in the rest. That you don’t love me, Sejun had started to say. It was true, and they both knew it.

“Give me time, Sejun,” he said quietly. “Please. I can’t change my heart overnight.”

“I know. I know that.” Sejun’s mouth twisted into a rueful smile. “I’ve read too many books where people fall in love at first glance. But it doesn’t work that way, does it?”

“Oh, how do I know what love is? What do I know of anything? It could well work that way for most people, for all I know. But I do think most love grows over time, and it isn’t worse for its slowness. Iniya told me once that it takes an entire year before her love for a new baby comes into full flower, and I can’t imagine a more devoted mother.”

Sejun laughed. “Am I your baby, then, to squall and puke? In a year I’ll be learning to walk and you’ll be fond of me despite yourself.”

“Yes. I think it will happen exactly like that.” Taral patted Sejun’s hand and then shifted it aside so he could stand. “Let’s wash off the road dust and change before dinner. I’m sure there will be entertainments of some sort.”

“Dancing, I hope,” Sejun said, and though a shadow of worry lingered around his eyes, he did manage a smile.

CHAPTER16

The festivities spilled out of the receiving hall and into the courtyard beyond. Lanterns lit both spaces, and there were musicians, and small children up past their bedtimes falling asleep in every corner. Sejun liked to meet and talk with new people, and there were many friendly faces in Barun as well as the friends and acquaintances who had traveled from Merek. He tried his best to enjoy himself, but everywhere he looked, there was Prince Jaysha, handsome and dignified, and Taral’s own age: a grown man.