Page 15 of The Shadowed Throne (Midlife Fairy Tale #4)

K ieran, the boy Ro had brought back with them from Willow Hall, came careening down the corridor ahead of her and Uldamar. “My lady, my lady,” he called out.

“Kieran, what is it?”

He nearly ran into her as he came to a stop and bowed. He was red in the face, and his hair was a mess. “Lord Nightborne is looking for you.”

She sucked in a breath. Gabriel was back. “Where is he?”

“Headed for the royal apartment, my lady. Prince James is on his way there as well. He sent me to look for you.”

“All right, thank you. We’ll go there now. Go to the kitchen and get yourself something to drink. Walk, though. If you run into someone, you’ll knock them down”

“Yes, my lady.” He bowed again before taking off.

Ro shook her head. “That boy.”

Uldamar smiled. “I cannot ever remember having that much energy.”

“Right?”

When they arrived at her apartment, the door was open, and the voices of JT, Violet, and Gabriel could be heard.

The guards at the door greeted her by bowing their heads. She went in and found Posey, Vincent, and Raphaela were also there.

Gabriel got to his feet. “Your highness. Did Kieran find you?”

She smiled. “He did. I sent him to the kitchen for something to drink. Please tell me the portal worked.”

He smiled back. “It did. And I delivered the letter personally.”

She gaped at him. “You did? That’s fantastic.”

His smile flattened. “You might not think so when I tell you the rest.” He dug an envelope from the pocket of his leather vest. The envelope was sealed with wax. “They want to meet with you.”

“I wasn’t counting on that, but if it must be done …” She took the letter and broke the seal.

The note was short and to the point.

Queen Sparrow and court,

We are deeply interested in meeting with you. Please return at your earliest convenience.

King Khamsin

She handed the note back to him so he could see it for himself. “What was your impression of them?”

Gabriel looked up. “Not much. I met a pair of guards at the entrance of one of the caves. He took your letter while the other kept an eye on me. He returned after an hour or so with that note and told me that my queen’s presence would be required.”

He handed the note to JT, who shared it with Violet. “It’s not a long trip. From the portal, it’s about an hour of travel by horse. Longer on foot, obviously, but the portal was designed for hunting parties. Horses aren’t a problem.”

“Good. Speaking of problems, we have one of our own.” She looked to Uldamar. “Tell them all about the new magic. Well, have a seat first, then tell them. I’m going to send down for some lunch. It’ll be about that time soon enough.”

Posey got up. “I can do that, your highness.”

“That would be wonderful, thank you. See if they can send some lemonade? And when you get back, I might need to draft a letter.”

“I have my things with me,” Posey said as she headed for the door.

Ro took her usual chair as Uldamar began explaining about the new clouds over Malveaux and the Mourning Fog.

JT, Gabriel, and Violet listened with ever-increasing looks of horror and anger. Violet put her hand to her throat. “You have to do something, Ro. You can’t let your people suffer this fog. Or worse.”

Uldamar held up his hands. “My dear Violet, it will be at least a day or two before this fog reaches our shores, despite its speed, and I know how to stop it. No one is going to suffer.”

“But,” Ro said, “this, to me, is a clear indication of what Anyka means to do. She wants to weaken us before she attacks. I want to expose her and declare war before she can act. An official declaration of war will enable our guards to act decisively.”

Gabriel nodded. “I agree with that, however, I don’t know if the neph will want to ally with a kingdom that has so recently declared war on its neighbor.”

Posey returned and sat next to Violet again, who leaned in and brought her up to speed.

Ro sighed. “I hadn’t thought about that.” She glanced at Uldamar. “I may have been a little hasty with my words.”

“You were acting upon real emotion, your highness. And the desire to protect your kingdom from a clear and present threat. No one would fault you for that. But Lord Nightborne does make a worthy point.”

“How quickly can you work whatever magic you need to in order to keep this fog from affecting us?”

“With the assistance of the Wyvern, I can have it done this afternoon.”

Her brows rose. “Really? Then, please, do it. What do you need?”

“A lot of ashes, but with the help of the guards and perhaps some palace staff, I should have what I need in short order.”

“Go, then. You have my permission to do whatever you need and to commandeer whomever you need to help you. Posey, write a quick note giving Uldamar my permission. I’ll sign it, and he can take it with him in case anyone says anything.”

She pulled out her pen and notebook. “Yes, your highness.”

While Posey wrote, Ro shifted her attention to Gabriel. “How soon can we go see the neph?”

He shrugged. “As soon as you’re ready.”

She looked at JT next. “You realize you’ll be the acting head of state while I’m gone. Things are more than tense right now. I want to be sure you’re all right being the crown in my absence.”

He nodded, but she could see a little hesitation. “I can do it. You won’t be gone long.”

“I don’t know how long I’ll be gone, but I’ll try to keep it to a day. Hopefully less, but I won’t know for sure until we get there.” She did not want to go into this war with only the Wyvern to rely on. Especially if securing an alliance with the neph might be enough to get Anyka to back down.

Maybe that was how the neph were going to help—just by allying with the Radiant.

“Mom, it’ll be fine. So you and Gabriel would go?”

Gabriel answered before she could. “I’d like to have Uldamar with us and at least one other guard.”

She looked at him. “That’s a smaller party than when we went to Hythe.”

He nodded. “We can take another guard if you like, but surprisingly, I didn’t get the sense that the neph were looking for trouble.”

“With you, Uldamar, and a guard, we should be fine. But I’d like to bring an extra pair of guards with us to keep watch at the portal. It’s not that I distrust the neph. I have no reason to do that yet. Anyka is the one I’m worried about.”

Gabriel sat back. “Easily done. I’ll take care of that.”

Posey held out a sheet of paper. “The permission for Uldamar is written.”

Ro read it over. “Perfect.” She borrowed Posey’s pen and added her signature to the bottom, then handed it to Uldamar.

“Let’s get the defense against the fog taken care of as soon as possible. And Gabriel, pick the guards and get them ready. I want to leave for the Caer Wyld tomorrow after breakfast. Right after King Ehlzar and Queen Varyana head home.”

A knock on the door stopped any further conversation.

Gabriel got up. “I’ll see to it.” He went to the door.

It was easy enough to hear footmen entering the foyer. Lunch had arrived.

Ro got up. “Let’s eat in the dining room, but Posey, bring your notebook. I want to work on a letter to be sent wide, something to make the citizens aware that the crown knows about the fog and is putting protections in place. I don’t want any panic. I need the people to know that they are safe.”

“That’s really good, Mom,” JT said as he got to his feet. “I’d be happy to go to the square and read it for you. If you want. Might help the word spread faster.”

“You would?” That surprised her.

“Sure. If I’m going to be king someday, the people need to see me as the heir to the throne. What better way to do that than to start taking on more royal duties? You shouldn’t have to do everything.”

Ro smiled and gave his hand a quick squeeze. “That would be great.”

Some of the weight she’d been feeling disappeared. They might be headed into war, but things would be all right.

She had to believe that.