Page 9 of The Shadowed Throne (Midlife Fairy Tale #4)
R o didn’t have her usual appetite, since she and Gabriel had eaten so late last night, but she dressed with the help of Helana, her hairdresser and makeup artist, and Luena, who had become more of a lady’s maid than just a seamstress in the past few weeks.
Ro appreciated their assistance, especially as they seemed to function better than she did without coffee. Luena put her in a gown of blue silk with trillianite accessories and silver slippers while Helana did her hair in a simple braided updo and kept her makeup soft.
Aunt Violet came into her dressing room. “Morning, sweetheart. The footmen have just arrived with breakfast.”
“Morning, Aunt Vi. I’ll be right out.” A few minutes later, Ro arrived at the table ready for coffee and a serious discussion about what her next steps were. She brought the book with her, setting it beside her plate before taking her seat.
Footmen surged forward, placing platters and bowls of food on the table.
Scrambled eggs with cheese and flecked with chopped green herbs, biscuits with butter and several kinds of jam and preserves, a platter of sausages and bacon, bowls of berries and cut-up fruit, another of potatoes fried with onions, and pitchers of juice, water, coffee, and spiced cocoa.
Maybe she was hungrier than she’d thought. She gave Gabriel a quick smile before greeting the rest of them. “Good morning, everyone. Uldamar, thank you for joining us.”
A footman filled her cup with her favorite blend of coffee and spiced cocoa. She took a long drink right away.
“My honor, your highness.” Uldamar’s gaze went to the book, and he inhaled. “Is that—may I?”
“Sure, help yourself.” She spoke to one of the footmen. “Thank you, you can all go. I’ll ring when the meal is ready to be cleared.”
As they left, Uldamar picked up Red Leaves of the Wild Court and stared at it in disbelief, but there was something else in his eyes. Fondness, maybe, or a sense of nostalgia.
“What is it?” Ro asked, genuinely curious about what he was feeling.
“I haven’t seen this book in … I don’t know how many years. My grandmother had a copy. At her request, it went to the library after her death, but I searched for it a while back and couldn’t find it. Where did you get this one?”
“The castle library. It must be hers. How did she come to have a copy?”
He opened the book to its title page and made a soft sound. “Yes, there are her initials. How marvelous.”
He paged through it carefully. “It was something she cherished from her childhood, given to her by her father, I suppose. And she wanted to share it with everyone, which is why it was left to the library when she passed.”
JT helped himself to the platter of bacon and sausages. “Why do you have it, Mom?”
“That’s part of why I called you all here.
” She nodded at Gabriel, who passed her a bowl of berries.
“I had a dream, and in that dream, I saw a book with a poem in it that seemed to be telling me something important. Last night, Gabriel and I went to the castle library to see if that book really existed. And it did. The poem from my dream is in there, too.”
“How marvelous,” Aunt Violet proclaimed. “What does the poem say? Are you going to read it to us?”
“I can.”
Uldamar set the book next to her again. “There you are, your highness.” He took a platter of scrambled eggs from JT and proceeded to give Violet a helping before he put some on his own plate.
Ro took another sip of coffee before picking up the book. She’d slipped a scrap of fabric into the pages as a bookmark. She opened the book to the poem and began to read.
“ When light’s devoured and night takes wing,
The bells of ruin soon shall ring.
The crown shall crack, the firelight wane,
The storm shall howl for blood and flame.
A path shall open, sharp as bone,
That leads unto the shadowed throne.
There must the hand of peace be shown,
Or none shall rise, and none atone.
Seek not the sun, nor trust the day.
The Caer Wyld will show the way.”
JT shook his head, a forkful of eggs on its way to his mouth. “What does that mean?”
“Well,” Ro began. “I think it’s talking about Summerton and Malveaux. And the war we’re on the brink of. And possibly a way for us to get out of it, or be the victors. I haven’t quite figured it all out yet.”
She glanced at Uldamar, who was staring at his plate without moving. He looked lost in thought. “Uldamar? Everything all right?”
He blinked and broke out of whatever reverie he’d been stuck in. “My apologies, your highness. That is a book of neph poetry.”
She nodded. “Gabriel told me the Caer Wyld was a term once used to refer to the neph. Do you know much about them?”
“I do.” He cleared his throat softly. “My great-grandfather, my grandmother’s father, he was three-quarters neph.”
Ro’s mouth fell open. “You’re part neph?”
He nodded.
Everyone looked at Uldamar, but only Gabriel spoke. “That explains the strength of your magic.”
Uldamar went back to looking at his plate.
To Ro, he seemed paler than he had a moment ago.
“It’s not something I talk about often, as you can imagine.
The neph are a volatile subject at best. Many fear them.
There are some who already fear me because of my gifts.
I do not wish to compound that feeling.”
Ro put her hand on his arm. “It won’t leave this room.” She looked around. “Will it?”
“No,” JT said.
Gabriel raised his hand. “My word.”
“Not a soul,” Violet answered with a firm shake of her head. “I won’t even tell Posey.”
Uldamar finally looked up and smiled. “Thank you for understanding.”
“As it happens,” Ro went on. “I want to send a letter to them. To introduce myself, mostly, but to open a line of communication. And to warn them that war may be coming. In fact, I should send a letter like that to every other kingdom Summerton has ever had an alliance with or traded with or had any sort of diplomatic relationship with.”
Violet looked up from her plate. “Do you need me to get Posey? I’m going to see her after breakfast. We’re meeting with the palace gardener to discuss some changes.”
“Not right now, but you can let her know my plans,” Ro said. She’d only just asked her aunt to take over things with the royal gardens. She was so good with plants. And the gardens deserved the attention.
JT grinned as he snagged a biscuit and started slathering it with butter and jam. “I like the plan to send a letter a lot. You’re basically putting Anyka on notice. I think it’s brilliant. Tell everyone what she’s up to.”
Ro hadn’t thought about it that way. “You mean kind of publicly shame her?”
Gabriel snorted. “I don’t think she can be shamed, but it’s a fine idea and an interesting strategy. If I were you, I’d mention the new alliance with the Wyvern. After that treaty is signed, obviously.”
“Oh, yes,” Violet said. “That might get some of these other kingdoms interested in allying with us.” She smiled at Gabriel. “Well done.”
Ro nodded. “It is a good idea. I’ll want to talk to Professor Denwood, as well. It’s only right, as he’s in charge of defense. Is there anything else we should know about the neph, Uldamar? Anything you might be uniquely qualified to tell us?”
He set down the glass of juice he’d been drinking. “I’m afraid I don’t know much about them, your highness. I know they have great magic but great weaknesses as well. The sun is deadly to them, which is why they’re known as the night people.”
Gabriel frowned. “You aren’t affected by that.”
“No,” Uldamar answered. “That trait has been thinned out by too many other bloodlines to be of significance to me.”
“Is there anything else you know about them?” Ro asked.
He nodded. “They are often blunt, very cunning and, sadly, not always to be trusted. If you write to them, there is every reason to believe they will write back. You will have to have your wits about you in your dealings with them. But if you win them over, they will be a considerable ally.”
“Enough to make Anyka back down?” Ro asked.
He took a breath, then slowly nodded. “Perhaps. She is power-hungry, but putting herself at odds with the neph might be something even she won’t gamble.”
Ro considered that as she picked up her cup. “Then we take the risk.”
“They will want something in return, mark my words. And it might not be so simple as a trade agreement.”
“We’ll deal with it when it happens.” Not ideal, but what else could she do? She shrugged as she looked at her family and friends. “I didn’t have that dream for no reason, right?”
“Right,” Gabriel said.
“I agree,” Uldamar said with a nod. “Magic like that should not be ignored. The dream was sent to you for a reason. We would be foolish not to see it through. As soon as I leave here, I’ll dig into my books and see what else I can find out about the neph.”
“I appreciate that. Thank you.” She wanted this effort to result in something good. Just like she wanted this conflict to come to a diplomatic end. If that meant involving the neph, then so be it.
Peace would be worth it. She hoped.