Page 62 of The Moon Blessed King
She nods. ‘Yes. Yes…I…I am well. Thank you. And your son!’ she remembers quickly. ‘Rodans…Rodans is doing very well.’
‘I am glad to hear it. Thank you.’ He bows his head to her. Then, with a hand waved back towards the chaos, admits, ‘This…all of this is so hard to believe.’
Fen nods. ‘Yes. And I…I’m sorry, but I need to go.’
‘Where are you off to next?’
‘Crowen. I will be helping the relief effort there.’
‘Crowen. So far.’
‘Yes.’
Hamad touches her arm. ‘I wish you luck, Your Highness. Truly.’
‘Thank you.’ She shifts, ready to leave, but his fingers tighten ever so slightly. Not so hard as to hurt, but enough.
‘May I ask you a question, Your Highness? To which I would appreciate an honest response?’
Fen swallows thickly. She nods.
‘Do you trust Lady Adalei is making the right decision?’
And damn her, Fen hesitates.
And damnhim, Hamad notices.
‘Ah,’ he says. He rubs her arm, commiserating, gentle, kind. Then, he lets her go. ‘May I meet with you…once you’ve settled in Crowen? There are questions I’d like to ask…things I’d like to understand. My son speaks so highly of your wisdom, and I would be grateful for your counsel.’
She thinks of Rodans then. How worried he looked when she was preparing to leave. How he wished her well, even as he stayed behind with the rest of the army, to be locked away and put on rations until it was safe to once more open the gates.
She doesn’t mean to do it, but when she opens her mouth to refuse, instead – she agrees.
It isn’t until later, much later, that she realizes that he had called herLadyAdalei, and not Crown Princess as she had been elevated following Elician’s coronation. But that, in retrospect, seems like such a small slip, and she gives it no further thought.
CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE
Cat
Partho brings Cat and Elician to where the Blue Guard is camped in the morning. It is not far. Cat senses them before he sees them and he tries to stay calm. Steady. He tries to summon any memory he can grasp, remembering how his father looked addressing his troops. The Guard is sworn to the Blue Lands first and foremost. And if Partho is to be believed…they are also still sworn to Cat.
But seeing them is not the same as imagining them. As the troops become visible through the trees of the Grünewald, a strange sense of calm slides down Cat’s spine, flowing outwards to the rest of his limbs. Scores of blue cloaks, all draped over the shoulders of stern-faced men and women. These were the guards in his home, once. Long ago. The men and women who patrolled the Blue Palace, stood sentry at the doors. Protecting their nation’s most treasured resource. He had never seen a single blue cloak while living in the Reaper cells. None had ever come for him. But once, before the despair settled into acceptance: he had dreamed that they would.
They look at him as he rides through their encampment. Curious, assessing. Cat wonders what they see in him. He wonders if hemeasures up to their expectations, low as they must be. They all know what he is.
And still, he thinks,they came anyway.
The encampment breaks down quickly under Partho’s orders. Then soldiers fall into place on all sides, a willing and prepared escort. Disciplined, but perhaps most important: without any sign of illness. The plague hasn’t struck any of them. As far as Cat can tell, they are all perfectly fine.
Partho provides Cat with various updates on the status of the Guard as they leave the encampment and ride out to the city of Endura, where the standing army of Alelune is apparently located. He tells him about their training, their numbers. He tells him about the status of the Blue Lands and the Palace itself. Each word triggering a memory long buried.
He misses it. Misses it with a fierceness and a longing that he hasn’t allowed himself to consider. He never thought he would see his home again. And yet, the temptation to believe is so close at hand, surrounded by a sea of blue that has always meant safety and faith.
Elician is quiet throughout this journey. A show of respect, perhaps, or a deference to Cat’s position here amongst those who swore to follow Cat when he was a child…long before tragedy had taken them all. When Cat glances to his husband, his beloved, Elician is always there. Attentive, listening, offering a smile or a nod – subtle though they are – in an active show of passive, gentle support.
They reach Endura only a few hours later.
And all the gentle support in the world is not enough for the sight that lies before them.
