Page 61 of Stranger's Choice
Sebin nodded once. He left the fountain path knowing he had gained not one, but two allies that night. Gaining the support of the Emperor’s bodyguard would make everything easier. Sebin wondered how many other members of the Will were not as devoted as they seemed. Hopefully, Auraelie would have a better idea soon.
When Sebin mentionedthe possibility of finding allies among the Emperor’s Will, Auraelie had initially balked. They couldn’t risk rousing suspicion among the Emperor’s most loyal servants. But if Qilar, of all the Will, was not as loyal as he seemed, then anyone might be an ally.
Except Lhashiki. Even knowing that she had misjudged Qilar’s loyalties completely, Auraelie could not find it in herself to believe Lhashiki was anything but blindly loyal to His Imperial Majesty. But the rest of the Will? She would look closely at all of them.
She wondered if the women who had heard her report Mitana’s future to Lhashiki might be among those potential allies. Auraelie hadn’t been able to put her finger on why their relief over her bland report felt off. But if they resented that Lhashiki—and thus the Emperor—spied even on members of the Will, it could explain their reactions.
Auraelie started slowly, on Sebin’s advice. She did not want to make anyone suspicious, and she did not have his knack of talking about nothing while simultaneously tricking people into revealing their life stories. So Auraelie dined a little earlier in the evening than had been her habit, surrounding herself with more of the Will. She joined in the general conversations. Eventually, she struck up a conversation or two of her own.
Sebin had given her one other piece of advice that helped her target her socializing.
“Focus on those most nervous around you.” He had said when she protested that she didn’t know how to find secret allies. “Who better as a potential ally than someone afraid of the Emperor’s Oracle seeing their future?”
That advice led Auraelie to Mitana’s side several days after her accidental glimpse into the other woman’s future. “How are you today, Mitana?”
With her curvy figure, flawless skin, and arresting blue-gray eyes, Mitana was one of the most beautiful women in Kalitalo. She had been trained since she was four to dance, and her every movement was grace personified—when she wasn’t flustered. She was what Lhashiki had been more than a decade earlier. Mitana shared the Emperor’s bed occasionally, but she was not the Emperor’s lover the way Lhashiki was. She was, perhaps, more sympathetic to the position Auraelie was in than the older woman could ever be.
She was one of the very few members of the Will dressed like Auraelie in sheer veil and tunic rather than the short bodice. The Emperor sent her to attend the men he favored as a special reward.
Mitana shrugged, turning a simple gesture into the epitome of elegance, but her eyes darted to the side, ruining the impression of perfect poise. “I’ve had little to occupy me the last few days. How is serving your prince?”
Yes, there was a hint of sympathy in Mitana’s voice, a look in her eyes that said she knew this life was not ideal. But there was also fear. The same nervousness that had led Auraelie back to this woman she had already seen dressed in jewel tones instead of black.
Auraelie tried to mimic the other woman’s earlier shrug, but she knew her movements were jerky in comparison. Her attempt at nonchalance was pointless, for she felt her face heating as she thought of Sebin.
Mitana cocked her head to the side. “You like him, then?”
Auraelie suspected that Mitana’s nerves were now worry for Auraelie herself, not fearofher. It made her bold. She nodded, then glanced around, but no one was paying them any attention. Still, she lowered her voice. “He sees things differently than the men of Pynth.”
“I’ve heard how he speaks of you. I am not so sure he is as different as you think.”
“The prince you see in public is not the same as the Sebin that exists in private.”
“Be careful, Auraelie. It is not a good sign when a man says one thing but does something else.”
“But what if everything he does is simply the opening steps in an elaborate dance? I appreciate your concern, but Sebin isn’t trickingme.” Auraelie put just enough emphasis on the last word to make Mitana think. Then she rose. “I should head out now. Until next time, Mitana.”
“Wait.” Mitana held out a hand, then very deliberately placed it on Auraelie’s arm. She moved slowly; Auraelie could have easily avoided her touch, but she didn’t.
The visions hit her in a rush. Image after image, moments in time that could, would, or should be. The turning points were shrouded in the familiar gray, but Auraelie saw enough.
She saw Mitana a decade older, still beautiful, but with lines around her eyes. She wore the short bodice rather than the tunic, and she danced night after night, a different man claiming her after the dance ended each time.
Down another path, Auraelie saw her dressed in brown and wearing the styles of the humans outside of Kalitalo. She lived in a small cottage on the outskirts of a tiny village. A mother hurried to her door, a crying babe in her arms. Mitana took the infant from the mother and examined him. She said something, her smile bright and reassuring. Then she handed the child back and started mixing herbs together. She tied them in a bit of gauze and passed the bundle to the mother.
Another series of images showed Mitana still in Kalitalo, but dressed in crimson clothes, a dark veil over her face. She stood in front of a crowd, delivering a speech about marriage laws. Many people in the audience nodded along with her words. Auraelie recognized Pianti and Qilar in the front row.
Dozens of other images assailed Auraelie in the instant before Mitana removed her hand. They faded into insignificance. Even unable to see the turning point, Auraelie knew those three futures were three of the many possibilities branching from a turning point in the near future. They were the three most likely to come true, but she could not see which path Mitana would follow or what might push her into other futures through the gray.
Mitana looked up at her, but said nothing.
The first future would come about if nothing changed. A younger woman would take Mitana’s place as an exclusive reward the Emperor offered only on occasion, and Mitana would no longer have that dubious protection. The final future was a situation Auraelie could not quite understand, a situation wholly beyond her frame of reference. So she focused on the second future and hoped she was not lying about what hid in the gray.
“Herb-healers are well respected in the tiny villages of the empire, aren’t they? Sebin sees more of a need for them than dancers.”
Mitana sucked in an audible breath, then looked around. They still had not attracted any attention, but if Auraelie stood there much longer, they would.
Mitana schooled her face back into indifference. “Tell your prince I am at his service.”
