When Harristan was very young, he was weak and sickly. He fell ill o๎en.
๎ขis was before the fevers had begun to terrorize our peopleโbefore I was even born. Iโve heard rumors that my mother and father were relieved when she became pregnant with me, because there was a time when they worried Harristan wouldnโt survive, that theyโd be le๎ย without an heir. Our parents spent so many years coddling him that they never seemed to stop, even once he grew out of his childhood illnesses. Weeklong hunting trip? Harristan remained behind in the palace, while I was free to gallop o๏ฌย with Father and the nobles. Journey to distant sectors? Harristan would ride in the carriage, protected from the sunlight and the cool air, while I would ride with the guards and advisers, feeling far older than I was when they included me in their banter.
Youโd think this would breed resentment between the two of us: Harristanโs born of envy for my freedom, and mine born of envy for all the attention he received. But it didnโt. No, resentment never bred because Harristan was good atย sneaking. Sneaking out of the palace, sneaking away from watchful eyes, sneaking out of his gilded prison, as he used to call it.
Resentment never bred because he always took me with him.
Weโd wait until the moon hung high overhead, then dress in the plainest clothes we owned, stu๏ฌย our pockets with copper coins, and sneak out of the Royal Sector. He taught me how to watch the patterns of the guards, how to sprint through the gates in the shadows, how to tell which smiles were genuine and which smirks meant someone was going to try to trick you.
Some of the elites will sneer about the dangers of the Wilds, but when we were younger, the Wilds were full of magic and adventure. Music would play until late in the night, dancers spinning byย relight. Weโd pick at roasted meat with ourย ngers and drink home-brewed ale that was so much better
than the dull wine served in the palace. Weโd climb trees and shoot arrows and dodge the patrolmen. And the people! So many people. Fortune-tellers and jugglers and metalworkers and dancers and farmers and artists. Weโd listen to stories and sing bawdy drinking songs, and even though no one knew who we wereโbecause who would expect the heir and his brother to be laughing around a bonย re in the middle of the night?โwe were always welcome, because no one was a stranger in the Wilds.
Sometimes now, as Kingโs Justice, Iโll see a face and wonder if it was someone I knew as a child. Iโll wonder if the thieving woman Iโm sentencing to a month of hard labor in the limestone mines is someone who once poured me an extra cup of ale. Or if the Moonย ower smuggler Iโm condemning to die byย re is the man who once read the lines in my hand and told me Iโd live a long and happy life, winking as he promised Iโd have a big-breasted woman at my side.
I donโt like dwelling on thoughts of the past.
Honestly, I donโt like dwelling on thoughts of the present either.
๎ปeyโre heartless.
Jonasโs words from yesterdayโs council meeting are haunting me. I keep wondering if Harristan heard him. I donโt want to ask. For as close as we are, some of his thoughts are better le๎ย a secret, just like my own.
Itโs late, and my windows are dark. My brother likely retired long ago, but despite how early I wake every morning, I always have a hard timeย nding sleep. I have another request to read, another plea for money, this time from Arella. She turned it in a๎er Jonasโs proposal was rejected, and itโs brief and rather hastily written, so thereโs a part of me that wonders if itโs being done in retaliation somehow. Or maybe she senses that silver sits ready to be spent, so she should grab it before Jonas can reorganize.
I sigh and rub at my eyes.
When a knock sounds at my door, I look up in surprise. โEnter.โ
A guard pushes the door open. โYour Highness. Consul Sallister requests a word.โ
I pull my pocket watch free and glance at the face. I want to ask if Allisander is aware that itโs nearly midnight, but he likely knows and doesnโt care. Heโs one of the few people who could demand an audience at this time of night and have it granted.
I sigh, then shu๏ฌe the papers together and lay them facedown on my desk. โSend him in.โ
Despite the late hour, Allisander is still buttoned up in all hisย nery from the day. Iโve long since abandoned my jacket, and my sleeves are rolled back. He takes in my dishabille and says, โForgive me. I did not realize you had already retired.โ
โI havenโt.โ
He waits for me to indicate that he may sit, but I donโt.
โ๎ขe smugglers have grown more bold,โ he says. โI am receiving word of interrupted deliveries, of thievery on the road, of supply loads being raided. And that is outside the Royal Sector. You know it has long been a problem within your own walls.โ
I take a sip from my cup of tea. โWhen smugglers are caught,โ I say, โthey are punished severely.โ
โ๎ขe rains have been heavy this year. Our crops are not as plentiful as they were last year. Combined with raids on our deliveries, we may have a supply issue.โ
โDoes that mean youย doย have an issue, or youย might?โ
โ๎ขe promise of a problem is nearly as bad as the problem itself, Corrick.โ His father used to be a pain in the ass, but thereโs something worse about hearing these words from someone not much older than I am. His tone is patronizing. His use of my given name is patronizing. His stupid goatee is
patronizing. I have no idea how my brother was ever friends with this man.
I set down my cup. โI can o๏ฌer armed guards for your supply runs into the Royal Sector.โ
โI will gladly accept them. We will also be increasing our prices by twenty percent.โ
โTwenty percent!โย ๎ขe absolute gall. He heard me refuse funding to Artis because they already su๏ฌer for lack of medicine, and now heโs raising his prices. I donโt know if this is simple greed or if itโs rooted in humiliation, as if he takes any opportunity to retaliate against Harristan.
Either way, I want to throw my tea at him. I settle for raising an eyebrow and tracing myย nger around the rim of my cup. โYou believe your crops have su๏ฌered that much?โ
He shares what he must think is a conspiratorial smile. โWe must protect our supply.โ He hesitates. โIf you feel that our pricing is too extreme, I can
speak with Lissa. We can try to work within our current constraints.โ
His voice is pleasant, unchanged, but I hear the veiled threat. Kandala needs their Moonย ower crops. All of us do.
I think of Harristanโs coughing in his sleep yesterday morning, then quickly shove the thought out of my head before any shred of worry can manifest in my eyes. โNo need,โ I say. โYour position is understandable.โ I pause. โI imagine Consul Marpetta will be raising her prices as well?โ
Lissa Marpetta rarely says much in our council meetings, but itโs always assumed that she will act in accord with Allisander. Her sector, Emberridge, provides half as much of the Moonย ower petals as hisโbut itโs enough for her to carry a great deal of inย uence.
โI believe so,โ he says. โOf course we will happily pay taxes on our revenue, as always. If our supply runs remain safe, this could be quite a beneย t to the Royal Sectorโand therefore to all of Kandala.โ
He thinks heโs doing us a favor. As if the bulk of these taxes wonโt come straight from our own co๏ฌers when we buy our own supply.
Sometimes I wish I knew how my father would have handled this kind of conversation. Or rather, how Micah Clarke, the previous Kingโs Justice, would have handled it. Father was a well-loved and temperate man, known for kindness and fair ruling. But maybe that was a luxury a๏ฌorded to him by allowing someone else to handle the more challenging political intrigues.
Either way, I have no idea. Micah was killed when our parents were. And our people werenโt su๏ฌering like this when Father and Mother were in power.ย ๎ขe fevers had only just begun to spread. People werenโt making choices between whether to feed their families or buy medicine.
Another rap sounds at my door, and I sigh. Does no one sleep? โEnter,โ I call.
๎ขe guard swings the door wide. โYour Highness. Master Quint would like aโโ
โYes, yes, yes,โ says Quint, shoving past the guards with no regard for whether Iโll even see him. โI donโt need to be announced.โ His red hair is a bit of an unruly mess, as usual, and I doubt his jacket was fully buttoned at any point today. He takes note that weโre not alone and all but skids to a stop. He gives a brief nod to me, and then to Allisander. โYour Highness. Consul.โ Aside from my brother, Quint might be my favorite person in the palace.
Heโs young for his role as Palace Master, but he was apprenticed to the last
one, and when the man wanted to retire, I told Harristan to give Quint a chance. Heโs honest as the day is long, and he keeps secrets better than a dead man. Heโs also got enough energy for half a dozen people, talks twice as much as necessary, and has little patience for pomposity and presumption. He annoys Harristan to no end. He annoys pretty much everyone to no end.
I rather love him.
Allisanderโs mouth forms a line. โMaster Quint. We are in the middle of aย privateย conversation.โ
Quint blinks like thatโs quite obvious. โI see that.โ He makes no move to leave.
Allisander inhales with clear intent to speak words that will chase Quint out of here.
I pick up my cup of tea. โWeโre nearly done, though, are we not, Consul?โ His mouth snaps shut. He doesnโt scowl at me, but almost.
I o๏ฌer him an indulgent smile. โI believe weโve come to an understanding.โ
Itโs the best sentence in my arsenal of courtly lines, because it means absolutely nothing, yet somehow always makes people believe Iโve acknowledged their point.
It does the trick now, too, because Allisanderโs expression smooths over. โIโm glad to hear it.โ
โIโll draw up an order for guards for your supply runs in the morning.โ โEarly, Corrick,โ he says pointedly. โWeโd like to return to the Plains before
midday.โ
I go still. He can raise his prices and make pains about his supply runs being in danger, but just like my brother, I have a limit. Allisander Sallister may have money and power, but he does not rule Kandalaโor me.
He must read the change in my expression, because he says, โAt your convenience, of course. With my thanks.โ He pauses, then adds, โYour Highness.โ
I set down my cup. โYouโll have it in the morning.โ
Once the door swings closed behind him, Quint drops into the opposite chair. โDoes he want to be fed to the royal lions?โ
โDonโt tempt me.โย ๎ขough really, itโs not tempting. I ordered it as a sentence once, for a man whoโd killed an entire family in order to hoard their supply of Moonย ower petals. Watching the lions tear him apart while he
screamed for mercy was the most horriย c thing Iโve ever seen. Even Harristan, always stoic since we watched our parents murdered, had later said to me, โDonโt do that one again.โ
โSallister wants more guards?โ says Quint.
โAmong other things.โ I take in his tousled appearance and try to determine whether he looks more harried than usual. Itโs possible Quint doesnโt even know itโs so late. โHave you eaten? I can call for a meal.โ
โAhโno. I dined with Consul Marpetta at . . .โ He pulls out his pocket watch and frowns at the face. โ๎ขat canโt be right.โ
I smile. โYou sleep less than I do.โ โNo one sleeps less than you do.โ
True enough. โIโll send for food. Wine too?โ I stand and move toward the door. โOr should you be sober for whatever you came crashing in here about?โ
โA runner just arrived at the palace.ย ๎ขe night patrol in Steel City unearthed a group of smugglers. Two were killed in the fray.ย ๎ขe other eight have been taken to the Hold.โ
I stop and look at him. โ๎ขatโs a large pack.โ
โ๎ขey had quite the operation, from what I understand.โ
Quite the operation. Itโs rare to have outlaws and smugglers working in larger groups. Ten is unheard of.ย ๎ขe risk of discovery is simply too great.
๎ขe punishments too severe.
Maybe Allisander wasnโt exaggerating about the threat to his supply runs. I was going to make him wait, but now Iโll be sure to draw up an order before I go to sleep.
โDoes Harristan know?โ I say. โNo.โ
My brother will want to issue a statement early. Heโll expect me to make an example of them all.
At least one of us is sleeping.
โIโll call for food,โ I say. โSend a message to the Hold. I want to speak to the patrolmen who captured them. Tell them Iโll want to question the prisoners a๎er sunrise. Separate them if they havenโt already done so. I donโt want them conniving a story.โ
Quint has taken a piece of paper from the desk, and heโs been writing since the moment I began speaking. Heโs good at his job. โShall we make a
public announcement?โ
โNot yet.โ My thoughts are reeling. Eight all at once. Weโll be lucky if we donโt start a riot. โTomorrow. Midday.โ
He glances up. โShould I wake the king?โ
I think of Harristanโs cough.ย ๎ขe fever. He needs to sleep. I blink the thoughts away. โNo.โ
Quint nods and rises, taking his paper with him. โIโll see to it.โ
I follow him to the door. He pauses with his hand against the handle and turns to look at me. โYou asked about wine . . .โ
โIโll order plenty.โ
