“Pray tell, why?” Amaury said.
“The people are still reeling from the terror of a creature out of horror tales returning to ravage the land. No sooner has that threat been extinguished, than they are told an ever-present fear has raised its head, with the help of none other than their own king. You’ll see us all on the pyre, Amaury. This was an act of madness.”
The use of his given name sent a flash of anger through Amaury’s body. He took a moment to still himself. Anger would get him nowhere just now. He suddenly realised that he was still standing, while all the others were seated. Worse, he had not been invited to sit, and in the king’s presence, such permission was required. Alone with the king, Amaury might have chosen to ignore protocol, but with an audience, and given the tension in the room, he knew that would be a mistake.
This was a demonstration of power; he was the naughty schoolboy being judged by his masters. The realisation that they thought this little mind game might cow him made him want to burst into laughter, but he knew it was not the right moment for that. He focussed his thoughts, but was interrupted before he could launch an attack.
“He’s right, your Grace,” the king said, using Amaury’s ecclesiastical title rather than his royal appointment. “It was the wrong time. The people are too unsettled. This could push them over the edge. After a period of calm, we could have announced the Order as a new safeguard against any future threat. We were ably positioned to claim credit for dal Villerauvais, and to use him to highlight the need for a new body of warriors to deal with dangers such as this.”
Amaury bit the inside of his lip. Boudain was no fool and his point was well made. It was as valid a course as the one he had set them on—indeed, more valid, if one were to take into account only the king’s plans for a stable kingdom. Amaury realised he had perhaps been hasty, but the fact remained, there would be few chances to do what needed to be done. Amaury couldn’t imagine a better one coming along, timing be damned.
“I saw the opportunity, Highness. I took it, in the belief that it was the best thing for the kingdom. I stand firm in that belief.”
“I don’t doubt your earnestness, your Grace,” Boudain said. “But you’ve overreached.”
Amaury glanced at the chancellor, who was doing his best to contain a smile. Had he in fact pushed too far?
The king leaned back in his chair and drummed his fingers on the table. “I think the time has come for a change.”
There was a knock on the door; the steward moved to answer. The king paused, staying Amaury’s sentence for a moment longer. There were some muted whispers before the steward shut the door and hurried back to the king. He spoke quietly into the king’s ear; Boudain’s eyes widened and the colour left his face. After a moment of silence, he spoke.
“Word has reached the city that three more dragons have been sighted in the southeast. They’ve already attacked a village there.”
There were murmurs of disbelief and outrage from the men sitting, while Amaury did his best not to smile.
“It is moments like this,” King Boudain said, “that I thank the gods that I am blessed by a man with the foresight of His Grace, the First Minister of Mirabaya. A great terror has been delivered upon my people, but thanks to him, we already have the solution. It seems I was wrong, your Grace, and must be grateful for your steadfast duty to the state, irrespective of the personal cost it might exact.” He drew a breath.
“I wish to speak further with the Prince Bishop. The rest of you may leave.”
Amaury could feel tension fill the room as it emptied of bodies. The king was gripping the edge of his desk with white knuckles by the time the door closed behind his ministers.
“We’ll need to deal with the Intelligenciers,” the king said.
“We will, your Highness,” Amaury said firmly.
“You’ve forced my hand on this, and if you think I have a short memory, you’re sadly mistaken. Keep in mind, the Intelligenciers aren’t the only hunting dog in my pack, and now that I’ve got a taste for putting one down, I won’t hesitate to do so again if I’m disobeyed. Do I make myself clear?”
“Perfectly, your Highness.”
CHAPTER 21
Solène stared out through the window of the coffeehouse as dal Drezony spoke. Since before dawn, it had seemed to Solène that all dal Drezony wanted to do was talk. They had spent hours discussing magic, and thought processes, but most of the conversation had focussed on other things—Solène’s childhood, the years she had spent on the run, her thoughts about her future. She quickly grew impatient: she wanted to learn what she needed to learn and get on with her life, away from Mirabay. There was no doubt in her mind that the Prince Bishop had some grand plan in motion, and she had no desire to be caught up in it.
The two women had taken a long stroll through the city and spent hours in coffeehouses, discussing what seemed like irrelevant rubbish from the life Solène had left behind. She tried to have faith in the idea that dal Drezony was going somewhere with it all, but it was a struggle.
There was, however, one benefit to being back with the Order. Solène had never been wealthy enough to enjoy the finer things in life, like expensive coffee and the sweet cakes served with them. She had first eaten chocolate only the day before, and it was as though a whole new aspect of life had been laid before her. The rich coffee and cakes made the tedium of having to review her life in detail with dal Drezony easier to bear. At one coffeehouse, the chef had created a pastry that included chocolate, spice, and sour cherries, and now that she had tasted it, life would have less meaning if she could never have it again.
Despite all this, something had been bothering Solène all day—the nature of the conversation they were having. On the noisy, busy streets, discussing magic hadn’t seemed like a problem, but in a coffeehouse?
“Is this really the type of thing we should be talking about in public?” Solène said.
Dal Drezony laughed. “Worry not! What we say, and what those around us hear, are very different. It’s a bit of magic I learned a while ago. Surprisingly easy once you’ve done it a few times. No one will hear anything that will get us in trouble.
“Tell me,” dal Drezony continued, “have you given any thought to why I’m asking you all these questions?”
Solène shrugged, toying with her fork and eyeing the final piece of cake. “I must admit that I have, but I haven’t been able to come up with a reason yet.”
“What we do requires incredible control over our minds. In order to control our minds, we have to understand why we think the way we do. That’s shaped by the life we’ve led, the things we’ve experienced. Deep-rooted fears can shake our concentration. So can temptations, or feelings of duty, attachment, or obligation. You need to pull all those things out of the dark corners of your memory and understand them, so you can take control over them. Does this make sense?”
Solène applied that reasoning to her current situation. Part of her wanted to give due consideration to what dal Drezony had said, and part of her was absorbed by the last piece of cake on the plate. Did dal Drezony want it? Would it be rude if Solène took it? She snapped her mind back to her teacher’s question.
“Yes,” she said. “Now that I think about it, it makes perfect sense.”
Dal Drezony gave a satisfied smile and said, “Take it. I’ve had enough.”
Solène didn’t need to be told twice, and devoured the delicious morsel, pleasantly surprised to find it contained a large chunk of moist cherry. As she chewed, out of the corner of her eye she saw someone staring at them. It was not unusual for them to draw curious looks when out in the city. At first, she had thought it odd that they would wear their robes outside the Priory, but dal Drezony had pointed out that there were several monasteries and convents in and around the city. She had said that it was part of the Prince Bishop’s plan—if the people were familiar with the Order’s cream robes, then when their true nature came out, they would be comfortable with the sight of them. They would realise that in all the years they had seen the Spurriers around the city, the Order had posed no threat. Still, this man was giving them more attention than usual, and it was making her uncomfortable.