“I’ll prepare the necessary paperwork for you to pay the mercenaries, and have it ready for you before the army marches. Solène can do whatever it is she does to speed you on your way under concealment.”
“You’re not sending coin?”
Boudain laughed. “Of course not. Once they have my coin, what’s to stop them continuing their march north to take Amaury’s? No. They’ll be offered bonds under the royal seal that can be redeemed once Amaury has been put in the ground.”
Gill could see the logic behind what the young king suggested, but likewise the glaring flaw, at least for the man negotiating the deal.
“That’s all well in principle, Highness, but, with respect, why would they take the offer of a king who’s not on his throne?”
“Greed, Villerauvais. Greed. I’m going to offer them a ridiculous amount of money. An amount that makes my bladder weak to think about, but I’m getting my throne back, and I’ll do whatever it takes. My family have sat on the white throne for nearly a thousand years. I’ll be damned before I lose it to that bastard. The offer will be too rich. Any mercenary captain who turns it down will be killed by his men before he can bark another order at them. I’ll have the papers ready for you shortly.”
Gill took a moment to reflect. He had forgotten what it meant to be a servant of the Crown, after so many years hiding in Villerauvais. Once you were sucked back in, there was no more refusing, no choosing what you did or didn’t do. You were never asked if it was a convenient time, if your wife and child had just died. You were simply expected to do what was demanded of you. Here he was, jumping to attention every time, once again.
He took a deep breath to quell his anger, and saw Solène standing at the bar eating some broth. She too had made a promise, but not to Boudain the Tenth. She owed loyalty to no one, only to her word.
“Solène has other business to attend to,” Gill said. “Our debt to Pharadon is not yet repaid, and only she can settle it.”
The king looked at Gill for a moment, then nodded slowly. “I won’t ever have it be said I don’t repay debts, or leave a friend wanting when they are in need of my help. She has my permission, and blessing, to go.”
Gill smiled thinly. He knew Solène was going to fulfill her promise to Pharadon whether the king permitted it or not, and there wasn’t a damn thing Boudain could do to stop her.
“I’ll let her know she has your leave, Highness,” Gill said.
Gill joined Solène and gave her a sad smile. He wasn’t going to be able to fulfill his obligation to her and Pharadon, and the only consoling thought was the fact that in reality, he could give her little assistance beyond moral support.
“I’m sorry, Solène,” he said. “I’m not going to be able to go with you to enlighten the goldscale.”
“The king has need of you?”
Gill nodded. “I should have said no.”
“Could you have?” she asked, as if she already knew the answer.
He shook his head. “No, I don’t think so. That’s not how it works.” He chewed his lip for a moment. “He wants you to help me, but I told him you couldn’t. Your word to Pharadon is more important.”
“I’m glad you feel that way, but I don’t like leaving you if I can help.”
Gill laughed. “I’m able to look after myself, and for what it’s worth, I feel bad that I’m not going along to help you.”
She smiled. “I can look after myself too.”
“Do you think you can enlighten her?” he said.
“I don’t see why not. I’ve plenty of tricks up my sleeve. Literally. But there’s only one way to find out.” The mirth left her eyes. “What about you? Can you do all of this, I mean. Defeat Amaury? Restore the king?”
“Like you say, only one way to find out.”
“I suppose I’ll see you at the other end of it all,” she said.
Gill did his best to smile. “I suppose so.”
CHAPTER 38
While keeping ahead of a marching army was not terribly challenging, Gill had a long ride ahead of him and no support on the way. All things considered, he wasn’t sure what type of greeting he would get at the royal way stations on the road. He wasn’t even sure if staying on the road was a particularly good idea. You never knew where you’d bump into enemy forces, and that was a complication Gill was eager to avoid.
What he was going to say to the mercenaries when he reached them was another matter. The promise of payment from a king who might be dead in a matter of days didn’t seem like a particularly attractive offer, and it was the type of message that could get the bearer killed. He didn’t think his chances of success were particularly high, but with the king and his army already on the march, Gill didn’t have much time to find a way to make it work before battle was joined. A lot of men would die if he didn’t pull this off, and he couldn’t help but resent the responsibility the king had placed on him.
He galloped for as long as his horse would allow it, making good time across the open farmland. Castandres and the army were long out of sight by the time Gill’s horse slowed. The air was crisp and clear that evening. As he rode, Guillot noticed for the first time that the country had taken on the air of a land at war. The fields were empty and bore a look of neglect. Farmers tended not to bother when they were afraid of being robbed or killed, either right away or when the postbellum hardships came and people wanted to steal their crops. If you had nothing to steal, then there was a better chance you’d be left alone.
Gill couldn’t deny the sense of importance being abroad on the king’s business brought, even after so long, and so much disappointment in life. He had gone a long way, only to end up back in exactly the same place. He consoled himself with the thought that there was a higher purpose to his service this time. Amaury was a bastard, and people would suffer if he wasn’t stopped. And perhaps, just perhaps, the young Boudain might have the makings of a good king. One way or the other, he had a job to do. He continued on, and turned his thoughts instead to what he would say to the mercenary captain to convince him to agree to the king’s terms.
Preparing to travel to Mirabay, Solène realised she was afraid. At first she thought it was because she was heading toward a city of enemies, any number of whom would try to kill her given the chance, whether that be the Prince Bishop—or Regent, as he now was—the Intelligenciers, or the thousands of people who were terrified at the prospect of sorcerers returning.
Then she thought it might be that she had no idea what she was to do once she reached the city. She did not know where the goldscale was, how she would get to it, or what she would do when she did.
Deep down, she knew neither of those thoughts were truly the source of her fear. No, the reason she was so scared, why she thought she might be sick, was that she was heading into a city filled with enemies who would want to kill her, that she had a task she had no idea how to complete, and that none of that bothered her in the least.
She was not being overconfident, she simply knew that there was no challenge she could not best. Solène was a born worrier—it was a consequence of living with a secret that others feared, that could get you killed. She knew this was the trait that had kept her alive for so long.
That feeling was gone. She couldn’t think of a single thing that worried her. The irony was, that was the fact that was causing her concern.
Had she become so powerful that she truly could do whatever she chose? No one should have that much unfettered power. Least of all her. What would she do with it? Build an empire, as Amatus had after enlightenment? She supposed there was something in the fact that he had never claimed the title of emperor, but she did wonder if that was due to his self-control or if he had merely lost interest in temporal matters.