Chapter 79

Unlike Tyrell’s rocky shoals, the main port at Narcine permitted nighttime landings – if the tide and weather cooperated.

Neither were in the favor of the Grunveld sailors as they neared Nadia’s home country.

The king had tasked Celestine and Clementine with getting Nadia safely to King Olaf’s castle.

Celestine had hoped to make land in the darkness. If the weather was poor, all the better. Neither woman had any qualms about sneaking about in the gloom.

But both were smart enough to know what they didn’t know. And neither knew how to land a large ship in what seemed to be an impossibly small berth.

The Grunveldian sailors watched in amazement as the two smallish women started issuing orders to what they knew were soldiers from the mighty country of Azkoval. The amazement increased when the men snapped to attention and immediately did as they were bidden.

The only other female aboard – whose identity was unknown to the sailors (but suspected) – seemed to be the only person balking at the commands.

None of the soldiers spoke Az or Denayian – a fact afforded to Celestine prior to departure – so the men manning the ship didn’t know what was being said. They only understood the look of obstinacy on the third woman’s face.

“I will not skulk home like a thief!” Nadia declared.

The time aboard ship had not been pleasant for either of the young maidens. They had been cooped up with strangers for two weeks. There had been little to do aboard the vessel and they had little in common with the only other female aboard.

Both were testy as they neared Denaya’s shores. They both longed to be on land where they would experience freedom of movement and the ability to disappear into a crowd.

“If you wish to be alive to see your uncle’s nuptials then you will shut up and do as you’re told!” Celestine hissed in a low, dangerous voice that caused Nadia’s eyes to widen.

The young soldier closed her eyes and took a long breath.

“I apologize for my tone but not for my sentiment,” Celestine said after a moment of pause. “You must accept that Narcine now holds dangers for you that were not present when you departed.”

“My uncle’s sister and niece,” Nadia stated.

Celestine nodded.

“Among others, yes,” Celestine admitted. “Word of your heritage has spread in the time you were gone. There are others who oppose your uncle that will use you as a game piece if they see the opportunity. There are those who oppose King Joseph who will seek to do you harm if it furthers their aims. This is not new to you. King Joseph said he explained the situation to you many times.”

Nadia merely crossed her arms and glowered – the same mannerisms she had adopted when Joseph had given her similar warnings.

“Like it or not, my king – and your friend – has tasked me and my sister with seeing you safely to your uncle’s castle,” Celestine continued. “The ruse with the ship was not done on a lark. The fact that King Joseph stripped more soldiers from Azkoval’s shores at a time when he needs them close by was not done on a whim. The fact that Clementine and I volunteered for this assignment was not done because we had no other tasks awaiting us.

“King Joseph hired this ship and sent his men because he understands the dangers. We came because we understand how to see you through the dangers. We came along because we have experience in stealth. We have moved almost unseen for most of our lives. Please do not allow pride or arrogance to undo all the work that has been done on your behalf.”

Nadia pursed her lips.

“I don’t like it,” she said.

Celestine merely shrugged.

“You are not required to like it,” the soldier stated flatly. “King Joseph told me personally that you had given him your pledge to follow my lead until we reached your uncle’s castle. Did you lie to him or did he lie to me?”

Nadia closed her eyes and her faced reddened – partly in anger and partly in embarrassment. She had, indeed, grudgingly given Joseph a vow to let Celestine and Clementine make decisions about her safety.

“Fine,” Nadia said. “I will follow my pledge to Joseph as it was given. I will follow your instructions until we reach the castle. Then I will be free to do as I wish.”

Celestine couldn’t help the snort that escaped her lips.

“Fraulein Muhlenberg, my king and your uncle have been in communication for the entirety of your visit in Azkoval,” Celestine said simply. “The foreign minister from my country is here. The interior ministry from my country is here. Rucar of Dunvil is here. Your uncle is very aware of our concerns. I would wager that he is aware of the plan to smuggle you into the country. And I would wager that he has given his blessing to any idea that would see you to him safely again. My king would never act on your behalf without the consent of your uncle. King Olaf understands how dangerous your sister and mother are. I would be amazed if he permits you a moment of personal freedom while you are again under his care.”

Nadia uncrossed her arms and stared out toward her homeland. She lived a life of relative anonymity. She was seen at her uncle’s side but she had never known of any plots to harm her or kidnap her. Surely, she thought, he uncle would have told her if she were in danger.

She shook her head at her inner monologue.

No, she told herself, her uncle would not have said anything to worry her. There had been times that he had denied her permission to do something she had asked to do. There had been times when he had insisted that she have a member of his personal staff with her as she traversed the streets of Narcine.

She tilted her head as the memories came back.

The people who went with her were likely members of her uncle’s personal protection detail. She shook her head again. Of course they were, she knew.

“Very well,” she said. “I understand that Joseph has asked you to be my minders while I’m here.”

Clementine nodded slightly.

“I would not call us minders,” she amended after a moment. “If you wish us to continue our protection, we will continue. If you wish to have your uncle’s people with you – or bring forth your own people – we will simply be tourists in a land we’d never thought we’d see. Once we reach the castle, the choice belongs to you and your uncle. King Joseph has offered our services to your king while we are ashore.”

Nadia pinched her nose between her closed eyes.

“Yes,” she said in a tight voice. “I am aware of the offer Joseph has made.”

“Then I’m sure you are aware of why he made it,” Clementine replied. “You are important to King Joseph. That means you are important to me. That means you are important to Clementine and Lady Elena and to Jonathan Burbridge and to every single soldier on this deck. You must understand, if we are required to remove the entire von Schuman lineage to ensure your safety, we are prepared to do that. Given what your sister has told us of your mother and youngest sister, I will admit that I am perhaps anxious to do that – not just for your sake but for the sake of Azkoval and it’s allies. If your uncle asks me to arrange their deaths, they will be dead as quickly as I can kill them. If King Joseph decides their lives are forfeit, I will murder them in their beds or in an alley or in the streets if stealth is impossible.”

Nadia ran her hands down her face.

“That is ridiculous,” she declared.

Again, Celestine merely shrugged.

“To you, perhaps,” she said. “You have not seen true evil in your lifetime. I have seen more evil than good. Yes, King Joseph has said he doesn’t believe in either. He believes in choices and consequences. In this, he is wrong. There is evil in this world. Perhaps a part of me is evil. I don’t know. But I know I saw evil in the eyes of your father. I know that I saw evil in the soul of your middle sister. I have no doubt that I will see the same sort of malevolence in the faces of your mother and youngest sister. The actions my king has told me bear out what I already believe.

“My king and your uncle will do anything in their power to keep you safe from harm. I will do anything my king asks of me. He has earned my respect and my gratitude and I truly believe that he would not ask me to perform a duty that was unnecessary or that he wouldn’t be willing to do himself. Nadia, do not let yourself forget that King Joseph is perhaps the most dangerous man walking the world right now. If he were with us, I have no doubt that he would swim ashore to dispatch the remainder of your family before your toes ever touched Denayian soil again. So if he wishes me to act in his stead, I will do so willingly and without hesitation.”

Nadia sighed and nodded slightly.

“And you truly believe I face danger in Narcine?” she asked.

“If the rest of your family is anything like the two I met in Tyrell, then yes,” Celestine admitted. “The reports Rucar sends back tells me they are cut from the same cloth. Like me, Rucar understands evil all to well. He knows what it looks like and he knows how to deal with it. Please, Nadia, accept that in this instance, I understand the situation far better than you do. Please let me do what I was tasked to do. You must follow my instructions. They will sound more like orders than suggestions. That is because they will be orders. We will not have time once we are ashore to have discussions such as this one. I will not have time to explain why I need you to do something. I will simply need you to do it as quickly and as efficiently as possible. Otherwise, you will not just sacrifice your life to pride. You could very will sacrifice my life, my sister’s life and the lives of every soldier aboard this ship.”

Liala finally understood one of her mother’s axioms.

For years, Empress Yana had said that maintaining a peace was often more difficult than simply fighting a war.

It now made sense to the young duchess.

War was straightforward. It was simple planning and execution. Peace was fluid. It required compromise and negotiation.

The splitting of Marindar was supposed to be decided. The countries had met in Narcine. The dignitaries had put together a plan of who got what and how.

In theory, it was fine. In application, it was a mess.

The unlamented King Junius’ throne was barely cold when the in-fighting between the conquering nations began.

Azkoval was taking nothing – even though a representative from that land was the overall commander and another representative had delivered Junius’ killing stroke. Azkoval had spent the most coin; sent the most soldiers; covered the most distance and done much of the planning for the operation.

King Joseph had been the one to choke off trade to Marindar. He had been the one to spend the time to plan things out to the tiniest detail. He and his advisers had worked tirelessly to make certain that the invasion was as seamless as possible and as painless as possible to the citizens of Marindar.

The operation to remove Junius had been almost flawless. There had been minimal casualties. Most of the dead had come at Junius’ own hands.

There had been a brief skirmish on the western front when a village mistook the invading army for a raiding band. Two soldiers and four villagers had been killed and a few others injured. Several soldiers had fallen victim to their own stupidity or the stupidity of their commanders.

An intoxicated scout had gotten lost and frozen to death. An army had lost 10 men to drowning when the lake their commander assured them was frozen solid was still soft at the deepest point. Illness and bad luck had befallen another half dozen.

But Liala was happy to report that a combined army that had sent forth 1,400 men had lost less than 100 to death or injury.

At least that was her count before “peace” had come to Marindar.

Then the squabbling began. Liala would be the first to admit that she had seen little that she would consider a “spoil of war.” The country was dark and dreary. The people were downtrodden and morose. Octavia had explained that the portion of the land that Liala had seen had suffered the worst at Junius’ hands. There were parts of Marindar where the sun shined and the people were happy and affable.

Liala wasn’t certain that she believed the princess.

But the other conquering armies certainly gave credence to Octavia’s words. The armies of Lotatia and Alicand had almost started a second war over a strip of land whose governance had already been determined. Two other countries were about to draw weapons about which country would own a waterway that split their new territories.

Liala wanted to head back to Azkoval. She knew if she didn’t withdraw her forces soon, they would see no season but winter for another year or more. The calendar might say differently but Liala still believed the harsh northern climate was still in winter. It would not change during the month they retraced their steps to the docks. Then they would board a ship and arrive in Azkoval at the start of another cold season.

She wasn’t certain she could endure that much cold for that much time – and she knew her troops longed for sunshine and warm temperatures.

But she couldn’t leave the job half done. She was already using her forces – the best trained and most numerous on hand – to police the other armies. She knew Joseph would be unhappy if the citizens of Marindar were forced to endure a second or third or fourth invasion because the leaders of some of the countries went back on their word.

The day Liala had finally had enough dawned cold and dark – as usual for the area, she decided. But instead of snow there was a freezing rain that pelted down. It was a muddy, dreary mess and she was at the end of her patience.

She summoned the leaders of her army for a council – or, more aptly, to issue commands.

“Bring me the men who command the armies,” she ordered. “I want each and every one of them in this building as quickly as you can locate them. Bring them at sword point if necessary. Take along enough of your soldiers to forcefully put down any group that protests too loudly.”

The Azkoval soldiers had been impressed with Liala’s leadership. She reminded them of the stories they had heard about King Joseph when he was on campaign. She gave the most and took the least. She never asked for something she was not willing to do herself. She put their needs and their comforts first.

She was a leader they would proudly follow into battle at any time, most decided.

It took the soldiers little time to gather up the leaders from the seven other armies that had taken part in the invasion of Marindar.

There was quite a bit of grumbling and a few of the men exchanged hostile glances toward others in the room.

Liala brought the room to order by slamming the flat of her sword on the hard wooden table.

“This ceases immediately,” she said. She was years younger than the men in the room. She was slighter of stature. Yet there wasn’t a person in front of her that thought they might win against her in a fair fight. “Take a seat and open your ears.”

The men glanced at one another and the Az soldiers in the room. Then they sat.

“Let me explain a few facts to each of you,” Liala stated. “The Treaty of Narcine is inviolate. That is the first thing you need to understand. The division of Marindar has been negotiated and it will be enforced – regardless of what you might believe or what your leaders have told you. It will be enforced.”

She took a hard look at the men in the room.

“Azkoval did not require your participation in ridding the world of Junius,” she said. “You were superfluous to this endeavor from the moment you first heard about it. You were permitted to participate because King Joseph has no desire to rule over an empire. He wanted an equitable way to dissolve Marindar with the least effect on its citizens.”