Chapter 31

The procession into the Drake Citadel was a stately occasion. There were drummers pounding out a dignified cadence. The victorious men marched in formation moving in sync with the drums. There were banners flying at the front and end of the column. Rather than ride at the front or rear, Dracos had chosen to ride in the center. Unwilling to take credit for all of their accomplishments, Dracos had chosen to be surrounded by the men with whom he had fought.

Watching from the battlement over the gate, Lord Drake had initially been worried that he had lost his son when he discovered the young man wasn't at the front of the column. Upon seeing that his son was riding in the center of the procession, he smiled with pride. Turning to his wife, he said, "Our son has grown up."

"Yes, he has," she said.

Patting the hand that she had on his arm, he said, "I'll train him to run the citadel and then I think I'll retire."

"That would be nice," she said looking over at her husband with fondness. She wondered what he would do with all of that free time. The thought of what he would do with all of that free time quickly turned to worry.

As if sensing her thoughts, he said, "I think that I'd like to have a nice vineyard. I can see myself puttering around with the grapevines."

"Of course you would, dear," she said thinking that a leisurely retirement was about as likely to happen as snow in the middle of summer.

"Let's go down and welcome him home," Lord Drake said.

The table was set with a spread that would have done a king proud. Lord Drake watched as Fred tasted everything before fixing a plate for Sid. It was hard to take offense since Sid hadn't even arrived yet. Gesturing to the food, he asked, "Would you mind fixing me a plate as well?"

On the verge of taking offense, Fred thought about how his actions must have looked to their host. Realizing that he had been a little rude in his actions, Fred nodded his head. He answered, "Not at all. Is there anything you don't like to eat?"

"I'll take a little of everything," Lord Drake answered. All of the fruits and vegetables were from his garden, but his wife had done most of the work.

Fred handed across the plate he had fixed for Sid and started filling another plate. Looking up after he was almost done, he said, "I'll fix one for Dracos."

The offer surprised Lord Drake. He watched Fred work for a minute before he said, "You have been a neutral observer throughout this war. You've seen many examples of men who have served under Sid. I'm sure that some were good and some were not quite so good. I'd like you opinion about something. What do you think of my son?"

"It is not my place to say," Fred said attempting to duck the question. He knew that Sid would have a long discussion about Draco's performance as a leader.

Lord Drake laughed and shook his head. Leaning on the table, he said, "I saw that my son didn't lead the procession back to the city. I was rather surprised and pleased to see that. He's gotten a little quieter and more thoughtful since he left. I have to assume that he saw battle up close and it must have been a rough one."

"That he did and it was terrible pitched battle, sir," Fred said. After the enemy had been defeated, he had walked the battlefield with Sid and had seen just how fierce the fighting had been. The bodies were thickest in the area where Dracos had been fighting. Finishing with the plate for Dracos, he started on the plate for Sid. He said, "While it may not be my place to comment on your son, I will say that all of the men who fought with him said that he comported himself well. They were quite vocal in their praise of his leadership."

Lord Drake sat back in his chair feeling pleased with what Fred had said. He asked, "Would you say that he earned the respect of his men?"

"Yes," Fred answered. He looked up and saw that Sid and Dracos had entered the garden. He set the plate for Sid down on the table and started one for himself.

Sid sat down beside Fred and, addressing Lord Drake, said, "The men have camped outside the citadel in the area you assigned them. Don't worry, I plan on leaving tomorrow."

It was nice to have a visitor who didn't overstay his welcome, but it was even better when three thousand visitors didn't overstay their welcome. Looking very much like a Lord in charge of his domain, Lord Drake smiled and said, "That is good news. Of course, we just have a little business to conduct before you go."

"That's true," Sid said taking a bite out of a radish. The tart flavor of the radish helped sharpen his wits and focus his attention on Lord Drake.

"I swore an alliance with you when you were here last time. Now that the war is over, my oath has been satisfied. That leaves us with a dilemma," Drake said looking at Sid fully prepared to start negotiations.

Taking another bite of the radish, Sid thought about what Drake had said. He hadn't conquered the citadel so he couldn't rightfully lay claim to it. The fact was that he didn't want to lay claim to it, but to have a hole in the middle of the territory that he supposedly ruled as king wasn't exactly a good situation. Nodding his head, he said, "What is the nature of this dilemma?"

"You control all of the territory around my holding," Lord Drake said while drawing a circle on the surface of the table. He stabbed a finger in the center of the circle to represent his citadel.

"That's true," Sid said.

"That's a very unstable situation from my perspective," Lord Drake said watching Sid's eyes for a clue as to his thoughts.

"I agree. It is a very unstable situation from my perspective as well," Sid said. They were ready to address the real issue at hand. The next few minutes would be critical.

"They've started calling you King Sid," Lord Drake said.

Dracos said, "Considering the territory that he controls, he is a king."

Looking at his son with more than a little irritation, Lord Drake said, "I stand corrected. You are a king."

"Thank you," Sid said knowing that Lord Drake had reached the same conclusion, but had intended to follow a less direct route to admitting it.

"So the situation as I see it is that you have a kingdom in which there is a lone Lord who is master of his own citadel right in the middle of it," Lord Drake lifted a mug of watered wine to take a sip. He watched Sid over the lip of the mug.

Sid bent over his plate and wrapped a chunk of cheese inside a slice of ham. He took a bite and studied Lord Drake trying to decide how best to approach his preferred solution. Chewing slowly, he thought about what he knew of Lord Drake. The man had ridden with his uncle and that meant a lot. That was to be taken with a grain of salt since men changed and he had no idea of the relationship between him and his uncle. After swallowing, he said, "If you were that king, what would you do about that situation?"

"I'd tell the Lord to swear allegiance to me or prepare for war," Lord Drake answered in a matter of fact voice. He managed to hide his surprise that Sid had turned the discussion around on him.

Nodding his head, Sid asked, "Why not propose a treaty?"

"Because the individual who is king will one day die and leave their kingdom to an heir. Sons inherit citadels. While the fathers may agree, the odds are good that the sons won't," Lord Drake answered shooting a warning glance at Dracos to keep him from speaking out.

"That's true," Sid said. He took another bite of his ham and cheese while considering his next question. Dracos was leaning forward to hear the conversation as if his life depended on what was said next. In a way, it did. Sid asked, "If I was that Lord, I would want to know what the king offers to make me willing to swear allegiance to him."

"That is a very reasonable thing for a Lord to want to know."

"Yes, I think so too. I suppose the Lord would want assurances that his economic situation would improve over time. That he has a say about what goes on inside his holding. I would also assume that the Lord would want to know what it would cost him in terms of obligations to the king and taxes he has to pay," Sid said rubbing his chin thoughtfully.

"You know, I think that is exactly what a Lord would want," Lord Drake said pleased that the negotiations were progressing better than expected. He took a piece of cheese from his plate and nibbled on it for a second before popping it into his mouth. After swallowing, he said, "If I was that king, I think I would provide a constitution that assures the Lord reasonable rights over his holding while providing some limits. I would give those assurances in the form of trade policies within the constitution that enabled the Lord to export goods to and from his holding."

Dracos had listened to the discussion wondering why each man was taking the position of the other. He was about to ask when Fred gestured to him to listen and learn. Deciding that was good advice, he sat back and watched his father.

Nodding his head, Sid said, "Yes. I imagine that the Lord would want to make sure that the taxes collected were fair and that he paid the same taxes as other lords in the kingdom."

"I'm sure that the Lord would want that. As King, I would want to make sure that the taxes collected were fair. I suppose a king would think that one conch out of fifteen is fair."

Sid shook his head and countered, "I'm sure that the Lord might want a different arrangement for taxes than that."

"You don't say," Lord Drake said with a frown.

"I do say. I'd say that the Lord would prefer to pay one conch out of twenty to the king and, as part of his obligations to the king, to spend one conch out of twenty on improving the royal roads, warehouses, and waterworks within his holding," Sid said stating the same deal that he had made with Hunter and Sneak.