Page 9 of Veiled Flames
He gives no indication I should sit. Manners and protocol dictate I should not, even though my feet are now screaming to be freed from the torturous confines of the slippers, tilting me painfully forward onto crushed toes. I’m rarely this close to him, and the fire highlights a few strands of gray in his hair I haven’t seen before, and a few in his closely cropped beard.
His expression is grim. Iamto be scolded. At least that’s some form of attention.
“Daughter, I have something of the upmost importance to discuss with you.”
Hope and curiosity push aside my discomfort. Somethingimportant? Withme?
“Come.” He reaches his hand toward me, and I tentatively step closer, every bone in my body feeling like this is some kind of trap. Father rarely even looks at me, never mindtouchesme.
Finding a space to stand between the lounging dogs, I slide my fingers over his offered palm. He looks into my eyes, and I’m instantly filled with warmth and happiness, basking under my father’s much wanted attention.
“I fear I have failed you, my daughter.”
“Failed me?” My heart is racing so fast I fear for my life. “What do you mean?”
“After your mother passed to the Great Beyond—” his eyes fill with sadness “—you were raised without discipline, like a wild beast.”
Looking into his eyes, I feel the depth of how much he misses his queen, and my heart goes out to him. I barely remember her, but she was his wife.
“You remind me of her,” he says.
“I do?” Pride swells my chest. He’s comparing me to the beautiful woman in the main gallery’s portrait. The image of my mother I best know.
Father drops my hand, and I instinctively take a step back, narrowly missing a spaniel’s tail.
“Yes, you very much remind me of her.” His expression turns serious. “And I call upon you now to serve your kingdom, in the same way your mother served hers.”
My chest swells with pride. “What do you need of me, Father? I’d do anything to serve Achotia.” Anything to servehim, in truth. After years of Father’s indifference, my time has finally come to prove myself.
“You will help me strike an accord with Khotor.”
I shudder, thinking of that horrible king. Am I meant to aid in the negotiations? “I…I don’t understand.”
“There aremanythings you do not understand.” He shakes his head as if my ignorance is bothersome. “As a girl, you are ignorant of many things, but I’ll make an attempt to explain the situation in the simplest manner possible.”
I bite my tongue.
“First,” he says gravely, “you must know that there are sinister plots afoot.”
I lean forward, drawn into the intrigue, beyond excited that he’s involving me in the affairs of kingscraft for the very first time.
“Ever since the Upheaval—” he shakes his head “—I have no time to explain what that means. But suffice it to say that the Seven Kingdoms have lacked stability.”
I nod. I’ve read extensively about the Upheaval—how the Darkness invaded, and only by the grace of Othrix did the Seven Kingdoms survive.
“Only by working as one,” Father continues, “can the Seven Kingdoms maintain the veil that protects us from the Darkness.”
“I understand.”
“The King of Khotor— have you heard of this kingdom?”
“Of course. It’s five days travel to the South on horseback. And their king allows Achotian merchants access to the Khotori port on the Sagcroft Sea, so that we may more easily trade goods with Catha and Sidonia.”
Father blinks, clearly surprised at my knowledge. “Khotor has generously offered to send some of their soldiers here.”
“Soldiers from Khotor? In Achotia? Why?” I think of the dragon I saw overhead, and wonder if it’s related, and when—or if—I should tell Father about it. But if I mention the dragon, I might have to confess I was outside the castle gates.
“Khotor is sending troops to protect us from Catha.”
