Page 74 of Coveted

He’d expected the yelling, accusations, and threats. Not all were aimed at him, but the suggestion that he’d made the whole situation up to cover his own lacking, that the accident was his fault for not paying attention to the plans he approved, infuriated him the most. Only Alana’s citrus blossom scent surrounding him kept him from darting down the table to yank the Chancellor who’d said it from his seat.

What he hadn’t expected was the support.

He kept his eye on Lat’ucan as the other’s argued, the Chancellor’s features growing more worried the more heated it grew. Enough of the others were calling for a full inquisition into the accident that when Varner came into the room, changed into his usual suit, to not-so-quietly inform Vax a ship had landed, the man tried to slip away.

“Where are you going Lat’ucan?”

Vax projected his voice to be sure others heard, their attention turning to the Chancellor of Alaimah as they paused their debates. Those that hadn’t heard Vax noticed the decreased volume and turned to see what was going on.

Lat’ucan stood frozen behind his chair, wide eyes darting around the table. Vax took note of who they lingered on. He’d bluffed about having found Egard, though they were working on it, but he knew if there had been a group of Chancellors behind the incident, someone might break.

And break he had.

Lat’ucan spilled everything, talking so fast he almost couldn’t be understood, cringing when the two other Chancellors he named as involved in the illegal mining rose to their feet. They tried to deny their involvement, but Varner already had the Guard stationed outside the dining room doors, and they rushed in to take custody of the three men.

Vax would have been worried about arresting other Chancellors, except he had the support of the rest of the Council, evident by the jeers and angry shouts from a few of them. None tried to stop him, and a group volunteered to be in charge of the trial, quickly approved by vote. Vax couldn’t be involved in the questioning or sentencing since he was affected by what happened, but he was fine with handing that responsibility over.

He still had other things to worry about.

Vax had no idea how the cooks had managed to stop the smell from filling the room the way it had the ship’s hold, but no one had any idea anything was wrong with their dinner. Once chatter eased and the other Chancellors had settled back into their seats, he drew their attention again.

“There is another issue I’d like to bring to the Council, but first, let’s see our dinner.”

He released Alana’s arm to let her move to the empty seat beside him, and to his surprise, servants filed into the room to lift the covers from the food.

The shouts of shock mingled with sounds of gagging, more than one Chancellor covering their mouths and shoving away from the table. The scent that had been contained beneath thelids began to circulate, turning even Vax’s stomach. Alana’s already pale skin blanched further, her shoulders shaking in a shiver of disgust as she looked at the plates.

Vax would have just slopped the rotten mess on the dish, but his cooks had gone through the effort of presenting it as they would have the original meal that had been planned, and something about it made it more revolting because of it.

“What is this?”

More than one disgusted look was shot his way as Vax stood again.

“This is the other issue. I informed the Council that our crops had failed due to a fungus. Over half our crops were lost, with more threatened. I asked for an extra allotment of produce for my people to sustain us, yet when the ship arrived, it was half of what we usually receive, and this is what it looked like.”

He paused and let what he’d said sink in as the Chancellors looked between him and their plates.

“The captain informed me he was held up in Inspection for nearly a week, before finally be released with no valid explanation. When he mentioned the food wouldn’t make it after being held so long, he was threatened with fines if he didn’t come straight here. I’d hate to think a Chancellor was vindictive and petty enough to arrange such a thing, but it does seem rather suspicious on the heels of what else has happened and the fact that the Council is disappointed in the crystal production.”

The muttering around the table went quiet. A few of the men were still glaring at him, but just as many looked shocked, and perhaps felt as suspicious as Vax did as they looked around at their fellow Chancellors.

“Of course, the miners need to be well fed to be strong enough to work, so they got the best of what arrived. And the children can’t be expected to eat something that may bring them illness.”

Vax spread his hands, raising his shoulders.

Zeeg, Chancellor of Decloui, threw his napkin over his plate and stood, chair legs scraping the floor behind him.

“It is clear that some of the Chancellors on this Council have not acted with the best interest of the Federation at heart. Our purpose is to maintain the peace, protect our people, and work together to guide the Federation on a fair path. It’s disturbing that many seem to have forgotten that they serve the people, not the other way around. I call for this meeting to be dismissed and reconvene when the investigation is finished so the Council can be presented with the evidence and decide on an appropriate punishment.”

Zeeg’s focus turned to Vax, slit pupils narrowed as his whiskers twitched.

“Chancellor Domaxay has always held his people’s welfare at the fore. He is right that he is shipping less crystals than what was produced under the previous Chancellor, but he is also correct that they are a higher quality, and it is being done in a way that keeps the miners safe. I believe we can accept that he understands the urgency and is taking the correct measure to meet current needs as best he can.”

Zeeg’s focus swept the other men gathered around the table, waiting until he received nods from the majority.

Vax’s heart thumped in his chest, his breaths coming quicker. So much of his time was taken up fielding complaints and demands, that even the cessation of those would ease his load.

“Chancellor Ca’Harse.”

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