The Times That Try Mens' Souls

Chapter 6

Imriel's Departure

With Imriel's transportation to Marsilikos taken care of, the next thing to do was gather the items he'd requested. Getting his personal items would be difficult; there was no way his guards would let me anywhere near his quarters. I would have to bribe one of his servants to get the required items for me. Many of them were not personally loyal to him, so a bribe would not be terribly difficult.

I filled another purse with gold and summoned Thierry. After he left with the bribe, I turned my mind to other matters.

I needed to raise a delegation.

Oh, Carthage had planned this well indeed. Damn near all of Parliament was bewitched. I truly was the only great lord who'd been spared, and that was only due to my suspicious nature. The thought still stunned me, and I had to wonder if I was somehow meant to do this, if Elua and his Companions had wanted me spared Carthage's madness.

It may seem a bit egotistical of me to believe that I might attract their personal attention, but I have experienced their personal attention before, years ago, on the battlements of Troyes-le-Mont. As I watched Waldemar Selig skin Phèdre nó Delaunay alive, I felt the rush of Kushiel's bronze wings in my head and I knew what I had to do.

Well, if I was meant to do this, then I would not fail. I could not fail.

This delegation would have to consist of members of the lesser houses. Ysandre would be less apt to listen to them, so we'd need to rely on numbers to convince her. And there would have to be some from each province.

Namarre would be easy. As the sovereign Duc of Namarre, technically I could summon any Namarrese noble at any time. I could also order them if I so chose. But aside from being under my authority, Namarre also had many noble families I knew very well and several whom I was related to by marriage. I'd start with them.

I went into my study and took out some paper. I began a letter to Vienne de Vardot, my sister-in-law. She and I got along well, so I was confident that she would help in any way she could. I prefer not to order my nobles about if I can avoid it.

Vienne is some three years older than Apolline. She is the oldest. After her comes Apolline, and then three brothers. One of them, Michel, died in the Battle of the Three Princes. His death, along with Prince Rolande's, led me to privately refer to that battle as the Battle of the Dead Brothers-in-Law.

Of course, thinking of House Vardot inevitably led to thoughts of Apolline. I wondered if she was worried about me. My letter would not have arrived yet, so she didn't know the details. For perhaps the hundreth time since I returned to the City, I wished she was with me. I needed her more than ever now that Ysandre had turned on me.

But now was not the time for that. I'd read some of Apolline's letters later, after I reached the point when I could no longer pen letters without going mad myself. I told Vienne the truth, insofar as I knew, about what happened. I requested that she come to the City as soon as she was able. And I added the following note at the end: Needless to say, my translation of the ancient Akkadian hymns to Ishtar will be delayed, unfortunately. I closed the letter with a bit of purple wax and stamped it with my signet ring.

I set the finished letter aside and took out another piece of paper. This letter would be to Aloin Laval. House Laval is my kin on my father's side. Aloin's father Rène was my first cousin. He died in the Skaldi invasion. I suppressed a shudder at the memory. I do not exactly have pleasant memories of the Skaldi invasion.

I had not spoken to Aloin in a while, but he'd always been a good boy and I was reasonably certain he would heed my words. I gave him the same information I gave Vienne, sealed that letter, and set it with the first.

I waved my hand a little before starting on the next letter. My fingers were cramped and my hand was getting a bit sore. Perhaps I would have to hire a scribe to write all of these letters. I contemplated switching to my left hand for a while, but my handwriting is not quite so good with my left hand as it is with my right. I sighed, picked up my pen, and began another letter.

The next day was spent acquiring the supplies Imriel asked for and writing more letters. I was eager to see him off, and somewhat relieved when that day finally came.

I sipped my kavah and considered what yet needed to be done. Thierry had succeeded in procuring the personal items Imriel had requested. I took the time to pack his saddlebags myself. I was not exactly about to call Imriel a close friend, but since our meeting I'd come to see him differently. It was true that I'd allowed my hatred and fear of his mother to cloud my judgement and perhaps, though I was reluctant to admit it even to myself, I felt a bit ashamed of my actions. Being suspicious was not unreasonable, given Melisande Shahrizai, but I should've seen his feelings for Sidonie for what they really were: true love.

But regardless of the past, Imriel was under my protection now, and with that comes certain advantages. I chose to pack his saddlebags myself so I could be sure everything was as it should be. I am a believer that you should pack all of your personal belongings yourself so if somewhat were to go missing, you would know who to blame. Once all of Imriel's personal items were packed, I added the supplies I'd acquired for him, and then finally a generous purse. There was no need to be stingy. He might need it.

I sent Thierry to Eisheth's temple to await Imriel's arrival. I handed him a grey cloak I purchased yesterday. "Give this to him. And be sure to have a plain carriage, one without my arms on it, waiting for him there."

Thierry took the cloak and nodded. "It will be done, my lord." He left.

I stood and addressed my men-at-arms. "First, we will go to the stables and get Prince Imriel's horse. Then, we will ride to Captain Dumel's barge and get everything in order. We will wait there for the Prince to arrive."

We left my quarters and went to the stables. Acquiring Imriel's horse was not difficult. The stableboys obeyed me without question, hurrying to bring the horse forward. It was a fine horse, I had to admit. I recalled that he was a gift to Imriel from my cousin Nicola, and Tsingano-bred.

After that, we were off to the docks. Dumel was waiting for us on the deck of his barge when we arrived. He bowed to me immediately. "Your grace." He walked off of the gangplank and onto the docks.

I handed him Imriel's saddlebags. "Here are the Prince's belongings," I beckoned the men who held his horse forward, "and his horse." I opened my purse, took out several gold pieces, and put them into his open palm. "For your silence. Now please show my men where to put His Highness's horse."

He nodded and led my men back to the barge. I remained on the dock with the rest of my men, scanning the crowd for a nondescript carriage. I tapped my fingers on my sword belt impatiently. Hopefully Imriel succeeded in convincing his keepers to let him out today.

We did not wait long before a carriage drove up and Imriel stepped out, dressed in the grey cloak I bought for him. "Everything's there," I said, gesturing to the barge with a jerk of my chin. "Your horse, your things. Passage paid to Marsilikos. After that, you're on your own."

"Thank you, my lord," he breathed. The gratitude was plain on his face.

"The captain and crew are sound. They were outside the City when it happened. I paid them to keep their mouths shut, and they're scared enough to do it. If you need help in Marsilikos, try the Lady's daughter. She wasn't here for it, either."

"I will." He hesitated a moment, then took a letter from his pocket. "I don't have the right to ask you any further favors…"

I cut him off. "Just ask." Whatever we may have been in the past, Imriel was an ally now. And we of House L'Envers do not turn on our friends and allies for anything other than a grave offense. Loyalty is very important to us.

"This is for Phèdre and Joscelin," he said, handing me the letter. "I didn't divulge any details. And I know you can't give it to them yet. Not until I'm well away, not until you've raised a sufficient delegation that they might, might, listen, instead of accusing you of abducting me." Half a chance they would anyway, at least Messire Verreuil would. "But it's important to me. I owe them my life. I owe them everything I am."

I took the letter. "What else?"

His voice softened. "Sidonie and I. If I fail, if I've been misled…" His voice faltered, and he looked as if he were on the verge of tears. "You're welcome to seek vengeance against me, I don't care. But please… no matter how it seemed, she didn't go willingly. Not really."

I listened to his words. Just as during our meeting, there was no deceit there, nothing but complete honesty. Yes, honesty and true love for my grandniece. My expression softened. "I know."

He swallowed, choking away tears. "Whatever you can do to save her."

Did he really think so little of me that he thought I would sit idly by while a member of my family was in danger? Maybe I'd done a poor job of showing it recently, but I do love my grandnieces. They are almost like grandchildren to me, especially considering I hardly ever get to see my own grandchildren. I put my hands on his shoulders. He was a few inches shorter than me. "Imriel, she's my blood. Why the hell do you think I wanted to protect her from you so badly?" I tightened my grip on him. "I'll do whatever I can."

"Thank you," he whispered.

I released him. "Get out of here."

He went. We waited until he was belowdecks, then left to return to the palace. As we made our way through the City, I thought about my conversation with Imriel. The pain he felt over this whole ordeal was plain to see. The thought of Sidonie, bewitched and forcibly married to this Carthaginian, was tormenting him. I felt much the same sort of fury at my grandniece being abducted and robbed of her free will. And I understood how it felt to fear for the safety of the one you love. I recalled what had prompted me to send Apolline, along with all my female relatives, to Marsilikos. If the Skaldi attacked my estate and captured her, they would enslave and rape her. The thought filled me with a mixture of fear, disgust, and rage. Those feelings, augmented by a series of vivid, terrible nightmares, led me to convince Apolline to go to Marsilikos. I had her promise me that if the Skaldi broke through our defenses and made it that far south, she would find a ship and go to Khebbel-im-Akkad. It was not so easy with Ysandre, who, like a true leader, would not leave when her country was in danger. I admired her courage while simultaneously cursing it.

Yes, I understood how Imriel felt. And that was a rather frightening thought.

Notes

The recognizable dialogue in this chapter is from Mercy, pgs. 160-161, US paperback.