Sometimes Emily thinks of dying.
She doesn't mean to, not really. But in the dark stretches of night aboard the Wale, when she doesn't want to tempt the Outsider's interference in her sleep, she stares at the oddments she's been collecting from her excursions and thinks that on the next day, she could die.
She doesn't want to die—there's so much left she wants to do, so much she needs to set right—but the odds right now are against her. Even with all her skills, with all her father's training, all it would take would be one slip on a loose roof tile; a moment of inattention, a lucky guard catching sight of a masked intruder, and it would be over.
The Kaldwin line ends with her... unless, of course, Delilah is telling the truth and she really is the illegitimate daughter of Emily's grandfather. But what of Emily? What of her mother's line?
Emily stirs uneasily. She's thought of children before... but that always seemed so distant, like how one admired the artistry of a complex painting, but had no wish to own it.
Now she wonders... her heart belongs to Wyman. She knows this; has known it for more than a year now. Why has she waited?
Then again, perhaps it was good she had. Wyman is skilled with a sword and pistol, but he isn't trained by the Royal Protector. If Emily had to watch out for herself and him, or worse, herself, Wyman, and a child, she may as well leave the Isles entirely.
But things would be different... Once Delilah was taken care of, things would change. Emily couldn't be the bored Empress letting bureaucrats run her government for her; no longer could she be content to put off making a decision about her future with Wyman. She wouldn't die on this mission—couldn't die. But assassins and accidents wouldn't suddenly disappear once she had her throne back. She had to be a responsible monarch and that meant she had to have an heir.
Wyman liked to make pointed jokes about having a child with her cheekbones and his eyes, and Emily had always laughed it off before. But now...
Emily rolled over, finally closing her eyes. Maybe her royal duty in this case wouldn't be so bad.