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We filed into a large black vehicle that would be taking us to the monorail. I was surprised to see Peter sitting with Sie. I didn’t think he was coming along. I was grateful that, at least, Alec and Reagan wouldn’t be joining us.
We rode in silence. Neither Sie nor I acknowledged one another.
The Kingdom had six villages, and our tour was laid out so that we would visit two a day, making this trip a three-day and two-night venture. The first stop on our tour was the village closest to the castle, called Palm. The ride didn’t take long. We arrived shortly after breakfast which wasn’t nearly enough time to process what was about to happen.
Palm seemed like a small city, or at least what I thought a city would look like. I’d only seen depictions of them in textbooks. Most of the buildings were a few stories high with varying shades of colors throughout the stone. They were congested and squished together, making the air feel thick and heavy. A few mountains and trees lined the one side of the town, while the other was completely bare. Just building after building after building, all packed with Advenians.
Palm had closed their shops for the day, allowing everyone who resided there to greet us. Only the stores that lined the tour route were open and bustling with customers. Advenians bought hot drinks to warm their hands as they waited in the frigid air. Many young females held signs with Sie’s face on it. I noticed many of them carrying a stick of food. Meats, potatoes, and vegetables were all crammed together on the thin wooden spike that they held vertically before bringing it into their mouths. Peter leaned in and told me that it was tuskalu, a popular dish of the village. I didn’t have it in me to respond to him, so I just kept walking.
I was forced to take Sie’s hand as we shuffled through the passage crammed with Advenians. It was an isle of bodies, the path only big enough to fit four across at a time. Guards stalked in front and behind us, Peter at the tail, as we walked down the city’s main cobblestone street. Cheers erupted and an endless stream of shouts followed in our wake. I felt naked all over again. Sie’s hand felt like a shackle. I wanted to curl into myself and disappear.
Sie stopped every so often to shake a few nobles’ hands, making small talk and light, innocent gossip amongst Palm’s citizens. It was known to be one of the higher rank villages. Too many eyes were honed in on me, too many faces plastered in sneers. I kept quiet as the emptiness in me grew. I couldn’t concentrate on anything Sie was saying. All I could think about was last night—what Alec had forced me to do. And staring at the Advenians of Palm, seeing their nasty glares, I wondered how many others wished ill of me. How many loathed me for no reason other than for the two zeroes burned into my flesh?
The moment we filed back onto the monorail to head to the second village, I dropped Sie’s hand and stormed to the back of the moving cylinder. I wanted to put as much distance between us as I could.
I was sitting in my own compartment when Peter knocked on the door. “Mind if I join you?” he asked gently.
I gave him a weak nod toward the open seat in front of me. I was still frustrated for his part last night, for being friends with them, for not stopping it sooner. But he had this way about him, making it impossible to stay mad at him, unlike Sie, who I despised to my very core.
I sighed heavily as Peter slumped onto the cushions adjacent to me. It would be easier if I was marrying him instead of Sie. He was sweet and kind. He calmed me in a way only Vallie had been able to do.
“How are you doing?” he asked.
“Fine,” was all I said, crossing my arms over my chest.
“If it makes you feel better, Sie had an early morning training session with Alec before we left. He beat him to a pulp for what he did last night.”
“And who is going to beat up Sie for his part in it?” I asked, not bothering to hide my disgust.
Peter grimaced. “He’s not as bad as he seems, Scottie.”
“Are you really going to sit there and defend him after what happened last night?”
He contemplated it for a moment before saying, “You’re right. There is no excuse for what they did. I would never defend Reagan and Alec.”
“I thought you both were friends with them?”
“No.” Peter forced a laugh. “Sie is obligated to put up with them, but neither of us like them.”
“Why does he have to put up with them?” I asked, unable to keep my curiosity down. “He didn’t seem to mind their company last night, especially Reagan’s.”
“Sie and I are from the village of Kitlarn. It’s one of the larger villages by the ocean. Growing up, Sie’s father was the Commander of the Guard and a member of the High Council. A very important, crucial high ranking member. He had to travel to the castle a lot for his line of work and stayed there for weeks on end. He usually brought Sie along, who usually brought me too. Everyone knew Sie had a real possibility of being the future King, so his father brought him to the castle to expose him early. We spent a lot of time there together. Reagan and Alec are from here, in Palm. Their fathers are also members of the High Council, so all of us were forced together as children.”
“Who are their parents?” I realized how little I knew about these Advenians. The fact that Sie’s family already came from power was a shock to me.
“Alec’s father is Braven Bask. You know him. He’s the guy who is always following Synder around like a lost puppy. He is the third in command on the Council after Synder. Sie’s father used to be Lunder’s second, but he dropped out once Sie was declared a rank five in order to devote his time to training him. The Council voted Synder into the role of Commander of the Guard only after Sie’s father left.”
“I thought that the King always picked his second?”
“Not a second time. King Lunder selected Sie’s father at his coronation, but if a second leaves or dies, the Council then votes on who will replace the spot.”
“Oh,” I said as I processed what knowledge he was giving me. “Does that mean you are going to be in charge of the High Council when Sie is King since you are his second?”
“Yes,” Peter’s brows furrowed as he gazed past me. “Synder is not thrilled about it, to say the least. He’s been snaking his way into more and more power slowly throughout Lunder’s rule. He isn’t keen on giving it up. He will still be a member of the High Council, but not the Head High Council Member as Sie named me.”
“What about the Commander of the Guard? Will that fall to you also?” I asked.
“No. Only the King solely declares the second. Every other position on the Council needs to be voted in. Synder will remain the Commander.”
