“We might have taken them from a group of drunk guards.”
“You robbed them?”
“Yeah, we did.” She chuckled.
“And what are you going to do when they recognize you?”
“They’re not from the palace.”
“How can you be sure?”
“We asked them.”
“Alright.” I rubbed my eyes.
“Please don’t be mad, we thought that you might need help. You can’t do everything —”
She abruptly stopped when the door opened and Alina and Corliss walked into the hall.
“All I’m asking is that you think about all the benefits this union can bring. Think about all the things that can be done here, all the good you can do. Most women, before you, had no choice in these matters, and they made the best of it. The queen, herself, was married to the Duke of Argail when she was only thirteen, and look how great things turned out for all of us.” Alina looked at her intently, before turning away. I could see her tightly pressed lips, and the stubborn rise of her chin. No doubt, the old crow saw it too.
Frid and I followed both of them into the small parlor, where the boy who could not be more than twelve waited for his audience with the heiress.
“What the hell? What is he? Ten?” Frid muttered behind me.
“Quiet.” I hissed.
I pressed my back against the wall and tried to disconnect from all the distractions of the day.
Alina was all that was important, and our time was running out. I could see that she was being pushed to accept one of her suitors, and it was pissing me off.
“Why don’t you just snatch her?”
“What?”
“At night. Just grab her and make a run for it.”
“It’s not that simple.”
“It’s not? If you’re mated, she must feel it. She’ll be glad to leave with you.”
“I want her to remember me.”
Frid watched me for a long moment, and it started to irritate me.
“Ty... you’re enough. Any girl would be happy to be with you.”
I gritted my teeth, watching the old crone serving tea to Alina and the kid.
“She doesn’t know who I am.”
“You need to tell her.”
I stayed silent.
“I’m going to check what those other two are up to.” She was still shaking her head as she stepped through the door.
The sun was blazing hot when we gathered on the third floor terrace where the servants had already placed the tents and chairs for the attending aristocracy. Partially planted flowers decorated the gaps of the aged rocks of the palace, concealing the cracks in the old plaster. The crowd below gathered under the merciless sun, expecting to see the queen and the new heiress. My eyes took in the mass of people, showing me so many things I was already familiar with; the extreme, unfathomable poverty and desperation of some of Railand’s citizens. Malnourished women in tattered clothes, their hair loose and untidy, cradled babies in their arms. Themen looked desperate and filthy. There were beggars who, unsurprisingly, found no sympathy in the crowd. A slight movement made me look to the right, and I spotted an older woman being attacked for her shallow dish with coins which she held protectively against her chest. I averted my eyes. During my time employed as a Shadow, I had seen many things. Somehow, I grew comfortable witnessing abject misery, and felt nothing at all in the face of it.
