Azul hummed."I intend to burn this royal house to its foundations.He's not married into the Igwe's direct line.Whether he lives or dies is not my concern.Therefore, it is sensible to put him to use while he is available."Something lighter moved across her face."Now.Tell me exactly what he said.And more importantly, did he say it whilst looking as though he were delivering a very serious dramatic performance and lifting the edge of his sleeve to cover his mouth?"
Borji's lips quirked."How did you know?"
She snorted, which was unlike her.It seemed the banquet had put her in an unusually good mood."Go on then, everything."
He sighed, giving up on trying to guide her.How important was a woman’s reputation anyway?Surely it wouldn’t be too scandalous to spend time with one’s betrothed?"He went on about familial piety.A tree does not sever its own roots.The river rages but always returns to its source.He will not betray his sister — not for coin, not for promises.His loyalty is to his blood."
"He didn't say no."
"He didn’t?"
"He didn't say, I will never help you; do not ask again."She twirled a finger through her curls, continuing her lesson."He gave you a riddle about loyalty.Which means his loyalty has a limit.He simply needs a reason righteous enough to justify breaching it.He needs a push.The kind that shows him the roots are already rotten and the river has been poisoned at its source."
Borji was quiet.The feast surged through the walls—a toast going up, the hall responding in kind.
"There will be chaos soon," Azul said, and her voice had changed register entirely, the lightness gone, something forward-looking and precise in its place, "begin drawing people to your side.Everyone you can reach."
A cold thread moved through him."You mean…?"
She nodded."You can sanction Iyom’s father once you're ready."
The cold night wind picked up, and thunder rumbled in the distant skies.
Obiageli moved through the crowd of women, her eyes keeping straight ahead.As she walked, they parted ways, bowing and separating.Her veil covered her face, her eyes gleaming gold underneath as she took her seat to the side, above all, separated from common mortals.
The women's quarters of the reception hall were thick with perfume and polite smiles.They arranged themselves on cushions according to rank—junior wives nearest the door, senior wives closer to Obiageli's elevated platform, and the concubines relegated to the farthest corners where the incense struggled to reach.
"Have you seen her?"The whisper came from somewhere to Obiageli's left."My maid said she's on the men's side, acting as bold as a market woman."
A dismissive scoff followed."What is Akwaugo but a title?Her mother was nobody."
"She snuck into the Warlord's alcove without a chaperone."
A titter of laughter was quickly smothered."I suppose the brute has already claimed her."
"Brute is kind.Have you seen the Valthorne men?They rut like animals and fight like them too."
"The women are worse.They ride horses and draw bows like peasants; it's simply unnatural."
Obiageli's eyes observed all.She made note of faces and apparent alliances and watched the way certain women leaned toward certain others.The politics of wilting flowers.She had played this game ever since she was a child.Before she could inherit her title, how many times had Iyom nearly killed her?Finding her an eyesore.
Her gaze stopped on Chidinma, raising a cup to her lips.
The Okpalaeze's wife sat among the senior women, her posture perfect and her face strangely cold compared to the niceties of those around her.She laughed at something whispered in her ear—a light, tinkling sound that did not reach her eyes.And on her upper arm, catching the light through the high windows, a gold armband in the shape of a viper.
Obiageli's goblet paused.But soon a smile graced her lips, and she drank.
"At least the Okpalaeze has taste," one of the women continued, louder now, emboldened by wine and the apparent distraction of the Dowager."The Akwaugo is beautiful; I'll give her that.Though beauty doesn't last."
"Neither will she, if the Valthorne's warlord is half what they say.Those men break women like twigs."
"Perhaps that's what she wants."
Chidinma laughed, her foul expression easing.
Obiageli set down her cup.
The motion was small, barely noticeable, but the women nearest her fell silent immediately.The silence rippled outward until the entire gathering sat in stillness, waiting.
