He followed her gaze to the cluster of tents and carriages hugging the flattest section of the grounds that wasn’t part of the royal training yard or the military yard. “Yes.”
“Perfect—I have an idea that might address another of our many problems.”
“Oh yes? Which?”
Amarande grinned. “Let’s see if it’ll work first.”
Then she began nearly dragging him up the hill.
CHAPTER 38
INthe morning after another fitful night, Ferdinand stood upon his balcony and attached a letter to the leg of his favorite remaining caracara. The bird stared at him with incredulous eyes as he checked for a third time to make sure the parchment, binding, and additional protective wax were secure.
“I apologize for the inconvenience, dear Lilia. I know you’ll take great care to fly straight and true, but it’s very important this letter arrives at its destination.”
The bird nipped at his fingers.
“I know, I know.” He held out a thin strip of white fish, pilfered from his own breakfast tray, and she greedily snatched it away. “You always do a fine job.”
When the caracara had finished her treat, he walked Lilia to the railing and pointed her south and west. Osana had made it clear she did not wish to wait in a tower for a bird, but perhaps the circumstances had changed.
Then Ferdinand turned the opposite way for a journey of his own.
FERDINANDarrived at the Itspi royal stable not only to his preferred black stallion, Marcel, and a cart full of the crates of vials promised to Pyrenee, but the queen herself.
Alone.
This was rare—Luca was always by Amarande’s side. And slightly suspicious.
Still, the combination of suspicion and surprise made for a good distraction to the heaviness that tugged Ferdinand’s heart into his boots. If he stood still too long, thought of Koldo too much, he felt as if it would take him fully under. For Amarande, he attempted a smile—miniscule but tangible.
“Why, Sister, here to see me off?”
“I should’ve seen you off when you left the last time.” Amarande swept a hand in the general direction of the Port of Ardenia in the far distance. “I thought perhaps if I did now, I could change our luck and the next time you and I met our reunion wouldn’t come with battle on its heels.”
His expression tilted to a smirk. “We do have a terrible record of a fight in line with every reunion. Though at least for the majority of them we’ve been on the same side.”
She raised her eyebrows in an amused way and then dropped her gaze to her hands.
They didn’t know each other’s rhythms as most siblings did. They hadn’t had enough time. But he knew enough of his sister to know she didn’t waste time with pleasantries. And she certainly didn’t play coy.
“But that isn’t the reason you’re here, is it?”
Amarande stepped in close. No one was near them where they stood—several paces away from the mouth of the stable, under a tree so that the horse and vials could remain cool—yet when she spoke again her voice was much softer.
“You prefer the truth,” she said, watching him in such a way that he knew she wanted to be sure he heard every whispered word. “Therefore, I’ll tell it to you,ifwe can keep this secret between the two of us.”
Ferdinand drew a thin breath. “Depends on what it is.”
Amarande didn’t blink. “It involves your delivery.”
His gaze skipped to the load—the vials sat there quietly in their crates, beneath a tarp that had been pulled tight over the cart. In that moment, Ferdinand tried to figure out exactly how much about this he needed to know. Finally, he quietly asked, “Am I delivering an empty load?”
“No, not empty. They—”
“Don’t tell me.”
The queen’s lips snapped shut, and her attention strayed to the distant mountains he would traverse over the next two days. Ferdinand could tell by the cut of her shoulders that his sister wished she could hop in the saddle with him and take care of this chore herself. Delegation wasn’t her strong suit.
