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“These are my people. I trust them with my safety.”
“Some words are only meant for certain ears.”
“If you wanted to discuss dangerous secrets, you wouldn’t have sought me out here. You know where I live.”
Jushur took a sip of his coffee.
Kate one, Jushur zero. Time to press my advantage.
“Your son pledged himself to me.”
“So he told me,” the spymaster said.
“I fear his loyalty is misplaced. I’m not the queen he’s looking for.”
Jushur met my eyes. “In this life each of us must decide three things for ourselves: who to worship, who to marry, and who to serve. Only Rimush can determine if you are suitable to lead him.”
Outmaneuvered. Fine. I still had an ace up my sleeve.
“My father tells me that Rimush will need a pulse of our power to unlock his full potential.”
Jushur remained silent.
“I will do this for him without a pledge or any obligation. He can serve another or no one.”
Rimush bowed deeply. “You are very generous, Sharratum.”
“The Consort is merciful and kind to a fault,” Keelan said.
The two of them stared at each other for half a second.
“I’m sure he is,” Jushur said.
Ha!
A corner of Curran’s mouth curled slightly. He forced his face back into a neutral expression.
“Why would you grant my son this gift? It’s a fair bargain: a lifetime of service for a lifetime of power.”
“Your full power shouldn’t be held hostage,” I told Rimush. “It shouldn’t cost you your freedom. It was wrong of my family to bind your family in this way. It’s only right that I release you from it.”
Jushur cleared his throat. “Your father’s view is not strictly accurate.”
“Which part?”
“We do not require the magic of your bloodline to reach our full potential. We can achieve it at any time.”
Oh. Oh! “You lied to my father.”
Jushur sipped his coffee. “Technically, we lied to your grandfather.”
“Why?”
“Shalmaneser im’Shinar was a suspicious man who saw plots and betrayers everywhere. We misled him to ensure the safety of future generations. Since he believed our young ones couldn’t reach their full power without his permission, he didn’t see them as a threat.”
Wow.
“Your father never directly confirmed it with us. He simply assumed his parent’s words to be fact. He prided himself on his knowledge. Pointing out his ignorance would’ve caused him undue distress.”
I almost laughed. Well, didn’t that just take the cake?
“So you managed my father. As amusing as it is, I don’t want to be managed.”
“Our aim isn’t to manage, but to support and assist,” Rimush said.
“You lied by omission. How can I trust you?”
“And yet we admitted our lie,” Jushur said. “Should that not put you at ease?”
“One can admit to a small lie to get away with a bigger one.”
Jushur narrowed his eyes. “You are very unlike your father.”
“Yes. All the more reason not to serve me. More coffee?”
“Yes, please.”
I refilled his cup and added more sugar.
“We are all a product of our time,” Jushur said.
Not all of us. Like my father, my aunt also had awakened people who’d gone into deep sleep to support her in the new age. When I spoke to them, it was very clear that they had belonged to a different time. The mannerisms, the speech patterns, even their references were all different. Jushur spoke like he was born after the Shift. He’d adapted completely.
“Your grandfather, Shalmaneser, was one of twelve candidates for the throne. He grew up in a time of bitter strife when his siblings and cousins stabbed each other in the back. Winning his trust was a feat worthy of legends. He wanted to obtain power and keep it. He was convinced he was entitled to it by the virtue of his birth and abilities and, most importantly, he didn’t want any of his siblings to have it.”
I’d read the chronicles Erra’s staff had faithfully reproduced in the modern age. To say that my grandfather was paranoid would be a criminal understatement.
“Your father, Nimrrad im’Shinar, was a genius without equal. His star shone so brightly, it occasionally blinded him.”
More than occasionally. He pretty much had permanent blinders on when it came to certain things.
“Your father sought knowledge, progress, and enlightenment. He believed in the power of his mind so much, he couldn’t fathom that someone under his command might not share his vision. To him, his path was so glaringly obvious that any rational being had to follow it.”
True.
“You, too, are shaped by your times. The world has fallen apart around you. It’s now trying to be reborn like a phoenix from its ashes. We must endure its birthing pains even as they plunge us into danger. You want both power and knowledge, but not for their own sakes. You want them to keep your people safe and free. You fear one thing above all else.”
“And what is that?”
“An unfettered version of yourself giving free rein of your power. You fear it so much, you’ve shackled yourself.”
