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“The high lords,or ladies,”Jay added, sounding less than pleased, “who rule the courts of Valencia make up the King’s High Council and serve as immediate advisors to the King.”
The topic of the High Council brought several questions to my mind. Perhaps noticing that I appeared as though wanting to interject, Jay paused in his colloquy.
“High Lady Tragon, she doesn’t have her own court though, right?” I asked.
“That’s right,” he confirmed.
“Then how is she on the High Council?”
“Lila Tragon serves at the King’s pleasure,” he said in a not wholly unkind but clipped tone I was already getting used to.
“I should amend my prior statement. The Houses of those who govern the courts of Valencia are guaranteed a seat on the High Council. The King may, of course, appoint any others whom he believes will benefit the Kingdom.”
Jay’s answer was unfulfilling. He was essentially saying that High Lady Tragon served on the High Council because the King wanted her to, which I understood to be the King’s prerogative. But I still didn’t understandwhythe King wanted Lady Tragon on the High Council. What did she have to offer? However, sensing that Jay’s evasive answer had been somewhat purposeful, I chose to move on to my next question.
“Since King Heroux rules at the High Court, does that make Prince Heroux high lord of the Emerald Court?”
“No,” Jay responded, his foreboding mood seeming to lessen. “Nik is not part of the High Council, so he is not a high lord. Although you’re correct, Nik does rule at the Emerald Court while his father sits on the throne of the High Court. And he is next in the line of succession for the throne.”
I nodded, already thinking about my next question, the question I had been thinking of ever since I learned that Luke’s last name was Bellamy.
“If Luke’s father is on the High Council, then why does Luke work for your House?” I asked, somewhat timidly, knowing that my last question was not strictly related to the topic of our lesson.
“That,my dear, is a question best asked of Luke. But I can tell you that he is a very valuable asset for House Vitruvian and, on my part, a friend.”
Jay ended his lesson for the day, leaving me with many books to set upon before my lesson with him the next day. The texts did not look like the books from my university and instead seemed to be books of limited circulation from Jay’s personal library.
Flipping through the pages, I noticed that some of the texts even had handwritten notes, presumably made by Jay. The prospect of getting to learn history shaped by the high lord’s hands was so enticing that I could hardly wait for my next lesson with him.
4
Jay
“Ineed to be out of pocket for a few days,” I said, not looking up from the ledger I wrote in.
Luke lounged on the chaise across from my desk, a hand behind his head and his feet crossed at his ankles. He didn’t look surprised by my announcement. He knew I’d been traveling a lot lately.
“Up north again?” he asked.
Luke didn’t try to pry into why I had been going north so much recently. He knew that I’d tell him if and when I was ready to.
I nodded in confirmation, closing the leather-bound book I was writing in and then placing it in a drawer in my desk.
A piece of paper appeared in the wooden inbox on my desk, sent there by one of the few scriveners left with magic whom I still trusted. The constant influx of correspondence I received was a painful reminder that my powers were not what they once were. If I still had my full powers, such written bits of information would have been superfluous.
I grabbed the note without reading it and shoved it into the interior pocket of my dark sapphire-blue suit jacket, knowing that whatever the message was, it wasn't urgent. Anything pressing would have been delivered in person.
“Look after Alarie while I’m away?” I asked.
“Not a problem,” Luke replied, a littletooeagerly, sitting up in his chair.
“Luke,” I admonished, standing.
Luke looked back at me, his golden eyebrows raised, feigning innocence.
“I know how much you and Rhett love fresh…facesat the High Court,” I noted wryly. I made my way to the front of my oversized dark oak desk.
Luke and his best friend, the son of High Lord Rein and a playboy to boot, could be seen around the Court with a new young woman on their arm at each and every event.
