Stormseer (Storms in Amethir Book 3) (33 page)

Chapter 24

Dinner had been a quiet affair. Arisanat's cook had outdone himself tonight. The meat had been tender, the pastries flaky, and the bread soft with a crunchy crust. Arisanat had ordered his servants to keep the wine flowing freely, but even that had not lifted the mood of this assembly. Finally he signaled to his servers to bring the dessert wine out.

As soon as his cup was filled, he stood. The guests around his table all raised their gazes to him. He looked around, smiling at Tarra on his left, at Lady Talt to her left, and then Lord Belnat. Tarra had been shy to the point of timidity all night, though her mother's smugness had more than made up for that. Belnat, on the other hand... Arisanat was worried about Belnat. The man still seemed to waver, despite his initial interest in the conspiracy.

Arisanat let his gaze travel further around the table, to Colonel Urval, head of the city guard, seated across from Lord Belnat. Lissa Daix, the head of the merchant guild, sat between Urval and Lord Birona, who sat opposite Tarra at Arisanat's right hand. Arisanat hoped fervently that this was the right group of people. Of the Nine, he had only four—but he had the First, the Third, the Sixth, and the Seventh. There had never been any hope he would get the Second and Fifth, and if he were honest, even the Seventh was less important. The Eighth and Ninth Families were furthest removed from court; he expected they would care little about a regime change, so long as their houses weren't impacted. Lissa Daix was technically a scion of the Ninth Family, but she had no rank within the family.

"My friends. I thank you for being with me tonight as we finalize our plans to return Tamnen to her former glory." Arisanat smiled. "I can think of no others I would rather have with me."

"That's good, since you haven't any others," Birona remarked lazily.

"Yes," Belnat interjected. "I thought you had more than three of the Nine, Arisanat."

Arisanat raised an eyebrow. "Who says that I do not? Belnat, I have invited my closest supporters, not all of them." He smiled benignly. "Besides, have you forgotten how to count? I myself am one of the Nine. I have four present here tonight."

Birona's small eyes were focused on Belnat. "You had better hope we are your closest," he said.

Lady Talt tittered. "Of course Arisanat knows he can trust us all. We have thrown our lot in with his, haven't we?" She smiled and placed a hand on her daughter's. "Haven't we, my dear?"

Tarra looked unhappy about having the attention of the room on her. "Yes, mother," she murmured. She gave Arisanat a shy smile, but he could tell she was troubled. That would require a careful touch. He lifted his glass.

"A toast to our glorious future," he said, and waited until the others murmured a response before drinking. "Come. Let us repair to the sitting room. We will have to do without music. I am afraid I have found no bards for our revolution."

Birona, Talt, and Colonel Urval laughed, as they were supposed to. The others did not. Arisanat led the way to the sitting room, where he flicked a gesture at his servants to keep the wine circulating. He waited until everyone had settled into a spot, then drifted over to Tarra's elbow.

"My dear, you look lovely this evening," he murmured. "I hope nothing is troubling you."

She startled and Arisanat winced internally. He hadn't meant to make her more uncomfortable. She was a good deal younger than he, no more than twenty, and he wasn't displeased with her. He wondered whether Tarra were displeased with him.

"All these plots," she said after a moment. Her voice was faint. "I..." She trailed off, looking at him in confusion.

"You know, I hope," he ventured, "how much I dislike what I must do." He set down his wine glass and took one of her hands in both of his. She was lovely, with her warm brown skin and the red undertones in her black hair. He couldn't help but remember that Talt had tried to snare Razem with her daughters.

"I have always liked Prince Razem, my lord," she said hesitantly. She looked down at their hands, a blush rising to her cheeks. "It is very hard."

"I understand, Tarra," he said quickly. "I love my cousin. We grew up together, and I have always loved him." Gods help him, it was the truth, too. "But he is weak. The best quality of a king is not whether you
like
him, but if he can rule."

Arisanat ducked his head, trying to catch her gaze. She let him, tilting her head up to meet his eyes. After a moment, her expression cleared and she nodded slowly. "I...see."

He squeezed her hand gently. "Your mother has chosen the proper side for you. She is a long-sighted woman. She wishes the best for you." He ventured a smile. "As do I."

"Yes." She smiled faintly.

Arisanat smiled back and kissed her forehead. "Good girl. You'll see. With you by my side, we will be able to make Tamnen what she once was."

Belnat drifted over, a full glass of wine in one hand. "I cannot pretend I didn't overhear what you just said." He darted a glance at Tarra, but she had withdrawn into herself and didn't respond. "Is it true you still love your cousin, Arisanat?"

Arisanat sighed and raised his voice so everyone could hear. "How can anyone doubt that I love my cousin?" he demanded. "I loved Azmei when I sent her to her death, after all. She might have wedded my little brother, had he returned from the war. But instead she forgot him as soon as he was dead. She went to chase a false hope of peace with a nation entirely unlike ours. She was abandoning us. She could not be permitted to continue." He shook his head. "I loved her, but I could not allow it."

"So that was you, too." Birona's voice was sardonic. "I had wondered."

"And how has your trade fared, my Lord Birona, since the princess died?"

Birona's eyes flashed. "Better than it had since the Push, Arisanat. I am sure you will not be surprised."

Arisanat nodded. "And Marsede gave the Strid back their Deranged Duke instead of punishing him for his crimes!" he continued, letting his gaze travel from Birona to Belnat. "How does that help the kingdom? He will send the Strid back to their ravening ways."

Belnat wrinkled his forehead. "Duke Oler was dying. He won't be going back to war."

"You don't think he would train someone to take up his mantle?" Arisanat demanded, and the venom he felt crept into his voice. "Fool!" He turned his back, trying to regain his composure. "No," he said more quietly. "No, Belnat, Marsede did us no favors by sending Oler home to die."

Colonel Urval cleared his throat. "My lord Burojan, I thought this was all arranged."

Arisanat took a long sip of his drink, giving himself a moment to gather his words. "Indeed, Colonel. We are here to finalize our plans, not justify them. Belnat, if you are not with us—"

"I am," Belnat broke in quickly. His mustache trembled as he pursed his lips. "I only hope we are in the right."

Arisanat held his gaze, putting every ounce of conviction into his expression. "We are."

There was a pause. Arisanat needed time to breathe, and he suspected everyone else did. He'd been a fool not to find some bard he could bribe to play without listening to their conversation. If nothing else, he could have found someone who wouldn't be missed if they were held captive in the pantry for a few days. He took a long drink of his wine and sighed.

The Colonel cleared his throat again. "We have nearly everything ready, Lord Burojan." He stepped closer, his expression hesitant. "I still think we should wait until they've calmed down a bit at the palace. Everyone's a little jumpy still from the assassination. If we only gave it a few more—"

"We've been over this, Colonel," Arisanat broke in, his voice warm. "If we wait too long, they'll be preparing for the coronation. It is
vital
that we strike before that." He paused and glanced around at the nobles. "None of us have taken any oaths to Razem yet."

Birona smirked. "Except lady Riman."

Arisanat made a dismissive gesture. He'd never expected Riman on his side. She was too closely tied to Marsede. There had been talk, about five years ago, that the king was thinking of taking her as his second wife. Though nothing had come of those rumors, they did underscore the deep regard between the two of them. It would have been foolish to go to Riman.

Colonel Urval sounded exasperated when he spoke next. "Very well. The odds will be somewhat against us, at least in numbers. We'll have surprise on our side, though, and that's important."

"I think our numbers will be fine," Birona said. He gave the Colonel an indulgent smile. "I am placing my soldiers at your disposal, Colonel. They won't be in my colors, but they will follow your orders." He seemed to register that Belnat and Talt were staring at him and shrugged. "What? I prefer to bet only on a sure thing." His smile widened. "It's how I've kept my fortune."

The Colonel nodded approvingly. "Aye, that'll help even things up. With your troops and my Lord Burojan's, we should outnumber the palace guard. We'll have to make sure General Kho hasn't brought in more of the regular army."

"We're safe on that front," Birona said. "In council yesterday, we ordered the general to station troops a day's ride east of the capital. We wouldn't want to be surprised by an attack from Meekin, would we?" He grinned mirthlessly at Colonel Urval.

"Well done, my lord," Urval replied.

"Lady Talt should be able to spare her soldiers for the attack," Arisanat said, directing a hard look at Talt.

It was unnecessary. She beamed at him. "Of course, my dear Arisanat. I'll rely on you to handle that after I relay the orders to my captain."

The Colonel was nodding. "That gives us the numbers easily, then. The main thing is that we seize the palace quickly. Once we have the palace closed from the inside, I believe we can hold it indefinitely. By the time reinforcements arrive, we'll have dealt with the prince and my Lord Burojan will be king."

"How do you know the army will listen?" Belnat asked. He was such a mousy fellow. Arisanat suppressed a moue of distaste.

"Once my cousin is dead," he said, "who else would the army expect to lead the kingdom?"

Belnat gaped at him. "You're going to
kill
him?"

There was a moment of silence and then Lady Talt laughed shrilly. "My dear Belnat, what did you think we would do? Depose him and leave him in a dungeon somewhere? That's just asking for someone to rescue him and place him back on the throne."

Belnat gasped, staring at Talt in fuddlement. Arisanat didn't break the silence. What was there to say? He'd already made his decision, and it was clear his allies stood behind him—except, perhaps, Belnat, and he could be dealt with, if necessary. There were poisons that would incapacitate him long enough for the coup to go forward. Once Arisanat was king, Belnat would fall in line. He was too ambivalent to do anything else.

Belnat drew in a long, shuddering breath. "Gods forgive us for what we plot," he whispered.

Arisanat smiled. Belnat had said 'we.' "I am less concerned with the gods and more concerned with the other Families." He made his voice harsh. "Belnat, your wife was a Restin. I'll expect you to bring them in hand afterwards. Birona. You deal with Tel and Daix; you have nephews in those families, yes?"

Birona nodded. "And Lissa will be able to help." He raised his glass at the head of the merchant guild, who lifted her glass in response. "The real difficulties will be Riman and Ilzi," he added.

"Oh, Ilzi!" Talt exclaimed. "She's a child!"

"Not so much younger than Tarra here," Belnat remarked. "Four years? Five?"

Arisanat didn't miss the apprehension on Tarra's face. She was a kind girl who hadn't much chance to think for herself. Arisanat hoped she wouldn't falter. "Well," he said, "perhaps Tarra will become friendly with Ilzi and help her understand this is for the best."

After a moment, Tarra met his gaze and smiled tremulously.

Colonel Urval coughed. "You shouldn't meet like this again before the attack. People might notice, and we are relying heavily on the element of surprise."

Arisanat nodded. "As you say, Colonel." He looked around at everyone. "Thank you all. When next we meet, our kingdom will be a different place."
And me at the head of it,
he didn't add. It seemed gauche. And besides, it wasn't as if he'd wanted to be king. He just wanted to see Tamnen win the war against Strid without any further compromises.

Urval was the last to leave. He paused just before walking through the door. "Good luck, my lord. I'll send word when we're ready to move."

***

After the dinner broke up, Arisanat couldn't settle down to anything. He finally poured himself another glass of wine and wandered to the library. Most of the books here were Venra's—books of tactics and strategies, campaign histories, drilling exercises, and adventure tales. A few of them had been Arisanat's, but most of those were up at the estate, where he needed them. Here in Tamnen City, he had retreated to this room to remember his brother. The tactics and campaign books held no interest for him personally, but they were a part of Venra that he still had.

He sank into his favorite chair, an oversized, cushioned chair covered in leather. His brother had smelled of leather and cloves. Venra had been fond of tea spiced with cloves and nutmeg and carhash seeds. Arisanat closed his eyes, breathing in the scent of leather and thinking of Venra.