The King's Sons (The Herezoth Trilogy) by Victoria Grefer Page B

sessions with those diplomats.
    “The
Traiglanders,” said Valkin. Thank the Giver, his voice didn’t crack. “Neslan,
about the Traiglanders….”
    Neslan
nodded, a proud smile on his face, and pulled up a chair. He found the stack of
papers relating to the tariff debates, and assured Valkin, “You’re doing the
right thing, stepping in for Father.”
    “Well
intentioned or not, I’ll make a mess of it all if we don’t get straight to
work. The Traiglanders….”

 
    * * *

 
    On
her first afternoon in Herezoth, Kansten visited the Crystal Palace for the
second time in as many days. She couldn’t define how she felt about that as she
climbed down from August’s carriage at the guest stables where Vane had
transported her the night before, but she did know, if nothing else, that she
had to be there.
    She
had come with August, because Vane had woken her that morning after all. In the
dark, with a candle. He made her promise she wouldn’t leave August alone, and
she gave him her word. August had then mentioned over breakfast she must visit
some friends at the Palace, so Kansten insisted on tagging along.
    “It’s
a Thursday,” August had explained. Her powder blue gown and the ribbons braided
in her hair made Kansten feel horribly out of place in her cotton housedress.
“I’m at the Palace every Thursday. Val told me not to alter my routine, to act
as though nothing’s happened. He’s just working with the king for a while, you
understand? The children, they’re to remain at Oakdowns like normal.”
    So
the women had gone to the Palace. They entered through the servants’ door
again, which Kansten deemed odd, until she remembered that August had worked as
the princess’s nanny for a time. The friends Vane’s wife went to see were
servants of the royal family: a stout chambermaid and two sisters who were
kitchen hands. When they mentioned the queen had returned from her trip away,
August dismissed herself to find Gracia and took Kansten with her, to the
girl’s chagrin.
    Well,
Kansten had already met the king and three princes. What was a queen as well?
    “Her
Highness will love you,” August promised, “as long as you address her that way.
She’ll appreciate the formality. And I wouldn’t mention your mother.”
    “Right,”
said Kansten. There was a history of sorts between Kora and the king, dating
back to the resistance. Kansten had never dared to ask specifics, but she had
picked up that much through the years. The queen might have a jealous streak….
    The
queen was the most stately woman Kansten had ever laid eyes upon. August had no
noble blood in her, and Kansten suspected right away that she’d learned poise
and posture by imitating Gracia. The dignity with which the queen held herself
unsettled Kansten, who was all too glad to find that, after an initial
introduction, Rexson’s wife more or less ignored her. The act was not for
coldness, but to pay August due attention, and Kansten blessed her for it. They
met in the library, and while August and Gracia secluded themselves before the
hearth, Hune, who was also present with his beagle, took it upon himself to
entertain Kansten. They sat on a velvet rug before the shelves, beneath the
platforms.
    Hune
observed, “I don’t imagine this is how you pictured your first days in Podrar.”
    Kansten
tried to smile, but couldn’t. “In the Crystal Palace? While Vane’s off in some
corner of the kingdom, spying on thug magicians? No, this isn’t what I
imagined.”
    “There’s
not a man in Herezoth I respect more than Vane, except my father. He’s a
brother to the both of us, no?”
    Kansten
nodded. Despite Hune’s comfortable informality, she doubted whether she should
explain what most weighed upon her. Still, his blue eyes were kind. They
invited her to speak, so she overcame her reticence, trying to forget the man
was a prince. “I’m terrified for Vane,” she said. “I’m beginning to feel…. He
may be a brother, but I