Alphande'

The door closed firmly behind us and within these chambers I knew no one outside would hear even a whisper of what was said.

“What are you doing among those people and why are you wearing the barbaric dress of the brute that killed our parents? What happened to your hair?” she said as she picked up one off the tangled locks and rubbed it between her fingers before letting it fall back over my shoulder, wiping her hand in her dress.

“I am pretending to be the brute to which you referred. As such, I have to dress as him.” I said as I threw myself down into the cushioned chair lined with soft red velvet. I closed my eyes and rubbed my face against the padded back allowing the bristles to move up and down my face. I opened my eyes and found her staring at me like I had lost my mind. “Forgive me sister, it has been a while since I have sat in something so soft and something that smelled— well— clean!” I said straightening up, fighting the urge to return to my outlandish behaviour.

“Come and sit with me and I will answer your questions.” I said moving to one side. She seemed to hesitate. “For Avandor’s sake Margaret come and sit down.” I said striking the spot beside me. She moved immediately to my side but she didn’t turn towards me, her eyes being fixed on the door. “You look lovely today, every day you look more and more like mother.” I said softening her up, if it is one thing I knew that would melt Margaret in an instance and that would be flattery.

She turned to me and smile. “Charming as always. At least the time you spent among them hasn’t tarnished that as it has your appearance.”

“Well yes as I said, I was playing a part and unfortunately while having better apparel at his disposal Evander seemed to prefer this fashion.”

“If you are pretending to be him, where is he?” she asked.

“Dead or just about so.”

“What do you mean?”

“I stripped him, maimed him, scalped him, blinded him and sent him on a ship to Morirgates. Then I took his place among the Nuwanhe.”

“And no one noticed the difference?”

“Just one person, but he was disposed of before he could speak.”

“Just one?” she said unbelievingly.

“He didn’t walk among his people that much, clearly. And from what you recall from the time I brought him here, do I really look that different from him?”

“No, you look exactly alike. The similarity is quite uncanny.” She said as she scrutinised my face closely. “If it wasn’t by the way you spoke or your sign, I too would not have recognised you as my brother. How is that I wonder?” she said still staring intently in my face.

I got up and circled the mahogany desk in the far corner of the room and went to sit in the high-backed chair behind it. I placed my legs on the desk and folded my arms behind my head looking outside the window to the flaxen wheat fields.

“I look like him because he is my brother, my twin bother to be exact. He was the first born and I the second.”

“That cannot be true!” she said shooting up from the chair and strode over to sit in the one directly in front of me. “Mother never had twins, I would have heard of this if she did.” She whispered.

“That was because she didn’t.” I said swinging my legs of the desk and replaced it with my head propped up on my interlaced fingers. “Do you remember all those stories father used to tell us about the true king coming back to take his place?”

“Yes, the ones you thought were absolute garbage and you two would then argue over it for hours, what of it?”

“His stories were actually true. As it turned out I was wasting my breath defending a lie.” I leaned closer. “Lacore had not been murdered by Sebánese rebels as Asher had led us to believe. He had him murdered along with his wife. The children, Evander and Ivaner were then rescued by their grandmother hiding them in Au Valley out of their uncle’s reach.”

“I don’t understand. The queen had two children. Evander was older than Ivaner, how is it that you claim to be Evander’s twin?”

“This is where the story gets more twisted.” I smiled. “The queen did have two sons, but they were twins. It is customary to kill the second born twin as he may pose a threat to the succession.”

“But you were not killed.”

“No, I was sent here instead to be raised by our parents. Asher did not know of my true parentage so I was of no threat to him.”

She bit on her lower lip and remained quiet for a while. “So you are not my brother then.” She said flicking her eyes up to my face.

“I am your brother, but not in blood.” I said as I took her hands and clasped them within mine. She smiled slightly and then withdrew them getting up and moving to look outside the window.

“What is it that you intend to do now that you know that you are the Lacore’s son and heir apparent to the throne since you disposed of Evander?”

“I intend to claim what is truly mine, all of Gé Addar. What else.” I said incredulously.

“The other boy, Ivaner whose child was he? If mother raised you, what did the queen get in exchange for the loss of one of her children?”

“Does it really matter?” I asked.

“It does. One day I caught mother just sitting on the balcony looking out and crying. When she saw me coming she had something in her hand, a black lock of hair that she tried to hide. I pretended not to see it. When I asked her what was wrong all she said was, ‘the black of night, a pretty colour isn’t it?’ and then she walked off. The next morning I saw her she was again her usual self, like the night before had not happened.” She turned to me. “The other boy, he was her son, my brother wasn’t he?”

I had been trying to avoid this ever coming up, but Margaret was going to be insistent and stubborn so better to get it over with now. “Yes, he was your brother and I still am.”

“Is he here in Shaeda?” I saw her eyes light up.

“His ashes are.” I said as I walked away.

“You killed him?” she said as she grabbed my sleeve and spun me around to face her.

“He knew his brother as well as you know me.” I said prying my sleeve from between her nails. “My god Margaret if I knew that you were going to act this way over some child you never even met, I wouldn’t have said anything.” I said looking at her face that seemed to have frozen solid.

“But he was my brother.” she said seeming to snap back into the present time.

“We both lost brothers. It is a small price to pay for everything that we are going to gain after the war. I will be king and you sister to the king, the most highly elevated lady of the land that is of course until I choose a queen. Even then you would have to agree Margaret, that the price is indeed small.” I said patting her on the cheek twice and flicking her nose lightly.

“It is, isn’t it?” she smiled softly. “Me the sister of a king. Now that would be something.” she said looking into my eyes.

“It would.” I smiled. So predictable she was, all I had to do was play into her vanity.

Her shoulders dropped as did her guarded demeanour. She flitted from my hand and moved towards the door. “I am going to have the maids fix you a bath. I mean this in the kindest way possible, but your scent is assaulting my nostrils.”

I lifted my arms and smelled them. She was right, I smelled worse than a wet dog. “I don’t think it’s that bad, a kick maybe not a full scale assault.”

“You have spent too much time in the wild Gareth and have become desensitized to horrible odours it seems. I cannot have you do that especially with you being the next king.” she winked. “I have to make you presentable at the very least.”

“That would be appreciated.” I said and she dipped her head and opened the door. “Margaret.” I called after her and she looked around. “About what I said…”

“It will be kept strictly between us two. You underestimate my ambition brother.”

“Forgive me my lady.” I bowed and she smiled.

“Should I also add your regular fixings to the bath?” she said raising her eyebrows.

“No, no women in the bathroom. I still have an image to maintain as it turns out Evander was quite celibate.”

“I see,” she smiled. “I will send a maid to you when you are ready and if you wish to see me afterwards I will be in the women’s solar. Your Highness.” she curtsied and then disappeared out the door.

I too left the room. I met up on Lord Raegon who was only a few paces down the hall. “Is everything well?” he enquired worriedly.

“Yes everything is well. The Nuwanhe can settle in Shaeda without fear of reprisal. ”

“That is indeed good news.” he said looking relieved.

“I thought Lady Margaret would have told you when she went past here only a minute ago. She said she was heading for the bath house.”

“Which is this way.” he said indicating in the direction which we were currently walking. “Maybe she took another way out.”

“Maybe,” I said stopping but I knew that that was not possible. There was only one way to the bath house from here. The other corridor would lead you to the ground level and out the kitchen door.

“Is something wrong?” he said taking note of my perplexed state.

“I am not sure as yet.” I said looking the other way. “Last night what did you tell Margaret about me or the Nuwanhe in general?” I said turning back to him.

“I don’t know where to start, everything I guess. I told her about the tunnels which surprisingly she knew about as well. I told her about her father’s dealings with us and why we accepted you instead of killing you for the alleged crime you committed.”

“You told her about Gareth setting me up?” I panicked.

“Should I have not? She would have found out anyways.” He said beginning to get confused about my sudden change in mood. “Is something wrong?” he asked.

“Yes, everything is. We need to leave now, the militia men we saw were not militia men, they were actual soldiers in Asher’s army. You said that Margaret knew about the tunnels, which means that the others are waiting under there for her signal.”

“She would never do that…”

“Except she would.” I had given her every reason to. Last night she stalled because she thought that I was her brother. Now she knew the truth that I wasn’t. She now knew that I was responsible for the death of her parents and even more recently the death of her real brother. “This is a trap. We need to warn the others.”

“Did you get a vision of death?” he asked suddenly.

“A vision of what?” I asked perplexed that he chose now to ask me such a foolish question.

“Your brother said you got visions when trouble appeared.”

“This is not the time to talk about Curly.” I snapped. “Everyone is in danger. You take the staircase to the left and I will go this way.” I said pointing in the opposite direction. Noräin, Bastian, Andreas and the others are heading here we should go separate ways just in case one of us gets caught then the other can warn the Nuwanhe of Margaret’s plot.”

“She wouldn’t do that.” he said stubbornly, as expected by a love addled fool.

“I am sorry to say it but I would.” said Margaret coming behind us. She was flanked by a party of about ten soldiers all bearing the standard of the king.

“I thought I could trust you and our love?” said Lord Raegon apparently wounded.

“I did love you and am still quite fond of you for the matter, which is why I am going to allow you to leave without harm. I however cannot trust you because you are loyal to him.” she said inclining her jaws towards me.

“But I thought I explained that he is innocent of your parents’ murder.” He said stepping around me to go closer to her.

“There are many things you don’t know Raegon.” she said stepping back. “I am again going to give you the chance to leave now and warn the Nuwanhe of what is to befall them. They will not win, but at least they will be prepared.”

“Take the offer.” I said pulling him back.

“I cannot leave you behind.”

“You must.” I said pushing him in the opposite direction. He looked at me once and then at Margaret again before he ran off and disappeared down the corridor.

“That was very well played my lady but you are making a very big mistake.” I cursed myself thrice for leaving all my weapons in the stable with the horses.

“Am I really Evander? You murdered my parents and you will pay for that.”

“I did no such…”

“Don’t even bother to deny it. I know better by now not to believe your lies. It never did make sense for the real Evander to kill father and mother. He had absolutely nothing to gain from it. But you on the other hand would inherit a lordship, a fortune and an army. When Raegon told me what really happened, that seemed more logical, all things that never did fit into the story suddenly did.”

“I am your brother yet you choose to believe him over me?”

“Yes, and you are not my brother. You said so yourself. My brother is already dead. If you had spared him maybe I would have considered sparing you.”

I drew in a deep breath as obviously I wasn’t getting through to her; I needed to work a new angle. “And what about what we discussed earlier?”

“What of it?”

“The Verdans that are coming to attack the city.”

“Shaeda isn’t afraid of attack from the Verdans. King Asher has made sure of that.” she snorted.

“Asher? What does he have to do with any of that?” I said raising an eyebrow.

Fixing the back of her dress she sat in an armchair that rested along the corridor. “After you left with the army for the Catacombs, King Asher did come to visit. He is older but still quite dashing. I found out that he was quite to my liking and so was I to his.” she said taking out fan made of intricately woven gold lace. “He asked for my hand and I accepted.” she then got up and came closer to me whispering in my ear. “I do not need to be sister to the king, when I am to be queen. You’ve taken from me all who I loved most in this world and I am going to ensure that you live to regret it Gareth. There will be hell to pay.”

The words that the old hag had spoken rang true through my head.

I have no brother. I had said.

She laughed. “But you do, maybe one maybe two.” She laughed again. “But which one I refer to I will not say, but know if you do kill any one there will be hell to pay.”

Margaret then turned away and went to sit back down. “The Verdans at this moment are the allies of the king and at this moment they are gathering outside Indué to make their final assault against all the enemies of the state.”

“What state? Theirs or yours? Both you and Asher are fools to think that you can control those creatures. They are going to destroy you first! You didn’t see what they did at the mines.”

“Who cares what happened to Sebánese slaves, they were bound to die regardless. Besides I am no child to be scared into bed early by old wives tales of evil Verdans.” she said as she waved her fan dismissively.

“How heartless you’ve become dear sister.” I said scornfully.

“I had the best teacher. I might have been a silly child when you left, but life had since taught me wisdom.” she said as she folded the fan and turned to look at me with her piercing eyes. I knew at that moment that the Margaret I knew growing up no longer resided in that body.

“You hate me because of what I did, yet your husband-to-be is no better than me. I did what I did because I was misled by him. The same man you are to marry. He is to blame for all of this. Yet you wish to punish me for it. There is no justice in it.” I said finally. “He takes what he wants to accomplish his will. He used you to trap the Nuwanhe, how long will it be before he disposes of you as well Margaret? You do this to me and you are doomed.” I threatened.

“That may be true, but I will hedge my bets regardless.” she said coming to stand in front of me. She tilted my head down so that I could meet her eyes. “I do not need justice or revenge. They will get me absolutely nowhere especially when my ambition has offered me much more.”

“That means that you are no better than me Margaret. You didn’t deliver the death blow to your parents but you seem to be fine with marrying the one who sanctioned it, yet you call me a murderer. Well dear sister you too are a killer by association.” I sneered. She drew in a sharp breath and stepped back.

“Take him.” she said to the men waiting to pounce. “Beat him if he is difficult but spare his face. The king I think will find it interesting to look at.” She said trying to conceal the fact that what I had said affected her more than she pretended. “I hope I never see your face again Gareth.” she whispered and then kissed me on the cheek before turning away. Her lips were drawn thin, stretched by a smile that didn’t touch her eyes.

Two of the guards took hold of my shoulders but I didn’t protest. I knew it would be useless at this point.

“You will see me again! I promise you that you will. You should have killed me yourself Lady Margaret as I swear you will live to regret this day.” I shouted back at her. I didn’t know if she heard as the only reply I received was that of my echo in the halls.