“Your Majesty, I am Concubine Soo Hebin, it is an honor to meet you.” The concubine lowered herself gracefully, the rubies in her hair catching the lit candles around the room.
Her long dress was white silk. Its hems and collar sewn together using glimmering silver thread.
Kat stared, unimpressed.
The outfit and its accompanying bangles looked heavy and annoying. By comparison, in her tan trousers and navy blue shirt that she had tucked in, Kat looked like a commoner. But Kat had never really relied on clothes to make her presence felt—no matter how many times her mother tried to change this.
“Your Highness. I’m glad to meet you. Though we have an unfortunate set of problems already. This,” Kat hefted Mr. Julian up by his scruff as though he weighed little more than a sack of apples. “Snuck into my room.”
The concubine’s eyes had been downcast demurely, but at Kat’s words she lifted her gaze.
It was brief, but Kat saw the hesitancy cross her face. “How disturbing.” The woman sounded perfectly calm as she gave the barest of waves over her shoulder that summoned the guards to take Mr. Julian away.
Kat stepped back with a shake of her head. “Oh no. This man is wanted for treason in Daxaria, and is Daxarian born himself. If your guards could go retrieve one of the elite knights I brought with me, that would be best.”
Soo Hebin’s thin eyebrows twitched. “Your Majesty, he broke into my palace where—”
“Which brings us to our second problem,” Kat’s voice rose when she interrupted the concubine. “I asked to speak to one of the emperor’s attendants. Your serving staff had the balls—gall! The gall, to serve me inferior dishware to insult me.”
Soo Hebin slowly brought her hands together, making the wide sleeves of her dress fall to cover them.
“Ah, my apologies, Your Majesty. I will see to—”
“And you yourself now insult me?” Kat’s eyes flashed as her heavy boots thudded closer to the concubine. “Do you think I’m so unaware that an apology from a lower rank should be done on your knees?”
The barest of tremble ran across the concubine’s lower lip as Kat bore down on her.
The maids surrounding the concubine even leaned farther away from her.
“A man breaks into my room, your maids insult me, and now you add to the offense. Since it seems there are all kinds of ridiculous, childish games afoot, I will have no choice but to seek the emperor’s people out myself. Guards!” Kat barked. “You damn well better bring me one of the emperor’s people now. Or I will be forced to take matters into my own hands. With the Gods, and this—” She gave Thomas Julian another shake. “As my witness.”
The two guards looked nervously at one another, then tried to catch the eye of the concubine, but Kat’s hand shot out and she gripped the woman’s chin holding her gaze with her own.
“Oh no. You aren’t going to be telling them a thing. Especially while you still. Aren’t. Godsdamn. Kneeling,” the rumble in Kat’s voice and her rising aura brought the maids behind Soo Hebin fall down to all fours in front of her.
The concubine’s eyes widened, and Kat could see by their tightening corners she was furious.
When the guards came back to their senses, they clumsily rushed into each other, then had to sort themselves out before dashing out the doors.
“Well?” Kat tilted her head as she stared at the concubine, still holding her chin.
She could tell that while the woman was trying to continue looking composed, she was starting to struggle with her rage.
“Your Majesty, to cause such a–”
“That does not sound like an apology from your knees. Are you aware that this alone can have you imprisoned while I negotiate your punishment with the emperor’s officials?” Kat gave a cold smile. “Gods, listen to me. Preaching to a Zinferan concubine about Zinfera’s laws.”
Soo Hebin gently pulled her chin out of Kat’s hand and proceeded to lower herself to her knees. She bowed her head. “I apologize on behalf of my maids, and for permitting a criminal to break into your room, Your Majesty.”
“Wonderful. Get up.” Kat ordered the maid who had been the first to lift her gaze from the floor.“You. Go bring me proper tea.”
The maid scrambled to her feet and left.
Judging by the tension in her shoulders, Kat wagered that ordering Soo Hebin’s maid to do anything without her consent was inciting an even deeper ire in the woman.
“Your Majesty?”
Kat looked up from the concubine lazily when her mother entered the room. “Yes, Your Grace?” she greeted lightly.
The Daxarian queen noticed the faintest of winks from Annika Ashowan.
Evidently she had been listening to the exchange and was quite pleased with her daughter.
“Has there been some trouble—Oh, dear, Your Highness!” Annika gushed in a mothering tone when she noticed the woman on her knees. “Your Majesty, what is happening?” When the duchess’s eyes landed on Thomas Julian she momentarily froze and her eyes flashed with all the sharpness of an executioner’s blade.
She gave a very quick look to her daughter, and the two of them shared an instantaneous grim conversation.
“You may stand,” Kat cast off lightly to the concubine, who rose swiftly.
“Whatever happened?” Annika used a breathy, delicate tone, casting her brown eyes wide as she dipped into a low curtsy to the concubine.
The show of reverence did little to placate the woman, and Kat just about grinned when she saw the subtle clenching of Soo Hebin’s jaw.
“There seems to be a bit of misunderstanding on etiquette,” Kat replied to her mother, keeping her tone imperial.
“Oh dear. Is it perhaps just because with everything going on they are worried—”
“There’s no excuse for lax security.” Kat hoisted Mr. Julian up once more. The young man didn’t so much as lift his eyes.
“Ah.”
“Leave us,” Kat ordered with a wave of her hand.
Soo Hebin bowed dutifully, and didn’t linger for any longer than necessary before taking her leave.
Once the doors had closed, Annika stopped wringing her hands in false worry and stared down at Thomas Julian emotionlessly.
“We’ve been looking for you for quite some time,” she informed him softly. “The pain you have caused Likon is immeasurable. Are you aware he has been forced to serve time under the Troivackian king because of you?”
The two women noticed the way the young man’s ears burned bright red, and the way his shoulders hunched forward, Kat proceeded to release him to kneel on the floor.
“I never meant for anything to happen to my uncle. I was just trying to make him proud…”
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Annika looked at Kat questioningly.
The Daxarian queen’s lip curled scornfully.“He claims he stayed with the followers of the first witch to gather information.”
With her mouth pursing, the duchess considered this, then gradually crouched to be at eye level with Thomas Julian. “We will see what to make of you in the near future.”
The duchess’s words succeeded in sending a chill down the young man’s spine, and when the Daxarian knights showed up, they sent Thomas Julian off without another word.
Kat looked at her mother expectantly.
“You didn’t handle the concubine like I told you to,” Annika began slowly. “But you handled her perfectly as a queen. I’m impressed.”
A rueful smile climbed Kat’s face. “I knew I had to act out of character. Especially once I heard what the first witch is allegedly up to.”
The duchess frowned in concern as her daughter proceeded to relay to her everything she had learned from the nephew of their family member.
“Interesting…”
“Mhm. He obviously was anticipating a reaction, but I remembered how you taught me that whenever someone is trying to lead you somewhere, try pulling them in an unexpected direction.”
Annika smiled. “My Gods… To think my daughter would listen to me. And it only took twenty-eight years.”
Kat rolled her eyes with a sigh. “What should we do now? The first witch is here. In these walls. We have no idea what she looks like thanks to her being able to change appearances any time she dies.”
“Well hold on now.” Annika held up a finger. “She always becomes a young maiden again when she dies. So that eliminates anyone older.”
Kat tilted her head. “True.”
“I’m inclined to believe what he said the first witch is trying to do to be true. It is inline with what we last heard about her when she wanted to mold Troivack…” Annika continued.
“Why would he tell us that though? He wants me to do something.”
Annika looked around the room thoughtfully. “If I were to guess? I would assume the first witch wants you to take care of the devil for her. She sees him as a bigger threat than we could ever pose to her. The most valuable variable to any plan is time. And both she and the devil have infinite amounts of it.”
“So she doesn’t know Tam is around the devil,” Kat realized, her eyes bright.
“Most likely not. Though it’s only a matter of time, what with everyone on the lookout for Eli so we can’t count on that fact remaining unknown.”
“I still can’t believe Eric never realized Eli was a woman,” Kat snorted.
“She lied to him when she was younger, and it would’ve been easier to disguise back then. And need I remind you, that you didn’t have any idea either until your father and I told the two of you.”
Kat’s tongue poked her cheek as she scuffed her boot against the ground. “Well it’s incredible that she’s also a princess, and you had no idea about that!”
The duchess made a funny noise in the back of her throat. “I’m surprised myself.”
Kat smiled smugly. Her mother always knew everything, so learning something as big as Eli being royalty must have really irked her.
“Do you think they’ll actually send for one of the emperor’s attendants?” Kat changed the topic while eyeing the doors.
“One who is in Soo Hebin’s pocket, yes.”
“Right. Well. Mind sending out invitations to all the concubines?” Kat looked at her mother. “I think it’s time we start tipping some scales.”
Annika reached out and plucked some lint off her daughter’s shirt. “Any thoughts on how you would like to handle the first witch?”
“Yeah. Ignore her.”
Blinking, Annika tilted her head. “Really?”
Nodding, and moving her hands to her hips, Kat’s smile broadened. “Yeup. Because I am queen of annoying. And I am quite certain that ignoring the daughter of the Gods is going to drive her up the bloody wall.”
***
“So Katarina took the bait,” Aradia tapped the tip of her finger on the garden table after listening to Ansar’s report. “She has Mr. Julian under lock and key?”
“Yes,” Ansar confirmed with a bow of his head.
“Then I suppose all I need to do is wait and—”
The sound of rapid footsteps stopped the first witch from saying anything more, as she waited with her eyes transfixed on the entrance to her lonely square of the garden for Soo Hebin’s appearance.
Sure enough, the concubine arrived, her cheeks flushed and the air around her crackling with tension.
“That lowly wench,” the concubine spat.
Aradia raised an eyebrow.
“She made me bow— in my own palace! Tell me, I’ll make her pay soon, yes? You are going to have the covens gather here and ransom her to force the Daxarian king to sign the new division of witches and the monarchy?”
Aradia’s eyes ventured casually to Ansar. “Once I have the devil in my grasp. Yes.”
Soo Hebin closed her eyes and took a steadying breath, which brought with it a sinister smile on her red lips. “I have good news then. We have located the man and boy who is believed to be the devil. They happened to be traveling with Princess Elisara!” Soo Hebin laughed triumphantly.
Aradia didn’t rejoice as openly as Soo Hebin, but she did lean forward in her seat. “I see.”
“And guess what?” the concubine continued in dulcet tones that nearly had Aradia’s teeth on edge as she continued putting up with the noblewoman’s grating personality.
Aradia took her time answering, and she didn’t hide how tiresome she found the concubine’s petty villainy.
“The man that was traveling with her? Is none other than Tamlin Ashowan, and apparently, he married that twit of a princess!”
Aradia’s expression turned stony as she looked to Ansar who was already watching her expectantly.
“You can eliminate the pesky Ashowan children, get your hands on your devil, and I can disintegrate whatever remains of the sham of a princess.”
“Leave us,” Aradia ordered.
The concubine opened her mouth in shock. “Excuse me— You. Yes, you, you are in my palace, you—”
A great surge of wind came out of nowhere and blasted against the concubine, forcing her to close her eyes and mouth and turn away as her dress flattened against her figure in the powerful wind.
When it died down, the concubine rounded slowly to see a Zinferan witch she had been introduced to a week ago…
“Her Magnificence has ordered you to leave.” The witch was an old man, with a long white beard and hair, wearing pants and a coat as white as Soo Hebin’s own clothes.
She gaped in outrage at him, but when he lifted his hand again, presumably to summon back the wind, she made an aggravated noise, turned on her heel, and stalked away.
Once blissful quiet had settled back over the garden, and the wind witch retreated back to his discreet guard post, Aradia spoke.
“Tamlin Ashowan beside my brother… By chance. With the missing princess. This reeks of divine tampering,” Aradia said to Ansar without commenting on the concubine’s dramatic exit. “Have we found anyone from the seer bloodline?”
“Not yet. The last known one was in Troivack, but she died a year ago. There is the child that our people cared for that we presume to carry on the legacy, but I have not inspected her myself.”
“Damn. I want to know what the hell my parents are playing at…” Aradia shook her head, her eyes growing lost in thought. “No matter what, my brother will pay. He will leave and I will set the world right, and everything—”
“Aradia,” Ansar’s warm hand gently covered hers. “Everything will be alright. I’ll make sure of it. I know you repeat these things like a mantra, but… Trust me.”
The first witch gazed at her assistant for a long while, her emotions unclear.
Eventually she spared a smile. “I trust you as well as I can trust anyone, Ansar. Now, let’s find out where exactly my brother is and the soonest he can get here.”