“He arrived back on these shores with an heir in tow.”
Suddenly her father looked old and… hopeful. “He’s alive then?”
“I think so, yes. The description and age match.”
“You could ride with a small band, two days there, snatch him, two days back.”
“Regal’s not at the family seat. According to Yaullen, the cousin, Regal made it known that he needs a wife, and has gone looking for a suitable one at the Golden Palace.”
“So he doesn’t know Perri is alive… or perhaps just doesn’t care.”
“It would be nice if it remained that way, if we could wait for him to choose a bride, return to Soutner lands, settle in, and after a brief time period I could arrange a quick violent death for the man.”
“But…? Regal has the luck of the devil, I’m sensing a problem with that plan.”
“It appears his heir did not inherit his father’s luck. The nanny writes that Levi is considered more than a little clumsy… narrowly avoiding several serious accidents since their return to these shores.”
“He’d kill his own son and heir?”
“The nanny hints that Levi is somehow… defective. That the newly titled Baron Soutner makes no secret of the fact he finds his heir… wanting. Or that he intends to seek a bride to shore up his legacy.”
Her father’s knuckles cracked as he clenched his large hands into fists. “Defective how?”
“Yaullen doesn’t know, or the nanny declined to provide details. But I saw him fall that day, the height… and his screams were those of a child in pain. If only the old Baron hadn’t moved so quickly to exile Regal when the scope of his betrayal began to reveal itself.”
“Lucky he did, or old Ganks would have been lying in his own grave ten years the sooner. You’ll send spies… to Pallene?”
“You think Perri will be content to sit back and wait for news of her long lost son? A child who remains in the clutches of the husband who once tried to kill her? Especially when she learns that Regal may be plotting to dispose of Levi now that he has the title, the land, and the coffers, but not the perfect heir to mould into his likeness.”
“You’ll have to go personally then. See to it. We have connections at Pallene, good ones for trade and for information, but not for invitations to the Golden Palace functions that Baron Soutner would receive. How do you propose to get close to him?”
“Several options spring to mind. I turn up as a sword for hire, win a few festival tournaments. That should get me eventually to the right venues but not past the velvet ropes. Or I cut my hair, bind my breasts and pretend to be some long lost Lordling on the bridal hunt also.”
“Your plans need work. Your height alone makes you stand out. And whilst he might not want Levi, Regal won’t want us to have him. He’s vicious, ruthless, and without a moral bone in his body.”
“I’m very aware.” Alia announced drily.
“Yes, I know you have a personal stake in this also. But anger and a thirst for vengeance could well prove your downfall. I suggest you let cooler heads prevail, speak to Perri, get her thoughts.”
“You think Perri’s not driven by anger? By vengeance?”
“I should imagine she’s spent ten years imagining a multitude of brutal ways to wipe Regal from this earth. But she also took a healer’s oath during that time. She can divorce herself from a situation, look at it clinically. Explain the situation… I think her reaction will surprise you.”
Alia rose to her feet. She would speak to her sister in the morning. Let her get a good night’s rest before springing this news upon Perri. Part joyful, Levi, her long lost son was alive. Part heinous, her insanely vicious murderous husband was back, and it appeared he no longer had a use for his heir.
Planning Regal Soutner’s removal from this mortal plane was proving a lot more nuanced than Alia was used to. This would be no quick trip into the wild woods, requiring nothing but a sharp blade and a shallow grave.
The major problem being the location, the Golden Palace. A place where Alia would be incredibly out of her depth. Despite her father’s negativity, she was leaning towards disguising herself as a sword for hire. Though getting access to the parties and places Regal Soutner would be invited to might prove difficult if she was considered nothing but hired help.
Pity she couldn’t just arrange for Regal’s kidnapping, have him dumped in the nearby woods and go Beast of Gloomenthrall wild upon him until he was nothing but a carcass for the scavengers. The idea at least put a smile on her lips, as she strode towards the Lair battlements. Ducking through the secret entrance portal, Alia’s instincts fired suddenly, a large dark shadow detaching itself from a nearby patch of heavy gloom.
Cruddy hell, how did the man keep on finding her? He was like a flea she couldn’t dislodge.
* * *
“Problem?” Talac ignored the not quite smile on Alia’s lips as she emerged into the light cast down by the brasseries that lit the battlement walkways, instead, focusing on the steely calculation that gleamed in her eyes.
“How did you find this door?”
