“He can stay as long as he needs. It’s not like we don’t have room. What guards do I need to pay for going with you?”
“I already took care of it,” Jaki said smoothly.
“You didn’t write to me like you said you would.”
Jaki stretched out his legs. “I’m sorry, Father. I was quite distracted with Erik, and it slipped my mind. What other plans have you made toward the war?”
“I’m working on it.”
Jaki forced him to take a deep but silent breath. Working on it. Sure. Once Lumi had time to rest, Jaki could slowly reveal things, including the Crown. “I was thinking we should send the court home now. It’ll save more money.”
Elswere sighed. “They won’t like that. Their own places are quite poor too. I have more lords who want to send family here, and since we have no pleasure slave, some have children-”
“Those here have a head start on learning how to deal with lentil soup and porridge. We need to get a move on, Father, not allow more courtiers in. They’re a drain on the treasury, and it won’t help with every lord sending in his eight cousins or whatever. We need the money for more important things. What will happen to those extra cousins or whoever in a couple of years with the way things are going? If we unite Iceland and the lands aren’t dying anymore, no one will want to send family here only to feed them.”
Elswere fidgeted with his sleeve. “Promise me you’ll stay here, and you won’t fight.”
“No. I have no reason to stay. I’m not too old or in poor health. My eyes work fine, and I have no disabilities.”
“Son-”
“After all this? I’ve grown up with enough to eat every day. How do you expect me to be the King later if I won’t even fight for the Kingdom and the Crown you expect me to wear?”
The Crown that was hidden in his room for now.
“If you die, that’s it,” snapped Elswere. “If you’re killed out there, everyone might as well leave for good. I’d tell Tivar hecan have everything and be the ruler of a dead, barren country because Iceland won’t be inhabitable.”
Jaki stood as his irritation ticked up. “You know what? You also could have gotten started on this years ago when I was much younger and not old enough to go fight. Maybe it’d already be done now, and we wouldn’t be worrying about things now, would we?”
“My brother thought he’d return home, and look what happened there! My youth back then would have guaranteed nothing.”
Perhaps Lumi would have perished then too. If Tivar had known he was truly going to lose, he would have killed his fake brother. Why not? He’d be useless to Tivar who only saw him as a tool, and it wasn’t like he truly cared about the fate of the people. The thought made Jaki’s gut clench. The civil war between their sides had been quite short with the army so depleted. If it had gone on, he might not have ever known Lumi.
“If we lost, you wouldn’t have been safe here,” Elswere continued. “Tivar’s men would have come and killed you because you would have been a boy with no hope of defending yourself. Haven’t I lost enough?” He threw up his hands. “I have no family except for you.”
“You’ll lose me eventually anyway if this Kingdom is barren, and we’re all about to starve to death because we can’t even grow a single thing anymore! The only other option is to leave and live like commoners in a different Kingdom.” Jaki spread his hands. “We won’t have a chance for this to end in a good way unless we fight. Even with your reasoning, I also don’t like being lied to and told that you’re working on it when you’re not.”
He didn’t give Elswere a chance to answer before he left the room.
***
Lumi’s hair was wet, and he’d changed when Jaki came before dinner, so he must have had a bath.
“I told the servants to leave meals in the antechamber,” said Jaki. “They won’t have to see you, and you can leave the tray there when you’re finished eating.”
“What about the nappies?”
“There’s a sack in there for those. If you look, you’ll see it by the door. They know there’s a baby, and clean ones will be left in the antechamber along with blankets. There are books in the sitting room too, if you want to sit out there and read.”
“Thanks.”
“She’s my daughter too. You both can have whatever you need or want.”
Lumi bit his lip. “Can I ask for something?”
“Of course.” Being able to have anything without strings attached probably wasn't an easy concept for him to grasp yet.
“Can I have a basket? I put her on the bed and left the privy room door open while I bathed, but I don’t like her being away from me even if I can see her. I don’t want to put her on the floor either. A basket would be better.”
