“I have much to discuss with Prince Ilya,” Maya said, nodding at Luka. She inclined her head at him, silently telling him to go with the Elves, and he nodded in response.
The Elf lords led Luka to a table in one corner of the room, where they began to discuss the terms of the proposed trade agreement.
Maya drifted away, and stopped in front of Prince Ilya, who smiled when he saw her approach.
“Good afternoon, Prince.”
“Good afternoon, my lady.” Prince Ilya smiled. “I must confess, I was surprised to hear that you were here in Kamenev. I believed each member of the nobility has an ancestral seat in their own province, named after their family?”
Maya nodded. “Yes, my family home is in Rakhmonov province, but I thought I would spend some time in Kamenev with Prince Luka. He and I were classmates in the military academy together for three years, so we are good friends.”
“You went to military school, my lady?” Prince Ilya nodded contemplatively. “That must be why your inventions are so successful. You have a base of practical knowledge to build from when it comes to artificing.”
“That is true,” Maya said.
“I hope to see some of these inventions, my lady,” Rana Singh cut in suddenly, his voice overly harsh in the quiet room.
Maya started in surprise at his deep baritone, but she nodded graciously all the same. “Of course, Lord Rana.”
“Just Rana Saheb is fine. I’m no lord.” The man grinned at Prince Ilya, who nodded uncomfortably.
Maya noticed the interplay with interest. There was a discomfort there, one that said that although Prince Ilya was the employer, and the higher ranked courtier, Rana Singh held some power over him. But what could it be?
“And you, Prince Ilya?” Maya turned to him. “What do you hope to gain from this meeting in Kamenev?”
“It’s simple, really. I want peace between the Four Kingdoms. I believe that we have much to gain from working together.” He turned to include the Elves, who had joined them, having finished their conversation with Luka. “And from what I've heard of your people and your way of life, I feel that we share similar values.”
The Merovian Baron shook his head, still glaring at Rana Singh. “Someof us do not,” he muttered, and Rana glared back, before Prince Ilya cleared his throat, and Rana drifted away to join the other members of the retinue from Sunvaara.
There was a story there, and one Maya was getting more interested in hearing as every moment went on.
“I heard that you are married to a Sunvaaran princess, Baron,” Maya said, watching as the Baron relaxed once Rana Singh had moved away. “My own mother is from Sunvaara.”
The Baron’s face split into a smile, and Maya was instantly struck by how handsome he was. His golden hair was short and he was stockier than Luka, but he had a nice smile, and his blue eyes shone with good humor.
“Yes, my lady,” the Baron said, speaking in stilted Drakkan. “My wife is from Raavia, in the south.”
“My mother was from the west of the Empire,” Maya said regretfully, “so I do not think we would have much in common. But I was delighted to hear that you are to be a father soon. Congratulations, Baron.”
“Thank you, my lady.”
The Baron’s smile was genuine, and it succeeded in winning her trust. Whatever else he was, Maya didn’t think this man was dishonest. If he was here to build a relationship with Luka—and by extension, with Drakazov—Maya felt he could be trusted to keep his word.
Speaking of Luka, where was he? She looked around, and found him in conversation with his aide, Stoffel. He nodded at her when he felt her eyes on him, and then turned away again. Well, it was better to let him be. This week was an important one for Luka, and she wanted him to succeed at his plans with the Elves. He'd told her about his proposal to sail the Drakkan warhorses injured in Telluria back home, where they could travel in comfort on Elven ships, instead of being forced to march back to the capital. It was a beautiful plan, and Luka deserved to see it succeed.
There was still a few hours to lunch. With a smile, Maya excused herself to go visit her lab. She still had work to do.
A few minutes later, Maya stood in the middle of her lab, fighting a niggling sense of unease.
Her gaze went to the workbench where she had left her notebook the previous night. In its pages, she had spent countless hours perfecting the designs for her inventions, and she was always excited to see it jump off the page and come to fruition. It was one of her most prized possessions.
But as she approached the table, she noticed something strange.
The notebook was not where she had left it. It had been moved about half an inch to the right of where she had left it.
Maya's heart skipped a beat as she scanned the room, looking for any sign of a break-in. But everything seemed to be in its place, except for her notebook, which had been moved ever so slightly, as if someone had looked through it, and then quickly placed it back on her workbench. She quickly searched through her notes and sketches, hoping that nothing was missing.
Panic set in as Maya realized that someone could have easily broken into her lab and stolen her ideas. She had heard rumors of espionage, or even rival inventors trying to sabotage each other's work, but she never thought it would happen to her.
