Thorn Queen Chapter Eight

Kiyo was gone the next morning, as Id suspected he would be. Wed stumbled inside to my little-used bedroom once it started raining, and his side of the bed was cold, uttering me hed leave some succession ago. I sighed, trying non to let the knowledge of him being with Maiwenn get me d sustain, and headed out to learn what was going on in business leader Eugenies domain.The first affair I picked up on was that everyone was really excited that it had rained. Wed re false to normal sunny conditions this morning, scarce last nights rain had brought the land to life. Cacti bloomed. The trees seemed stronger. And while thither were no ostensible signs of excess water, I could sense it in the ground and up to now slightly in the air.Had having sex caused it? possibly. Maybe not. Regardless, I was pleased with my levelheaded deed. I make motions to leave, but Rurik stopped me.Dont you want to question the prisoners?I paused. What I valued was to go home, shower, and change into cl ean clothes. Cant you do that? I asked.He frowned. Well, certainly, butBut it should be my job. That was the unspoken message. I suspected Aeson would draw never done such a thing. He would have left it to thugs. I knew if I delegated it to Rurik, hed do it without (much) complaint. in that respect was something in his eyes, though, that told me he expected more(prenominal) of me than an ordinary monarch. Id never expected to gain such regard from him-or to feel so un well active it. Rurik had pissed me off to no end in the past, but suddenly, I didnt want to disap demonstrate him.Okay, I said. Lets do it.Id interrogated plenty of monsters, gentry, and rase humans in my day. But there was something weird well-nigh interrogating prisoners. It was strange enough to learn that I actually had a dungeon in the castle. on that point were even shackles on the wall, but thankfully, our two prisoners werent bound. They were a man and a woman, both ragged and sullen. He looked my age she looked older.I ente release the bronze-barred cell, Rurik and another guard cornerstone me. I crossed my arms everyplace my chest and swallowed my misgivings. I was Eugenie Markham, badass shaman and slayer of Otherworldly miscreants. This was no different from any of my other jobs.Okay, I told the prisoners, my articulatio harsh. We understructure make this easy or hard. Answer my questions, and itll go a lot faster and smoother for all of us.The woman glargond at me. We dont answer to you.Thats the humourous thing, I said. You do. Youre in my land. Youre under my rule, my jurisdiction.She spat on the ground. Youre a usurper. You stole the land from Aeson.Considering the way of life power was always shifting in the Otherworld, I institute that statement ludicrous. Everyones a usurper here. And in case you havent heard, I didnt steal the land from him so much as blow him up.Her face remained hard, but I saw the slightest flicker of fear in the guys face. I turned to him. What about you? You going to be reasonable? Are you going to tell me where the girls you kidnapped are?He nervously glanced at his companion. She gave him a hard look, its message easily interpretable Dont talk.I sighed. I didnt want to resort to torture. All-powerful ruler or not, it was in force(p) an ugly thing I didnt want to dirty my hands with. I had a feeling my iron athame pointed at their throats would go a long way to get them to communicate. Instead, I opted for another solution.Producing my wand, I stepped away from the others and spoke the words to summon Volusian. The momentary cold descended upon us, and then the spirit stood before me. Rurik and the guard were ripening accustomed to this, but the prisoners gasped.Volusian, I said. Got a task for you.As my mistress commands.I gestured to the prisoners. I need you to put muscle on them. Get them to talk.Volusians red eyes widened slightly, the closest he ever came to looking happy.But you cant kill them, I added hast ily. Or hurt them-much.The pseudo-happiness disappeared.Start with the guy, I said.Volusian sidled across the cell and was besides reaching his hand out when the guy cracked. Alright Alright Ill talk, he cried.Stop, Volusian.The spirit stepped back, his glum expression growing.I dont know anything about girls disappearance, the man said. We arent taking them.Youve been preying on tribe, I pointed out. And girls have been vanishing near your base of operation. Seems kind of suspicious.He shook his head frantically, eyeing Volusian warily. No, its not us.Have you heard of them disappearing?Yes. But its not us. His words were adamant.Yeah, well, I adjust it hard to believe theyre all running off. If its not you, then who is it?Youre a fool, the woman snapped. What would we do with a group of girls?The analogous thing men usually use girls for, I replied.We can barely run away our own people why would we take on more mouths to feed?That was kind of a good question. Well, you stil l havent really given me another explanation.We heard a monsters doing it, the man blurted out.A monster, I repeated flatly. I looked over to Rurik who simply shrugged. I turned back to the prisoners. Any details on this monster?Neither responded. It was strange, particularly considering how some prejudiced part of me still regarded most(prenominal) gentry as dishonest, but I believed them about not taking the girls. I thought the monster explanation was bullshit, but they might honestly have believed it to be true. Volusian took a step forward without my command, and the guy hastily spoke.The monster lives in our land. In the Ald-Thorn charge, that is.How do you know that? I asked.Because only girls from the Thorn Land have disappeared, the woman said. Westoria borders the rowan tree Land, and two of their villages are very close. Skye and Ley. But theyve had no one go missing.You guys seem to know a lot about this for allegedly not being involved.We dont need to be involved. We raid both sides of the border-word gets around. She spoke of her raiding as a matter of pride, and I tried not to roll my eyes.Okay. Lets put the girls on hold. Where did the fire demons follow from?No answer.I sighed again. Volusian.Volusian swiftly collide withd forward again and wrapped his hand around the guys throat. about spirits had little substance, but with his power, Volusian was as solid as any of us, his touch cold and deadly. The man screamed and crumpled to the ground.Stop Stop yelled the woman. Ill tell you.I halted Volusian and looked at her expectantly. The man remained on the floor, rubbing his throat and moaning. The skin on his neck bore bright red marks. The woman looked angrier than ever.Its our leader who physical process them. Cowan.You expect me to believe some vagrant has that kind of power? I asked. Why isnt he off working for a noble?He was a noble, one of Aesons advisors. He preferred to live a rough life, rather than work for soul similar you.Aes on did have a noble named Cowan, Rurik said. Her story isnt implausible.I suddenly felt weary. None of these were the answers I wanted. No leads on the girls, and now I had a rogue noble who could summon demons. Okay, I said. Thats all Ive got for now.What are you going to do with us? the woman demanded.Another excellent question, I murmured.Aeson would have killed them, said Rurik.And you know Im not Aeson.Would setting them free accomplish anything? more than of what theyd done had been from hunger and desperation, not that that justified robbing and potentially killing and kidnapping. If I freed them out of guilt, I uncertaintyed theyd learn their lessons and go on to become upright citizens. I certainly wasnt going to kill them, though. I didnt even want to hold them in this cell much longer.The guard whod accompanied Rurik cleared his throat. Your majesty, you could sentence them to a work detail.A work detail?There are others like them, other criminals, who serve a term doin g labor as punishment for their deeds. kindred digging your aquewhatever, said Rurik.That didnt sound so bad. And hey, it might actually be useful. I gave the order and was assured the two prisoners would be transported to their work site. The whole thing felt a little strange. Here I was judge, jury, and-if I chose-executioner. No one argued with my decision. No one questioned the time I set-six months. Although, Ruriks arched eyebrow made me think he would have sentenced them to life.Okay, I said when wed emerged out of the lower levels of the castle and Id sent away Volusian. Now Im going home.Shaya suddenly rounded the corner. There you are, she said anxiously. Ive been looking for you.Im leaving.Her face turned confused. But Prince Leith is here to see you.Whooh. The image came back to me. The moderately cute guy from the party. The Rowan Queens son, who hadnt been all that annoying. Why is he here?After your last visit, I dispatched those with any affinity for metal out to sea rch for copper. They base a lot of it-thought its been difficult to extract-and I sent out word that wed be in a position to set up address for it soon. Leith is here to negotiate on behalf of his mother.Man, I said. You guys move fast.Her looked turned wry. Well, yes, but theres also the fact that you invited him to visit sometime. Hes taking you up on the offer. In fact, I suspect seeing you is more important than the trade negotiations.Good thing. Because Im not so good in the way of negotiations. I never wore a watch and had left my cell phone back in Tucson. I had no idea what time it was, only that I was spending more and more time in the Otherworld. Seeing Leith was only going to check into me further. Ill see him. But its going to be fast.Shaya looked relieved. I think shed worried I would bolt, which was a very good fear to have. As we walked to the chamber Leith was wait in, she gave me a curious look. Perhaps youdlike to change and clean up first?I looked at my clothe s. They were fine badly wrinkled, and I didnt doubt that I had grass in my hair from last night.No, I said. The less appealing he finds me, the better.Unfortunately, that proved impossible. When we entered the room, Leith leapt up, face aglow with delight. Your majesty Its so wonderful to see you again. He swept me a half-bow and kissed my hand. You look amazing. He was apparently into the grunge look. I hope you dont mind me arriving like this. When my mother heard the news of your find, she wanted to make sure we could get in on it as soon as possible.Sure, I said, taking my hand back. No problem.The room was a homely parlor that still bore the signs of Aesons tastes in decorating. Tapestries, lots of velvet, and dark colors. Everyone waited for me to sit on one of the plush sofas and then followed suit. I made a point of kind of sprawling on mine. It wouldnt have been out of the range of gentry etiquette for Leith to come snuggle up beside me. As it was, he was still beaming at me and seemed a bit put out when Shaya jumped right in.So, your highness. Wed like to discuss trading our copper for your wheat.As they began to talk, I had a sudden flashback to that god-awful bill game my mother used to make me play, Pit. I let my mind wander as the two of them hashed out the finer details of matters I didnt solely understand. My thoughts drifted to some upcoming jobs I had, the mystery of the demons and the missing girls, and of course, Kiyo. Always Kiyo.Leith and Shaya wrapped up their negotiations fairly quickly. From the happy look on her face, I took it our team had come out ahead. With a polite bow in my direction, Shaya rose, holding some papers to her chest. If youll excuse me, Im going to have these written up and formalized so that the prince can sign them before he leaves.I took this as my cue to entertain him, but nothing readily came to mind. I couldnt really talk to him about reality TV or American politics. Finally, lamely, I said, Thanks for you r help. I mean, with the trade and everything.He grinned. Were getting as much out of it as you. Maybe more.Shaya didnt seem to think so, I said, speaking without thinking.This made him laugh. Shes a good negotiator. Youre lucky to have her. He leaned forward. Especially since Im guessing this really isnt yourwell, lets just ordinate its not one of your normal pastimes.The frankness caught me by surprise. Id expected him to remain starstruck and silly, like most of the guys around here who wanted to hit on me. Leiths real expression wasnt lecherous or adoring now, just knowing and sympathetic.No, its really not. This is a kind of a big life change.And yet, you knew youd be taking this on when you defeated Aeson.I hesitated. Both Shaya and Rurik had hinted to me on a number of occasions that I really shouldnt elaborate on the totally unexpected-and unwanted-nature of my tycoon-ship. Even if I hadnt fought Aeson with the particularised intent of supplanting him, the point remained now that I was stuck with this. Coming across as weak and whiny to those outside my inner circle could create more problems.Well, yeah, I said brightly. We just didnt anticipate this many problems when the land changed.But this is how your world is?The part I live in. But weve had a long time to get used to it and figure out ways to survive and get water in. I gave Shaya books on how to construct some of that stuff, so hopefully shell find someone to do it.His brow furrowed. Is there any way I could take a look? I might able to help.For a moment, I wondered if this was his new ploy to schmooze me-until I recalled what Shaya had said about him having a brilliant mind for technology, inasmuch as the gentry could. If he could parse diagrams and whatnot, it might be worth getting closer to him.Sure, I said. We could certainly use it.He smiled again, and as it lit up his face, even I could acknowledge he was pretty good-looking. Not like Kiyo, of course. Or evenwell, like Dorian. But pr etty cute.Ill set to it as soon as I can. If theres anything else I can do to make this easier for you, Ill do it. There was an enraptured look on his face. Yeah, he definitely had a crush, but he didnt irritate me in the way so many other more obnoxious suitors did. An odd thought occurred to me.Leithheres something you might be able to help with. Have you ever heard of girls disappearing from the Rowan Land? In the areas that border my land?The look on his face showed that this was the last question hed expected from me. Ibeg your pardon?Girls have been disappearing from my land, right near your borders. What were those names? Skye and Ley. But the people I talked to say nothings happening to your girls. Do you know anything about this?He shook his head, utterly confused. NoIm afraid I dont know very much about the lives of those people.Leiths words werent contemptuous by any means, but there was an implication that villagers and peasants just werent people he associated with. It reminded me of Ruriks comments about how Aeson would have never troubled himself to investigate bandits or missing girls unless they directly affected him. Leith wasnt as much of an asshole as Aeson, but he and his mother were likely just as out of touch as any other noble.I think a fair amount of disappointment must have shown on my face because he suddenly grew eager to make me feel better. But I swear, Ill look into this when I return. Ill ask Mother, and well send messengers out to report back. Ill find out everything I can for you.I smiled at his enthusiasm. Thanks, Leith. Its really great of you to help.Helping a pretty queen is no trouble at all. By the way, have you ever thought about getting a crown?We talked a little longer, and I found he actually was a really nice guy, given to moments of humor and intelligence. It wasnt enough for me to jump into bed with him, but I appreciated finding someone else to connect with in the Otherworld. Shaya returned at last with the paper work-hand-printed on scrolls, of course-and while Leith signed, we got a hold of the engineering books for him. His eyes widened with delight, and I swear, he probably could have sit down and started reading then and there on the floor. Instead, he took the hint that I had other things to do, and after many more compliments and hand kisses, he took his leave.Youve given him another open invitation, Shaya pointed out.Yeah, I know. But hes harmless. I like him.None of them are harmless, your majesty. I couldnt entirely tell if she was joking or not.Well, itll be worth the hassle if he can solve our water problem and help with the girls.The girls?I gave her a quick recap of my interrogation with the prisoners. Her face turned thoughtful as she processed my words.Skye and LeyDo you know those towns?She nodded. They and Westoria are configured in a way that places them equidistant from a gateway. A crossroads.What, to my world? She nodded again. Huh. I wonder if thats a coincidence. I wo nderI wonder if its possible that One of my crazier ideas came to me. Do you think those girls could be leaving and going to my world?I dont know. Shining ones do often cross over. Its not unheard of.Yeah, I know. To cause trouble. Or to steal women. I had to fight a scowl on that one. My own mother had been one such woman, abducted and forced to be my fathers mistress. You think these girls are going to go kidnap guys so they can have kids? The easy ability to conceive was why so many humans got kidnapped. Usually, it was gentry men taking human women.Shayas smile turned wry. I somehow doubt it would come to that. Women have been known to cross over, spend time in your world, and return pregnant. They dont need to bring the men back.Fair point. Well, this was certainly a weird development. Id have to wait and see what Leith reported back, but I supposed if these girls werent actually being abductedwell, there was little for me to do. Admittedly, Id always fought adamantly against g entry mouse to the human world, but I wasnt sure where the right and wrong of this situation lay.I guess thatd be easier to deal with than a monster taking them. soothe leaves that stupid demon problem. I sighed. Well, one issue at a time, I guess.Are you leaving now?Yes. Finally. Thanks for handling this today.Of course, she said. She actually sounded like she meant it. Her pleased expression turned momentarily hesitant. Althoughtheres something you should know. Someone else responded right away to the trade offer.Thats good news.Its Dorian.Oh. Of course Dorian would respond. How could he stay away from an chance to put me at his mercy? You can deal with it, though, right?Well, thats just it. Hes specifically requested that you talk to him. At his home.What? I stared. Hehe cant do that.That wry smile of hers returned. Hes a king. He can do anything he wishes.Yeah, but Leith came here Dorian just wants me to go to him so that he can taunt me. And no doubt flaunt Ysabel in front o f me.Leiths kingdom needs copper more than Dorians. I suspect Dorian is doing this as a personal favor to you.Thats not exactly how Id put it.She shook her head, the amusement now warring with exasperation. I know theres tension between you, but I suspect if you could be nice to King Dorian, he might make us a very generous deal. One that could help us immensely.A generous deal. The Oak Land was flourishing. I didnt doubt they had all sorts of food and other items we could use. I thought about those poor people in Westoria and even about my prisoners whod spoken of having too many mouths to feed. I sighed.Fine. Ill talk to him. And Ill even be nice. I started to turn away, needing more than ever to get back to my own home. Then I glanced back behind me. But Shaya? Just to be safe, you might want to keep looking for more trade partners.