Honor-Bound [ Lore of Penrua: Book III ]

55

Things moved quickly. Aun showed the two guards who had remained with her where they could hide their weapons underneath the shelves in the pantry, although it was no comfort to see them put their blades out of easy reach. Then, holding Kaolo by the hand, she followed the guards to the servants' quarters.

There, the guards softly knocked on doors and consulted with the cooks, the laundresses, the errand-boys. No one was asleep. With the arrival of the soldiers and fragments of news, all were aware of what had happened. Everyone was tense and frightened, and the suggestion that they go about their business as usual come morning was not well-received.

"They have the empress, as well as Prince Kaori and the lorekeeper," one of the guards explained time and time again. "Let them preserve the illusion of secrecy—it may well keep Empress Mhera and the others safe until we can determine what to do next."

The last room they visited belonged to an old woman. She alone did not challenge the plan; instead, she bustled out of her room, already tying on an apron.

"Well?" she demanded, returning Aun's look. "There's bread needs baking, isn't there? You can put the little one to bed in my cot. Poor thing looks like he hasn't slept a wink. Roya, hurry up! Or did you plan to sleep in today? Shiftless lazybones!"

So it was that when Aun returned from tucking Kaolo into the old woman's bed, leaving him with strict orders to keep the door locked, she found the kitchen already creaking into action for the day. There was a teenage boy building up the heat in the ovens as the old woman leaned over her bread-making counter. One of the guards had joined her there. He seemed to be regretting it, judging by the expression he wore as she lectured him.

Oanara met Aun just as she was entering the kitchen. She had come from another hall, the one that led to the outer courtyard usually used for deliveries of goods.

"Has Danya returned?" Oanara asked.

Aun shook her head. "What did you find?"

"No disturbance. From without, the palace looks as peaceful as ever. I gave warning to the guards stationed there, but we must wait until the shift changes for word to be carried farther. We don't know if we are watched."

"Will Danya attack Koren's men?" Aun asked.

"Not yet. As long as he remains in the royal wing, we will watch and wait. If he moves, we'll strike, but we will be better-prepared once we can raise the alarm and bring men from the outer barracks."

Aun nodded, trying to take comfort in the knowledge that help would come. "They cannot think to remain hidden for long. The empress rises early. Servants will be expected, won't they?"

Oanara narrowed her eyes, glancing back the way she'd come. "I don't know her patterns, but—"

"I know that Kaori rises with the sun, and Mhera earlier still. They both take tea in the morning in their rooms. And breakfast, of course, downstairs. They cannot expect to hold them long without being discovered by the early servants."

"Well, we need not worry about that, at least. There won't be any servants going to the royal wing this morning," Oanara said, a dismissal in her tone. She broke away from Aun, murmuring, "I should join Danya."

Aun stayed where she was, her thoughts drifting toward her sleepy mornings with Kaori. It was always a pleasure to enjoy a cup of tea as they sat in bed, the sun spilling in through the window. There would usually be fruit or light pastries, too, something small to start the day until they could join Mhera at breakfast.

Imagine if some unsuspecting servant were to take a tray to Mhera or Kaori at sun-up only to encounter royal chambers bristling with enemy soldiers. It would be enough to give a maid a heart attack. It was unlikely that the prisoners would have anything to eat until...