Chapter 39

T he hour was so early, the sun had not yet risen, but Ro had been awake for a while and lying in bed was accomplishing nothing. Better to be up. She swung her feet to the floor as she sat up, dislodging Benny from her pillow. "Sorry, baby."

She pulled on her robe, stuck her feet in slippers, and stretched. Maybe she could find some time to rest today. Or she could turn in early, although with Ehlzar, Varyana, and the other Wyvern here, that was doubtful. This afternoon, there was going to be a massive picnic in their honor on the castle grounds. Anyone who wanted to attend was welcome.

Ro hoped the villagers would come. She wanted to show the Wyvern how hospitable the Radiant could be. Aunt Violet and Posey were helping with that. They'd already helped by gathering nearly sixty additional men and women from the village to help in the castle with housekeeping, cooking, cleaning, and footman duties.

Castle Clarion might have had enough rooms for the Wyvern, but it hadn't had enough staff. Things were better now, but Ro knew she'd have to address the issue in more detail soon. She needed to put someone in charge of the general running of the castle. Someone like Trence at Willow Hall.

Ro yawned. What she also needed was a large mug of coffee mixed with spiced cocoa, but even without going to the sitting room, she knew that wouldn't have been delivered yet. She could always ring for a footman to bring it early, but she hated the idea of bothering her staff so soon. They were already going to have their hands full with all the guests.

Although, she was the queen. What was the point of being queen if you couldn't get coffee when you wanted it? Even so, she couldn't bring herself to disturb them.

With a sigh, she tugged the ties on her robe tighter and went out to the balcony. It was considerably larger than the one that served the royal apartment at Willow Hall. While Ro had been away, the balcony here had had a few upgrades.

There were now potted orange trees on either side of the entrance, pots of bright flowers along the railing, a row of five cushioned lounge chairs on one side, and a new table with seating for six on the other side.

She approved. Once the sun came up, it would really be beautiful. She sat on one of the loungers. It was very comfortable. Maybe she should have tried sleeping out here. She glanced toward Malveaux. Today, she would know if last night's mission had been successful. They would all know.

Just thinking about it made her tense. If it hadn't worked— She smelled coffee. There was no mistaking it. She got up and went to the railing, peering down. In the dim light, she saw an unmistakable figure walking toward the castle entrance with a mug of coffee in his hand.

"Psst."

Gabriel looked up and smiled. "Good morning, your highness."

"Morning. Is that coffee?"

"It is." Amusement brightened his eyes. "Would you like some?"

"Yes. A lot of it. Please."

He bowed with way too much flourish for how early it was. "I shall be right up."

Right up turned out to be about fifteen minutes later, but she had no complaints. He came with a footman in tow, who bore a tray holding a pot each of coffee and spiced cocoa along with a covered plate of food. The footman brought the tray to the balcony, set it on the new table, then left them in peace.

Gabriel immediately began filling a mug with coffee and cocoa. "How did you sleep? You're up early."

"I didn't sleep that well. Too much on my mind."

He nodded and handed her the mug. "I had a similar night myself." He glanced toward Malveaux. "We'll know soon enough, I suppose."

She didn't have to ask to understand what he was talking about. She took a long drink from the mug he'd given her. It was hot, but not unbearable. "If it hasn't worked, I don't really know what our next move will be."

"Prepare for war."

She frowned. "I have no desire to do that. I don't want anyone getting hurt, or worse. All because of some stupid book that, if I give it to Anyka to stop this, she will just use against us anyway."

"I know. It is not a good situation."

"We're between a rock and hard place."

He narrowed his eyes but said nothing, apparently sussing out the meaning of the phrase well enough. He touched the silver dome covering the food. "Are you hungry? The kitchen was prepping for breakfast and thought you might like something with your coffee."

"Pastries?"

"I don't know what they sent. I didn't see it being prepared."

She shook her head. "Until I know what's going on in Malveaux, I don't think I can eat."

"The sky is brightening even as we speak. We should know soon." He tipped his head toward the railing with the best view. "Shall we?"

She nodded and walked with him. They stood side by side at the railing, staring across Summerton, past the Whistling Sea, to the kingdom of Malveaux. Every morning that Ro had been out here, it had been easy to watch the clouds gather over Malveaux as dawn turned to day.

Not once had they failed to cover the kingdom with gloom.

Wings whirring, a metallic purple beetle landed in one of the flowerpots and disappeared into the foliage. Slowly, the sky grew lighter. Dragonflies danced in the air.

Ro set her mug on the wide railing. She clasped her hands together, resting her knuckles against her mouth. Her stomach was a knot of nerves. If this didn't work, the Grym would think she'd lied to them in the notes the Wyvern had scattered over the kingdom last night. Worse still, Anyka would make that lie her rallying cry to incite her citizens to war.

Ro, and the Radiant, would become the villains Anyka had been trying to make them out to be for years.

Ro stared so hard she had to blink to be sure her eyes weren't lying to her. She grabbed Gabriel's arm. "Tell me you see the same thing I do."

He nodded, also staring. "There doesn't seem to be any cloud cover forming."

She almost couldn't breathe. She squeezed his arm. The world around them went bright and yellow as the sun broke the horizon.

There were no clouds. She said it out loud, just to hear Gabriel confirm. "There are no clouds."

"No," he said, sounding nearly breathless. "There aren't. Uldamar did it. Uldamar and the Wyvern." He shook his head, clearly as astonished as she was.

"Wow." She inhaled. Happy tears stung her eyes and she laughed. "Uldamar did it!" She thrust both hands triumphantly toward the sky.

Gabriel started laughing, too. He nodded. "That old goat pulled it off."

Ro sniffed and threw her arms around Gabriel. He hugged her back, picking her up off the ground and spinning her around.

When he set her down, he shook his head. "You might go down in history as the greatest ruler Summerton has ever known. No matter what happens next, you have changed things for the better. You have given the citizens of Malveaux something I doubt they ever thought they'd see. You gave them the sun ."

He cupped her face in his hands and kissed her.

She melted against him, the warmth of the sun mingling with the warmth spreading through her body. Her hands found the hard planes of his chest.

Behind them, someone cleared his throat.

They ended the kiss. Ro spun to see who had interrupted them.

JT stood there, mouth pursed, eyes glittering, visibly amused by what he'd happened upon. "You two need a moment or uh—"

"Hush," Ro said. "We're celebrating."

"Yeah, I can see that," JT responded as he chuckled.

Ro pointed toward the Whistling Sea. "Have a look for yourself. There are no clouds covering Malveaux this morning."

His head whipped around. He nodded, smiling. "Yes! Check that out. You did it, Mom." He pulled Ro into a hug. "I am so proud of you right now. And Uldamar, too, because you have to give him props for this."

"Oh, I do," she said as he released her. "I know how hard he worked getting that spell right and making sure there was enough of it to go around. It wouldn't have been possible without him."

"Well," Gabriel said. "It wouldn't have been possible if you hadn't found Lady Cynzia's diary."

"Or," JT added. "If Aunt Violet and Posey hadn't organized a group to write all those notes."

"The truth is," Ro said. "This was a group effort. If Posey hadn't mentioned the book in the first place, none of this would have happened." She smiled up at her son. "You're up early. Did you come to check on Malveaux, too? Or was there something else?"

"Oh, right. Um, Raph and I were going to take some of the Wyvern riding today. Show them around the area a little, you know. If that's all right with you."

"It's fine with me," Ro said. "I appreciate you doing that."

Gabriel grunted. "Take one guard for every two people in the party. Minimum. Raphaela can select them."

JT nodded. "You got it." He headed for the door. "I'd better get ready. I said I'd meet them for an early breakfast first."

"Okay," Ro said. When JT had closed the door, she turned to Gabriel. "I want to do something for Uldamar."

"You could always make him a lord." Gabriel's smile held real pride.

"I don't know if that would appeal to him as much. I was thinking about some kind of medal. Does Summerton do those?"

"Sure. There's the Royal Badge of Merit, which usually goes to someone who's contributed something useful to the kingdom in the way of arts, sciences, magic, or medicine. There's also the Queen or King's Award of Excellence, which is given at the discretion of the king or queen to whoever they feel deserves it, and the Meridiem Cross of Service, though that's generally only given to those who've distinguished themselves in military service."

"I see. Has Uldamar ever been given any of those? That you know of?"

Gabriel shook his head. "I don't believe so, but Uldamar isn't exactly the sort to boast about a thing like that."

"Right. Well, I want to give him the Royal Badge of Merit then."

"He will be honored."

"Is there enough time to make it happen at dinner this evening?" She'd love to present it to him in front of the Wyvern.

"I'm sure there is."

"It's not your job to do that, though. I guess it's Posey's, seeing as how she's my secretary."

"I would agree, except I don't think she'd know what to do. Not that I'd expect her to. She's new to the job, and not only that, none of these awards has been given in a long while. I don't think there's anyone who knows exactly what needs to be done, except for Larksford." He gave her a reassuring smile. "Posey and I will talk to him and figure it out by tonight. I promise."

"Thank you." Ro turned toward Malveaux, wishing she could walk the streets of Dearth right now. "You lived there. What do you think is going on over there?"

His eyes narrowed as he looked across the sea. "That was a long time ago, but I'd guess there are a lot of people who don't believe what they're seeing is real or that it will last. Some might be wondering if it's a trick of Anyka's. Some might be afraid. Others are probably secretly rejoicing that there is such a kind and gracious queen on Summerton's throne."

"And Anyka?"

His eyes narrowed. "Anyka is probably cursing your name. Or plotting your demise." He tipped his head toward her, his gaze holding some unease. "Or both."