***Like always, Lady Steinhouse walked into the palace unhindered. She was soon led towards the king"s study by a servant. Entering, she saw the king grandly dressed, looking sickly as he sat on a grand chair. She observed etiquette before approaching him. The king stared at his niece"s make up free face and raised a brow.
"You are much different today, Helen." he said. She understood his manner; as she had been stared at all day and almost confused for someone else, as she was led into the palace. She, more than any, understood why she had not worn any make up. For some reason, since she had last seen Walter, her mood has been bad and the smell of powder disgusted her.
"I have been able to send a message to Lady Wickshire. It might not have been in your said words, but I believe it was understood." she side stepped the topic and went straight to the point.
"Really?" the king asked, one could see his eyes shine.
"I had someone on her side decide the investigation of the minister. If I get back results, I will a.s.sume she will not be interfering or is okay with our plans. I"m still not sure why you remain weary of her, but I remembered to not let the opportunity pa.s.s me by when it presented itself." she said. This was something she could have informed the king in a letter, but she had learned a long time ago; that things of importance should be handled face to face.
"If there is no reply, you must be sure to find out what we are allowed to do." the king said and she frowned.
"I did not inform you, but I suspect she is in possession of the money missing from the treasury. When she took all of the Mclears fortune, the royal gold was amongst them." she informed him and he grimaced.
"Well...that"s gone. How the kingdom will make up for it...." he sighed in resignation.
"We could request it returned. Would she dare ignore you?" Lady Steinhouse said in anger. She was disappointed by his att.i.tude.
"Even if I had ten thousand lives worth of courage, I would not dare..... there are some people you can"t offend, Helen." he chuckled in self mockery.
"But...." Lady Steinhouse started to protest.
"Let it go, Helen." the king stopped her. She frowned as she curtsied and left without a word. The king could tell she was beyond angry with him, but how could he explain his first encounter with Lady Wickshire?
"Am I doing the wrong thing?" he asked out loud.
"No. You must never offend her." An alluring voice answered as Lady Raine stepped out from behind the book shelves.
"You also have the feeling she is dangerous too, then?" the king asked her.
"No, I know for a fact that she is. You must never underestimate the women of the Thraine Household." she said and the king stiffened as though all life had left him.
"Thraine? Thraine household?" the king"s pupil shrank visibly.
"It seems you did not know. I guess none of the first rate kingdoms would have told you. It would not be in their best interest anyway." she said, making her way to a chair and sitting.
"But..." the king tried to utter words, but his mind was already too muddled by the words she had spoken before.
"But what? You never wondered how your kingdom went from third rate to first rate over night? First rate kingdoms may still be under the ancients, but are respected as equals to the ancients. This is of course in name alone; they are world apart and only left alone to thrive because the religion wishes it so. The only way for a kingdom to become a first rate kingdom is to have both the means and power to cause the ancients to respect them as an ent.i.ty, and it takes many years to reach such a feet. Another way is to have a member of the Thraine household living in your kingdom as her home." she said.
He, as the king, did not know how his small kingdom became cla.s.sified as a first rate kingdom that enemies refused to approach.
"The Thraine household is an ancient clan. I"d always thought they lived in their own territory as no one truly knows anything about them, but thinking about it, it"s right for them to be all over the place; after all, it"s a clan of women." she explained. Only then did the king react.
"A clan of women?" he asked.
"Of course. Though we know nothing about them, the only people ever known to be Thraines were women and truthfully, no one is sure how the inheritance works. The grand dowager empress of Khul is a Thraine; we know that. But, she had sons alone and none of them are cla.s.sified Thraines. Her third son had a daughter and the daughter was not cla.s.sified a Thraine. But when the daughter died, her daughter; the great grand daughter of the grand empress dowager, was raised by the valley head of Lir, and she is cla.s.sified a Thraine. The valley head of Lir was never a Thraine. You must understand, no one knows anything about how it works. One thing is for sure though, they are women and they are always blonde. An abbot that once came to visit my mother, had only told us that the succession of Thraines is linked to the curse of their hair. But of course he had died soon after." she said and the king shivered.
"So, they have managed to make people fear them, without anyone knowing anything about them." he said. The thought that one lived in his kingdom, he was sure it was a good thing. But doesn"t this mean his crown held no meaning?
"Worry not. They have never been one to interfere with little kingdoms; in fact, they usually support their home and that; at the moment, is your little Kingdom." she consoled him.