Page 78 of Stardust Child

Sitting down in her chair, Ophele slipped her thumbnail under the wax seal on the letter.

To Her Grace Ophele, Duchess of Andelin, greetings and good wishes.

I hope this letter finds you well, even if it is a little late in coming. Due to the complexities of your situation, I thought it prudent to allow things to settle, as it were, though I have been pleased to read your contributions to Remin’s lamentably irregular correspondence. I do believe I was better informed of his movements when there was a war on.

This letter comes to you in care of Lady Mionet Verr, along with some other items for your new home. Please be kind to the lady; she is not long a widow, and there was some unfortunate scandal with her husband, but as the lady herself is blameless I will leave it to her to determine whether and when she wishes to speak. She is a great friend to my daughter-in-law Carolen, and I hope will prove a diverting companion for you…

“She’s a widow,” Ophele said sympathetically, looking up at Remin as he dumped tea into the hot water. He liked very strong tea. “Lady Verr.”

“Murdered him, did she?”

“Remin,”she chided, shocked.

“Very well, I am sorry,” he said, though he didn’t sound like it. She knew Remin had not enjoyed Segoile, or the society he found there, but she hadn’t realized he was this adamantly against it.

…and with introductions made, I cannot tell you how pleased I am to speak directly to you, my dear. It is beyond anything to hear that you and Remin have come to such a felicitous understanding. The boy was never a poet, but I was overjoyed to know he would not only find an affectionate partner in his wife, but very nearly say so in writing. Please tell me all about yourself, as we are certain to be great friends in future.

Friendship with the Duchess of Ereguil. Ophele had to pause to process the idea. The friends in her life had been very few and far between, and never before aduchess.And the duchess who had raised Remin, for those periods when he was in Ereguil. Why, it was very nearlylike having a mother-in-law.

While I would never presume to usurp the place of his beloved mother, I will tell you that I hold no less affection for him than I do my own sons. As such I welcome you to our family, dear, and charge you with the difficult task of looking after his welfare. I warn you; he hasnoregard for it himself; sometimes I think the stars gave him an army because nothing else was sufficient to the task. I also name you my chief correspondent and expect reports on the general’s activities. Regularly and thoroughly, if you please.

While I wait in greatest anticipation for news of you both, I will tell you some things about your husband that may be good for you to know:

He loathes pickles.

He is mildly allergic to peanuts and will develop hives, though it bothers him less when they are cooked.

When he was nine, he had a pet cat that he named Smoky…

“No, you can’t read it,” Ophele said, hugging the pages protectively as Remin loomed over her. “This was addressed to me. Smoky was fine, but Sooty was out of the question?”

“Smoke—she’s gossiping, isn’t she?” he accused.

“She is giving me necessary information,” Ophele said loftily, with her small nose in the air, and stared at him until he thumped into his own chair, grumbling like a discontented bear.

“She exaggerates,” he warned.

“She says I have to know, so I can take care of you properly,” she replied, peeking over the letter at him, and saw the unmistakable curve of his smile.

There was a great deal more such information, page after delightful page, and later she would linger over every word, imagining Remin as a boy with a cat, a boy learning to ride a horse, a boy who had snuck out to gorge on green apples, with unfortunate results. The duchess was right; Remin would never think to tell her such stories about himself.

Finally, I have included with my gifts a package of his mother’s belongings, which he would never have requested if he did not hold you in highest regard. I am sure you know how precious these things are to him, so please treat them with great care and respect. They are beautiful objects in their own right and might be handed down to your own daughter, in time.I had some acquaintance with his mother, and I promise nothing would have pleased her more than for you to keep and use them.

I look forward to your reply. Please keep yourself well and look after my dear boy.

With greatest affection,

Liliet Ereguil

“Go on,” said Remin as soon as she set the letter aside, sitting up straight in his chair as if he needed to brace himself.

Rising, she untied the strings of the parcel, opening the cloth wrapping to reveal another, softer cloth inside. It was a pretty pink blanket trimmed in white fur, the sort that might go over a lady’s lap on a cold winter day.

“Is this your mother’s?” she asked as Remin’s large fingers reached to stroke the fur.

“Yes. One of the maids saved it from the fire.” Even as she watched, she could see the emotion bleeding away from his face, the sharp, arrogant angles hardening. “She grabbed everything around my mother’s chair.”

Ophele wondered who that maid was. She wanted to ask, to know that such a good and faithful servant had lived and been rewarded. But she thought it was best to let it pass, for the present. Suddenly, she was nervous as she drew back the blanket to reveal the rest.

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