Page 16 of A Fragile Heart

"It was more than the banquet, though I'm certain that hastened him to immediate rather than measure action. No, this was definitely my fault. I was worried about you after you leftmy office, despite your insistence you were fine. I heard you ask for those cards you carried to be thrown away and took them instead."

"Oh," Bakhtiar said, not certain what else to say, feeling strangely awkward. They were his notes and his speech, things his father would have heard anyway once he stood before the council. Still, while on the cards they were his words alone, and by that point he'd accepted no one else would ever hear them.

"I am sorry, Bakhti. I underestimated how important this matter was to you, and I also failed to appreciate just how bad the situation was, as I've never had anything to do with gambling at all and it seemed a smaller matter in my mind than it clearly is. So I put the matter back on the agenda myself and told them they'd have to wait until the next meeting to repeat their same arguments for the hundredth time. Many of them were rightfully distressed by your proposed changes, but I had no idea they werethatangry, that Messar would act so rashly and desperately."

It was Taher, sitting nearby where he'd been reading until Shahjahan arrived, who quietly said, as though uncertain he actually could speak, who said, "Uncle Hesh speaks of Messar and his gambling halls frequently. His other sources of income are taken and dumped into the gambling halls. I think he has plans to build yet another one. If heavy regulations were to come down, he'd lose a lot of money in a single night, never mind what he would lose over time."

"Not to mention that he's probably in bed with loan spiders in all sorts of ways, and they have a boot on his neck," Kurosh said. "Bet he's got all sorts of lovely debts we don't know about yet. Would you like me to find them?"

"No," Bakhtiar said firmly. "You've done enough, you're not supposed to be involved in that life anymore, nevermind the people out there who would still gladly kill you should theyhappen to see you wandering around. Not that you can't handle yourself, obviously, but I want you safe and sound, please. There's been enough death and almost dying lately."

Kurosh smiled and offered up more wine before finishing the last sip himself. "We'll need to figure out something, because Bakhti's proposed changes, at least some of which are likely to go through, are a threat to him. We need to find some sort of evidence to get rid of him once and for all."

"Not least of all because if Messar is this angry about changes that haven't even happened yet, the other nobles with ties to the gambling halls are as well, they're just less stupid about it," Farrokh said. "The last thing we need is them colluding on something more elaborate and deadly."

"We'll figure it out," Witcher said calmly where he lay with his head in Shahjahan's lap. "For now, try to enjoy the moment, because all too soon you'll be called away, Shah."

"You're right of course," Shah said, stroking his hair.

Nearby, close to Taher, Nandakumar played soft music for them.

"I've had many a request from people who want to challenge you to a game of taaki," Shahjahan said after a few minutes. "I was quite confused at first, as you've never cared for the game. Even as a child most games bored you because they were too easy. I always assumed taaki was much the same. It was a guard who was finally able to explain to me what happened."

Bakhtiar groaned, head falling back. "Not this again. Wait, you knew I found it too easy?"

"I am your father, Bahkti. Your teachers complained you were doing your number lessons too quickly, but every answer was correct, every single time, so I wasn't certain what they had to complain about. Granted, I did not realize quite the depth of how good you are at them—"

"Scores of people in the palace are good with numbers, and still more across the country."

"Not that good, my son. People with your level of skill are few and far between. Pattern recognition like yours is even rarer. You've been finding strategy games boring for a very long time. I didn't know, however, that you did not know the skill was valued. Another failing on my part." He sighed. "That is why I wanted you helping me with the tariff matter that night. I knew precisely how easily you would put them in their place. Again, though, I did not realize you didn't know that. Truly, I do not know how I missed something so important."

Nandakumar looked up from his music and opened his eyes, though his fingers never stilled or even slowed as he spoke. "I feel there were misunderstandings, and too many things left unsaid, in many directions, my king. What matters is the problems are known now, and hopefully reasons to work harder at communicating instead of taking as understood."

"Yes," Bakhtiar said quietly.

As always seemed to be the case in their lives, a servant approached to call his father away to solve a problem. "We'll speak again later, Bakhti. Get some rest."

"Yes, Father." He absolutely wouldnot. If he had to 'get some rest' one more damned time before bed, he would do something drastic.

If only they'd let him resume any of his duties, but even sitting in his room doing paperwork was too much, apparently. Overprotective babies, all of them. Only his leg still really pained him, everything else was fading bruises and lingering soreness.

"I suppose I'm going back to my room," he said with a sigh as the others looked at him pointedly, even Reza, who had fallen back into the role of silent, stoic soldier the moment Shahjahan had appeared. Now, though, he relaxed, smiling and teasing almost as freely as Kurosh and Farrokh.

"By your leave, my prince, I'd like to go do some snooping around the palace, at least," Kurosh said. "If nothing else, I'd like a better understanding of who you've made nervous with your proposed regulations."

"Go, but be safe."

"Always."

When he was gone, Farrokh said, "I'll go with Master Taher to pick out more books to read, bring back wine perhaps?"

"As you wish," Bakhtiar said easily. "I'm so glad I can have that again. I was truly getting sick of herbal teas."

Taher laughed.

Reza grimaced. "Herbal teas are the worst. My mother has a hundred of them. If you so much as sneeze somewhere in the house, she will find you and make you drink at least three of them. She gave me one with fennel once and I almost killed her, I swear to the gods. It was foul."

"That sounds like grounds for never speaking to her again, for certain," Bakhtiar said with a laugh, the gestured to Farrokh. "Go, leave us, Reza will escort me back to my room."

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