Page 75 of Alien Prince's Fake Bride
“So noted,” I tell him. “Thank you, Caret’ax.”
“I will be right outside,” he says. “The reception tonight will have fewer guests than planned, because of the security issue. And yet I recommend you limit your time there. There will be many servants and guests. All that is needed is one assassin, and there may be disaster.”
“Of course,” I say, matching his serious tone. “We will try to make your job easy.”
“I don’t need it to be easy, sir,” he says, glaring at the window. “I need it to be successful.”
We inspect the bedrooms. Umbra is suitably impressed, especially because the tall beds have been equipped with little stairs, clearly for her benefit. “It’s a wonderful place. Truly Imperial.”
“It’s a big apartment,” I agree. “It’s been mostly empty. I never lived here, certainly. How are you doing?”
“I’m scared,” Umbra admits. “And excited. The Emperor is nicer than I thought. Does he have no children of his own?”
“None,” I tell her. “In the end, he had to marry a woman who had children already, so that he would not plunge the Empire into a civil war between all those nobles who thought they should be Emperor next time. He picked my mother and adopted her two sons.”
Umbra turns around and looks up at me. “Your father had already… passed on?”
I look out the window. A bridge is being built over the mouth of the river Kha, from which the whole empire takes its name. Tall cranes swivel, lifting heavy parts. “Not at that time. But when my mother learned that the Emperor himself was looking for a wifewith children, and that he had his eyes on her, my father only lasted for another few days before he was mysteriously poisoned and died.”
Her eyes widen. “That’s terrible! You don’t think…” She stops herself.
“That the Empress had something to do with it?” I finish her question. “We will probably never know. It is one of the conveniences of life at court that there is never a lack of possible murderers, those who want other courtiers out of the way. Certainly my father had other enemies and rivals, as you simply can’t avoid when you live close to the Emperor. It doesn’t matter how nice you are to others — some of them will hate you or will want your position. My father learned that too late, if he ever did. No guilty party was ever found, which does point to the higher reaches of the Imperial court notwantingthem found.”
I don’t want to state outright that I think my mother killed my father, although both I and Nerox are pretty sure about it. We both remember our mother changing a lot back then, from loving and warm to distant and calculating. It could also have been Craxallo himself, although I’m not sure what he stood to gain from that. Certainly there were other women that may have caught his fancy. But maybe he was in love.
“Do you remember your father?” Umbra asks carefully. “I’m sorry, I don’t mean to remind you of painful things.”
“Oh, those memories come back to me whenever I’m on Khav,” I assure her. “And my wife should know these things. Yes, I remember him well. I was twelve when he died, and my mother remarried within days. He was a general in the army, having risen from practically nothing. He didn’t even have a title before Emperor Austadiux made him a duke for his victory at Repotin.Many have said that he was the best general the Empire had. He was always kind to us, to Nerox and me. He taught us the things he knew about war and battles. He was away a lot, but it was always exciting when he would return with wild tales of heroism and victory. We loved him very much. When he was gone, life became harder and less… colorful, I thought. Even if we had moved into the best parts of this grand palace. It was as if my father had shielded us not only from the dangers of the Imperial court, but also from the intense boredom of life within the palace walls. I hated it, and I said so, protesting to the point where— but that doesn’t matter now,” I cut myself off before I say things that may strike a little too close to home.
“I’m sorry that your life has been so hard,” Umbra says softly. She is so convincing that I choose to think she means it, not just doing her wife act. “I wish?—”
There’s a quick knock on the door, and Caret’ax enters the room. “Sir, Empress Juriniel is here to see you.”
Umbra stiffens in my arms, and I squeeze her.
“It will be fine,” I whisper, although I’m not at all sure I’m right about that. “Very well,” I say out loud. “Don’t keep her waiting.”
My mother sails into the room, her long, black robes swishing. Caret’ax follows her inside, taking up a tense position next to the door. He never trusted my mother, and I don’t think he’s wrong about that. She’s nothing like the sweet, caring woman I knew when my father was still alive. Court life is hard, of course. But at least it hasn’t made her look any older. Again I’m struck by how she looks just the same as the last time I saw her, several years ago.
“Greetings, Your Imperial Highness,” I greet her, still embracing Umbra from behind. “Such an unexpected honor.”
“Unexpected?” she asks as she comes to a halt, putting both hands into the wide sleeves of the other arm. “That a mother may want to see her son, who was recently the victim of a foul assassination attempt? Is it really unexpected?” She looks at me with a little frown, as if it is a real question and she wants to know the answer. Then she forces a smile. “Oh, Princess Umbra. How do you like the view? It is the finest in the Empire, some say.”
“It’s a wonderful view,” Umbra says. “The palace is breathtaking.”
The Empress keeps smiling, her face stiff and set. “Yes, isn’t it? I was sure you’d enjoy it. Do you have similar things on Earth?”
Umbra glances out at the view. “We have cities. And old palaces. But nothing like this one.”
“Ah. I’m sure your palaces are just as fine as ours, in their own ways. Are they? Is it a rich world you come from?”
“In its own way,” Umbra echoes, her gaze flickering to me. The Empress’s questions are strange.
“I have made sure that this apartment is made comfortable for you, Umbra,” the Empress says. “You are perhaps not as big as we are, and most things we use are made for us, and not for aliens.”
“It’s a very magnificent apartment,” Umbra says. “I’m overwhelmed by your kindness and your efforts to make me feel welcome.”
“It’s the least I can do,” the Empress says with a little glance at me. “It’s obvious that Mareliux loves you very much, and I can see that you love him, too. Any mother would want her son to be happy?” Again her gaze flickers, as if she’s not sure about what she says.
