Page 31 of The Goblin Twins
Shi’chen shook his head. “No need. I wasn’t going to leave you there.”
“Yeah, but you could have,” Jaa’jen replied, every word sounding like a strain. “So, thanks. And I’m sorry. You’re a good kid.”
Shi’chen felt a little surge of pride. “Save your strength,” he said, reaching out to place his hand on Jaa’jen’s shoulder.
Jaa’jen nodded slowly, glancing over at Lai. “I’m sorry to you, too, Ablewood.”
Lai shrugged, giving him his usual sunny smile. “No hard feelings.”
Jaa’jen grimaced in what was probably as close as he could get to a smile before the physician appeared and ushered them away. Once back in the sunlight, Lai moved over to lean heavily against the railing. “Fuck… He’s not going to make it.”
Shi’chen felt his stomach drop as he stood next to Lai. While he didn’t like Jaa’jen, he would never have wanted actual harm to come to him. “What will happen if he dies?”
“If he has family, the owners of the ship will pay out a sum to them for compensation,” Lai said, digging his thumbnail into the wood of the railing, not meeting Shi’chen’s eyes. “That’s about it.”
“How often does that happen?” Shi’chen asked.
Lai shrugged. “It’s not every voyage. But it’s not uncommon.”
Shi’chen was suddenly profoundly grateful for Lai’s experience. He would have had no idea how to handle any of this without him, especially if the ship had gone to a different port. He laid a hand on Lai’s shoulder reassuringly. “Thank you for being there for me.”
Lai glanced over at him in surprise, then smiled softly. “You’re welcome.”
Jaa’jen died that evening, just as the ship pulled into the harbor at Genhin’saa.
Chapter twelve
A'bbni
Thefirstfewdaysat Lord Kella’s house had A’bbni’s anxiety through the roof. He did his best to control it, but with no word from the port master of the planned arrival of the cargo ship, his mind spun to every possible worst-case scenario. The ship had gone down in a storm. The ship had been attacked by pirates. The ship had been stopped by imperial guards. The ship had caught fire. Every scenario was worse than the last, and he spent his days restlessly pacing from his room to the library to the dining room to the parlor, back to his room again. He tried to find solace in reading, as Lord Kella had an amazing assortment of books, but he couldn’t focus, and he found himself reading the same page for almost an hour before he gave up.
Cressus and Nadria were usually with their tutors during the day, but in the evenings, they often came to find him, and A’bbni was at least temporarily distracted from his thoughts by letting them show him their rooms, their toys, their books, the mama cat and her four fat kittens that slept in the kitchen. He had offered to Kella and Quenn to stay in his room if they didn’t want him wandering, but both had reassured him that his presence was welcome. Cressus and Nadria at least gave him something to do besides fret.
After the second day of pacing the halls like a lost spirit, Kella let A’bbni know that he had heard from the port master that theDianol Elledunhad been delayed due to an accident on board. He had no more information than that, and A’bbni had to go take a walk in the garden to clear his head as his thoughts spiraled into the abyss of his mind. All he could do was wait, and worry, and pray to the gods that his brother was all right. He wished he and Shi’chen could feel each other’s pain in the literal sense that En’shea had mentioned, so he would at least know if his brother was all right.
The news out of Er’hadin was not great as other ships arrived in port and messengers reached Csereth by traveling over land. The story being spread was that the Regent and the entire Imperial Senate had been killed by a rebel group and that Captain Shi’chen Er-Ha’sen and Reverence A’bbni Er-Ha’sen, sons of the Regent and Cousins to the Emperor, had planned and led the rebellion, then disappeared when they failed to kill the crown prince, too. A substantial reward had been offered by the Emperor for anyone with information that would lead to their arrest.
A’bbni wondered how many people might actually believe that he and Shi’chen had murdered their own Father in a bid for the throne. Anyone who knew them would know that the entire concocted plot was completely ridiculous, but he realized, how many people in Hanenea’a did not know him or his brother, or even the Emperor? The royals were not part of the day-to-day lives of most goblins. He suspected that many people would also be inclined to believe the worst things they heard about the imperial families, assuming their lives to be nothing but endless parties, drunken orgies, and literal backstabbing to gain power. Unfortunately, that last one was not entirely untruthful, at least not since their Uncle had died and left Prii’sha and En’shea as the successors. And when En’shea began reinstating some of the barbaric laws of the past, A’bbni had no doubt that the common people would have very few reasons to trust the imperial families again, and every reason to gain favor with the Emperor by turning them in. That sent him down another anxiety-filled vortex that he was only able to break free of when Lord Kella had one of the apothecaries make a sleeping draught for him.
The fourth day brought a letter, addressed to A’bbni’s merchant son alias, bearing a seal that he vaguely recognized as one of the Cserethian noble families. He took the letter curiously from Lord Kella, breaking the seal to pull out a single sheet of parchment.
Greetings to your excellency. The Council is glad to hear of your safe arrival in Csereth. We know his grace has been delayed, but we wish to speak with you as soon as possible. Please come to the address below tomorrow at mid-day, that we may formulate a plan.
A’bbni handed the letter to Kella with a frown. “That is not a lot of information.”
Kella nodded. “That address is an old bookkeepers’ building. I have been there once and met with one of the Council members. A Lord An-Gea’la, I believe.”
“What is the Council?” A’bbni asked curiously.
“I do not know how many of them there are, but my understanding is that it is the heads of some prominent families in Hanenea’a, who have their hands in palace affairs,” Kella said.
That sounded more ominous to A’bbni than Kella probably meant it to be. “So, you trust this?”
Kella nodded. “I do. Do you wish for me to accompany you, my lord?”
“No,” A’bbni said, shaking his head. “Please, do not trouble yourself.” He didn’t add that if this ended up being a trap of some kind, he did not want to put Kella or his family in more danger than they already were.
“You can use our carriage,” Kella said. “I will instruct the driver to wait for you.”
