Page 14 of Gilded Crown

“No, never. She died of wasting disease, not insanity.”

“Did Eurig love her?”

“I think he did. He didn’t cry after Blake’s death, or at least he didn’t in front of anyone, but he did after she passed from what I heard. I don’t think she held much feeling for him after what he did to me, but she acted like she did and never said a bad word so she could give her sons a normal life. If my parents fought, I never saw it, and my brothers never mentioned such a thing.”

Aurelius’s voice was curt and a warning. Probing more into certain parts of the past wouldn’t get Jari anywhere. The gate wasn’t open for him.

“Did she know about everything?” Jari figured that was a safe enough question.

“She knew enough. She truly did her best to raise her children so they’d turn into good men, but a Mother can’t do everything.”

“Every child becomes their own person one day, and they can choose to go a different way.”

“My brothers did and grew into greedy monsters after she passed, and they weren’t that good before. They’ve always been lazy unless they’re scheming.”

Jari was highly tempted to say Aurelius must have always been an asshole too, and he barely kept his mouth shut.

“Could we go to Ash Island and see if the fourth item is there? Maybe it is, and John didn’t find it.”

“Oh, yes. ‘Father, may I have a boat so I can poke around Ash Island? Why? Oh, it’s nothing.’”

Jari's horse puffed out a breath as if that were stupid. “What would he do if you came to him with the fourth thing?’”

“Keep it. What else? He’s greedy. He said we’ll always keep our line wealthy. He’s not as greedy as Aravitia who seemed to want everything to be gold. I think some part of Father is sane enough to a point, or has been so. His Father spent and wanted more, but it was like he had a sickness in his head to start with. I wouldn’t dare try it, but I think the more items you have, the more powerful you are.”

Jari ducked to avoid a low-hanging branch as they entered the forest. “What do you mean? Gilding is…you either do it or you don’t. How can it be more powerful?”

“Mammon must have had many powers,” said Aurelius. “He could do more than gild an item. He also fought Elira and matched her in power since he’d been fueled by greed everywhere. Our Goddess needed something else to beat him. I’m sure the story was twisted a bit, but with the items, I might be able to do more than gild something. That must be the main power, but there’s surely other things.”

“Like what?”

“I’m not risking my sanity to find out. I imagine you’d need all four items.”

“You were odd after the crown.”

“The weight of the greed is rather heavy, and it pushes on the mind. It’s not pleasant.”

Jari wasn’t going to mention the kiss. That never happened. “Can you gild with any item?”

Aurelius hesitated. “I would think so even though the key seems to be the main one. If John found the crown first and that was it, he had to have realized pretty fast that it wasn’t just some lost trinket. Perhaps he gilded something, and since he knew the tale, he checked the lion’s mouth. Father only mentioned using the key, not the crown.”

“Zylem wanted the crown, and there’s nothing stopping him from going to get it, say at night, using it for a bit, and putting it back. He’s blood, so he can get into the treasury.”

“I said that Father hid it. He thinks we’ll try to snatch it and take the throne even though that’s not how it works. He's paranoid, remember?”

“But he could get in before, and he’s obviously impulsive. A couple of times wouldn’t have driven him mad.”

“He’d rather I gild something for him so he can have it and not wear his mind down just yet,” said Aurelius. “If the items have other powers, only Father would know for sure. He had at least two for a while. Any more questions?”

“I’ll have more later. I’m tired, and I feel like eating now.” Jari kind of wanted a nap despite so much sleep since he still felt shitty. Maybe he’d get some tea later instead. “Oh, wait…your Father’s sitting room is loaded with a bunch of shit. The shelves are absolutely stuffed with crap that I’m assuming he’s gilded. Are you sure there’s nothing hidden in plain site?”

“I’ve touched everything in there before to see. It’s just a pile of greed.”

***

When they returned to the Palace, Jari had barely opened the door for Aurelius when a servant with blue hair came barreling toward him as he screamed. His hair was wild like a madman, and his untucked, half-unbuttoned black shirt flapped around him. Jari jerked back and threw out an arm to keep Aurelius out of the man’s path.

As the servant darted down the front steps, Jari swore he caught a glimpse of gold.

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