In Her Shadow(38)

"No, she died."

"Ah." The Governor scratched his chin. "Okay then, arrest her instead," he said indicating Britta.

Britta's heart pounded. Could he do that? The last Abbess might have been guilty in the sense she hadn't acted to prevent Weboshi's crime, but Britta was blameless.

"I won't," said Lucius

The Governor's brow furrowed. "I'm not sure I understand."

"I won't arrest Britta, the new Abbess of Night. I don't know if the old Abbess was involved, but I'm certain Britta wasn't."

"That can come out during the trial. I'm sure she's innocent to, but–"

"There won't be a trail."

The Governor took a step back from his son. His skin stretched taut across his face. "There won't?"

"No. I want to release Weboshi."

"But Ava–"

"I know what Weboshi did," said Dux Lucius. "Believe me, I know. Between what Britta has told me and what Captain Marcus learned from interrogating her, I've learned much about her. She was angry at us – rightfully from what I can tell. We took one daughter from her. In her mind, when Britta and I marry, we'll be taking a second. Weboshi was wrong. She was wrong to poison Ava, and she was wrong to kidnap her. I know that, and she knows that."

"You're not making sense, son. She wronged you and Ava in some revenge scheme."

"I know. I forgive her."

"Forgive her? Why?"

"She acted on emotion, let if blind her into doing something she wouldn't have done otherwise. Forgiving her – releasing her – is the right thing to do. And if you don't accept that, father, then think of it this way: the city just had a riot. Regnals and Anksharans came together to save the city from burning down. Their chief heirs are about to marry each other. Releasing Weboshi would be an act of of magnanimity and mercy that would impress both sides."

A weak smile passed across the Governor's lips. "Oh son, no."

"What?"

"A marriage to one of these barbarians is what I'm trying to save you from."

"Father–"

"You said Captain Marcus interrogated her?"

"Yes."

"And she confessed?"

"Well, yes but–"

"Then there's no need for a trial, we can skip straight to the execution. Seize her."

Britta screamed. For a moment, she'd thought what Dux Lucius was playing at would work. She'd dared have hope. It was a mistake, one that cost her her dignity as her sisters pulled her away from the scene. She kicked and fought them as she tried to struggle forward. She'd been so close to having Weboshi back – to have her ripped away again was an unbearable pain that could only be expressed as a wail.

Lucius looked over his shoulder at her, his expression filled with that maddening emptiness. His hand gripped the hilt of his sword. "Father, please," he said as the Governor's guard muscled by him to get to Weboshi.

The Governor's mouth fell into an "o," his eyelids heavy as he glanced down at Lucius's hand. "What are you doing, son?" he asked. "Are you going to pull a sword on your own father for doing his job as the rightful voice of the Emperor's law? Where's your filial piety? Where's your loyalty to the empire?"

Lucius's hand fell away from his sword. "I'm sorry," he said.

Britta screamed again as her sisters dragged her away.

***

Dux Lucius restrained himself, barely. He'd never been so angry in his life, but he didn't let it show. Now, of all times, he needed to keep calm. It was the only way he'd outwit the Governor. If Lucius were to win, he'd have to do it by the books. Otherwise, should the time come, he'd be as guilty of treason as his father appeared to be. Lucius needed proof.

"Let her go," he said to the guards trying to take Weboshi out from the crowd of soldiers.

"Excuse me?" said the Governor.

"I said let her go."

"I'm the Emperor's authority in this city, son. I pass judgment."

"And I'm the Emperor's law enforcement arm. Your civilian mercenaries have already proven incompetent at keeping her locked up. She's coming with us to the garrison."

"Oh? And you'll execute here there? Why not do it here? Now? It'd save a lot of trouble."

Lucius wanted to knock the smirk off the Governor's face, but kept his cool. He always knew his father was sneaky – a quality that made for a good politician – but this depth of duplicity Lucius had never expected.

"No," said Lucius. "We can execute her after the inquest."

"Inquest? She's guilty. You even admit she confessed to Captain Marcus–"

"I know what I said. I also said 'inquest,' not 'trial.' If you'll forgive me father, this prisoner represents a threat to the Emperor's peace. There are a lot of questions that I, as the military commander responsible for the safety of Ankshara, need answered."

The Governor waved a hand. "Oh, posh."

"Not 'posh.' She couldn't have kidnapped Ava or escaped without assistance. She might have even been involved with the assassination attempt against me. It's my duty to investigate any possible conspiracy in this city to subvert the will of the Emperor."