Stormcaster (Shattered Realms #3)(62)
“No!” Hal said, his cheeks heating with embarrassment. “I am not bewitched. I know what I saw.”
“Look, I don’t know what was done to you while you were held captive in the north,” his father said. “I have no knowledge or understanding of sorcery. I leave those matters to the church.” He brightened. “It might do you good to speak with the chaplain. Father Menard is with us, and he might have some insights as to—”
“No,” Hal said. “I don’t want to talk to Menard. I don’t need an exorcism. I need an army.” He tried to quash the doubt that welled up from deep inside him. Could it have been an elaborate ruse, put on for his benefit? Had he been played?
If it had been a ruse, it was a drama worthy of any stage in Tamron, complete with a cast of thousands.
“I can’t give you an army, Hal,” his father said. “I will need every sword I have.”
“Are you really going to march on the capital when the king is holding your wife and daughter hostage?” Without meaning to, Hal had raised his voice.
“Is that what this is about?” Matelon drained his cup and slammed it down. “You know I do not negotiate with hostage-takers. We did send a message to Ardenscourt after Gerard died, demanding that Jarat release the hostages straightaway as a gesture of good faith. He countered with a demand that we surrender to the king’s justice.”
If he offered justice, that would be a first in that family, Hal thought. “Has there been any word about the whereabouts of those he’s holding?”
“They are somewhere in the capital, I presume,” his father said sourly. “The king would want to keep them close. He assumes that we won’t attack as long as he holds that card. And that means he has no incentive to make concessions.” Matelon gave Hal a long, measured look. “Frankly, we are not interested in a peace that maintains the status quo. Why should we reward the son for his father’s bad behavior? There is not a thane in the empire who hasn’t suffered massive losses of land, men, and money under Gerard. If we submit to Jarat, he comes away with everything Gerard has stolen from us, and we’ll go to the block. The thanes don’t agree on much, but we are in agreement on this point—we must negotiate from strength, not as supplicants. So. As things stand, there is no avoiding a fight. If we are going to make our move, this is the time to do it, when he is at his weakest. Why wait until he’s found his footing? As for our families, any harm that comes to them will be repaid in kind.”
“But . . . that won’t bring Harper or Mother back,” Robert said.
Their father squeezed Robert’s shoulder. “We are men, Robert,” he said. “Sometimes men have to make hard decisions.”
Robert twisted away from Matelon’s hand. “If the hostages were freed, wouldn’t King Jarat be more likely to negotiate?”
“No doubt,” their father said, with a hoarse laugh. “Jarat has an army, but armies need feeding whether they are fighting or not. He has no money and no territory north of the capital. If the savages in Bruinswallow and We’enhaven sense weakness on his part, they’ll be pressing in at the borders. Right now, I’d rather be us than him.”
“Well, I don’t want to be us!” Robert shouted. “I don’t want to be us at all. If the king won’t let our families go, we need to free them ourselves.” And he stomped up the stairs, leaving Hal and his father staring at each other across the table.
“It’s hard to be young,” Matelon said, shaking his head.
“It’s hard, period,” Hal said, pushing his last bite of meat around on his plate. He considered asking for permission to go to the capital to see if he could find out where the hostages were being kept. He still had friends in the Ardenine army that he would trust with his life. But he suspected that Matelon would be reluctant to approve any enterprise that might result in putting one more hostage in Jarat’s keep.
If he asked permission and his father said no, then he definitely couldn’t go.
Better to ask forgiveness than to ask permission, Hal thought.
Matelon cocked his head. “Robert has always been headstrong, but you’ve always been the steady one,” he said. “Enchanted or not, your time in the north has changed you.”
Hal nodded. That, at least, was something they could agree on.
“I know that you’re disappointed that we can’t open another front right now, but we have to choose our battles. As you’ve seen, it’s hard enough to persuade the thanes to finish the war we’re in. I’ll tell you right now, there will be no support for coming to the aid of the witch queen.”
Hal pushed his plate away and drained his cup, knowing there was no point in continuing to argue. “I understand, sir.”
In the past, that would have ended it, but his father continued to study Hal, as if seeing something he hadn’t seen before. “I have agents in the north. I promise I’ll get in touch with them and see what we can find out. In the meantime, we need to take advantage of this opportunity to end the civil war. That will make us strong enough to resist outside forces.”
Lord Matelon paused, and when Hal said nothing, continued. “We’ve been able to persuade a number of soldiers from the regular army to come over to our side. Once word gets out that you’re with us, more will come. I would like to consolidate all of our soldiers under your command. I’ll make that case when we meet with the others tomorrow.”