The Glittering Court (The Glittering Court, #1)(133)

“Highly irregular,” Edwin repeated. Mary returned with several pieces of paper.

“I’m his attorney,” Nicholas told them. “And this young lady is his—”

“Wife,” I finished.

Nicholas hesitated as he took that in and then made a quick recovery. “And should Mister Harrison doubt that, you could of course show him the proof.”

“It’s with a magistrate in Hadisen,” I said. Giving that up was a big secret, but legally, I should have a fair amount of power to act on Cedric’s behalf, especially with Nicholas as legal backup. Considering the trouble we were already in, revealing our marriage couldn’t really make things worse.

“Never a dull moment,” Nicholas murmured with a half smile. He turned back to the Harrisons. “So, you see, there’s no problem with our going forward for him.”

Edwin wavered a bit more and then conceded. “Very well then. We’re eager to begin our work with those passionate about our vision.”

He and Nicholas began going over the paperwork. I knew a little bit about the terms from Cedric, but hearing it laid out in detail was fascinating. Most of the other colonies were founded on orders of the king, who then appointed governors and other prominent leaders. Westhaven’s founding had been initiated by the crown as well, following ceding of the land by the Icori in another morally questionable truce. Unlike other colonies, the crown operated this one as a business in response to those clamoring for freedom to practice their faith. The priests of Uros might want to hunt down and persecute heretics, but the king found it easier to simply ship them off.

“Essentially, we are buying from the crown the right to lead Westhaven—though we’re still a royal colony under Osfrid,” Edwin explained. “Each stake helps pay off that price. We’re nearly there and can begin officially drawing up charters, though we’ve begun some rough drafts already. Those doing the early buy-ins can take part in the planning. From that group, we’ll elect who fills the important positions—eventually, all citizens will participate in such an election, but that’s further down the road.”

“And all faiths can worship there,” I said.

Mary gave me a gentle smile. “Yes, that’s our primary purpose.”

Nicholas read each part in detail, suggesting a few clarifications that the Harrisons had no quarrel with. When Nicholas was satisfied, he wrote out the final affidavit on Cedric’s behalf, reaffirming a commitment to Westhaven and its laws. He signed as proxy and then looked up, his pen hovering over the paper.

“I, uh, have a bit more irregularity to suggest, but we’d like to backdate this as well.”

Edwin frowned. “How far?”

“About three weeks,” I said.

“Some might consider that perjury,” said Edwin pointedly. “Something I’m sure a man of the law would know.”

“If you don’t do it, Cedric will die,” I blurted out. “He’s on trial for Alanzan heresy, and we need to claim Westhaven’s amnesty.”

The troubled look in Edwin’s eyes didn’t reassure me, but Mary laid her hand over his. “Dear, isn’t this what the point is? To prevent this kind of atrocity?”

Edwin took a few more moments and then exhaled. “Date it,” he told Nicholas. Nicholas did, and then Edwin signed underneath as witness—also using the early date. He took my hard-earned money.

I felt like crying, but maybe that was the lack of sleep. “Thank you—thank you! You have no idea—”

The inn’s door burst open, and a wide-eyed laborer peered in. “A hanging! There’s going to be a hanging! They convicted that Alanzan devil!”

Nicholas groaned, but I was already on my feet. “No, no! We are not too late. We can’t be.” I grabbed the papers and sprinted for the door. Nicholas caught up quickly.

“Wait for me—the rabble loves an execution. It’ll be madness out there.”

He was right. We joined a flood of people heading across town, eager for blood. I wished we had horses but wasn’t sure we would’ve gotten far in this crowd. I tried to fix my mind on the journey, not imagining what might happen to Cedric if I didn’t make it. “I knew it could be soon,” I called to Nicholas over the noise. “But I hoped not this soon.”

“The governor makes the call on when the sentence is carried out,” Nicholas said. “And this governor is pretty motivated to see this so-called justice done. I’m sure they’ll delay enough to get a good crowd. They like an audience—scares people into behaving.”

The thought of Cedric’s execution was beyond comprehension. What if they did it? And I wasn’t there in his last moments?

The courthouse came into sight. They’d already put up the gallows, and a few dark figures stood on it. One almost certainly was Cedric. The crowd bottlenecked when we finally reached our destination. Everyone wanted a good view, but they could only get so close. No one wanted to give up the spot they’d fought for, so pushing our way forward was difficult.

Near the back, I caught sight of Aiana. She had a hand to her eyes to shield against the sun and was scanning the crowd. She hurried over. “Adelaide! I wondered where you were. Have you seen Mira?”

“No, but I thought she’d be here. I have to get through,” I said urgently. “I have to get up there.”