The Blood Spell (Ravenspire, #4)(62)
He met her gaze for a moment, and then sighed. “Fine. But we are going to discuss each girl with respect. I’m not going to treat them like goods I’m buying at the market.”
“I would expect no less from you. Now, which is your favorite?”
Blue’s face flashed across Kellan’s mind, and he tugged at his collar. He couldn’t choose her as his favorite, but he could do something about her situation now that he had his mother’s undivided attention.
“Let’s talk about Blue first,” he said.
His mother drew back, her eyes narrowing. “Why are you thinking about Blue when I ask you which girl is your favorite?”
Hang it all. His heart was causing him enough confusion on its own. He certainly wasn’t going to try explaining the problem to his mother.
“I’ve been meaning to discuss her with you all day, but we were both so busy, I never found the chance.” He kept his voice steady, his gaze even. Blue was a family friend. Of course he was concerned about her. Anyone would be.
His mother watched him carefully. “What would you like to discuss about Blue?”
“I think we should look over the guardianship document that gives Dinah Chauveau control over Blue,” he said.
“You think it’s a fraud?” Her voice lowered, though there was no staff in the room to overhear.
“I’d like us to be absolutely sure.” Kellan leaned forward, splaying his arms across his thighs. “I can’t understand why a woman with Dinah’s wealth and power would move herself and her daughters into the de la Cours’ farmhouse, or why she’d have any interest in the alchemy shop. And I don’t like the way she treats Blue.”
The queen met his gaze. “How does she treat Blue?”
“She hits her, though I think I’ve put a stop to it.”
“Hits her?” The queen’s lips pressed into a thin, hard line.
“Nessa and I went to the shop to check on Blue, and walked into the storeroom in time to see Dinah slapping Blue.” A hot flash of anger stirred in his gut at the memory.
“And how did you put a stop to it?”
He kept his eyes on hers, though he was pretty sure she wasn’t going to like what he had to say. “I subtly threatened to not choose Jacinthe for the betrothal if I ever heard of her laying a hand on Blue again.”
The queen’s expression remained unreadable for a long moment, and Kellan waited to hear that he’d been foolish. That the all-important betrothal and the nuanced, political gamesmanship that went into it, couldn’t be sacrificed for the fate of one commoner.
Instead, the queen said softly, “Good for you.”
“I had to try . . . Wait, what? You aren’t upset with me?”
“Blue is Nessa’s dearest friend, and has been a staunch help to me with my headaches and fatigue of late. Her father was my sweet Talbot’s most trusted friend, and the two of you grew up together. Blue is practically family, and we protect our family.”
Kellan shook the tension out of his shoulders. “So what do we do about this?”
“I’ll speak with Dinah. She’ll listen to reason. Staying at the farmhouse instead of in her quarter doesn’t meet her duties as head of the Chauveau family.”
“And the guardianship document?” Kellan asked.
“Her solicitor will have had to file it with the magistrate in Blue’s quarter. I’ll ask our royal solicitor to request it so it can be examined.”
“Doesn’t the entire situation seem strange to you?”
“It does, but there could be any number of legitimate reasons for it.” The queen leaned forward and tapped the parchment sheets beside Kellan. “Now, let’s discuss your betrothal options.”
Starlight filtered in through the windows and candle lamps glowed soft against the walls by the time Kellan and his mother were finished discussing each family’s strengths. Six of the nine head families had daughters or nieces who were close enough to Kellan’s age to be in the running for the betrothal, though the Barbier family was out of the running since the current queen had come from them. The other three had vested interests in the betrothal based on their own alliances.
The Chauveaus owned the largest business empire, with significant holdings and contacts in the kingdoms of Akram, Súndraille, and Ravenspire, which could only help to strengthen the throne’s relationships with those realms. Plus they had enough wealth to help award contracts to some of the families who’d lost out on the betrothal, which would alleviate the pressure on the royal coffers.
The Perrins had decent holdings and a reputation for excelling at military strategy. Most of Balavata’s head generals had come from the Perrin family, and having a strong alliance with those who ran the military was a smart move for a king worried about a revolt. The queen had heard rumors that the Faure family, which had no one close to betrothal age, was whispering about ousting the Renards and putting the Faures on the throne instead. Those rumors had strengthened in the wake of Kellan’s dismissal of Georgiana from his council. Kellan couldn’t afford to overlook strong ties to Balavata’s army.
The Roches and the Gaillards were both solid leaders in commerce and law and would be able to deepen the crown’s interests in both arenas. And the Evrards’ oldest son had recently married into the royal family in Loch Talam far to the north, where Balavata had few diplomatic or commercial ties.