The Humbled (The Lost Words: Volume 4) Read Free Page A

people simply refused to consider the problem seriously. But then, their assets were safe, and they had not spent a year as hostages, wondering if they might die the next morning.
    “Things are just happening too rapidly,” Uwe said. “Our old allies and enemies are dying like flies. I hear Duke Vincent was assassinated. A rather tricky predicament. Whoever we try to negotiate with might end up dead the next morning. This presents us with a problem. We need to be sure we have a reliable partner who will live on to see their end of the bargain upheld.”
    Yes, and Commander Gerald is dead, too
, Stephan thought. Just a few more months of siege, he could have hammered out a peace, a solid, lasting, favorable peace.
    From what reports and rumors Stephan had, King Sergei refused to talk to the Caytoreans. His sister, Sasha was a lunatic. Amalia…no one really knew what she might do now.
    But he had not told the assembled council the most worrying part yet.
    “If Lady Rheanna meets an untimely end…” Evert’s tone was pragmatic. “What do we do with her assets? Do we proclaim her a traitor and seize them?”
    “That would be prudent,” Lamprecht agreed.
    Stephan raked his hair. He was feeling desperate. “Our concern should be seeing Lady Rheanna released safely.” He knew he sounded like a hypocrite, but what else could he say?
    “The key to this conundrum is King Sergei,” Uwe pointed out.
    “He does seem inclined toward peace, it’s fair to say. After all, he released all of you when he could have easily kept you hostage, or worse.” Councillor Baldric stabbed a very pointed stare at Stephan, as if this was all somehow his doing.
    “We need to decide what we want,” Stephan insisted. “Does the council favor the restoration of Athesian land to Caytor? Or do we agree that we seek peace and trade only? We can then sort all the other details more easily.”
    “As long as we remain undecided, we won’t win any favor with either the Parusites or Athesians.” Doris rallied. “Our inaction suits them both. While we may argue about Amalia or James and what they did, they have a much better claim than King Sergei. One thing is certain, Roalas was never Parusite territory.”
    Stephan breathed into his palm, thinking. If it were that simple for his colleagues to agree on a common cause, there would be no point in having the council, now would it? He tried to imagine what would happen if the High Council threw its support behind Amalia. Or maybe the king. What would happen then?
    In a deep corner of his soul, he felt he should be grateful for being alive today, and that gratitude belonged to the Parusite ruler. But there was another corner, soaked in bitterness and national pride, bemoaning decades of humiliation. It went back to Adam, the man who had affirmed the reality of defeat with the Eracians and Caytoreans. The only question was, were they willing to accept it and move on toward a brighter future?
    “If we assume we never get Athesia back,” he began.
    “That land is rightfully ours,” Lamprecht goaded.
    “If we assume that, then we must ask ourselves, who do we prefer at the throne? Adam’s daughter? Or the Parusite king? Do we want religion back in the lives of the small folk?”
    Doris squirmed. “The Parusites must not be allowed to control Athesia.”
    “How can we oppose them?” Uwe again.
    “We recruit armies. Simple.” Helmut was standing now, drawing attention to his fat bulk.
    “Even the simple threat of our intervention could swing the situation in our favor,” Desmond said. “The Parusite king relies on our neutrality to complete his conquest. Once he has the whole of Athesia in his hands, we will be facing a much bigger problem.”
    “We must try to save Lady Rheanna,” Stephan told them. “She is the only one among us who managed to gain the upper hand with Emperor James. Otis and Melville tried coercionand trickery, and they paid with their lives. Perhaps we could convince