«What have you done today?» Alexander asks while changing clothes. I'm already in bed, reading a book while waiting for him.

«Organised a tea party.»

«Oh, nice. Are you sure you want to hold one, by the way? You're not obliged, Thea. Do just what you want.»

I chuckle, amused by his worries. I'm not the scared puppy of last year, and I've understood my role better. Now, no one will dare to talk back to me.

«I am doing what I want, in fact,» I say.

«Do you want me to come and pay you a visit? It's something I heard the other noblemen do when they want to show their attachment to their wives...»

«Oh, don't,» I say.

It would be bad if he found out that I'm selling his paintings for profit! I'll just do the deed and tell him later when it's too late to stop me.

«No? You don't want me to attract anyone's attention?» he says with a grin.

I nod, letting him think that.

«And because it's a women-only event. In a women-only hall.»

«Does such a place exist?»

«Her highness is equipping it.»

«Oh, should have figured...» he mutters while sitting on the bed.

«Any news from Ephrah?» I inquire, placing a cushion behind my back. «Has your friend had a safe journey?»

«He has. He sends you his thanks for the business advice. He made a lot of money out there...»

«And what about... You know?»

«It's all settled.»

«Good,» I sigh. «Now we can just wait.»

«Yes, but before that, we'll start our plan. His majesty will call for you next week. Do you prefer a private audience?»

«No, thanks,» I giggle. «I want it to be in front of the whole court.»

«Are you sure?»

«I'm not a little girl. I'll survive it.»

«I'm sure you will, but there's no reason to endure such stress in your state.»

«Alexander, I'm an adult!»

«I know, my dear.»

«It will work better in front of everyone. We want the enemies to notice us, right? I will make you proud of me, husband...»

«Let's revise the plan, now,» he says, surrendering after the second sentence. Oh, I love this version of him. It's so manageable.

«Yes, of course!» I exclaim, moving my bottom closer to him and listening like a perfect student. «Let's revise.»

«Next week, his majesty will call for you during one of his public appearances.»

I nod, showing him that I'm following his words. Even though I know the plan by heart.

«You'll act surprised when he calls for you,» he continues when he seems to consider something.

Maybe, he realises that there's no need to tell me a hundred times. Hence, he decides to change technique.

He reviews the rest of the plan with speed, reaching the point he's been aiming at from the start.

«At some point, his majesty will ask you how you feel about your marriage...» he murmurs.

«Will he?» I inquire. «For real?»

What's the point of asking me something so personal in front of the whole court? Not to mention that it's one dangerous question.

What if I say I'm unhappy? His majesty is the one declaring my marriage. It would be a difficult situation to handle.

«By the end of the day, you'll be the second most powerful woman in the Empire.»

«The second?» I mutter. «The first is the Princess, right?»

«Yes, that's correct.»

«What about the Empresses, then?»

«The late Emperor's mother, my grandmother, is too old to make any decision. She passes her time in her building of the Palace and doesn't get out. She's lost her mind after her husband's death...»

«She loved him so much?» I ask, realising it's a bit of an intrusion. However, it's Alexander's family we're talking about. I'm curious.

«I think she was poisoned soon after,» he sighs. «Do you want to meet her?»

I raise my eyes.

«I don't know. Do you have any relationship with her?»

«I visit her from time to time, but as I told you... She's not in her sound mind. She doesn't recognise me, sometimes. Ah, she often thinks I'm my father.»

«You do resemble him.»

«Well, it's not easy to hear it.»

Poor woman, abandoned by everyone in the world.

«I don't have the heart to tell her that my father died on order of his own older brother.»

«What about the Dowager Empress? Is she powerful?»

«She didn't have children. She tried to adopt his majesty and to be declared as regent, but she failed. She's taking her time to rise again. Sooner or later, she will make her appearance. She's difficult to deal with, but not that powerful. Namely, she's more influential than you. But you're smarter and with better connections.»

«Are you understating her?» I ask, tilting my head.

«I've never even met her. She lives in her...»

«In her own building, isolated and silent,» I finish for him. Is he dumb? «She's a plotter.»

«You're so quick at judging.»

«Who do you think the third faction of nobles is loyal to?» I say in a low tone. I was wondering who would guide them, and there's now a candidate. «I believe she offered more power in exchange for the throne. Last year, his majesty had won a war and annexed a new territory to the Empire. As a result, his enemies stood quiet and hidden. But this year, no outstanding results have been achieved. On the contrary, his majesty's decision to allow Count Grahm to administer the northern border will turn out a failure very soon. They will attack.»

«How can you be so sure?»

«I've lived in a royal palace my whole life. I know how people tend to act. The more they are silent, the more their purposes are dangerous. A Dowager Empress that doesn't show her face to the court is as lethal as a poisonous spider.»

At least, I'm starting to make some sense about how the court works. Even though what I hear is not reassuring.

I'll have to realign my understanding of the Palace with this new information.

«If I'm wrong, the Dowager Empress will continue to hide,» I say. «If I'm right, we'll see her appear in the Palace more often.»

If that's the case, then Duke Grahm must have his clutches in the Empress's faction as well. But, how?

One of his granddaughters will be proposed to his majesty as a potential bride. The other was pressed against my husband for years without reaching the desired effect.

If what I've understood about him so far is correct, there must be someone close to the Dowager Empress to cover that route.

It would be one more confirmation about my beliefs about the Dowager Empress.

«Let's not change our strategy, for now,» I comment in the end. «We don't have enough details about it, so we'll pretend not to suspect anything. Only after confirming, we'll think how to deal with her.»

«Are you done with planning?» he asks.

He waits for my nod before caressing my belly.

«How do you feel?» he inquires. «Does your back hurt?»

«It does,» I complain. «But it will get worse, won't it? Our baby is getting heavy. I can't wait to be done with this. Other than looking like a balloon, my feet swell, and my breasts are...»

«Beautiful,» he cuts my words. «You are so beautiful, Thea.»

«You're lying.»

«I'm not. And it's almost over. Soon, we'll be able to carry our baby in our arms.»

His lips curl in a gentle smile, and he pecks my cheek, happy.

He then passes to his usual chat with my belly. He talks to our baby in a sweet tone, maybe sweeter than the one he uses with me.

He speaks and kisses the belly, forgetting that I'm here, listening to him and sensing his fingers in our child's place.

When he's done, he looks at me with his imploring eyes, and he asks me to sing.

I don't really have a choice. I sing a couple of songs, including the one I learned in a village of Kyre. The one about the wine god helping a couple of lovers to be together...

Alexander listens to me without moving his eyes away. Without even blinking.

I'm already used to it, so I don't pay any attention to his fixed stare. If he did this at the beginning, he would have scared the hell out of me. But now, I understand him.

Thank goodness he barely looked at me in the beginning. However, now, I feel cold when he doesn't glance at me from time to time.

«I'm so glad we're accomplices,» I say when I finish singing.

«It's easier,» he chuckles.

Indeed, it is. But that's not what I meant.

In the beginning, I was looking for his help to make things easier, to avoid wasting energies on hiding my purposes and plans. After obtaining his trust, after hearing his story and dreaming of his life, that is no longer important.

«Rather than easier, it makes me feel relevant. For real,» I explain. «I know there's someone that loves me as much as I love him and that I can tell him whatever troubles me... It's comforting.»

He opens his mouth to say something but changes his mind. Only after a minute, he decides to talk.

It still isn't simple, for him, to tell me his heart. But in this, he's improving.

«I feel the same,» he says. «And I love you so much.»

It's so refreshing to hear his confessions without a hint of shameless remark. It reminds me of the man in my dreams, of the warm feelings that filled his heart and persisted through years of marriage.

«And I'm also looking forward to our child being born,» he adds. He's observing my face with too much attention, but I'm glad he loves our baby this much.

I smile at him while he finishes his discourse with one last sentence.

«I have a long list of things to do with you. To make up for all the months we couldn't be together.»

It's just a shadow of that gentle, proper man. My Duke is still savage and shameless.