Chapter 44 Desires of Men
The apartments of Octavio.
Valero was sixty-six years old. He had lost his left arm to a battle axe in the hands of a northern warrior. He was the last of the Lord Knights who served during the reign of Reynald the Conqueror. The other seven had died in battle, from disease, or were executed.
He waited in the main corridor, in front of the chambers of Count Octavio. As always, he was accompanied by a page and a maid from his castle. Today, his eldest son was also with him. Victorino was a banner knight of the House of Colina Alba. He commanded two hundred knights and had sworn captains, who in turn commanded almost one hundred and fifty more.
Jaime: Excuse me, sir. The Count is ready.
Valero and his son entered. The servants waited in the hallway.
Octavio: Please, have a seat. There is wine and food available if you wish.
Valero in an amused tone: My son does not drink wine or ale. A dark-skinned woman from Isla Tortuga has put silly ideas in his head.
Victorino: I intend to marry her. Her family does not drink and they live long, healthy lives. She is the eldest daughter in a family with no sons. Isla Tortuga possesses resources valued at tens of thousands upon tens of thousands of gold coins.
Octavio scoffed: And is a life without wine the price of this daughter?
Victorino: Yes, and promises to respect the laws of the Mistress of the Sea.
Octavio sneered: Is that the damn goddess who is the reason I cannot get a decent turtle soup?
Valero: The same. They believe that giant turtles are the wise servants of a dark sea goddess.
Victorino smiled: Her father will have an accident a few months after the wedding. When I am Lord of the island, the first boatload of giant turtles will be for your house.
Octavio: And your beloved, is she going to protest?
Victorino: She will serve me as a wife to give me children. Nothing more.
Octavio: You have plans for the future. That is a good thing. Can you see the future? Who will be king? Your father or Count Aurelio?
Victorino spoke with confidence: My father, if I am the commander of the army for our city.
Octavio: Valero, you know we cannot field more than six thousand against ten thousand. How are we going to win?
Valero: We have two weeks to prepare. If I become king, I will have the Blue Knights. I will send them to the estates south of the Ridges. With your gold, we will buy some noble houses in the Ridges to support them.
Victorino: I will send my company with a loyal captain to Puerto Blanco. They will attack the fishing villages on the east coast. The duchess will summon her loyal houses to form an army.
Valero: When Aurelio arrives, his army will be surrounded by three forces, one on each flank. We can use the Pegasi to observe their positions and attack where they are weakest.
Octavio: As of now, the Pegasi are controlled by a priest who wants to put the bastard on the throne. First, we must win the throne.
Valero in a more hushed voice: I am taking steps to seize the throne. If you entrust me with the command of your knights in the castle, I will be able to isolate our adversaries. My men-at-arms are preparing. In three days, the castle will be surrounded by my soldiers. On the Day of Unification, I will accept the crown from your hands.
Victorino: My trap will be almost complete by then. With the Pegasi and Unicorns, I can destroy Aurelio.
The rooms of Guillermo.
Arturo was on his second shift as the page of the herald. The other pages were performing other tasks for the Lord. He always felt sad and sometimes thought about death. But his parents were very happy with his success as a page. With the gold coins, they wanted to buy new clothes, and the family will be able to eat well. He felt torn between the happiness of his family and the sadness he felt in his heart.
Danilo: Good afternoon, your lord is expecting me.
Arturo: Yes, Lord Priest.
The young page knocked on the door and waited for an answer. He opened the door and nodded to the priest.
Guillermo cheerfully: High Priest, welcome!
Danilo: Lord, thank you for receiving me.
Guillermo: My title is Herald! I am the herald of the king!
Danilo: Forgive me, Heraldo Guillermo. I did not intend to offend you.
Guillermo: There is no respect left in this castle. Women making threats as if they were important.
Danilo: What?
Guillermo shouting towards the door: And pages who tell lies!
Danilo: Are you okay?
Guillermo composed himself: Yes, yes. I am sorry. It is the stress of the situation. Do you want wine or firemouth?
Danilo: No, thank you.
The herald poured a little dark liquid into his cup and filled the rest with clear wine.
Guillermo: I need a break from politics.
Danilo: I am sorry. I am here to talk about the throne.
Guillermo smiled once again: Of course. You want my support for the bastard.
Danilo returned his smile: Yes. Now we have half the court. Valero will fight Aurelio and burn the city. If the court crowns Olivia, we could control her for the good of the kingdom. Puerto Blanco will never fight for Valero. His knights killed many people in that city.
Guillermo: But Olivia, her mother was half Puerto Blanco and half Costa Lunas. A little Puerto Blanco blood on the throne might be enough to make them fight for her.
Danilo: Yes. Can you talk to Valero? If he agrees, Octavio will have no other choice.
Guillermo spoke with a touch of sadness: Yes. I will try to talk to him tomorrow. It has been a pleasure talking to you, just like when you first arrived at the royal castle. I am sorry our friendship came to an end. Are you sure you cannot stay and drink with me?
Danilo: No, I am sorry. Thank you for your kindness today. I must go.
Guillermo watched as he left and thought about how handsome he was.