Marksinna Lisbet Ahlstrom—the acting ruler of the Skojare and Linnea’s grandmother—stood with her back toward the meeting room as she stared out at the dark water that surrounded us. Her golden hair was up, and her sapphire chandelier earrings hung past the high collar of her jacket. Wavelike designs were embroidered in the cerulean fabric, and the hem of her jacket just hit the floor.
We were in the meeting room underwater, where half of the room stuck out from the palace with a domed wall of glass, creating a fishbowl effect. The last time I had been here, King Mikko had been arrested. And now we were discussing war. Baltsar, Ridley, Konstantin, and I sat at the end of the very long table. Linnea had been too shell-shocked to be of much assistance, and Tilda had feigned needing help to keep her preoccupied. For the past hour we’d been in the meeting room, explaining to Lisbet and Baltsar everything we knew.
While we spoke, Lisbet had paced the room, listening to us tell them about Mina’s relation to Viktor, her involvement in Kennet’s scheme, and her plot to steal the jewels now that Kennet and Bayle were out of the picture.
When we’d finished, she stopped and stared out at the lake. Night had fallen upon us, making the water too dark to see anything, but Lisbet kept staring out, as if an answer to all their problems would come swimming up to the glass.
“After he was killed, I realized that Kennet had to be involved in Mikko’s imprisonment somehow,” Lisbet said finally. “I wore black for three days until Kennet’s funeral, as is customary, but I haven’t worn it since. I mourned publicly because I had to, but I won’t shed a tear for anyone that tries to hurt my granddaughter.”
Then she turned to face us. In her sixties, she’d begun to show the signs of her advancing years, but she still carried the grace and beauty of her youth. She commanded the room like a Queen, even though she’d never really been one.
“What would you have us do?” Lisbet asked. “How do we stop this?”
Konstantin sat with his elbows on the table and his hands together in front of his face, almost like he was praying except that his hands were clenched too tightly. “You can’t stop this. Once Mina has her mind set, there’s nothing you can do to talk her out of it.”
“What if we offered her our jewels?” Lisbet suggested, almost pleading. “We have so many, we must be able to spare a great deal.”
“She wants them all.” Konstantin lowered his hands. “And even that won’t be enough. Since she’s had to wait for them, she’s annoyed. And she’ll want you to suffer for that.”
Lisbet rubbed her temple. “Then what do we do?”
“I’ve been working as the ?verste for the Kanin,” Ridley said. “And Tilda’s been acting captain. We can work with your soldiers and get them ready. We know exactly how the Kanin fight and what they’re skilled at.”
Lisbet laughed darkly. “You say that as if we have soldiers.”
“If Mina hasn’t declared war yet, that means you might have some time,” I said. “Time to gather people and get them ready.”
“Unless, of course, she’s planning a surprise attack,” Konstantin corrected me, and I shot him a look. “Well, it’s true.”
“You have one huge advantage, and that’s this palace.” Ridley motioned around us. “It’s an island fortress.”
“And we have the spires,” Baltsar said, referring to the five towers that rose from the palace. “I’ve been doing bow training with the guards, so they can man them and shoot at possible intruders.”
“It’s not a lost cause,” Ridley said, trying to sound optimistic.
“There’s something else I think you should do,” I said. “You should release Mikko.”
“Talk to that one.” Lisbet pointed at Baltsar. “I want to let him go. I’ve known he was innocent for a while, but it’s Baltsar and the Chancellor and some of the other royals that don’t want him out.”
Baltsar shook his head. “It’s not that I don’t want him released. There’s not enough evidence to set him free. I was a Markis and I stepped down—I gave up my title and my inheritance because it was more important to me that Storvatten be kept safe. I took this job to make sure it was done right.”
“You’re going to war. You need him,” I persisted.
“I’m the acting monarch. I have all the same power he has,” Lisbet said.
“But you’re not King,” I told her emphatically. “Linnea may be Queen, but she’s not strong enough yet to lead anyone into war. Mikko has power and presence. And he has a brother he needs to avenge. If it wasn’t for Mina, I don’t think Kennet would’ve ever done any of this. Mikko needs to be on the forefront, fighting for your kingdom.”
Lisbet seemed to consider this, then she looked past me to Baltsar. “Do it. Let him go.”
“Marksinna!” Baltsar protested. “I’m trying to bring order to this kingdom.”
“And there won’t be a kingdom to bring order to if we don’t do everything we need to do!” Lisbet shot back. “Let Mikko go. He needs to be the one to end this.”
FORTY-FIVE
valedictory
May 25, 2014