“Er. You don’t say things like that to the king, do you?”
“Nah, but I don’t hide my randy nature, either. He’s been the recipient of much of that randiness of late and seems to like it. Judging by the growling and shouting.”
“Ma’am, this isn’t the kind of woman stuff I thought you wanted to talk about.” Rysha gripped the chair’s arm, wondering if it was too late to flee.
“It’s not. I mean, it’s loosely related, but…” Kaika’s humor faded, and she looked down at her lap and plucked at the sleeve of her robe.
Everything about the uncertain gesture was so unlike the Kaika she knew that Rysha didn’t know how to react.
“Last night, I said yes,” Kaika said.
“To a marriage proposal?”
Kaika nodded. “I’m sure part of it was that I was so relieved to be alive, and he was so relieved I was alive, but… I’m worried it wasn’t the right decision. I mean, I love him, and I’d like to be with him. Even though I’ve often told him it would make more sense if he went off and found some queenly noblewoman to marry, I’ve known it would hurt to watch him do that. If he did. His advisors and friends tell him to do that, of course. To take another shot with a woman he can have heirs with, but that’s not his priority. He doesn’t even think he can father children.” Kaika pushed her hand through her hair again. “Sorry, I got off the topic.”
“I think it’s allowed. A proposal is a big deal.”
“Yes. I’m just not sure I did the right thing. We haven’t told anyone yet. You’re the first I’ve talked to, and he hasn’t had time for talking about things unrelated to ruling a nation. I could back out…”
“Do you want to?” Rysha was surprised Kaika had chosen her as her confidante for this, and hoped she could be helpful.
Kaika studied her sleeve again. “It’s hard to say. I want to be with him, but the idea of dealing with all the crap that would come with the position is enough to give a person nightmares.”
“Would you have to quit the army? The elite troops?” Rysha couldn’t imagine Kaika folding up her uniforms, locking them in a trunk, and sitting on some throne crafting doilies. Wasn’t that what the last queen had done?
“No. We’ve had that discussion numerous times. After three years, he knows I’m a bird that can’t be caged. A very tall gangly bird.”
“Like an ostrich.”
“I do have a long neck.” Kaika stroked it thoughtfully. Or dubiously. “The reason I asked you in is that I’m concerned about dealing with the nobility. You’re normal, but not many of them are that I’ve noticed.”
“Did you just call me normal, ma’am? Nobody has ever said that about me.”
Kaika snorted. “You’re not a pretentious snob is perhaps what I should have said. I’m not good at handling obnoxious people if I can’t resort to fists. Possibly explosives. Angulus says queens aren’t allowed to blow up their own people. Only enemies.”
“That sounds restrictive.”
“I thought so.”
“If you’re asking my opinion on whether you should do it…” Rysha lifted her eyebrows, not positive if Kaika truly wanted some lieutenant’s opinion or merely a sounding board.
But Kaika nodded firmly. “Yes, your opinion. As someone who’s dealt with the nobility and as a fellow officer who likes to blow things up. Or at least stab them with her sword.”
“I think that the nobility won’t know what to make of you. They’ll talk about you behind your back—never to your face and absolutely never to Angulus’s face. They’ll frustrate you if you let them, but my suggestion for a strategy would be to find a few quirky but influential souls you can befriend who can be your guides and who will also report gossip to you. I know, we should be above gossip, and I can’t see you reveling in it, but it’s good to be aware of the machinations that are currently in play out there. And there are always machinations.” Rysha thought of Lockvale and curled her fingers around the edge of the seat. “But in the end, this is about more than fitting in—or not—with the nobility. I know this isn’t how you think, but it’s truly an opportunity for you to change our country for the better. The last few queens have been wallflowers, frankly, and if not for Queen Thasadonia eighty years ago, women wouldn’t be allowed in the military or to vote or to participate in politics or anything. As a historian and a woman, I feel it’s important for there always to be some influential women in power—influential people of any group that’s historically been downtrodden or taken advantage of. It’s easy to take rights for granted and forget how hard people had to fight to get them in the first place, and the first time you’re not paying attention, someone can take them away. I think—I know—you could be someone who makes Iskandia a better place for women, a place where it’s not weird to want to become a pilot or an elite soldier. It’s just a normal thing that some people like to do, regardless of their sex.”
“Rysha, if you’re looking for someone to enact massive political changes, that’s not me. I wouldn’t know the first thing about getting laws passed.”
“You don’t have to be political. Just by being you, you’d be a role model for other women, as you were for me. But I only heard about you because I was army-mad and wanted to make a name for myself, and I found you as someone who had done exactly that. If you were queen, everybody would know about you.”
Judging by the kink to Kaika’s lips, she didn’t think that was a great thing.
“You could just be you,” Rysha repeated. “Also, at the wedding, you should wear your dress uniform instead of some frilly gold or red velvet dress or whatever the style is this year.”
“Won’t the nobility find that scandalous?”
“Oh absolutely.”
Kaika snorted. “This isn’t the advice I was expecting to get.”
“What were you hoping for? For me to say no, you shouldn’t do it?”
“No. I’m not certain it’s not a mistake, but I want to do it. I guess I just wanted some advice on dealing with the nobility. I don’t care what they say about me, but I don’t want Angulus to be hurt, emotionally or physically. Is it possible they’ll be so upset with me as his wife that they might plot against him?”
“By hiring an assassin, you mean?”
Kaika winced. “I understand Ahn’s father is still in the business. And there are others.”
“Angulus is considered fair by the populace and the nobility. I think it’s more likely someone would assassinate you.” After the words came out, Rysha regretted them—what a thing to tell someone.
But Kaika’s eyes flared with a familiar inner fire. “They could try.”
“You’re not supposed to look excited when I suggest someone might try to assassinate you.”
“I like a challenge. I’m a little concerned that things may turn drab. I won’t be able to go on covert missions anymore if my picture is in newspapers around the world and I’m known globally as the queen of Iskandia.”