She was shocked out of her temper. “It happens to you?”
“Of course. Did you think it was something against you personally?” He smiled.
That made it easier to endure in one way—and harder in another. They had never warned of this on Opal, that marrying Adrian would put her in physical danger. Surely the Lord Cardinal had known?
And then, just yesterday she had sent word to the Lord Cardinal that she no longer wished to spy on her husband—and now this happened, a few hours later. No … that was a disloyal thought. She could not imagine Amo initiating such a thing. She said, unhappily, “So this could happen again, at any time.”
“True. It’s something we must live with.” Adrian made no attempt to soften it; it was information she should know. “But look, sweetheart; here I am, quite healthy and alive. And Saul Veritie lived a long life and died of old age. If we’re both careful and prudent, there’s no reason we can’t do the same. You have Will Stockton to look after you for the time being—would you like me to assign you a food-taster?”
“Do you have one?”
“No, but then I eat publicly and communally whenever possible. And when it’s not possible, Brandon or Tal or someone else I trust supervises the preparation.”
“I’ll eat with you, then,” said Io, and he smiled. She said, “After all, I’m your wife.”
Well, it was a lovely thing to say, and she looked so lovely standing there … he kissed her. He meant it to be short and friendly, but it was starting to lengthen when he pulled himself away. “You’re welcome to accompany me to dinner every night. Don’t wait for an official invitation. But when you do eat alone, have Will see that the food is untampered with.”
“I will.”
He was silent for a moment, and when he spoke again it was with hesitation. “Did no one from Opal … explain this to you?”
“No, sir, they did not.”
He left shortly thereafter to attend to business, of which there was a surfeit. Between the wedding and Baret Two, there was a great deal to be done these days.
It was quite within Adrian’s prerogative as Protector to be called “sir” by his wife, but her relentless acceptance of marriage as her duty irritated him. He wished that Opal had not left this girl to twist in the wind. He wished she trusted him a little more.
Most of all, he wished the wedding night were over. It was beginning to assume unnatural proportions in his mind.
He spoke to Will Stockton before leaving the women’s wing. “I suppose you’re aware of what happened at the fitting.”
“I was just told.” He nodded after Prudence Taylor, who was disappearing into Io’s room. “One of my subs was on duty, but he only reported that she seemed unwell. He was keeping track of the people coming in and out—he saw that the lady Prudence and Special Officer Diamond were there, and they didn’t seem unduly alarmed. Rather than force himself on their company—”
“I’m not bringing it up as a complaint against your man. I appreciate your presence here, Will. Io is here, she’s well, she’s alive—as far as I’m concerned, your assignment was a success.”
Will noted the past tense. He was under no illusions; the only reason he wasn’t being deservedly crucified for the incident was that his tenure on the Diamond was over anyway. It wasn’t worth the trouble with Opal to change him. He waited.
Adrian said, “It’s customary for the bride to spend the night before the wedding at the home of a relative, usually her parents. Under the circumstances, Iolanthe has expressed a wish to remain on the Diamond tonight. I’ve offered to move her into my aunt’s quarters; she’s the closest thing to a relative I have.”
Will said, “Excuse me, sir, but I advise against it.” This was the polite method of applying bodyguard veto. “We haven’t done the work on your aunt’s quarters, and there are three people working right now at the lady’s parents’.” For Will, “doing the work” meant sending people through with sweeps, noting all entrances and exits, getting lists of authorized inhabitants, and giving maps and instructions to everyone involved. Circumstances, and plain aristo stubbornness, sometimes didn’t let Will “do the work,” and he was always upset when he didn’t.
Adrian smiled as though he found Will’s attention to minutiae charming. He said gently, “Will, understand my position—”
Will’s eyes shifted. Adrian had a powerful smile that made you like him in spite of yourself. At times like this it was clearly sincere, that was where the power came from. He heard Adrian say, “You’re going back to Opal in a day or two, at least I assume so; anyway, this particular assignment will be over. You’re going to have to relinquish control to the Diamond in any case, so we’re just both going to have to hope that we’re competent, aren’t we?”
“There’s been no groundwork—”
“Will, the only people who know she’s going to my aunt’s are Iolanthe, me, and now you. How much more security do we need?”
Will sighed. He said, “I want to see your aunt’s quarters and make up a bed for myself there. I want to be able to move around to different rooms if I have to.”
“Of course, Will,” said the Protector, as though Will’s preferences were to be taken for granted. “Anything you think is best.”
Adrian’s aunt was an eccentric. She lived by herself, but for a maid, in five rooms near the end of court territory by the entrance to the gardens. It was a horrifying waste of space, but nobody was going to tell the old lady to move out. She was a Mercati by marriage, not by blood, and once the rooms had been filled with family. That had passed, like everything else she’d known.
She was not, as
