Someone Else's Kingdom, BOOK II - Scene LXIX

Seaspell lay there, still in a state of feverish unwell. It looked something like a triptych. His pale face in the sea of white bedding; his dark soft brush of hair a stark crown, slightly damp with sweat. On the panels either side: his mother, dressed in pagan black, backlit against the gloomy window; and Coulema Galina, a shadow of his form; the dark crimson of his frugal tunic looking a dingy black in the corner of the room. He had waited a while to be alone with Maleeva, and as he spoke he made doubly sure that the guards were beyond earshot, outside of the door.

"I think she's right, y'know."

Maleeva wasn't pleased to hear this observation, and an uncomfortable frown overtook her brow. She listened on as he continued, eager for the opinion nevertheless.

"Not the crown itself, but the stress. The discomfort with the situation. He's a gentle boy, he was never raised to be king. He has none of the arrogance. I think, perhaps, he even hears us now."

The words disturbed Maleeva, and she didn't respond in the hope that it would end the conversation. The captive Tunidan continued to overstep his bounds though.

"Look at this wild weather, too" he noted, in a dull and truthful tone, "These are strange times. That work against us all."

"It's just rain," replied Maleeva, finally responding to the provocation, her voice louder and more casual than his, as if spoken to threaten the drawing of the guards.

"You're scared of a little weather?" she pressed.

Galina drew close in response to the chiding question, and lowered his own voice further.

"I have an offer."

She listened with impatience as he spoke.

"I suspect there may be things in this world that are beyond our knowledge. The King of Tunid is the true king. We need to make peace with him - to stop all this. The weather, the wars ..the endless misfortune." He looked down at Seaspell with genuine concern as he added these last words, before glancing towards the sunless window behind Maleeva's back. "But we both know Mizmeam will never countenance a peace," he averred, "So here's my offer ..if you free me from these chains, I'll kill him. Then we can bring all this to an end."

"This is treason!" snapped back Maleeva, aggressively. Her words firm, but deliberately hushed. "King Mizmeam is your true king ..and my son will rule with honour in his succession. The age of intrigue - of dishonour and dishonesty, is over. So you would do well to keep your Tunidan whispers silent."

"Just think about it," uttered Galina, his air of dry stoicism just about restraining Maleeva from calling the guards there and then.

As if to break the dread, Seaspell then stirred a little in his unconscious slumber. His head turning, and his right arm stretching out beneath the white bed sheets. With motherly love Maleeva bent down to embrace his restless body, then gently wiped his princely forehead. Galina moved back towards the darkened corner, and returned to his servile state.