The Emperor’s Daughter – Chapter 21, Sayana

After lunch, instead of going to the audiences, Karis and Sayana went in for a nap. Sayana struggled to find a comfortable position to lie down in. “It is getting harder for you, is it not, my heart?” Karis asked her sympathetically.

“It’s very difficult,” Sayana told him. “I can’t lay on my back because I feel as if I cannot breathe. I cannot lay on my stomach because of Kaelea. It is not comfortable on either side because of the weight. I can’t win.”

Karis chuckled. “Do you want to find a marginally comfortable spot and then I can hold you?”

“I would greatly appreciate being held, if you don’t mind being periodically kicked by our daughter,” Sayana told him.

“She has not woken me up yet.” He smiled and waited for her to find a suitable spot. Sayana settled into the most comfortable position she could find, and Karis wrapped his arms around her. Sayana dozed off almost immediately. She was exhausted from the previous night. She woke when Kaelea’s activity pressed too hard on her bladder. She struggled to get off the bed, waking Karis in the process, and made her way to the bathroom.

She took care of her needs and made her way into the common room. “Nothing like a baby leaning on your bladder to wake you up from a sound sleep.” She yawned. “Do we need to get ready for dinner with the court?”

“No.” Karis shook his head. “I have sent Imre to let everyone know we are having a private dinner tonight. He would have sent the message via his pad, but it was acting up again, so he offered to deliver the messages personally.”

“His pad isn’t working?” Sayana asked.

Karis shook his head. “Periodically, Imre’s pad will lose the ability to send messages. He has asked to have it repaired a few times, but no one can seem to fix it. He does not want to replace it because it holds the master copy of my schedule and he does not want to lose that, as well as all the notes he has made on various things over the years. He would far rather take messages in person than try to transfer the data from one pad to another.”

“Well, I suppose if he thinks that’s the better option.” Sayana was doubtful about the feasibility of this idea, but Imre apparently was making it work. She shook her head and focused on what else Karis had said. “I’ll greatly appreciate a night off from court. I wasn’t looking forward to the inane comments after what happened last night.”

“I could not have handled it.” Karis brushed his fingers down her arm. Sayana smiled at him. He always did small things to make her realize she was still loved no matter how large and unattractive she felt. It made her feel that Karis truly understood her, something she’d sorely needed while pregnant with Ethian that she was getting now that she was pregnant with Kaelea.

They settled in with their paperwork and started working on it. After a while, Karis glanced at the chronometer. Sayana frowned. Imre wasn’t back yet. She looked at the chronometer as well. It had been nearly forty five minutes since she’d come out into the main room. Imre should have been back. Karis got up and rang for Adem. Adem arrived a few minutes later. “Your Imperial Majesty?” Adem looked around. “Where’s Imre?”

“That is what I want you to find out, Adem.” Karis was concerned. “I sent him on an errand to the seneschal and the enclave forty five minutes ago. I know it is a long trek, but he should have been back by now.”

“I’ll get Lucan, and we’ll go look for him.” Adem turned and hurried out of the room.

“Do you want my sisters and I to go look for him as well, Your Imperial Majesty?” Ardatha asked. “It’s not like Imre to take so long to return from an errand.”

“No, Ardatha.” Karis shook his head. “Leave it to Adem and Lucan. If they cannot find him, we are in serious trouble.”

“Do you think something’s happened to him?” Sayana asked anxiously.

“I do not know, my heart. I hope not. However, I would not put it past our enemies to attack him to get at us,” Karis told her.

It was an hour later when Adem returned, looking grim. “We found him, Your Imperial Majesty. He was in very bad shape. He’d been stabbed several times. We took him to the Imperial doctors, and after we explained who he was, they got to work on him immediately. Lucan went for Demetrios, who came with one of the psychics and got as much information from Imre as he could. They’re putting together pictures of the people who attacked him.”

“It looks like you are my chief aide until Imre recovers, Adem.” Karis was a little pale. He was obviously worried about Imre.

“That’s what I told Imre before they put him under.” Adem looked unusually serious. “Lucan and I can manage you on our own while he’s in the med lab.”

“Did the doctors say if he was going to be all right?” Sayana was concerned. She liked Imre. He was the right person to help keep Karis on track and she didn’t want anything to happen to him.

“He was in serious condition, but they thought he would make a full recovery, Your Imperial Majesty. It will just take some time.” Adem gave her a reassuring smile.

“Thank you, Adem.” Karis looked relieved by that news. Adem nodded and took up the post usually held by Imre. Sayana felt a little jarred by that. She liked Adem, but it was odd to see someone other than Imre in that spot.

“Who do you think could have attacked him?” Sayana asked.

“We will not know until Demetrios reports on what the psychics discovered,” Karis told her. “I only hope it is someone easily apprehended. If it was an assassin, there will be no way to tell who was behind the attack.”

“Could it have been someone Imre was familiar with? Would our enemies have been able to turn those he trusted against him?” Sayana asked, her heart clenching in her chest.

“I can’t think of anyone in the Imperial household who’d betray Imre, Your Imperial Majesty.” Adem spoke up at that point. “And Imre doesn’t deal with the ordinary servants, so he’d never have trusted any of them. No, this has to either be someone from the court itself or someone cloaked.”

“If it’s someone from the court, all they’d have to do is accost Imre with a request for His Imperial Majesty and Imre would stop to listen,” Ardatha agreed. “He’d be easy to strike at that point.”

Another hour passed and Ardatha coughed to get their attention. “I know you’re worried about Imre, Your Imperial Majesties. But you really do need to eat.”

“Yes, Ardatha. We do. Would you and Adem mind going and bringing us our dinner? Take a couple of the guards with you so you do not end up like Imre. Tell them it is on my orders.” Karis looked up from the paperwork they were doing.

“Yes, Your Imperial Majesty.” Ardatha and Adem left.

“The doctors say he’ll make a full recovery, Karis.” Sayana spoke with as much reassurance as she could manage.

“I know, my heart. But who targeted him in the first place?” Karis frowned.

“We just have to wait for Demetrios’ report.” Sayana knew that wasn’t the answer he wanted but it was all she could give him right now.

Ardatha and Adem returned, and they ate. The food stuck in Sayana’s throat as she thought of Imre. She wanted to know who’d attacked him as much as Karis did. She also wanted to know why he’d been attacked. Karis thought it was to get at them. If it was really to cause harm to her and Karis, how cruel could these people be to target an innocent man?

After the servants cleared away the dishes, there was a chime at the door. Adem answered and let Demetrios in. “I am really beginning to despise Menander and Lord Yunus.”

“Were they behind the attack on Imre?” Karis asked.

“Yes, they were.” Demetrios flashed Karis something. “The images we pulled from Imre’s mind were not of assassins but of minor nobles in your upper court. Three men and two women, to be precise, who had a lot to gain by Lord Yunus’ patronage. They were paid well to attack whichever one of the chief servants they saw first – Imre or Ardatha. They were not as familiar with Ardatha as they were with Imre. They went after him today when one of them spotted him and alerted the others. They were not very competent with their vibroblades, so they stabbed him several times and left him lying in the corridor, thinking him dead.”

“He was not.” Karis glanced at the report Demetrios had sent him.

“No. As I said, they were not very competent. I checked with the doctors. Though severe and deep, only two of the eleven stab wounds penetrated anything vital.” Demetrios checked his pad. “He still lost a lot of blood lying there, so there was a risk of him bleeding to death. Adem and Lucan found him just in time.”

“Were you able to scan these would be assassins?” Karis asked.

“We were,” Demetrios said. “Their psychic shields were fragile and easily broken. It was the same thing we’ve seen in other assassination attempts. The same man, identity concealed by cloaking, paid them a visit. He said his rich patron would pay them well to eliminate one of your chief servants. He didn’t care which one. They got the money and when Imre presented himself, they attacked.”

Sayana opened her mouth to speak when a sudden pain spike in her temples caused her to double over and cry out. It was as if someone were hammering on her brain. She clutched her head, sobbing in pain. She heard Demetrios ordering Adem to go get Ivanka, but she couldn’t concentrate. She realized she was under psychic attack. She pushed her shields to their limit, trying to keep the person out. She swore she heard someone snarl and the force increased.

Someone placed a cold hand on her forehead and her shielding doubled, the pain ebbing and the feeling of being attacked dimming. She didn’t need to open her eyes to recognize Ivanka’s mind linked with hers. She let the more powerful psychic handle the attacker until finally he fled, raging that he hadn’t been able to do more damage. She felt Kaelea react and Ivanka put a hand on her stomach.

After a few minutes, Ivanka stepped back. “Bastard,” she muttered. “He’s good, Demetrios. He deliberately targeted the empress and if not for Miren telling me her shields were under attack, we’d never have known. Adem would have come too late. He’s strong enough that Miren’s shields might not have held.”

“Kaelea?” Sayana managed to gasp out.

“She’s fine, Your Imperial Majesty.” Ivanka spoke reassuringly. “She’s agitated but he didn’t get anywhere near her.”

Sayana felt someone put their arms around her. Her overly sensitive mind identified Karis. She leaned against him. “Why would he attack Sayana now? He had to know our minds were shielded again.”

“Not necessarily, Your Imperial Majesty.” Ivanka sounded sure of her answer. “He may have thought you were both unshielded still. They’re getting desperate. I know the flavor of his mind now though, and I will pass it along to my psychics. We’ll be more alert for it. He won’t get a second chance to attack either you or the princes.”

“Why are they so frightened of Kaelea and me?” Sayana asked, tears streaming down her cheeks. She looked up at Demetrios and Ivanka. “Can you tell me that?”

Demetrios did something she didn’t expect. He knelt down in front of her and took her hands. “You represent something to Yunus that he cannot accept, Your Imperial Majesty. You are the direct reason for the ruination of his brother’s plans and why Lord Vasco lost his life. Menander knew this. He probably told Lord Yunus of this, and this has turned the man’s hatred of the emperor into a deep and abiding hatred of you. You and your child represent Lord Vasco’s failure to Lord Yunus, and therefore you must be eliminated to prove to the emperor that Lord Vasco and Lord Yunus are the ones who hold power, not him.”

“But they don’t.” Sayana struggled to regain control of her emotions. “Karis and his government do.”

“You know that.” Demetrios continued holding her hands. “We know that. Yunus, most likely because of Menander’s influence, believes he can change this by killing you and your daughter.”

Sayana felt Karis’ grip tighten on her. “I will not allow them to kill my wife and daughter, Demetrios. Do we have proof enough that they were behind the attack on Imre at least to take them into custody?”

“Yes, and I lack only one item of proof to pin the assassination attempt over the winter on them. I’ve traced the money that financed that attack to an account owned by one of the businesses Lord Yunus controls. It took a lot of digging and we almost missed it because it was so well hidden.” Demetrios looked up at Karis.

“The money for the attack on Imre?” Karis asked.

“Easily traced to the same business, now that we know how to find it.” Demetrios confirmed he’d been able to find the link.

“Bring them in. I want answers, Demetrios. I do not care how you get them.” Sayana heard the ice in her husband’s voice and knew what Karis was ordering.

“I’ll go myself to deal with Menander.” Ivanka sounded grim. “I don’t think we have another psychic on the force strong enough to battle him and win.”

Demetrios nodded. “We will raid Lord Yunus’ house immediately, Your Imperial Majesty. We will not give them time to recover from this attack on the empress.” He rose and left the room with Ivanka close behind.

Sayana leaned against Karis, still shaking from the attack on her and knowing what this was costing Karis. “I am sorry, my heart.” Karis continued to hold her. “I should have acted sooner.”

Sayana winced as Kaelea’s movements grew painful. “You couldn’t act without some kind of proof to back it up, Karis. You have that now so it allows you to bring them in. I only hope there’s minimal loss of life on this one.”

“So do I, my heart.” Karis’ voice was still cold. “I also hope no one tips Yunus and Menander off to our coming because this time I do not want to lose either of them.”

Karis stood beside her, holding her until the trembling stopped, before releasing her and taking his seat on the couch again. They resumed their paperwork, and Sayana finished hers very quickly. She decided to try to read for a bit. She’d finished her book on the fifth emperor and skimmed through the titles in the library until she found one that looked interesting. She opened it and began to read.

“Your Imperial Majesty, do you want more juice?” Ardatha asked, and Sayana looked up to notice her pitcher was empty.

“Yes please, Ardatha.” Sayana needed something to drink. Ardatha picked up the pitcher and left.

“My heart, are you still working?” Karis asked.

“No, I finished a while ago. I’m just reading now.” Sayana showed him what she was doing.

“So am I.” Karis picked up his pad and she saw he was reading as well. It was a peaceful way to spend the evening of a chaotic day.

It was almost midnight when Demetrios returned. “We caught them off guard, Your Imperial Majesty.” There was a triumphant look on his face. “Ivanka took down Menander and my guards took Lord Yunus. We have them both in the hands of the torturers now. Menander was so scrambled by Ivanka he couldn’t do anything, and once we got him under the torturers, he couldn’t focus enough to project anywhere. Ivanka is still with them to keep him from pulling anything, but it’s looking like he’s through.”

“Did you find anything in the sweep of Yunus’ house?” Karis asked.

“We found a great deal of evidence of several plots.” Demetrios seemed very pleased with himself. “We even found Lord Vasco’s pad and several key pieces of information closing some very old cases connected with him that we are now clearing up.”

“Excellent. Let us know once you have a full report.” Karis gave a sigh of relief as Sayana watched years of tension finally leave him.

“I will.” Demetrios looked at Karis. “I assume you want those two executed as soon as we have all the evidence lined up to support it?”

“I do.” Karis pulled up some documents on his pad and filled something out. He flashed it and Demetrios’ pad beeped. Demetrios pulled out his pad. He nodded and tucked it back into its spot on his belt. “That way you do not have to wait for me to sign off on anything.”

“We’ll take care of it, Your Imperial Majesty. Those two have had this coming for a long time.” Demetrios turned and walked out.

“What did you send him?” Sayana asked curiously.

“Execution warrants for Menander and Yunus, so once they have gotten all they need, they can just deal with them.” Karis looked over at her. “I do not want them lingering in the prison and risk Menander escaping again.”

Sayana nodded. “That is eminently sensible.” She yawned. “It’s almost midnight, I am tired, Kaelea is no longer turning somersaults. I’m going to bed. I’m sure Adem is about to threaten bodily harm to you if you don’t join me.”

Adem smiled. “I may not be Imre, but I do know your schedule, Your Imperial Majesty.”

“All right, I am going.” Karis stood. Ardatha called for her sisters and a few minutes later, they followed Sayana into the bedroom. Soon she was curled up on her side and dozing off. She felt the bed move as Karis joined her moments later.