After Lerial makes certain that Emerya is settled, and that includes transferring a half squad of lancers to the palace to serve as her personal guards, he returns to Guard headquarters. He doubts that Emerya needs protection from anyone in the palace itself, but he is far less certain about whether there are other merchanters who might pose a threat to her, simply because they would prefer that Rhamuel not be physically strong. He hopes that perhaps Rhamuel will invite him to a private dinner, with Emerya, but such an invitation does not appear. Upon reflection, he suspects that the duke feels that such a “personal” dinner before the memorial might be seen less than favorably, if only by powerful merchanters, since Lerial doubts others in Afrit care that much about the duke’s personal habits.
Lerial is still thinking over those matters, along with another, long after he has eaten in the officers’ mess at Guard headquarters and returned to his quarters. The other concern is the fact that the merchanters, and even Rhamuel himself, seem unaware of how they are regarded by the everyday people in Afrit, and that sense is reinforced when he thinks about the reaction of his rankers over the years and, more recently, the comments of the couple at the cloth factorage, and even the reaction of Immar the innkeeper. While he certainly understands that Rhamuel needs to remain highly wary of the powerful merchanters, it seems to him that doing a few more things that gain the confidence of the small merchants, crafters, and tradespople would be helpful. That was something his grandmere had been most aware of … and one of the reasons why there was a Hall of Healing in Cigoerne, one well away from the palace.
Lerial is still half musing about that on oneday when he and a squad from Eleventh Company ride to the palace for the morning memorial to Mykel. Norstaan, wearing the crimson dress uniform of the Afritan Guard, meets Lerial at the stables almost as soon as Lerial has dismounted.
“Good morning, ser.”
“Good morning.” Lerial smiles. “What do I need to know about the ceremony?”
“It will begin at eighth glass, but everyone except you, the lady healer, and the duke and his family will be in place before that…”
After going over the arrangements, and allowing Lerial to inform his men of their duties, Norstaan adds, “This evening, there will be a family dinner at the palace. You and Lady Emerya are invited, and even the Lady Haesychya will be there.”
As Norstaan continues, Lerial follows him into the middle section of the palace, where Emerya waits. She wears a black and white mourning head scarf over her healer’s head scarf, arranged so that both show, suggesting both her understanding of the memorial and her position in Swartheld.
“I will leave you two here for a few moments,” Norstaan says. “The duke and his family will be here shortly.”
Once the undercaptain is out of sight, Lerial asks, “Do you know who in the duke’s family is likely to be here? I can’t imagine Haesychya will be.”
“I haven’t talked to him since we left his study yesterday.”
“You haven’t?”
“Propriety and concern, dear nephew.”
“You mean that you’re concerned about his propriety?” banters Lerial. His voice is low. “Or … I’m sorry.”
“I think you understand.” Emerya’s voice is cool.
Lerial does. Emerya has made the first and dramatic move in coming to Swartheld. Now … the question is whether Rhamuel will reciprocate. Lerial knows Rhamuel wants to, but rulers do not and often feel they cannot do what they personally wish. Lerial also doesn’t know, not for certain, how strong an influence Sammyl will be. “I hope he has the sense to do what is right for both of you.”
“He will do what he thinks is right.”
Lerial understands what she means by that as well.
Before long, Lerial sees four figures in dress uniforms approaching: Sammyl, Ascaar, Dhresyl, and Norstaan—the three senior commanders of the Afritan Guard and the duke’s personal aide.
Norstaan hurries ahead to meet Lerial and Emerya. “If you two would follow the commanders out, and take your places … The duke and his family are on their way.”
“We can do that.”
After exchanging brief pleasantries with the commanders, Lerial and Emerya follow them along the corridor and out through a doorway on the east side of the palace, taking a position on the north side of the stone platform, with the timber framework holding Mykel’s coffin, under which is a mixture of fatwood and huge long-burning hardwood logs. They stand some four yards back and about three yards to the left of where the duke and his family will be, directly in front of the four Mirror Lancers who had taken positions earlier, with Emerya the one closer to the duke’s position, an arrangement, Norstaan has declared, that reflects Rhamuel’s wishes. An equal distance to the right from where the duke will be are Sammyl, Ascaar, and Dhresyl, representing the Afritan Guard, with four Afritan Guard rankers behind them. On the west side of the stone platform stand the palace retainers. Lerial understands that, for a more public memorial, prominent merchants and others would stand on the east side.