244 Cousin's dilemma

The Commodore's younger son was relieved to be out of the meeting at last. He didn't know what to make of his newly minted cousin. 

The man had been helpful to him before, extremely helpful in fact, but the story of his origins was strange indeed. Was it mere coincidence, or fate at work, that the heirs of two kingdoms should meet and bear a single son, who grew up knowing nothing of either? 

Roland was a perplexing man. Naomi had shared some of his story with Caspian, which she had learned from Mayra. To grow up as a street urchin! An orphan! 

It was not what the grandson of a Cetoan Commodore should have for an upbringing. If he were known to them, he would be the new Commodore now, not Haf. 

That gave Caspian some pause. He thought his father was a great leader, but that Edmar, particularly in his current state, was not fit to be in charge of a family, let alone a nation. 

He didn't want to lead, either. It was not his bent to want power. He could captain a ship well enough, but not be at the head of their people. 

Roland's presence made that possibility somewhat less likely. He wasn't sure exactly how much. His brow furrowed. It would not do. Lineage or not, the man was a foreigner, to both his peoples. 

Two peoples now being joined by hundreds of marriages. 

His understanding was that Roland was the only heir to the leadership of Rhone. If Haf decided that the rank of Commodore should be given, or pass by death, to this foreign prince, would the two nations unite? Perhaps there was fate at work after all. 

He would have to pay close attention to his new cousin. 

Putting these thoughts aside as he neared his home, he looked around for Naomi. The animals were content in their pens, the cows let out to graze. 

He found her in their little garden, harvesting the last of the fall plants. She had a bucket almost full of vegetables, and had a small pair of garden shears to get the last few. He knelt beside her to help.

She startled slightly, obviously having been deep in thought. So small a task surely could not have consumed all her concentration. 

"Hello, again," Caspian said pleasantly to his wife. 

"Have you eaten a midday meal?" She asked, looking ready to pop up and get him something if he hadn't. 

"My mother fed me. Things went longer than expected." 

"Is Edmar alright?" Her voice was hesitant, as if she were afraid to ask.

"No, but we have some ideas on how to move forward, I hope. I spoke with your prince for a while." 

"Prince Roland? He is not my prince anymore. I am of your people now," Naomi easily responded. 

"That may change," Caspian mused absently. 

"What?" His wife looked at him with something akin to alarm. 

"I'm sorry, that phrasing was terrible." He quickly assured her. He had no intention of sending her back to Rhone. "I should have chosen my words more carefully. It was, very oddly, discovered that Prince Roland's mother was a foundling of the Cetoans, lost after a hurricane many years ago. My aunt." 

Naomi's expression was one of blatant disbelief. It was the closest thing to disrespect he'd seen from her and he was momentarily distracted by amusement. 

"You don't believe me." He stated. She quickly schooled her face into a more demure configuration, but the doubt remained. 

"I still do not fully understand sarcasm," Naomi sighed, and picked the last ripe gourd. 

"I'm not being sarcastic," He assured. Another look of skepticism that she couldn't quite hide.

"He's the long-lost prince of Rhone, not of Ceto. That would be ridiculous and impossible… wouldn't it?" She asked. 

"One would think so, but the events seem to line up. Roland is going to write to King Duncan and ask him to come on an official visit. A foreign monarch has never come to the sea before, but it seems merited given the strangeness of what has been uncovered." 

Caspian stood and lifted the heavy bucket. Naomi gathered her things and took the rest of everything inside. She looked conflicted, and he wondered what was on her mind. 

Once in the house, she looked like she would set immediately to another task. He had other ideas. 

Catching her hand, he caught her attention with it as well. He set down the bucket. 

"I'm sure whatever chore is next can wait," He smiled slyly. "Can't it?" 

"Oh. Yes, I suppose it will keep," Her shyness was a delight to him, and he leaned down to kiss her gently. 

The bucket on the floor was very soon forgotten. 

_________________

He had been scared of the dark as a young child. As a man, he'd obviously long gotten over such childish fears. Now, as it crept closer to him, it was a comfort, albeit a chilling one. 

Smiling, he sat up. 

"Hullo, friend. I wondered when you'd return. It's been a while," He greeted the shadows pleasantly. 

"You seem troubled," The familiar whisper came. 

"Yes, well, I'm held in prison by my own family. Can't say I'm particularly delighted about it." Edmar replied. 

"Don't they love you? Appreciate the contributions you make? You've done so much for them." 

"Ha! They wouldn't recognize my value if I hit them over the head with it." Edmar frowned. "Which, by the way… I wasn't overly fond of that particular strategy. People suspected it wasn't an accident. That nosy Ishmael was sure of it! He might've exposed me if I hadn't gotten the chance to shove him overboard during the storm."

"You handled things well." 

"If Father had died, I'm sure they would have investigated much more. It was a terrible plan." Edmar chastised. 

"I will not underestimate them again. It is well that I saved him." 

"You saved him? No, it was Brenna. I thought at first she was an interfering busybody, but she really saved my hide. When Father woke he wouldn't let anyone say a bad word about me." 

"Yes, Brenna is one of my favorites. I provided her with the herbs strong enough to do it... Do you like her?" The whisper became faintly pleased. 

"She's one of yours?" Edmar sat up straighter. 

"Of course. No simple human would have been able to heal your father. I helped her, as I help you." There was a smile in the voice. 

"She's why I'm imprisoned," The man's voice fell. "I love her and want to marry her, but my family disapproves." 

"They want to keep you from true love? What cruelty!" 

"I don't even know if she's all right! They say she managed to escape…" He whined. 

"I am with her. I will not forsake her. I know what it is to be alone, to be imprisoned. I will help you both." 

"What do I do?" Edmar asked in earnest. 

He suddenly awoke, a full set of instructions in his head. 

The darkness of evening was upon the hut. He had been delivered his end of day meal earlier, at which time some men came in and searched his hut rather thoroughly. They left disappointed, and he never discovered what they were looking for. 

He had fallen asleep out of boredom to dream about his shadow-friend.

Tamas really did have his best interests at heart. Last time, he'd even suggested trying to reconcile with Edmar's parents. Taking the advice, Edmar had decided to drop by for dinner with his mother to make up with her. 

The woman had shooed him away, rebuffing his efforts in favor of cooking for Brenna. 

What a terrible change of heart his mother had undergone about the woman he loved! He was sure that after taking a personal interest in Brenna's future, his mother would have been delighted by Edmar's love for the girl. 

How wrong he had been. 

His parents were needlessly incensed by his choice for wife. It was infuriating. They were determined to make his life, and Caspian's miserable. His poor little brother. 

He'd tried to free the man from the marriage their parents forced on Cas, but his younger brother's sense of duty was too strong. 

Edmar had long lost his. 

Standing, he looked around. Roy appeared from the darkness in the corner of the room, a finger to his lips. Edmar thought the child incredibly off putting. Creepy, even. What kind of kid never smiled? But Tamas insisted that Roy was a friend, so Edmar tolerated him. 

Roy held out a piece of rope, which the man took with a curious expression. It was some of the net soaked in the leviathan-attracting herbs. 

"You couldn't find any more herbs? You had to steal some of the net?" Edmar whispered, earning a glare from the boy. 

"Why did you use it all at the same time? I warned you there could be side effects. You have no idea how difficult all that was to find in the first place. It took me nearly a year to track down. " The monotone whisper was nonetheless full of irritation. 

Edmar sighed. A year ago was when Roy had shown him the dark world, and he had learned about how to travel without the Leviathan. They had both learned much that day, the day he met Tamas. 

"Let's go," Roy whispered, opening a portal once more.