The Reign of Trees (9 page)

“We wrote to King Gregory and insisted the shipment had met with disaster on its way to Freidlenburg. He was understanding, however, he required the next shipment come a week early. We did as he asked. We sent the next shipment early and sent a small group of soldiers to protect the caravan. But again, the entire fleet vanished. No wood. No horses. No men. King Gregory was not so understanding this time. He accused us of lying and said that such a large number of men and horses could not disappear without it being whispered of among the gypsies and robbers. He put us on warning: we had but a fortnight to provide the shipment to Freidlenburg or it would be considered an act of war.”

Donovan paced for a moment and then turned back to Illianah. His eyes were black with pain. “Your father was right. Two shipments could not disappear without a single forest thug knowing of it. We sent our best hunters and scouts into the forest between here and Freidlenburg. The wagon train was not attacked anywhere along the route. They were attacked when they reached Freidlenburg.”

“That is preposterous.”

“We had hoped as much. But when word came that Prince Harrington and his new bride were to honeymoon in Freidlenburg, we knew Burchess was hiding something. Why else would such an isolated, barren village be chosen as a spot for your holiday? We had sent a request to King Gregory to allow us to investigate the area surrounding Freidlenburg, looking for any signs of our shipment, but we were denied, due to the royal newlyweds being in residence. We took this as a sign that King Gregory did not want us to come close to Freidlenburg, as a hundred soldiers were also now in residence. We knew whatever evidence was at Freidlenburg would be taken to the capital upon your departure. If we were to find proof, it had to be done while you were still there.”

“And so you attacked Freidlenburg and found nothing, but captured me instead. Now I know what you are asking of my father. You want him to admit that he brought destruction upon your shipments. No wonder he is not negotiating. He will not take blame when he has done nothing wrong.” Illianah felt like her mind had expanded and she was now akin to the greatest intellectuals on the continent. She finally understood the conflict. She could see how Deltegra would need to find someone to blame for their missing shipments, but putting the blame on her father was completely irrational. “You have sorely misjudged my father. He would never do anything to harm innocent men, nor would he do anything to destroy your treaty.”

Donovan let out a sour-sounding chuckle and paced away from her again. His hands were behind his back, his posture straight and proud. He did not look like a man who was being scolded for his errant thinking. When he turned back toward her, he looked confident. And smug. “You do not know King Gregory well, do you?”

“Of course I know him well. He is my father.” Illianah sat taller, wanting her posture to match Donovan’s. How dare he claim that Illianah was not close with her only family member? Her father was all she had. And likewise for him: she was all he had.

… And the kingdom of Burchess. The kingdom was his as well. He often affectionately referred to Burchess as his child. She tried to shrug away thoughts of the jealousy she often felt when her father referred to his kingdom with such great love.

“Let us review the history of relations between Burchess and Deltegra, just so we know we are speaking of the same King Gregory,” Donovan said. He was still pacing, like a scholar on the brink of making an earthshattering discovery.

It was driving her mad. She did not wish to be taught by Donovan. “I do not need a history lesson, thank you,” she said as she stood. She had planned on leaving the room to get away from his insults to her and her kingdom, but he quickly stepped toward her and grabbed her arm.

“Please hear me out, Illianah,” he said with soft persuasion.

His hand wrapped around her wrist, causing a burning sensation to travel up her arm and into her heart. But then he quickly removed his hand, as if he just remembered he should not be touching another man’s wife. Although his hand was now gone, she could still feel the ghostly imprint his touch had left behind. She still wanted to flee, but her legs seemed as if they had been charred and turned to stubble. She had no choice but to listen.

“Our great countries were at odds from the beginning, back when Deltegra was separated from your land and given to my grandfather four times removed. But as our rugged landscape was deemed uninhabitable and our people were declared backwards, a union between our countries was unnecessary, even though King
Polard
and King Lamont were once the closest of kin. We lived as enemies, yet neither kingdom posed a threat to the other. But that changed not long after our births, Illianah.”

She already knew this. When she was a toddling child, the great New Land had been discovered far across the sea. In the New Land, more gold could be harvested in a single day than had ever been mined in an entire decade in Burchess. Riches beyond any king’s vain imaginations would be found in the New Land. King Gregory had quickly jumped into the race across the vast sea and claimed the land as his own and named it New Burchess. A new colony was formed there. To support the new colony that was to mine the endless amount of gold, many ships were needed to take supplies to the new land, as well as give new settlers and soldiers passage to New Burchess. In order to build all those ships, King Gregory needed wood. Deltegran wood.

Burchess was flat and dry—almost barren of trees. But Deltegra was the opposite. The mountains were green and lush. The cool climate and frequent rains gave way to the greatest forests in Western Corridor. King Gregory knew a treaty with Deltegra must be reached at once if he were to sustain the growth of New Burchess.

King Henrick—happy to finally have something to export and thus add wealth to his impoverished nation—eagerly agreed to provide timber to Burchess. And to show his commitment to Burchess, King Henrick offered the hand of his son, Prince Donovan Henrick. The two kingdoms would become more than just friendly. They would be united.

Donovan had told Illianah many years ago how her name was the only female name he had ever heard, outside of his mother’s and sister’s. Before he could even speak, his ears continually heard the praises of the lovely Illianah. He called her “Lily” as a young child, as his tongue had not yet learned to roll through the delicate syllables of her given name.

Illianah’s memories of Donovan were not as favorable. She remembered being told she was to marry the young prince from Deltegra, a kingdom she had always found repulsive. And Donovan was two years younger than she. She thought it was ridiculous to think of marrying a baby. But as she grew, so did he. Every two years, he would come to Burchess with his father, and each time he seemed less and less like a baby and more and more like a man. When he came to Burchess in his sixteenth year, Illianah could see the potential. In fact, she found him favorable. He had grown to be distinguished and princely, yet within his eyes remained a boyish twinkle, indicating that he continued to seek adventure and mischief. She also noticed a look of adoration anytime his eyes fell upon her. She knew he would cherish her, and that thought made her heart feel as if it was being blown by the gentlest of winds. Was it possible that her arranged marriage would actually bring her great happiness? She felt so blessed, like the misery of living a life without a mother and sisters would finally become a life like she read of in fairy tales.

But then the negotiations with King Henrick fell to pieces. Henrick and his son left after nightfall in the second fortnight of the visit; the prince did not even have the dignity to say goodbye.

“I am older than you, Donovan. I have a perfect recollection of what has happened during our lifetimes.”

“Yes. You know what your father has told you; but perhaps there is more than just his side of the story.”

Illianah did not want to hear Donovan’s perspective, but the deep pleading within his eyes begged her to remain silent. She sat back in the armchair. He did not sit, but he did not resume his pacing either. He stood still, the sadness upon his face indicating that this was something he did not want to recollect.

“When we came to Burchess two years ago to create the marriage treaty, I fully expected to leave
there
betrothed. In fact, I hoped for it.”

If this was the point of view he wanted to share with her, she thought she might have to fling her body into the fire. Listening to his story may very well turn her soul to ashes. Her thoughts of that time gave her enough pain as it was; she did not want to give consideration to
his
pain.

“King Gregory demanded us to increase our yearly timber production, however, he did not increase the amount he was to pay for the extra wood. We agreed, recognizing he should be entitled to price abatement as we were soon to be bonded. A week after the initial treaty had been signed, he added an addendum: Deltegra was not to export wood to any other country. This grieved my father greatly. The amount King Gregory was to pay annually was not enough to support our workforce. My father had agreed to the low price, knowing he would be able to supplement our annual funds with exports to other countries like Liksland, who had already shown great interest in our wood. King Gregory said in exchange for our absolute allegiance, he would offer troops to enforce our borders. Thieves from the north and the west had been sneaking into our forests and stealing wood while we slept. We needed support from more soldiers, so my father agreed. He sent word to our diplomat in Liksland to stop negotiations with King Edvard. Our diplomat quickly replied, saying that he had just received word from Liksland stating the same thing. Our wood was not needed. They had already negotiated with another country for wood at a much lower price. After digging and prying, our diplomat was able to discover that the wood was to come from Burchess. It was Deltegran wood. Wood we were selling to your father for a fraction of market value. Your father was betraying us, before the ink on the treaty had even dried.”

“That is ridiculous. My father did no such thing.”

 
“I assure you he did. King Henrick confronted your father. King Gregory said that once the wood was in his possession, he could do whatever he liked with it. It was none of our business if he desired to sell excess wood to Liksland. But my father disagreed. He said he did not like being taken advantage of. It affected his ability to allow Deltegra to prosper. Do you know what your father said?” he asked.

“Of course not. I was not there. I was being romanced by a conniving boy-prince. I took no part in the negotiations.”

Donovan flinched, ever so slightly. Perhaps it reminded him of those weeks they had spent together, riding horses through the farmlands and relaxing at the lake. “What did your father tell you when I left, Illianah?

She had thought she would never repeat the words her father had said on the morning after King Henrick and his son left, but she found her mouth opening without her permission. “He said he found you unfavorable. Both you and your father were only seeking after riches and he found you unfit and undeserving of my love. He said it was pure foolishness that he had allowed your father to think a Deltegran would ever be a suitable heir to the throne of Burchess.”

“His words to you were much kinder than his words to my father. We left as slaves. It was demanded that we still honor the treaty and sell our wood to Burchess at a fraction of its worth. We were not to engage in trade with any other kingdom. If we did not keep our end of the treaty, we would find death and destruction upon our heads. In fact, your father said that I would live to see the day when
he
would rule Deltegra. He never intended us to marry, Illianah. It was a ploy to put Deltegra under his control. He never would have allowed me to become heir to Burchess. I was not worthy of it. That would not have changed, no matter how much my timber was worth. He played with our hearts, Princess.”

Her body felt as if it had been lit on fire. She jumped out of her chair and stood face to face with Donovan. “He did no such thing. My father is not like you. You cannot assume he would think so cunningly.”

Donovan did not back away from her rage. “My heart knows no cunning thoughts. It is not in my nature, nor is it my father’s. Otherwise, we would have never signed a treaty without first uniting the marriage.”

Her breath caught. Yes, Donovan was right on that accord. A liar—a deceiver—would not have entered into negotiations so blindly.

“How long, Princess, after I had left before you were told you would marry the Duke of Harrington?”

“I … I do not know.” She could not remember the exact amount of time that had passed; all she knew was that it was too soon. Her heart was still raw and bleeding from the loss of Donovan’s proposal.

“Was it soon?”

“Yes,” she hated to admit.

“Either your father did not waste any time making arrangements for your future after I was deemed unworthy, or your marriage to Leif had been in the works before I was sent away.”

She gasped. “How dare you speak of my father like that? He would never arrange one marriage on top of the other.”

“Yes, you must forgive me. It is difficult not to accuse a man of such errant deeds when he has already exhibited himself to be so unscrupulous.”

“You have your opinions of my father, and I have mine. I will never believe what you accuse my father of.”

“Really?” Donovan turned away from her, but before she could even blink, he returned. His expression had changed from contemplative to determined. “Walk with me,” he said.