Chapter 53: Duty or Love?
The imperial gardens offered rare privacy for Empress Alexia and her daughter. As night fell, paper lanterns illuminated winding paths between meticulously shaped hedges and flowering trees that perfumed the air. Guards maintained a discreet distance, just far enough to be out of earshot while still providing protection.
"You can’t seriously be considering withholding the key," Liona said, her voice kept deliberately low despite their isolation. She paused beside a night-blooming jasmine, its white flowers luminous in the lantern light.
Alexia walked beside her daughter, her expression troubled.
Alexia’s fingers found the small key she wore on a chain beneath her robes. "The vault contains the legacy of Caius Van Ambrose. His scrolls and his swords. Sunfire and Luna."
Liona asked. "It’s his birthright. Keeping it from him will only antagonize him further."
Alexia studied her daughter’s face. "It’s not the contents that concern me, but what Grim might do with them. Those techniques and weapons were powerful enough to make Caius a legend. In the hands of someone with Grim’s temperament and obvious resentment..."
"Is it?" Liona met her mother’s gaze evenly. "I’m being pragmatic. He’s made it clear he’ll get what he wants with or without our cooperation. Better to yield on this and maintain some goodwill."
"Or perhaps your judgment is clouded by past feelings," Alexia suggested carefully.
Liona fell silent, her eyes following the path ahead. After several moments, she spoke again. "Giving him the key could be a tactical advantage. It would put him in our debt, or at least make him believe we’re acting in good faith."
"And if what’s in that vault makes him more dangerous?" Alexia asked.
"Wouldn’t making him stonger and be on his good side a good thing." Liona asked.