“Master Santiago,” Iván adds. “Do you know of him?”
The prince’s eyes narrow. “He was the dowager queen’s personal guard for many years. I don’t know him well, but he is not Royal Guard.”
“So, in your judgment, he should not be trusted?” I ask.
“Definitely not. Like I said, I don’t know him well, but I did know Grandmamá, and she hated Elisa.”
“How could she?” I say. “They hardly spoke.”
“Maybe hate is too strong a word. She disapproved of her. Elisa was too foreign, too fat, too young. Grandmamá always hoped Papá would remarry, but she had her sights set on several other women, many of whom she foisted on him at every opportunity. A few even became his mistresses.” Rosario frowns. “I was such a stupid little boy. Every time he got a new mistress, I toddled after her, hoping she would become my mother. How pathetic is that?”
“You ended up getting the best mother of all,” I point out.
Rosario’s face softens. “True. And Hector has been more of a father to me than the king ever was.”
“Yes, well, that’s not saying much,” Iván says. “The list of things that were a better father to you than King Alejandro is very long. Like the plague, which at least shows up once in a while.”
I round on Iván, ready to lay into him, but I hear Rosario chuckle.
“And the list of things less traitorous than your father is equally long,” Rosario says. “Like a mosquito, which will stab you in the back only once.”
Both boys are grinning ear to ear now, and I realize I’m on the outside of an old joke.
Suddenly they’re both looking at me expectantly. Like I’m supposed to contribute something.
I say, “At least you both know who your father is! The list of degenerates who could be my father is longer than both your lists.”
“My little sister has a good point,” Rosario says, and a lump lodges in my throat because it feels so normal for him to call me that.
“We can at least be certain he was an Invierno, right?” Iván says.
“A worthless Invierno snake, you mean, who left my mother pregnant and alone,” I say.
Iván says, “If we had a flagon of wine right now, I’d raise a toast to surviving terrible fathers.”
“Hear, hear,” Rosario says.
“I’d drink to that,” I say.
“Anyway, I think Red’s father was an animagus,” Rosario says. “Red can sense Godstones, even better than a priest. Did you know that, Iván?”
“I’ve heard a little about it.”
“Her affinity is so strong that . . . Red, is that your magic mark showing?”
My hand flies to my hairline before I can stop it. “I . . .”
“I thought you took some dye with you as one of your three items.”
“It was vandalized.”
Rosario’s eyes widen. “Oh . . . well, I’ll get you some more. I’ll have it delivered to the barracks within two—”
“I don’t need more dye. I’ll be fine.” I blink rapidly for a moment, letting my own words echo in my head. I don’t need more dye.
Before he can respond, the monastery bells ring the half hour, and I nearly jump out of my seat. We must be directly beneath the bell tower, for it to clang so loudly. How do the priests ever sleep?
Rosario gives me a look of sympathy. He says, “Back to business, yes? I received a message by pigeon yesterday. The empress’s procession has passed the oasis and is heading into the Hinder Mountains. They should reach Amalur in less than two weeks. Elisa is in good health. She sends her best wishes for Bolivar’s recovery. Also . . .” He pauses before adding: “Mena lost her first tooth.”
My smile falters as soon as it comes. Rosario is not smiling either.
“This is all good news, right?” Iván says.
“Yes, good news,” Rosario says dully.
I know how he feels. Neither of us is there to exclaim over Ximena’s missing tooth. Neither of us will be there when Elisa’s baby is born.
“You don’t seem pleased,” Iván observes.
“It’s just . . . when certain people are gone,” Rosario says, “it feels like part of your very self is gone. Like an arm. Or a heart.”
Iván looks back and forth between us. “The very best thing we can do in their absence is figure out what’s happening and keep you safe.”
“Agreed,” I say. “Rosario, now that Fernando is injured, do you have anyone else to protect you?”
He nods. “I have three personal bodyguards remaining.”
Iván frowns. “That means you only have two, since they must sleep in shifts.”
“Yes.”
“It’s not enough,” Iván says.
“No.”
“I can talk to my brother, see if he can spare some of his own personal guard.”
“Juan-Carlos needs his personal guard as much as I do.”
“No!” I say, a little too fiercely. “No one needs a guard more than you. You’re being targeted, little brother. They’re chipping away at your defenses, bit by bit. Making you vulnerable, as if preparing for something. If we don’t shore up your guard, Iván and I should quit the recruits to be at your side.”
“Just say the word, Highness,” Iván says, “and we’ll both be there.”
Rosario is shaking his head. “Bigger things are coming, and I need you both in the Royal Guard,” he says. “Do you understand? I’m ordering you to do everything you can to not get cut.”
“But—” Iván starts to protest.
“I’ll talk to Juan-Carlos,” Rosario says. “That was a good idea. I’m sure he can spare a man or two.”
Iván slumps a little in relief.
“So what’s our next move?” I ask no one in particular. “We still need to talk to Valentino, I suppose. To find out if he took sweet dream.”
“Yes, we’ll make that a priority,” Iván says.
“The stable hand is gone,” I remind them. “So how do we communicate when one of us has something to report?”
“An assistant cook has informed for us on occasion,” Rosario says. “He’s been doing the job for only a few years, but the spymaster trusts him. I’ll have him identify himself to you, so be ready.”
“Only a few years?” I say.
“Yes, why?”
“You said the spies who disappeared are all people who have been doing the job a long time.”
The prince turns thoughtful. Light from the oil lamp sheens against his black hair, making it appear coppery.
Iván says, “The spies who disappeared . . . exactly how long had they been working as spies?”
Rosario considers this a moment. “Everyone who disappeared had been working for us at least nine years.”
I say, “I don’t understand how well-established spies were compromised but newer ones were not. That makes no sense.”
“Unless . . .” Iván begins, “the person behind this is not familiar with current operations.”