Dagmar walked into the hall just as Annwyl and Elina were putting away the pieces of the strategy game Annwyl loved so much. She’d spent the morning at the kennels with Adda and was happy that her dog was healing well. It would be some time before she’d be her old self, but Adda had done her job better than Dagmar could have ever asked. And, in a bit, Dagmar was going to have a place made up in her room just for Adda so that she could heal in peace and comfort on a proper bed. Although Dagmar wasn’t sure that Gwenvael would be happy about sleeping on the floor until Adda could walk again. But she’d worry about that later.
For now, though, Dagmar was determined to get some answers. So she marched over to the queen and asked, “What are you planning to do with that tower you’re building?”
Annwyl frowned. “The tower?”
“The one right outside?” Dagmar practically snarled between clenched teeth. “You really can’t miss it.”
“Oh! The tower.” Annwyl shrugged. “It’s going to be a library.”
Dagmar jerked a little. “It’s going to be a what?”
“A library. Well . . . a library slash new home for Bram.”
“A new home for Bram? You mean because of the assassination attempt?”
“No, I was planning all this before the attempt. Because of Var.”
Now Dagmar was completely confused. “Var? What does Var have to do with anything?”
“We spend a lot of time in the current library we have. You know, discussing books, battle tactics . . . how not to let his father irritate him so much. He really wanted to go live with Bram, but I knew that would not sit well with you, although you’d probably let him do it anyway. But I need you focused, not worried about your son a few miles away. Especially now. Plus, we needed a new library anyway, since the one we have has already run out of space on the shelves. So I figured Bram could live in the tower rather than where he does and tend the books, since he likes to do that. Add in that Ghleanna and their offspring already spend most of their time here, and it just seemed . . . logical.”
Dagmar briefly closed her eyes. “Annwyl . . . why haven’t you told any of us this?”
“No one asked.”
“Oh, Annwyl, come on! Everyone asked.”
“They didn’t ask me. Not one of you asked me what the tower was for. You just asked me what I was building . . . which was always a tower.”
Dagmar frowned and glanced off. “We didn’t ask you what it was for?”
“Nope. The only one who asked was Fearghus. At the very beginning. And he just smiled and nodded and said, ‘That’s a lovely idea.’”
Dagmar crossed her arms over her chest. “Are you telling me that Fearghus knew what that tower was? He always knew?”
“Of course he knew.”
Dagmar rubbed her hands over her face. “I am starting to realize that Fearghus is more like his mother than any of us realized.”
Annwyl stared at Dagmar with narrowed eyes. “What did you think I was building the tower for?”
Dagmar gazed at the queen and then . . . lied her ass off.
“Oh . . . nothing. We . . . didn’t have a clue. That’s why I was asking. Yes. That’s why I was asking.”
Celyn could only blame himself when he was put into that headlock. And he really didn’t help the situation when he kept screaming, “But you report to me! Show me some respect!”
It got so bad that finally their mother yanked them apart.
“Both of you, stop it!”
“I can’t believe that Uncle Bercelak put him in charge of anything except the queen’s bowel movements!” Brannie screamed.
“Well, someone had to wipe her ass!” Celyn shot back, which got him a slap to the back of the head from his mother.
“I said stop it! You should be congratulating your brother! And you stop egging your sister on! Now apologize!”
“Sorry, Mum,” they said together.
“Not to me, you little idiots. To each other!”
“I’d rather have my scales removed!”
“I’d rather be covered in acid!”
Ghleanna grabbed them both by the back of the neck and squeezed. Rather hard. “I. Said. Apologize.”
“Sorry, Brannie.”
“Sorry, Celyn.”
Ghleanna released them. “I have no problem with healthy competition between my offspring. But when one of you does well, the others are supposed to be happy about it. That’s what we do! Do you understand?” she bellowed.
“Aye.”
“I can’t hear you!”
“Aye!”
“Good! Now I’ll hear nothing else about it.”
“But,” Celyn quickly asked, “I’ll still get a feast to celebrate my promotion, won’t I, Mum?”
Ghleanna gripped her son’s face between both her hands and said, “Of course you will, my little hatchling. I am just so proud of you!”
“Thanks, Mum,” Celyn said, and he tried not to laugh when he saw his sister making gagging motions behind their mother’s back.
“Now I’ll go find Annwyl and see when we can have this feast, and you two be nice to each other. Understand?”
“Aye.”
“I can’t hear you!”
“Aye!”
“Good.”
Elina walked up to them with her bow and quiver. “If you look for Annwyl,” she said, “she is gone.”