In Which Ovrean Considers the Grand Scheme of Things

September 28, 1167

As the mere stepfather, Ovrean wasn't sure whether or not he had the right to send Lorn to bed early--especially if one considered the fact that the boy was a duke and he himself, only a knight--but the kid had gone without questioning. He knew he'd overstepped a boundary. He knew how hysterical his mother had been when they'd discovered he wasn't in the castle. He knew what he'd done had been selfish, cruel, and unfathomably stupid.

And yet, Lorn had just prevented--or at least stalled--a genocide. The panic throughout the keep over his disappearance seemed almost trivial now; Ovrean just hoped that Celina and the baby were all right.

"He's home," he announced as he stepped into the bedchamber. He heard a sigh of relief from the bed; at least it seemed that Celina had been trying to stay calm, if she had retired so early. "I sent him to bed, but if you want to see him, I could go and get him."

Nodding, Celina ran her hand over her swollen midriff as Ovrean made his way toward the bed. "I'll go to him in a few minutes--I can still walk, and wherever he's been, I imagine he's had a rather taxing day."

Ovrean frowned. "So have you."

"Yes, but now that I know he's home safely, I'm fine," she insisted, "and the baby's still kicking, if you were worried about that; in fact, a little stroll down to Lorn's room and back might soothe him somewhat."

"Fair enough." He sat himself down on the bed and adjusted the pillow, swinging his legs onto the mattress and reclining beside her. She was being awfully quiet--perhaps she thought he hadn't been strict enough? "Anyway... do you care to punish him for this?"

Celina frowned. "Other than being sent to bed early, what has he had?"

"Well, Severin gave him an earful--Lorn had Raia with him, as well as Master Indruion's boy--and then we endured a rather painful silence on the way home. Also, his influence might be somewhat compromised now, since I can't see him making any important decisions without the approval of Severin or Octavius for quite some time."

His wife pursed her lips, then closed her eyes as she considered. "As long as he's learned his lesson, then I don't see the need for anything more extreme, but I'm confused as to how his influence plays into this. What exactly did he do? Did he go against a collective decision?"

From what Ovrean understood, he hadn't--not really. Lorn had just done something on an unprecedented level of recklessness, something that could have easily cost him and his friends their lives... and yet, somehow, he'd gotten lucky. Very lucky. His foolish, childish plan had--against all imaginable odds--actually worked, and instead of killing himself and Raia and Had, he'd saved only God knew how many innocent people. Lorn realized now, Ovrean believed, just how incredibly fortunate he'd been; he knew something like that could never possibly work twice, and he would never do it again. And really, in the grand scheme of things...

"Celina, your son just saved the kingdom."

NEXT CHAPTER: