When he reached the receiving hall, he found the merchant standing near the center of the room, his hands clasped in front of him and his head bowed slightly. The middle-aged man had a neatly trimmed beard and fine but modest clothing – enough to signal his wealth without flaunting it. At his feet was a small chest, its polished wood gleaming in the sunlight.
“Sir Celestio,” Eligius said when he saw the advisor. His voice was smooth and practiced, the kind of voice that could easily close a deal with a difficult customer. “Thank you for seeing me on such short notice.”
“You’re late,” Celestio said bluntly, leaving the cart of the prince’s gifts at the entrance. “His Highness’s birthday banquet was last night. If you wished to present him with a gift, you should have been here then.”
The merchant’s smile faltered slightly and he inclined his head in an apologetic gesture. “I must beg your forgiveness,” he said. “A sudden storm several miles south forced my carriage to take shelter, and by the time we arrived last night, the banquet had already ended.”
Celestio’s eyes narrowed slightly. “And you managed to arrive early enough this morning to request a personal audience with His Highness.”
The merchant hesitated. “I wished to ensure that His Highness received my humble gift,” he said, gesturing to the chest at his feet. “It is a rare treasure from the eastern provinces. A token of my respect and gratitude for His Highness’s continued patronage and good health.”
Celestio studied the merchant for a long moment. Finally, he stepped closer, his gaze flicking briefly to the chest before returning to the man’s face. “His Highness is indisposed,” he said. “I will accept the gift on his behalf.”
“And, to further offer my sincerest apologies to His Highness’s dearest and most beloved advisor,” Eligius went on, “I am afraid that I only have this to give.” He held out a parcel wrapped in brown paper.
Celestio accepted the humble gift and pulled the twine loose. “Hm,” he said. “And you believe this is a suitable bribe to the second-most important member of His Highness’s court?”
“I believe it is suitable for Sir Celestine’s little boy who loves raspberries and finds it acceptable to spit chocolate onto my shoes.”
Celestio couldn’t keep a straight face anymore, a grin cracking his stern expression. “My father agreed that it was particularly rancid chocolate,” he defended himself, bringing a dried raspberry to his mouth.
Eligius laughed, the booming sound filling the room with a comfortable warmth.
“His Highness has a few meetings this afternoon. I will be sure to fit you into his schedule,” Celestio assured him.
“I am in your debt,” Eligius said, bowing to the advisor again.
The merchant left the receiving hall to attend to other matters and Celestio eyed the chest with a sigh. He didn’t think he could push the cart and carry the chest, which was too large to fit in the little remaining space. He crouched and began poking around the gifts on the bottom of the cart, shifting them to make room for the newest gift while he absentmindedly munched on the raspberries.
Did Sabas like raspberries? Fruit was not one of the topics the Alpha had brought up in his barrage late the previous night. He should stop by Sabas’s guest chambers and check on him.
Celestio blinked and shook his head, trying to empty it of the inappropriate thought. Any excuse he could offer to the other personnel for personally visiting a guest would be transparent and whispers would begin. He didn’t even know how much of the Alpha’s pheromones still clung to him. He needed to focus on Edess.
He stood from the cart as a servant walked by, a male with slim shoulders and a light build under the castle’s uniform. The servant’s hair was long and black, tied neatly at the back of his head in a low tail that swayed faintly as he moved. It was an odd style for a male servant; even the females with longer hair usually wore braids. This one stuck out because he was one of the servants he had seen speaking with Darion at the banquet, seeming to serve the Alpha personally. Celestio’s chest twisted – after Sabas had rescued him, what had Darion done? Surely he hadn’t given up and retreated alone to his guest chambers.
Celestio’s brow furrowed as the servant passed. “Wait!”
The servant froze and turned towards him, his eyes lowered to the ground. “Yes, Sir Celestio? Is something the matter?”
Celestio closed the distance between them. He could see the man’s face and exposed skin clearer now. It didn’t look like an Alpha left any visible marks on him….
“You were at His Highness’s banquet last night,” he said.
“Yes, sir.”
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“Did any of the guests behave inappropriately toward you?”
“No, Sir Celestio. Every guest behaved worthy of their station.”
“Good,” he said, nodding slowly. “When did your employment in the castle begin?”
“Two months ago, sir.”
“Are you aware that I do not tolerate inappropriate behavior towards the castle staff, regardless of the offender’s station?”
“Yes, sir. The other servants have informed me of your fervent protection for the Betas and Omegas of the castle. It is an honor to have someone such as yourself so diligently look out for us.”
Celestio had to admit – the flattery was nice to hear.
“And should you ever be put into a situation through no fault of your own, I expect to hear about it, whether from your mouth directly or another servant.”
“Of course, Sir Celestio.”
“Good.” Celestio stepped back to the cart brimming with the prince’s birthday presents. “Please continue cleaning the hall.”
The servant bowed deeply and continued on his way.
Celestio bent down and dragged the small chest onto the cart. The more he thought about it, he couldn’t remember seeing that servant in that room at the end of the night. He would have to check with the other staff later to ensure that the young servant was telling the truth. They didn’t need to have someone so new fall victim to an unscrupulous Alpha, and risk the incident besmirching Edess’s reputation.
He put his package of raspberries on top of the cart and pushed his entire weight against it, the wheels quietly squealing in protest. The prince’s chambers awaited, and there were still countless tasks to do. He didn’t need to imagine problems to solve when there were already so many real ones that needed his attention.
Celestio knocked on the doorframe to the prince’s chambers before stepping inside, carefully maneuvering the small cart weighed down with gifts. The room was brighter now, the garbage removed from the furniture and floor, though Edess still looked worse for wear. He was slouched on his sofa, a cup of tea cradled in his hands as he stared out the open window with a weary expression.
“Here are some of the gifts from last night’s banquet,” Celestio announced, his tone brisk as he parked the cart next to the sofa. “I’ve made sure to bring all the wine.”
Edess glanced over, his bloodshot eyes sweeping over the cart. “Can’t you just pick out the good ones for me and send the rest to storage?”
Celestio didn’t rise to the bait. “You will want to take note of who sent what. It’s only polite to acknowledge the gifter’s generosity.”
The prince groaned, setting his cup down on the tea table in front of him. “Fine, fine,” he said with a dramatic sigh. “Let’s get it over with.”
Celestio began unloading the cart, carefully placing each gift on the table. There were ornate boxes filled with fine jewelry and jars of rare spices and preserves amongst the wine bottles. The one item that caught the prince’s eye was a tall, slender bottle, its glass a striking shade of cobalt blue that matched the Kingdom of Soura’s national color. The label was handwritten in an elegant script, but there was no indication of who had sent it.
He reached for his ledger that sat at the very corner of the tea table and flipped through the pages. “I’m not sure who sent that one,” he said. “It looks like the bottle was specially made for you. I took inventory notes for every gift as they arrived, but…”
He trailed off, his frown deepening as he rummaged through the dozens of pages of notes. He flipped through page after page, his movements growing more agitated with each passing moment. “I wrote down every detail – who sent what, where they were seated – but….”
Edess raised an eyebrow, watching Celestio with a mix of mild amusement and horror. “You lost your notes? That’s not like you.”
“I didn’t lose them,” Celestio shot back. “Someone must have removed them. Perhaps someone you invited up here in your drunken stupor.”
The prince leaned back on his cushions, rolling the bottle of wine around in his hands as he studied Celestio with a faint smile. “Relax,” he said, his voice light. “It’s not the end of the world. I’m sure they’ll turn up.”
Celestio clenched his jaw, forcing himself to take a deep breath. “If we don’t know who sent this,” he gestured to the wine, “how are we supposed to thank them? Then again… when you bid the guests farewell, we can ask what they gifted. To ensure that nothing has been lost, and so you can be sure to thank them properly,” he said, figuring out his plan as his mood gradually brightened a little.
The prince waved a hand dismissively.
Celestio placed the rest of the gifts on the table, then the overflow onto the floor. Edess watched him for a moment before leaning forward, resting his chin on his hand as his red eyes studied his advisor.
“You know,” he said thoughtfully, “you smell a little strange today.”
Celestio froze, his hands reaching for the cart again. “Pardon?” he asked, his tone measured.
The prince tilted his head. “I don’t know. You talked about your pheromones being stronger the other day, and now that it’s on my mind, I think you do smell… but a little different from what I remember.”
Panic flared but he forced himself to stay calm. He couldn’t let Edess suspect anything. He cleared his throat, straightening his posture and wrapping his hands on the handle of the cart. “It’s the banquet hall,” he said. “I spent most of the morning supervising the cleanup. The guests left quite a mess.”
Edess frowned, his gaze lingering on Celestio for a moment longer before he shrugged. “Maybe,” he said. Then, struck by a sudden thought, he smirked. “Or maybe you’ve just been working too hard. When’s the last time you bathed?”
Celestio blinked, caught off guard by the question. “I… I was going to this morning,” he said, his voice faltering slightly. “But there were too many tasks to handle here. I needed to make sure you –”
The prince laughed and he shook his head. “Celes, I love your dedication, but you need to take care of yourself. Go bathe in my basin before you stink up my castle worse than the Alphas, will you? I promise I’ll make it to all my meetings, even if you aren’t there to hold my hand.”
Celestio hesitated, torn between his instinct to protest and the need to deflect the prince’s attention. Finally, he inclined his head, his expression carefully composed. “As you wish, Your Highness,” he said.
Edess turned his attention back to the blue wine bottle. “Now, if you’ll excuse me,” he said, almost to himself, “I think I’ll save this for later. I’ll try another one for breakfast.”
Celestio gathered the empty cart and made his way to the door, his mind racing. Edess’s words lingered in his thoughts, a quiet reminder of how precarious his position truly was. He needed to be more careful. One slip, and everything he had worked for could come crashing down.
