The Spirit War(94)

“Our clingfire depot,” the duke said. “Or, rather, it was.”

Josef swallowed. Clingfire was an old Oseran secret, a blend of pitch and sticky oil that clung to wood and burned even when wet. It had been invented so that Oseran pirates on their fast, narrow ships could take down larger freighters. It was also the only way the Oseran navy had been able to fight the Empress’s palace ships.

“What happened?”

“We’re not sure,” Finley said, his voice grave. “The whole depot went up sometime early this morning. It’s been burning for nearly twelve hours already, and since we had almost five tons of clingfire ready for the Empress’s assault, it will likely burn another twelve.”

“Five tons?” Josef took a step back. He’d never heard of so much clingfire in one place.

“At least,” Finley said. “Osera’s not the little fishing village you left, Thereson. My factories have been producing clingfire day and night on the queen’s order since word came that the Empress was on the move. I’d ordered it stored on one of the uninhabited southern islands for safety purposes, and good thing too. If we’d kept it in the city, the whole island would be burning by now.”

Josef glanced again at the column of smoke. “You think it was arson?”

“Arson or carelessness,” the duke said, sipping his drink. “Your wife’s investigating as we speak, so I suppose we’ll know soon enough. I may not like Adela, but even I can admit she’s good at what she does.” He left the words hanging, watching Josef over the rim of his glass.

Josef got the point well enough. “Better than me,” he finished.

“Well,” the duke said. “You ran away, so I guess we’ll never know what could have been.”

Josef barely stopped himself from rolling his eyes. “I’ve got better things to do today than listen to you gripe, Finley,” he said. “If you’ve got something to say, say it. Otherwise, I’ll be on my way.”

“You haven’t changed a bit, have you, Josef Liechten?” Finley said, setting his drink down on the window ledge with a clink. “Still unable to even play at manners.”

“I don’t play at anything,” Josef said. “Get on with it.”

The corner of the duke’s mouth twitched. “Very well,” he said. “I called you out here because I would like to propose an arrangement. These last two days have been very hard on you, haven’t they, prince? You’ve never bothered to hide how much you hate being in your own country. Frankly, I’m surprised you’re still around.”

Josef’s glower deepened, and the duke began to grin. “I can see I’m taxing your miniscule patience, so I’ll get straight to the point. I want you to leave.”

“I know that,” Josef growled.

“No,” the duke said. “I mean I want you to vanish. Go. Crawl back to whatever miserable, violent life you enjoyed before Theresa got this fool idea of grandchildren.”

Josef bared his teeth. “If this is about the damn succession—”

“The succession does not concern me,” the duke said. “Whatever hopes your mother holds, the truth is that my line will inherit the Throne of Iron Lions. Ancient as the blood of the Eisenlowe is, Osera is a land ruled by the strong, not by unborn children.”

“And you would be that strength?”

“Of course,” the duke answered. “I’ve been leading Osera since your mother first fell ill years ago. It was my money and my sway that fortified this bay. My pull with the Council that got us two Relay points, my shipyards that built a fleet of runners, and my factories that produced the five tons of clingfire it’s going to take to sink an armada of palace ships.”

Josef cocked his head toward the plume of smoke. “You mean the five tons that’s burning right now?”

“A minor setback,” the duke snapped. “The Empress won’t be here for another month and a half. That’s more than enough time to rebuild our supplies and secure my rule.”

“Your rule?” Josef said, scowling. “I hate to disappoint you, Finley, but last I checked, my mother was still alive.”

“Not for much longer,” the duke said, smiling. “For all your faults, Thereson, you’re a loving son, but you’re kidding yourself if you actually believe our dear queen will be alive to lead Osera to another victory over the Empress.”

“Shut your mouth, Finley,” Josef said, taking a menacing step forward. “Or I will shut it for you.”

Finley rolled his eyes. “Spare me the bravado. Believe it or not, my boy, I’m actually on your side. You don’t want to be here, and I don’t want you here either, so why shouldn’t we work together to get you out?”