Gavin shook his head, troubled by the notion. If it were caused by someone, then whom? And why? Did Thendylath have a foreign enemy that planned an attack? Flooding rains would be one way to wear down its target. “We got to find out who’s doing it.”
“Do you have ears in the city?” Daia asked.
“What do you mean?” Gavin asked.
“My father has people all over Thendylath — merchants, craftsmen, even whores — agents who report rumors they hear. He pays them depending on how valuable the information is.”
“Might the Lordover Tern be willing to share his information?” Edan asked.
Daia snorted. “That depends on what he can get in return, aside from the king’s goodwill.”
“Let’s send a message,” Gavin said. “Ask him.”
Edan pulled out a clean sheet of paper from his stack. “Consider it done.”
In the distance, the bell in the temple tower clanged nine times, marking the beginning of another long day. Two guards, women who had trained and served in the now-disbanded Viragon Sisterhood, went to the double doors and waited for Gavin’s nod. The metal locks clanged, the bars were lifted, and the doors scraped open on squeaky hinges. A sense of dread settled on his already weary shoulders.
People who had been waiting in the rain for hours, perhaps overnight, bustled into the room, eager for a chance to plead their need to the king. Most were poor, judging from their lack of a rain cloak and the stained and threadbare clothing that clung wetly to their thin frames.
The wealthy tended to send a message asking for a private appointment, as if they were above standing in line with the common people. They failed to remember the king was himself common born and had no tolerance for the haughty attitudes of the wealthy. Although Edan or his assistant brought him these messages, they went mostly ignored, though from time to time when Gavin was in a foul mood, he sent back a reply stating simply, “The king receives petitioners every morning between nine o’clock and noon.”
The first petitioner of the day was a frail boy no older than ten. He shuffled forward, leaving a wet trail on the floor behind him. Water dripped from his dark hair onto his already soaked clothes. Without sufficient flesh on his frame, he shivered uncontrollably and clutched his arms to himself. He wore a shirt meant for a smaller child, and his mismatched shoes were not only different colors but different sizes as well. A rope around his waist held up his sagging trousers.
He bowed to the king and smiled. Already three of his teeth had rotted out, and the black spots visible on the remaining front teeth indicated they would be next. What got Gavin’s attention most of all was the indentation on the side of the boy’s skull. It looked like he’d been hit in the head with something very heavy, or maybe kicked by a horse or ox. That might explain why his right eye was turned so far to the right, only a portion of his iris showed.
Inwardly, Gavin cringed and wondered if his magic could fix this old injury. He suspected not. All the healing had already taken place. “How can I help you, young man?”
The boy’s teeth chattered as he said, “Me an’ my brother… I was wonderin’ if mayhap… M’Lord King, some chil’ren on the street says our Lady Queen oft helps us who ha’n’t any parents.”
Feanna had always had a special passion for helping orphaned children, as evidenced by her adoption of four of them before Gavin had met her. That passion had grown since she became queen. With the power and means to help orphaned children, she had a narrow focus every day that sometimes left her own adopted children wondering when they would see her. Every child deserved a loving home, enough food to eat, and clothes to wear.
Gavin himself had been orphaned at the age of twelve, but he’d been lucky enough to have an older brother who was willing and able to take him in and feed him.
For all the others, there was the orphanage, but rumor had it the children were barely better off there than they were living on the street. In some cases, they were worse off. Stories of abuse and neglect were too numerous to discount. In fact, she was visiting the orphanage in Tern this morning to see firsthand the conditions there.