In the lord's bedroom inside the Lion's Den, candlelight flickered, stretching and distorting Suleiman and Evelyn's shadows across the cold walls.
A strange, subtle tension hung in the air, like a taut rope.
Suleiman surveyed the bedroom deep within the mountain, with no windows. He wasn't claustrophobic, but perhaps the room's atmosphere was simply wrong; it made him feel oppressed. It looked like he'd need to carve out an open-air bedroom high up along the outer wall.
After the meeting, Evelyn had followed him everywhere, but Suleiman was never alone. Either Lushen or Roslyn came to report to him,
or Bryn, now the Lion's Den's smith, came to give him an update. As a result, her sapphire-blue eyes had been full of things she wanted to say but couldn't.
Now that they were finally alone, she spoke at last, her voice tight with urgency.
"Lord Suleiman, we must discuss the compensation payments."
"Go ahead." Suleiman dropped into a chair, unhurried. In private, Evelyn always liked to add a little "Lord" to his name.
"Ten Silver Stags is too much for a family," Evelyn said, stopping in front of him. Her golden hair shimmered in the candlelight. "And we'd have to support those children every quarter until they turn sixteen."
"If war comes, our burden will only grow, and our treasury will soon be drained. This is a completely..."
"unnecessary expense."
Evelyn chose her words carefully, trying to make her objection sound more like a rational financial recommendation.
"We could provide goods instead and eliminate the compensation payments. For example, we could give them enough food to survive each quarter. That would save a great deal."
Suleiman didn't respond. He raised his hands and rested them on the table with a soft thump.
From a financial standpoint, that was indeed the