‘What the Union needs is a distraction,’ said the King.

Shakuni shook his head. ‘Respectfully, Your Grace, I believe we need more coin to bribe the leaders of the dissenting groups in the Union.’

‘If we give coin from the treasury, it would amount to giving into blackmail,’ Bheeshma said. ‘A bad precedent, especially after our last experiment with peasant rights.’

The Queen rose and turned in Shakuni’s direction. ‘This Magadh threat scares me. Have you heard what the Unni Ehtral does to women? It’s barbaric. Shouldn’t we be building up our armies?’

‘If we summon the Union allies, and even one of them refuses to send its legions, it would weaken the Throne. Many of the allies were friends of Pandu, and his son Yudhistir. The death of Pandu’s sons has alienated them. We need to be able to summon them from a position of strength,’ Bheeshma stated, his voice harsh.

‘These are all fair concerns but none of these keeps me up at night as much as the nightmare of who will win the Panchalan Princess’ hand at her swayamvar,’ Shakuni said, eyeing Karna from the corner of his eye. ‘I hear the Emperor himself is attending, and so are a host of other Lords, Kings and even Drachma nobles. If a rival of the Union wins her hand, the Union will be encircled by enemies.’

Grave silence spread its misty presence around the room.

‘Jarasandh is going?’ Gandhari said. ‘Didn’t think the old lion could still growl.’

‘This is ridiculous!’ Dhritarashtra fumed. ‘Who are we sending from Hastina?’

‘Lord Arama, Your Grace. Son of Lord Aparshakti of Kaithal. If you remember, it was he who came to us with the proposal for the network of canals.’

‘That upstart inventor! A blot on the Ksharja name. Will he invent his way to winning at the swayamvar?’ asked Dhritarashtra.

‘This is troubling indeed,’ Bheeshma agreed, one eye on Duryodhan’s silhouette against the window. ‘If only Panchal stood beside Hastina, we could keep the South away from us.’

Karna saw Shakuni idly playing with the small clay boat that sat on the table. Unbidden, the Fat Mistress flashed into his mind, and with it, the heaving form of Mati. ‘What if Prince Duryodhan won the hand of the Panchalan Princess?’ Karna said into the silence.

All eyes turned on him. The White Eagle frowned, as if speaking amidst Ksharjas was not a right Karna enjoyed. It probably was not. But it seemed to Karna to be the only way out. Duryodhan turned to him, his eyes wide with disbelief.

But Shakuni nodded, egging Karna on. ‘I want to hear what Lord Karna has to say. As they say, all hands on deck.’