She saw the intricate carvings in the dark wood panels on the walls and in the cornices. The once-thick, vibrantly-hued, now thinning and fading wool rugs on the floor. The beautifully crafted furniture that appeared feminine and delicate but was indeed stout and comfortable. Furniture that was tended well but needed reupholstered.

They could not afford reupholstery.

They could barely afford the staff it took to keep the wood gleaming.

In the king’s castle.

Another five years of Carrington, they were headed for ruin.

She closed her eyes tight.

You are no longer young and not the renowned beauty you once were.

As if the only measure of a woman was her youth and beauty.

She did not go to the looking glass to see the veracity of Carrington’s words.

She knew she was still attractive. She took pains with Nadirii and Firenz elixirs on her skin and hair, and not simply to make certain her husband didn’t grow a wandering eye. This, she did mostly for herself.

It was, in her life, her only treat.

She also knew after she caught the eye, and won the heart, of the prince who would be her husband and then her king, that her youth and beauty began to fade from importance because she took pains to make that so.

However, that did not mean Carrington’s words did not wound.

Mercy drew in breath.

The tax proclamation that implied the people were paying for True’s wedding with their hard-earned gold (which they were, but they didn’t need to be told that directly) could easily put a pall on the celebratory air of the capital and even turn public sentiment away from her son.

And she could not let that happen.

She stared at the fray in her fainting couch and another thought came to her.

Where was all the tax money going?

The seemingly incessant campaigns to re-secure the southern border of Firenz land weren’t actually incessant.

Wodell was not a wealthy nation, they weren’t a poor one either.

Why was there such a huge concern about her spending on the wedding?

She could not say she oversaw the budget for the realm (just the castle), but it was her understanding their coffers were low, not empty.

Even before the tax increases, she should be able to hire seamstresses.

Definitely after them.

Further, she should be able to reupholster a couch.

These thoughts meant she added a visit to the royal auditor to have a look over the treasury accounts onto her list of things to do that evening.

She had already sent birds to True, suggesting matters were such that he should come home as soon as possible, as well as to Bram, ordering him to take pains to bring her son home.

However, they were not near. It would take ages for them to get to the Thicket.