“Boys need a firm hand, and you are the strictest of my radnyis.” He unclasped my ornate necklace as he spoke.
“He implied we were whores. That’s why I slapped him.”
At this, my husband spun me around to face him. “He really said such a thing?” I nodded. “Why did he believe that?”
“Because we go out in public and hold the Women’s Council.”
Dasharath’s brow furrowed. “Your reaction was warranted. I will need to speak with the children.” It warmed me, that he trusted me enough that he would not even consider my actions to be anything but necessary.
“No, no. He is just a boy. He apologized profusely. Leave him be. Although… he did mention that Sage Vamadeva helped plant the ideas in his head.”
“How so?” Dasharath looked even more concerned at this. “He is a very holy man. He has held the gods’ favor for years. At one point he was able to divert the course of an entire river to prevent a flood—I could think of no better tutor for them in religious morals.”
“Rama asked him about what he overheard the soldiers saying, and Vamadeva warned him of the dangers of impropriety in a woman.”
At this Dasharath’s expression relaxed. “Well, that is of course his job, to explain such values. Even you agree that impropriety is a danger. So long as he did not insult you.”
I tried again, sending the smallest of nudges in the Binding Plane. “I am sure there is another who can teach Rama and the others just as well.”
Dasharath gave a small laugh. “Kaikeyi, we cannot dismiss a venerable man for such a small matter.”
There was only warmth in Dasharath’s voice and so I forced myself to accept his rebuke. After all, I too was imperfect—I still could not quite forgive myself for slapping Rama, no matter what everyone else thought.
Besides, I had other matters to discuss with Dasharath. “I was talking with Kaushalya afterward, and she mentioned something about Rama taking the throne. She seemed to believe that he would be your heir.”
“Did she?” Dasharath had busied himself with unwinding my elaborate bun as I spoke, and I could tell that he was not really paying attention to my words.
I twisted slightly to face him. “I thought, perhaps, you might have told them about our arrangement already. The promise you made to me and to my father before we were wed.”
Understanding dawned on his face. “No, no I have not. But rest assured, Kaikeyi, our promise still stands. Bharata is yuvraja of Kosala.” Tension bled from my shoulders as he called Bharata the crown prince, and I fully relaxed against him. He brushed some hair from my face. “Would you like for me to tell them now? I did not wish to make things strange between all of you.”
I thought about how much I valued their friendship, Kaushalya’s steadiness and Sumitra’s optimism. I did not believe this revelation would damage our relationship, but I could not take the risk. If they liked me less, or even began to dislike me… They were the sisters I hadn’t realized I needed—my family. I could not lose them.
“It is all right,” I murmured. “I would not want to cause them any pain. When they are older, and Bharata can prove himself…”
Dasharath smiled and embraced me again. “You may be the strictest of my radnyis, but you are still too kind,” he murmured. “The way you hold your court, always speaking for the lowest of our citizens, and even now thinking of Kaushalya’s and Sumitra’s happiness. You have a bleeding heart.”
“Do you mind it?” I asked him, genuinely curious.
“No.” He lifted me onto his bed. “It’s an attractive quality, in a woman.”
“And in a man,” I said.
“I should hope so,” he replied. “Or else there is really no point in how much of my treasury I’ve set aside for my radnyis’ projects, is there?”
I laughed at that, then quieted as he began removing my blouse. “It helps your people, that should be reason enough. Not seduction.”
“Yes, yes,” he grumbled, and when I looked to the Plane for sincerity, our thick, gold-plated bond stayed still and clear.
CHAPTER NINETEEN
ON A SEEMINGLY RANDOM session of the Women’s Council, just after midday break as the sun began its slow descent, Sumitra leaned in and whispered to me, “Is that the royal procession?”
Sure enough, over the amassed crowd, I spied several guards on horseback, and then the top of the royal palanquin only used when Dasharath wished to make an entrance.