Member-only story
The King’s Boat
An aging monarch discovers something new in a childhood toy
Every week, the King stepped down from the podium to the cheers of the throng who had gathered to hear his address. He walked back to the palace under the late summer sun, unaccompanied by guards, for he was well-loved by the people. He had brought peace and prosperity to the land and was kind and just in an age when many ruled with the sword.
But despite the joyous crowd and the warm sun on his face, the King was troubled and could not say why. The kingdom was quiet and happy, and even though his cherished Isabelle had gone to her rest three years before, he still had many friends at court, men and women whom he had known and loved since youth. His daughter Ygraine was married with children of her own, but they visited often, and he thought each time what a fine queen she would be one day.
Yet he felt a shadow on him as he dismissed his attendants and made his way to the small pond behind the palace where he had often played as a boy. It had been many years since he had passed an afternoon here. He wondered why that was.
As he walked down the path to the water, he saw an unfamiliar woman standing by the pond’s edge, looking out across its calm surface. Perhaps wife to one of the courtiers?
