Ugegbe's heart shot against her rib cage as a reptilian smile ironed out the queen mother's frown lines. She was in a dilemma. A dilemma that left her with only one choice: telling the truth. Her hands and feet were bound tightly by the Ofo. If she dared be untruthful, she would pay dearly, whether it be a single falsehood or more.

Any who did not fear the power of the Ofo staff was courting death. Ugegbe had much to live for. Many depended on her. The three children expecting her every morning and evening would not appreciate her making any decisions that would put her in danger. They relied on her, and she'd promised to always be there for them.

Her father was also waiting for her. She'd left him in Osisi, and though twenty-seven sunsets had passed since her escape, it didn't change the fact that she would see him eventually. It was the point of all her struggles.

She would pay off her debts once she had enough money to, and arrange for her father's transport to Zoro by all means. If telling the truth was the thorny path she had to tread on, she would bear the pain with dignity.

Ugegbe was prepared. She hadn't spent a good chunk of her time wandering through the palace grounds without reason. While it was often because she was running an errand, half of her trips were of her personal volition. She'd discovered the weak points of the dowager queen's home and was confident in her ability to escape the palace if the need arose.

The Ofo was a deterrent to her tricking the queen mother. While it was also one for the queen mother herself, it did not mean Ugegbe could read her emotions or decipher what her stand was. She was terrified of what Her Majesty's reaction would be once she heard that she'd housed and trusted a murderer.

"Why are you in the kingdom of Zoro, Ezinwanyi?"

"As I have said before, Your Majesty, I am here to escape life in Osisi."

The queen mother's face was a blank mound of clay as she asked, "What are you running from?"

Ugegbe bit on her lip, drawing in a breath and the strength she needed to untie the mask she'd worn for too long. "Everything, Your Majesty." She sighed, knowing her answer was all but satisfactory. She'd barely scratched the surface of her history, of what had led her here.

"My father was originally a chief. We lived comfortably but without opulence, as his ties to the former King Ikemba spelt that he could not gather wealth like other chiefs. This was never a problem, as he was content with all he had. However, he was tricked into a life of debt by his brother. It was a difficult period for us. Unable to watch him suffer more than he already had, I chose to work for my father's freedom. Hence, I became a slave."

"So, you accepted a life of bondage and subjugation instead of your father, even though he was alive?"

Ugegbe fixed her gaze on her hands. Small callouses had formed in the areas that folded around a hoe or cutlass when she'd worked on the king's endless farms in Osisi.

Even the less tedious jobs in the palace kitchen could harden one's palms. Yet—Ugegbe closed her fists as a hum floated from her bosom—there was no doubt to be found in her. She did not regret a single thing.

"I never thought of it that way, Your Majesty. I reasoned then as I do now that I would rather the captivity and suffering be mine than my father's. I did not want to envision my father, my only family and the only man I'd loved so genuinely and innocently, sustaining immense hardships and tribulations while I lay at home and did nothing. I could not do that to my father."

The dowager queen had a strange, warped expression on her face. Ugegbe could not conclude if she was sad, curious, or annoyed. "So he had no idea you were to take his place?"

"No, he did not, Your Majesty. I ran away from home and offered to be a slave to the debtor." Chiefs Mmeremikwu had been only too happy to seal the deal with her. He did not bother to send for her father to confirm whether or not she'd really been sent to pay for her family's debts—which was perfect since Ugegbe had counted on his greed for her ploy to succeed.

"Was your father happy about what you had done?"

Ugegbe smiled at this. "No, Your Majesty. Far from it, my father was angry with me for many festivals to come. He wanted me back home, not wasting my life for the mistakes he had made. I refused, and there was nothing he could do to make me change my mind or the outcome of my actions. I had made the decision, and he could not reverse what I had done."

"Have you then paid back what you owe?"

Ugegbe blinked rapidly, cold sweat carpeting the base of her neck. The queen mother's room was airy and spacious, yet she had the sensation of being in a closed drum, confined to a small dark space.

Knowing that the eventual notion to plague her would take the form of a noose strangling the breath out of her, Ugegbe took a moment to let the sensation pass. She'd needed to remember that the truth didn't always bring painful repercussions but could also liberate her if she let it.

"I have not paid all of it back, Your Majesty."

"So, you are a slave."

Ugegbe flinched at the statement, which sounded more like an accusation. There was that connotation that was more than merely negative. Indeed the queen mother's tone had been perforated and hollowed out with a note of anger.

Ugegbe was surprised to encounter a wave of shame descending on her in a grey sheen. Was she ashamed to admit that she was a slave? She wasn't sure. She'd never had to think of herself in that manner before. Moreover, according to her confession, the dowager queen had also been in servitude. Then why would she deliberately make Ugegbe feel like this? As if she were inferior for not being free.

Or was it something else?

In a deadly tone, the dowager queen asked, "Did you infiltrate Zoro because your plan had been to deceive my son and become queen?"

Both brows on Ugegbe's head skittered high up, nearly into her hairline. The change in the room's ambience was palpable. "Your Majesty, I am not certain why you would—"

"Did you scheme to deceive me from the start? Did you design all of it from the beginning, before we met? Did you orchestrate the moment where you had to help me!"

"Your Majesty!" Ugegbe exclaimed in horror. Anguish was hot venom shot deep into her core. It tore a hole into her insides, leaving her in pain. "How could you imagine such of me? Do I really strike you as an evil soul to wish harm upon the queen mother of Zoro?" Tears attacked her eyes as she spoke.

"I rushed in to help that day, Your Majesty, not because I'd planned to, but as I had wished to ease the burdens of a friend of mine. He was so distraught that I could not keep from offering to alleviate his pains however I could. This was me repaying him for the kindness he had shown me. Even now, I am yet indebted to him.

"So, Your Majesty, I could not have done such a thing," Ugegbe commented more confidently than before. She respected the queen mother, but she had to stand up for herself and would not tolerate being treated like she was a criminal who deserved to be impounded. "Furthermore, it is impossible for me to have known anything about your health, Your Majesty, when I have never been to Zoro. I did not even know it existed until a day before my arrival in the kingdom when my father asked me to make my journey there."

"That is where your story has its hitch, Ezinwanyi. If you are a slave who had never been to Zoro before and your plan did not involve wedding the king, why did you leave Osisi? Why would you head into the dangerous unknown, searching for what only the gods know about."

"There are many reasons I could have left Osisi, Your Majesty. First is that the kingdom is at war with its neighbouring realm. There is no peace to be found when its royals are being slaughtered without cease. The unrest and disruptions in the day of the lives of Osisi's people could have been a good enough logic behind my departure. However, it is not why I left."

The dowager queen was clearly enraptured. Ugegbe nearly laughed at the frustration behind her query. "Then, why did you?"

But it would be rude of her, so she said, "I fled because I killed a man." She paused at the queen mother's mouth dropping open before delivering the final blow. "He was the crown prince."

༄༄༄

Onochie glowered at his chiefs. The men were quite audacious. Even though he had warned them not to broach the issue of the "wealth trickle" to him, they'd done so again, blatantly ignoring his wishes.

"Chiefs of Zoro, do my words mean nothing to you?"

"No, Your—"

"Are my orders now the mere buzzing of flies?" Onochie cut into their response, uninterested in their responses. "Has it gotten to the point where I speak, and you do not listen?"

Iwegbuna rose above the heads, shaking in denial. "Of course not, Your Majesty. That is not the truth. You are our sovereign ruler, and your words are as law to us."

"Then why do you stand against me yet and again?"

"My king, we are only trying to suggest the best action for this kingdom. All we do is in the best interest of your people, Your Majesty. We would never indulge in anything that could harm your loyal subjects or—"

"Cease your noise, Chief Iwegbuna!" Onochie interjected, his order puncturing the head chief's winding rant. "I decide what is best for my people. And increasing the wages of my officials does not strike me as one of such things to better their lives. I want you men, who sit before me today, to know that I am no fool. Nothing you do will push me to submit to your lecherous needs and desires. I, thus, advise that you lay to rest such fantasies and do your jobs dutifully. Only then will you be rewarded. I will not hand you bags of cowries for merely breathing in my courtyard!"

"We understand, Your Majesty," Iwegbuna stooped low. "We shall not make the mistake of angering you by broaching this topic again. Still, we stand firmly on our grounds when we say that all we suggested did not come from a place of greed. We also care for the people of this kingdom just as much as you do, my lord. We are far from selfish, ignorant men who only care for their pockets. Your people are also our people, my king. We hope you do not forget this in your dealings with us, Your Majesty."

Onochie could not hold back the laughter that burst out of his chest. It was a short one, but in it was all the notions he had of the chiefs: utter court jesters. "Really, Iwegbuna?" He deliberately dropped the chief's title and was pleased when his taunting paid off. Iwegbuna's jaw hardened as he contemplated the best way to answer the king.

"Yes, Your Majesty." He murmured through clenched teeth.

"Your ways amuse me, o chiefs of Zoro," Onochie spoke as if in the middle of a soliloquy. "It seems you might have forgotten—the mouth does not speak of the goodness of a man; rather, his hands do, for it is through their works one sees the contents of his heart."

"You do not have to convince me of how much you care for my people. If you really do, I will see it in how you act and how those under your authority are treated. You, my chiefs, have failed to prove your good nature of heart."

Further emboldened, Onochie drew on the wealth of information Kamalu had uncovered about the relation of the unaccounted deaths to Zoro's head chief. Though the connecting information was not as strong as he would need to persecute the culprit, the king was confident it was only a matter of time before Iwegbuna and his henchmen would languish in a dungeon specially designed for them.

"Recently, I have uncovered evidence that the opposite is what you have continuously exhibited." Onochie halted for his words to sink in and take effect. "Nothing is hidden under the sun, my chiefs. When the wind blows, the fowl's anus will be exposed. Soon, secrets will come to light, and there will no more be a hiding place for those who have the relics of their atrocities tucked under their loins. Though the gods may be quiet, this does not mean they sleep; each man will ultimately receive his dues." Onochie brandished a toothy smile as some of the chiefs cowered at his words. They all shared looks with Iwegbuna, who ostensibly was enraged by the acidic gaze he had levelled on the king.

"You have said a lot today, my liege." He remarked when Onochie had assumed no one would raise their voice again. "One has to wonder if you are threatening us, my king." A short pause ensued, but before any could release an answer, Iwegbuna resumed. "We would hope not because while you rule over Zoro, the kingdom also needs its chiefs. You need us, Your Majesty."

For a brief moment, Onochie considered whether he had made a mistake or gone too far with his threats. Dread twisted his stomach until his mind hovered over his discussion with Ezinwanyi. Everyone made mistakes, she had reminded him. There was no need to demand absolute perfection in all he did; first, it was impossible, and second, all that entailed was he would leave the price of his worth up to other people to decide.

His chiefs did not deserve to be put on such a pedestal. No one did. Consequently, he did not have to be a perfect king. He only had to be fair and embrace what was right with all his strength. Above all, he had to be true to himself. He would never be the bravest or mightiest king. And that was alright. He would be himself. And that was enough.

"If you view my cautionary advice as a threat, then you must have something to hide, Chief Iwegbuna. Listen well, chiefs of Zoro, your positions will not protect you from the wrath of the gods. Your dissents will also not hinder me from searching for the truths that belong to this kingdom. It will do you good to remember that."

The door chose to jar open at this moment. In came a panting Kamalu. "My king! I have news for you!"

"Kamalu, what is the meaning of this?" Onochie demanded, his tone sharp with consternation.

"Emissaries have come to seek an audience with you, Your Majesty."

"Emissaries?" Onochie frowned, confused by the unexpected development. "From whence do they come?"

"The realm of Nmagba, Your Majesty."
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