43 The Amazon Queen

"You are the Queen's mother?" Brightise asked before she could stop herself. Her mouth had dropped open in astonishment.

Both the old woman and the woman on the throne looked at her oddly. The Queen was a built woman in her late forties with a bald head and magnificent armor. Her breast plate had wings painted on it, and a weird crown was tattooed on the bare skin of her head. She looked both terrifying and awe-inspiring.

"No," she said slowly. "She is the Mother."

Brightise didn't understand. Maybe this was evident on her face, because the Queen added, "She has not given birth to any of us, but she has raised all of us."

Everything was clear now. Well, almost everything. It seemed like Mother was a caregiver that raised young Amazons while their birth mothers were too busy fighting, but how could she have raised all of them? Was she the oldest Amazon at the camp? And if she was, how could she put babies to sleep and chase after crawling toddlers and running little girls at the same time?

As far as Brightise knew, there was no guarantee what the gender of a baby conceived between a Slorigan and an Amazon would be. What if there were a dozen girls born around the same time? How could she take care of all of them?

The Queen smiled when she saw her perplexed expression. "Have a lot of questions, do you?"

"Thousands."

"That's too bad. I am the one sitting on this throne, so I get to ask mine first." Before asking her first question, the Queen turned back to Mother. "You can go back to the nursery, Mother," she told her respectfully.

Mother shook her head. "There is a child here," she said.

At first, Brightise thought she was referring to the baby she was holding, but then she realized both Mother and the Queen were looking at Clober, who was fast asleep on her shoulder.

"Would you trust your child to Mother?" the Queen asked her solemnly.

Brightise snorted, which probably wasn't a proper way to behave before the Queen. "She is not my child. She is my sister."

"Then Mother can take her."

Brightise instinctively clutched Clober tighter. "Take her where?"

The Queen gave her a look that made her feel stupid. "To the nursery."

It was crazy, but although Brightise had been planning on leaving her sister with these strangers at some point, she didn't feel like letting Clober out of her sight just yet. At least not until she knew that she could trust these women.

"I thought we were supposed to prove who we are first," she said, trying to buy some time.

"Only you are," the Queen corrected her. "Even if your sister is a liar, she is still young enough to change. You are the problem here. You are no little girl. Who are you?"

Brightise swallowed with effort. "My name is Brightise."

"Well, Brightise, I need you to hand over your sister to Mother. Do not wake her up and do not make a big fuss over this. Rest assured, even if you are proved a liar, your sister will not be punished for your own mistakes. She is safe. We would even keep her safe from you, if we had to."

Brightise breathed out in relief at her words. "Okay," she whispered.

Mother approached her silently.

"How...?"

"I've got this."

Brightise was about to ask how Mother would carry the two girls to the nursery and offer her help, but the old woman lifted Clober effortlessly and tucked her into her other arm.

Brightise was so impressed by her display of strength that she almost forgot about the pain she felt as she watched her walk away with Clober.