Way of No Return (Champions of the Crystal Book 8)

Chapter 12.7

Ford sat again; Trixie hopped up into his lap and sprawled across it, preventing Bennie from joining her. He leaped up to the chair back, wobbling a bit, and wedged himself between the chair back and Ford's shoulders. Ford gave them both a pet, then turned back to Mukryilla, who was looking at him contemplatively. "Er. Should I not have been giving them orders? I'm not sure where my chain of command and yours intersect."

"I do not normally concern myself with Royal Guard or Bathiran security matters," she said. "Though I suppose in Commander Kimta's absence Subcommander Stecklan, at least, reports to me. He will certainly answer to me if there is any lapse in his performance, especially if that results in any injury to you."

Her voice hardened on the last sentence, and Ford smiled a little to lighten the mood. "I'm not worried. He got us off Fiersai alive, which was no easy task, believe me. Guarding me in a secure lab in a secure building will feel like a vacation to him."

"I hope so," she said. "Your royal highness, I have some things in mind to say to you as a friend of your family, if you will allow me the privilege."

Ford sobered. "I could never deny that you have been a steadfast friend to my family, especially to my wife. I very much miss Sabrina's straightforward counsel, and I could use some. Please speak your mind."

Mukryilla nodded in acknowledgement, then took a moment to gather her thoughts. "No one can deny that you are a hero—at least, no one with access to classified reports," she added with a glint of humor. "And your staff speaks well of you, so I gather you are a good employer. But neither of those things are what Bathir needs right now. Bathir must have a leader. The skillsets are not identical."

"Yes," Ford said. "I think I understand what you mean."

"I do not know how much Sabrina has spoken to you of her experiences during the Regency, or if she has talked about the difficult transition she had from Mistress of the Royal Household to Lady Regent."

"No," Ford said. "Not really. She doesn't like to think about that period in her life. She's drawn comparisons at times between running the royal household and running our household, but not in detail."

"A pity. There is a valuable lesson in how she learned the difference between being a supervisor and being a leader."

"Inspiration being one factor, I imagine," Ford said. "She learned that one well."

"She did indeed," Mukryilla agreed. "You could have no better teacher."

Ford nodded. "Let me set your mind at rest, Commander: I plan to follow Sabrina's judgment, as well as I can discern it, rather than my own while we are at war."

"No," she said, shaking her head. "That is a sure path to disaster. Take her judgment into account as well as you can, certainly, but do not surrender your own. You have valuable experience to bring to this situation, independent of what Sabrina knows. And you must be your own person, confident in your decisions, in order to lead." She hesitated. "I do not have serious concerns about your ability to make decisions and to persuade the people around you to support them. But the stakes are now higher than you have previously experienced. I know Major Lien's death must be a heavy burden to you."

"Yes," Ford said. "I don't want to fail like that again."

"He was doing his job," she pointed out. "And doing it well, I have no doubt. He was unlucky, perhaps, and functioning in a high-risk situation without backup. I do not think this was a lack of leadership on your part. You had no control over the situation."

"But I had control over getting us into it," Ford said. "If I'd waited until Mother or Father was free to attempt the journey, things would have gone very differently. I was the one in a hurry. Mother told me it was a bad plan; I should have listened to her."