"I hope so. Biggs and Wedge still work in the castle. I'm sure they'd say something if she wasn't planning to come back." Well, maybe. When he'd spoken to Wedge before, he'd seemed pretty stressed - and that was putting it lightly.

"And yeah, there is a castle close to home, in Barona. Only we don't have a queen, we have a king instead."

He tilted his head to look down at her, wondering whether any meaning could be found in the order of her questions. Maybe she remembered visiting the capital seven years ago?

"His name's Richard and he's a good friend of ours."