GOT: Khal — Chapter 114 - Serve Joffrey with All Our Heart and Soul

Olenna Redwyne sat at the table and speared a slice of lemon cake with her silver fork. She chewed twice, then pressed the corner of her mouth with a silk napkin. The crust was crisp. The filling was sweet and tart. She tasted none of it.

"Tywin Lannister has spoken with me." She set down the fork. "They consider it a prank. No one would be fooled by such a crude attempt to sow discord."

She looked up, her gaze settling on Petyr Baelish across the table. "That Horse Lord in the East — what was his name again?"

"Khal Drogo." Petyr Baelish stood before her. In the vast chamber, there were only the two of them.

"These barbarian names are such a mouthful." Olenna raised her wine glass and took a sip. The dark red left a stain on her lips. "How could he have known we planned to poison Joffrey at the wedding?"

Petyr Baelish inclined slightly, his face wearing that unchanging smile, neither too warm nor too cold, perfectly calibrated.

"I do not know, my lady. I swear the matter was known only to the two of us. Perhaps it was simply a lucky guess. Or perhaps the letter wasn't from Drogo at all — perhaps it was Tywin, probing indirectly. Think about it: who wears armor to the privy? The whole notion is absurd on its face."

He straightened and let his hands fall to his sides, his posture deferential.

It was Littlefinger who had brokered the marriage between King Joffrey and Margaery Tyrell, forging the Lannister-Tyrell alliance that made it possible. It was that same alliance that launched the surprise attack on Stannis's rear at the Battle of the Blackwater and turned the tide of war.

In return, Baelish was named Lord of Harrenhal, though the castle remained, in practice, in the hands of Roose Bolton.

No matter. The title was enough to place him among the most prominent lords in the realm, and enough to make him a suitable match for Lysa Tully.

Lysa remained besotted with him. Were it not for King Joffrey's wedding, he would still be at the Eyrie.

"Are you to be trusted?" Olenna set down her wine glass and speared the last slice of lemon cake. The sound of her chewing was crisp and distinct in the quiet room.

"You betrayed Eddard Stark. Perhaps you would sell me to the Lannisters just as easily, for a reward or two."

Faced with the Queen of Thorns's doubts, Littlefinger did not rush to defend himself. He lowered his head and began unbuttoning his tunic, one button at a time.

"My cave is long dry." Olenna did not look away. She studied the man before her, ordinary in build, but not unhandsome: grey-green eyes, a small patch of dark beard on his chin, a few threads of grey in his hair.

Baelish's hands kept moving. He opened his tunic and revealed a long, deep scar running from his abdomen all the way up to his chest.

"Many years ago, when Catelyn was betrothed to Brandon Stark, I challenged Brandon to a duel for her sake. I was not yet of age. Brandon was many years my senior."

He traced a finger slowly along the scar.

"Brandon was ruthless. That stroke split me open from belly to chest." He raised his grey-green eyes and met Olenna's gaze. "I thought I would die there. But I survived."

Olenna exhaled slowly and leaned back in her chair. "That was not Eddard Stark who cut you. And you were the one who demanded the duel."

"Yes." Baelish lowered his eyes. His voice softened. "But from that day forward, I hated every Stark."

Olenna studied him, something shifting in her tone. "You impress me, Lord Baelish. What a brave thing to do for love."

"Opposing King Joffrey was Eddard Stark's scheme, from beginning to end. I was never his man — he only believed I was." Baelish's gaze was open, unhurried, earnest. "But this time is different. We plot together. If I betray you, there is no escaping the consequences."

He knew Olenna's methods. Fail to satisfy her, and he might not leave this room alive, even here in King's Landing.

"Put your clothes back on, Lord Baelish." Olenna's tone was flat.

Baelish refastened his tunic, one button at a time. "Then the matter of poisoning Joffrey..."

"We will not speak of it again." Olenna cut him off and lifted her wine glass. The liquid swayed gently against the rim. "It is not that I fear Tywin. It is that a greater enemy now stands before us. The Targaryen girl and her Horse Lord husband have already taken Dragonstone. The flames of war will soon reach every corner of Westeros. We must stand united against the threat from without."

She set her glass down. "I only hope my sweet granddaughter can manage that venomous Joffrey."

Littlefinger was skilled at reading a room. He caught the note of ease settling into the Queen of Thorns's voice and knew he was safe.

"I have never been to Essos myself, but my great-grandfather came from Braavos." His voice was unhurried. "The Dothraki are savage. When they defeat an enemy, they tear down every house, carry off every sacred idol, and sell every prisoner into slavery."

Olenna tapped two fingers lightly on the table. "Tywin tells me that Horse Lord now rules all of Slaver's Bay. If we lose, our people won't even need to be sold. They'll be slaves on the spot."

"They have a hundred thousand mounted warriors. And three dragons." Baelish said. "They have already bought the goodwill of the Free Cities, Pentos, Volantis. Word is Lys and Myr are wavering as well. With enough gold and enough dragons, those cities will sell ships to anyone."

"All of it Joffrey's doing." Olenna bit out the words, her voice low, each one weighted with fury. "Tywin tells me the one advising that barbarian Horse Lord is Barristan Selmy."

Baelish inclined his head, his expression grave. "The situation is not good. Barristan's reputation in Westeros still carries weight. His allegiance will pull many of the undecided toward the Targaryens."

"The Lannisters have already planted informants among the Horse Lord's people. Every move they make, we know it." Olenna fixed her eyes on Littlefinger's. "So. Let us serve Joffrey with everything we have. And let the matter of his murder rot in our bellies."

Baelish bowed deeply. "As you wish." He stepped back twice, turned, and withdrew.

➤ Next: My Dragons Have Put On Plate Armor