That was the duchess’s cue. She leapt up and tossed her veil aside. “I have a reason. The bastard is already married to me. Hello dear, surprised to see me?”
“Caroline?” Duke Carmichael stared at his wife. “How did you get here?”
With absolutely perfect timing, Damien approached from above. He did nothing to hide his presence, instead going out of his way to put out extra power. Nathanial stiffened and whispered in the duke’s ear.
“Well, stop him!” Duke Carmichael said. “I’ve got my own problems. Guards! Seize this mad woman pretending to be my dead wife. I’ll see her hung for this insult.”
Nobles stood and shouted as the guards forced their way through the gathering.
Lidia kept her place until Nathanial was out of sight. Once he’d gone to deal with Damien, as if that were within his power, she stood and tossed her own veil aside. A burst of soul force eliminated the uncomfortable dress and revealed her crimson robes of office.
She pointed and a golden sphere appeared around Karrie. She lifted off the floor and flew to Lidia.
The sphere expanded to encompass the duchess and they took off.
They crashed through the closed doors and rose into the sky. Lidia sensed Jen’s squad draw power and run toward the wall as fast as they could. Higher in the air Damien battled Nathanial and a trio of sorcerers.
Lidia ignored that battle and turned southeast.
“Am I glad to see you,” Karrie finally said. “Is Dad…”
“Your father is fine and eager to see you. Brace yourselves!”
Lidia sent extra soul force to the bubble protecting them an instant before a powerful shockwave sent them tumbling. When she’d recovered from the blast Damien flew alongside.
“Sorry about that,” he said. “I had to discourage them from following. Everybody good?”
“We’re fine,” Lidia said. “Go grab Jennifer and the others before they get in trouble. We’ll meet you at the inn.”
Damien saluted and broke off.
With the princess secure, Lidia immediately started plotting their next move. Now that they didn’t have to worry about hostages, their options opened up considerably.
A predatory smile creased her lips. She’d make the Binder worshipers regret ever challenging the throne.
Chapter Sixty-One
It was almost noon when the lookout cried, “Land ho!”
The announcement nearly brought tears to Marie-Bell’s eyes. After days of nonstop conjuring they had nearly reached their destination. From her position at the rear of the ship with the other paladins on duty she couldn’t see anything beyond ocean, but she trusted the sailor perched far above in his little basket.
A quick glance at the others revealed equal levels of relief. No one had had an easy time of it, especially yesterday and today. The limited amount of rest and marginal food meant no one fully recovered after a shift so they got weaker day by day. Marie-Bell took extra shifts when she could, but even with the armor and sword enhancing her soul force, she could only do so much.
“Paladins, report to the main deck!” Sir Collin’s bellow filled the air.
They released their construct and the fan vanished. The ship slowed, but the natural wind was enough to keep them going. Marie-Bell and the others shuffled like the walking dead down to the main deck where the others had gathered.
Sir Collin looked them all over and nodded, seeming pleased. “I know this has been a difficult week for everyone, but you all pulled through, as you’d expect from the kingdom’s elite. The end of our quest is now in sight. One last effort will see us to the mountains and the waiting dragon. Conjure your mounts. We’re taking off.”
A round of groans, especially loud from those just coming off fan duty, came from the gathered paladins. He couldn’t be serious. She doubted more than three of those she’d been working with had soul force enough to reach the shore, much less the mountains beyond. And if they had the ill luck to encounter any resistance it would be a slaughter. She couldn’t let him go through with his plan.
Marie-Bell stepped forward. “Sir, we’re too exhausted to fly. We need a decent meal and a good night’s sleep to recover our soul force. When we’ve restored ourselves we can move on.”
“Are you defying my orders? Remember who’s leading this quest. When I give an order I expect it to be obeyed. Now conjure those mounts.”
Marie-Bell shook her head. “You’re going to have paladins drowning before we reach land. It’s madness to attempt flight now.”
“Sir,” Jenkins said. “She has a point. A night’s rest will give us a better chance of succeeding. We don’t all have as much strength as you.”
“I’m inclined to agree, sir,” Mallory added for good measure.
“I see it clearly now,” Sir Collin said. “You two are conspiring with her to steal my command, to take my glory. Well, it won’t work. If you weaklings need a night’s sleep, so be it. But mark my words, I and no one else command this quest.”
Sir Collin stomped off down to his cabin. The gathered paladins watched in stunned silence until he was out of sight. The mutters began then, but Marie-Bell paid them little head. Instead she moved over closer to Mallory and Jenkins.
“He’s getting worse,” she said.
The men gave her a look of distaste before nodding. “He’s become totally paranoid,” Jenkins said. “I don’t know what happened to him, but he sees conspiracies everywhere. Especially with you. It started when you returned with the artifacts, but since we set sail…”
“I have no interest in either his glory or his command,” Marie-Bell said. “But I refuse to stand silent and let him give orders that will get some of us killed. I don’t care if all the archangels appear behind him and echo his commands.”
“While we don’t agree with your refusal to give up the artifacts,” Mallory said. “We will back you up when you resist his foolish orders. I hate to say this, but his hatred of you borders on madness. It also gives him something to focus on. With you taking the lead in opposing him, it should allow us to retain some influence, which may curb his more destructive impulses.”
“It says something that we need to worry about curbing a paladin’s destructive impulses,” Marie-Bell said. “What’s his partner doing?”
The men shared a look before Mallory said, “We don’t know, but there have been signs that he’s argued with her. I heard him raving one night when I was on duty outside his door. I fear for his soul.”
“With him in charge,” Marie-Bell said. “I fear for us all.”
Chapter Sixty-Two
Damien couldn’t stop smiling as Karrie and Uncle Andy hugged. The rescue party had made it back to the inn without difficulty after he flattened Nathanial and his sorcerers. Damien was pretty sure he killed at least one of them, but the rest were still alive when he fled. He hated fighting over cities or when people were around. Everything became so much harder with innocent bystanders nearby.
At least they’d finally gotten Karrie free. So many things had gone wrong over the past weeks that he was afraid at any moment he might wake up and discover this was all a dream.
I promise you it’s not a dream.
King and princess finally separated and settled on the edge of the bed. “Are you okay?” Uncle Andy asked.
“I’m fine, Dad. Duke Carmichael wanted to use me, not kill me, thank goodness. Did you know about Mom?”
“That she was a Binder worshipper? No. We seldom discussed things like that. In hindsight I wish I’d asked, not that it would have made a difference before her master fell to our world.”
The archmage cleared her throat. She’d been so quiet in the corner of the room, Damien had almost forgotten about her. “I hate to rush your reunion, but we should move while the enemy is unsettled.
“Quite right,” Uncle Andy said. “First thing in the morning we raid the army camp. Once our people are free, we move on the capital, driving the bastards west until we reach Port Valcane, where we end
them.”
“I fear it won’t be that easy,” the archmage said.
“No, I don’t expect it will, but easy or hard, I mean to see it finished. I won’t be satisfied until I have Carmichael’s head on a spike outside the castle.”
“I suspect his wife would be happy to swing the ax,” Damien said.
Karrie smiled and wiped her eyes dry. “I haven’t had a chance to thank you for coming to rescue me.”
“No need to thank me,” Damien said. “I was just the distraction.”
Karrie came over and hugged him anyway. She whispered, “Thank you.”
Chapter Sixty-Three
“Here we are,” Captain Morrow said. “Port Tiger.”
Marie-Bell stood beside the captain in the front of the ship as the crew busied themselves tying up to the dock. Without the paladins’ artificial wind driving the ship forward it had taken most of the rest of the day to reach the city and now the sun hung low in the sky.
Up close the city didn’t look all that impressive. The few buildings she could see well were sprawling, ramshackle warehouses held up by pilings. Beyond that were shanties and lean-tos where fishermen tended their nets. The more distant buildings weren’t in much better shape, at least from a distance. Marie-Bell allowed herself to hope they’d be better up close.
“Why did they name it Port Tiger?” Marie-Bell asked.
“Because if you’re not careful the place will eat you alive. There’s nothing resembling order in the city. Various gangs run things with brute force and intimidation. The merchants have built up their own small armies to protect their goods. No one with a brain goes anywhere alone.”
“Charming. Is it possible to find a safe place to sleep?”
“Absolutely. The inns have their own security forces and most pay protection money to whichever gang runs their part of the city. Between those two precautions the guests’ safety is well assured. On the downside, a room isn’t cheap. That’s why we stay on the ship during visits and set a double guard. But don’t worry. A group of twenty heavily armed and armored warriors shouldn’t have any trouble.”
After that little speech, all Marie-Bell could do was worry. “Do you have a recommendation for an inn?”
“I’ve only been to the one where I meet my sapphire dealer,” Captain Morrow said. “It’s called The Tiger’s Den and it’s the best in the city. It’s also the biggest so you shouldn’t have any trouble finding it. Just take the main street to the center of town. It’ll be on your right.”
“Thanks.”
“Don’t think I’m doing this out of the goodness of my heart. If you don’t make it back I’m not sure I’d dare show my face in the Kingdom of the Red Dragon again and I have a lot of customers there.”
Captain Morrow winked and started shouting orders to her men.
Marie-Bell shook her head and smiled. The captain seemed like a good sort. Considering the difficulty of the trip she’d been a fine host.
She climbed down to the main deck where the other paladins were slowly coming up out of the hold with their gear. Sir Collin had yet to put in an appearance, but Jenkins was on deck already. She made her way over to him.
“How is he?” she asked.
“I don’t know,” Jenkins said. “He locked himself in his cabin as soon as we went downstairs and hasn’t said a word since. You should keep your distance. If he sees us talking it’ll feed his paranoia.”
Marie-Bell sighed at the absurdity of it all. How was she supposed to know what to do if their so-called leader was losing his mind and she wasn’t supposed to talk to the two people who might know what he was thinking?
“One quick question,” Marie-Bell said. “Captain Morrow recommended an inn where we might stay. I know if I say anything he’ll reject it out of hand. Do you want to bring it up? It’s called The Tiger’s Den and it’s near the center of town.”
“I’ll tell him like I heard it from the captain directly.” Jenkins looked away then back. “I’m sorry about all this. I’ve served with Sir Collin for ten years and he’s never acted this way. I don’t know what’s gotten into him.”
Marie-Bell had a pretty good idea it was an attack of the green-eyed monster, but she kept her peace. “It’s okay. In a couple days this will all be over and we can go our separate ways. Right?”
“Let’s hope.” Jenkins strode over to the steps leading to the lower decks and a moment later Sir Collin came up.
Marie-Bell looked away at once lest she draw his attention. Hopefully Jenkins would be persuasive. From the sound of things they didn’t need to be wandering the city at night.
When the last of the paladins appeared on deck and the gangplank had been lowered to the dock Sir Collin said, “We’ll be staying at The Tiger’s Den for the night. I’ll cover the expense so eat and drink your fill.”
A weak cheer went up and everyone filed down the gangplank. Marie-Bell kept to the rear of the group. Sir Collin sounded better, for the moment anyway. Maybe his partner had spoken to him while he was in his cabin. Whatever had happened, she hoped it lasted for a while.
As they left the waterfront, the quality of the buildings slowly improved. Not by a lot, but noticeably. The number of armed men and women increased as well and they all watched the paladins with narrow, angry eyes. The language in the kingdom hadn’t changed so much over the years of their separation that Marie-Bell couldn’t understand the locals, though she found their accent thick.
A couple times Marie-Bell reached for her sword before catching herself. Drawing steel would only provoke a fight they didn’t need. As long as the locals didn’t start anything she’d stay calm.
Calm, but ready.
It had to have been a good quarter-mile hike to reach the center of town. The Tiger’s Den was indeed easy to spot. The inn had huge leaping tigers carved into posts on either side of the entrance. Those statues alone must have cost a fortune.
The building itself was two stories and the best maintained of any she’d seen so far. Two guards armed with spears stood on either side of the entrance.
They crossed their weapons in front of the door and the eldest, a grey-bearded fellow nearly Sir Collin’s age said, “Welcome to The Tiger’s Den. What do you seek?”
It was a simple question, but the way he asked it made it feel like a riddle.
“We need lodging for the night and food.” Sir Collin withdrew a heavy pouch from the folds of his cloak. “We can pay.”
The old man’s dour expression brightened and he waved the others aside. “Then enter and be welcome. My daughter will see to your needs. She’s the one behind the little stand with the big book.”
That seemed an odd way to introduce your daughter, but as soon as they stepped inside the explanation made sense. At the far side of a wide, half-full common room, to the left of the bar, was a table with the thickest book Marie-Bell had ever seen.
Half hidden behind the book sat a tiny woman with small, round glasses perched on the tip of her nose. At the edge of the desk, precariously close to falling on the floor, was a pot of ink with a crow quill sticking out of it.
Just shy of a dozen guards spaced around the room watched them approaching the woman, their hands never far from the hilts of their swords.
Sir Collin planted himself directly in front of the table and said, “We need rooms and food.”
She smiled up at him. “We have plenty of both. But first, won’t you all sign my book?”
“Why would we need to sign a book?” Sir Collin asked. “We only need rooms for a single night.”
“I collect the names of everyone who stays here,” she said. “It’s a hobby of mine. As you can see we’ve had many guests over the years. Please.”
Sir Collin grumbled something before grabbing the quill and scribbling his name. “There. Now, how much for ten rooms and twenty meals?”
“Thirty gold coins,” she said. “Twenty-five if everyone else signs.”
He grumbled some more and counted out twenty-five
gold lions. “They’ll all sign.”
The innkeeper beamed at him. “I so hoped they would.”
She reached under the table and came up with a handful of keys. “You’re welcome to eat first or go upstairs and get cleaned up.”
“We’ll eat,” Sir Collin said.
Everyone queued up and signed. Marie-Bell went last and was surprised to find she could only read a quarter of the signatures. Did they really not want this odd little woman to know their names or was it simply the way they always signed? She didn’t know, but made a point of writing legibly. The innkeeper might as well get something for her discount.
Marie-Bell made her way over to an empty table. She paused before she sat. It felt like someone was watching her with bad intentions. Like their gaze was burning a hole in her back. When she looked around she found pretty much everyone looking at them the way a sheepherder did his flock before the fall slaughter.
Chapter Sixty-Four
Night was almost upon him and Binder still hadn’t found Lady Shiv’s ship. He’d been crisscrossing the ocean with his knights since they left the Obsidian Fortress, but with a two-day head start, Lady Shiv could be anywhere. He was getting thoroughly annoyed which wasn’t healthy for anyone.
Master, I’ve spotted a likely candidate.
The voice of one of his knights rang in his mind. Binder didn’t care for psychic communication, but when he was separated from the others by nearly half a mile it was an unavoidable necessity. He sent an acknowledgment and banked east.
He’d barely begun his turn when a new, more distant voice tickled the back of his mind. Binder pulled up and stretched out, strengthening the link. It had to be one of the knights he’d sent west to watch for the paladins’ arrival. Even Ling at the palace would be able to reach him better than this.
Report, Binder commanded.
Master, the paladins have arrived in Port Tiger. They intend to spend the night in the city. The group numbers twenty and many of them are strong, a handful extremely so. What do you wish us to do?
On Blackened Wings Page 22
