He shrugged. Though he was clearly not pleased with the way she was handling this. “I suspected that’s all. When you said the gift of the Goddess’s blood only follows the female line and only manifests on occasion, you emphasised the latter a little too earnestly as if to waylay suspicion when Eden glanced over at you. I guessed you weren’t being absolutely honest; that you were perhaps trying to hide something.”
She ignored the undertone in his voice. “I’m going to have to remedy that. Do you think Bastion or Eden noticed?”
“I can’t say.” He sat forward and reached across the table and took her hands, surprising her a little and preventing her from taking another bite of her bread and cheese. “Regardless of what the White Druid said, please at least consider taking this up with Joseph.”
“James, I can’t.”
“Dee, you’re not thinking this through. If pregnancy is a common outcome of this enlightenment ritual, Fren could know that Eden isn’t your father’s son; that Kane is the legitimate heir to the Arkaelyon throne. They’d merely have to whisper this in the right ear and get it before the General Council. The college of alchemists would then test Eden’s blood with silver fire and they’ll have the proof they need to name him illegitimate. It would devastate your father, and more so since your mother’s reputation and memory would be forever sullied. And the consequences for the realm are obvious.”
“They don’t know my mother was Druid’s Bane. No one does. Besides, after I have dispatched Kane we won’t need to worry according to Cargius. Don’t you think I have already thought about this?”
James nodded, sat back and picked up his glass of wine. “And you trust him?”
“I have to. We have to. You cannot say a word of this. Promise me you won’t.”
“Of course. It’s your secret to tell,” he said curtly. He drained his glass and got up and collected his coat.
“Where you going?” Danielle asked. She had been looking forward to being alone together. She wanted to talk to him about the execution ceremony and what she need from him if she was going to have the nerve to do what she must.
“To get some air.” He stopped at the door. “I think you need to think about this some more”
“I have had all morning to think it through and this is the way it has to be.”
“No, Dee. We have talked about this kind of thing and if I recall correctly, you agreed there needed to be more co-operation and trust in the Inner Council and at the very least with Joseph.”
“This has nothing to do with trust …”
“I’ll be on deck if you need me.”
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
By the time the Dragon lowered its sails and heaved-to a few miles shy of the entrance to the Illandian Lake and the city’s busy wharves a few more miles beyond, an afternoon breeze had picked up. White caps graced the surface of the river and high cloud raced across the sky, momentarily dimming the sun with its passing, while thunderheads built above the Eastern Mountains, promising rain by evening. Off the port beam marshlands, thick with tussock and stands of willow trees new in leaf, covered the miles to the towering stone walls of the city to the south. Smoke trailed from the chimneys of a nearby fishing village, and in the distance Danielle could see a good number of mounted soldiers and knights waiting her arrival.
“Watch your step, Milady,” the captain said.
Wrapped in a thick black woollen coat, Danielle let go of James’ hand and climbed down the rope ladder that had been thrown over the side of the ship. Bobbing in the water below a long boat was waiting to receive her, and after James, Eden and Bastion joined her on the few spaces left on the vessel’s benches, the oarsmen put out across the choppy water for the fishing village.
The order to disembark before the wharves had reached them via another vessel, which had passed them on its way to help free the grounded Arkaelyus. Father thought it best that she avoid the crowds that were congregating at the wharves, waiting her return. She’d agreed reluctantly when Eden had brought her the news, though using the citizens of Illandia as a smoke screen to keep Fren and her associates in the dark didn’t please her at all. But in truth there was nothing that could be done about it right now. They just had to get through the next day.
Several gulls were gliding on the blustery breeze and their melancholic cries mirrored Danielle’s mood completely. She was trying not to think about what she was going to have to do to her twin brother in the coming hours—assuming they could catch him. She was also trying not to think about the argument she had with James. But despite her efforts she could think of little else. The grim expressions on the familiar faces around suggested she was not alone.
On the bench beside her, James’ good hand found hers and he gave it a little squeeze. “It’s going to be over soon enough.”
She looked up and realised he’d been watching her. It was nice to know that despite there disagreement she still had his support. She wondered how she would have managed without him and then thought about how they were going to avoid being intimate for the next six months. Then she was thinking about Kane again. It was more than odd to think that in a few hours Kane would see his last sunset. Yet he’d chosen this no more than she—or mother and Eden—and part of her resented that deeply.
They were almost at the shoreline now and several soldiers had dismounted and began to wade out to secure the boat. The boat master gave the order to draw in the oars and the soldiers caught the vessel’s bow and guided her onto the pebbly beach. Eden jumped out first, and the wind caught and billowed his cape as he handed Danielle out onto solid ground. Bastion helped James out of the boat into the knee high water, and then, as they went up the beach, the little vessel was pushed back out for the return trip to the Dragon.
As her father promised, a royal carriage was waiting for them on the dirt track that served as the village’s main road back to the outskirts of the wharf district. None of the inhabitants of the small village were about, Danielle noticed, though faces peered out through dirty windows, their gaze on her, and a few brave souls stood in doorways. They’d likely heard rumours about the odd undertakings over the course of the night and were too scared to approach. Or the good Captain Myers who was a trusted officer to the Lord Commander, and who had greeted them on the beach and was now ordering his men to form up, had asked that they give their princess privacy. Danielle wasn’t sure which she liked least.
“I’ll see you back at the palace,” Eden said.
Danielle had gone on to the carriage and this was the first she realised her brother was not behind her. She’d thought they’d all ride together back to the palace. Instead, Eden was swinging up into the saddle of a spare horse Sir Glen Woodford had in tow, Bastion was mounting a black stallion nearby, his face so grim this might as well have been the eve of a battle. Many of the soldiers and knights wore the same expression.
Feeling suddenly claustrophobic, Danielle turned and climbed into the carriage closely followed by James. To her surprise Joseph was waiting inside. He offered them that genial smile he reserved for his favourites but said nothing. Once James had closed the door and settled beside her, their white haired protector tapped the roof with his walking stick. The carriage jerked forward and began along the dusty road as the coachman put his whip to the horses’ backs. Any view beyond the windows was obscured as the cavalcade fell in around them, ready to clear their way through the streets of Illandia. Danielle didn’t want to think about the gossip that would already be circulating around the city.
I feel like a prisoner, she thought as she pushed wind blown hair out of her face and tied it up. “I thought you’d gone to the Aquarius abbey?”
“After receiving your last letter, it seemed an unnecessary trip,” Joseph said.
Something was bothering him; she could see it in his eyes. “Is father concerned about Cargius’ instructions?” He had not responded on that matter so she had assumed all was well. And in truth, she hadn’t expected him to argue, not after the last
twenty-four hours and certainly not with what they now knew.
“That’s not why I’m here.” Joseph’s attention flicked away from her to the window.
“Kane? Has he escaped the city?”
“No. Though your request that we take him in secrecy is proving troublesome.” There was that barely veiled petulance in his tone and look again.
“So you haven’t caught him either?”
“Dee, you need not worry. We’re watching him in a roundabout way and traps have been set so when he moves we’ll be able to nab him quickly and unnoticed. The Lord Commander is handling it personally, and not another soul has any idea what is afoot. I’ve also seen to it that the prison tower has been cleared as you instructed. The tunnel gate as well, so when we have him, you’ll be able to see to this execution ceremony you mentioned in absolute secrecy.”
Execution ceremony, these words sent an unwelcome chill through her.
“So what’s going on? Why are you here?”
He shrugged. “I’m an old man, I’m prone to worry.” He cleared his throat and added, “But since you ask there’s also this matter of Cargius’ refusal to speak with us.”
She had wondered if it might be this.
“I would have thought it courteous that the man would at least agree to meet. We risked a lot sending you up the river, and you risked more still,” Joseph said.
“They want this done secretly, and I’m not sure it will be helpful any of us to argue otherwise.” Danielle replied. “Perhaps it would be best to keep the bad blood between the Aquarius brotherhood and the White Druids out of this. It’s complicated enough as it is.”
“If I could trust the man to be honest with you, I would agree,” Joseph replied ominously.
The anger in his blue eyes surprised Danielle. “What are you talking about? If you don’t trust him, why has father agreed to this?”
“Necessity,” Joseph said curtly, as if there was bile in the back of his throat. “The White Druids wouldn’t have come out of the woodwork if this wasn’t absolutely essential. But don’t think for a moment you are anything more to them than a means to an end. That’s the concern. They have always served their own ends at the expense of others.”
“I wasn’t aware you were so bitter?”
James suddenly intervened, “The man knew we had been attacked, Danielle, and did nothing to help, and that included helping you, so I’m not sure he’s worthy of your protection.”
He’d been staring moodily out the window and she was a little surprised at his interruption considering what they had discussed and agreed upon earlier.
“I wasn’t aware your opinion was sought?” she countered. “And if you had been listening you would recall that Cargius can not intervene unless I desire it. It wasn’t his fault. It was mine. And I would think it rather lowly to speak so harshly of one who saved your life. Wouldn’t you agree?”
“He did so only at your bidding, and reluctantly at that,” James snapped back.
“Exactly my point. They are at my bidding. Unlike some it seems.”
“I wouldn’t be so certain of that,” Joseph said, drawing her frown away from James to him. “Did he tell you how many of these Children of Light he has killed with his own hand? Or that most go mad with the passing of years, and become as feared and monstrous as the evil they fought? Or that you will come to be with his child, and that the final act of the ceremony you began today will involve the extrication of that child from your womb, whereupon you and your fellow sisters will gorge yourself on it’s dead flesh?”
Joseph was trying to shock her, she could see that plainly and she refused to rise to the bait. “Cargius said the other Children of Light would not be required, and yes, he spoke of a pregnancy, but there was nothing of murdering an unborn child, and how dare you make such accusations when you know that if any of this was true the reformist bishops would never have aligned themselves with Cargius and his kind.”
“I couldn’t agree more, for what an ill fated alliance that proved to be. Now answer my question; am I right in assuming that he did not tell you anything about the flesh eating or the madness or that he would happily kill you before letting you fall into the hands of the enemy?”
Danielle couldn’t believe he was pursuing this nonsense. “Where has this come from? I thought you said only last night that you knew nothing of what was written on the walls of my chamber or anywhere else for that matter?”
Joseph considered her and then removed his spectacles to clean the lenses. After a short silence he said, “A small scroll was found hidden away in the spine of the diary belonging to the tale master I spoke to you about. I received word of it this morning. It outlined the nature of the ceremony undertaken by the Children of Light. The Path of Enlightenment. It made very troublesome reading, I can assure you.”
Somewhat relieved to know that O’Brook was the source, Danielle scoffed, saying, “Then we have nothing to fear.”
Even James settled an enquiring look on her.
“Damta O’Brook was a spy for the last Hand,” she explained. She’d forgotten to mention this in her letter. “His job was to hunt and kill my kind. And of course he would frame this ceremony so; flesh eating was a central part of Larniusian rituals, at least according to the tale masters. I suspect he could not understand the accumulation or transference of divine power without it. And we cannot begrudge Cargius his duty. Of course he would kill a Child of Light if it meant saving the bloodline and its future manifestation.”
“And when that bloodline has been manifested in a person such as yourself and you have served your purpose by killing your brother and finding and destroying Maig’s gifts, do you think Cargius and his kind are simply going to vanish and let you resume your life with all that power at your beck and call and nothing to restrain you?”
“Why would they not?”
“Because if this gift corrupts as we fear, Cargius will know all too well that the world would be safer if the last Druid’s Bane was dead also.”
“So you take the word of a dead Larniusian spy over that of a White Druid now do you?
“You trust this man too easily, Dee,” James said. “And you need to tell Joseph everything.”
They both knew what everything meant and his disloyalty infuriated her and she let him see it with a hard glare.
His hazel eyes didn’t flinch from hers even if there was guilt there. “If you do not, I will.”
Without another word, she stood and slid across the opening to the coachman. “Stop the carriage,” she yelled. Gods, she wanted to strike him with all her strength she was so angry.
As it drew up, she said to James, “You can get out. Perhaps a long walk back to the palace will help remind you of your promise?”
“Are you not listening to what Joseph is trying to tell you? Cargius could be planning to use you and then kill you. Just as he has used others before you.”
“What is this about?” Joseph demanded.
Danielle glowered at James. “You bastard! Get out!”
When he looked away in sullen silence her temper flared and she moved to strike him. The stinging blow caught him by surprise and bloodied his lip. “I said get out!”
James opened the door and got up to leave.
“James, stay where you are,” Joseph said. “And you, missy, sit down now!”
Danielle was too angry to listen. She was glaring hotly at her fiancé. “Get out!” When he stalled in the doorway, Danielle got up and shoved him. James’ boot slipped on the step and she lost her balance and they tumbled out of the carriage, she landing on top of him on the dirt track. Embarrassment cooled Danielle’s temper instantly, for Eden had dismounted, likely wondering why they had stopped, and he almost tripped over them as he approached. The fifty knights and soldiers who were acting as an entourage were watching the altercation with utter bewilderment.
“What in the name of the gods is going on?” Eden demanded as he helped Danielle back to her feet. James was ris
ing beside her, his face grey with pain and a hand holding his wounded shoulder. For that at least, she was sorry.
“This is no concern of yours,” Joseph said. His voice bristled. “You two will get back in here now. Or would you prefer we had this conversation in the company of these fine gentlemen?” The threat was aimed at Danielle, and she answered by brushing her coat off and climbing back into the carriage, ignoring her brother’s hand as she went.
“Close the door!” Joseph bellowed as James followed her in and sat down stiffly, his teeth clenched against the pain in his shoulder. When James complied, Joseph told the coachman to be underway and to close the opening. As the carriage rolled forward, bouncing and jerking over the dirt track, and the clatter of hooves and traces was sufficiently loud to ensure they would not be overheard, Joseph said, “What is this about, Danielle?”
She looked at James, trying to ignore the blood seeping between his fingers as he clutched his shoulder, trying to remain angry with him. “Mother and Eden,” she answered defiantly. There was no way round the truth now.
“What about them?”
“Suffice it to say, mother was Druid’s Bane before me and Eden was not her first born. Nor is he the heir to the Arkaelyon throne.”
Joseph stared at her grimly for a while and then sighed wearily and shook his head as if to say how could things get any worse. “You’d better tell me everything.”
“I don’t have much more to tell. After it was agreed between the Arkaelyon and Lunwraith courts that my mother should marry father, the Druids knew she was the queen of prophecy. They approached her with the truth of what she was. Mother agreed to follow the path of enlightenment and according to Cargius she gave birth to a girl while still in Lunwraith. This woman is also a Child of Light, but of no consequence according to Cargius since she will not be required to prevent the fulfilment of this prophesy.”
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