My head was swimming with information. “But the princess was the woman the prince intended to marry. Why would she want to help the queen mother and her son? Oh wait. The oracle is from Thule. Is she the princess?”
Nereus nodded.
Damn. That explained everything. Her hatred and bitterness. The conversation between her and Storm’s mother.
“Like I said, the queen mother was much loved before she became ill. She still is, except people don’t see her anymore, not after the day of the hanging.” He went pale as though reliving the moment, then picked up an arched arrow from the ground. “This is still in good shape.”
I wanted to hear more about Storm’s parents even if it brought on the waterworks, but Nereus seemed to be struggling with his emotions, so I waited while he attached an arrow to the bow and aimed at the oracle’s tower. Instead of letting it go, he closed his eyes and stood still as though listening to something.
“You see the middle crenel on the left battlement?” he asked.
I had no idea what a crenel was, but I said, “Yes.”
“Watch.” He opened his eyes and let go of the arrow.
His aim was off, was my first thought. But then the arrow arched, shifting off its path. It shot right through the opening on the battlement.
“Bull’s-eye!” he said, and I laughed at his reaction.
“That was amazing. How did you do that?”
“I listen to the wind, the direction and how fast it’s moving.” He looked up at the sky. The sun was up, but there was a chill in the air. “I also consider the weather, which affects the thickness of the air, and I adjust how high I should shoot.”
“Can you teach me?”
He laughed. “I’m supposed to guard you and the queen mother, lass.”
“You could teach me while she’s resting, like now.”
Nereus frowned. Then he nodded. “Why not? Wait here.”
He disappeared down the stairs while I continued to gather the arrows scattered on the battlement. When Nereus returned, he was carrying a bag with more arrows and two bows in good condition.
“Okay. Let’s start.”
~*~
It seemed like hours before we stopped. My arm ached in a good way.
“You are a natural, lass,” Nereus said.
Pleased with the praise, I grinned.
“Thank you.” I curtsied. “Can we practice again tomorrow?”
“Sure, but before we leave, you need to work on one thing.”
“The arc?” I could pull, aim, and hit things, just not my target. The updraft was kicking my ass.
“Not the arc, lass. The curtsy.”
“Seriously?”
He nodded. “Before the mad king returns, you must learn how to do it right. Come on. No pouting. Put the bow and arrows down.”
I didn’t care about the mad king. I planned to be gone way before he returned.
“This is how you do it.” Nereus gripped the sides of his coat, held it out, put his right foot behind his left, and bent his knees. At the same time, he bowed his head. He looked so ridiculous I covered my mouth to block the laughter.
“Lass, you are lucky Tully didn’t have you flogged. King Tullius will do it if he thinks you’ve disrespected him.”
I sighed. “Fine. Show me again.”
He did.
“Again,” I said, studying him from a different angle.
“One more time,” I added, and he caught on. He glared at me.
“You think this is funny? How about this. I will not show you how to listen to the wind as it brushes your face unless you learn to curtsy.”
“Like this?” I asked, imitating him. He’d gotten me at “listen to the wind.”
After doing it several times, I got it right.
“Hold it there. When you pause like that it indicates deep humility and devotion.”
“You know there’s no point of me learning this,” I said.
“Why not?”
“Because I will never be devoted to the people who hurt Storm.”
Nereus frowned. “Hurt Storm? Don’t you mean killed him?”
“Yes, killed him.”
Nereus’s frown became a scowl. When he spoke, he lowered his voice. “You need to say that again and again until you sound convincing, Lexi. Until it rolls off your tongue as natural as breathing. And it wouldn’t hurt to shed a tear or pretend to be heartbroken, or no one will believe he’s dead.”
Did he believe Storm was alive? “Why are you telling me this?”
“Because it takes a lot to fool the mad king. He’s not like Tully. The oracle is always by his side, whispering in his ear. She comes from a magical people and can tell when someone is lying. And you’re not a very good liar, lass.”
He took off. By the time I gathered my bow and arrows, he was on the stairs. I ran to catch up with him.
“How can you tell I’m lying?”
“I just know. Focus on how Storm looked the last time you saw him, and draw on how you felt at that moment. The anger, the pain, the hatred for the people who’d hurt him. It’s the only way you’ll convince the king he’s gone.”
“But—”
“He’s not gone, lass. We searched those waters, but he wasn’t there. The others were. Captain Ren’s dead ones.”
My jaw dropped. “You searched for Storm?”
“Before we caught up with Captain Ren’s ship, yes. He’s alive. I feel it in my gut, lass.” Smiling, he continued downstairs.
I closed my slack jaw and followed him. I hoped his gut was never wrong because I wanted my doubts to go away.
Two men were talking to Banan and looked up when we arrived in the common room. They eyed the bow and the bag of arrows. I didn’t get their names, but Banan explained they were their replacements. Lord Conyngham wanted to see them.
I didn’t want them replaced.
“Will you be here for my lessons tomorrow, Nereus?”
“Aye, lass. Now be good. Don’t make these two break a sweat keeping an eye on you.”
I watched Nereus and Banan until they disappeared. Feeling optimistic, I went to the queen mother’s cell.
Nothing had changed, and Gwyn was busy darning something at the table.
“Is it okay if I take another bath?” I asked.
“You don’t need my permission, lass. Add the wood to the fire and heat up some water.”
Dinner was beef stew and bread for us and broth for Storm’s mother. She felt warm to the touch, and I even pointed that out to Gwyn, but she didn’t seem worried. She regaled me with more stories about Storm’s parents and their epic love, filling in the blanks she and Nereus had left out. Afterward, I went to my cell and crawled into my narrow bed, but my mind was on replay, going over what I’d learned.
Storm’s mother deserved to be happy. No matter what it took, I would escape with her.
CHAPTER 7
I aimed the arrow, pulled, and watched it fly across the roof. The second one followed seconds later. Then a third. I stopped after the tenth. Listening to the wind wasn’t easy, but I was getting better at it.
“Not bad,” Nereus said.
“Yeah. Four out of ten made it through the right crenel.”
“Yesterday was one. By next week, you won’t miss.”
I didn’t want to be here next week. Three days had passed since I started archery. Each day, I studied the sky when I came topside to practice. The weather was cooler than Vaarda, humid, and misty, but no heavy clouds or lightning to indicate Storm was nearby. Hope was starting to dwindle again despite Nereus’s gut feeling.
With each aim, I imagined it piercing Captain Ren’s heart, or the mad king’s, or Tully the Creep. He had left me alone, which was great because his mother was still out. Gwyn hadn’t been kidding when she’d said the oracle’s brew would knock out the queen mother for several days. I couldn’t even tell if the charcoal had adsorbed some of the poison.
Unfortunately, my three days were up. Any second, I
expected Banan to come to the battlement and tell me Tully had returned. He’d gone to a family estate in the country to hunt. Gwyn had said he did that often with his friends.
“Do you want to try a different weapon?” Nereus asked when we took a break.
“No, I love bows and arrows.”
“Come on, lass. You must learn to use a different kind of weapon. Sword? Dagger?”
I studied his expression. He’d become some sort of a friend and confidant. There were things I still refused to share with him about Vaarda, but he now knew a lot more than anyone else on the island. And he loved to hear about Nerissa. He was obsessed with her.
“Are you getting bored, maestro?” I teased.
“No, but my star pupil needs to master a variety of weapons. What if you need to fight someone in a close combat?”
“Arrows have sharp tips.”
“But can you conceal one in the sleeve of your dress?”
I sighed. “Fine. A dagger it is.”
He grinned. “Get Banan up here. We’re going to create sparring daggers.”
I headed downstairs, spoke briefly to Banan, then continued downstairs to the restroom in the palace. I’d gotten used to racing up and down the stairs whenever I had to go. Since it was the one used by the kitchen staff, sometimes I had to wait my turn, like this time.
I hadn’t tried to get to know the palace staff or talk to them. I felt I didn’t need to. Just like I hadn’t tried to friend the snooty rich kids in my town. I’d grown up hating their “them” versus “us” mentality, yet I’d embraced it here. Yeah, it was stupid, but it helped me differentiate between my friends and my enemies. Gwyn, the queen mother, Nereus, Banan in the tower of the original castle were friends, while everyone else in the modern side of the palace was lumped with the royal family. Lord Conyngham was somewhere in the middle.
“Well, well, if it isn’t the little Tuh’ren healer,” the oracle said from behind me, and my stomach sank.
Slowly, I turned to look at her. I hadn’t seen her since Lord Conyngham had booted her out of the tower. She lived on the other end of the palace, and since I hadn’t bothered to go exploring, chances of us meeting had been slim to none.
“Hey,” I said, not really wanting to talk to her.
“How is the queen mother doing?” The smirk on her face said she already knew the answer to that.
“Great.”
“Has she awoken yet?”
“Many times.”
She chuckled. “Liar.”
“She told me about you and her true mate, Storm’s father.” I couldn’t resist.
The smile disappeared from her lips, her eyes narrowing. “Prince Tully is coming back from his hunting trip today. What are you going to tell him?”
I didn’t want to think about Tully. A woman left the restroom and smiled briefly at me before she saw the oracle. The smile left her face, and she scurried toward the kitchen.
“Excuse me,” I told the oracle, entering the washroom.
The oracle slapped a hand on the door, stopping me from closing it.
“I knew you couldn’t do it, Tuh’ren. Give up, and let me take over her care.”
She hadn’t tried to return to the tower, yet desperation tinged her words.
“No, thanks. If I fail, it won’t be because I gave up, Oracle.” I slammed the door in her face, and for one moment, I stood against the door, my stomach churning.
Tully expected results today. What was I going to do?
I took longer in the toilet than usual so as not to run into the oracle again. Back upstairs, I checked on the queen mother before joining Banan and Nereus in the battlement. They were busy creating wooden daggers from a bow.
Nereus and I spent the rest of the morning practicing. He was good, just not as good as Kai. I even impressed him with some of the attacks I’d watched her teach the shieldmaidens.
“Where did you learn that?” Nereus asked.
“From Kai, an instructor on Vaarda.”
“Is she married?” Banan yelled from the bottom of the stairs.
I laughed. Every time Nereus and I were on the battlement, Banan sat at the bottom of the hidden stairs, listening to us. Like he’d said, he didn’t want to miss a thing.
“She is, Banan. Sorry. But there’re other unmarried shieldmaidens and Tuh’rens.”
“Who? Give me names? Describe them. I love feisty women.”
So I told him about Skylar and other Tuh’rens between bouts, until I couldn’t talk anymore. Sweat dripped down the side of my face and between my shoulder blades.
“Can you take criticism, lass? Nerus asked, leaning against the wall.
“No. I’m likely to bite your head off.”
He chuckled. “You’re good, but you take too many chances without thinking about the consequences. You should always visualize several moves ahead before you start. Ask yourself this. If you do one thing, how will your opponent counter it? Then think about how you’d counter their move and so on. Of course, at times you can’t predict what they’re going to do, so you have to be ready to either retreat or keep pressing forward. You don’t know when to retreat. You’re like a mad Kelpie that keeps charging.”
“That there is a compliment. I love Kelpies. Mad or sane. No, pirate ones.”
He chuckled. “Ready to try again?”
“Yes, and I get it. Fight smart and don’t be afraid to retreat.”
By lunchtime, I was physically, mentally, and emotionally exhausted. I’d applied Nereus’s teachings to my situation with Tully, but in every scenario I’d come up with, I lost. His mother was unresponsive, and that was a situation that wasn’t going to change.
After lunch, I stayed with her and told her more stories about Vaarda, focusing on the children. Once again, the other two guards replaced Nereus and Banan. They’d been alternating since the first night. Unlike Nereus and Banan, they were quiet and kept their distance.
“She feels warm,” I told Gwyn before I went to bed.
“The medication the oracle gave her is wearing off. She will be awake but drowsy tomorrow. Usually, she gives her something to steady her.”
More poison, which meant she might start having withdrawal symptoms if she didn’t get some. Worried about her and Tully, I fell into a light sleep, my brain refusing to shut down. With every little sound, my heart skipped and my eyes flew open.
I was falling asleep when I bolted upright for the hundredth time. This time, a dark figure loomed over my bed.
“Alexandria,” Tully whispered. His hand landed on my bare thigh and stroked it.
Fear spiraled through me. I yanked the hem of my chemise down and scooted away from his hand. I became aware of too many things at once. Someone stood near the doorway with a candelabra, and the light illuminated Tully’s body through his long night shirt. He wore nothing under it.
Crap! I reached for the covers, but he grabbed my wrist.
“Don’t.” He snapped his fingers and indicated to the person holding the candles to move closer.
It was the short weasel guy from the day I’d arrived. Egon. He must be his valet, or personal servant. Tully took the candelabra and lifted it to see me better.
“Leave us,” he growled without looking at his manservant.
My eyes flew to the man retreating. I wanted to beg him not to leave, but I knew it would be pointless. This bastard was their prince. Tully’s grip tightened around my wrist, and I fisted my free hand, ready if he tried something. I wasn’t making it easy for him.
“Why do you fight me, Alexandria?”
“I’m cold. I need to cover myself.”
“I could keep you warm.” He sat on the bed, and my fear shot from wavering confidence to oh-shit. I scooted away, ready to defend myself. But then he let go of my hand and reached for my blanket.
I watched him with morbid fascination as he draped it over my shoulders. Wary, I scooted backward until my back pressed against the wall. The sadistic bastard smiled as though my reactio
n amused him.
“How is my mother doing?” he asked.
I swallowed. “She’s fine.”
“I heard you’ve been using the battlement. What do you do up there?”
“I stretch my legs and exercise.”
He reached out to touch my face, and I cringed. This time, I recognized the amusement that spasmed his face.
“Why do you cringe from my touch? I’m not a monster.”
You are when you enjoy hurting people. “I’m tired. It’s been a long day.”
“You chose to watch over my mother, Alexandria. You could be downstairs with servants taking care of you.” He stroked my cheek while I fought revulsion and pressed against the wall.
He moved suddenly and fisted a chunk of my hair. Pain shot up my scalp even as I tried to ease it by moving toward his hand. He kept tugging me toward him, the ugly smile on his face.
“Don’t ever lie to me, Alexandria,” he said so calmly.
“I haven’t lied.”
He yanked, and I cried out in pain. This time, I was sure he pulled out strands.
There was a commotion near the door followed by, “I’m here for the lass. The queen mother needs her.”
Gwyn. Relief coursed through me. “Your mother needs me.”
Tully ignored my comment. “Let’s try this again. What do you do on the battlement, Alexandria.”
“I went to stretch my legs and found arrows and a bow, so I practice with them. Please, the queen mother needs me.”
“Peasants use bows and arrows. Ladies use daggers. Did he not teach you how to use one?”
Storm Unleashed: Phantom Islanders Part III Page 9
