by Lisa Daneils
It’s sad to be going into marriage thinking of life after it’s over. Then again, how differently I would have done things had I known that my first marriage would be so short. It was difficult to know which was worse—knowing that it would end soon after it began, or being devastated when it didn’t last. That’s a thought for a different time.
Bridget put her ruminations to the back of her mind and focused on what she had to do as she passed through the halls. Finally encountering one of the advisors, she caught his attention. “Excuse me, Sir Baily, but could you please tell me where my father is?”
“Oh, Your Majesty,” the old man bowed as low as he could. “Another unsuccessful suitor? Not to worry, I’m sure—”
Bridget cut him off before he could say anything else. “No, he was quite charming and sincere. We are to wed the day after next, and he will be taking me away tomorrow.”
She reached out and kept the advisor from losing his balance at the news. When he finally found the words to talk, he spluttered, “I wish that I could believe you were trying to fool me, but I have known you since you were a child. How could you agree to something like that? That’s too soon. Your father is going to be upset to see you leave so soon. Could you not put it off—”
“Sir Baily, please, we all knew that I was going to leave soon. What does it matter if it is now or in a couple of months? These extra months with all of you have been more than any of us had expected after my husband died.” A part of her wanted to remind him that it was only happening because the advisors had pressed for her to remarry so quickly. However, saying that would likely backfire.
“But this is too soon. I must—”
She kissed the top of his head. “It is now out of your hands, Sir Baily. Prince Liam was quite eager to marry as soon as possible, and I do not want to put him off without a good reason.”
“Could we not come up with a good reason?”
“If you have to come up with it, then it is an excuse, not a reason. It will be alright. I might even find the happiness all of you have been hoping for me to find. Why put it off any longer?”
“Are you speaking of regrets because of your first marriage? If so—”
“I am speaking for myself. Now that I know who I will marry, there is no reason to continue to live off everyone’s generosity. It is better this way, and you know it. Once I am gone, you will only need to worry about looking after my father and brother.” She patted his shoulder. “Where is my father?”
Baily looked crushed by her determination to move forward. “If there is any way to change—”
With a sigh, Bridget decided it was necessary to be a little cruel if she didn’t want to lose more time with her father. “You have had your say, and from this point on, my decisions are my own. Please tell me where my father is.”
Apparently this was not the right thing to say and Baily began to protest her reasoning. “If you are only doing this to make us feel bad for trying to do what is right for you, that is a poor reason to be getting married. I—”
Before Bridget could stop him from talking, a low voice broke into their conversation, “My apologies, Princess Bridget, but I need a few more minutes of your time.”
Both heads turned to look at the speaker. Liam’s expression was unreadable as he approached them. She noticed that his steps were entirely silent. Bridget could not imagine that he had forgotten anything, and could not fathom his sudden return. Concern and doubt began to spread through her. The only reason she could imagine for his appearance now was that he had decided against the marriage. A jolt went through her at the idea that he had changed his mind, and she found that she desperately hoped that was not the case.
Giving a quick curtsey, she tried to hide her emotions. His hand gently slipped into hers as the prince looked at the advisor. “My apologies, Sir Baily, but I must steal her away to finish plans for the ceremony.”
The old man simply nodded. “Of course. Of course, Your Highness.”
When the old man tried to bow low, Liam stopped him. “That is very kind, but unnecessary. You need not bow to me or my kind. That is not part of our customs. Relax and don’t worry about Princess Bridget. I promise to take care of her to the best of my abilities.”
The advisor’s expression was a mix of awe and uncertainty. “Alright, I leave her in your hands. It seems a bit sudden, but I trust you will do what is right for her.”
“I shall always make decisions with her best interest in mind.” He gave a bow, then pulled Bridget down the hall away from the throne room. Liam’s voice was nearly a whisper as he said, “Your father is this way. I will let you go once you are comfortable.”
“Why did you come back? I thought you needed to return home.” Her voice was a hushed whisper, despite that not being necessary. Sir Baily could not have heard their conversation even if they had talked normally.
“That can wait. I could not ignore you when it was clear that you were so uncomfortable and in a situation that you are only in because of my desire for expediency. As I said, I want to make this as comfortable for you as possible.”
Bridget wasn’t sure how to respond to that. Relief spread through her that he was already proving as good as his word. A small part of her felt regret that this was the best she could hope for with Liam.
He pulled her along without another word. As they made their way through the palace, she noticed how warm his hand was through his gloves. Her eyes moved to his figure. They had only met within the last few hours, but looking at him now, Liam no longer seemed intimidating. Serious, yes, but not scary. She felt certain that Liam was the kind of person who would be an ideal ruler, taking into account the needs of the people around him over his own. Clearly he needed to prepare things at home, but here he was, ensuring she was alright. Was that because of what she had told him in the maze about the previous suitors?
Suddenly, he stopped. “Your father is in here. Will you be alright from here?”
“I-I should be alright. But you are welcome to come with me to meet him and to find out what he has to say.”
Liam briefly considered this, then gave a curt nod. “You are right. I should speak to him. Is it the custom to ask for the father’s permission?”
“It is, but I think that all of the kings have already given their permission by default when they made the agreement. Still, I’m sure he would appreciate it if you did.”
“I understand. If it is alright with you, I will speak first.”
After indicating that was fine, Liam opened the door. Turning to one of the guards, he announced who he was, his hand still holding Bridget’s hand. The guard strode away to announce the prince, his eyes looking at their hands as he left the room. Suspecting that Liam had forgotten, Bridget pulled her hand away. He turned to look at her for a moment, but did not say anything. Silence echoed around the room as they both considered their situation.
A minute later, one of the stewards stepped into the room. “The king will see you now.”
Liam held out his arm to the princess, who quickly took it with a nervous smile. The prince murmured, “You don’t need to be afraid or nervous. I promise this will be as painless as possible.”
Bridget pursed her lips before forcing another smile. “Thank you.”
They entered the room, their arms linked. After exchanging the usual niceties, Liam introduced himself, shocking the princess. She had assumed that her father and fiancé had already met.
Liam was bowing low, his eyes on the king, something no one else would dare to do before he told them to raise their heads. It was just another reminder of how different her life was about to become. Her father was the most powerful man among humans. Yet it was clear by watching him that Liam was just being polite. In the back of her mind, a small voice said that he was doing it for her.
She began blushing as Liam spoke, “Your Highness, I have come to ask for your permission to marry your daughter.”
Bridget’s eyes went to her father, who seemed surpr
ised. Rising from his seat, he approached them. Bowing low, he said, “It would be my honor to have you as a son-in-law.” For the first time she could remember, Bridget saw her father lower his gaze, clearly showing his position below her future husband. This was definitely not how things had been for her first marriage.
Liam stood. “I realize that I am asking much of you, but I must press a little further.”
The king straightened up but kept a posture of deference to the prince. “Anything, my future son.”
“I would like to marry her in two days.”
This clearly took the king by surprise. Looking at Bridget, his eyes seemed to be asking her if that was alright.
She gave a little nod. “I have already told him that I was alright with marrying quickly.”
He seemed to deflate a little at her words. It almost looked like he was going to burst into tears as he nodded. “I could not refuse you, especially if she has already agreed.” Without a word, he flung his arms around his daughter and pulled her into a tight hug. “I will miss you so much, my dear. These past few months have been an unexpected blessing that I had hoped would last a bit longer.” He let her go, and she could tell he was barely able to hold back the tears.
“My apologies for the suddenness, but you can take that as a compliment to your daughter,” Liam spoke, a small smile flashing across his face as he looked at Bridget. “She made such a favorable impression on me that I would prefer to move forward.”
The king covered his mouth with his hands, a couple of tears escaping the corners of his eyes. Trying to regain his composure, he looked at Liam. “I am glad she found someone who can appreciate her. My daughter has a bad habit of trying to make everyone happy, her own desires be damned. If I’m being honest, I was hesitant to have her looking for a marriage so soon after her husband died. And I was even more terrified by the idea that one of you would choose her. If you will forgive me for saying so, but your people are very… intimidating. But I see now that I was wrong on both counts. Come here.” With that, the king threw his arms around a very startled Liam.
The weight of the king pulled Liam down a bit. Giving the king a quick pat on the back, Liam tried to pull away.
The king tried to regain his composure. Wiping tears from his face, the king began to issue orders. A feast was to be prepared to celebrate the engagement and wedding. “Make sure Brandon knows,” the king spoke to one of the stewards.
“But, Highness, he is—”
“I don’t care where he is or what he is doing, he needs to be here to give his sister his best wishes. You know how upset he would be if he were to miss this.”
The steward bowed and left.
Liam looked around and said, “I am sorry for causing such a disturbance.”
The king waved his apology away. “You are eager, and I cannot fault you. To be young again.” He looked at the couple. “I was never so brave as my daughter. Once my wife passed, I didn’t have the heart to look for another. It didn’t seem right. Come and we will discuss your future.”
Bridget kept expecting Liam to attempt to leave. Finally, she pulled Liam to the side while her father discussed something with some of the advisors. “Don’t you need to get back to your kingdom?”
“It’s alright. I cannot turn down your father’s generosity. That would be incredibly rude. And I hope to reassure him that his daughter’s future is safe.”
“You really do consider others before yourself, don’t you?”
The look in his eyes was gentle as he patted her on the head. “Much like you, apparently.”
“You are really going out of your way. It makes me feel guilty.”
“And you agreed to marry on a rushed timeline. It is the least I can do to help you feel comfortable since you will be giving up so much because of me. Instead of feeling guilty, let’s go enjoy what your father has done so that you don’t regret how you spent your last day here.”
Giving a quick nod, Bridget took his arm and headed toward her father.
Chapter 5
Shuffling Priorities
As they feasted, Bridget brought the conversation around to the recent attacks. “Father?”
The king beamed at her, “Yes, my daughter?”
“I am sorry for bringing the conversation back to pressing issues, but what is the latest word on the shape shifter attacks?”
The people around them immediately fell silent. The king looked to Prince Brandon before saying, “Don’t worry about that, my dear. It is hardly a fitting topic during our celebrations.”
“But it is important and I want to make sure that you will be alright before I leave. I know that you have been trying to predict their movements since they destroyed Port Trenton two months ago. You’ve kept pretty quiet since then. If there is anything I can do to support you, even from my new home, I will.” This last bit was thrown in to persuade him that she had a vested interest in learning more.
Giving a nod of his head, the king finally agreed. “We have been dealing with them, but your brother has been the primary planner on how best to counter them.”
Liam looked between the family members, “They completely destroyed a port?”
Prince Brandon nodded, “They did. We aren’t sure what happened because there were no survivors. By the time our men reached the port, it was completely burned. The only reports we got were of large, flying creatures from nearby villagers. Some sort of flying… lizard or something.”
Liam sat back and steepled his fingers in front of his mouth. “Dragons. They have learned to shift into dragons.”
There was a murmur around the table. Finally, one of the advisors laughed. “You pull our legs, Your Highness. Dragons have been extinct for millions of years. There would be no way for them to learn such a form.”
Liam’s eyes fell on the man. “I assure you that there is a way for them to learn, and it is most concerning.”
The king leaned forward, “Do you know something about these shape shifters? Is there some way to stop them from further destruction?”
“My people know enough of them to know that they are dangerous when being led by the wrong kind of leader. I had thought that had been taken care of, but apparently something has happened that we may not be aware of. I will look into it myself.”
“My dear prince, I could not possibly ask you to do that.” The king placed his silverware down. “You have a wedding and your own lands to tend. Perhaps you could send some of your own men?” The last question was posed hesitantly, as if the king were afraid of asking for more.
With a quick shake of his head, Liam explained, “I am a second son, so I do not have that kind of authority. Nor would I want others to know, as that might cause… unnecessary concern.” From the way he chose his words, Bridget could tell he was hiding something, though for whose sake, she wasn’t certain. The prince continued, “Once we are married,” he wrapped his hand around Bridget’s, causing her to blush, “I will look into it.”
The king frowned, “You are a second son?”
Liam nodded.
“I thought that there were four princes who were to wed humans.”
“Yes, four of us will marry humans.”
“I apologize, but I was under the impression that all four were to be kings.”
“That is the plan, Your Majesty.”
“But how, if you are a second son?”
Liam pulled his hand away from Bridget and shifted in his seat. “I will be striving to form a new kingdom after the wedding.”
The king looked surprised, but that quickly gave way to a jovial laugh. “Ah, dear boy, you must be ambitious. To think that someone so determined would want to marry my little girl. I can understand why. You couldn’t ask for a better woman to support you in such endeavors.”
Bridget noticed that Liam refused to look at her at this point, and she knew why. He had agreed not to say anything about their future. “And I am most grateful for your understanding.”
“Now I cer
tainly cannot ask for you to help us. Between starting a family and starting a kingdom, you won’t have time. Don’t worry, we will continue to look into this, and will let your father and the other kings know what we learn.”
Liam’s eyes narrowed for a split second before he recovered himself. “I assure you that it will not take much time out of my schedule, and it will benefit me, perhaps more than the other kings. My lands would be to the south, making them the most likely place for the shape shifters to target if they decide to attack my people. I will inform you and our kings of what I learn.”
“I feel bad putting more on you than you already have, but if you are going to insist, I cannot stop you.” The hopeful look in the king’s eyes let Bridget know that he was far more concerned about the recent events than he had let on when talking to her.
“Father, has it really been going so badly?”
“We haven’t lost any more ports, but they have wiped out a few villages over the last month. It doesn’t seem like they are doing much at the moment, but the fact that they haven’t stopped is concerning. Usually, they attack a few times, then we don’t hear from them for a decade or more. This time is proving to be different.”
Prince Brandon cut in, “The way they are going about it seems almost random, but I believe that there is something to those attacks that we just can’t see.”
Prince Liam nodded. “If they are mostly attacking smaller settlements, it is likely they are testing their skills in new forms. Dragons are capable of a lot more destruction in a short period of time, but most animals can only manage to take down a village or small community. The manner of the destruction will tell you about the shapes they are using. If they are escalating their attacks, it means they are preparing for an invasion.”
“You know a lot about them,” the king said, a look of awe on his face.
“Yes. My people have had trouble with them in the past. It is most unfortunate to hear that they are again rising as a problem for us to manage. They do not seem capable of keeping to their word for more than a couple of decades.”
