by Tina Hunter
“They can’t take us all!” he yelled out of the carriage doors, holding his arm raised in challenge. Many of the others raised their arms in return, yelling out in a roar of attack.
The remaining men ran out of the carriage to join the fray. They were good distractions; he had to give them that.
James joined him at the door and watched the fun outside. The guards didn’t stand much of a chance, even with four of them; the prisoners had the numbers. He looked at the other carriage now unmanned except for the driver who stood in front of his horses, willing to battle if anyone touched them. He could respect that even if it wouldn’t matter in the end. With a nod of his head in the carriage’s direction, James took off, walking the razor edge of the road to avoid notice. He was a good man, and an excellent lock pick, and now that his traitorous niece had shown her true colors James would do nicely as an heir.
He kept a lazy eye on the battle, mostly to see if it was running near the other carriage. Once he saw that three of the guards were down he turned to his task.
Benjamin knelt down and concentrated on the wooden floor beneath his feet and on his second Inborn ability.
He could feel the bits of matter within the wood move under his will. Atoms, some scientists had started to call them. Benjamin continued to make them move and jump, faster and faster until he could feel the heat from inside the wood.
And then it burst into flames.
Water had been the first ability he discovered, but fire was the one he enjoyed using and he enjoyed keeping it a secret from anyone but his most trusted colleagues. Not even his niece knew about it, well, not yet. He grinned thinking of all the things he had to teach her. But for now, they needed to get out of here.
He walked out of the burning carriage feeling as if the fire was inside him, burning away everything but confidence and determination. No one could cage him. No one could stop what was coming.
The prisoners seemed to notice it too. Even the ones now piling out of the second carriage were looking at him with concerned eyes. Eyes that reflected back the fire now engulfing the carriage, the horses screaming to be released as the flames licked their tails. Everyone except his team. His men. They knew what they saw.
“Throw the bodies of the guards onto the flames,” he commanded. All the men in front of him responded quickly to do his bidding. They would do as they were told until they no longer had a purpose. Benjamin walked over to his men lined up near the second carriage and they bowed low upon his arrival.
“Sir, what are your orders?” Philip asked. He was his military mind, the man who would one day lead his armies. Benjamin studied the remaining carriage and saw the driver lying unconscious beside his horses. Shame, they could have used a driver, as their prison garb wouldn’t protect them from the elements long. No matter.
“We’ll take shifts driving back down the pass. Take his coat.” He walked to the carriage door intending to get in when Victor stopped him with a question.
“What of the other men? We can’t fit them all in.” Victor was new to their team, but he had thought the dark-haired man would have understood the situation better than this. He looked at him with disappointment, and Victor bowed his head to avoid the look. Benjamin turned to face the crowd who were watching him with anxiety. They didn’t know what would happen. He would educate them all.
A crack and scream from the horses pulled the attention of everyone in time to see the two horses with burning tails running away from the fire up the mountain road. They would alert the mine if they made it that far. Best to move on quickly.
The fire had melted enough of the snow and ice to create a small rivulet of water. He pulled the water up into the air and made a crown of water appear in the air. Large enough to have hung over the sides of the carriage. He spun it lightly but didn’t bother using his hands to control it; he didn’t need to, anyway. Still, the crowd understood what they were seeing, and many of them were growing angry. They had been deceived, betrayed.
“Yes. I am the thing you hate,” he yelled out to have it echo back from the surrounding mountains. “If you have changed your mind and realized that power is power, come forward. The rest of you are welcome to try to take the carriage from us.”
No one moved. The looks on their faces ranged from pure rage to anguished despair. A few tried to take a step forward but couldn’t seem to complete it.
“Satisfied?” Benjamin whispered to Victor. The man nodded, still not meeting his eyes. He would learn from this. They all would.
With a flick of his mind, he sent the water hanging in the air above the crowd down onto their heads, drenching them all completely. They would thank him for their quicker deaths if they could see beyond their own suffering. Sadly, so few men could.
He turned and climbed into the carriage, noting that James wore all the driver’s clothes, not just the man’s jacket, and sat with the reins in hand. Yes, he would make an excellent heir.
“Where to, sir?” James said before Benjamin was fully inside the carriage.
“Etude. We’ll need to regroup before we can deal with my niece.”
James’ eyes took on a grim look, but he didn’t say a word. Benjamin sat and watched the rest of his men pile into the carriage knowing they felt the same way about Lynn. She had betrayed them. She had taken the crystals he so desperately needed, and unlike the men now crying in shame or chasing after their moving carriage, he had power and knew how to use it.
“Power or death!” he said quietly.
“Royal in name!” his men replied in a low chant. He smiled to himself. Evelynn had much to learn.
The Story Continues in....
Chain of Inheritance:
Black Shadow #2
Coming in 2019
Thank you for reading Blade of Memories. I hope you enjoyed reading this book as much as I enjoyed writing it. Stay tuned because Lynn’s story is only beginning.
As an author, I love feedback. So tell me, what did you like? What did you love? Even if you hated parts, I’d love to hear from you. You can send an email to [email protected] or find other ways to stalk me get in touch at TinaHunter.ca.
Before you go... I need to ask a favor. Reviews can be hard to come by these days. You, the reader, have the power to make or break a book.
I would really love a review of Blade of Memories on your favorite online bookstore and/or on Goodreads. Even just a sentence or two–it would mean a lot.
Again, thank you so much for reading!
Tina Hunter
Special Thanks
Thank you to the Inkblood, YOTN, and WELA writing groups for being great places to get advice, writing help and of course sprints. Also, I couldn’t have done it without my beta readers; Forrest, Emily, Samuel, Zee, Robin, and TJ.
But a special thanks goes out to my kids and hubby. My two boys for inspiring me and driving me crazy, and my husband for putting up with my craziness and being so supportive of my dream. I love you guys.
Author Bio
Photo by Chris Buzon
Tina Hunter is a Science Fiction and Fantasy author who writes for Young Adults, because deep down inside she still thinks she is a teenager. Her short stories have appeared in several anthologies, but her first novel-length work is Blade of Memories.
Tina has spent many years working in the publishing industry, but now she focuses her attention on her growing family... and books. Lots of books.
So basically she is; a geek, a mother, a sci-fi fan, and a super cool lady who loves to tell stories.
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