The Wayward Prince (The Redfern Legacy Book 1)

by N. C. Hayes

  “It’s all right,” I replied. “Hannele’s cleanup was rather impressive. I haven’t seen magic up close in some time.”

  “Have you been able to practice your abilities at all?” Aydan asked.

  I shook my head. “Zathryan forbade it.” I lifted the edge of my skirt an inch or so off the floor, revealing the cuff around my swollen ankle. Aydan’s eyes widened.

  “Gods, Shaye, why didn’t you say something?”

  “It’s not silver,” I said. “Stef—the captain had one made in secret. It’s polished steel. No one ever came near enough to realize.” Aydan’s face was livid.

  “I’ll see what I can find,” Hannele announced and left the room before I could assure her that I was fine.

  “How have you been able to hide your abilities?” Gerridan’s eyes were keen. “Surely you haven’t been able to keep from doing magic all this time?”

  “I would do little things here and there. Small tasks, to let some out.” I glanced at Aydan and took a deep breath. “Also, I can . . . I can still do the fire thing,” I said softly. “My room gets cold and there’s no fireplace, so—well, here.” I looked around and found an unlit lantern on the other end of the long table. I raised my hand and focused for a couple of seconds before a flame flickered to life on the wick. I turned back and saw that Gerridan had risen to his feet and was staring intently at the flame. Alastair frowned deeply as the emissary crossed the room and lifted the lantern, examining it himself.

  “What do you think?” Aydan asked him.

  “I think you were right about the lady, Aydan,” Gerridan said quietly.

  “Right about what?” I crossed my arms again as the four of them stared at me. “What is so extraordinary about lighting a lantern?”

  “Let’s sit.” Aydan gestured toward the sofas. “There are some things you should know.”

  ~

  By the time we had all made ourselves comfortable in the sitting area, Hannele returned with a key to unlock the cuff. She carefully removed it, and my ankle was bruised and angry-looking where the steel had rested. As she knelt, I noticed the princess eyeing my torn, ugly shoes, but before I could hide them from her, she tapped once on each shoe and then stood, insisting she fill my drink for me once again. I tried to say that I didn’t need anything, but it was too late. My shoes looked brand new, and I flushed as Hannele pressed a fresh glass into my hand. I thanked her and set it aside, my head already swimming from the alcohol after having had none for so many months.

  “What do you know of elemental magic, Shaye?” Aydan asked.

  “Nothing,” I replied. “I know almost nothing about any type of magic. Just the things that you showed me last year. Casting light, duplication, that sort of thing.”

  “Medeisians are not capable of elemental magic,” Hannele said carefully. I furrowed my brow.

  “The old texts say that when the gods gifted the early Medeisians our abilities, they knew they must give us limits.” Aydan said as he reached for a flickering candle on the table beside him. He balanced the candlestick flat on his palm before taking his hand away. It remained, hovering where Aydan willed it to stay. “I cannot alter the flame itself,” he said, allowing the candlestick to set itself back on the table, “but I can manipulate its vessel all I want.

  “I . . . forgive me, I still don’t understand.” I looked around at the king and his friends. Alastair had not said anything this whole time but continued to stare at me. “If our sorcery cannot conjure the elements, how am I doing so?”

  “By using another source of magic. From the Children,” Gerridan replied. Aydan shot him a sharp look. I gaped at him.

  “From what?”

  “The Children of the Onyx Temple. They’re a coven, located somewhere in the Creg’tam mountain range. They practice elemental and psychic magic. It’s widely believed that Lord Ronan Redfern sought out the Children when he was looking to expand his powers and usurp Zathryan.”

  My vision blurred. I was going to be sick.

  I stood quickly—too quickly, I realized as I swayed. In an instant, Aydan was on his feet with his hand under my elbow.

  “I’m not a witch,” I choked out, praying they would believe me. “I’ve never even—the first time I ever used magic was here, in Ayzelle. I’ve been a prisoner here this entire time, how could I have found a coven—”

  “We don’t think you’re a witch, Shaye,” Aydan said. “Not in that way.”

  “How are you an emissary?” Hannele asked, whipping around to scold Gerridan. “That was the worst possible way to say that—”

  “What is it you think I am?” I asked Aydan. It was Alastair who replied.

  “Magic calls to magic,” he said. “Before your father, there had never been a sorcerer who sought out the power of witchcraft, and certainly never one who then produced a child.” I sat back down and began wringing my hands in my lap. “We believe that Ronan’s power passed to you, as all Medeisian magic passes from parent to child. It stands to reason that the power he developed from the Children, from practicing witchcraft, entangled itself with his natural abilities and has been passed down to you as well.”

  I propped my elbow on the arm of the sofa and rested my temple against my fingers, closing my eyes. I wanted to stand up and storm out of the room, wanted to call them all liars cruelly tormenting me for some prank, some joke they were playing on the servant girl just because they wanted to. Because they were powerful and bored, and they could. And yet, as soon as the words had met my ears, I knew. I knew in the very core of my being that what they said was true. Of course it was.

  I opened my eyes and looked at Alastair, who was studying me closely, before turning back to Aydan. “What does this mean for me?”

  “I don’t know,” he answered. “It may take years for your powers to fully emerge, or they could all appear to you tomorrow after breakfast. But I do know that whatever you have brewing beneath the surface will eventually pour out of you one way or another. You must learn to control this now, or someday you won’t be able to.”

  “If you are right, and I am a—whatever I am, how can I possibly learn to control it?”

  “You’re sitting with the most powerful sorcerers in all of Medeisia, my lady,” said Hannele. “Between us, I truly think we can help you.”

  “We’ll figure it out together,” Aydan assured me. Before I could reply, I heard the door to the king’s chambers open and slam shut again, followed by footsteps stomping down the corridor.

  A pale, petite woman with hair like wildfire strode into the room in a huff, heading straight for the drink cart to pour herself a glass of wine. She drank deeply without turning to look at or greet anyone.

  “Having fun, Kenna?” Gerridan grinned from his armchair.

  “Don’t even get me started,” Kenna spat before pouring another. She glared at Gerridan. “The men in this court are damnable.”

  “And the women?”

  “They’re even worse. The women wouldn’t even look at me.”

  “That’s quite an accomplishment,” Gerridan teased, “since you make a spectacle of yourself wherever you go.”

  She ignored his comment. “I thought I had caught the attention of two of the men in that damned hall, but once we were alone, they decided they’d rather indulge in one another than pay me any attention.”

  “Watching can be fun,” Gerridan countered with a wink. Kenna scoffed.

  “Voyeurism is boring. I left. Hello.” Kenna looked me up and down, cocked an eyebrow, and smirked. “Oh, she’s fun.” She offered her hand. Alastair and Aydan both opened their mouths to object, but I had already taken it. A few seconds passed and Kenna scowled slightly, then patted my hand with her free one.

  “Kings will fall to their knees before you,” she said quietly.

  “I’m sorry?” I blinked.

  “Shaye, allow me to introduce Kenna Vesper, my seer,” Aydan explained. “She delights in the delivery of cryptic messages.”

  “Cryptic? Me
? Never.” Kenna smiled into her wineglass.

  ~

  Soon the Cabinet began to talk amongst themselves. Aydan remained in his seat next to me on the sofa as we watched Kenna and Gerridan bicker about whether Kenna was a habitual cheater when it came to chess. The clock chimed, and I saw that it was close to midnight.

  “It’s quite late,” I said to no one in particular. “I should probably head back to my quarters.”

  “I’ll have Elise show you the way,” Aydan replied.

  “I think I can find my way back. But thank you.”

  “You have a new suite. I hope you don’t mind. I’ve had your belongings moved.”

  “Why?”

  He frowned. “I didn’t think it would come as a surprise that I’ve reinstated your title. You are a lady of Medeisia once again. The suite was empty anyway. You’re not kicking anyone out, if that was your concern.”

  My brow furrowed once again and I asked, “May I be frank with you?”

  “By all means.”

  “Why am I here?” I felt the eyes of Aydan’s friends all turn to me. “Your father hasn’t even sat upon his funeral pyre and the first thing you do is summon a grimy servant girl you used to know—for what? To be paraded around to your powerful friends like some traveling curiosity?”

  Aydan looked taken aback. “Shaye, I assure you that I never intended to make you feel badly. I wanted to see for myself that you were all right. I wanted my friends to meet you because I knew they would have some insight into my suspicions surrounding your abilities. I also wanted to ask a favor of you, but it can certainly wait until the morning if you’re not feeling up to discussing it.”

  “What would that be?”

  “Do you remember when you asked what sort of king I thought I’d be?” Lying on the grass by the pond, watching the clouds pass over a winter sky. A year and a lifetime ago. “The vision I told you about that day—of Medeisia reconciled with Nautia, the Eternity Throne returned to my family’s name. It’s still my vision. I will need help to achieve this, which means I need a strong Cabinet. I have these four already.” He gestured to his friends, who were still watching us. “I still need a Chief Advisor, and I’d like to ask you to fill that position.”

  “You’re joking.” I turned to the Cabinet. They weren’t laughing.

  “I assure you, my lady, I am not,” Aydan said. “I need an advisor who can see both sides of our quarrels. You grew up in the mortal realm, in the heart of Nautia. You know what the common people want, and what they’ve been deprived of by the current owners of the Eternity Throne.”

  “I thought it might be a bad idea too,” Gerridan chimed in. “Until Aydan told me about your history with the mortals. You could have great value here.”

  “I don’t know what to say.” I gulped. Chief Advisor. Lord Ronan’s position under Zathryan.

  “Take some time.” Aydan nodded. “It’s been a long day. Think about it. When you know your answer, send a note with Elise. She’ll be tending to your new suite.”

  “I—thank you. I should—I should go to bed.” I stood, as did Aydan and the other two men. “It was lovely to meet all of you,” I said to the Cabinet, and ignored Aydan’s troubled expression to add, “and to see you again.”

  “Lady Shaye.” He inclined his head, and Elise appeared beside me to guide me out.

  Chapter Nineteen

  I woke the next morning to an urgent knock on the door.

  The night before, when Elise brought me to my new suite, I had entered to find all my belongings, few as they were, placed neatly in appropriate spots around the bedroom. Catchfly greeted me happily on our new bed, which was large and inviting.

  “Is there anything else I can do for you tonight, Lady Shaye?” Elise had asked from the doorway.

  “Just one thing, if you don’t mind,” I said as I opened the drawer to a writing desk near the wall and pulled out stationery and a pen. I scrawled a quick note and folded it before placing it in her hand. “Would you please take this to Captain Whittaker?”

  “Of course.” She dipped her head. “Do you need help dressing for bed?”

  “No, thank you. Good night, Elise.”

  “Sleep well, my lady.”

  The knocking continued as I hauled myself to my feet and found a shawl. I opened the door and Stefan stormed in past me, looking around the room.

  “What happened?” he asked.

  “Good morning to you too,” I said as I closed the door. He looked me up and down, and then around my suite as though the walls had personally offended him.

  “What is this?” he asked. “Why are you here?”

  “King Aydan has reinstated my title. I’m a lady of Medeisia again. The suite was empty, so he gave it to me.”

  “In exchange for what, exactly?” Stefan asked.

  “What do you mean? He didn’t ask for anything,” I said. “He introduced me to some of his friends, gave me the suite, and offered me a job.” Stefan ran a hand over his face.

  “Shaye . . . you don’t understand how these people work, do you?”

  “Why are you acting this way? He made you a lord last night, it’s not like you aren’t benefiting from him as well.”

  “Yes, after I declared my loyalty to him publicly. I’m Captain of the King’s Guard, it’s expected. But you . . . what have you promised him?” Stefan asked.

  “I haven’t promised him anything. I told you, he gave me the suite and offered me a job. That’s it.” Something in my gut kept me from telling Stefan of the Cabinet’s suspicions about my abilities.

  “You have a job,” he said. I scoffed.

  “Indentured servitude isn’t a job, Stef.” He grew quiet.

  “I’m sorry,” he said. “I’m just worried. I’ve spent a long time trying to keep you safe, and I just . . . I don’t want anything bad to happen to you. I don’t want to see you hurt again.” I took his hand.

  “I’m sorry, Stef. For worrying you. But the king has been kind to me. He helped me, in the past.”

  “What’s the job?” he asked.

  “He’s asked me to take the Chief Advisor position,” I said. His eyebrows shot upward.

  “You’re not serious.”

  “That’s what I said. He told me to take some time and consider it.” Stefan put his hand under my chin, tilting me up to meet his gaze.

  “Shaye, you are in very dangerous territory. The king has spent most of his life behind the walls of Sylvanna. No one knows what happens there. Their borders have been closed for nearly a century, they even warded out King Zathryan and the Crown Princess after your father’s execution. Solandis and Priamos are ruthless. They have the most powerful standing army in Medeisia. You don’t keep that much power locked away for a thousand years without being as fearsome as they come.”

  “Aydan wasn’t like that when I knew him.”

  “You knew him for a few weeks, nearly a year ago. I doubt you ever saw his true colors. He may have been grown when he sought refuge with his grandparents, but he’s spent more time under their influence than with his own parents. You must tread lightly. They did not call him wayward for nothing. The things he’s done, how far he’s strayed . . . Aydan is brilliant and vicious. There must be some sort of alternate plan. He wouldn’t have offered such a high position to someone with so little experience, especially with your family history.” I flushed at that last remark.

  “If you don’t think I should take the offer, I won’t,” I said. “I’ll send a note and be done.” I ignored the pang of disappointment in my chest. Until I said the words, I hadn’t been sure if I wanted to take the job.

  “You can’t turn him down,” Stefan said incredulously. “If you thought you were a prisoner before—”

  “He’s not like that,” I interrupted, repeating my earlier sentiment with some frustration. “The king wouldn’t make me a prisoner for saying no. He tried to prevent my imprisonment to begin with.”

  “I’ve heard stories about the Wayward Prince my en
tire life, Shaye,” Stefan countered. “Now that he’s king . . . I don’t know what will happen to our positions here if he starts looking to settle scores.” He gripped my arm tightly enough to hurt, and I pulled away.

  “Well, I’d better take his offer, then.” His face paled. I placed my hand on his cheek. “I’ll be careful, I promise.” He nodded.

  “I just want you safe,” he said softly.

  “I know.” I hugged him quickly, then asked, “Would you like to accompany me to the funeral feast tonight?”

  “You know I can’t, Shaye.”

  “Well,” I started. “Our friendship isn’t a secret anymore. Not from the Crown, anyway.”

  “What are you talking about?” he asked sharply.

  “It was mentioned last night. Aydan didn’t seem to have a problem with it,” I explained. Stefan’s eyes flashed.

  “Why the hell would you do something so stupid?”

  “I was making conversation,” I said defensively. “I didn’t think it would be so upsetting to you. Zathryan is dead, the danger is gone—”

  “No, the danger has only just begun,” Stefan snapped. “Aydan and his Cabinet are some of the most powerful sorcerers in the world. They want you close to them, for reasons we don’t know, and you’ve just revealed me as a weakness.”

  I wanted to explain myself, but instead I just said, “I’m sorry.” Stefan shook his head. I reached for his hand, but he stepped back, and without a word, he walked out the door and slammed it behind him.

  Tears welled in my eyes and my face grew hot with embarrassment. Catchfly wove herself around my ankles, but it did nothing to comfort me. Another knock rang out from the door, and I rushed to open it, hoping I would find Stefan come to let me apologize. Instead, Elise stood on the other side, smiling broadly. Her smile disappeared when she saw my face blotchy with tears.

  “Good morning, Lady Shaye. Are you all right?”

  “I’m fine, Elise. Good morning.”

  “His Majesty has asked that I attend to you,” she said. “I came to see if you’d like any tea this morning. Or perhaps some help dressing?”