by Arizona Tape
He chuckled and waved dismissively. His hand was much thinner than I remembered it. I could see the bones as he reached inside the bowl with grapes. “That’s no way to treat a lady, Darius. I raised you better than that.”
Before I could stop myself, I spat back. “You didn’t raise me, Ma did.”
Unimpressed, Father laughed and sprayed grape juice across the room. “You haven’t changed a bit, son. How is that old hag doing? Meredith told me you were visiting her grave.”
I shoved my hands deep in my pockets so I couldn’t do something I’d regret and decided to ignore his comment. “You wanted to see me?”
“I’m glad you’ve returned home, Darius. I knew you would.”
Annoyed, I held back a growl. Father used to never answer my questions and it seemed that hadn’t changed. How infuriating.
“You see, I’m glad you had your little rebellious phase after your mother passed. But I knew it would blow over and you’d come back to fulfil your destiny.”
I rolled my eyes and wondered how he was so delusional. Surely he must have at least one advisor who gave him decent advice and didn’t just agree with him?
“Fulfil my destiny?” I asked sarcastically, glaring at Mer. Why was she here? What possible reason could Father have for letting her inside his private chambers? Had she spun him around her little finger too?
“Have you seen prince Leander yet?”
“Yes, I’ve spoken with my brother.” Why was Father always so formal, even in private?
“He must be disappointed to see you.”
Surprised, I looked up at the greying man. It wasn’t often that he actually spoke about Leander or even acknowledged there was such a thing as emotions.
“What do you mean?”
“Leander is a very graceful young man,” Father mused, picking the last grape out of the bowl.
“Yes, he is…” I trailed off, confused to where he was going with this. These observations seemed very out of character for him.
“He would’ve done well as my successor. Oh well.”
I gritted my teeth and stared into his eyes, hating how they were a reflection of my own. Of all the things I inherited.
“I’m not here for the crown, Father.”
The same disappointed look he had my whole childhood replaced his smile and he pushed himself out of his chair. “Walk with me, Darius.” He doesn’t wait for me to follow him, but then again, he’s the king. He doesn’t have to wait for anybody.
Hasted, I run after him, ignoring Mer the best that I can. She was toxic and she might have Father wrapped around her finger, I wouldn’t fall for the same tricks twice. Realistically, it wasn’t the second time she reeled me back in, but I didn’t really want to count all the times I gave into her. That would just depress me.
I found Father outside, standing under the evergreen peach tree. He was admiring one of the fruits and I frowned. That was out of character. Not once in my whole life had I seen him pay any attention to that tree. He never really cared for nature or the beauty of it at all.
“Do you know why there is a tree in the middle of my courtyard?”
I squinted my eyes, wondering if that was a trick question. “No, I don’t, Father.”
He brushed his hand over the rough bark and a nostalgic smile appeared on his face. “Your mother insisted.”
I perked up. “Ma? Really?”
“Yes, she loved peaches so I agreed to let her plant this tree.”
That was surprisingly romantic from him. I wondered what the catch was.
“Every morning, right before the sun came up, she would walk outside of my quarters and eat exactly one peach. She said it reminded her of her home in the Southern Islands.”
“That’s why she always smelled like peach,” I reminisced, sighing as I recalled the image of Ma. She used to be a gentle and kind woman, warm with love. She’d have loved meeting Danny and would’ve treated her like her own daughter. But she was no longer here. She hadn’t been here for a long time.
“Do you know why I let her put a tree in the middle of the yard?” Father asked, reaching out to one of the fruits. The branches shook as he yanked the peach down and I cringed in Ma’s place. She would never have picked it with such violence.
I held back a sigh and ignored his abrasive nature. “I don’t know, for love?”
He shot me an incredulous look and I rolled my eyes. I should’ve known it wasn’t for love. “No, I don’t know why, Father.”
“Power. Marrying your mother was the smartest move I ever made. That is why this kingdom is so great.”
Great? Great?? Father was delusional if he thought the lands were ‘great’. Maybe it looked that way from the Keep, but one step outside the city walls and it was a whole different story. The poverty throughout the villages, the selfish clan heads, the war? What about that was so fantastic?
“You are giving me the same stink eye your mother used to do. Spit it out, what’s bothering you, Darius?”
“During my....” I paused for a moment, wondering in what way I could phrase this that would piss him off the least. “During my travels, I saw a lot of the country. It’s not all that great, Father.”
“Nonsense, the people are happy and the lands are at peace.”
I scoffed and slapped the peach out of his hands. “At peace?” I couldn’t believe this. In what world did Father live in? “At peace??? There is a war waging in our kingdom. It has been going on for years now. How could you. What do you. How the hell. Really. At peace?!” I shouted, stumbling over my own words. How could he not know.
“Oh you’re talking about the little spat between the clans? I wouldn’t call that a war, per say, Darius.”
“No? Then what would you call poverty, destructions of villages, battles and fights everywhere? The people are suffering while the leaders of the clans are sitting inside their houses, all cosy and stuffed.”
He placed a hand on my shoulder and smiled. “That is just called life. Some people have it better than others.”
Angrily, I shrugged his hand away. “Not if I can help it.”
Father laughed, his eyes twinkling smugly. “Ah-ah-ah, now there’s the funny part. You can’t help it, my dear son. Not until you accept your rightful place in this world.”
Every part of me told me to run, just like I did a couple of years back. But I couldn’t. Not now. Not when all of my friends were relying on me.
“I returned for a reason, didn’t I?” I spoke, steadying my voice so Father wouldn’t catch the conflict inside of me.
“And what is that reason, Darius?” he asked, challenging me. My wolf lowly growled, giving me courage to say the things I came here to say.
“To put a stop to the war. And I will do what’s necessary.”
“Ahaa, so you are finally seeking out your destiny?” Father laughed triumphantly, as if he just won an old debate. In a way, he did. But there was no place for my pride. Not right now, not with so much on the line.
“Since only a prince or a king can demand a clan meeting… Yes.”
“I see. What about your crown, my son?”
I clenched my jaw, balling my fists behind my back. “I don’t want to be king, Father. Besides, Leander said you were grooming him?”
Father scoffed, snapping one of the tree’s branches. “I had to make do with him. But Darius, you were meant for this. You’re my first born son.”
“No.”
He tossed me another peach and smirked. “Think about it.”
“There’s nothing to think about,” I protested, staring at the golden fruit in my hands. If I sniffed it, would it remind me of Ma?
“There is. And you have a beautiful young lady waiting for you.”
What? Did he know about Danny? How did he find out? Did one of the Riders report it to him? If so, I would have to go and kick some ass.
“Yes, Meredith is a wonderful and bright woman. I still don’t get why you left her behind.”
Oh…. Me
r. Right… So this was why she stayed? To wind my father further around her little finger? Figured… She always desired power. Over me, over her friends, over the kingdom. And without me to control, she wouldn’t just give up. No, she was far too shrewd for that.
“I’m not in love with her,” I muttered. Not anymore.
“Who said anything about love? Just marry the damn woman so you have a queen by your side.”
Images of Danny flashed through my mind and I couldn’t even imagining marrying someone else. Not even Meredith. Especially not her.
“I’m not marrying Meredith. That is final.”
“You should give her a chance, she might surprise you.”
My stomach stirred just from the thought of being alone with Mer again. “No.”
“You should have lunch with her tomorrow and show her the gardens.”
No wonder those two got along so well. They both didn’t know the meaning of the word ‘no’.
“I said no, Father.”
“If you go, I might call that meeting for you,” he said slyly, stopping me in my tracks. Why did he always run on briberies?
“I’m back now, I can call the meeting myself.”
He grinned, a devilish twinkle blinking in his eye. “Not before you’ve been officially welcomed as a prince again. And it could take days or even weeks to get the message spread around.”
My wolf growled, but I held him back. There was no use in trying to intimidate my Father with violence, he didn’t react to it. On the contrary, he found it amusing.
“I’m just trying to help you, son. Think about it.” The guards pulled open the heavy doors for him and he stepped back into the shadows. He turned and waved his finger at me in the same reprimanding way he always did. “Think about it.”
Chapter 5. Fight
The perfume of the thousand and one different flowers in the gardens greeted me before I could even see them. Gently, I brushed my hands through the various petals and breathed in the scent that reminded me of my childhood.
I used to spend hours in the gardens with Ma, studying all the beautiful plants as she told me stories and tales about all of them. If only she was still alive. She’d know what to do, she always did.
The sound of metal clashing against each other disturbed the peaceful atmosphere and I hurried towards the sound. Was there a brawl going on? Someone being robbed? What was happening?
The sight in front of me left me stunned for a moment. Six knights were sparring in between the flower beds, squashing everything with their armoured feet and heavy bodies.
“Stop!” I called, jumping in between them.
The tallest of them all laughed and pointed his sword at me. “What are you doing here, pipsqueak?”
“You’re ruining the gardens!” How dare they trample over my mother’s memory? “Who even gave you permission to train here?”
“Hahaha, look guys, this little garden boy is trying to protect his precious plants.” The tall guy roared, kicking one of the flowers next to him. The dirt sprayed over the grass and I could feel myself heating up in anger.
“How dare you! These are the royal gardens!”
The men howled in laughter and their leader burrowed his sword deep into the ground. “Royal schomyal, I don’t care. We got permission to spar here.”
“What’s your name?” I hissed, trying to calm my wolf down. If he broke through, I would surely spent a couple of days in this form. The shift was still hard to control.
“Ha, this guy doesn’t even know who he is talking to. I’m Rufus, commander of the second division. But you can call me Captain Rufus.”
“Rufus, huh? Good to know,” I gnarled through clenched teeth. I burned his name in my memory so I could make sure he got knocked down a peg or two. This was unacceptable.
“And who are you, little guy?”
“Someone who is here to protect the gardens.”
Rufus yanked his weapon out of the ground and swung it up in the air. “Yeah? And how are you going to do that?”
All the tension and anger I’d been carrying fogged my head and raged through my veins. I hadn’t been in a fight from even before we arrived at Regan’s castle. I had some pent-up energy to release and Rufus here would be my victim.
“Why don’t you come at me and find out?” I challenged, taking on a fighting stance.
The captain and his men looked at each other before they broke out in laughter. I could tell they relied on their big physiques to intimidate people, but that wouldn’t work on me. I had faced bigger and badder multiple times.
“Let’s teach this little punk a lesson.” Rufus cracked his fingers and tossed his sword to one of his friends. “I won’t need this.”
“Bad move,” I grinned, swinging up my fist towards his face. Instinctively, he brought up his arms to shield himself, temporarily blinding himself. Quickly, I planted my foot behind him and swept him to the ground. With a thud, he hit the grass and adrenaline bubbled up in my stomach. There was something satisfying about flooring a guy double my weight. Especially a jackass like this.
Rufus crawled up from the ground and spat in my direction. “So our mouse can fight, huh? Guess I’m not taking it easy on you.” Without any hesitation, he charged towards me. There was a fire burning behind his eyes that made this all the more exciting. Quickly, I darted out of the way and laughed at his enraged scream. He’d never take me down with such brute force or big gestures. If that was how they trained the knights here, they definitely needed to step up and prepared them for actual combat.
“Is that all you got?” I taunted, jabbing at his left side but landing a hit on his right. He groaned and swung his fist at me again. With ease, I dodged his attempt and kicked kneecap. With a scream of pain, he buckled into the grass and glared at me. He clearly wasn’t used to being upstaged, especially not in front of his men.
Like a bull, he rushed towards me and as I darted back, bounced into one of the other soldiers. Knocked back, I stumbled and narrowly avoided meeting his knuckles with my face. His fist slammed into my shoulder and sent a shock wave into my body.
I groaned as the pain shot through my bones, definitely leaving a bruise. But I didn’t care. It was good to feel the strain, it kept me sharp and reminded me what I was running from.
Quickly, I shook the daze away and lunged at the guy in front of me. My knuckles popped satisfyingly as I aimed for his head. Too slow to protect himself, I bypassed his defense and landed a hit against his nose. With a crack, the blood spurted out and sprayed my shirt. Oh well, what was a little more?
“You bastard,” Rufus called, wiping the blood away with the back of his hand. He spat at the ground and snorted a clot onto one of the flower petals, tainting their beauty forever. How dared he ruin my mother’s memory like that?
Without hesitation, I launched another attack and slammed my fist hard against the side of his skull. Rufus collapsed into the ground and cried in pain. Bingo. I hit his temple. That would serve him right.
I shook the pain out of my hand and kicked him onto his back. “Leave the gardens, don’t ever spar in here again.”
“Hah, he thinks he has won. Boys, let’s teach this perp a lesson.”
Instantly, I was yanked back by my collar and crashed into a metal breastplate. Two of the men helped their captain back up and brushed the dirt from his clothes. I twisted out of the grip and rammed my knee into the soft flesh of the man’s thigh. The scent of fresh grass and earth hit my nose a second after as I was thrown onto the ground. My bones groaned as I took the hit and I tasted dirt. I curled my fingers into the grass and pushed myself up, biting through the pain. This wasn’t the first time I was ganged up on, I would show them who them just who they were messing with. My wolf growled in my chest and a pulse of magic washed over me. For a moment, my shoulder and hand burned white hot as my wolf tended to my injuries.
Jolted with new energy, I jumped up and danced between the six men, dodging and thwarting any of their attacks. An el
bow jab here, a well-aimed punch there. Lightning fast, I shot between them and targeted the natural weak spots of the body. Annoyingly, four of the six were armoured and I didn’t want to use my dagger to pry open their harnesses. I didn’t want to inflict permanent damage, after all. There was no need for that.
An unexpected smack against my neck brought me to my knees and before I could deflect the blow, a pair of hands shoved my face into the grass. I grunted as one of the men sat on my back and pinned me into the ground. He laughed and slapped the backside of my head, as if this was his victory.
Tssk. As if.
I called upon my wolf and with the extra surge of power, bucked the man off. With a swift kick, I broke his nose and kneed him into the ground. He cried out in pain, but I had no room for empathy. He brought this upon himself, really.
I heard the sound of metal and my whole body turned to the noise. But I was too late to react. The hilt of a sword thudded against my temple and pain clouded my mind. The stinging pounded in my ears, but I couldn’t let that stop me. I curled my arm behind me, reaching for my concealed dagger. If they were going to play dirty, so could I.
Screaming with rage, I swung up the hidden knife. I flicked the blade and bounced the sunlight off of it, temporarily blinding one of my attackers. He stumbled into his comrade and the two lost their footing. Taking advantage of their mishap, I darted to Rufus and kicked the same knee again. He sank to the ground and before he knew what was happening, I yanked his head back by his hair and pressed the blade against his throat.
“Stop!” I called, freezing the men in their step. I nodded at the soldier who drew his sword. “You, sheathe your weapon.”
He threw me a dirty look, but threw his sword onto the ground. So they were loyal to their captain? That was some good news then. At least they were trained to value each others lives.
“Never use the gardens as sparring ground again, do I make myself clear?” I growled, drawing blood from Rufus’ skin. He gulped and nodded slightly, his bravado all gone.
