Knight's End (The Knight Trilogy)

by Montgomery, Jami

  “Don’t kill me, Rogue, please!” Talbot screamed. He looked up from the ground where he’d fallen, slightly dazed. Aston sighed and put his dagger away, quickly shushing Talbot.

  “Sire, please! You’ll give away our position. I told you to stay close,” he snapped in a harsh whisper, turning back around without offering his prince a hand. He felt Talbot at his back but ignored him, listening intently for the sound of footsteps.

  A scream ripped through the silent corridor, a woman crying out for help. Immediately, Talbot went from terrified to courageous. He ran off in the direction of the scream, likely intending to be a hero.

  “Talbot, dammit, come back!” Aston stage whispered. The prince did not listen, and Aston took off after him, drawing his sword in case they met the Rogue on the way. Maybe King Donn had been wrong. Maybe the Rogue had targeted the princess, or the queen.

  Talbot entered a room on their left about twenty feet ahead of Aston just as another figure exited the room across the hall. As the man saw Aston, he turned and ran. The clock on the wall began its twelve chimes as Aston left Talbot to tend to the woman, running after the man racing down the corridor. He jumped over the bodies of dead knights as he chased the Rogue, not glancing down at them for fear of recognizing someone. He couldn’t afford to stop.

  The Rogue made it to another room, and when Aston entered it, he cursed. Four doors led off in different directions from the room, each one a possible escape route for the murderer. Aston opened each door, listening for running footsteps. Each dark hallway was quiet. There was no way he would catch the murderer now.

  Disappointed, Aston retraced his steps, heading back toward Talbot, carefully stepping over each fallen guard. The men’s armor was bloodstained, their throats slit open. Aston grimaced as his boot slipped in a small puddle of ruby liquid. He kept his eyes ahead of him then, not thinking about the corpses. While he’d killed many men in his years as a knight, he’d never murdered anyone in cold blood or without orders to.

  When he finally reached the hall where he’d left his prince, a crowd had gathered, Talbot standing at its center. His shoulders were back, his neck extended in a regal manner as he addressed the crowd. “We were sent to catch The Rogue Royal by King Donn. I am Prince Talbot of Fridel. This is Aston Smith, Knight of Fridel,” Talbot said, motioning to Aston. The knight nodded at the faces that turned toward him, but they quickly looked back at Talbot. “We received word that the Duke of Northsbury would be visiting and that The Rogue Royal would be attempting to murder him.”

  “He did not attempt,” a woman said, slowly walking toward them. Aston recognized her as Duchess Viola, the Duke’s wife. Her eyes were red rimmed, dripping with tears, her greying hair stuck to her face. She was wearing a thin white gown and her feet were concealed beneath pale pink slippers. She held a handkerchief to her mouth as she wept. “He succeeded. My husband is dead.” The woman broke down again and a chambermaid came to her, walking her into another room.

  King Aric appeared at the end of the hallway, which was now flooded with light. His auburn beard was too long and his face looked older than it should. His blue satin long-johns would have been comical had the situation been different. He stopped by Aston, placing a hand on the knight’s shoulder before making his way through the crowd and into the room where Duke Aeron had spent his last moments.

  Aston sighed and turned away, not wanting to see Duke Aeron in death. He could picture the man in his mind, the Duke’s eyes open, burgundy blood blossoming from his chest. He placed a hand on Talbot’s elbow and motioned in the opposite direction with his head. Talbot nodded and plodded after Aston as they left the palace, their mission failed. The Duke had passed and The Rogue Royal had escaped.

  King Donn would not be pleased.

  “What was any art but a mould

  in which to imprison for a moment the

  shining elusive element which is

  life itself – life hurrying past us and running

  away, too strong to stop, too sweet to lose.”

  - Willa Sibert Cather -

  Four

  “It’s hot today,” Talbot announced. Aston glanced sideways at the prince, but otherwise remained quiet. “Don’t you think it’s hot?” Again, the knight didn’t answer. Talbot huffed and slouched in his saddle.

  Aston had no desire to speak to the prince. Duke Aeron could have easily been saved, had Talbot not been so worried about a prospective damsel in distress. If he had turned right instead of left, they would be going home as honorable men; heroes, even. Instead, they would return to Fridel bearing bad news. The knight turned his head to the right, staring at the vast countryside that made up Adion. It was amazing how different the two kingdoms were. Fridel was made up of mostly forest while Adion was open land with hardly any trees.

  “Did you see that deer?” Talbot asked, pointing off in the distance. Again, Aston ignored him, instead turning to face the road. “Aston Smith, I order you to speak to me.”

  Aston pulled Sterling up short and turned in his saddle, glaring at the prince. “Sire, with all due respect, I have no desire to speak with you right now. I’m a little busy trying to decide how we are going to inform His Majesty of Duke Aeron’s death,” he spat.

  Talbot appeared taken aback by his comment, but his face quickly turned angry. “You can go to your chambers when we reach Fridel. I will deal with my father.”

  Aston nodded and started forward again. He wasn’t sure if letting the prince do the talking was a good idea, but he was more than happy to let him take the brunt of the king’s anger.

  The rest of the ride passed in silence, and when they again reached Fridel, Aston went to his chambers, as ordered. He plopped down on his bed, throwing his satchel across the room. King Donn wouldn’t understand what had happened. He would question Talbot, but not Aston. The knight pondered what would happen to the two of them. If Donn had trained Talbot to fight, as princes normally were, instead of letting him do what he wanted for the past twenty years, then maybe Talbot wouldn’t be in his current position; and neither would Aston

  **

  Talbot went straight to the throne room, where he knew his father would be expecting a report. He’d watched until Aston descended the stairs to the knights’ quarters before going to his father. Once there, the prince motioned to the guards to shut the doors with an order to not let anyone in before striding down the carpet to the king.

  The prince stood at the foot of the throne instead of taking his place next to his father. After Aston’s comment, he’d spent the day’s ride thinking of a way to pin the failure on the knight. His father was a very unforgiving man, and Talbot didn’t want to face the king’s wrath so soon after his last mistake in Canterbury. Though Aston was the best knight, this mission proved that he wasn’t perfect. Talbot himself was irreplaceable, so Aston would take the fall for the mission and the prince would be spared. King Donn would never understand his desire to save the distressed woman over saving Duke Aeron.

  “Father, we return,” he started. King Donn nodded, waiting for his son to continue. “I am sorry to say that the Rogue Royal managed to escape.” Talbot had the decency to appear saddened by his news, though truthfully, he didn’t care. He hadn’t liked the duke much and didn’t feel it was such a big loss. However, he knew his father had respected the man, and his thoughts would be different.

  “What happened, Talbot? How could you let this happen?” His father’s voice dominated the throne room, ricocheting off columns and echoing in the space between the floor and the high ceilings. Talbot flinched, but didn’t look away from his father’s slowly reddening face as the king stood. He towered over the prince, and Talbot fought not to lose his resolve.

  “It was Aston’s fault, Father. The palace at Adion went silent so we crept inside, keeping close to the walls and dodging patches of light. We were halfway down a darkened corridor when we heard a woman scream and Aston left his position, taking off toward the woman’s voice. I followed after hi
m and he entered the maiden’s room to make sure she was alright. Meanwhile, the Rogue Royal came from the room behind us.

  “He could have killed me, Father! I drew my sword and we fought for a moment in the corridor. Then Aston came out of the room and drew his sword, but the Rogue knew he could not fight us both, so he ran. I followed, but lost him in the maze of the unfamiliar palace. Aston stayed behind to help the woman. We could have stopped him, Father, but we were too late. Aston’s foolish behavior caused Duke Aeron to be killed.” Talbot hung his head in mock shame and shook his head.

  “You’re sure that’s what happened, Talbot?” the king asked, narrowing his eyes at his son.

  Talbot swallowed thickly before answering. “Of course, Father? Why would I lie?”

  After one last appraisal of his son, the king abruptly left the room. Talbot smiled, knowing what would happen. Aston would be charged with treason and hanged. The knowledge that it had been his fault the Duke was killed would die with the knight.

  **

  Aston stood from his bed when King Donn charged in, his face livid.

  “You, Sir, are a disgrace to the title knight! Leaving a criminal loose in the palace to save a woman! Duke Aeron was a kind man and one of my closest friends. Your mission was to save Duke Aeron, not to gallivant around with the castle’s women. I will see you hanged for this, Aston Smith, I guarantee it,” the king said, pointing an accusing finger at the knight.

  Aston stood with his mouth open, gaping at the king for a moment before speaking. “With all due respect, your Majesty, what are you talking about?”

  Donn’s anger flared, his face turning an even deeper shade of scarlet. “Don’t play daft with me, Sir! Talbot told me everything!”

  That explains it, Aston thought. “Sire, I can explain,” he began, but King Donn cut him off.

  “I don’t want to hear a word from you, Aston Smith! I want you arrested and thrown in the dungeon!”

  “But Sire--”

  “I should have listened to Talbot when he told me to send another knight. I was foolish, thinking you could handle this. I…”

  “Your Majesty!” This time Aston yelled, causing the king to stop his babbling and look at his knight. King Donn’s eyes were wide with shock.

  “Your Majesty,” Aston said, quieter now, “Prince Talbot lied to you. He is the one who gave away our position, as well as the one who went for the woman instead of checking on Duke Aeron. I understand he was a friend of yours, and I apologize, but you should be yelling at your son, not me.” Aston had hoped his words would calm the king’s fury enough to make him listen to reason, but he only made the king angrier.

  “Talbot? You accuse my son? Do you really think your lies will save your life? Talbot loved Duke Aeron like a second father! He would never throw away duty for a woman!”

  Aston grimaced. It seemed King Donn was one more person that Talbot had fooled. It hadn’t hurt to try. Either way, his sentence would be the same. There was no dishonor in trying to make the king see reason, even though his rights allowed him a trial.

  “Guards! Guards! Come now and arrest this traitor!” At King Donn’s beckoning, four soldiers rushed into the room, swords drawn.

  Aston slowly backed away, nearing his window. He didn’t have time to think. In one swift movement, he grabbed his still-packed bag from the floor, pulled his grappling hook from his belt, and leapt from the window, praying the hook would catch.

  He almost took a relieved breath when the metal claw caught on the window and he was safely on the ground, his knees taking the blunt of the blow. But he was still in danger; he couldn’t stop yet. He dropped his rope and ran, cringing as the palace bells sounded behind him. He ran as fast as he could toward the stable, reaching them just as Vernon was about to remove Sterling’s bridle. The old man looked up in surprise when Aston came charging in, but didn’t stop him from jumping on Sterling’s back, grabbing a halter from the wall, and riding out of the stable at top speed.

  Aston raced into the night, reaching the drawbridge just as it was being closed and jumping his horse across the river. The sound of hooves pounding the hard earth behind him had Aston driving Sterling faster, digging his heels into the animal’s side as his own heart raced with adrenaline. An arrow embedded itself in a tree to his right and he ducked out of instinct. Looking behind him, he saw a man with a bow guiding his horse with his knees, notching another arrow.

  Aston cursed, leaning low in Sterling’s saddle and running the horse in a zigzag along the forest’s edge. With a curse, he made Sterling take a fast right, plunging the horse into the thick brush and crashing through low hanging tree branches. He heard men hollering from behind him, upset that they’d lost him in the forest. A couple of brave soldiers followed, but Aston wasn’t too worried about them. These woods took up almost half of Fridel, and he’d grown up in them. They wouldn’t be able to find him now.

  Regardless, he kept their current pace until he could no longer hear the angry voices of knights calling for him. Sterling’s withers were slick with foam and sweat before he finally slowed the laboring creature. His own heart had settled once he’d realized he wasn’t being followed, and now he allowed his horse to rest, taking up a slower pace. He dropped down from the saddle and walked, allowing Sterling to cool off from his run.

  “A traitor, Sterling. He called me a traitor,” he said, patting his horse on the neck. His mind couldn’t wrap around the idea. He had been King Donn’s best knight, had never failed a mission. Now he was a traitor? Because of a lie Talbot had told?

  He found a place where the trees were thin and stopped, petting Sterling and whispering soothing words to him as he tied the horse to a thick branch by his halter, allowing him room to bend and graze if he wished. A small stream nearby offered water for a cool bath and drinking, which Aston gladly partook of. The gently flowing water made light, tinkling sounds as it wound around small boulders. Different colored fish jumped every few feet, gleaming in the slim beams of moonlight drifting through the forest’s roof.

  Once undressed, Aston stepped into the cool, waist-deep, water. He sighed as the dirt decorating his skin was erased, leaving him feeling fresh and unhindered. His worries washed away with the current and he lay back, floating softly on top of the water for a moment before setting his feet on the stream’s floor again.

  Aston didn’t know how much time he spent in the water. When he stepped from the cool, refreshing stream, his finger tips were pruned, soft and wrinkled, but he felt better. He felt like he could think again. He dressed, shaking his clothes to rid them of some of the dirt they were covered in, before going back to his horse. The knight untied Sterling and brought him to the stream, allowing him to drink while his master thought.

  As Sterling pawed at the cool water and took big, gulping drinks, Aston tried to think of a place to go. He needed somewhere to rest until he knew what to do. He never should have run from the palace, but he wasn’t ready to die. Something had taken him over, made him run when his future started to disappear. Suddenly, he knew where he needed to go, at least until he figured everything out. Aston mounted and turned Sterling south, heading towards the one place he knew he would always feel safe.

  “A friend is someone who understands your past, believes in your future, and accepts

  you just the way you are.”

  - Abraham Lincoln -

  Five

  Aston sighed in relief as the little wood cabin slowly materialized from behind the trees. It had taken him all night and half the morning to reach it, and now, with it so close, he just wanted to be there already. He sped Sterling into a gallop, racing toward a place where he knew there would be a soft, warm bed and a hot meal waiting for him.

  As he got closer and the trees thinned, he could make out the sound of an axe meeting wood. His nose picked up sweet aromas coming from the chimney, a mixture of cinnamon, apple, and the sweet, thick smell of smoke coming from a brick oven. Once he was within shouting distance, Aston let Sterling
slow and took in all that surrounded him.

  The cabin sat in an almost perfect circle of trees, some of them no more than stumps sticking up from the hard ground. The trees cast the cabin mostly in shadow, though there were some places the sun was still able to reach. It had two windows on the front and one on the back; this he knew by heart. The door had a half moon cut out of it, filled in with glass and the roof was covered in pine needles, giving it an orange look to accent the brown logs of its sides. Aston grinned as he got closer and saw his friend, Delgrab, outside. The man took one last swing at the tree he was demolishing and looked up, his sweaty brow crinkling as he grinned at Aston.“Well, hello, old friend. It’s been a long time.”

  Aston dismounted Sterling and strode to Delgrab, meeting the tall, burly man in a firm hug. He nodded at Delgrab’s words and felt suddenly at peace. It had been too long since he’d been away from the palace and his duties as a knight. Even though he wasn’t truly away now, he still felt like he could relax. This place always did that to him.

  “Aye, it has been. I apologize for that. Something smells amazing.” Aston was never shy here. He was welcome anytime. Delgrab’s wife, Alys, always made sure of that.

  Aston wasn’t sure how someone as rough around the edges as Delgrab had managed to attract Alys. She was the most beautiful woman he had ever seen, and he spent most of his time around royalty, the primped and perfect. She was a woman who did not fit the norm for beauty; Alys was plump and short, with blonde hair that cascaded in waves down her back and striking hazel eyes with just a hint of gold. She was a motherly woman; she took care of anyone and anything that walked through her door. Just thinking about Alys made Aston want to go into the house and see her; he’d missed her warm smile and her amazing cooking.