Chael’s Luck
A Knights of Dorathan Novel
Mireille Chester
Copyright © 2011 by Mireille Chester
Published by Mireille Chester
Smashwords Edition
Cover Art by Somnolent Images
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Prologue
James ran a hand through his dark brown hair and cringed at the sound of his wife groaning in the bedroom. His brother’s wife, Jannet, poked her head out of the room. She tried to smile.
“Jamie, has Peter made it back with the healwife?”
He shook his head and watched her disappear from sight once again before going to stand outside in the soft mist of the rain.
“Chael’s luck, Peter, what’s taking so long,” he grumbled to himself. Ailee’s cry of pain caused him to jerk and he closed his green eyes. Taking a deep breath, he made his way back into the cabin.
“James! Get in here!”
He rushed into the room and stopped short at the sight of the blood soaking into the mattress and sheets under his wife.
“I need water, Jamie! And blankets!” Jannet’s face and long blond hair were smeared with blood where she’d attempted to brush it out of the way. “James McKinney! Now!”
Ailee screamed as her whole body seemed to convulse with the strength of the contraction. Jannet knelt between her legs and gave a small cry of relief.
“I can see the head, Ail, I can see it. He’s coming! James! Bring the water and the blankets!”
Jamie snapped out of his trance and rushed to get the items his sister-in-law needed. He watched as Ailee pushed through another awful spasm. He knelt by her head and wiped her sweat drenched hair out of her face.
“I’m here, Love. You’re doing well. He’s almost here.” He pressed his lips to her forehead and tried to hide his worry. “It’s almost done.”
Her dark brown eyes opened briefly, met his, and closed before another contraction hit. Her beautiful face contorted with pain, her nails digging into his hand. He looked up at the sound of a babe crying then turned back to his wife.
“He’s here. You did it. You’re wonderful.” He kissed her lightly. “Ail?” He brought his ear down to her lips and looked to her breast. Nothing. “Ail?” His chest tightened and his throat closed.
“Jamie?”
Instead of answering, he buried his face in his wife’s hair, the sobs raking through him. Jannet’s sobs quietly echoed his. The sound of horses galloping up to the cabin could be heard.
“James? Sorry it took so long, the creek washed out and we had to detour to Hallen’s Bridge.” Peter froze in the doorway of the bedroom as Jannet whirled on him.
“Keep her out! Tell her to leave! Now!”
“But…” He glanced back at the sound of the footsteps coming from the kitchen where the healwife had gone to get some supplies.
“Tell her Ailee died, the babe is fine.” She looked pointedly at her husband. “Peter!”
He turned in time to put his arm across the doorway. “I’m afraid I’ve brought you all this way for no reason,” he said as he took a step toward her and made her back away from the room. He shut the door.
Jannet rocked the babe quietly and watched as her brother-in-law seemed to pull himself together.
“Jamie,” she said softly. “Chael’s luck, Jamie, I’m sorry.”
He shook his head and wiped his arm over his face. “You tried, Jannet.” He pulled her into a hug and looked up as his brother walked back into the room.
“Is it true, then?” Green eyes that matched Jamie’s searched their faces. Jannet nodded. “What of the babe?” he inquired.
Jannet pulled the blanket away to reveal a tiny head full of dark hair. Jamie looked at the small bundle with wonder.
“Jamie, there’s something you should see.” She moved the blankets until they no longer covered the little one.
The men gawked at the sight before them.
“But…” James took another look at his dead wife before stalking out of the room.
Chapter One
5 years later…
James tightened the grey pony’s cinch and patted her neck.
“Chael!”
“Coming, Dad!”
He smiled as the five year old rounded the corner of the house.
“What are you doing?”
Chael grinned. “I’m going to be a knight!” He raised his arms, the sleeves of his father’s dark green tunic hanging over the small outstretched hands. Young Chael glanced down at the black winged horse embroidered on the front of it and grinned.
“Well, come then. Up you go.” James placed him in the saddle. “If you’re going to be a knight, we’d better get to the training camp.” He handed his son the reins, mounted his horse, and led the way through the streets of Gleama.
Chael gazed around the training arena in wonder.
“Who’s that?” A red headed boy pointed to Chael as he climbed down from his pony. His twin, an identical version of him, shrugged. The first of the two stepped forward.
“I’m Harry. That’s Hal.”
“I’m Chael.”
The twins started to laugh and Chael frowned. James took a deep breath and patted the boy on the shoulder.
“Be strong, Chael.”
The boy looked at his father, nodded, and made his way into the training area with his head held high. James gazed at the sky.
“Chael’s luck and blast it all. What the hell was I thinking?”
*****
8 years later…
“Chael! Duck!” Harry’s sparring sword swung through the air and I did as he instructed. The sword connected with whoever had been sneaking up on me. I glanced back and grinned as Caleb groaned and fell to the ground.
“Thanks, Harry!”
Harry nodded and we turned to take on the rest of our opponents. I saw Mac lose his sword and pulled one of my slaggens from the scabbard on my back.
“Mac!”
He turned and caught the weapon I had tossed in his direction. I jumped back to avoid a blow and took a deep breath when the General’s holler echoed through the arena.
He waited until we’d all lined up. “Green team is the winner.”
Harry and Hal whooped and hollered while Mac grinned and handed me my sword.
“Thanks.”
I nodded and slipped it back into its scabbard. I looked up at him.
“How’s your wrist?”
He shrugged. “It will have a decent bruise on it, I’m sure.”
Caleb glared and shoved into me with his shoulder as he walked by.
“Runt,” he grumbled.
I took a deep breath and counted to ten. “I can’t argue with that, now can I?” I remarked. For as long as I could remember, I’d been at least four inches shorter than the rest of the knights in training. Now that we were starting our teen years, it seemed the rest of them were growing at an even greater pace than me.
Not being able to get a rise out of me, he looked around and bent close to me.
“I always wonder. Why did your father name you Chael? The god of bad luck is an odd namesake, don’t you think?”
I nodded. “I agree, but if you want to know, you’ll have to ask him.”
He glared.
“Caleb, Chael, line up!”
We fell back into our line.
“Chael.”
I stepped forward and saluted the General.
“Sir.”
“Your team demonstrated great cooperation out there today. Good leading.”
“Thank you, sir.” I fell back into place.
“Hal, your disarming of John was impressive. Keep up the good work.”
General Krane went through everyone’s strong points before restarting at the front of the line and pointing out everyone’s weaknesses.
“Chael, can you explain to me why you gave up a weapon?”
“Sir?”
“When you gave your sword to Mac, what were you thinking?”
“I had two at that moment, sir. He had none.”
“But you know you need both of your swords. You can’t overpower the rest of the boys.”
“Yes, sir. I realize that, but Mac needed a weapon.”
“Maybe if you weren’t such a runt, we wouldn’t have to go through this point once again,” grumbled Caleb.
“Caleb, would you care to repeat that?” The General was staring at my companion.
“Sir, I think that most of us feel uncomfortable fighting with Chael. It’s not his fault he’s so small, but the fact of the matter is, he can’t carry his weight around.”
“Is that so?”
Caleb nodded.
“That’s not true, sir,” piped up Harry. “I’ll fight with Chael any day. At least with him, I know he’s got my back, unlike others here.” He stared pointedly at Caleb.
General Krane rolled his eyes. “Boys, you’ve been training together for the past eight years. Caleb, do you have a reason for not liking Chael?”
Caleb straightened. “There’s something wrong with him, sir, and I’d rather not find out it’s anything major in the middle of a battle.”
Hal grunted. “What makes you so certain there’s something wrong with him?”
Caleb shook his head. “Why call the boy Chael? And look at how small he is! I’m willing to bet my best horse he’s sick!”
Harry snorted. “You mean your father’s best horse.”
Caleb blushed and shoved him.
“Boys!”
Everyone snapped to attention and the General walked up and down the line. “It’s enough, do you understand? Whether or not there is something wrong with Chael is none of your business.”
Everyone gazed at me curiously as if the General had just admitted to knowing there was something off about me. I clenched my jaw and tried to keep the embarrassment from showing. The General took a minute to look me over as well before shaking his head.
“Everyone head home.”
I hurried away and made my way to the stables.
“Blasted Caleb. Why can’t he just leave it alone?”
I heard footsteps coming toward me and hurried up the ladder to the hayloft to avoid whoever it might be. I sat in the dark, taking deep breaths and inhaling the musty smell of straw and horses. I tried to focus on my team’s victory as opposed to what it was my fellow knights in training might be thinking about me.
The ladder creaked under someone’s weight and I glanced to the opening in the floor.
“It’s me, Chael.” Harry poked his head over the last rung and came to sit beside me. He picked at a piece of straw and twirled it between his fingers.
“What do you want, Harry?”
He smiled. “Don’t they always send me when you get in a mood and hide up here?”
I glared at him and he shrugged.
“You know Caleb only does this to get a rise out of you, yeah?”
I nodded. “Yeah, I know. I just, by gods, Harry, it’s starting to get old.”
He grinned. “I bet that eight years ago, when you first got here, you thought it would be Hal and I you’d have issues with.”
I chuckled. “It was.”
He patted my back. “There aren’t more than a couple of them who feel oddly towards you.
“And what about you and Hal?”
His grinned widened. “Well, of course, we’re not too pleased about losing to a runt in the challenges, but we like you well enough.” He headed to the ladder. “Better?”
I nodded.
“See? That’s why they always send me.”
We made our way to where Hal and Mac were holding their horses. I glanced around.
“He’s gone,” assured Mac. I saddled my horse and swung on.
“You’ll be back tomorrow?” Harry mounted his horse.
I nodded and turned toward home.
“Chael!”
I spun my horse around at the sound of Hal’s voice. The three of them were saluting me. I stopped my mare and returned the honor.
“To the end, Chael!”
I ginned and nodded to Harry. “To the end!”
Chapter Two
My cheek flared with pain as Caleb’s fist connected with it.
“Come one, Chael! Is that the best you’ve got?” Caleb danced around in front of me.
“You’re a bastard, Caleb!” I wiped the blood from the cut over my eye with my arm then threw a jab I knew he wasn’t expecting. I heard the satisfying crunch of his nose breaking with the impact and watched as he fell to his knees.
“My dad says you’re the bastard, Chael,” he managed to spit out at me. “Why else would your dad name you Chael, after the god of bad luck?”
“Maybe he called him Chael because his mother died giving birth to him.” Mac took a step back as I took a step toward him. He held his hands up apologetically.
“Well, either he’s a bastard or he killed his mother… either way the name fits, I’d say.” Caleb sneered at me from his position on the ground, his hazel eyes darker than usual next to the blood that covered the bottom half of his face.
I clenched my jaw. Dorathan’s honor, I told myself mentally. Dorathan’s honor, Dorathan’s honor… I started to walk away.
“Of course, if he’s a bastard that would also make his mother a whore.”
Dorathan’s honor forgotten, I turned on my heel, took five long strides toward Caleb and kicked him as hard as I could in the ribs.
“Don’t you ever say anything like that about my mother again!” I stepped back, ready to kick him again.
“Chael!”
I stopped mid-kick and clenched my fists at my side, turning to greet the newcomer.
Caleb and Mac stood at attention as my father rode up to us, his dappled grey stallion lathered from the run up the hill.
“Sir James.” All three of us acknowledged him.
He nodded his greeting then raised an eyebrow at us. “What seems to be the problem here?”
“I broke Caleb’s nose.” I met my father’s green gaze evenly with eyes that matched his. He turned his attention to Caleb.
“Caleb?”
“He did.”
“And was that before or after you struck him in the face?”
“After, but he punched me in the arm first.” Caleb did his best to pull off an innocent look. “And then he kicked me when I was down, sir!”
“Yes, I believe I rode up just as that was happening.” My father’s jaw clenched and the gaze that held Caleb’s hardened. “I also heard you calling my wife a whore.”
I managed to keep the grin off of my face as the blood drained from my opponent’s face. My father dismounted and strode up to us.
“If I ever hear of you insulting my wife again, even if I’m nowhere around at the time, I promise you your father will hear of it.” He took one more step toward Caleb who stumbled backward. “Now, run along and have your mother tend to you. I’ll be stopping by there this evening and I’ll be sure to ask what story you gave your parents.” He sneered. “Try to keep your lies to a minimum.”
Caleb’s eyes widened. “Yes, sir.”
My father turned his attention to Mac. “And what about you?”
“Mac didn’t say or do anything, sir,” I interrupt
ed.
Mac shook his head. “Actually, I did sir. I said you might have called him Chael because of the fact his mother had died giving birth to him.”
My father frowned. “Is that what this was about?”
“Isn’t it always,” I mumbled.
He grunted and waved a hand in dismissal. “Go home, boys.”
Caleb and Mac saluted, mounted their horses, and rode off. I rolled my eyes as my father took my chin in his hands and inspected the damage to my face.
“I’m fine.”
He didn’t argue with me. “Where’s your horse?”
“Where do you think he is? As soon as the fight started, he spooked and ran off. He’s probably waiting innocently at the barn doors as we speak.”
“He’s a good horse, Chael. He might even be a better beast than his sire.” He patted his horse’s neck.
I grunted. “Klora will never be anything like Klard. He’s a coward.”
It was my father’s turn to grunt. “He’s come a long way since you first broke him under saddle. Do you know, Sir Trent Burnd offered me two months’ salary for Klora three days past?”
“You should have accepted the offer.”
“I told him he wasn’t my horse to sell and he mentioned something about coming to talk to you.”
I looked at him, surprised.
He looked straight ahead as we walked down the hill. “You seem surprised.”
“I’ll admit I am.”
“Chael, the Knight’s initiation ceremony is in a week. You turned eighteen four months ago.” He glanced at me. “It’s time I stop trying to protect you.”
I raised an eyebrow at him. “If you’ve spend the past eighteen years protecting me, I’d hate to see what being hard on me would have been like.”
“It was necessary for you to train hard, Chael, you know that.”
I nodded. “About the Shadow Knights…”
He stopped walking and turned toward me. His green eyes met my own. “You were born to a long line of Shadow Knights.” He mounted Klard and galloped back in the direction of our cabin.
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