Replacing his marker on the board, he asked, “Why have you taken command?”
Kassa paused and looked around the room. Kiffen’s gaze followed hers, taking in the presence of three officers from Elwar, two more from Moniah, and three high command Watchers, including Samantha, Kassa’s daughter. This quick study of the officers present reminded Kiffen that most of them had fought side by side with Kassa during Maligon’s uprising over twenty years ago. Following Kassa’s authority was a habit for them. None of them questioned it. Had he overstepped his bounds in his youth?
Then Kiffen’s gaze fell on the soldier who had escorted them to the room, and he frowned. A smile twitched on the soldier’s face. He glanced back at Kassa. Her mouth twitched once before she quickly hid her amusement.
Kiffen scowled. “You find the situation humorous?”
“If I may, Your Highness,” the soldier said, “I believe my wife has just realized her presumption in leading. I believe I told you, it’s what she does.”
“Your wife?” Kiffen stepped back and glanced between the two. He had never considered the idea that Kassa might be married, even though Samantha obviously had a father.
Kassa ignored his question. “Your Highness, Commander Halar makes excuses for me. Forgive us both. Please, I meant no disrespect.”
“None taken, Kassa.”
Kassa stepped back and gestured toward the large map in the center of the room. “May I share my intelligence with you?”
He nodded and approached the chart. “What can you tell me?”
“Many of your soldiers are in the keep. The news they bring …” She hesitated. “Is it true? Your father?”
He swallowed back a rush of emotion. “You’ve heard of my father’s murder and Quilla’s treachery?”
The others in the room bowed their heads and murmured their sorrow. Their condolences renewed the ache he’d managed to ignore for two days.
Kassa nodded. “I’m truly sorry. Your father was a great warrior.” Kassa moved the marker for the king of Elwar to the Border Keep on the map.
Kiffen fought to straighten his shoulders and remain focused on what needed to be done. Strategize. Gather information. Plan. Locate Adana.
“Thank you for your words of comfort.” He stepped back up to the table. “We must stop this before it becomes worse. What have you learned?”
“Of course, Your Majesty.” Kassa bobbed her head. “We know the princess’ camp was attacked internally, as were most of our camps. Those who survived have gathered here.”
Kiffen realized she did not mention Micah’s or Adana’s fates. As if in answer to his unspoken thoughts, Kassa asked, “Have you news of the regent king or the lady Adana?”
Kassa would appreciate a straightforward answer, but he hesitated. On the heels of the news of his loss, how could he share Micah’s fate with the woman who had been there when Queen Chiora first met Micah?
The woman was steel, but the news was cold iron. “I received word from Elwar of the murder of my father and warning of an attack. When I reached Adana’s camp, she was gone. Montee sent her out with the giraffes.”
At the mention of the giraffes, Kiffen felt another short, but firm, flicker of awareness from Bai’dish. “Before Montee followed the princess, she told us about the regent king. He was killed. Early in the battle.”
A gasp ran through the council. Kassa’s shoulders twitched once, and Kiffen noted her slow, deliberate breaths as she inhaled and exhaled twice, much like Adana would do when trying to maintain composure.
“I brought his body with us. For proper rites.”
When Kassa looked at him again, she said, “Moniah thanks you. And Adana? She is safe?”
“Last we heard. We met Montee on the edge of their encampment. Joannu and Lady Elayne evacuated the princess. They followed the giraffes in a southeasterly direction.”
“And you have not connected with Bai’dish?” Kassa stepped closer as if she could read the answer in his eyes.
He reddened and dropped his voice to a whisper. “How? I’m not sure—”
“Sire.” The Watcher Samantha stepped forward and placed her hand on his arm. “It’s easier when you can see across the distance.” She turned toward an archway. “There’s an eastern-facing window in the room through here.”
Kassa nodded. “It would be best if you do this now. We need to learn of Adana’s welfare.”
Uneasy over the responsibility and unsure of what to expect, Kiffen followed Samantha. Sunlight streamed into the adjoining room. The walls were rough river stone; a bench sat before the window.
Samantha gestured for Kiffen to sit. Through the window, he saw the river flowing east from the lake.
Samantha crossed her arms and leaned against the wall to his left, a slight uplift to her lips. “You’ve never done this?”
He shook his head.
“It’s not difficult.” She shrugged. “So I’ve been told. If Montee were here…she could guide you.” Two wrinkles creased her forehead, pointing toward the bridge of her nose. “I can attempt to talk you through it.”
Kiffen regarded Samantha. Adana rarely spoke of this Watcher, and he had sensed unease between the two of them at times. As Kassa’s daughter, he imagined Samantha might have been a tough trainer for Adana. She’d only arrived in Elwar a week ago. Except for attending the Kingdoms Council three years earlier, she had remained in Moniah. Her offer to assist him with this foreign act of connecting his mind with a giraffe touched him. The only other person who had offered to help him through his first link had been Adana, but there hadn’t been time to do so before they left Elwar.
“What do I need to do?”
Samantha walked behind him and placed her fingers on his temples. “Relax. Close your eyes.” She gently massaged his head with her fingertips. Until then, he hadn’t realized how much his head ached with the weight of the changes thrust into his life.
The tension began to ease. His eyelids drooped, and calm seeped through him, creeping down his temples through his face and neck muscles. After a few moments, the exhaustion of the last few days flooded over him, and his shoulders slumped forward, giving into the burden he held there.
“Good. Breathe slowly.” She slid her long fingers down to his shoulders and began to knead them. “Breathe.”
Kiffen relaxed into her hands and released a little more of his burden with each breath. The first breaths stung his nose, but soon his muscles loosened, and he dropped his head further forward, his chin falling against his chest.
Her long fingers slid under his chin and cupped it. With a slow, gentle motion, she pulled his head upright, straightening his neck and back until it aligned against her firm frame. Cool hands glided to the broad expanse of his chest.
Surprise sizzled through him, and he jumped forward.
“Shh.” Her hand massaged his chest, then slithered under his chin, an insistent, but gentle, pressure compelling him back against her warm body. “You’re safe. Concentrate. Keep breathing.”
Exhausted, Kiffen yielded to her soothing voice. He inhaled and exhaled two, three, four more times.
“Slower and deeper.”
Trance-like, Kiffen complied.
“Good. Notice where you’re breathing.” She pressed against his chest. “Here.” She snaked her hands down to his abdomen, her body molding into his as she leaned over him.
He gasped as her musky scent drifted up his nostrils.
“You need to breathe here.”
His muscles protested at the closeness of her body, her hands just above where he longed for Adana’s touch. He sucked in his breath, pulling his abdomen away from her touch.
“Breathe. You must breathe here to find Adana. Relax. Focus.” Her voice carried a soothing tone and consoled him with the importance of their task. He relaxed into it and ignored the strangeness of her proximity. Looseness spread through him.
His abdomen rose and fell with each inhalation and exhalation.
“That’s righ
t. Relax.
Breathe.
Relax.
Breathe.”
His acute awareness of Samantha’s body diminished. The remaining tension in his back and shoulders dissipated as the exercise drew him deeper and deeper.
“Good.” Her voice sounded far away.
His mind registered the distance, but he still felt the closeness of her body pressed behind him. Breathing was all that mattered. Seconds rose and swelled with each inhalation, and Kiffen’s body flowed with the pulse of blood beneath his skin.
“Good. You are ready. Call to Bai’dish.”
As he exhaled, he thought the giraffe’s name. He continued breathing. In. Out. In. Out.
He thought the name again, releasing each breath slowly. Joy from the beast spilled across the link. Kiffen’s fingertips tingled in response to the giraffe’s welcome. Sight came to him, a hazy image of Bai’dish looking at him.
Bai’dish gazed back at Kiffen until the image became more distinct, then the giraffe turned away and showed him a view of a stream flowing southeast into the flat lands of Moniah. Kiffen sensed, and then saw, Am’brosia walking along the stream, her head held high and alert. The image grew hazy and disappeared.
With one last deep inhalation, Kiffen opened his eyes.
And looked into Samantha’s green ones. She leaned against the wall in front of him.
In confusion, he glanced behind him where he still felt the warmth of her body pressed against his.
“You saw her?” Samantha asked.
He turned back to her, aware of a splendid peacefulness still flooding his soul. “I saw Bai’dish.”
“Was Am’brosia with him?”
“Yes. She was following a stream. Does that tell us anything about Adana?”
“If Am’brosia looked well, then Adana is, too.”
He recalled the image, brief as it was, and noted the angle of the giraffe’s shadow. “I believe they traveled southeast.”
Samantha straightened. A frown transformed her gentle bearing into one of surprise. “Southeast?”
Kiffen stretched. “Yes. I’m sure.” He looked out over the lake toward the river, and the Watcher’s gaze followed his. “I believe it was this river.”
Samantha crossed her arms and squinted eastward.
Kiffen followed her gaze, but his thoughts returned to the breathing technique. “That was focused breathing, right?”
She arched an eyebrow at him. “Yes. It will come easier with time.”
“You were behind me.” Kiffen hesitated. “I didn’t feel you move away.”
“Focused breathing used in that manner blocks the rest of your senses. Doing it alone can be dangerous. You’ll never see or hear an attack.”
“But Watchers use it during battle and while scouting?”
She shrugged, her attention still focused in the direction Adana traveled. “A different method. It takes much more practice and control. We use it to fine tune our senses.” She cocked her head to the side and smiled at him. “Just focus on your link with Bai’dish. That will take enough work.” Turning toward the map room, she said, “Kassa can help you develop it more.”
Kiffen watched her walk out of the room, her dark braid twisting down her back. Her tunic, swaying as it outlined her hips, drew his attention to her cat-like grace. He had never noticed her beauty before.
* * * * *
Chapter 6
By evening, Kiffen knew the Border Keep housed close to seven hundred soldiers, some fleeing from Quilla, some survivors of Maligon’s attacks on Adana’s caravan, and a few from Moniah’s border patrols, alerted to the attacks by messenger or Watcher scouts. Of these soldiers, one hundred were Watchers, four hundred were Elwarian, and just under two hundred were First Soldiers.
In addition, the keep housed seventy-three villagers and refugees and forty-nine of the keep’s regular staff. Prior to Kiffen’s arrival, Kassa had dispatched birds and runners to Linus, the commander who remained in Moniah to protect Adana’s View and the kingdom.
Kiffen stared at the map, realizing how successfully Maligon had divided them before striking. Create chaos, one of the first rules of strategic warfare. His ability to strike their caravan from the north and south, as well as from within their own ranks, concerned Kiffen, but he had to acknowledge the brilliance behind Maligon’s approach. Somewhere on the map lay the secret to Maligon’s weakness. Kiffen just needed to find it.
He had suspicions about the location of Maligon’s camp, but not enough to confirm the man’s whereabouts. He feared Maligon held several positions.
Thankfully, his connection to Bai’dish gave him a stronger idea of Adana’s position. Since Samantha had helped him establish his link, he had continued to feel more than the random flicker of awareness. In the back of his mind, the connection remained intact. On Kassa’s advice, he stopped to focus on it several times during the day. Each time, the bond became easier to hold.
Through Bai’dish, he learned Adana’s small band was tense, but he noticed a tingle of excitement from them, too, as if something pleased them.
“Your Majesty?”
Kiffen turned as Samantha and Simeon joined him. The sight of Samantha gave him pause. Since she had awoken his bond with Bai’dish, the Watcher had remained nearby, interrupting his concentration just by being in the same room with him. Her presence throughout the day confused and embarrassed him, and he hoped those thoughts did not translate through his tie to Bai’dish.
“The funeral pyre for the regent king is ready,” she said.
Kiffen gave a quick nod of acceptance. He could not properly send his father back to the Creator, but he could send his future father-in-law. As he followed the two from the tower, he concentrated on the bond with Bai’dish. Kassa had instructed him to focus on what he saw and imagine sharing it with the giraffe. If he succeeded, Bai’dish could share the ceremony with Am’brosia which meant Adana could attend her father’s funeral through sight, as well.
* * *
Adana and Montee sat by the fire in the deepening twilight while Joannu and Elayne hunted for food. The other members of her honor guard, Veana and Sinti, had not arrived yet.
“Should we continue to wait on them?” Adana asked. “What if they’ve been captured or killed?”
Montee tilted her head and studied Adana. “Do you sense something in your shoulder or did you receive that impression from Am’brosia?”
Adana shook her head. Her shoulder had remained calm since her decision to go to the village. No pain, tickle, energy, or heat resonated from the puncture wound. She had forgotten about it as the day wore on. “It’s quiet.”
“Good,” Montee said.
For a moment, Adana watched Montee’s gaze follow Elayne and Joannu, her eyes lingering on Elayne. For safety, and to keep the woman from slowing them down, Adana had given Elayne a Watcher’s uniform to wear. The young woman moved more freely and didn’t exhibit any modesty toward the more revealing clothing.
“It was wise to dress her in uniform, Your Majesty. She looks much like you.”
Adana nodded. “As much as I hate to admit it, she does look enough like me to fool someone.”
“Is that the plan? To fool someone into believing she is you?”
War came quickly. She must consider every potential weapon at her disposal. That’s what her mother had taught her. “It’s crossed my thoughts.”
Adana stared into the surrounding darkness. After years of living in Elwar’s ruling city, the quiet calmed her. It allowed her to focus on her thoughts and concerns.
“Do you trust her?”
Joannu and Elayne had disappeared into the darkness. Except for the outline of various plants and the flash of a night animal’s eyes, Adana saw nothing else. The moon had yet to rise, and clouds threatened to keep them in the dark. “I don’t extend trust easily.”
She preferred to keep Elayne nearby. That way, she could trust Joannu to alert her to any danger.
Montee nodded. “It w
ould be unwise to do so.”
The fire popped and crackled, and Adana got up to feed it more wood. Sparks flew as the logs clunked against each other. The fire drew her back to the night before. “I can’t believe he’s gone.”
Montee’s brow wrinkled. “Your Majesty?”
“Montee, it’s just you and me. Please drop the formalities.” She dropped down next to the fire again. “I need that from you.”
“Of course, Adana. It will be my honor.”
“Huh. Honor. It’s not about honor. It’s about trust. I need you to always remember that. Now more than ever.”
“Of course.” Montee skewered Adana with her gaze. “Under the best of circumstances, your father’s death would be difficult. This. I never saw it coming.”
“I wonder if Mammetta did.” Adana propped her cheek in her palm. “In reality, I lost them both the same day I lost Mammetta.” She picked up a stick and poked at the fire, readjusting the fresh logs. “I saw so little of him over the last three years. Just days ago, he told me several secrets were kept from me. He planned to discuss them with me once we reached the Border Keep.” She tossed the stick aside. “I guess I’ll never know. I fear, without that information, I’m going into this war blind.”
Montee shook her head. “You’re not blind. I know the secrets he needed to tell you.”
A tide of relief washed over Adana’s soul. So many problems, so many deaths. Her mind struggled to keep up with everything. Sudden worries crept into her mind at odd times throughout the day, just like the mention of these secrets. She’d forgotten until a moment ago.
Elayne’s laughter drifted on the night air in stark contrast to Adana’s mood. In the shadows, she noticed Joannu and Elayne returning.
Before the women reached the fire, Montee leaned toward Adana and whispered, “We need to scout this village. Send the two of them to do so tonight. You and I can remain here and discuss these secrets.”
Adana nodded, wondering if the village offered a place of rest or housed a nest of Maligon’s supporters. Until they checked it out, she could only hope for sanctuary. Her shoulder remained quiet.
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