“They can’t hear us. We’re too far away.”
“How can you be sure?” Nevis asked. “They might have super hearing with those big-assed ears. No offense!” He lowered his voice. “Maybe we should back away. Some of them can shoot arrows really far.”
“I think we’re safe for now.” Leo smiled at his friend. Nevis had been watching out for him ever since their first battle at the age of fourteen. When Leo had been named Lord Protector seven years ago at the young age of nineteen, it had been obvious that the king hoped the job would cause his death.
King Frederic had successfully gotten rid of his younger brother, Cedric, by making him Lord Protector. Cedric had died at the age of thirty-five, leaving behind a wife and Leo, his son. When Cedric finally fell in battle, Frederic had quickly enacted a plot to kill Cedric’s son.
Leo had been eight years old when the assassins had arrived on the family estate. He’d survived. His mother hadn’t. His father’s best friend, General Harden, had charged in and killed the assassins. A few minutes too late for his mother. Then the king had acted innocent, claiming to have no knowledge of the affair.
Leo had lived in a daze for a while, traveling and training with the army. General Harden was named the new Lord Protector, which was the king’s way of wishing him dead. With Leo under the general’s protection, the king was forced to delay any plans to murder his nephew.
The general’s son, Nevis, a few months older than Leo, was assigned as his sparring partner. Soon, the two became best friends, with Nevis declaring he would always be there to watch Leo’s back.
Now, years later, Leo glanced at his friend. Beneath the shaggy brown hair that fringed Nevis’s brow, there was a jagged scar that ran from his brow to his left temple. Nevis usually kept it covered, so Leo wouldn’t be reminded that he’d been the cause. Not that Leo could ever forget. He curled his hands into fists, and the leather of his gloves stretched tight against his knuckles.
Nevis shifted his weight. “I came here to warn you. You were so busy looking east, I figured you hadn’t noticed…”
Leo turned his head sharply to the west. Across the horizon, there was a dark strip. A storm.
Instantly his body grew tense. His nerves hummed with the familiar mixture of dread and anticipation. Dread for the pain that would come. Anticipation for the power.
Nevis gave him a worried look. “Hopefully, there won’t be any lightning.”
“Hopefully, there will.”
“Dammit,” Nevis muttered. “Do you enjoy courting death?”
“Of course not. But it’s been four months since the last lightning storm. My power is seriously depleted.” Leo glanced down at his gloved hands. “I could probably touch someone now.”
“Good. You could live a normal life for a change.”
“I am not normal. I never will be.”
“You’ve never tried!” A gust of wind blew Nevis’s hair back from his brow, revealing the jagged scar.
Leo gritted his teeth. “There is no escape from it. I’ve tried hiding in houses, castles, even dungeons. It never works. When the lightning comes, it always finds me. It burns down houses and destroys buildings to get to me.”
“How about a cave? That might work.”
“Enough!” Leo clenched his fists, then slowly released them. “I am what I am.” A monster. “At least my power scares everyone so much that no one has tried to kill me for being Embraced. Others are not so fortunate.”
“It has caused you too much pain.”
“And it’s kept me alive. There have been many times in battle when my power saved my ass. Yours, too.”
“I know,” Nevis grumbled. “I’m grateful for that. But it pisses me off that you keep taking in all that power so you can protect people, and do they ever thank you? No! They run away from you and call you names.”
Leo arched a brow. “So I should let them die? It is my job to protect the people of Eberon.”
“At what cost? Each time the lightning finds you, you take in more power than before. More power than you can handle. One day it’ll be too much, and you’ll—”
“Burst into a ball of fire,” Leo interrupted him. “I’ve heard it before. Maybe I should consider myself lucky. Doesn’t everyone want to go out in a blaze of glory?”
“You think it a jest?”
“I think it a theory. You have no proof—”
“So I’m supposed to wait till you explode so I can say I told you so?” Nevis gave him an incredulous look, then with a resigned sigh, he shook his head. “Dammit, Leo. I’m just trying to keep you alive.”
“I know.” Leo didn’t want to admit that deep inside, he suspected Nevis’s theory was correct. But there was nothing he could do. Whenever there was lightning, it sought him out. It burned its way through wood, clawed its way through stone to find him. Since there was no escape, all he could do was accept it. And use the power to protect his people.
He dragged his gloved fingers through his hair. Already, he could feel his scalp itching as the storm approached. His curly red hair would eventually stand out, the strands crackling with energy as if they were calling the lightning to him.
Nevis sighed. “I don’t know which will kill you first—the lightning or the king. You’re going to be in big trouble, you know. Disregarding his orders. Again.”
Leo shrugged. He’d decided it was more important to protect the country than go to court to meet his latest betrothed. The last woman his uncle had chosen for him had run away to Tourin, preferring the life of a poor refugee rather than marriage to the Beast of Benwick. “Why should I bother to please the king? He’s wanted me dead for years, and nothing will change his mind.”
“He’s a royal pain in the ass,” Nevis mumbled. “No offense.”
“None taken.”
Nevis sniffed the air. “I smell dinner. I’ll see you later.” He dashed down the hill toward the commissary.
Leo smiled. Nevis never missed a meal. Nevis’s father, General Harden, was almost finished setting up camp. After losing both his parents at the age of eight, Leo considered the general a second father. A harsh father, since the general had always known Leo would have to excel as a soldier if he wanted to survive. The general had pushed him and Nevis so hard that by the age of nine, they were calling him General Hard-Ass in private.
The years had been rough on the general, too. He walked with a limp, thanks to an ax that had badly gashed one leg in battle. A jagged red scar ran the length of his face, bisecting an eyebrow and puckering the skin of his cheek before disappearing into his thick gray beard.
Once, at the cocky age of thirteen, Leo had boasted that they could track a foe at night if the general would only remove his helmet, for his shiny, bald head glowed in the moonlight. Most soldiers were afraid to touch Leo, but General Hard-Ass had not hesitated to box his ears.
Good times, Leo thought, then shifted his gaze to the ever-growing dark strip at the horizon. Already, the wind from the west was picking up. He could see the flags flapping briskly from the tops of tents where the army had set up camp. Above him, the clouds were filling up the sky, hiding the sun and making the fields appear a darker, more emerald green.
He would need to be alone when the lightning came. Over the years, he’d learned that many times when the lightning struck him, it splintered, shooting off jagged shards in all directions. It was how Nevis had received his scar. Most who came too close were killed.
Those deaths had been attributed to him. The Beast.
The hair on the back of his neck rose, and his scalp tingled. There would be lightning with this storm. He could already feel it, the sizzle of energy in the air. Damn, he was a monster. He knew the power would cause him pain, but as much as he hated it, he also craved it.
The blast of a horn drew his attention, and he spotted a small band of armed soldiers on horseback entering the camp. They were dressed in the uniforms of the royal guard, and the lead soldier was carrying the royal banner. The entourage f
or an envoy from the king.
With a groan, Leo started toward his tent. On the way, a large black-and-white-spotted dog loped up to him.
“Brody!” Leo smiled at the dog, and he could swear that the dog grinned back. His face was mostly white, except for a black nose and a black patch of fur around his left eye. His legs were caked with mud and his fur still damp. “You had to travel through the rain? Did you tag along with the royal envoy?”
When the dog nodded, Leo continued, “Go wash up and get dressed. I want to hear your news.”
The dog trotted off to Nevis’s tent. Everyone assumed he was Nevis’s pet, but in truth, Nevis merely kept Brody’s clothes for him, so the dog had a private place to change back to human form.
As a dog shifter, Brody was Leo’s best spy. In canine form, he could join other dogs in any castle keep in the country. Then, while he pretended to be napping, he heard all sorts of secret agreements and negotiations.
Leo reached his tent at the same time as the envoy and his entourage. Their clothes were all wet, and the sodden feathers in their caps drooped. The envoy dismounted and bowed just as General Harden arrived. Leo invited them both inside and found his squire busily polishing his sword. Edmund already had the inside of the tent in order. Two candles burned brightly on his desk.
“Good work, Ed.” Leo stepped behind his desk and faced the envoy. “You have news?”
“Greetings from His Most Royal Majesty, King Frederic the Great,” the envoy began in a high-pitched, whiny voice. “May the Light shine upon his magnificence forever.”
Leo bit his lip to keep from laughing. Behind the envoy, the general was making a rude gesture. “The news?”
With a grand bow, the envoy handed Leo a rolled piece of parchment, sealed with a glob of wax imprinted with the royal insignia. “His Royal Majesty has gifted you with a few words of his glorious wisdom. Surely you are blessed.”
Leo broke the seal and unrolled the parchment.
Dear nephew,
You bastard. Your failure to come to Ebton has been noted and added to your list of transgressions. Luckily for you, your betrothed is also late to make an appearance. Your new orders: Go directly to Vindalyn. Find the damned duke and his daughter and escort them to the royal palace in Ebton. You have two months. Failure means death.
And with a grand flourish, Frederic had taken up the bottom half of the page with his signature.
Leo set the parchment on his desk and dipped a quill into a bottle of ink. In the small margin at the bottom of the page, he wrote:
Dear Uncle,
Your order has been noted and added to your list of commandments. See you in two months. By the way, I’m harder to kill than my father. Assassins will not succeed. Failure means death.
There was only room enough left to sign a simple Leo.
He rummaged through the drawers of his desk till he found his insignia ring. He didn’t normally wear it since he had to wear thick gloves. By then the ink had dried, so he rolled the parchment back up, drizzled some candle wax on the seam, and stamped it with his ring.
“Here.” He handed the message back to the envoy, then turned to his squire. “Edmund, take them to the commissary so they can have a meal before they leave.”
“You expect us to leave today?” The envoy’s voice grew even more highly pitched and whiny. “But, my lord, the—”
“Today,” Leo interrupted. “His Most Royal Majesty deserves an answer as soon as possible, don’t you think?”
“But the storm…”
“You would let a little rain dampen your loyalty to the king? I would hate for my uncle to hear about that.”
The envoy’s eyes widened with panic. “Have no fear, my lord! I will deliver this message with the utmost speed and diligence.”
“Glad to hear it.” Leo smiled. “You may go.” And take your damned spies with you.
“Yes, my lord.” The envoy backed toward the tent entrance, bowing repeatedly. On the way out, he bumped into Nevis and Brody, who were coming in.
“This way, sir.” Stifling a grin, Edmund led him away.
General Harden chuckled as he poured a cup of wine.
“Looks like you’ve frightened another envoy.” Nevis headed toward his father. “Pour me a cup, too.”
“Me, as well,” Brody added. “I’m famished.”
“Here.” Leo handed him the plate of food Edmund had left on his desk. “It’s a long journey from Ebton.”
“Thanks.” Brody took a big bite from the loaf of bread.
“Tired as a dog?” Nevis smirked as he handed Brody a cup of wine.
Brody snorted. “I’m in better shape than you are.”
Nevis thumped his stomach. “This is muscle!”
The general nodded as he handed his son a cup of wine. “I’ve always believed a little added weight keeps a soldier better seated on his horse during battle.”
“Exactly!” Nevis agreed and downed his drink.
Leo smiled. Of course they both believed that. They both had the same square-shaped bodies. Brody, on the other hand, was tall and slim. His pale face contrasted sharply with his long black hair. He had the same blue eyes he had in dog form, but the black patch of fur around his left eye was now a dark freckle on the outside corner of his eye.
Nevis handed Leo a cup of wine. “So what news did the envoy bring? Are you in trouble?”
“A little.” Leo took a sip. “I’m not the only one who’s taking my time. The duke and his daughter haven’t arrived yet, either.”
“Maybe she ran away like the last lady you were supposed to marry.” When his father cleared his throat, Nevis added, “No offense.”
“I doubt the Duke of Vindalyn would run away, not when it would mean losing all his land and wealth.” Leo sat behind his desk. “We have new orders. Now we’re to go to Vindalyn and escort the duke and his daughter to court.”
General Harden drank some wine. “We can break camp at dawn. Or later, if the storm hasn’t passed.”
All three men gave Leo a worried look.
“I went through the storm on the way here,” Brody said quietly. “There was lightning.”
Leo nodded. “I’ll get away from camp before it starts. We don’t want any of the tents catching fire.” His jaw tightened as the three men continued to watch him with wary expressions. “I’ll be fine. What news do you have, Brody?”
Brody gulped some wine, then began, “I heard the king talking to his chief counsel. The duke and his daughter actually began the journey to Ebton. But when they arrived in Ronsmouth, there was an outbreak of plague.”
“Plague?” General Harden asked.
Leo winced, then motioned for Brody to continue.
“That’s when the news gets sketchy. There are rumors that the duke and daughter died. Other rumors that they boarded a ship. No one seems to know what happened.”
Leo narrowed his eyes, considering. “So the king suspects they’re alive and have sailed back to Vindalyn.”
“Any news about the plague?” General Harden asked.
Brody shook his head. “None at all.”
“That’s strange,” Nevis muttered.
Strange, indeed, Leo thought. Ronsmouth, at the mouth of the Ron River, was the busiest port in all of Eberon. If a plague had occurred there, it would have spread. “Brody, go to Ronsmouth to investigate. You can travel with us part of the way since we’ll be headed south.”
“Aye, my lord.” Brody bit into a chunk of cheese.
Nevis smirked. “Don’t bring back any fleas.”
Brody continued to eat, but responded with a rude gesture.
“You suspect something?” the general asked.
Leo drummed his fingers on the desk. “We know why Uncle Fred wants me to marry the heiress of Vindalyn. He’s wanted that land for years, and once the girl marries me and her father passes away, it becomes mine. Then the king only has to wait for me to die for it to become his. But what if he’s decided he doesn’t want to wai
t?”
Nevis nodded. “If he kills the duke and daughter, then the land automatically becomes his.”
Leo leaned back in his chair. “What if the king never planned for the wedding to actually happen? It could be a ruse to force the duke and his daughter out of Vindalyn.”
“I see what you mean.” The general rubbed his beard. “The fortress at Vindemar is rumored to be impregnable. The easiest way for the king to attack the duke and his daughter is to lure them out.”
“Then kill them on the way to court,” Nevis added.
Leo nodded. “They could be in grave danger.”
Brody set the empty plate on the desk. “Hardly anyone at court has ever seen the daughter, but according to the gossip I heard, she is truly beautiful.”
Leo stilled for a moment, then realized the three men were eyeing him with speculation. He finished his wine and set the cup down with a clunk. “We march toward Vindalyn at dawn, and Brody—”
A bell clanged outside, and he jumped to his feet.
“The beacon alarm.” Nevis rushed toward the tent entrance just as a soldier arrived.
“Report,” Leo ordered.
“The beacon to the north has been lit,” the soldier said. “Three puffs of smoke.”
That meant the original beacon was three towers to the north. The border with Norveshka. Leo fisted his hands.
“What color was the smoke?” the general asked.
The soldier winced. “Red.”
Leo sucked in a breath. The Norveshki warriors were using their worst weapon. “Nevis, gather your best men. We ride north. Now.”
Nevis dashed from the tent.
“What about Vindalyn?” General Harden asked.
“You will go.” Leo buckled on his sword belt. “Take the army. We’ll catch up with you after we’re done.”
“I’ll ready your horse.” Brody dashed from the tent.
Leo slung a full quiver of arrows onto his back and grabbed his bow.
“Good luck, son,” General Harden said.
He would need it. The Norveshki had some terrible creatures at their command. Leo strode from the tent.
Nevis and his troop were readying their horses. Brody led Leo’s black horse to him. Fearless, Leo called him, for he was the only horse who didn’t balk at Leo’s power. Even so, he had to be covered from head to tail with black quilted material to keep from being fried.
How to Tame a Beast in Seven Days Page 4
