Equites : Book 4 of the Heku Series

by T. M. Nielsen

  “I see,” Quinn said, frowning.

  “Zohn’s next on her list,” Kyle said.

  “What? Why me?” Zohn asked, not entirely shocked.

  Chevalier chuckled, “There are many things, Zohn, none of which are your fault… of course… none of which are hers either. More a conflict of personality.”

  “An emotional creature, that one,” Zohn said, frustrated.

  Kyle laughed, “That she is.”

  “So it’s agreed. She brings the book and we’ll go from there,” Quinn said.

  “I will try to bring her, yes,” Chevalier said.

  “What do we do if she says no?” the Record Keeper asked.

  “I will try, that’s all I can do. I won’t force her to come.”

  ***

  “No,” Emily said, staring from Margaret to Chevalier.

  “I behaved, Child, I promise,” Margaret said, smiling sweetly.

  “I don’t care if it’s jeans and a t-shirt. I’m not doing another ceremony,” Emily said sternly.

  “It’s important to me,” Chevalier told her, sitting beside her on the bed.

  “Damnit,” Emily yelled, stood up, grabbed the dress from Margaret, and went into the bathroom.

  “That was mean,” Margaret said, grinning at Chevalier.

  Chevalier chuckled, “She needs to do it. Please tell me you did behave, if that dress is revealing, I’ll never get her to go.”

  “Yes, I behaved. She’ll be completely covered.”

  “Hmm, I almost like this,” Emily said, and Chevalier smiled, finally something went her way.

  “Almost?” Margaret asked, frowning.

  “It’s a little… fitted.”

  “That’s the style, Child,” Margaret said, laughing, and walked out.

  Emily finally emerged in a floor-length, green satin Asian style dress with a high collar and short sleeves. The brooch at her neck was an emerald and diamond Equites symbol. The dress was fitted perfectly and hugged every curve in her body. There was a split on one side of the dress up to her thigh so she could walk.

  Chevalier raised his eyebrows, “Nice.”

  Emily nodded and looked down, “As far as I can tell, I’m not showing anything but my leg.”

  “Let’s go then.” Chevalier took her hand and handed her the briefcase.

  Emily sighed and took the briefcase, “You owe me for this.”

  “I know,” he chuckled.

  Anna brought Alexis in and handed her to Chevalier along with a bag, “Hurry back, Child.”

  Emily nodded and headed for the helicopter to Council City.

  When they landed on the roof of the palace, Emily cringed. She swore she wouldn’t come back there, yet a week later she found herself once again in Council City.

  A guard helped Emily down from the helicopter, and Chevalier ran off to take his spot as Emily got Alexis out.

  The toddler grinned broadly when she saw Silas appear on the roof. She held her hands out for him and Emily handed her over.

  “It’s good to have you back,” Silas said, smiling at Emily.

  “I’m not staying. I just need to hand over this damned book,” she said, and followed the guards into the palace.

  Emily felt more like an outsider than ever as she made her way down the palace stairs to the great hall. She felt the eyes of the heku on her, and she felt as though they were all judging her and waiting for her to panic and ash all of them. She was well aware of what Damon told her about their thoughts, and as she thought about it, it made it hard to breathe.

  When they rounded the corner to the entrance, Emily froze. Standing before the door were all thirteen of the Cavalry, Mark at the head.

  “I don’t need guards,” she said sternly.

  “We’re not here to guard you. We’re here to guard the book,” Mark said to her, officially.

  “Great, then you take it,” Emily said, and removed the book from the briefcase.

  Mark stifled a grin, “We can’t, you have to take it to Quinn.”

  “No, I’ll give it to Chevalier.”

  “Orders say Quinn,” Mark said.

  Emily frowned and walked through the doors when they opened, and then turned suddenly to Mark.

  “If all I have to do is hand this stupid book to the Elders, why are so many here?”

  Mark grinned, “Everyone wants to see the book.”

  She started down the long aisle, her eyes fixed on the three Elders, who sat with serious expressions in the three center chairs.

  “Not everyone can find a delicious little mortal to marry so we can fuck any time we want,” Damon’s words echoed through her head.

  The thought made it harder to breathe, and she could feel herself starting to hyperventilate as her heart began pound in her chest. Chevalier watched her, concerned.

  “Sweet piece of ass in the palace,” Damon’s voice sent new swells of panic through her and she stopped moving. She looked to the side of her at the heku gathered.

  “Emily?” Mark asked from behind her.

  “We are going to replace Chevalier… They are a liability because of you.”

  Emily turned around and looked past the Cavalry to the doors. She was trapped. There were heku to the sides of her, Cavalry in back of her, and the Council in front of her. Her hands began to shake as she looked quickly for a way out.

  “Lady Emily, are you alright?” a member of the Cavalry asked her.

  “To prove to me that you are going to do as I ask without a fight…”

  Damon’s words seemed to come from all around her. She wondered briefly if everyone in the room could hear them. She took one step forward, and then stopped again, gripping the briefcase tightly.

  Maleth stood up and reached a hand out to her, “Come here, Child.”

  “The Council feels it is time for another baby.”

  The control Damon demanded in the name of the Council, and the way they watched it happen, all flooded back to her. Emily pulled her skirt up a few inches and ran through the Cavalry toward the door.

  Mark caught up with her and put a hand on her shoulder, “Emily?”

  “No, Damon, I won’t do it,” she yelled, and pulled away from him. A murmur ran through the crowd.

  Chevalier appeared at her side and took her hand, “Look at me, Em.”

  She looked up at him hesitantly.

  “Breathe”

  Emily took a short, shallow breath.

  “I’ll walk with you,” he said, and stepped down the aisle.

  Emily’s eyes fixed on Quinn and Zohn, who was sitting next to him. They shifted uncomfortably in their seats at her confused gaze. To them it looked like she was walking to her death at their hands.

  Maleth and Quinn stood when Emily and Chevalier got closer.

  “Lady Emily, do you possess the book of the Valle Covens?” Quinn asked. His voice was loud and demanding.

  Emily nodded and looked up at Quinn, terrified.

  Quinn glanced at Chevalier and he nodded.

  Quinn’s voice boomed, “Do you, Lady Emily, wish to transfer the rights of this book to the Equites Council?”

  Emily put the book out for Quinn quickly.

  Quinn looked at Chevalier.

  “Em, say yes,” Chevalier whispered.

  Emily nodded.

  Quinn reached out and took the book from her. Before he could complete the dialogue, Emily was once again running back up the aisle. She looked forward, ignoring how the heku watched her curiously as she ran out into the foyer. When she got to the stairs, she took them up, two at a time, all the way to the roof.

  Once she climbed up onto the wall of the roof, she could finally breathe. She looked down over Council City as she had dozens of times while under Damon’s control.

  Once silence fell over the great hall, Quinn spoke again, “It is… with great honor that we accept this book. For over three hundred years, heku from all around the Equites family have tried to take it from the Valle, and we are pleased that it
has now been done.”

  The Equites broke into applause.

  Quinn silenced them, “As the finder of the book has… well… left… then we will have to cut this ceremony short?”

  Quinn glanced at Maleth and he shrugged, and then nodded.

  “Very well then, as we can’t continue, you may go,” Quinn said, and the Council watched as the heku all moved out of the great hall.

  Chevalier sighed, “I better head back to the island.”

  “No, please,” Quinn said. “I think Zohn and I need to talk to her.”

  “After the Damon comment… I’m not sure if she’s ready to talk to you,” Maleth said. The comment by Emily had proven to the Council how badly Emily was afraid of the palace.

  “Still, I want to just talk to her, and I think Zohn should be with me,” Quinn said again.

  Chevalier nodded, “You can try.”

  Quinn and Zohn walked up to the roof. They had heard her move to the spot from which Damon once banned her. Zohn knew that she had contemplated suicide from that same spot during Damon’s control over her.

  They made it to the roof and backed the guards into the hallway. As the two heku approached her, they both wondered if she might jump. She was leaning dangerously over the side of the palace, looking straight down toward the ground.

  Quinn cleared his throat.

  Emily spun and her eyes grew wide. She clung to the turret wall and watched the heku approach.

  “We came to see if you are alright,” Zohn said.

  “I’m fine,” Emily told him.

  “It’s come to our attention that we may not be your favorite heku in the palace,” Quinn said, and Zohn cringed at the bluntness.

  “I’ve not made that a secret.”

  “True,” Quinn said, raising an eyebrow. “Might we ask why?”

  Emily shook her head.

  Zohn smiled, “Then can we ask how to remedy that?”

  Emily shook her head again.

  “You’re not helping us at all, Dear,” Zohn said.

  Emily glared at Quinn, “You put me in prison.”

  Quinn sighed, “Yes I did. I thought it would keep you safe until Chevalier arrived.”

  “It was cold.”

  “I am sorry.”

  “Everyone was whispering about me and hissing at me.”

  “Again, I am sorry.”

  “It was too dark, they turned the lights off,” Emily said scathingly.

  “A lapse in judgment, and I am sorry.”

  “I hate you,” she whispered and tried to blink away the tears.

  “I am aware of that… I am also aware that you didn’t like me before that.”

  “No, I didn’t.”

  “Why is that?”

  “You questioned me in Paris like a suspect, and accused me of lying,” Emily said to Zohn.

  “You were though,” Zohn said, and then Quinn elbowed him. “I mean… I just knew you were hiding something.”

  “What did your instincts tell you?” she asked, suddenly wanting to know.

  Zohn studied her for a moment, “I felt that Damon may have lost his temper with you.”

  “Hmm, I told Chris you were smarter than he was,” Emily said, and shrugged.

  “Did you, now?” Zohn smiled.

  “Leonid was my friend,” Emily said to Quinn.

  Quinn nodded, “Yes, I know that you were quite upset at his retirement.”

  “Retirement? They buried him alive.”

  “At his request.”

  “So? Who does that? Who buries someone alive when they ask?”

  “We do,” Zohn said, confused.

  Emily turned around and looked over the city so the heku wouldn’t see the tears.

  “The Council is worried about you, and truly wish you would return to the palace,” Quinn said after a few minutes of silence.

  “The Council is worried my abilities will go elsewhere. They aren’t worried about me.”

  “I beg to differ.”

  “I’m a weapon in their hands, a liability in others. That’s all they care about,” Emily said, and sat down on the edge of the roof, dangling her feet over the grass, 9 stories below.

  “There’s more to it than that,” Quinn said.

  “Oh, sorry, I forgot about the baby maker part.”

  Quinn cringed.

  “The palace isn’t the same without you… it’s… boring,” Zohn said honestly.

  “I bet, and I also bet the guards love that,” Emily told him.

  “We want you to come back and live in the palace,” Quinn said.

  Emily turned toward them, “Do I have a choice?”

  Quinn nodded, “You do.”

  “Then I want to go back to the island,” Emily whispered.

  “As you wish,” Quinn said, and then he and Zohn headed back down to the reception.

  With some difficulty, Emily crawled into the silent helicopter and curled up on the seat. She listened to the music and voices from the palace for a while before deciding she would go check on Patra, after she heard an odd whinny come up from the stables. Her foal was due soon, and she’d been worried about her alone in Council City, but she was too far along to move to the island. She’d only had a foal 18 months ago, but one of the Cavalry let her out into the corral when she was in heat. Now her third foal was due.

  Emily hesitated outside of the bedroom and then stepped inside. She slipped off the dress and put on the more comfortable jeans and t-shirt. She tied her hair up and then snuck down the back servant’s entrance. The cool grass felt good on her bare feet and she walked quickly to the stables.

  Emily heard Patra’s whine a short distance from the stables, and she broke into a run. As she rounded the corner into the stable, she flipped on the lights and opened Patra’s stall. The mare was standing up, panting. Emily rubbed the mare’s belly.

  “I’m here girl, it’s ok.”

  Emily moved down to the mare’s hind end to see if she could see any sign of the foal. It was then that Patra laid down, and a gush of bloody liquid flooded over Emily.

  “Ugh, seriously, Patra?” Emily growled, and went back to the mare’s belly. “That was disgusting.”

  Emily looked up when she heard a noise and saw six members of the Cavalry watching her.

  “Shirt please,” she asked, and held her hand out. When a white guard issued shirt was handed to her, she faced the back wall, slipped off her wet and bloody t-shirt, and then buttoned up the guard shirt, rolling the sleeves up to her elbows.

  “May we stay? Please?” one of the members of the Cavalry asked.

  “Yes,” she replied, and moved back down to Patra’s hind end when she began to push. “Come on girl, push.”

  The mare rested for a moment and began to push again with a loud bellow.

  “I see feet, come on girl,” Emily said, watching closely.

  “No, no, no, no,” Emily groaned, and leaned down on the straw to get a better look.

  “What’s wrong?” one of the Cavalry asked.

  “Breech,” Emily said, and took a deep breath. She grabbed onto the hind feet of the colt and as soon as Patra pushed, she began to pull.

  “Can I do that?” one of them asked.

  “No,” Emily said, straining. “You might pull the legs off.”

  “Oh, true,” he said, disappointed.

  Emily rested when the mare did, and then pulled as soon as she pushed. The Cavalry watched her nervously. She was straining and pulling hard enough that she was sweating and her arms shook with the strain.

  “Come on, damnit,” she groaned, and pulled on the hind legs of the foal.

  Once the colt’s hocks emerged, Emily got to her hands and knees to catch her breath. The new shirt was soaked with sweat and drops fell from her forehead.

  “Ok, girl,” Emily panted. “Hard part coming.”

  “That wasn’t the hard part?” one of the guards asked nervously.

  Emily shook her head, “Nope, the foal’s breech. The
hips are going to be the hard part.”

  When Patra pushed again, Emily grabbed the back legs of the colt again and pulled gently but firmly. Emily groaned and used her entire body weight to pull.

  “What’s going…” the faction doctor asked, but was quickly shushed by the watching Cavalry. He joined the rest of them in the stables, watching Emily pull on the legs of the foal.

  Emily fell back on the straw when Patra relaxed. She fought to catch her breath and rubbed her sore arms. She wiped the sweat off of her forehead with the arm of her shirt and then leaned back up with a groan when the mare started to push again.

  Again Emily began to pull, leaning back with all of her strength. She slipped back and slammed into the stall wall when the colt’s hips broke free, and the colt slid out quickly. She ignored the frantic questions from the doctor and crawled up to the foal.

  “It’s a colt!” she said, and watched Patra clean off the foal after a short rest.

  Emily sat down on the straw and sat her tired arms on her knees. She looked up as the faction doctor came over to her.

  “Are you ok?” he asked.

  Emily nodded, “Yes, why?”

  “You fell against the wall pretty hard,” he said, and touched the back of her head.

  Emily jerked away, “I’m not hurt. Stay back away from the colt.”

  The doctor nodded and moved back by the Cavalry.

  Emily’s hands were still shaking from all of the pulling and she was covered in blood. She smiled and watched the colt fight to get to his feet. The Cavalry watched the foal, amazed at the new life they just witnessed.

  “Now what?” a member of the Cavalry asked.

  Emily sighed, “Now we wait to make sure he stands up and nurses.”

  “He’s beautiful, Lady Emily,” he said, and then smiled at her.

  Emily smiled, “Yes, he is.”

  “What seems to be the problem?” Quinn asked, joining the crowd in the stables. He peeked over the heads of the Cavalry and saw the colt struggling to get to his feet. He cringed when he saw Emily, but she was smiling, so he decided not to say anything about the sweat or the blood.

  Quinn whispered briefly, and was soon joined by Zohn, Kyle, Maleth, and Chevalier. Chevalier grinned and stepped through the Cavalry to sit by Emily on the hay.

  Emily smiled at him, “It’s a colt.”