by C. J. Archer
"They wish me to marry and have children, just as my mother did," Meg said.
"Naturally. But you defied them. I do hope I'm not the cause of dissent between you and your family."
"Not at all, Your Grace. I didn't defy them. They've never insisted I marry, nor did they forbid me to enter into service."
"Extraordinary," Kitty murmured. "To be free to make choices about when you marry, and whom…I envy you both." She laughed. "I sound like Miranda. At least her parents will never force her to wed an old, gouty beast."
"You could become a priestess," Balthazar said. "That would free you from your husband."
"Not quite," I said. "Because her husband is still living, she won't be accepted as a full priestess. The duke wouldn't be free to remarry either."
"I have to die if he is to get what he wants," Kitty added flatly.
"You would be safe in a temple, at least," Meg said.
"Or I might bring trouble to the temple's door."
We plunged into silence that lasted until Erik rode up. He rested a hand on the window sill and peered into the carriage.
Kitty, still jittery after the attempt on her life, reeled back.
Erik had been about to smile, but it disappeared without properly materializing. "Please, do not fear me, Kitty. I do not hurt women, only men who are my enemies. And maybe women who are my enemies too." He shrugged. "I do not yet know if I have any woman enemies, but I think I would not. I like to bed women, not fight them."
She swallowed and resumed the regal air of earlier. "That's all well and good, but in future, do not thrust your rather large head into a lady's carriage if you are not aiming to frighten her."
Erik grinned, which only seemed to irritate Kitty more.
"And you must refer to me as Your Grace. I will forgive you this once, since you have no memory of how things are."
"He's also from The Margin," I told her. "I don't think they have duchesses there."
"The Margin? But that's the other side of the world!"
"Just the other side of Widowmaker Peaks."
Erik frowned. "My Grace?"
"Your Grace," Kitty said, raising her voice.
"Why must I call you this when your name is Kitty?"
"Because I am a duchess."
"Then why not Duchess Kitty? The king was King Leon."
Kitty hesitated then with a toss of her curls said, "It's the way it is."
He drummed his fingers on the window sill. "Your husband wants to kill you."
Kitty wrinkled her nose. "Must everyone know my business?"
"Yes, if they are to keep you safe on this journey," Balthazar said.
She sighed.
Erik tapped his chest. "I will not let him harm you, Duchess. Stay close to me."
"Thank you," she said. "That's very kind."
"Very close. Especially at night. We will share a room at the inn."
Kitty looked appalled. "We're sleeping in an inn? But there are noble houses on the way, some of them quite grand." She folded her hands in her lap. "We shall stay in one of those. Erik, please inform the captain."
"We won't be staying in noble houses," Balthazar said. "Or even farm houses. Your husband will expect it."
"Oh. Yes, of course. It is probably best to stay at an inn."
Erik beamed. "So you agree? I will look forward to it. You will enjoy me."
"No, I didn't—" Kitty leaned out the window but Erik had already ridden off. She pulled her head back in, a hand to her hat to hold it in place. "Did he mean what I think he means?"
"Yes," I said, trying not to smile. "Don't worry. I'll explain later that you didn't agree to his proposal. Unless you don't want me to."
"Josie! Honestly, you are as wicked as Miranda sometimes. Not only am I a married woman, but I certainly wouldn't want to go near that man. Just because he's extraordinarily handsome and intriguing, we cannot overlook his ill manners." She turned back to the window and stared out of it for the rest of the afternoon.
The problem with traveling in such a large group was that a single inn couldn't accommodate all of us. The priests camped outside the village with some of the servants also willing to do so, but the rest of us filled out the inn's rooms and stables. I squeezed into Kitty's modest bedchamber along with Meg.
"I've never shared a room with anyone before," Kitty said as Meg undressed her. "Not even my sister, the mean little frog. Do you know, I haven't seen her in two years, since my marriage."
"I find that so strange," Meg said. "My sisters are a lot younger than me, but we're quite close."
"I'll wear the green dress with the gold braid on the sleeves for dinner, thank you, Meg."
"Are you sure?" Meg asked. "It's a lovely dress and you don't want to attract unwanted attention from the locals."
"You mean thieves. Don't worry. I won't wear my best jewels, just the choker with the pearl pendant and matching earrings. It's very subdued. Perfect for dinner at a rustic countryside inn."
I left them to their chatter and went in search of Dane. The ancient floor of the inn creaked with every step and I had to duck my head to go through doorways. Downstairs, it smelled of ale and, more faintly, of wood smoke.
I expected to see the guards and servants drinking, but there were only the servants, dressed in ordinary clothes, not palace livery. Balthazar and Theodore were not among them.
I found Dane outside, helping the stable hands with the horses, some of his men also assisting. The rest of the guards were nowhere to be seen.
"Settled in?" he asked me as he brushed down Lightning's coat.
I rubbed the horse's nose. "I think so. Kitty is changing for dinner now. She seemed to think it important to have at least one clothing change today. I hope there's enough food for everyone."
"Rhys sent men ahead to warn all the villages along the way. Speaking of the priests, they might leave us tomorrow. The master is anxious to return to Tilting and we don't need their guidance."
"He doesn't like leaving the city for long."
"I think he's worried about friends or family getting caught in the troubles. Vizah told me that Rhys feels responsible for a street urchin he took under his wing."
"He's a good man." I continued to rub Lightning's nose since the horse seemed to enjoy it and I couldn't touch Dane. "Where are the rest of your men?"
"Scouting, looking out for signs that the duke has paid someone to attack the duchess."
The thought sent a chill through me and I shivered. My hand stilled and Lightning nuzzled it. "Sorry," I told him. "Your master distracted me."
"You don't have to worry." Dane's voice was molten gold, and suddenly very close. "I'm staying in the room next to yours and Max is on the other side."
I gave him a reassuring smile. "The floorboards creak like an old man's joints. We'll hear someone approaching."
He rubbed Lightning's nose too, his hand inches above mine. And then it covered mine. It was warm but not soft thanks to the calloused palms. "Josie…" he began, not looking at me.
"Yes?" I whispered.
"I'm glad you came with us."
I smiled. "So am I."
He removed his hand just as suddenly as he'd placed it there and turned. It wasn't until I turned too that I realized he'd heard someone approach.
"Sergeant," he said to Max. He waited until Max joined us before continuing. "What did you find?"
Max gave his head a slight shake. "Nothing."
Dane nodded and Max walked off.
"What was that about?" I asked.
"He searched Brant's pack in the stables but didn't find the gem."
"That was a risk."
"Brant is with the others, scouting the village. I was keeping look out." He glanced down at my hand. "Badly."
I almost apologized for being a distraction, but it seemed a little absurd. "If I were him, I'd keep the gem on my person. If I had it."
"Captain!" called Erik, striding up to us.
Dane took a small step away
from me. "Is there a problem?"
"Aye." Erik's earnest look worried me.
"Did you find something?"
"Nothing. The others are on their way back, but I walk quick to speak to you. Captain, I wish for a room inside tonight, not a straw mat in the stables."
"No," Dane said without a blink of an eye.
"You don't like sleeping in stables?" I asked Erik. "I didn't think you sensitive about such things."
"I do not care where I sleep. In stables, pig pen…I will sleep anywhere." He shrugged. "But the duchess will not like to come to me out there."
I pressed my lips together to suppress my smile.
"That's why you're in the stables," Dane said.
Erik didn't seem to understand. "I will go to her—"
"You will go nowhere near the duchess."
Erik sighed then walked off, only to stop and turn back. "Unless she wishes me to be near her, yes?"
"Fine. Unless she wishes it. Otherwise, stay away."
Erik grinned.
"This will be interesting," I said, watching him go.
Dane flashed me a rare smile. "We need something to entertain us on the journey."
We set off early, meeting the priests just outside the village. After exchanging words with Dane, Balthazar and Amar, they rode off at a swift pace. We continued, slowly.
I spent much of the day walking with the servants. My legs needed the exercise after spending most of the previous day in the carriage, and I wanted to keep an eye on Brant. He looked comfortable on his horse, his injured arm resting on his thigh rather than held close to his body. Not once did he touch his doublet at his chest or anywhere the gem could have been hidden. What he did do with regular frequency was glare at Dane's back.
Except for when he had to relieve himself by the side of the road, that is. He didn't even go into the bushes, but simply stood there, whistling as if he didn't have a care in the world.
Meg made a sound of disgust in the back of her throat. "Don't look," she told the duchess. "He's revolting."
We rounded a bend and Dane's head suddenly jerked to the left. He dismounted and drew his sword before plunging into the thick bushes that edged the road. "Surround the carriage! Josie, get inside. Yen, Ray, with me! "
The two guards followed but they were well behind Dane by the time they crashed through the forest underbrush. The carriage came to an abrupt stop and I jumped in.
"Keep away from the windows," Balthazar ordered as the guards formed a wall around the carriage.
"Hailia, protect us," Kitty murmured, reaching for Meg's hand.
I desperately wanted to search for Dane, but didn't dare glance through the window. Several pounding heartbeats later I heard the bushes rustle.
"Captain?" Max said. "Did you see anyone?"
"They're gone," came Dane's voice.
Those of us in the carriage released a collective sigh of relief.
"Was it bandits?" Quentin asked.
"We found their camp," Yen said. "It was hastily abandoned, the fire still warm, but there was no sign of them."
I opened the carriage door and went to step out, but Dane ordered me back inside. "I feel better if you're somewhere I can see you," he said, gentler. "Somewhere I can keep an eye on you."
"I suppose I can protect the duchess better from in here," I said, closing the door again.
He frowned, and I suspected he was regretting ordering me to be nearer the duke's intended target.
He rode up ahead, only to be replaced by Erik. "Is My Grace all right?" he asked.
"I am quite well, thank you," Kitty said, dismissing him with a turn of her head.
"I do not know why the duke wants to kill you. You are very beautiful."
She regarded him coolly. "It is none of your affair, Guard."
"Erik." He gave her a shallow bow. "If you were my wife, I would cherish you. Every day, I would say you are beautiful and kind, and every night I would lie with you and worship your body."
Kitty gave a little cry then covered her mouth.
"Don't you have something better to do?" Balthazar asked Erik.
Erik gave him a blank look. "There is nothing better than being with the duchess."
Balthazar groaned. "I think I'll get out and walk."'
"You can't," I told him. "You'll slow us down."
"Then Erik, you have to go before I'm sick."
"Yes, do go away," Kitty said with a haughty lift of her chin. "You are too arrogant."
Erik reached through the window and grasped her hand. He drew it to his lips and kissed it. "And you are too lovely for me." He let her hand go and rejoined the other guards.
Kitty's gaze followed him, her entire body tilting to the side to see him better the further away he drew. He cut a fine figure on the horse, sitting comfortably in the saddle and moving as one with the horse. I didn't blame her for desiring him, and I was quite sure from her lingering blush that she did.
"He's very handsome," I said, teasing.
She shut the curtain. "He's got too much nerve."
"I don't like it," Dane said that night as we gathered in the small sitting room off the inn's larger taproom. "To disappear so quickly in thick forest is no easy task. I don't think it was a ragtag group of opportunistic bandits."
Kitty gasped. "You think it was someone hired by my husband?"
"Or the Deerhorns. They have as much of a reason to want you dead as he does."
"Perhaps more," Theodore added.
Meg and I had accompanied Kitty into the room when Dane requested a word with her. Balthazar and Theodore had insisted on coming too and Max invited himself.
"I have another reason for thinking it wasn't simply bandits." Dane held up a strip of black cloth. "This was caught on a branch. It's fine quality and clean. Too fine and clean for bandits living in the forest. The assassin is well paid."
Kitty let out another small cry.
"Assassin," Meg repeated dully.
Max shifted his weight to his other foot and I willed him to go to her, comfort her, but he continued to stare at the back of her head from the door where he stood guard.
"You're an easy target out here, Your Grace," Dane said. "Even with all of us guarding you, an arrow can slip through. There are too many opportunities, too many bends and stops along the way."
"What do you propose we do?" Theodore asked.
"Move faster," Balthazar said. "We split into two groups. Everyone on foot continues at the same pace, while the carriage, cart and guards ride on at speed to Tilting."
"And then what?" Max asked, moving into the room. "Hand the duchess and Meg over to the duke's men? We can't do that. I won't do that."
"Agreed," Dane said.
There was only one thing to do. We couldn't outrun the duke and Deerhorns, and Kitty couldn't escape them. Even in a priestess's temple, she would not be safe. Miranda had known what needed to be done and now I agreed with her.
"Kitty," I said, taking the duchess's hand. She was close to tears, her face as pale as it had been after she was poisoned. "Miranda was right. You have to pretend to be dead or your life will always be in danger. You have to leave this life behind, forget you are the duchess, or you'll never be safe. There's no other way."
"But…what will I do? Where will I go?"
"We'll stay with the palace servants," Meg said. "Travel with them." She took the duchess's other hand and crouched beside her. "It'll be an adventure. We can go with Josie and the others to search for the servants' memories."
Kitty sniffed and dabbed at the corners of her eyes with a handkerchief. "I suppose."
Max looked pleased. "It's an excellent idea. Everyone in agreement?"
We all nodded, except Kitty.
"But…my jewels and clothes, and…" She lifted a shoulder. "I'll just be an ordinary person."
"You can never be ordinary," I assured her.
"When your husband dies," Meg said, "you can announce your miraculous survival and resume your old life
, but as his widow. With him gone, there'll be no need for you to remain dead. Even if he marries Lady Morgrave, her marriage would be nullified when you reappear in public, and it'll be too late for her to do anything about it."
"It would be rather satisfying to see her face when I walk into the house." A smile touched Kitty's lips. "And my husband is much older than me. He'll probably die while I am still quite young. In the meantime, I can be…well, I can be just like you, Josie. Free as any woman can be without a family." She blew out a measured breath. "Very well. I'll do it."
Max looked to Dane. "How will we do it? Bandits? Burn the carriage?"
Dane looked out the window to the dense evening sky. "I have a better idea. One where we don't need a body."
We traveled the following morning with only the people we could trust. Those of us who'd been at the meeting were joined by Quentin and Erik. Theodore rode on horseback for the first time on the journey, having taken Brant's horse at Dane's order. Brant had been furious and vocal about it until Dane spoke quietly to him.
He wouldn't tell me what he'd said when I asked. It was then that I'd voiced my concern about leaving Brant behind.
"If he has the gem, we're leaving it behind too."
"I know," he said. "But keeping the duchess safe is our priority, and if we don't act today, we won't get another chance before we reach Tilting, and we can't afford to have him come. He can't know what we're doing or he'll go straight to the duke and Deerhorns."
"He has no reason to."
"He doesn't like me. That's reason enough."
Balthazar rode in the carriage with Meg, Kitty and me, but we did not stay dry, with only a curtain covering the window aperture. Those outside were barely visible through the veil of rain. They must be soaked. The servants we left behind decided to stay in the village another day to wait for the rains to ease, but we'd told them we wanted to push on and get the duchess home. No one had questioned it, not even Brant.
Meg said something but I had to ask her to repeat herself. "I can't hear you over the rain on the roof!"
She leaned forward. "I said that this is the perfect weather. The captain was right."