The Courier's Code (The Bolaji Kingdoms Series Book 1)

by T. S. Valmond

  “I knew what you’d say.”

  “That she should rot in jail like the little fangledort she is?”

  “The plan was to be back in Adalu before it even came up. I’m sorry. I’m already working on a way to get our licenses reinstated.”

  “You don’t get it, do you? Without our licenses, we don’t have access to any of the privileges that come with being couriers. We’re on our own. Not to mention all our courier payments are subject to investigation.” Rasha wanted to punch something but Lu’s face was the only thing close, and that wouldn’t do. He was still her friend, and they’d need each other now more than ever.

  “Get rid of that all-terrain vehicle and use the money to get two beasts and bring the rest back. We need supplies.”

  A startled scream got their attention, and they whirled around and saw the princess staring at Temi. He crouched on her chest, ears back and growling six inches from her nose.

  9

  “Come here Temi, where have you been? I’ve been looking all over for you.” Lu reached over and grabbed his little beast before they hurt each other. Lu stroked the animal, and he stopped his growling and licked Lu’s green finger.

  The princess sat up and looked around the room and its furnishings. Her eyes fell on Lu and he couldn’t help smiling at her. She looked up at him through her lashes. She noticed they weren’t alone in the room when her eyes found Rasha and her mouth fell open.

  “You’re purple.”

  Rasha rolled her eyes. “We’re not finished,” she said to Lu before storming out of the room.

  “I’m sorry, that was indelicate of me. I will choose my words better.” The princess shook her head.

  “No, don’t worry about it. Rash is,” Lu struggled for a word that was honest and yet not too honest, “well, she’s Rash.”

  “Rash,” The princess said.

  “Rasha,” Lu corrected her, pulling the small stool over and sitting down on it so the princess wouldn’t strain her neck looking up at him. She slid down on the pillows. No doubt she was still a bit confused about what happened.

  “I’m Lu, and you are?” He held up his hand in greeting.

  “I’m Chiza,” she said pointing to herself and speaking slowly. Many of the newer kingdoms had not mastered the common language as his people had. They also hadn’t learned the cultural norms—she stared at his raised hand for a moment before remembering she should raise her palm to his.

  “It is a pleasure to meet you, princess.” Lu lowered his head to her and watched Temi stare at him in wonder.

  “What happened? How is it that I’m here in this place with you and not at the palace with prince Bashir?”

  “What’s the last thing you remember?”

  “My mother and father putting me to sleep. They said I’d be carried to the first kingdom and wake there. Are you my abductors?” Chiza, all at once, seemed to understand the dangerousness of the situation.

  "No, we were commissioned to carry you to Adalu, but we were attacked on the road. That’s how your crate was damaged."

  “I understand. Things are not going according to the original plan,” Chiza said and bit her bottom lip, a habit Lu found alluring.

  “I suppose you weren’t planning on being tossed about by bandits. Do you know why these men are after you?”

  “I’m from Sidoa,” she said as if that were enough.

  “I don’t understand. None of the other princesses had such trouble.”

  “Their lands are also not small. We are farmers by trade. When they discovered gems in the caves, it changed everything. Now the surrounding kingdoms all want to take our lands by force. The only way to do that is to make sure I don’t become the next queen.”

  “Your father tried to sneak you out using less than reputable channels thinking it would keep you hidden?” Lu asked.

  “I believe so. He told me he’d paid enough in gems to ensure I’d arrive and be opened by the prince like a gift.

  “I can imagine his expression when he opened the crate.” Lu gave her a halfhearted laugh.

  “We hoped he’d be pleased,” Chiza said, casting her eyes down to her lap.

  “He will be,” Lu said, wanting to talk about anything else. “Now, let me introduce you to Temi. It seems you got off to a rough start.”

  “Temi, this is Chiza, the princess. Princess, this little guy is Temi.”

  “I’ve never seen another like him.” She reached out a hand to touch the top of his head and he bowed to her as Lu had done.

  “Well, aren’t you a smart little beastie?” Lu said, laughing.

  “Where ever did you find him?”

  “In a tin cup.”

  “He wouldn’t fit in a cup,” Chiza laughed as Temi rolled over onto his back and exposed his belly.

  “Not anymore, he’s grown since we found him.” He reached out and rubbed Temi’s stomach until he purred.

  “Your friend, she’s upset with me?”

  “No, it’s not you. She doesn’t much like humanoid cargo since it’s bad for business. You see, we’ve lost our couriers’ licenses because of this misunderstanding.”

  “Oh no, please accept my apology on behalf of my family. We didn’t think things would go this far astray.”

  “So, you knew you were being put in a crate like cargo? I hope I’m interrupting.” Rasha entered the room carrying a bag, and closed the door behind her.

  Lu popped up off his stool. Rasha gave him a glare like he’d just done something stupid. “No, I was just getting the story.” The words tumbled out as if he’d rehearsed them. Why did he feel like he hadn’t any right to be there?

  “She says her father was trying to keep her hidden, out of fear for her life.” Lu forced his voice to sound controlled.

  “He was right, it seems,” Rasha replied, dropping the bag to the floor and sitting on edge of the bed as if the two girls were longtime friends.

  “Not at all,” Chiza said. She was far too innocent. Lu recognized the look on Rasha’s face. She was preparing to eat her alive. Lu tried to diffuse the situation.

  “Chiza was telling me that their kingdom is at risk.”

  “Chiza?” Rasha’s smile was a warning.

  “Princess?” Lu asked. “The seventh, eighth, and ninth kingdoms are all a threat. They’d double their own lands and gain the gems along with it.”

  “Well, this is more than a small problem here. I’m sure my partner failed to mention we lost our licenses due to this little venture.”

  “Yes, he mentioned that.” Chiza said. She seemed almost pleased.

  Rasha turned to Lu, and if her eyes could cut, she’d have sliced his head off.

  “Did he also mention that as couriers we’ve renounced all loyalty to any one kingdom? This isn’t our problem.”

  Lu had already prepared an answer. She wouldn’t like it but he was ready for her.

  “We’re no longer couriers and if we should deliver the princess to prince Bashir, I’m sure he’ll want to make sure we get our licenses reinstated.” He said.

  “We’re not qualified for this,” she snapped.

  “We’re the best team of couriers this kingdom has ever seen. Our perfect record proves it. Who better than us?”

  He was right, Rasha didn’t like his answer, and if her hand twitched toward her belt again, he’d make a run for it to avoid her short swords.

  It was Chiza that saved him.

  “Do you think the prince will be disappointed not to get his present?”

  That turned Rasha’s attention back toward her.

  “Don’t you feel, I don’t know, at all embarrassed to be passed off to the prince like nothing more than common goods?”

  “It’s a privilege and an honor to be chosen by the prince. I’ve been preparing for it my entire life. I can’t imagine a better way to serve the ten kingdoms than to be its queen.” Chiza’s eyes glazed over as if she was seeing her life unfold in front of her.

  “Your privilege and honor remind m
e of a decorated collar on a short leash,” Rasha told her.

  The princess remained silent. Rasha gestured at the bag she’d brought in with her. “Princess, you’ll want to change into something warmer. We’ll be traveling at night and heading north. We’ll keep you as comfortable as we can but it won’t be an easy trip. The crate would have been more comfortable, but that’s no longer an option.”

  Chiza nodded and pulled out a cloak from the bag. It was black with blue lining. She would look amazing in it.

  “Lu?” Rasha asked.

  He tore his eyes away from Chiza and raised his eyebrows at Rasha.

  “Isn’t there a vehicle you need to take care of?”

  “Oh, yes.” He remembered now. “I’ll return as soon as I can.” He bowed to Chiza. "Princess."

  “Don’t hurry back,” Rasha said, giving him her most bored and annoyed stare.

  10

  Rasha snuck them out the back of the inn. They had no money for the room they’d occupied most of the day, another mark on her once spotless record. The southern air created droplets of sweat on her temples. The princess, covered in her new cloak, rode behind Rasha on her new tuskin. She kept a warmer cloak of her own packed away among her things for when they reached the north. She couldn’t trust Lu with her anymore. He kept giving Chiza odd looks while the princess laughed and giggled as if he were the prince she needed to impress.

  “We’re still being followed,” Rasha said after they’d been riding for some time.

  “You think it’s the same guys from the card game the other night?” Lu asked.

  “No, it’s someone else. Just one, a tracker.”

  Chiza yawned wide before asking, “We’re being followed?”

  “Since we left Sidoa,” Lu added. “I’ll go this time and see if I find anyone.

  Chiza sat up straight. “Be careful.”

  “I will.” Lu turned his beast around to hunt for the unwanted follower.

  “What was that?” Rasha asked.

  “I’m sorry?”

  “Nothing.” The last thing she wanted was another debate with the princess. She seemed bent on being one of the prince’s ladies on display.

  Rasha enjoyed the silence as they rode along. She listened for any movement in the trees. She heard Lu as he returned. The princess had fallen asleep against her back, so Rasha used signals to communicate with him instead.

  Lu gave her a shrug of his shoulders. If the guy from Tero-Joro, a people with advanced vision and hearing, couldn’t find the tracker they must be amazing. Rasha admired him a little. Her own skills in tracking had become something of note among her fellow couriers, but this was beyond special. Lu stayed behind them as the road narrowed and they had to travel in a single file.

  They rode through the night. As dawn approached, she felt Chiza wake up with a start behind her. Rasha and Lu continued on in silence for a moment before Lu gave his morning greeting.

  “May the sun greet you with kindness, brother. I’m happy to see you are safe,” Chiza said to him.

  Rasha tried not to laugh at Lu’s reaction. Being a non-religious person, he didn’t seem to know what to say.

  “Are you a worshipper of the sun god, like the Karmirians?” Rasha asked.

  “No, not at all. We worship the Universal as your people do. Are you much for worship, Rash?” Chiza asked, forgetting she shouldn’t use the familiar name as Lu did.

  Lu smiled this time.

  “Yes, when I can, I visit the temple of my people.”

  Chiza yawned.

  “I’m sorry,” she said.

  “You’ve been riding all night, your highness. You’re entitled to be tired. I apologize, however, since we’ve still got a long way before we stop again.”

  11

  When Rasha rode off to check behind them for the tracker a weight lifted off of him. She had a way of making him shy around Chiza. He figured the princess felt the same since her grip tightened around him as soon as Rasha disappeared into the woods. He slowed his tuskin to make the ride a little smoother. She didn’t complain about it but he knew how she must be suffering. His own body, accustomed to the riding, didn’t notice it yet, but by evening he’d have his own pains to suppress.

  A sound in the trees to their right caught his attention. He turned and scanned the area until he saw what had made it. A beady-eyed creature with a tail it used for throwing itself from branch to branch among the trees.

  Chiza was busy humming under her breath. It was a pleasant tune, and he asked her about it.

  “Something I picked up as a girl. I had a mermaid for a friend once. She sang all the time.”

  “I sort of imagined you growing up in a castle or something. I didn’t think princesses could have friends,” Lu said with a laugh.

  Chiza didn’t giggle as she did when she found something funny.

  “I’m sorry, did I say something wrong?”

  “No, it’s only that you’re right. Growing up, I had few friends. Most don’t understand the training involved in this life. The mental preparation, knowing you will give your entire purpose over to one person who may or may not even choose you.”

  “Well, like it or not, you made another friend. This Tero-Joro can keep in contact with all of his friends, near and far.”

  Chiza put her head against his back.

  “Thank you, you’re too kind.”

  “No, you’re the kind one. I’m a courier and you will one day be my queen. I’m sure that once the prince sees your beauty, generosity, and gentle spirit he’ll be just as enamored with you as—” Lu stopped himself before he finished that dangerous thought. Instead he cleared his throat, and said, “As any man would be after meeting you.”

  When he heard Rasha’s whistle he returned it with one of his own. She used the signal to check on them and their distance. His confirmation would let her know they were both all right and she could continue her hunt for their tracker.

  Chiza didn’t seem to notice that he whistled back to Rasha. Instead she hummed again to herself and he listened before trying to repeat the song, making Chiza laugh aloud.

  “Wasn’t that right?”

  “Only if you’re trying to imitate the mating call of a dying piko.” She laughed again.

  “Okay, well, are there any words?”

  Chiza hummed for a moment then shook her head. “I can’t seem to remember them well enough.”

  Lu tried again to copy the tune, which sent Chiza into giggling hysterics.

  “Well, I’m glad that the tracker now no longer needs to follow the tracks of our beasts I did so much work to cover. Now he can just follow your laughter straight to our graves,” Rasha snapped.

  “I’m sorry, Rash, his tones are so wayward that I don’t know how his people ever learned to communicate with the mermen.”

  “Well, hold your tongue, we’re not out of danger yet.”

  Chiza leaned close to his back and said, “Isn’t she a horrible taskmaster?” which made Lu’s shoulders shake with laughter though he kept his mouth closed. She was full of surprises. He’d never known a princess to be so open and honest. Although, if he were being honest, he wasn’t on a first name basis with any royalty.

  “Are all the Chilalians like her?”

  “No, they’re a kind and quiet people. Of all the kingdoms, the Chilalians travel least. They don’t like living in the other kingdoms and prefer to be called on when needed instead. They are similar to the mermen, in that way.”

  “So, a peaceful people.”

  “In general,” Lu said and glanced in Rasha’s direction. She wore a fierce expression. No doubt the hunger and fatigue were getting to her. He wondered what it would take to get them through another night. They wouldn’t be able to stay at another inn. They’d be sleeping in the elements and there would be little food if they didn’t catch something soon. He’d have to get a fire going, cook them something. He hoped Chiza’s delicate palate tolerated the food he prepared.

  “I need to ge
t something for us to eat tonight.”

  Rasha slowed her animal, and he slowed to match until they came to a halt. Rasha waited for the princess to join her. Chiza still clung to his waist, not understanding what was happening. Lu climbed down and held out a hand to her.

  “I’ll be back soon with something to eat,” he said to her.

  “Oh, I see,” Chiza slid down off of the back of his tuskin. He used one arm to ease her down to the ground. She looked up at him and flashed him a smile such as he’d never seen. Her joy lit him up from within. With her smile on his mind and the setting sun in front of them, he rode off to go hunting.

  “Your highness,” Rasha said, holding out her arm. Chiza used it to climb up behind her.

  12

  Rasha enjoyed the quiet, watching the setting sun to the north. It didn’t last long.

  “I know who you are, Lady Indari,” Chiza said, shattering Rasha’s internal and external peace.

  Her back straightened and she didn’t speak for several moments.

  “Don’t call me that, ever. Where did you hear that name?”

  “I was educated about all of my competition from an early age,” Chiza said, as if she were speaking of mathematics or some other school subject.

  “I’m not your competition.”

  Chiza didn’t speak for a moment, then said, “I suspect Lu isn’t aware of it. If he was, I think he would treat you with the respect he gives me.”

  “That’s not respect he’s giving you.”

  Chiza didn’t respond to that as Rasha hoped she would. She’d rather talk about anything than her own past.

  “Why won’t you do your duty? Doesn’t it shame your people to leave them with no eligible princess for the prince to choose from?” Chiza asked.

  “Doesn’t it bother you to be handed over to man you’ve never met to serve as the commodity of your nation’s greed for power?”

  “I choose to serve my people, I’m not forced or coerced.”