Heir of Pendel (A Pandoran Novel, #4)

by Barbara Kloss

  "I don't like this," Thaddeus said.

  "A little late for that," I replied, grabbing hold of the person's wrist and wincing as that person pulled me through. I climbed out onto a wooden floor and stood, dusting my hands as the Nordic man bent over to help the other two.

  I stood inside a small kitchen. A table and shorthair fur rug had been moved aside in order to access the hatch. The walls were covered with shelving, which sat mostly empty save a basket of fruits, a few loaves of bread, and a couple bundles of herbs. A small fire burned in the hearth, heating a kettle and a steaming pot—the culprits producing the strong scents of cloves and broth. I didn't notice any windows. We must still be underground.

  Once Vera and Thaddeus were through, Theon closed the hatch. The grooves of the hatch matched the grooves in the floor perfectly, so even without the rug and table, it was difficult to spot.

  "A couple of guards just left," the Nord said to Theon, "and I doubt any more will be back till breakfast. My men are upstairs looking out, but we best keep the table here just in case you four need to make a hasty retreat."

  Theon nodded, then turned to face us. "Andrus, meet Aegises Alexander Del Conte, Thaddeus Mendax, and Vera Neci."

  Andrus nodded, appraising me just like the others. Theon smacked a hand on Andrus's shoulder. "Andrus runs the only kitchen in town. We usually have a good number of eateries here in Ravenshelm, but Three Ravens is the only one in business right now."

  "We can stay below if it's safer," I said.

  "No." Theon shook his head. "We've got about an hour before the morning stragglers start arriving. I imagine you three need to eat, anyway. Especially you. Besides, Andrus wanted to see the infamous Aegis Alexander Del Conte." He winked at me. "Have a seat?" Theon gestured to the table. "Andrus, pour some drinks and…is there enough stew?"

  "Aye, I'll serve some up."

  "No, no…I'll do it." Theon headed for the fire. "You get the drinks?"

  Andrus started for a hutch. He walked with a teetering gait, as if it took great strength to move each leg.

  "Got a good year of fire and ice I been saving. Hope that's all right with you folks."

  "Perfect, thanks," I said as Thaddeus and I sat on the bench at the table. Vera remained standing, leaning against the wall beside us with her arms folded over her chest, her gaze sharp and restless.

  Theon ladled broth into bowls, then paused to glance up at me. "Is it true?" Theon asked. "About King Darius? That he's…that Eris has proclaimed himself king?"

  I threaded my fingers together and placed them on the table. "Yes."

  Theon's shoulders rose and fell with a deep breath, and Andrus's hand froze on the hutch.

  "I was hoping Denn and his men were lying to us," Theon said.

  "I wasn't there," I continued quietly. "I learned of it from Lord Dommelier just yesterday. Eris had many men on the inside. He murdered King Darius during a council meeting. Lord Dommelier said there…weren't any survivors."

  A log cracked in the fire, and embers sparked onto the brick flooring at the base of the hearth.

  "Your father?" Theon asked, his eyes filled with despair. He knew my father, his uncle, sat on King Darius's council.

  I pinched my lips together, giving the subtlest shake of my head. Theon's gaze fell to bowl in his hands. "What about your mother?" The words dropped in a whisper.

  "I don't know," I said. "She was still in Karth, last I saw her. She'd intended to return to mainland with one of the guild members, but I don't believe she would've made it there in time." I hoped she hadn't made it there in time.

  "You were in Karth?" Theon looked at me in question as he brought over the bowls of broth.

  We all ate while I told Theon everything, leaving out the part about Thaddeus's heritage and betrayal. No need to complicate things. Thaddeus gave his silent thanks by knocking my knee beneath the table. After I finished telling Theon about Daria and the dragons, Theon placed his hand over mine, his gaze all suspicion.

  "I always wondered why you never took a woman. You could've had any woman in Alioth—probably all of Gaia, too—but you never even cast a sideways glance. I never knew why, but it's because of the princess, isn't it?"

  I held his gaze. "Always."

  He patted my hand and grinned, then leaned back in his chair.

  I continued with my story, and when I told Theon that Daria had left for Orindor to marry Danton to help bolster Valdon's defenses, he pounded his fist on the table and said, "That lying sack of kutt."

  I was surprised at Theon's outburst, though that one statement completely cleared his reputation in Vera's eyes, and she regarded him with new interest. She sat down beside Thaddeus at the table and made herself comfortable—eager, even—and she took a huge swig of her drink.

  "I had no idea you felt so strongly about Danton Pontefract," I said.

  He took a swig of his ale and slammed it down. There was murder in his eyes. "Danton got Meira pregnant."

  Time froze as his words echoed inside my head. Danton…had gotten Meira—Theon's sister and my cousin—pregnant? I didn't know her well, but she'd always been a very sweet and beautiful young girl. But…spirits of the realm!

  I opened my mouth to speak, but I wasn't sure what to say—to think, even. With Danton's reputation…yes, it was definitely plausible. Gaia knew he was fortunate something like this hadn't happened sooner, but for it to happen with Meira…

  I raked a hand through my hair, feeling overwhelmed with shock. And anger. Loads and loads of anger. My voice trembled with it as I said, "Theon, I…I’m sorry, I had no idea."

  Theon shook his head. "He and his father passed through a few years ago on business. Danton spared no expense charming Meira, making all sorts of promises he had no intention of keeping. I warned her, but she wouldn't listen. I warned him too, but he laughed me off. Of course, he left and she discovered she was pregnant a few months later.

  "She wrote Danton, but he returned every letter unopened. Meira had the baby. A little girl with his eyes. My father tried contacting Lord Pontefract, only to receive a short and nasty letter saying he'd take no responsibility for Meira's whoring." Theon's fist clenched and unclenched on the table. "And since Lord Pontefract has a much bigger pocketbook, we were left without recourse and my family was threatened into keeping the embarrassment silent."

  Thaddeus let out a long whistle beside me. "Whoa, Point of Fact's been busier than I thought."

  I snapped my gaze to Thaddeus right as Vera whacked him on the head. He leaned back, away from both of us, palms raised in surrender. "It was just a joke! Hellfire!"

  I looked away from him. I felt…too tight. Explosive. I fisted my hands and glared at my mug, trying to calm myself. That privileged little piece of kutt. I should've knocked him off Hell's Peak when I had the chance. To do that to Meira and leave her like that with his child…

  And that same little piece of kutt was going to marry Daria. My Daria. My blood boiled. I'd never liked Danton before, but now I hated him.

  "I'm sorry, Alexander," Theon continued. "Maybe I shouldn't have said anything, seeing as how you"—he waved a hand at me—"feel about the princess and all. I understand why the princess went, but…you know as well as I do that the Pontefracts won't do a bloody thing."

  I ground my teeth together. "I know."

  Theon searched my face. "Then what are you doing here?"

  I heard the implied question: Why hadn't I gone after Daria?

  "Even if I did manage to get her away from the Pontefracts, then what?" I asked. "There's nowhere in this world that's safe for her…not unless I take this world back."

  Theon's forehead wrinkled as he studied me, waiting for me to explain myself.

  I took a swig of the fire and ice, letting it burn down my chest, trying to suppress my anger while I finished my story. I told him the truth about my mother's family. Theon didn't look surprised. He didn't react, period—he just stared, his square hand wrapped around his mug as if holding on to it for
support.

  It was at this point Thaddeus took a moment to look up from his broth and say, "King Can't. It's got a nice ring to it, don't you think?" Vera jabbed him in the ribs with her elbow, and he choked on his next bite. "What? It does!"

  Theon looked pityingly at me.

  I told Theon about our journey to mend the sword and how we had come to Alioth. Once I finished, Theon sighed so heavily his shoulders drooped.

  "Alexander…my family…" He swallowed and shut his eyes. "They're dead."

  The words filled the room like a dark cloud, heavy and cold with a chill that seemed to touch my bones. Theon tipped back his mug and drained it in one gulp, then wiped the residue from his mouth.

  "When Tiernan came through with his bloody shadowguard," Theon continued, his voice raw, "we…we didn't stand a chance. I was…I led the first group of men to meet them. They were all butchered. Tiernan spared me and made me watch them burn the bodies later. But my family…they're hanging from crosses in the main square, and Meira's baby girl…" His voice drifted and his eyes squeezed. "I should've…" He clenched and unclenched his jaw, and a tear leaked out of the corner of his eye.

  I thought of Meira—Meira before she'd ever met Danton. I thought of my little cousin who used to run through their fields with that beacon of curly blonde hair. I thought of her bright smile and bubbling laughter, so young and brimming with excitement about life and a future—a future she would never have. I reached out and placed my hand over Theon's and squeezed it. He squeezed it back.

  Theon took a slow breath. "He threw me in the dungeons afterward, as well as every other surviving rabble rouser."

  "Why'd he spare you?" I asked.

  "Tiernan's orders, I believe. They're keeping prisoners to hold sway over the people above. Seems Eris is greedy for followers. As for me…he wanted one member of my family kept alive for questioning."

  I released Theon's hand. "But he didn't realize you knew how to slip through the enchantments."

  He nodded, but it was slight, as if his head were too heavy to lift. "I escaped through the tunnels, and I've been hiding out there ever since, freeing prisoners when I can. Those men down there…" He nodded toward the hatch. "They've all lost their families because they fought back."

  Theon could've escaped Ravenshelm through those tunnels, but he wouldn't leave his people behind. None of his men would, either.

  "Who else is left in Ravenshelm?" I asked.

  "Mostly women and children, but they're prisoners in their homes, awaiting Eris's judgment on their fate I've heard they've spared some of the older folks, but I don't venture out very much, for obvious reasons. They spared Andrus, here, because he feeds them."

  "Bloody well eating me out of the cellars, too." Andrus grunted, frowning at his emptied shelves.

  I raised a brow. "They trust you to feed them?"

  "They don't have much of a choice," he said. "The ground's froze solid, and there isn't much to choose from beyond our walls with this winter. They usually send a few guards to the kitchens to watch come mealtime, though. Just to make sure I don't put something in their food."

  "Have you heard anything about Lord Tosca?" I asked. "Is he alive?"

  "My men on the inside said Astor's been taken. Last I heard, Tosca was alive but imprisoned. I don't know any more than that."

  I thought this over. "How many men are in your dungeons?"

  Theon was already shaking his head. "I know what you're thinking, and it's impossible. I've gone over it so many times, and there are just too many guards."

  I highly doubted Theon knew exactly what I was thinking. "How many men?" I repeated, more firmly this time.

  Theon stared at me. "About two dozen, including all of us, but even with you in our midst, you know we'd be no match for that many. That's why I'm trying to figure out a way to sneak them out."

  "We have to fight back, Theon," I said.

  His shoulders tensed, his eyes angry. "You think I don't want to? You don't think I've spent every single moment since their deaths trying to find a way to kill those bastards for what they've done? And even if the spirits smiled upon us and we overtook them, what then? Someone would get away and report us, and Eris would just send someone back with more men."

  "And we'll be ready when they do," I said. Theon looked as if he was about to argue, but I cut him off. "Wars are never won with one battle, Theon—you know that. They're won with countless, little ones. We take Ravenshelm. And then we take Astor. We keep chipping away at Eris's armor, battle by battle, until we've cut through to his heart."

  A log popped on the fire.

  "Well, that was a pretty speech, Del Can't." Thaddeus looked so proud I feared he might pat me on the back.

  Theon sighed and leaned on his forearms. "Yes, but there's not much to be done when we're this outnumbered."

  I drummed my fingers on the table. "Then we flip the odds."

  "And how do you propose we do that…?"

  I smiled. "With Thaddeus."

  29

  ALEXANDER

  "Nononononono." Thaddeus folded his arms over his chest and scooted farther away from me and closer to Vera, to Vera's dismay, as if he feared a sudden attack. "You're a bloody idiot if you think I'm gonna hand over my liquid fame and fortune so you can sedate a bunch of creepy masochists with tattoos."

  "Thaddeus, you'll be famous with or without a fortune," I said. It wasn't a compliment.

  He stuck his nose in the air. "No, and that's final. Find another way."

  A flash of movement, a scuffle and a grunt, and Vera presented the ampoule before me. "Here you go," Vera said.

  "Hey!" Thaddeus yelled, reaching for the ampoule. Vera held him off with a glare and a knife. The glare was sharper. "You always take his side," Thaddeus grumbled, shoving a piece of hay in his mouth. Where had he found a blasted piece of hay?

  "Wrong," Vera snapped, plucking the hay from his mouth.

  He looked more offended by this than anything. "What the—"

  "I take my side." She chucked the hay to the floor, and pointed a finger so close to his face he went cross-eyed. "And right now that ampoule of barghest poison is on my side. Something you rarely ever are."

  His eyes were huge as he stared back at her, some silent exchange passing between them, and then he shut his mouth.

  "We won't need all of it, Thaddeus," I said. "You're the poisons expert, aren't you? Will two drops be enough to knock them unconscious?"

  Thaddeus took his time answering, trying to draw out the suspense as punishment for Vera's thievery. "How many guards are there, Theology?"

  Theon looked as if he was about to roll his eyes. I was impressed when he didn't. "I don't have an exact headcount. Most of them went on to Astor after they ransacked the town, so…forty, maybe?"

  "Let's see…dilute enough to knock roughly forty men unconscious in a span of two hours…" Thaddeus pontificated. "Sixty-five microliters, tops. But I get to keep the rest."

  "Deal." I turned my attention back to Andrus and Theon. "Will one day be enough time to warn the people?"

  They exchanged a glance, then Theon said, "I think so. We'll have to be very careful, but I think we could manage to get word out within the day."

  "But there's the issue of slipping it into the food to begin with," Andrus said. "I told you: There's guards who watch me."

  "Barghest poison is one of the deadliest poisons for a reason," I said. "You'll just need to wipe whatever Thaddeus gives you on the inside of the kettle, and then pour whatever else you're making on top of it. The poison is colorless, tasteless, odorless—they won't be able to tell."

  "And if they have me do a taste test?" he asked.

  I drummed my fingers on the table again. "Well, Andrus, I hate to ask it of you, but would you be willing to be unconscious for a few hours? We'll make sure you're somewhere safe until everything blows over." I looked pointedly at Thaddeus. "It will just render him unconscious at this dilution, right?"

  "Don't insult me.
" Thaddeus folded his arms with a grunt, feigning offense.

  "I'll do it," Andrus said, accepting the challenge. "But you should know there are still a few guards who keep watch at the gate during dinner every night. They won't be affected."

  "We just need to make sure most of them eat it," I said. "We can handle rest."

  The storm didn't relent. It thundered all through the morning, rumbling like detonated explosives in the caverns where we slept, drowning the world above in a mess of rain and sleet. Water leaked through the walls and dripped from the ceiling, forming puddles on the cavern floor. It was impossible finding a dry place to lie, and the chill went too deep for our small fire to chase away. We huddled just out of sight of the stair, buried in wools and cloaks Andrus had had the foresight to store down here. All of us were quiet, trying to catch a few hours of sleep. I sat propped against the cavern wall, fading in and out of consciousness. My mind wandered restlessly, combing over all Theon had said. My cousin Meira had had Danton's child. I couldn't believe it. Actually, I could believe it of Danton, but not of Meira. I shifted on the rocky floor and gripped my blanket tighter. Had I known this, I would've told Alaric. Had I known this, I never would've let Daria go to Danton.

  Had my father known? He and Eldar were close, but had Eldar kept this hidden from my father per the Pontefracts' demands? I sighed and swallowed hard. I'd never be able to ask my father, or Eldar. There were many things I'd never be able to say to my father ever again. My eyes burned.

  Did Daria know what had happened to Stefan and her grandfather? The news would crush her. I wished I could be there for her. I wished we could be there for each other. I needed her more than she knew.

  I should've been there when she left for Orindor. At the time, I hadn't been able to bring myself to watch her walk out of my life forever. It didn't matter that I'd always known the day would come. Did that make me a coward? Maybe. Should I have stopped her then? Probably. If I had to do it over again, I would stop her in a heartbeat.