Of Princes and Dragons: Book 2 (Lords and Commoners)

by Lynne Hill-Clark

  Over Elijah’s shoulder she found Teller staring at them. He too looked grave and battle worn. They all were. He nodded and turned away. She supposed he was making sure she was in good hands. The tears returned; the torment was unbearable. While she was relieved that her friends had survived, this made her feel overwhelming guilt for all those who had died, including her father — her lord.

  Val had thought Lord Chastellain was the safest of any of them; since he was in the back. Surely nothing could ever have been powerful enough to kill him. He had seemed like the strongest entity on earth. She'd been sure he would live forever. She wished she had given him a hug as she had done for the others she cared about. If only she had said goodbye. There were many things that needed to be said. Now it was too late.

  “You need medical attention,” Elijah said.

  Val ran her finger along the cut across his neck. Thankfully it was not deep. “First, I must check on Elizabeth.” Val limped over to where she had left Mary and Elizabeth.

  Elizabeth was fast asleep.

  “The doctor was able to get her to take enough pain-relieving herbs to knock her out — or perhaps she passed out because of the pain.” Mary rose from Elizabeth’s side. “We set the bone and the doctor is stitching her up. She thinks the leg will heal.”

  Val wrapped her arms around Mary and shared in her relief.

  Elijah took Val’s hand. “Let me bandage your wounds. You need to rest.”

  That sounded like the best idea in the world. Val’s entire body ached. Val could slip into oblivion and not think or feel. That was exactly what she did. They claimed the first tent to be erected. Val was asleep before Elijah was done tending to her injuries.

  Chapter 81 The Alps 1551 A.D

  Vallachia was awakened by an intense itch running down her back. Her attention turned to the throbbing sensation in the back of her leg. Many other less-annoying sensations plagued her body. She moaned and tried to scratch her back but could not reach it. Elijah must have already woken because he appeared next to her cot.

  “What is the matter?”

  “It is my back — it itches terribly!”

  Elijah rubbed it gently. This made it worse. She moaned again, “No, scratch it.”

  This he did with reluctance, as he did not want to hurt her.

  “I wonder ... ” he said. “Does it feel like it is healing?”

  Val rolled over to face him. “Aye, that is precisely what it feels like.” She thought back to past wounds and how they had itched as the flesh rapidly healed.

  Elijah helped her to her feet. “See what happens when you try to fly.”

  “I don’t know if that is a good idea,” Val said.

  He reassured her with a smile, so she tried.

  Two wings spread out behind her as she transformed. The new wing was different — it was softer and weaker. The old wing was a deep black that glistened with an iridescent purple when the light touched it. The new wing was not as dark or as shiny.

  Val looked at Elijah in wide-eyed amazement. His eyes danced. She wrapped the new wing around her so she could inspect it.

  Elijah ran a finger along the wing. “It is wonderful.”

  It was delicate — like caressing a lamb’s ear. Val did not think it was ready for flight but she had a feeling it would be soon.

  He picked her up, as she transformed back to normal.

  She pressed her lips to his. “We will fly together again!”

  “Forever!” His arms held her tight. “I wonder if we lost a leg or an arm, would they grow back?”

  Val pondered this. “I’m not sure. Wings are magical, the way they appear and disappear. Either way, I’m not about to cut my arm off to find out.”

  “Perhaps a finger then?” Elijah said.

  Val chuckled. “Not today.”

  “Come, we have to tell the others. They are very worried about you.”

  As they emerged from the tent, Val assessed the scene with fresh eyes. A plume of thick black smoke rose into the air where Ramdasha and his men were burning in the center of the blood-soaked battlefield. The smell was nauseating. Others dug graves for their fallen comrades. The atmosphere was solemn.

  The leader inside Val took over. These people — her people — needed their queen. She swiftly leapt onto a supply cart. “My dear people,” she yelled to get everyone’s attention. “You all sacrificed so much on this day.” Soon all eyes were on her. “We have all suffered great loses. Everyone fought bravely. For that, you are owed more than can ever be repaid. Those who died today did not die in vain. We will be able to move forward in peace. This was the war to end all wars. Humans and vampires alike are safe. We will heal and thrive once again.” With that she spread her wings to their full extent.

  This prompted loud cheers and applause. Val studied the crowd. Her gaze met Mari’s whose eyes were full of tears.

  The chanting began, “Long live our queen!”

  Val raised her arms to silence the crowd. “We owe much to our brave king. He ended the horror of this day with the skilled swing of his sword.” With this she held her hand out to Elijah. He gracefully leapt to her side and raised both their hands in victory.

  This provoked more cheers and applause. The crowd chanted, “Long live our king!”

  Elijah and Val smiled at each other, yet the truth could be seen in his eyes. The storm raged — on the inside he was falling apart. She knew exactly what he was thinking. His father was supposed to be the king — not him. It was his father’s title and the fact that Elijah was king meant only one thing — his father was dead. The reality of it all was fully setting in.

  Nevertheless, he swung Vallachia up into his arms and kissed her. The crowd loved this the most — the cheers were deafening. It was as if they needed to see affection after so much death. It was a form of healing. There was also comfort in seeing that their leaders were united and well. If leaders were secure then the people felt secure, even in such an uneasy time.

  Elijah knew he had to put on a good face, for the people, no matter how he felt. He was truly selfless. Val was more in love with him than ever.

  Chapter 82 The Alps 1551 A.D

  Now that they had cleaned up, rested and healed — physically anyway, the Court began to investigate what happened during the battle. Samuel, who looked much better, had investigated the explosion that had taken out the rear of their main army, which included Lord Chastellain. John was completely distraught over his master’s death. He too had been thrown back by the blast and badly burned. This was the last thing he remembered before his world went black. He reported to Elijah and Val that before the explostion he had noticed some of Ramdasha’s men sneaking along behind their army. They must have been running oil-soaked rope and setting up the barrels of explosives behind the army.

  “I had no idea what they were doing. Our attention was on you, My Lord,” John explained. “I was about to point out the men behind us when we were blown away. The lord must have been rendered unconscious allowing someone to behead him. It was most likely one of the men who had set the charge.” John lowered his head. “I am terribly sorry, My Lord, I was too late.”

  Elijah narrowed his eyes in suspicion.

  What is that about? Val wondered.

  “How is it that you still have your head?” Elijah inquired.

  “Truly, I do not know, My Lord. They must have only gone after your father. Or perhaps they did not have time to behead others who had been knocked out by the blast, as our remaining army attacked.”

  Riddick appeared. He looked beyond tired. “My Lord, we have disposed of all Ramdasha’s men. We accounted for the top in command, including Lord Mendoza and Lord Belleaire. Only the lady who appeared at Ramdasha’s side before the battle is missing. She was nowhere to be found. She must have fled during the fight.”

  Elijah and Val exchanged a worried look.

  “We did find the body of his commander in chief,” Riddick finished.

  “Who do you think she is?”
Val asked.

  “I know her.” Teller’s voice came from behind them as he approached. “Her name is Neacsa. She was once a princess of Wallachia and ... my wife. I suppose she is still my wife, since we are both alive and we were never officially divorced.”

  “Your wife!” Val spat. The worst of feelings consumed her. One she had not felt for many lifetimes. In fact, she had not felt this way since she was a young girl who had recently fallen in love for the first time. Unlike when she was a naive young girl, this time she easily recognized the ugly feeling — it was jealousy — an emotion which apparently only Teller could cause her to feel. “You said you killed your wife.”

  “No. You inferred that and I did not bother to correct you. What I said was, ‘she became indisposed’, meaning I turned her.”

  “You made her one of us!” Val yelled, as the jealousy raged. It was all too much, the battle, her father-in-law’s death, now this. Any ability to control her emotions was gone.

  Teller smiled with amusement, fully enjoy her reaction. “Yes, well, I would have killed her. Perhaps I should have.”

  “Why didn’t you?” Val demanded. “Now she is our enemy and she is out there ... somewhere!”

  “Val, calm yourself,” Elijah said. In order to change the subject Elijah put his hand on Riddick’s shoulder. “Thank you for the update. Now get some rest. You have more than earned it, my dear friend.”

  Riddick’s body relaxed under Elijah’s touch and he finally realized how weary he was. He nodded and headed straight for the tents without the slightest protest.

  Elijah led Teller away from Val with his arm over his shoulder and continued to ask him about Neacsa. This was good because Val might have tried to strangle Teller. She stormed off in the opposite direction. Before she was out of earshot, she overheard Teller explaining that he had not seen Neacsa since he took control of Wallachia in 1456.

  “There is something else you should know about her,” Teller said. “She very well may be a witch — if you believe in that sort of thing. At the very least she had an uncanny means of seeing the future. I have no idea what that means now that she is a vampire. Val is right; I should have killed her when I had the chance.”

  The lord’s body was returned to Denmark. He would be buried in the great catacombs under the Chastellains’ castle. The fallen soldiers were buried near the battlefield. Family and friends said passing words for them. Finally, they were ready to head home. Val could not wait to leave this cursed place. Her new wing had fully grown in. She had never been more grateful for the ability to take flight.

  Upon their return there was little time to rest, as there were several days of ceremonies to get through. First was Lord Chastellain’s funeral. As with royal weddings, the day after a royal funeral was Coronation Day. This time it was Elijah’s. Then there was to be a victory celebration on the third day. This was good because it gave Elijah and Vallachia little time to sit about and think, yet they did not feel like celebrating. They had lost eighty-seven of their fighters, including their father and they had slaughtered over two hundred of their enemy’s men. The vampire population had been greatly reduced. This would once again put the world back in balance. The human population could flourish. Val had to remind herself of the real reason they had fought so hard and sacrificed so much.

  “I would be honored if you, my dear wife, would speak at my father’s service,” Elijah said.

  “Are you sure? My relationship with your father was ... complicated, to say the least,” Val said.

  “Yes. You are precisely the right person. I don’t want his flaws to be overlooked. I want someone who really knew him to speak the truth about him, good and bad. Anyone else would talk about him as if he was a saint and he was not.”

  Val nodded but she was not certain it was a good idea. How would our people receive a less than perfect remembrance of their former leader?

  When the time came, this was what Vallachia said ...

  Most of you know that Lord Chastellain and I had our differences over the years. He was a man that I hated and loved in equal measure. The lord was not always easy to get along with. He could be both fierce and gentle. However, this duality was what made him a great leader. He could show compassion when needed and he would not hesitate to cut his enemy down. He was always willing to do whatever was necessary to lead and defend his people. He remained focused and dedicated to our worthy cause until the end. He sacrificed his life for us and for humans. I know that he would not have had it any other way. Dying in battle was the most honorable death for him. He gladly sacrificed his life to keep vampires and humans alike living in harmony, so that both races can thrive. We will do our best to follow in his footsteps and continue his legacy...

  Vallachia made the mistake of glancing at Elijah. Tears filled his eyes and the knot in her throat became too tight for her to speak. Lord Alexandru stepped up and Val was grateful to be able to take her seat between Elijah and Mari. Mari placed her arm around Val. Alexandru went on to deliver a wonderful speech.

  Chapter 83 Copenhagen 1551 A.D

  Elijah’s Coronation Day was more festive. Val was the one who crowned him king, which was a great privilege; yet looking out over the crowd of vampires she still wondered how on earth she had gotten there. This life was entirely surreal.

  Somehow, they made it through all this to the victory celebration. The queen and the newly crowned king led the way onto the dance floor.

  “What do you make of Ramdasha’s wife’s disappearance?” Val asked Elijah as they glided around. They had not had much time to talk or even think about such things over the last couple of days.

  “It is concerning indeed. The thought of a vengeful wife out there somewhere planning to rebuild an army is quite worrisome. The Court will need to make finding her a priority.”

  Val nodded in agreement. She knew he was right — as always. She had hoped this would be over forever. But now there was another threat. Peace does not last forever. “One comforting thought is that it will take a long time for an army to rebuild. For now we will have peace,” Val said.

  Elijah smiled. “Yes, for now we will enjoy a long period of peace, however long it may last.” Elijah frowned. “It appears that Ramdasha knew Father was in the rear of our army. Father was specifically targeted. Ramdasha most likely thought that if Father was killed then our forces would fall apart. This has been the downfall of many great armies. If their leader is defeated, the soldiers lose their fortitude and can then be conquered, as Ramdasha’s were.”

  “Thankfully, that is not the case with our warriors. They follow you as much as they followed Father. It was a wise move to separate our top in command,” Val said.

  “I suppose. However, I may have been able to save Father if I had been near.”

  “Then you too would be dead and all would have been lost.”

  Elijah nodded. “Yet, how did Ramdasha know to set his trap in the rear of our army, where Father would be?”

  “Maybe he did not know the lord would be there. Perhaps it was simply the most convenient place to set the explosives without being seen.”

  “Perhaps.” Elijah did not look convinced. “Or there is a spy amongst us.”

  “Only those closest to us knew our specific plans before battle. The infantrymen were only told what to do and where to go before we took flight for the battlefield. One of them could not have possibly warned Ramdasha of our plans in time. Ramdasha had planned to attack the rear of our forces well in advance of the battle. Who would do that to us? I fully trust those closest to us,” Val said.

  Elijah nodded and looked thoughtful. “Who indeed?”

  Her thoughts regarding who would possibly betray them were interrupted when she spotted Teller. He asked Elijah for permission to dance. Elijah willingly gave him Val’s hand. Elijah was secure in their relationship, as he should be. She would not do anything to harm him.

  Yet when the now familiar sensation went through her body as Teller took her hand and put hi
s arm around her waist, she could feel herself falter. She could not stop the irritated moan that came out, “Ah, what is that? It is so ... frustrating.”

  Teller laughed. “It is not frustrating, it is wonderful. Simply enjoy it.”

  “You know I can’t allow myself to do that,” Val spoke through gritted teeth. The feeling was sensational.

  “Someday you will.” He smiled his confident and — yes — arrogant smile.

  She could see why Riddick would dislike him. He was infuriating.

  “Imagine what it would be like to make love,” Teller whispered in her ear.

  “Honestly! You are relentless.” She tried to push him away but he tightened his arm around her waist so she could not put any distance between them.

  “You have no idea.”

  She scowled at him.

  “I’m only joking.”

  “You are not.” However, it was too late as the thought was in her head. He was incredibly stubborn and so was she. This was going to be a test to see which one was more stubborn. She shook her head at him and tried to change the subject. “What was that during the battle, when you fell to your knees?”

  “I don’t know.” His brow furrowed. “I was running toward you when the man cut your wing off and I fell to my knees as a searing pain ran down my back. I thought that a sword had slashed me as well but it had not. The pain subsided rather quickly.”

  This confirmed Val’s suspicions, he had felt her pain as she had once felt his, so many years ago. “That happened to me before as well.”

  “What happened?”