The King's Knight (Royal Blood Book 5)

by Kristen Gupton

  * * *

  If Jerris’ mood had been sour before, now he was completely crushed. He sat up in the bed in the room he’d rented. If there was a single part of him that hadn’t been left bruised or scraped after the landslide, he didn’t know where it was. His arm was bandaged against his chest. The setting, splinting, and wrapping of it had been excruciating. Mercifully, he’d managed to go unconscious for much of it.

  Now, over a week later, there was a constant throbbing in his upper arm as his snapped humerus slowly began to mend. How Thana had adjusted to being with only one working hand perplexed him. Against his will, he’d been forced to rely on Etras to help him do many of the most basic tasks.

  Etras, used to helping his wife in her work, thought nothing of it, though the Tordanian was proving to be a more disagreeable patient than most.

  For now, however, both Betram and Etras were sleeping. The horizon beyond their room’s single window was just beginning to brighten. Jerris stared at it, wishing they’d been able to simply make it back to Tordan Lea. Now, though, he didn’t know how long they’d be stuck in Edinau. The thought of being on a horse he didn’t know and trying to ride with one arm didn’t sit well.

  That line of thought always brought him back to Patrice’s fate, and he didn’t dare shed anymore tears about that in his present company, asleep or not.

  Jerris struggled to the edge of his bed and stood up, shuffling toward the window to look out. He stood there for a long time, watching the colors of the sunrise slowly change, lost in his thoughts.

  Through the crude glass of the window, he saw two people moving down the center of the road outside. Paranoid since the previous attack on his charges, Jerris decided to go out and see who these travelers were. Though he didn’t have a shirt on, the bandaging around his torso would have to do, and he went over to the door to exit the room.

  He moved onto the front porch of the inn and leaned against the railing. Recognition quickly hit him. “Garhan! Mari!”

  The two travelers looked at one another in confusion before leading their horses toward the familiar face.

  “Jerris? What in the world are you doing here?” Mari asked, sliding from the saddle. “And what happened to you? Tavern fight again?”

  The redhead moved to sit on the stairs leading up to the inn’s porch, his expression falling. “I was trying to get the hell out of here, but a mudslide took the section of road out I was on. Broke my arm.”

  Garhan dismounted as well, going to stand beside the courier. “Looks like it beat you to hell. You are fortunate to be alive.”

  “I am, but Patrice is gone,” Jerris said, his throat tightening on the words.

  Mari, emotionally invested in her own horses, immediately went to sit beside him and put an arm around his shoulders. “Jerris, I’m so sorry!”

  He appreciated the gesture, glad to finally have someone near who understood. “Thank you, Mari. I had her most of my life, you know. Keir and I both learned to ride on her after we graduated from ponies.”

  Garhan crossed his arms over his chest. “Is Keir around?”

  Jerris shook his head, looking off to the side. “No, Keir isn’t with me. He’s back in Tordan Lea, I’d imagine. A lot has happened since the two of you left. It’s better you learn about all of it before you get back, I suppose.”

  * * *

  Vinson looked up from his workbench as the door to the small house he shared with Baden opened. “Back again?”

  The younger vampire gave his brother a side-long glance as he went to drop into a chair before the stove. “Still working, I see.”

  “Always working,” Vinson replied, setting down the small pair of forceps he’d been using to set delicate components into the music box he was building. “Someone has to earn enough money to support us. Those kind ladies won’t come by to give us what we need to survive out of the goodness of their hearts, I’m afraid. I’d imagine they’d become rather vocal about what goes on here, too. Being run out of town by the villagers in the middle of the night doesn’t hold much appeal for me.”

  Baden lifted a finger and conceded the point. “True, though I could very easily steal all the money we would ever need. They would never see me.”

  “So much for a new chapter in your life,” the older vampire scoffed.

  “No, stealing would be a new chapter as I’d never wanted for anything before we were out here on our own to make it worth doing,” Baden replied.

  Vinson got up and stretched. “Anything new to report?”

  Baden shook his head. “No. I hated going back to Talaus, but I had to give my awkward little sister her rewards, lest she have a lapse in keeping her beak sealed about our fate. I then went on to the southern countries, then back to Talaus yet again.”

  “One of these days, you’re going to misjudge your timing and get caught. That won’t do me any favors,” Vinson countered as he went closer to Baden.

  “I assure you, that is the last thing I want to do. He’s not spending much time in the fortress these days, however. As Sabetha said, he’s too restless. The odds are still in my favor.” Baden let his head fall back against the chair and he closed his eyes. “Sadly, our father has gotten the Rolith sword from Keiran. I’ve looked everywhere for it, Vinson. I can’t think of where else he might have stashed it. I’ve hit all the fortresses and outposts he maintains and nothing.”

  Vinson frowned and his shoulders rounded. “That is unwelcome news. Perhaps he keeps it with him.”

  Baden opened his eyes again and quirked a brow. “…it would make sense. He’s coveted it for so long. He can’t afford to lose it.”

  Vinson reached out and placed one of his fingers against the tip of Baden’s angular nose. “Exactly.”

  The younger man frowned and pulled his head away. “Then how can I possibly get it away from him without him picking up on my presence and killing me?”

  “Your problem, not mine,” Vinson replied as he continued closer to the stove, grabbing a thick rag to remove a teakettle from the top of it. “I’m powerless to do anything that would even remotely give me a chance at being helpful in that regard.”

  Baden considered his brother. Though he’d tried to teach Vinson to do anything with the powers he certainly possessed, nothing had yet worked.

  Not that Vinson really wanted those abilities.

  “You keep working on your toys to sell to the fools of this nation, and I’ll continue to work on the scheming,” Baden replied.

  Vinson looked over as he poured hot water into a mug to make tea. “If I must.”

  “That isn’t everything,” Baden said, breaking the momentary silence.

  Vinson moved from the counter, passing the cup of tea off to his younger brother. “I had a feeling it wasn’t.”

  “Thank you.” He took a sip before shaking his head. “I have what I think is some very, very bad news.”

  Vinson knit his brows. “Worse than Keiran losing the sword?”

  “Yes.” Baden slouched forward. “The emperor of the Sador Empire has been deposed.”

  “Is that so?” Vinson asked, dropping down into a chair.

  “Yes.”

  “Well, by whom?”

  Baden tensed his jaw. “A vampire named Ahman Danier.”

  “A new minion of our father’s design?” His sights settled onto the other man.

  Baden nodded. “I suspect. Openly hostile toward Tordania, too, as it would happen.”

  Vinson closed his eyes and turned his head to the side. “Damn it. Athan must be behind it, and I know exactly what he’s doing. He’s setting up this puppet to attack Tordania from the south and keep King Keiran pinned down and unable to interfere with his dealings in the north, isn’t he?”

  “I was afraid that would be your take on it,” Baden replied with a deep frown.

  “And King Keiran’s thoughts?” Vinson asked.

  “Though I’m certain he’s recovered enough to receive visitors by now, I didn’t manage to get back there,
” Baden replied.

  Vinson considered his brother for several long moments. “It wouldn’t have exactly been out of your way to go there. Afraid of him?”

  “No, not at all,” Baden said.

  Vinson simply gave a coy smile, knowing that was a lie.

  “What?”

  “He needs to know what Athan is up to.” Vinson got up from his seat and began to pace. “You have the ability to get to him quickly to inform him of these things. He didn’t do anything to you when you met before. You are now, arguably, on his side, so why the fear?”

  Baden bent down to set his cup of tea on the floor beside his chair. “I know what I’m about to say will sound mad to you, but there is something about Keiran that makes him more powerful than our father.”

  Vinson stopped and looked over, quirking a brow. “What, exactly?”

  He met his brother’s gaze. “Our father has legions of men willing to do his bidding because they are terrified of him and what he will do to them otherwise.”

  “A given.”

  “Those around Keiran do his bidding not out of fear, but because they actually want to. When they don’t want to, they can simply walk away without repercussion. I have been a witness to it. Even his closest guard…” Baden shook his head. “That is not a world I’m all that familiar with, and I don’t know how to find a place in it, Vinson.”

  “That doesn’t seem like something to fear,” Vinson countered.

  “All I’ve ever known was living under our father’s rule. You knew the world outside,” Baden replied. “When Keiran did hold me prisoner briefly, however, he was able to use intimidation. He can do both. He can switch at will.”

  “You’ve sought to help him.” The elder vampire folded his arms over his chest and looked at the ceiling. “He has no more reason to try and scare you into submission. Besides, if you weren’t scared of our father…”

  “Deep down, I was, but our father was predictable, Vinson.” Baden shook his head. “Not Keiran…at least, not in a way that I’m familiar with.”

  “There is only one way to find out, and if you decided that running away from him is the best course of action, then simply vanish.” He turned his attention back to his brother. “There is nothing he can do at that point. You need to go tell him what’s going on in the Sador Empire.”

  “While Keiran seems like a better alternative than our father to have ruling the world, how do we really know what he may become?” Baden met his brother’s gaze. “Though I doubt we could be setting the world up for something worse, do we really know?”

  The older vampire gave a faint smile. Baden was right. “A chance we will simply have to take. If our father isn’t brought to an end, he will eventually find us and we will die. We have to play the odds.”

  * * *

  “What do we do?” Mari asked in Alerian, looking over at her husband.

  Garhan glanced back over his shoulder, though no one would understand them in passing if they weren’t paying attention. They’d spent the better part of the previous days with Jerris and the Sadoris, only agreeing to go do some shopping to get time away from the others.

  “We have to get back as quickly as we can safely make it. Keir has to be made aware of what’s happening in the Sador Empire,” he replied as they continued walking. “We need to all go together. Jerris can’t handle watching over them alone right now.”

  “Jerris isn’t in any condition to travel that far, though, especially since we don’t know how bad the road back is going to be. He barely made it here when he was in good physical shape.” Mari stopped before a vendor’s cart, scanning over its offerings. “I, however, could probably make it alone within days.”

  “I’d rather you not be out there without us. They already sent three men after Emperor Betram, it’s only a matter of time before more are dispatched. We need all the eyes we can get to be on the lookout.” Garhan reached out and picked up a jar of tiny pickled fish. “Good God, how can they eat these things?”

  Mari took the jar from his hand and put it back down, offering the cart’s owner an apologetic smile before beginning to walk again. “Gary, focus. I think you were around Dassion too long.”

  “Any time around Dassion is too long.” His long strides allowed him to catch back up with her in short order. “Point is, more will be sent for that old man before too long, and this town is one of the first places to look in Tordania if they already know he’s here. Getting over these mountains and into Tordan Lea would give him some safety.”

  “You aren’t wrong,” she replied. “Still…”

  He saw her shrug out of the corner of his eye. “They are all eager to get out of here, and it is Jerris’ decision to make. He’s taken responsibility for the emperor.”

  “He only has one working arm,” Mari snorted. “I’m afraid he isn’t going to be very effective in his current state. I have no fighting skills to offer if things get serious.”

  “Nor have I, in all honesty,” Garhan admitted.

  Mari was silent for a few moments, gnawing at the inside of her cheek. “Jerris’ story about going up into the mountains to wait for his illness to pass just doesn’t sit right.”

  “As in, if Thana and Corina also had it, why didn’t he just wait it out in the castle with them?” Garhan replied, shaking his head. “That struck you as odd, too?”

  “More than a little. He’s keeping something back from us. I know he’s a rattled mess right now, but there’s more to it.” She tipped her head up toward the sky. “Do you think he and your brother had a falling out?”

  Garhan shrugged. “They’ve fought more than once since we came along, but they generally seem to get over it before too long. Unless, he’s blaming Keir for what happened to Kanan. I suppose we’ll find out whenever we get back what the truth of it all is.”

  Mari started to reply, but Garhan stepped in front of her and held out a hand, silently ordering her to stop. Her hackles rose as she watched him take several long breaths. “Gary?”

  Dusty copper…faint, but detectable. Not quite like he’d picked up from Baden, Keiran, or Athan. There was almost a spicy, floral undertone to it, yet it ignited his instincts. Though rare for him, his fangs reflexively descended.

  Mari stepped around his outstretched arm, moving beside him and rising up on her toes to try and see further in the direction holding his attention. “What’s out there?”

  He slowly turned his head to look down at her, every muscle in his body tense. “Vampire.”

  * * *

  “Pack! We are leaving!” Garhan said, throwing open the door to the room at the inn.

  The three men inside all startled and turned to look at him. Etras had just gotten Jerris out of his more extensive bandaging and into a simple sling to support his splinted arm.

  The redhead stood flexing his hand, trying to work the stiffness from his fingers and wrist, though it caused pain to radiate up his arm. “Pack? I don’t think leaving here is your call, Garhan.”

  He moved over to the guard, looking down at him with no humor in his expression. “There is a vampire out there, and given the fact the Sador Empire was just overthrown by one, you’ll pardon me for skipping the pleasantries.”

  Jerris raised his brows as Garhan loomed over him. “A vampire? You saw one?”

  “Didn’t see, but I sensed and smelled one. I am absolutely certain,” Garhan replied.

  Having seen Keiran easily tell when Athan was near or approaching, Jerris didn’t question his claim. “Damn.”

  Betram rose up from where he’d been sitting, wringing his hands together. “A vampire? Danier is here?”

  Garhan shook his head, turning toward him. “I don’t think so. This may sound laughable, but it felt rather…feminine.”

  “He sent a woman?” Etras asked, screwing up his face.

  “What’s that supposed to mean?” Mari asked, crossing her arms over her chest.

  Etras’ eyes went wide, and he held his hands out before him, pal
ms up. “Our people don’t employ women as bounty hunters! It isn’t meant to offend! Why are you northerners always so quick to be offended?”

  Betram lifted a hand toward Etras, silencing him. His expression turned grave. “The Quitam do, however, have women as assassins. If he has changed one…”

  “We don’t have the luxury of standing here and debating who she is or how she got here,” Garhan said, cutting off further debate. “If she’s here to take you down, Emperor, we need to get moving.”

  Betram went closer to Garhan and placed his hands up onto his shoulders. “Ah! But we have you! Also a vampire! Strong!”

  “I’m flattered, but if she is a trained professional, I’m afraid my painting skills will do nothing to stop her,” Garhan replied. “Jerris is the only real fighter we have, and he isn’t in top condition.”

  Jerris shrugged, not arguing the point.

  Betram withered to hear that, turning to look at Jerris. The guard, injured or not, had already gained his trust from his previous actions. “What do we do?”

  The redhead sighed, dreading what he was about to say. “Garhan is right. If they’ve sent a vampire here after you, we have to leave. There’s no reason not to think she won’t just follow us, but staying here is a death sentence. I only have one arm, I’ll need a rapier before we leave. My broadsword went with Patrice.”

  * * *

  Saleet watched the group evacuate from the inn to fetch their horses. They were clearly leaving to travel, and that suited her just fine. If they were out of town and on the road, there would be far fewer spectators around to deal with afterward. Danier had been very clear that once she took Betram’s head, there were to be no witnesses left to alert the Tordanian king as to what had happened.

  Her brother simply wasn’t ready to deal with Keiran yet.

  She picked Betram out of the group easily enough. The other Sadori man with him she didn’t recognize. The two other men didn’t worry her at all. One of them was clearly injured, needing help to even get onto a horse. The fact there was a single woman traveling with the lot of them she found of interest. In her homeland, a single female in a group of travelers was more than a little unusual unless she was a slave to one of the men.