* * *
Jerris stared down at the camp the others had set up the night before. He’d spent most of the night on the rock, too worried about what might come out of the forest. Whether about a vampire or bear, his fear had left him miserable and unable to sleep for more than a few minutes at a time.
Garhan awoke and came over, landing at the redhead’s right side. He looked out over the scenery. “You didn’t rest.”
Jerris shook his head. “Someone has to keep watch, and I suppose it’s my job to do so.”
Never lacking for blood, Garhan’s senses were constantly sharpened. He felt the twisting emotions within the guard and gave him a sidelong glance. “I’m sorry about your father and the horse.”
Jerris shrugged, but immediately regretted it from the pain it caused his healing arm. “Everything in my life has changed in a matter of weeks.”
Garhan nodded. “The world has a way of doing that to us, I’m afraid. Not always for the better.”
“Losing Patrice of all things was just a final kick in the gut I didn’t need,” Jerris said. “My damn horse… She was a good one, you know? I never moved up to a warhorse because she was the horse I really wanted. Loyal. She’d go with me anywhere. She put up with so much from me over the years.”
The vampire smiled to himself. “She was your friend.”
“A better friend than I’ve managed to be.” The guard shook his head and stared down at his hands. “I miss Magretha. I left her at such a terrible time. I just want to get back home, Keir.”
“Jerris?”
“What?”
“I’m not Keir,” Garhan replied.
Jerris sat up straighter and looked away, embarrassed. “I’m just tired. Sorry.”
Garhan placed his arm around the guard’s shoulders, knowing it was what his brother would have done in the situation. “There’s no need to apologize.”
Jerris didn’t resist, slumping against Garhan’s side and hanging his head. Garhan wasn’t Keiran, but the way he simply felt to be around wasn’t too far off. “I’m so tired. I shouldn’t have ever come out here.”
“Had you not come out here, Betram and Etras would be dead already,” Garhan replied. “You were meant to find them.”
“If that vampire you sensed is after them, and she does find us, it may still be for nothing,” Jerris said. “Vampire or not, I know how to kill her, but with one arm, what good am I?”
“More good than I would prove.” Garhan let his arm slip away from the guard, and he motioned down toward the others. “They’re all still asleep. Rest for a while. I’m up to keep watch. I may not be classically trained to be a guard, but when it comes to feeling another vampire coming around, I would know long before anyone else.”
Jerris nodded and offered him a grateful smile. “A little sleep won’t hurt.”
* * *
Thana and Corina were in the kitchen. While Corina was officially still taking a break from her duties, she’d decided to take the younger woman under her wing for the day to teach her a few of her well-kept secrets.
They sat on opposite sides of the kitchen counter, each with a goblet of wine in hand. As they’d waited for the dough of one of Corina’s signature dessert breads to rise, they’d started drinking. Now, the both of them had sunk into bouts of giggles.
Thana was relaxed, working on her third round of wine. She leaned far forward on the counter, her lips numb from the alcohol. “We are going to forget what we were doing in the first place!”
Corina laughed, reaching out her hand and slapping it against the round of dough on the counter between them. Like Thana, she was feeling the effects of her drink. “But it’s right here.”
The dough deflated a little, giving off a small gassy sound, sending Thana into another fit of giggles. She put her head down onto the counter and snorted.
Keiran heard the ruckus coming from the kitchen and peeked through the open door. He saw the women within, the wine bottle between them empty and lying on its side. He smiled to himself and went forward, walking up behind his wife.
With her head down, she didn’t notice him coming up behind her. When she felt hands set upon her shoulders, she tried to bolt away in fear, but her inebriation made it an ill-fated attempt. She fell from the stool she’d been occupying and would have hit the stone floor if Keiran hadn’t been quick enough to catch her.
“You keep acting like that when I touch you, and I’m going to develop a complex,” Keiran said, getting her steadied on her feet.
Thana’s eyes were wide as she spun to look up at him. She shook her head, timidly placing her left hand against his chest. “Keir…”
He quirked a brow and looked over at Corina. “How much have the two of you had?”
The old woman gave a non-committal shrug. “Just what was left after your dinner last night.”
Keiran looked down into Thana’s eyes, seeing the traces of fear still lingering in her expression. “What’s wrong?”
She gave a shake of her head, sighing. “I thought… I thought you were Athan again.”
Keiran placed his hands on her shoulders, feeling her worry. “This keeps happening, Thana. Did he do something that I’m not aware of recently?”
“Not at all,” she said, looking to the side. “I don’t know what’s wrong with me. I’m sorry, Keir. It’s not something you’re doing.”
“I’d hope not,” he replied, frowning. “Like you said before, it’s most likely just the stress of things, lately. I promise to try and not sneak up on you for the time being.”
“At least she didn’t try to stab you this time,” Corina said, trying to stifle a laugh, though she knew it wasn’t really funny. “She told me about that.”
With her fear being washed away by her drunkenness, Thana stood on her toes and whispered close to his ear, though too loudly. “I didn’t tell her about what we did afterward when you got back, though.”
Keiran flushed red and averted his gaze from Corina. “I’m sure we both appreciate that.”
Corina gave another snort of laughter. “We’ll have another baby around before long.”
“I think I’ll leave the two of you to go back to whatever it was you were doing,” Keiran said, dropping his hands away from Thana and edging back toward the door, giving an uncomfortable smile.
Thana gave a small pout before climbing onto her seat and going back to talking to Corina.
He stepped out into the hallway and slowly headed toward the throne room. Thana’s reaction to him wasn’t sitting well. With his feelings hurt, he decided to dive back into his work.
* * *
The rain was coming down again, everyone in the group wet and miserable. Jerris rode with Betram at his side, the others scattered out before them. They had made their way back to the main road, successfully completing their detour.
Though he’d gotten a little rest after Garhan took over his watch, it hadn’t been much. Keeping pace with his octogenarian charge was suiting him just fine.
He looked ahead, seeing Mari and Garhan leading the pack a good distance down the road. The couple was talking and laughing as they went along. Jerris envied them, wishing he was back with Magretha and hoping she’d forgive him for leaving.
“You are a man with much weighing on his mind,” Betram said.
Jerris pulled himself out of his thoughts and looked over at the little man, offering a nod. “Aye, I believe you are correct. Though, I’d imagine you have a lot more stress on your shoulders given all that has happened.”
Betram waved his left hand, reins held in his right. “Ah, my troubles may be big, but yours are to you, aren’t they?”
“They do seem that way.”
The Sadori considered Jerris for a moment. “A woman?”
Jerris gave a quiet laugh. “A large portion of it. I miss my wife terribly.”
“You will see her when we get to Tordan Lea!” Betram replied, tipping his head toward their route. “It isn’t far now!”
&nbs
p; “Eh, it’s still a few days,” Jerris said. “But considering how far away you started, I suppose you’ve made a good deal of progress.”
“Forward, even slowly, is forward!” Betram smiled.
Jerris shook his head. For a man who’d just lost control of his country, Betram certainly had a way of swinging through remarkable bouts of optimism. A whistle caught Jerris’ attention, and he looked forward again.
Garhan had brought his horse to a stop and he was looking right at Jerris. He reached up and tapped the side of his nose.
The redhead’s hackles rose, realizing Garhan smelled the other vampire again. He slowly pivoted his horse around, scouring the trees around them, looking for any sign of their pursuer.
Etras already had his short sword drawn, and he maneuvered his horse closer to Betram and Jerris, sensing the sudden change in mood. “It is the vampire?”
“Aye.” Jerris kept scanning the area, a crawling sensation arising in his stomach as his fear mounted. “If I give an order, I need all of you to follow it.”
Betram and Etras nodded.
Garhan moved closer to the guard, Mari at his side. “She’s close.”
Jerris gave a single nod. “Take off her head or go for her heart. That’s the only way to take her down. If you get her in the heart, do not pull your sword back out or she will recover.”
“That should pretty decidedly kill anyone, vampire or not,” Mari said, drawing the saber she kept lashed to the back of her saddle.
“That’s generally the idea.” Jerris wanted to draw his rapier, but with only one functioning arm, it would leave him unable to rein the horse.
Saleet watched the group go on high alert. She’d pulled ahead of them the night before, easily circumventing them as she’d moved back onto the main road after the landslide. With her horse tied further up the road, she’d climbed into the lower branches of a pine to wait for her quarry to arrive.
Jerris went perfectly still, feeling which direction the breeze was coming from. “She’s up the road, trying to cut us off.”
Garhan gave him a small nod of affirmation. “Are you sure my brother never bit you?”
Jerris snorted, amused despite the circumstances. “No, I just see her sitting in that tree ahead of us.”
Saleet was surprised when the redhead pointed out her hiding spot, everyone else soon turning to see her. Though she’d been spotted, she wasn’t worried nor did she make any move right away.
“Everyone, circle around Betram. He’s the one she’s after,” Jerris said, not taking his eyes off of their stalker. “Let’s hope she hasn’t learned any real tricks yet.”
Saleet smiled to no one, watching as the group did nothing. Deciding to move things along, she dropped down from the tree, landing in the middle of the road not far away from her intended victims.
Betram watched her and asked in Sadori, “Has Danier sent you?”
The woman remained in place, sizing up the vampire in the group before responding to Betram’s question. “You should have let my brother kill you in the sewers. It would have spared the lives of your friends. Now, I have to kill all of you.”
“What did she say?” Jerris asked back over his shoulder, not understanding Sadori.
“Danier sent her,” the old man replied, not feeling the need to give a word-for-word translation.
“How unexpected,” Garhan replied. “She’s spending more time looking at me than the rest of you. She knows what I am. She’ll try to take me out first. Do try to join in and kill her before she gets me, Jerris.”
“What?” the redhead asked, but Garhan didn’t answer.
The male vampire signaled his horse forward, intending on drawing the assassin’s attention.
Jerris looked back at Etras and Betram. “Get down the road. Get as much distance as you can. If we fail, you may be able to outrun her.”
Etras gave a curt nod, and he and Betram turned their horses and backtracked the way they’d come.
Saleet let her expression go deadpan. She lowered her stance and drew her knife as the vampire’s horse galloped toward her.
Garhan had his sword in hand, knowing he wouldn’t get so lucky as to simply strike her down on his initial charge. He did his best to exude more confidence than he felt, knowing his inability to fight effectively would be exposed the second she actively engaged him.
Saleet waited for him to close a little more than half the distance toward her before she ran at him in return. Though she was on foot, the sight of the horse charging right at her didn’t seem problematic.
Garhan pulled the horse’s reins just enough to line up to pass her on his right side.
The moment his horse turned, though slightly, she leapt upward with incredible speed and height. Garhan hadn’t anticipated her move, and she dove in against him, knocking him from the saddle.
He landed on the ground with her, tumbling along the pine-needle-littered road a short distance.
Mari yelped and signaled her horse forward. Jerris saw her move and went, too, not thinking the small courier would stand a chance.
Garhan was on his back, Saleet straddling his stomach, her knife held above his heart, ready to deliver a deathblow. Though she was strong, she didn’t weigh much, and Garhan easily managed to roll to the side, pitching the assassin away.
Saleet hit the ground and leapt to her feet. She saw the other woman and the redhead approaching, but they weren’t much of a worry. With as fast as she and Garhan moved, time was going much slower for the two vampires.
Garhan managed back up, his sword knocked from his hand when she’d dislodged him from the saddle. Though unarmed, he wasn’t ready to back down. Though it was rare for Garhan to legitimately get angry, much less surrender to his rage, he knew he had no choice but to let his more animalistic instincts out. After all, the assassin wasn’t going to hold back, and he needed any advantage he could get.
Saleet charged him again. He was the first of their kind she’d ever fought. Though she’d gotten him by surprise on the initial attack, she wondered if he’d now be able to match her speed in the fight. A normal man would have felt her knife in his heart before he’d had the chance to escape her like Garhan had.
When they collided, Garhan was braced for it. He managed to get one of his hands clamped down around her right wrist, keeping her knife restrained away from him.
She hooked one of her legs under his, knocking him off balance and to the ground again. However, Garhan didn’t let go of her wrist, and she was pulled down with him.
Mari and Jerris reached them. The courier immediately jumped down from her horse, otherwise unable to reach Garhan’s attacker. Jerris knew he couldn’t manage to control his horse and fight at the same time, so he, too, dismounted and drew his rapier with his good arm.
Garhan refused to let go of Saleet’s wrist, unwilling to allow her use of her blade. He looked over at Jerris. “Get her!”
The redhead moved forward, but he wasn’t fast enough.
Saleet, infuriated at Garhan’s continued hold on her wrist as she struggled to get away, resorted to kneeing him in the groin. His mind swam with pain, and while he tried to keep his grip, it faltered and Saleet jerked her arm free and scrambled back from the other vampire.
“Mari, get back,” Jerris growled as Saleet’s attention landed on him.
The courier made no move to advance now that the assassin was off of her husband. She kept her saber held out before her as she sidestepped behind Jerris, trying to get a better look at Garhan.
Despite the rain and cooler weather, Jerris already had the hot feeling of sweat on his skin, his heart racing. He wished his arm wasn’t injured, but being faced with what the Sadori woman was, he supposed it didn’t really matter.
The assassin hesitated in attacking Jerris. She pivoted to face Garhan where he lay on the ground, throwing her knife end-over-end toward him.
Mari caught sight of Saleet’s motion just as she reached Garhan’s side. Without any thought given t
o it, she threw herself over Garhan, trying to shield him. The knife took hold in her back, beneath her left shoulder blade. She drew in a pained hiss through her teeth, her hands instinctively gripping into Garhan’s shirt.
Garhan couldn’t see what had happened to her, only putting his arms around her as she fell against him. His hands quickly found the knife embedded in her back. “God, not again!”
Jerris forced his attention back to the assassin, his anger flushing his cheeks red. He grit his teeth and charged her.
Saleet pulled her short sword from her belt before Jerris could close the distance between them. She easily deflected his attempted thrust toward her chest. While his rapier had a distinct reach advantage, her weapon was quicker to wield. After knocking his blade to the side, she swept forward with a slashing blow.
Jerris recoiled after his failed attempt out of instinct, knowing she’d use the opening to attack. He felt a rush of moving air across his throat, a slight sting in the skin of his neck. Had he not flinched backward, he would have lost his head.
The assassin recovered from her attack and spun back around the other way, sending her blade yet again toward Jerris. This time, she sliced cleanly through the fabric of the sling supporting his left arm.
Having the weight of his arm suddenly tug down on his healing fracture sent a dizzying wave of pain through him. Though his adrenaline was flowing, it was enough to make his mind swim, a cold tingle running across his skin.
Garhan managed to sit up, Mari still alive and conscious sitting beside him. Seeing Jerris waver, Garhan knew he needed to act before Saleet cut the redhead down.
Saleet smiled to see the guard’s response to the sling being cut away. The thin line of red across his throat made her thirst stir, her fangs visible between parted lips. She took a step forward, bloodlust overtaking her.
Garhan, pushing past the remaining pain he was in, rose and sprinted the short distance toward Jerris and the assassin.
Saleet was focused on Jerris when Garhan bowled into her, again taking her to the ground. They tumbled a short distance, coming to rest with Garhan pinning her.
The King's Knight (Royal Blood Book 5) Page 23