by Cheryl Dyson
******
Jace prowled the servants’ quarters, searching for any sign of Kerryn, or any others opposed to Reed's plan. His faith in Kerryn was not misplaced and he finally located the "rebellion", such as it was, when a small band of men swarmed from a doorway and dragged him into a dimly lit room. A dagger pressed into to his throat.
“Kill him—he’s one of Reed’s,” someone said.
“Kerryn,” Jace choked through the pressure of the knife, whose edge was thankfully dull, though a portion of it began to draw blood.
Some of his captors were thrust aside and Kerryn’s suspicious face appeared before him.
“Jace!” he cried and waved the others back sharply. The knife fell away and he sat up, coughing and gasping for air.
Kerryn knelt beside him. “How did you get here?” he asked anxiously. Jace climbed to his feet and evaluated the rag-tag band before him. There were barely twenty men crammed into the servant’s room, most of them poorly armed and unarmored. It was laughable to think that they could take on Reed’s merciless guards.
“By Adona, Kerryn,” Jace said in amazement, “You are either very brave or completely insane.”
Kerryn bristled. “There are more of us serving the wedding guests, waiting to strike. We will not let that murdering bastard marry Shevyn!”
“You are planning to kill him?” Jace asked. Kerryn nodded.
Jace rubbed a temple and queried sardonically, “How?”
Kerryn scowled. “We know Reed has demonic powers. All we can do is take out as many guards as possible while the rest of us rush him.”
Jace shook his head. “Things have changed. Brydon is here. He is going after Shevyn as we speak. Did you plan to use the Gauntlet Knights encamped in the outer bailey?”
Kerryn scowled. “I have tried to reach them for days. Every man I send does not return and there has been no message. I can only assume the knight-priests are ignorant of what is happening.”
“Have you considered it might be easier merely to open the gates and let them in?” Jace questioned.
“How do I know the Knight-Priests are not part of this? It was convenient of them to ride off to Bodor and allow Reed free rein here!”
Jace had not considered that angle, but he pondered it for only an instant before rejecting the idea. He knew some of the Gauntlet Knights well. They would die for the Kerrick line. Nothing Reed would offer them would cause them to betray their duty. Reed’s power would never be enough to subvert the entire battalion of Gauntlet Knights.
Jace smiled grimly. “We must let them in.”
“But what about Reed?” Kerryn protested.
“As long as we have Reed's soldiers to content with, we will fight a losing battle. There are too many of them. We must even the odds. Reed is not likely to panic and flee. Not when he is so close to gaining everything he has worked for.”
The blare of trumpets drowned Kerryn’s reply. His face was ashen. "The time is now—Reed is in the Great Hall.”
“Then let us go. For Ven-Kerrick, and for Shevyn,” Jace said. He quickly laid out his plan, praying that Verana had reached the Gauntlet Knights.