The other thing I knew was something Kyri would never say—not in front of Garkus. Adahi's life meant more to her than mine ever did. A deep chasm lay between us and betrayal washed through the bottom of it, creating an ever-widening gulf.
She had her goals and was willing to give her life to achieve them, just as Adahi had a goal of helping her and keeping her alive.
He'd kept his oaths; I'd failed in mine.
That was in the past. Now was the time I'd foreseen—to complete my self-appointed mission of destroying Kaakos.
"An uneasy truce, then," I dipped my head to Kyri. "It's your choice whether you tell Adahi or not."
"You know you're safe enough here," she spat at me. "He comes to you now, all of him perishes. Convenient, don't you think?"
"So you're not going to tell him."
"No. Unless there is no other way, and I greatly dislike not being honest with him."
"As do I."
"You can take your dislike and shove it up your ass," she said and stepped away.
"Is she going back to Az-ca?" There was longing in Garkus' voice.
"No. If either of you attempt to step past Kaakos' power grid, you'll fry in it."
"Good to know," Garkus rumbled and bit into a chunk of alligator meat.
Kerok
"Tell me how you did it—for the records," Hunter said as Sherra and I had our evening meal with him and Barth.
"It would be easier to write it out for you—tomorrow," she said. She'd refused a marching draught when we returned to the palace. Armon and Misten had given their reports to Hunter already, before going back to Secondary Camp.
Barth had written his own accounting and given it to Hunter. I'd also scribbled notes, so I could make my report as accurate as I could when I gave it to Hunt.
I'd attempted to coddle Sherra upon our return, but she'd brushed off my gestures and set about making sure the gold was sealed and shielded inside a heavy metal box in the treasury. Then, she sat with Armon and Misten while they gave their reports to Hunter. She barely glanced my way during the meal.
What did you do? Hunter sent mindspeak. He'd certainly noticed the silence between Sherra and me.
I yelled, when I didn't have to, I said.
Then it's your fault.
It would seem so.
Grae had never shut me out like this, but I considered that perhaps she was afraid to stand up for herself. She'd go quiet at times, but never refused to speak with me or turned away my advances.
I felt guilt, too, because Grae's birthday had come and gone, and I hadn't laid flowers.
After all, you don't rip out parts of your life, just for the convenience of other people. Yes, I knew I was being petty, but I'd been Commander of the army far too long to change old habits.
I see the look of belligerence on your face, Hunter pointed out. Your father would get the same look, at times.
Did my father deal incessantly with the distraction of every underling's needs and wants?
Constantly.
"I'm done. I have work and thinking to do," I rose, tossing my napkin on my chair and stalking toward the door.
Sherra
"I'm tired. My apologies, Hunter, Barth," I nodded to both before rising from the table. Kerok had shown his anger and impatience. I wasn't willing to make it worse by snapping at his closest advisors.
Kerok's shouting earlier in the day had come back to haunt me more and more as the day progressed. He didn't need to yell; I was already trying to do what he wanted. No, he didn't know that, but he'd chosen to vent his frustrations anyway.
He was angry; I was angry. We were angry together. That meant I wanted to sleep apart. Heading toward our suite, I intended to snatch up clothing and make my way toward my mostly unused personal suite.
Sherra?
A new voice. I realized my dreamwalker had heard it before, however.
North.
Well, well, I snapped at him. What do you want? I wasn't in the mood to be charitable to any man. Not tonight.
I just wanted to see if you remembered me.
My dreamwalker does.
Ah.
Is there an emergency? I asked.
No. I just wanted to let you know that Kyri and Garkus are with me, now.
Good. I hated that she'd gone to the palace. That was suicide, in my opinion.
Mine as well.
How did you survive in Ny-nes with power? I demanded.
Gets right to the point. I can't tell you that, he countered. It's—inconvenient.
Then why did you contact me? Other than to see if I'd answer?
I was wondering if you'd take Kyri out of here if I asked.
Just like every other man I know, I flung at him. Only civil when it suits them. Only speaking when they want something.
I don't want it right now—I meant if it became necessary to get her away to save her life.
I'll consider it, I said. And not because you asked, but because she's important to me.
And I'm not.
I have no idea who you are. I owe you nothing, including a proper conversation. Go away. I have things to do.
Very well.
I wanted to tell him to fuck off, but I didn't. Instead, I strode into the King's suite, pulled clothing from drawers and the wardrobe, then stepped to my private suite. Let Kerok complain about my flaunting the law to an empty room.
Kyri
At least they'd left me a portion of alligator meat. I found it when I finally returned to North's hideaway.
I'd come to the realization that whether I liked it or not, we were probably safer together, rather than apart. I longed to send mindspeak to Adahi, to consult with him on recent developments, but that would require that I tell him about North.
It made me ill to contemplate it.
I'd spoken to Doret, though. She suggested I launch a fireblast at North when he'd least expect it. The worm kept a shield about himself at all time, however, so it wouldn't do much good.
I didn't tell Doret that North expected her to come, rather than me. He should have remembered that Doret's first target was Ruarke, with Kaakos a close second. At least that was one less weapon in Kaakos' arsenal.
A part of me wanted to point out that it had taken Sherra and Adahi to take down Ruarke. Shoving that thought away, I lifted a piece of alligator meat and bit off a healthy chunk of it.
Chapter 16
Kerok
I'd laid lilies on Grae's resting place before breakfast. I'd spent the night alone; Sherra had gone to her personal suite to sleep.
"Sherra went to Secondary Camp for breakfast," Hunter informed me when I took a seat at the table. Briar poured tea while frowning.
Was every woman in the palace against me, now?
"She wrote her report last night. She gave it to me before she left this morning," Hunter added.
Then she was sleep deprived, just as I was. A part of me felt vindication. Another part felt shame.
Today, of all days, I missed my father a great deal. I wanted to talk to him about this. He'd give good advice, too. Perhaps it would have been advice I didn't want to hear, but needed anyway.
General Weren, another good source of advice, was also gone. "How did we lose so many good men?" I asked aloud.
"What?" Hunter was surprised by my sudden change of subject.
"My father. General Weren. Too many others to count. All lost—either to disease or the enemy."
"Are you deliberately leaving out the women who've died—from disease and by the enemy's hand?"
"No. Fuck no," I moaned and covered my face with both hands. "I just," I dropped my hands to blink at Hunter. "I need advice from a married man."
"That makes sense." Hunter pulled the butter dish toward him. If Sherra had been here, she'd have taken half of what was on that small plate already.
Neither of us would have begrudged her that. "Did she say anything else to you—other than she was going to breakfast with Armon and Caral?"
&n
bsp; "Nothing. It isn't like her to talk about—those things. Not with me."
Without Hunter's admission, I knew she wouldn't discuss those things with others, either. She'd sworn a vow—to keep my secrets, as I kept hers.
I wondered how well I was doing in that department. "What else is on her calendar, today?" I loaded bacon onto my plate.
"Supervising the young ones in Cole's village."
"Ah." That meant she'd be gone all day, and likely come home exhausted.
Again.
"I was hoping to go out with her and Barth—to another village, looking for spies," I said.
"If you think Kaakos' other spies haven't heard rumors on the events of yesterday, then I think you're fooling yourself," Hunter pointed his fork at me. "I've already asked Claude to watch for people leaving villages abruptly, once the news is spread that spies were killed yesterday."
"Good thinking." I crunched into a slice of bacon. "Give any information collected to Barth and me. I'll make sure someone is sent to look into it. Let Barth know that we'll go to another quadrant tomorrow."
"Done," Hunter said after his eyes unfocused for a few moments. "Do you, ah, want me to let Sherra know, too?"
"Please."
"I will."
"Claude is here to see you, my King," a guard tapped on the open door. "Three others are here with him."
"Send them in," I said. We were going to receive verification on Hunter's speculation; I had no doubt on the matter.
Claude stepped in, followed by the other quadrant leaders.
They'd all come. My skin began to prickle—this didn't look good.
"We all have the same report," Claude sighed. "Last night or early this morning, reports of deaths have come to us. Deaths of otherwise healthy men—in violent ways. All appear to have exploded. A search in only a few of their houses produced the same thing." He pulled a small leather pouch from a pocket.
I'd seen too many of those in the past few days.
Kaakos' gold.
"He killed his spies?" I almost choked on the words.
"Once he learned we could find them, I think. I have no idea whether he left any alive. I think you'll have to determine that, my King."
While I gaped at Claude and my mind went numb, Hunter took over. "I'd like names of the spies and their villages," he told Claude and the others. "For the official records. Collect the gold; we'll distribute it to the villages as fairly as we can afterward."
"We'll see to it," Claude dipped his head to me and then to Hunter, before he and the others left the room.
Sherra
"Do you think things feel off because you're tired?" Caral asked. Armon didn't speak, but I didn't miss the tightening of his mouth, either, when I said I didn't sleep the night before. I'd spent the time writing a report for Hunter, instead.
"I'm not sure," I said. "But something definitely feels off to me." I didn't tell them that Kerok and I were having an angry standoff, although I think Armon knew it anyway.
"When? When did this feeling start?" Levi asked.
"About an hour before sunrise, I think. I just felt—anxious, for some reason."
Without a word, Armon drew something from a pocket and pushed it toward me. I knew what it was without asking. He'd gotten it for himself, most likely, but offered it to me, instead.
A part of me studied the paper-wrapped marching draught with revulsion. Another part wondered whether my dreamwalker might handle things better than I could—if the uneasy feeling I had turned into an actual event.
"I'll take it," I made up my mind quickly, before I had second thoughts. Once it was dumped in my tea, I drank the draught-laced brew.
"I'm sending Levi and Caral with you today," Armon said after I set my empty cup on the table. He and Misten were supposed to go; it was their turn.
He was weary from yesterday, too, and I only realized that now. Not from physical exertion, but from the stress of it. We'd all been thrown into a new, nerve-wracking experience, and had come out somewhat worse for wear.
Kerok's shouting hadn't helped, either.
Armon was used to being as competent and confident as any warrior could be on the battlefield.
Flying above a village while chasing bomb-tossing spies hadn't gone smoothly—to put it in mildly-acceptable terms.
The process needed work—in a practice setting, rather than perfecting it on the fly.
"What are your plans for the day, then?" I asked Armon.
"The King wants to meet with the chosen candidates."
Here was the real reason Armon wasn't going to Cole's village with me. "Good luck, then," I said.
"Are you intending to let the young ones try what we did yesterday?"
"Maybe. We'll see. You know they'd be excited about it."
"Young ones usually are, if handed an opportunity to try new things."
"Armon, make sure they're the right choices—the ones you're meeting with. We don't need to be chasing after spies who can send fireblasts against us from beneath," I floundered for the proper words.
"Understood." Armon's eyes were hooded. Neither of us wanted to say too much, in case we were overheard.
"Are you taking the four who went with us yesterday?"
"Yes."
"Good. They didn't cause trouble in a tenuous situation."
His words upset you, didn't they? Armon sent.
Armon, don't ask me about that.
You did an amazing job with what you had to work with, he told me. Thorn will recall that soon enough, I think. If he hasn't already.
Right.
This has bothered him greatly—the fact that the enemy has too many spies among our own people. People willing to sell us out for a bit of gold, when the army has been risking—and giving—our lives for years to keep them from harm. It isn't a good way to show your appreciation, you know.
I know. Do you think it doesn't trouble me just as much? We've only just developed a way to track those traitors. Now they're likely hiding in the deepest holes they can find, after learning what we did to the ones we found yesterday. That doesn't include the heads-up that Kaakos has gotten. You know he'll retaliate in some way.
I expect so, Armon dipped his head in a slight nod.
We just heard from the Quadrant Leaders, the unexpected mindspeak came from Hunter. They're reporting dead spies everywhere, and the search for more exploded bodies continues. Thorn may want you and Barth to help in that search.
I'll be ready, I replied. No need to take my anger out on Hunter, who was the messenger. Kerok, on the other hand, was a coward for not telling me himself.
Well, coward might be too strong a term. He didn't want to get into a shouting match with me, no doubt, so he'd elected to tell Hunter what he wanted from me instead.
"Levi, Caral, are you ready?" I asked both aloud. "We have a lot of work to do, today."
"We're with you." Levi stood quickly, followed by Caral.
"Thank you," I told them. Squaring my shoulders, I gathered power to step them to Cole's village.
Armon
Misten and I stood guard behind Thorn, as he informed the small group of troops chosen for training. Any who declined would be noted and watched, I knew, but that couldn't be helped. Wend and Marc, sitting on the front row, gave us nods of encouragement. They'd stand with us, even if nobody else would.
"You're saying that this has already been successful?" A captain raised his hand when Thorn opened the floor to questions.
"In a limited experiment," Thorn replied. "Quite successful."
It wouldn't take much for the troops to make the leap to Sherra and her hand in all this. I waited, my breaths shallow, to see if any blowback would come from that realization.
"You say this will enable us to attack Ny-nes?"
"Yes—that is the plan," Thorn said. "I realize that can be a frightening concept, but we have spies there, now, who can relay information regarding locations, installations, and numbers of enemy troops. That information must
be guarded with your lives," he added.
Several nodded at the King's words. He'd warned them about the sensitive nature of the information he would give them, and offered them the opportunity to leave right away if they felt they couldn't keep secrets.
Nobody left.
"Who did you send?" Someone else raised a hand.
"I can't tell you that—for their safety and yours," Thorn said. "In addition to the combining of shields and blasts, there are other—things to experiment with. Yesterday, two warrior-escort pairs experienced it first-hand. I hope they see the potential in it, just as I do."
"May I speak freely, my King?"
Captain Indus, one of the warriors with us the day before, rose from his seat. My breath caught. Whatever he said could make or break us, here and now, should Thorn allow it.
"Speak your mind, Captain Indus," Thorn nodded.
"I witnessed the downfall of Ny-nes, yesterday," Indus turned to face those gathered about him. "Not the actual downfall—that is yet to come. What I saw—a rounded shield, carrying us aloft and keeping us safe from bombs while we chased treasonous spies on the ground, is no doubt what can make us victorious against the enemy. You all know he sent a flying machine against us. If we are successful in the things the King asks us to do, we will also fly in the face of the enemy, and show him what we are truly made of."
For a moment, everything was so still I could hear Misten breathing beside me. Until the troops rose as one and cheered.
Kerok
I never realized how frustrated the troops had been all those years, fighting back the enemy on our own soil.
And only on our soil.
After determining that all present wanted to learn whatever they could to make an attack against Ny-nes possible, we invited them to gather their things at Secondary Camp and meet us at one of the empty training grounds in the King's City.
Armon would let the others know that these were on special assignment. They were more than pleased to be training in the King's City, too.
"Better chow," Armon grinned after witnessing their excitement at the newly assigned location.
"No," I replied. Armon understood I was teasing.
Black Rose Queen: Black Rose Sorceress, Book 3 Page 22