by Diana Flame
“I will make him pay for this,” she muttered under her breath.
“Madame,” the messenger addressed her. “Sir Aldridge asks that I remain here to serve you. He was the one who sent this letter.” He knelt. “Please accept me as your hire.”
“You will join my army until the return of your king,” Christoffle said. “No need to trouble the lady with such things. She is quite upset about the tidings you’ve brought.”
“I am most grateful to you, my king. I will serve you as I would King Syreus.”
In a daze from the wrath coiling inside her, Guinevere ambled from the room. What she was feeling was somewhat undefinable. Broken hearted and angry came to mind, but something else simmered on the back burner and she wasn’t quite certain what that was. Only time would tell.
* * *
Rulf returned from tucking in the king to find Catrain asleep near the burning pit. Unlike the spitfire she made herself out to be when awake, she was like a baby when she slept. He smiled as he recalled the night he’d awoken in her cottage. Even through the delirium of fever, he could see the softness of her face.
As he stared at her while she slept, Rulf wondered about the accusation of the king. Was she really his daughter? He’d seen the way Syreus looked at Catrain when he thought no one was looking. The king prevented Merced from speaking to her and then Merced changing what he was about to tell her.
What was the betrayal of which the king insisted on accusing Merced? The older knight maintained that he did not betray the king and what he did was for the king. Rulf began to piece the puzzle together.
Merek was the king’s cobbler to the public and the king’s secret knight. Merced disappeared about twenty something years ago. Catrain is about twenty three, four or five? Right? He looked at her, trying to figure her age. It was difficult to tell because she looked older when she was awake.
Rulf’s mind returned to the puzzle and Cronus’ accusation. The Prime Minister said that Merek raised Catrain as his own daughter and that Zenaida ran away with the knight. Was that the betrayal? Did the king take a nether lover?
His eyes strayed to Catrain as he rested against a rock. He would certainly find the truth soon. Remaining loyal to the king was his only mission. Therefore, regardless of what the king did twenty years ago, that would not change. However, as he looked at her, the burning need to know the truth was undeniable.
* * *
Catrain awoke while it was still dark. Worried about her father, she ventured outside the cave. The silhouette of a man with his back to her made her heart skip a beat. She’d only seen him a few times but she’d know him anywhere.
“You’re awake,” he observed, his back still to her.
“How’d you know?” she joined him on the ridge of the large rock which made the cave.
“Ha,” he chuckled. “Some questions cannot be answered.”
“Why aren’t you asleep?”
“I must keep watch until the king is safe.”
“I will keep watch while you get some rest.”
Rulf glanced her way. “Who are you Catrain?”
“What kind of a question is that?”
“Have you thought that maybe you’re the king’s secret?”
“Are you now accusing me of being a derges child? Are you now degrading me?” she hissed. “What is so special about royalites and noblites other than they eat our food and pretend to be better than us?”
“I didn’t mean it…,” he said but she would not listen.
“I will not tolerate more of your disrespect for the heart of the Kisalese people!”
Catrain wasn’t sure what came over her, but she found she could not contain herself.
“All people were once nethers … do you know that?” she asked. “Your ancestors were bred from one. Moreover, my father is a knight and knights were never nethers twenty six years ago.”
Rulf gripped her shoulders and gave her a gentle shake. “Calm down. What I meant to say, was that maybe you are exactly what Cronada needs right now.”
She scrunched her face. “What?”
“I know there have been talks to change the wedlock and military laws. Other kingdoms have done so and are better for it.”
Deflated, she exhaled and allowed her temper to dissipate. He wasn’t trying to insult her as before. But what brought on the sudden change? Did the king say something or was it because of her father?
The sound of rocks falling below made Rulf pull his sword. He shoved her behind him, guarding her with his body. They stood still as two silhouettes appeared in the shadows.
“It is I Merced,” the voice of her father brought joy.
Rulf sheathed his sword and she rushed to meet her father, with him as her uncle carrying two bundles along with his beloved bow and quiver. As they entered the light of the cave, Catrain stood stunned as she saw the tunic her father wore.
The red dragon crest on the shoulder and left breast was the only one of its kind. Stories about it were sang around campfires to children. Everyone knew the legend of this attire and its owner. Dizziness threatened to overshadow her as she realized that whatever her birth, she was not a nether.
Half-royalite or noblite father and nether mother made her a dergabred. Not long ago she adamantly refused to accept that she was. Why did it bother her so? At least she could be proud of one thing. Catrain was the daughter of the legendary Phantom Dragon – the deadliest knight Cronada had even seen.
End of book 1
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Titles by Diana Flame
Print:
Awakening: The Prince of Xygor
Guardians of the Kingdom
Ebooks
The Cinderella Plan
The Cinderella Coup
The Red Cape
The Dragon Curse
Seduced by the Vampire Prince
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Diana has been a fiction and non-fiction writer for many years, creating compelling stories, web content, articles and poetry.
She lives on the island paradise of Jamaica, where she spends most of her days writing. She has always known that she would be a writer. Diana spent her adulthood dreaming of writing her own novels while working a 9 to 5 job. With determination, she quit her job and started working at home full-time as a freelance writer. In 2016 resigned freelancing, dedicating her time to pursuing her dreams of being a novelist.
She is a lover of animals, and has two dogs, a cat and several goats. There are four things she cannot live without: cheesecake, chocolate, good ice-cream and coffee.