The Queen Maker

by Kristen Gupton

  Corina laced her hands together before her stomach, nodding slowly. “Aye, I recognized it the moment I saw it. She used to wear it all the time. How did it end up in the wash? I didn’t know you had ever seen it.”

  Keiran was amazed. He’d slipped it into a pocket before Peirte’s familiar demon had cast him from the castle’s balcony into the river below. How it hadn’t fallen out into the water and been lost forever was beyond him. He’d not thought about it since, the discovery of the pendant having been washed over by the trauma that immediately followed.

  “Corina, I can’t thank you enough for finding it.”

  “Nothing to thank me for. It just happened to be in the same place I glanced down while doing the wash. It’s an unspoken rule that when washerwomen find coins in the laundry we keep them. This seemed a little too important to ferret away from you, though.” Corina managed another smile, drawing a long breath. “Anyway, there it is. I best get back to work.”

  Keiran watched her start for the door. “My mother was Alerian.”

  She stopped short and looked back over her shoulder. It had been forbidden for anyone to discuss Ilana Aviatrov Sipesh with Keiran on pain of death. The previous king even went so far as to have books that documented anything beyond the most basic mention of her native land removed from the castle library. To speak of it now went against her instincts even though Turis Lee was dead.

  She was willing to verify that claim but didn’t want to discuss anything more. “Aye, she was.”

  “Will you tell me more about her? My father isn’t here to threaten you over it,” he said, taking another step closer.

  “It’s not just your father that forbade it, Keiran,” she whispered, looking around the room. A deeper fear welled up inside of her, strong enough for the vampire to sense. “For now, I think you need to concentrate on the Sadori issue. Once that is dealt with then perhaps we can talk of your mother. Not now, though. Please respect me on this, it isn’t yet time.”

  Keiran frowned and looked down at the small pendant, the only tangible evidence of his mother’s life he’d ever held. The fear coming off Corina was real, and he didn’t want to upset her, but how she could be so worried over it given the circumstances baffled him.

  “All right, I won’t press,” he said. “You are right about the Sadoris, but Corina, you must know I’m desperate to finally learn about her. I can’t fathom why she’s been held so secret from me. Royalty is generally tasked with knowing their genealogy forward and backward.”

  She turned to look up at him, her expression serious. Corina could only imagine how frustrating it was for the young king to still live in ignorance over his mother’s origins, but she had her reasons. She knew Keiran thought becoming king would give him a certain right to information and freedom, but it wasn’t so simple.

  Corina shook her head gently. “In due time, Keiran. In due time.”

  He drew a long breath and debated giving in for the time being. There were bigger issues at hand, but his frustration was mounting. The young king couldn’t see any reason for all the secrecy and had previously just chalked it up to one of his father’s insane idiosyncrasies.

  “I’ll let it go, but you must answer me one thing,” he said.

  Corina gave a small nod, eyes flicking around the room again, a cloud of paranoia enveloping her. She was well versed on how stubborn Keiran could be, and if the question was benign enough, there was a chance he would let the issue go if she answered.

  “Why are you still scared to tell me when the order for secrecy came from a man who is dead? If someone else was involved, as you can see, we are quite alone. I would not betray your confidence,” he said, motioning around the room.

  Her expression grew dark, and her hands clenched at her sides. Corina locked gazes with him and frowned. She fought the urge to simply turn away and not reply to him, every instinct in her telling her to run. Keiran deserved at least something, though, and perhaps the answer might keep him at bay a while longer.

  “True, your father gave the decree to all of us to never discuss her. Then he ordered all mention of her removed from the library and documents around the castle. But it wasn’t Turis Lee’s idea,” she said quietly. “Your father was following someone else’s orders on the matter.”

  Keiran felt something distinctly uncomfortable stir in his gut, and he leaned closer to her. A suspicion was already forming up, but he had to hear it. “Who was telling the king what to do in his own home?”

  One of her hands moved up to touch her left shoulder where she’d been injured a few weeks before when a wine bottle had been hurled at her. A long-held fear was boiling over, and she started to tremble where she stood.

  “Athan Vercilla.”

  Keiran’s lips parted, and he started to ask her something else, but Corina had met her breaking point. She shook her head again and raised her hands before turning and jogging out of the room. The elder vampire had personally warned Corina not to tell Keiran of his mother.

  After his last visit, she’d been reminded of Athan’s terrifying power. No, this wasn’t the time to go into it further. He would have to wait, and she hoped he would understand this was something she simply couldn’t discuss.

  He watched her go before looking down at the pendant in his hand again. He knew she was scared of the vampire in question, and given their history, Keiran didn’t blame her in the least.

  Knowing the order had originated from Athan deepened the mystery around it all. He tersed his lips and damned the Sadoris quietly for their invasion. Keiran had waited all of his life to learn about his mother. Though he was tired of waiting, it would have to be put aside.

  There was no record of his mother remaining in the castle, and it would take a while for the librarian to get in new history and genealogy books. He decided to go to the castle’s library and put in the order for those volumes, hoping within a few months he could get it all figured out.

  Chapter 3

  It had been three days since Sorna had left the castle. She’d sought to distract herself from losing Thana by working long hours on her brother’s farm. It was labor she remembered well from her childhood, and she’d already established a daily routine.

  There was a small guest house amongst the outbuildings she’d been given. It was a typical small Tordanian house, made up of one room. Sorna found it spacious compared to the room she’d lived in back at the castle. If only her ungrateful daughter had seen it, she thought the girl might have changed her mind about farm life.

  A few hours after sunset, Sorna went into the main house to help prepare and eat dinner with her brother and his wife. There was definitely something enjoyable about being with family.

  The last time she’d been with them had been decades before. She’d fallen down the stairs in the castle, breaking her ankle. King Turis Lee had given her permission to recover at her brother’s farm for several months, not wanting to feed a servant who was unable to work.

  Anger still lingered over Thana’s behavior, but there remained hope in her the girl would come to her senses. Whether it happened by her own choice or from Keiran breaking her heart didn’t matter. Whatever it took to get the girl to the farm, Sorna was willing to let happen. She believed Thana simply wasn’t bright enough to know what was in her own best interest.

  With dinner eaten and the cleanup done, she left the main house and started across the yard toward her home. More snow had fallen, and clouds were covering the moon. It was cold outside and relatively silent. None of the usual nocturnal creatures were out, preferring to hide away in their burrows and nests.

  Perhaps it was simply the eerie quiet that started to make her instincts heighten. Sorna thought something moved behind her, caught just out of the corner of her eye. She dismissed it, but she definitely had the sensation she wasn’t alone.

  As she walked, there was the sound of snow being compressed. At first, she assumed it was one of the farm animals moving around, but when she heard it a few more times,
she realized it was something on two legs.

  Sorna halted, looking around. Her eyesight wasn’t the best anymore, and the darkness didn’t help any. Her brother and sister-in-law were in the main house, and she grew afraid. Part of her wished to call out and see who was there, but if her mind was just playing tricks, she would feel foolish in doing so. If it was someone, they quit moving when she did, and after several moments of silence, she continued on.

  The hair prickled on the back of her neck, and her heart raced as the sensation of being followed swallowed her. Sorna lifted her dress skirts enough to run toward her house as quickly as she could manage in the snow. Her once shattered ankle added a limp to her gait, hindering her speed.

  It would have been best to return to the main house where there were other people, but her pursuer was coming from that direction. Getting into the guest house and locking the door was the only option she had if she could make it.

  The footsteps were speeding up, too. There was no doubt in her mind it was a person coming after her. After all the grief she’d caused Keiran and with her fear of vampires, the old woman filled with absolute terror. She didn’t know if he’d sent someone to kill her, or if the monster himself was out to slit her throat. Sorna was absolutely certain it was one or the other.

  One last glance over her shoulder, and she saw a cloaked figure rushing up behind her. Sorna gave out a shrill yelp, stumbling forward and groping out for the door. “Leave me be!”

  The figure didn’t stop and continued to hurry toward her.

  Fear caused tears to come to her eyes. Sorna knew she was about to die a horrible death. Her hand found the door handle, and she quickly jerked it open, throwing herself through. She turned and slammed it, hastily flipping down the simple wooden stop that effectively locked the door from the inside.

  Sorna backed away, expecting to hear her follower trying the latch. There was nothing, however, except her gasping breaths to hear. With her hands shaking in fear, she turned to the table in the middle of the room, lighting an aged oil lamp resting upon it.

  After a few moments passed, her heart rate began to slow, and Sorna honestly wondered if it had been all in her mind. She’d seen something, however. Poor eyesight or not, there had been someone moving against the contrasting snow behind her.

  Quietly, but unmistakably, the sound of the back door leading to the outhouse opening filled the room. Sorna froze in terror. She’d always made certain to keep that door locked as it had a tendency to blow open otherwise. Maybe that’s all it was, just the wind.

  Sorna forced herself to move, going over toward the food prepping counter. She grabbed the only knife she possessed, the deer antler handle held in her grip offering little comfort.

  “Leave an old woman in peace! Haven’t I been through enough?” she cried out as the door opened the rest of the way.

  The cloaked figure stood framed in the doorway.

  Sorna glanced over her shoulder toward the locked front door but knew she wouldn’t make it to the main house before the intruder captured her. It was here she’d have to make her stand.

  The man stepped inside, not saying anything as he closed the door behind him. He didn’t move any closer to her but reached up and drew back the hood of his cloak slowly until it fell down around his shoulders.

  Sorna recognized Farin instantly, but it did nothing to allay her fear. Instead, it just reaffirmed her suspicion someone from the castle had been ordered down to kill her. She’d known the man most of her life, but they had never been close.

  “That vampire sent you here to do his dirty work, did he? To silence me once and for all?” she asked, her voice wavering. The knife she’d picked up was held out before her, though it wasn’t a particularly menacing display.

  “No, Sorna, I’m not here to harm you at all,” he replied, trying to keep his tone gentle.

  Farin knew he’d scared the old woman badly enough, but he’d wanted to catch her alone so they could talk in private. Since there had been no other way to contact her, this was the best plan he’d come up with.

  He’d staked out the farm and guesthouse for the better part of the previous two evenings. It had been cold and miserable, but after seeing her routine the previous day, and realizing it was repeating, gave him the opportunity he needed.

  She wasn’t completely reassured by his words but lowered the knife slowly. “Why are you here then? What business do you have with me?”

  Farin smiled and reached beneath his cloak, pulling out a leather bag. He tossed it forward, and it came to rest with a heavy clack onto the table near the oil lamp. It was her back pay, as Keiran had promised.

  Farin had volunteered to deliver the payments, including to those who’d left the castle. It gave him an excuse to be away for a few evenings and find Sorna. “I’ve been tasked with delivering your back pay. That bag has all you earned for your service in gold.”

  It had been years since she’d so much as held a gold coin, and her curiosity got the better of her. If the bag was full, surely she wasn’t about to be killed. There would be no logical point in it.

  She hurried forward and set the knife on the table, picking up the bag. Her arthritic hands struggled with the knot for a moment, but once undone, she upended the bag. Several dozen one-ounce gold coins clattered out onto the table.

  She let out a gasp and slowly lowered herself into a chair, letting her hands scoop up the coins. “My God, this is a fortune!”

  Relieved to see her remaining fear wash away, Farin moved forward and sat at the table across from her. He shoved his cloak off his shoulders letting it fall onto the back of the chair. “The king was generous. I suppose he felt obligated, or maybe it was to buy people’s approval.”

  There was something in his tone that caught her attention. Perhaps it was her own bias, but she sensed Farin wasn’t pleased with their new king.

  She let the coins fall to the table again, looking over at him. “Or trying to buy my daughter from me.”

  Farin fought the urge to smile. Sorna’s disgust with Keiran would make what he wanted to do easier by clouding her judgment. “Your payment did seem a little more substantial than the others.”

  The anger this notion brought up made her attitude change. Her posture stiffened, a frown lining her face. “If it was just to give me this, Farin, what was this business of scaring me to death? Why not announce your identity and what your intentions were? Why frighten an old woman?”

  Farin averted his gaze and shook his head. “It wasn’t my intent to scare you, and I apologize, Sorna. It isn’t just about the payment. Like you, I have taken some issue with our king, and I needed to talk to you in private. I didn’t want to run the risk of anyone hearing what I wanted to say. It could be dangerous.”

  Her suspicions flared. Perhaps this was a setup to get her to say something that would justify action being taken against her. It seemed like a lot of work when the king could simply order an execution, but she’d not yet figured Keiran out.

  “And what do you wish to discuss, Farin?” she asked.

  He picked up on her change in tone and realized she might be more difficult to manipulate than he’d previously hoped. The woman had been suffering from a good dose of paranoia for a while, so it shouldn’t have come as a surprise to him.

  He’d thought out several scenarios about the conversation, and if he had to lie, so be it. “My loyalties aren’t simply to the king, Sorna. I… I am a Church Knight.”

  She placed her hands on the table, and a cold shock ran the length of her spine. She knew well enough who the Church Knights were, and given her suspicions about Keiran and her daughter, it struck a pained chord. She’d tried to warn her repeatedly over the years, but it had been for nothing.

  “I’ve told Thana all of her life she needed to understand the class divisions between she and King Keiran,” Sorna said. “I told her so many times! Please don’t tell me you and the other Church Knights intend to harm her! She’s just naive and idealistic! She
’s fallen under that cursed vampire’s charm, that is all!”

  Farin drew in a long breath, relieved. He wasn’t a Church Knight at all, but Sorna seemed readily willing to believe his claim. It was going to play right into what he wanted.

  “No, though I know personally the two of them do have a relationship brewing, I haven’t brought it to the attention of the others,” Farin replied, shaking his head. “The normal course of action would be to execute your daughter, but I can’t do that. Your husband and I served together in the Royal Guard for years. I have too much respect for him, even in death, to do something like that to his family.”

  Sorna was getting upset again, the mention of execution rattling her. It was a common belief amongst the peasantry that the Church Knights were little more than assassins, there to cull impurities from the royal lineage. With the way their society was kept in secret, there were more than a few dark rumors surrounding the group. Sorna knew if word of her daughter being taken down by the Church Knights spread, she would be shunned by the public. She found it unfair she would have to suffer the ramifications of Thana’s stupidity.

  “I’ve feared for too long the girl was being drawn in by that wretched vampire. Now, with my parental rights stripped away, what course of action can I possibly take to stop it?” she asked, growing afraid. “Farin, I don’t know how I can put an end to it!”

  “We’re never supposed to reveal our identities, so in doing this, I’m risking my own life,” he said, forcing up a worried expression. “But as I said, I have enough respect for Quig that I’m willing to do this to protect his daughter. I could have acted on my own, but I believed you had a right to be involved. I want to do what’s right by Thana, and as her mother, you have the most authority over the situation as far as I can see.”

  Sorna twisted her hands up together and let out a sigh. If Thana only knew what sort of trouble she’d caused with her disobedience. Farin did seem willing to work with the situation, so it was a start. Perhaps the girl’s life would be spared.