Chael's Luck (A Knights of Dorathan Novel)

by Chester, Mireille

  “Ian likes it just fine when I’m in pants and a tunic.”

  She smiled. “So I noticed. However, tonight, you stand before the king and queen.”

  “I’ve stood before them on other occasions, Jasmine.”

  She let out an exasperated breath. “Tonight, you stand before them as Chaela, not Chael. You’re a woman, now, not a Knight.”

  I frowned as what she said registered. “I am a Knight.”

  She looked away from the dresses she’s been fussing over and stared at me, her eyes wide. “I didn’t mean it like that.”

  I waved away her concern. “I know you didn’t, but…” My stomach knotted and I was sure I would throw up. “I am a Knight, Jasmine. I’ve worked very hard my entire life to become one. They can’t take that away from me now, can they?” I left the room without waiting for her answer picking up speed until I was running through the halls; running until I was sitting in the hay loft over the royal barn.

  I clenched my jaw, overwhelmed by what Jasmine had so innocently pointed out. Of course they wouldn’t let me keep my Knight title. Women couldn’t be Knights. It was the one and only reason I’d had to pretend to be a man. Tears welled in my eyes as I thought of everything I had worked so hard for simply being taken away because I’d had Chael’s luck to be born a girl. I thought of how proud my father had been; more proud even than most fathers for he’d known the extra work I’d had to put in to achieve my goal. And yet, for as good as I had become, it hadn’t been good enough to keep him alive, or Alex. I hadn’t even been able to catch Caleb to make him pay for all the hell he’d caused.

  One of the horses below me nickered and I wiped away my tears with the hem of my tunic.

  “Chael, it’s me.” Harry poked his head over the last rung of the ladder. “I mean Chaela.”

  I shook my head, uncaring, and cleared my throat. “What do you want, Harry?”

  He sat beside me and picked up a piece of straw to play with. “Don’t they always send me when you get in a mood and hide up here?”

  I glared at him. “We’re not twelve anymore, Harry.”

  “And yet, here you are.” He put a hand on my shoulder. “Look, Chael, Jasmine told us what she’d said to you. Mac and Hal are trying to calm Ian down…”

  “He’s not mad at her, is he?”

  He shook his head. “No, no, nothing like that. For as much as he hates the Knighthood, he knows how much it means to you. We all wondered about it last night after you went to bed. You know, whether or not they would strip you of your title.”

  I felt the lump in my throat get bigger and I had to swallow a few times before I could talk. “It’s my life, Harry. I spent eighteen years proving myself for this one reason. I… I was willing to give up the chance of ever having a relationship, or becoming a wife, or… I gave up being me so I could become a Knight. I’ve earned this.”

  He smiled. “I know that. We know that. Mac, Hal, and I, we stayed to talk with General Krane after you’d left and we told him exactly that. He asked us if we’d still be comfortable fighting alongside you now that we knew you were a woman.”

  I frowned and glanced at him. “And?”

  “Well, of course we told him no way in hell. It was one thing to get beat by a runt of a man, but to lose a challenge to a woman, well, we won’t have any of it.” He shook his head. “What do you think we said?” He started to laugh and I couldn’t help but smile. “We told him we’d be honored to fight alongside you. You may be a woman, but you embody what it means to be a Knight. A Knight works hard, protects those they love and those they are in charge of, and above all they are selfless. Chaela, you continued on a quest to find a book which was going to be used to kill those who have made your life hell since the day you walked into the training barracks. You were willing to die for your fellow Knights even though you thought all of us would hate you because you were actually a woman.”

  I couldn’t help but blush at the praise and I was glad it was dark in the loft. “And what did General Krane have to say?”

  “Well, don’t get your hopes up just in case he can’t manage, but he tends to agree with us. He just needs to convince the Knights on the board that even though you are a woman, you are worthy of being a Knight.”

  “You mean…”

  “I said don’t get your hopes up. There are some very old Knights with very old fashioned views sitting on that board.” He smiled. “Do you feel a bit better?”

  I nodded. “I do. Thank you.”

  He grinned. “See? That’s why they always send me.”

  I laughed and started to follow him to the ladder. He stopped before heading down. “Don’t you worry, Chaela. You won’t be fighting for this on your own.”

  We walked back to my room in silence. I opened the door and was shocked to see Mac, Hal, Jasmine, and Ian waiting for us. Harry went to stand by his brother.

  “I…” My voice caught in my throat as the three of them stood at attention and saluted me. I swallowed hard and returned the honor. Ian watched the display, obviously in awe of what was being demonstrated.

  Hal smiled. “To the end, Chaela.”

  I nodded. “To the end.” I took a deep breath and went to Ian who pulled me into a hug.

  “Are you alright?”

  “I am.” I inhaled deeply.

  “Chaela, I’m sorry. You know, it’s probably fine if you go in your tunic.” Jasmine gestured to the bed where she’d laid out my family tunic and pants.

  I smiled sadly at the sight of the black winged horse. I looked at Ian and made my decision. “Boys, if you don’t mind, we have a banquet to get ready for.” I stood on my tip toes and kissed him deeply.

  He smiled. “You’ll be beautiful no matter what you decide to wear.”

  I blushed which caused my friends to chuckle. Jasmine ushered them out of the room and turned to me.

  “Are you any good with a needle?” I asked.

  “Of course I am. While you were off learning how to fight and ride horses, I was learning how to sew.” She stuck her tongue out at me and I laughed. “What are you thinking?”

  I moved to the side of the bed and pointed to the dark green satin dress with black lacing and trim. “That one.”

  *****

  Ian pulled the white tunic over his head and tucked it into the dark brown pants. Mac walked in and nodded.

  “I had a feeling my brother’s clothes would fit.” He handed over the dark grey jacket and put on his own dark blue one. He smiled. “What do you think Chaela will pick to wear?”

  Ian shrugged. “I’m not sure. A few months ago, I’d have gone with the tunic, but she’s started to find herself the past little while.” He shook his head. “You have no idea how confused that woman was the day her father died and he told her he’d made a mistake. She’s been finding herself a bit at a time and I don’t imagine the process will be over any time soon.”

  “How did you come to find she was actually a woman?”

  They started toward the great hall.

  “When her father was killed, Caleb stabbed her. She ignored that fact and didn’t tell me. She helped me dig the grave for Sir James and the next thing I knew she was passing out from the pain.”

  Mac grunted. “That sounds like Chael.”

  Ian chuckled. “I was trying to take her vest and tunic off to have a look at the cut and she was fighting me every step of the way. She finally blacked out and I got the shock of a lifetime when I got her stripped.”

  Mac laughed. “I can just about imagine.”

  They turned at the sound of quite footsteps coming down the hall behind them. Mac smiled at Jasmine and cast a glance at Ian to see what his reaction to Chaela might be.

  Ian’s heart jumped and he gazed in wonder at the beauty presenting herself to him. Jasmine had curled Chaela’s hair so that it fell in ringlets to her shoulders. She wore the chain he had given her. The dress clung to her body and flared slightly at the waist. He smiled at the fact she’d worn her black bel
t and dagger. Over the dagger, sewed into the fabric of the dress, was her family’s emblem. Chaela curtsied, holding the edges of the long green skirt out as she did. He bowed to her out of pure habit, unable to take his eyes off of her.

  “Do you like it?” She frowned, trying to decipher the look on his face.

  “By gods, Chaela, I’m glad you grew up as a boy. If you’d looked like this you’d have been married off long ago and I never would have had the chance to claim you as mine.” He blushed at Jasmine’s giggle. What in the world had made him say that? Claim her as his. By gods, she’d probably leave this second. She surprised him by smiling.

  “Yours, am I?”

  He took a deep breath. “I like to think so.”

  Her grin widened. “I like to think so, too.” She linked her arm with his and they followed behind Mac and Jasmine. The closer they got to the doors, the more he could feel the reluctance in her steps. He stopped and turned to face her.

  “Nervous?”

  She nodded.

  “Me, too.” He held her face gently and watched as she relaxed at the touch. “We’ve been through worse, yeah?”

  Chaela nodded though she didn’t seem sure of her answer.

  “It will be me and you, understand. I promise not to leave you alone.”

  She glanced from the doors to the opposite end of the hallway.

  “Chaela, I’ve seen you fight ogres and would be rapists and traitors. I’ve seen you ride a psychotic horse.” He kissed the end of her nose. “You are the most amazing woman I’ve ever had the pleasure to meet and somehow, by the grace of some god, you managed to stand me long enough to fall in love with me.”

  Her blush made his smile.

  “I love you, Chaela, and if you don’t want to walk through those doors, I’ll be more than happy to follow you wherever it is you want to go. If we go in and you decide you want to leave, then so be it. We’re here as guests; they can’t make us stay.”

  She smiled. “It’s hard to tell a dead man and a woman who doesn’t exist what they should or should not do.”

  “Exactly.” He turned toward the doors and held his arm out to her. “My lady.”

  She took his arm, but held him back. “Ian?”

  “Hmmm?”

  “You’ll tell me if you want to leave, too, alright?”

  He smiled and nodded. “Take a glance at the doors.” He gestured to where Mac, Harry, and Hal all stood. “It looks like you’re getting your own personal escort.” He kissed the top of her head and let go of her arm so he could take her hand. “Let’s go make some jaws drop.”

  *****

  I stood at the doors, Ian’s hand in mine, and three of my fellow Knights behind us. General Krane smiled at the sight of us. His eyes fell on the winged horse stitched to my dress and his smile widened.

  “Nice touch.”

  I grinned. “I thought so.” I frowned. “Sir? How do you plan on announcing us?”

  He chuckled. “I worked on that issue for the better part of the morning. Truth be told, until they tell me otherwise, you’re still a Knight and if I have anything to say about it when the issue comes up, you’ll be one until the day you decide otherwise.”

  My throat tightened. “Thank you, Sir.”

  He nodded to me then turned to face the room. “Introducing our next guests of honor, Ian Murphy, son of Sir Gavin Murphy, and Miss Chaela McKinney, Shadow Knight of Dorathan, daughter to Sir James McKinney.”

  The silence that followed his announcement was deafening. Ian gave my hand a squeeze and I looked up to see him matching his father’s glare. I squeezed him back and managed to get his attention. We shared a smile and walked down the aisle to stand before the king and his family. The princess’s eyes were saucers in her head.

  Ian and I bowed to the royal family. The king stood, but didn’t respond which caused me to throw a curtsey in for good measure. A few of the people in the crowd chuckled and the king smiled.

  “Sir Cha… um… miss Chaela.”

  “Your highness.” My heart started to pound in my chest.

  “I’m curious, why did you curtsey after the bow?”

  I felt my face flush. “Honestly, you majesty, I’m not sure if I’m supposed to bow, curtsey, or salute at the moment.”

  His grin widened. “Yes, I must say, this is a confusing situation. I had the pleasure of talking to General Krane this morning who filled me in on what you’ve been up to in your absence.” He stood at attention and saluted me. Ian let go of my hand so I could return the honor. The crowd’s murmuring grew louder and he turned his attention to Ian.

  “Sir Ian.”

  Ian shook his head. “No sir, your majesty. Just Ian.”

  “Ah, yes. General Krane also enlightened me on this subject this morning. It seems you are back from the dead after being killed in a riding accident five years ago.” The crowd turned simultaneously to look at his father who seemed to shrink at the attention.

  “So I’ve been told, your highness.”

  “When we have a bit of time, I’d like to hear the entire story behind these events.”

  Ian nodded.

  King Gale turned his gaze to the three Knights standing at attention behind us. “Sir Harry, Sir Hal, and Sir Mac, if I remember correctly.”

  All three of them saluted smartly and nodded.

  “I’m curious as to why the three of you have decided to escort this pair to stand before me.”

  Harry took a step forward. “Sir, we wish to show our support of these two. With everything that’s been happening, it would have been much simpler for them to simply disappear and forget about the rest of us. If you ask anyone here, Ian’s already been dead for five years, and yet he took it upon himself to aid Chaela in her quest.

  “Your majesty, sir, as for Chaela, well, she’s always been one of your most honorable Knights. One of her highest qualities is the fact that she would never leave a man behind. She’s helped the three of us, as well as many of the Knights sitting here today, out of situations as innocent as lending us a dagger if we lost ours or giving up her chance to win the Knight’s race to get an injured friend back home safely. She’s put herself in harm’s way to defend injured Knights on the occasions when we would come across goblins on our patrols.

  “Your highness, I’m aware I can’t go into the details of what is occurring at the moment, but Chaela has stayed on course, has traveled across the continent, and has risked her life in an attempt to finish the assignment she was sent on the day after her Knighting. She’s done all of this for people she knew would judge her for how she had lived her life. And really, what has she done other than to try harder, work harder than the rest of us to become what she is today. We stand behind her to show our support; to show that just because she is a woman, in our eyes, this does not make her any less of a Knight.”

  The king smiled as Harry bowed and stepped back into his place behind me. I fought to keep my breathing regular and not to let the tears well in my eyes. Ian took my hand again and I squeezed his before we made our way to the table we had been assigned.

  “Ladies, gentlemen, Knights; we gather tonight to celebrate Queen Margaret.” His kissed his wife’s cheek and grinned. “Let us eat!”

  I took a drink of my ale and tried to ignore the stares as people looked over to us curiously.

  “It’s like being a two headed tiger at the rare animal park,” mumbled Ian.

  I started to laugh and he smiled.

  “And which head do you think you are, then?” I asked.

  “Oh, I’m the one with the brains, no questions about it.”

  I raised an eyebrow at him then turned my attention to one of the Knights that had trained with me; the one I’d heard defending me to his father. John stopped at our table, smiled, stood at attention, and saluted.

  “Sir Chaela.”

  Ian managed to choke down the swallow of ale he’d had in his mouth without letting it out of his nose. I stood, grinning, and returned the honor.
<
br />   “Sir John.”

  “I ran into Mac this morning and he filled me in on what’s been going on.” He nodded to Ian as well. “If the two of you need a hand with anything, you can call on me.”

  Ian nodded his thanks. He put a hand on my thigh as we watched John walk back to his table.

  “And you thought they’d all hate you.” He gave me a squeeze before resuming his meal.

  I looked around and noticed most people had seemed to have lost interest and were deep in conversation with their neighbor. I started to relax and enjoy my meal.

  The platters had been cleared and the band had started to play when I felt Ian tense beside me. I caught a glimpse of his father making his way towards us through the crowd of dancers. I reached between us and took his hand.

  Sir Gavin stopped before us. “Ian.”

  Ian stood and pulled me up with him. “Gavin.”

  His father glared at him and I was amazed on how alike the two looked. Both had the dark blond hair, though Sir Gavin kept his cropped short, and both had been blessed with those amazing grey eyes.

  “The last time I checked, I was your father.”

  Ian’s voice showed no emotion, though I could feel the slight shaking of his hand in mine. “From what I remember, the last time I talked with you, you had no son.” He started to walk away, leading me along. “Let’s go dance, Chaela.”

  I waited until his father was out of ear shot before voicing my objection. “I can’t dance.”

  He frowned. “You’re a Knight. All Knights dance. It’s almost as much a requirement as riding and fighting.” He grinned.

  “Well, yes, of course…”

  He stopped on the dance floor just as a slower song started to play.

  “Ian!” I hissed at him. “I don’t know how to dance like a girl!”

  His grin widened and he pulled me to him, his hand pressed firmly to the small of my back. His other hand moved down my bare arm and his grin gave way to a softer smile as I shivered at the touch. He took my hand in his.