The Myatheira Chronicles: Volume Four: In the Beginning

by Melissa Collins

  Hopeful, Etyn lifted his swollen gaze to Therek, peering at him through the darkness. “Is this true, Your Grace?”

  Kaori cast a hesitant glance over her shoulder, praying silently that Therek would play along. She wasn’t lying to her parents. The only thing she couldn’t promise them was her own safety. “It is true,” Therek nodded, making no attempt to come any closer. No doubt out of respect for the privacy of the conversation between Kaori and her parents. “Your daughter has done nothing wrong. We will make sure everything is sorted out in a timely fashion.”

  “Thank you, Your Grace,” Kaori’s mother reached her hand toward him, the gesture garnering the first indication of emotion from Therek that Kaori had seen since they arrived to the dungeon. Struggling to maintain his composure he knelt stiffly on the floor beside Kaori, accepting her mother’s outstretched hand. “Please, take care of our daughter. This is no place for her. Surely you can convince the Emperor not to order her into these cells.”

  “I will do my best to see she is treated fairly, Countess. Do not worry. This will all be over soon.”

  “I am sorry, Mother,” Kaori fought back the tears which threatened to fall at the sight of her parents locked behind the cold bars. They didn’t deserve to be there. This place was designated for criminals. Not respectable men and women like her mother and father. “Please, forgive me. I never intended for this to happen.”

  “Do not be sorry, dear,” her mother smiled, releasing Kaori’s hand to gently cup the side of her face. At the sensation of her mother’s touch Kaori could no longer hold back the tears, feeling the moisture escape her lashes to roll over her mother’s fingers. “Your father and I love you. Do not forget that.”

  “I love you, too. That is why I must beg your forgiveness. This is all my fault.”

  “Nonsense, Kaori,” Etyn shook his head. “As His Grace said, you have done nothing wrong. Everything will be better soon. You just wait and see.”

  “Unfortunately, we do not have much time,” Therek’s voice drifted into Kaori’s ear, reminding her of his presence at her side. She hated to accept his words as truth, but she knew he was right. Their time was limited. If she was going to get her parents out of here, she needed to stop wasting precious moments which could be spent on the road to Rothdara.

  Nodding her head, Kaori brought her hand up to brush her mother’s fingers, not wanting to pull away, but knowing there was no choice. They had wasted too much time as it was. “I will be back soon. I promise.”

  “Just be careful, Kaori,” her mother sniffled, new tears streaming over the dirt which caked the elegant curve of her face. “Your father and I never had a chance to teach you the truth of these people. They are wretched, darling. Do not let them take advantage of you.”

  “I will make you both proud, I promise,” Kaori trembled as she allowed Therek to help her to her feet, the pain in her heart increasing with every second they remained. It tore at her insides, building up the guilt which already ate away at her. If they stayed much longer, she wasn’t sure she would have the strength to walk away. Now wasn’t the time to lose her nerve. Tearing her eyes from her parents she tried to keep her chin held high, not wanting to let them see her internal struggle. It was important they not notice the uncertainty in her eyes. “Let us be on our way, Your Grace,” she whispered to Therek, the words more difficult to speak than she liked to admit. Her only consolation in leaving her parents now was knowing that her return would bring their freedom. Whatever happened beyond that, only the gods could know.

  Kaori stood at the center of the clearing, staring out at the crystal-blue water known to her people as the Lake of the Gods. The thin fabric of her simple white dress did little to keep out the chill in the air, wind seeping through the material to blow coolly against her skin. The first night of the ritual had gone smoothly. She had feared the duress which forced her into her current position would make it difficult to focus on the tasks required. Luckily, it had been easier to accomplish the goal she set out to achieve once she was safely within the sacred woods. The spirits of her people protected this place. With their help, she would persevere.

  Entering the lake was the final task which remained. If her will was strong enough, it was said that the waters would part to guide her back to shore. Her uncertainty laid in what would become of her if she failed. What if the gods didn’t think her fit for adulthood? She’d already done so much to bring shame to her family. There was no way to know how the gods felt about her right now.

  The lush grass was cool against her bare feet, serving as a constant reminder of how vulnerable she was. There was nothing to protect her from the elements out here other than herself. A girl’s biggest enemy during the rite of passage was her mind. It was too easy to convince herself that she wasn’t good enough. That she wasn’t ready. But the time to question her strength was over. She no longer had a choice in the matter.

  With each step she felt her heart start to race. Closer and closer she came until her feet entered the water, its depth rapidly increasing. The incline of the lake bottom was remarkably steep. From the shore it looked so peaceful. Harmless. It was the stories she had been told about the lake which caused the fear that continued to grip her. Forget the stories. They didn’t matter right now. If she couldn’t let go of the rumors, how did she ever expect to overcome the fear?

  Water soaked her dress, reaching over her chest from where she came to pause. She wasn’t sure how far out she was required to go to complete the ritual. There was no real specification other than that she had to be fully submerged. Determined not to make any missteps, she lowered herself into the water, reaching her hands toward the lakebed as she attempted to kneel upon the sand. The sounds around her were muffled by the water over her ears. From the depths of the lake she thought she could hear voices. Calling out to her from somewhere in the darkness in loud, hissed whispers. Her mother had spoken of the spirits that inhabited the lake. Ghosts of their ancestors. Spectral beings who helped guide the young Vor’shai women through the rites. As a child it had been fascinating to consider. Now, she didn’t dare look. There was no telling what she would see if she opened her eyes and she wasn’t sure she would be able to maintain focus if those stories turned out to be true.

  It didn’t take long for the burning in her lungs to set in. She needed air. Coherent thoughts would be impossible to keep up if she couldn’t take a breath soon. The whispers were getting louder. More distinct. A combination of male and female alike, urging her to be still. She wanted to laugh. How was she supposed to keep still when her lungs were on fire?

  She was drowning. There was no doubt in her mind that this was what it felt like to die at the hands of the water. Suffocating. If she died in this place, her parents would be murdered by the week’s end. She couldn’t sit there and allow herself to willingly accept death. Forcing her eyes open, she instinctively started to rise, desperate to reach the surface. Before she could move, the water around her began to stir, the strange voices reaching a crescendo, like piercing shrieks coming from every corner of the woods. They screamed at her, frantic. There was no anger, only desperation, telling her to move. Go to shore. Move quickly. It took several moments for her to realize she wasn’t under water any longer, air reaching her lungs with steady breaths, relieving the pressure which had built inside her head.

  The shrieking continued, growing in desperation with every step she took toward the shore. There was something familiar about the sound. She knew that voice, though she had never heard it reach quite the pitch it shouted with now. Her memory of the sound was more graceful. Eloquent. Hastening her pace along the dry ground, she paid little attention to the fact that she now walked along the bottom of the lake, its water parted to create a path for her to reach the shore. Had her mind been clearer, she may have been amazed by the sight. It was unnatural, the walls of water rising tall into the air, as if held in place by some invisible barrier. But that voice! It was getting closer. Nothing like the ghostly whispers t
hat had surrounded her in the water. With each shout, an image finally formed in her mind, seeing the long lashes which surrounded a pair of beautiful green eyes. An oval face outlined by waves of dark brown hair, shimmering in the sunlight from above.

  “Pehrona?” she gasped, recognizing the slender figure which moved to stand in front of her as she exited the strange walls of water. It was nothing spiritual or surreal, her friend’s hands quickly reaching to pull her forward, nearly causing her to fall face-first into the moist grass. “Pehrona, what is it? What is wrong?”

  “You have to get back to Rothdara,” Pehrona insisted, helping to steady Kaori on her feet. “The Duke told me you would be here. I came as quickly as I could.”

  “The Duke?” Kaori blinked. She had left the Duke in Rothdara to wait for her. But Pehrona was in Avishul with Liurn and Sivar. How was it that she had come to speak with Therek when he was so far away? The Lake of the Gods was practically in Siundel. “I do not understand. What is going on?”

  Frenetic in her motions, Pehrona guided Kaori forward, paying no attention to the pull of the branches against the heavy fabric of her citrine gown. “The Duke arrived in Siundel late last evening. He requested I come here to find you immediately.”

  “The Duke was supposed to remain in Rothdara…”

  “He is already on his way there. Kaori, it is about your parents.”

  Kaori’s blood ran cold, staring at Pehrona in stunned silence. Her parents? “What about my parents?” she questioned, giving up her resistance in following Pehrona. If something had happened to her family, she didn’t want to waste time standing around to talk about it.

  “Word came from Eykanua that General Deliao announced preparations for their execution. It is said they are to be beheaded in two days at the city center of Rothdara.”

  “That cannot be possible,” Kaori argued, unwilling to accept what her friend was saying. It had only been a few days. The Emperor had given her until the end of the week. “The Duke must be mistaken,” she exhaled, breathless. “I spoke with the Emperor. My parents were to be released upon my return to Eykanua.”

  “The Duke is not mistaken, Kaori. I have heard the word around town myself. Sivar has already left your Uncle’s home to make his way to Rothdara. Lord Torust is waiting with a carriage just beyond these woods to take us there as well.” Pehrona stopped suddenly, gasping for breath. Her hands grasped at the firm stays of her corset, her face turning a brilliant shade of red under the exertion of their hastened steps. “We must hurry. Liurn says if we do not pause on our journey, we may be able to reach the city with a few moments to spare.”

  Quickly Kaori reached for Pehrona’s arm, sympathetic to her breathless wheezes though unable to bring herself to allow time for rest. There would be plenty of time for Pehrona to relax once they had found their way to the carriage. “We cannot linger,” she insisted, urging Pehrona to move. “This must be some mistake. The Emperor promised me a week.”

  “The Emperor is a scoundrel. You must never trust a word that man says,” Pehrona shook her head, inhaling another shaky breath. “I do not know how the Duke can tolerate his company.”

  “They appear rather close. Perhaps there is something to be said about that.” It made Kaori sick to her stomach. How could Therek consider that man a friend? He had shown clear disdain for the way the Emperor conducted business. A distinct lack of surprise to hear that Kaori’s honor had been threatened. Something told her this wasn’t the first time Sulel behaved in such a manner while within Therek’s presence.

  By the time they reached the tree line, Kaori felt as if her heart would surely burst forth from her chest. Liurn’s amber eyes glowed brightly from the driver’s perch on the carriage, calling to them as they broke through the branches to stumble onto the road. “Get in!” he shouted, tightening his grip on the reins in preparation to leave.

  Following his command, Kaori ran toward the carriage door, pulling it open in a single, fluid motion, legs shaking uncontrollably as she helped Pehrona up the step and into the seats. Close behind, it didn’t take Kaori long to do the same, slamming the door shut in hopes that Liurn would hear the sound and set the vehicle into motion. Immediately, she felt the carriage jerk, tossing her harshly backward against the cushioned seats as the horses quickly increased their steps to a run, clattering along the gravel in a cloud of dust behind the wheels.

  It took several moments for Kaori to adjust, confused by the events which had transpired over the past few minutes. Her mind remained back at the lake, thinking over the rites she’d only just completed. In the eyes of her people, she was an adult now. But what about her parents? It didn’t seem possible that the Emperor would go back on his word. He had given assurances that they would be set free once she returned to Eykanua. This had to be a misunderstanding. And she had every intention of setting it right once she reached Rothdara.

  “I don’t understand,” she murmured under her breath. No matter how she played things over in her mind, it didn’t make sense. The timing was too wrong for it to be a mistake. In order for her parents to be in Rothdara by the time specified for the execution, General Deliao would have had to leave Eykanua not long after Kaori and Therek. He wouldn’t have traveled through the nights with the same haste. It would take him nearly a week to arrive. Exactly the time Pehrona indicated for the execution. “Would there not be a trial? How can the Emperor simply send two people to their deaths without hearing their plea?”

  “The Emperor is the final judge and jury, Kaori. If he gives the order, no further trial is necessary.”

  “But he knows they are innocent.”

  “Do you think he has never sent an innocent person to their death before?” Pehrona’s brow raised inquisitively at Kaori’s naivety. “I admit that I have no knowledge of the charges placed against your parents, but if their death serves to the Emperor’s benefit in some way, he would not hesitate to give the command.”

  Frustrated, Kaori shook her head, unwilling to accept that any man could possibly be so cruel. So selfish. “The charges were not against my parents. They were against me.”

  “You?” Pehrona blinked. “What did you do?”

  “I…” Kaori fumbled over her words. She trusted Pehrona. They hadn’t known each other for very long, but her reputation with Kaori’s family was enough to sate her concern. “A few months ago I was attacked by two of General Deliao’s men while on the road in Rothdara. They were escorting the Emperor’s Chamberlain to Eykanua when they found me. I should not have been out so late – or rather, I should not have been out at all. Deliao left his men to assist me in getting home. Once the General left, his men chased me into the woods in attempts to dishonor me. I struck them, only for the sake of defense. In the end, they went to the Emperor and accused me of assaulting them without reason.”

  “And it is your word against theirs? You have no witness to their behavior?”

  Inhaling deeply, Kaori shook her head. If she was going to protect Therek, she couldn’t let anyone know about his presence that evening. Not even their closest friends and allies. “The General was aware of their intentions. He did not say as much, but his farewell to the men practically gave them his blessing. With Deliao backing the word of his men, there is no getting through to the Emperor.”

  She hated the mortified expression frozen on Pehrona’s gentle features. When put into words, the situation sounded even worse to Kaori’s ears. “Why your parents, then?” Pehrona asked, puzzled by the final detail which Kaori had yet to divulge. “If the soldiers named you as the suspect, why would the Emperor hold your parents responsible for your actions?”

  There it was. The question Kaori had been dreading. Soon everyone would be made aware of the blunder her family made in allowing Kaori to enter society against the customs of their people. “Is it not obvious?” she returned Pehrona’s question with another, hoping her friend would come to the conclusion on her own. “There is only one reason a girl would come to the Lake of the Gods. As you f
ound me there today, the Emperor’s reason should be quite clear.”

  “It is not punishable by death to allow your child into society without completing the rites. Many families have chosen to do so over the years. While our people frown upon it, the humans could not care less. The Emperor would not sentence them so harshly for something which is not considered a crime among the other races.”

  “But the Emperor also cannot arrest a child,” Kaori frowned. “I may be an adult in the eyes of the humans, but not to the Vor’shai. It would be a political nightmare if he had me thrown in a cell.”

  Pehrona leaned back in her seat, realization evident in her eyes. She was an intelligent woman. Kaori had no doubt that she would understand the implications presented. “So your parents are being held accountable for your actions.” It wasn’t a question. Pehrona didn’t need confirmation when the answer was evident. “You said something about the Emperor earlier. What did you mean when you said he promised you a week?”

  “I meant exactly what I said.” It angered Kaori to think on her conversation with the Emperor. She hated that man. Nothing he did now would ever change her opinion. “The Duke took me to Eykanua after we discovered my parents had been arrested. I offered myself in their stead and was informed that if I could complete the rites and return to Eykanua within a week, he would release my parents and allow me to stand trial for my crimes.”

  “What crimes?” Pehrona exclaimed, shocked by Kaori’s seeming acceptance of guilt. “Those soldiers attacked you! There is nothing for anyone to stand trial for other than General Deliao’s men.”