Code Redhead - A Serial Novel

by Sharon Kleve

  “You, Lucas, will be our new king.”

  “Oh, no, Mother. I am not qualified. I am not smart enough. I am not kingly material.”

  “That is your father talking. You are as smart and as kingly as Marcus and Darius. And Theodore, for that matter. And your brothers taught you everything you need to know. Why he singled you out as undesirable I do not know. And it has been the subject of many heated royal disagreements.”

  “I have no desire to be the king.”

  “You will change your mind once you are king and take a w…” The queen eyed Sarah and changed the subject. “We need you, Lucas. Without you to take over, we are doomed to chaos and insurrection. There is talk of uniting all of LaMere under one rule. There are so many more lowlanders than people of the Mist.”

  “There may be advantages, Mother, to one rule throughout the land.”

  “Lucas, you talk heresy,” said the queen. “Pray your father does not get wind of your new views.”

  “Your Majesty,” said Sarah. “I fear for Lucas’s safety. Whomever killed Marcus and Darius may now come after Lucas. Do you have any idea who would benefit from the end of the House of Walker rule?” she asked. “If we had an idea who stood to gain from the elimination of the entire Walker line, we might be able to figure out who is behind this plot.”

  “I assure you, Lucas is safe in his own castle,” said the queen.

  “Yes, about as safe as Darius was in his own church,” said Lucas.

  The queen sobbed into her handkerchief. “You are correct. None of us is safe. The rest of us could be murdered in our sleep. I cannot believe one of our own people would do such a horrible thing.”

  “Do such a horrible thing twice,” said Lucas.

  “I do not think it was King Jason. Did you know that he and Marcus were negotiating a peace agreement?”

  “What? No,” said Lucas and Queen Renata together.

  “The king will not be pleased.”

  “Is he ever pleased about anything, Mother?” bristled Lucas.

  “King Jason had nothing but respect for Prince Marcus,” said Sarah. He said he was sure they could have come to a peaceful understanding. I suspect the princes were murdered by whomever would gain power with the elimination of all Walker heirs. Someone who does not wish peace throughout LaMere. Who would that be?”

  “I do not know,” said Queen Renata. We had three sons. We had plenty of heirs. Any further discussion on royal succession never came up.”

  “Lucas, I can take a look at your father if you wish. If it is simply the beating of his heart that is the problem, I can fix it.”

  “Yes, please. But why would you wish to help him?” asked the queen. “He has a hatred for your kind. He has been belligerent and disagreeable to you.”

  “King Theodore does not frighten me, Your Majesty.” Sarah laughed. “And I may be able to extend his life. Maybe the extra time he receives will mellow him out a bit.”

  “Getting him to agree to be alone with you will be a problem,” pondered Lucas.

  “His big, blustery demeanor toward me hides his fear, a deep fear of all Reds.”

  “King Theodore fears nothing!” defended the queen.

  “Really? Then ask him to meet with us alone and let us see how brave he is!” Sarah laughed.

  “Just you and Lucas? May I also be present?”

  “Yes, of course, Your Majesty,” answered Sarah.

  Lucas and Sarah returned to his bedchamber.

  “Come.” Lucas patted the bed next to him. “I desire nothing more than to lay next to you and hold you close to me. I want to tell you all the absurd, crazed thoughts that are leaping around in my head.”

  Sarah approached the bed cautiously.

  “Still afraid of me?”

  “Oh, I am afraid all right, but not of you,” said Sarah. “I am afraid to let lose my feelings. I am afraid I will not be able to stop myself.”

  “Stop yourself from what?”

  “Stop myself from loving you. You are so much more than any man I have ever encountered anywhere at any time. You have no idea how special you are.”

  “Oh, my lovely Sarah, you have been locked away in Marlowe Castle for far too long if you think I am special. But, I like that you think I am. Come.” He opened his arms.

  Sarah crawled into bed and snuggled next to Lucas. He drew her close to him and gently kissed her forehead.

  “I love you, Sarah. I love you more than I ever thought I could love anyone. I am happy just holding you in my arms. Happier than I ever remember being.”

  “Lucas, you do realize I am…different from you, don’t you?”

  “The fact that you are a redhead while the rest of us boring people are shades of brown? That just makes you more special.”

  “No. It’s more than hair color, eye color, and the ability to subdue. Hold on.”

  Sarah closed her eyes and held on tightly to Lucas.

  In a moment, they were lying in the grass near a stream.

  “How do you do that? That is absolutely amazing. It saves hours and hours of back-breaking bouncing around on a horse, after the chore of successfully climbing atop the beast, to begin with. Then there is the sore bum to contend with, and the inability to hold one’s legs properly together and walk once one finally dismounts. Amazing! Wonderful! I love it.

  “What else?”

  “I can tell when a storm approaches. Come on, the big rock where we can dangle our feet in the water is right up here.” They walked hand in hand to the rock and got comfortable.

  “The weather foretelling is terrific. I do not like to get caught in the rain. What else?”

  “I can smell danger.”

  “What does it smell like? Black pepper?”

  “I think you are taking all this a bit too lightly.”

  “No. These are minor, minor things.”

  “Lucas, when I touched your face, a spell was cast. You only think you have affection for me.”

  “No, sweet Sarah. I loved you from the moment I saw you before me in that cold, damp cell in the dungeon. I knew it, although I did not think I would live long enough to experience the joy of holding you in my arms, or kissing those soft, sweet, lips. Or hearing you tell me you think I am special. And I felt this way before you laid your hand upon my face.

  “This wonderful thing I feel for you is no magic spell, my darling. Do we have some obstacles in our path? Yes, we certainly do. But, together, we can make them disappear.”

  “Oh, really, Loo-kiss?” Sarah teased. Will the bevy of beautiful Mist maidens who swoon all over you and giggle and bat their eyelashes at your every word, be a problem for me?”

  “No, my darling. No problem at all. And if living at Mist Castle is any problem for you, then we go elsewhere. I will go anywhere to be with you, anywhere at all.

  “Sarah, what really happened to your people?” asked Lucas. “You said you knew we didn’t kill them.”

  “Mist warriors had been killing our livestock and destroying our crops. One day they surrounded us, drunk on hate and fear. We held hands and thought about our home. And we all went back to where we came from.”

  “And the dumb fools surrounding you thought they vaporized you?”

  “I guess. I don’t know.”

  “So, where is home? Across the vast ocean?”

  “No, love. In the sky. Far away.”

  “How did you get to Marlowe from the sky?”

  “Many years passed. I grew up. I got a job with a scientific organization that repairs broken timelines.”

  “Marlowe was broken?”

  “No, Lucas. I came here to save your life. And I have completed my mission.”

  “Yes, you did. Lucky for me. And you fell in love with your science experiment in the process.” He hugged her. “That is utterly charming.”

  “Theo, I told Lucas of your heart condition and he believes his…little friend, Sarah, may be of help to you.”

  “Renata, why did you mention it? I do no
t wish to appear weak and feeble in the eyes of my subjects or my last surviving son.”

  “Make peace with him, my dear, before it is too late.”

  “And what will you have me do, my beautiful and patient queen?”

  “Allow Lucas and the Red a private audience. See if she can help you. Theo, I am far from ready to lose you. Please, my darling. I beg you.”

  “She is a witch!”

  “Nonsense. You know there is no such thing. You only speak of witches to frighten and incite the ignorant.”

  “Well, she’s…something. Look at what she’s done to Lucas. He is self-assured and confident. He emits a royal presence. His voice is deep and strong. I hardly recognize him. He is even taller than I remember.”

  “That is because he is not cowering in fear, Theo. Will you allow her to look at you? Perhaps even touch you? I will be present.”

  “Very well, Renata, if it will make you happy. You may arrange the private audience.”

  The king made himself comfortable on his bed. “I am ready, Renata. Allow the hellhound and her minion to enter. See to it that the Red witch does not fry my brains.”

  “Yes, dear. That will be my top priority.” The queen moved to the door and opened it.

  “The king will see you now.”

  Sarah and Lucas entered the dark and sparse room. Sarah was surprised at its cold and minimalist décor, so unlike Lucas’s room with the blue velvet and golden braid draperies at the windows and surrounding the bed and the intricately carved writing desk. Lucas and the queen remained at the closed door while Sarah approached the bed. She reached down to touch the king’s head. He grabbed her hand.

  “Do you claim to love my son?” he whispered.

  “Yes, I do,” Sarah said quietly.

  “You two have no future together. It can never be, you know that,” whispered King Theodore. “The Crown Prince must wed within the Mist community. Our people will never accept you, as a Mist Princess now or as their Queen later. You will cause nothing but turmoil and conflict within our kingdom and unnecessary grief and sadness for Lucas, the man you claim to love. Is that truly what you want?”

  “Oh, shush, and let me see what is ailing this cold and deceptive heart of yours.” Sarah laughed.

  “No one shushes the king, Red,” the king replied with a smile.

  “Then how does one get the king to be still?”

  “One asks politely,” said the king.

  “What happened to the Red advisor who was sent here to keep you safe and advise you? I was sent to Marlowe. A man was sent here.”

  “I did not need or want some orange-haired jester to tell me what to do to keep me safe. I know what to do. I dismissed him. I had him escorted out of Mist country and told him not to come back or I would vaporize him. Are you going to help me feel better or chat me to death?”

  “Well, I wasn’t aware that was an option, Your Majesty. But I promised your queen who loves you dearly, I would help you feel better.”

  “Then let us get on with it.”

  “Would His Majesty like to be quiet now? Is that better?”

  “Yes. And yes.” The king smiled.

  “It appears they are getting along, Lucas. This is progressing so much better than I had hoped,” said Queen Renata, clutching her son’s hand.

  “So it would seem, Mother. So it would seem.”

  Sarah placed her hand on the king’s face. He gasped. His body convulsed violently for a few moments, then slumped into an unresponsive state.

  The queen gasped. “Have you killed him? Have you fried his brain?”

  “No.” Sarah laughed. “He is unharmed. He is simply in a deep sleep. His heart was severely out of rhythm. He should feel much stronger when he awakes.”

  Lucas went to stand at the side of his father’s bed. The queen called Sarah to her.

  “Thank you, Sarah,” said the queen. “I am grateful for your intervention. The king had much pride and patience with both Marcus and Darius, but he finds fault with Lucas’s every move. They are not fond of each other.”

  “Too bad for the king, because Lucas is a wonderful man, strong and brave. Even shackled to the wall in the dungeon, he was feared by all. The lowlanders recognize Prince Lucas as a strong and powerful leader.”

  “Perhaps this is a new beginning for Theo and Lucas. Perhaps for us all.”

  After a long nap, the king emerged from his bedchamber full of vigor.

  “I feel like a man of thirty,” announced the king.

  “Oh, God help us all,” murmured Lucas.

  “I’m starving! Let’s eat.” The king led the way to the dining room.

  A day of celebration followed. Everyone seemed to be in great spirits as laughter and happiness filled the halls of Mist Castle like never before.

  Everyone but Sarah.

  “My sweetheart, what ails you? Did healing my father deplete all your energy?”

  “Yes, Lucas. It is an exhaustive process.”

  “What can I do to help you feel better?”

  “Nothing, really. It should pass with rest.”

  “Well, after dinner, we will return to our room and rest together. Perhaps you will feel better tomorrow.”

  “Perhaps.”

  After dinner, the pair returned to their room to take a nap. Sarah cuddled up next to Lucas, under his left arm, close to his heart.

  “I love you, Lucas. You are the best man I have ever met. You do not hide behind walls of expectations and delusions. You are what you are, and you are wonderful. You are in my heart forever. I will never forget you.”

  “We will not sleep so long that you will no longer recognize this man who loves you. Sleep now, love. I’ll make sure you are safe.” He gently kissed her head.

  When Lucas awoke, he was in bed alone.

  “Sarah? Sarah, where are you?”

  He looked for her, but she was nowhere to be found. Lucas went to the king. “Where is Sarah? What have you done with her!” he shouted at his father.

  “I do not know. Is she missing?”

  “Of course, she’s missing. You know it. And you caused it. What did you say to her? What was all that whispering about? What did you say? What did you do?”

  “Me? Nothing? Are you sure she didn’t go back down the mountain? Rumor has it she is the king’s lover, you know. They have been intimate for years. He took her in when she was very young and trained her to be his personal concubine, adept at all those disgusting lowland sexual practices. She was commanded by the king to gain your trust to get information out of you.”

  “That is the biggest load of horse excrement I have ever heard in my life. You made that up!”

  “Watch your tongue, Lucas. You are not too old and too regal to be taught a private lesson in respecting your king! You did not actually believe the Red had any genuine affection for you, did you?”

  Lucas stormed out of the room.

  “Guards! Come quickly. Lady Sarah appears to be missing. Please conduct a search of all the rooms in the castle.”

  “Yes, Prince Lucas,” they answered and dispersed to search the castle.

  Jonathan approached the prince.

  “Do not fret, Luc. We will find her. Could she simply have wandered off somewhere?”

  “No. She would not do that. She knows I would be concerned for her safety. I fear my father has done something to her.”

  “Majesty, we have a problem,” said an approaching guard.

  “What is it?” answered Lucas and King Theodore at the same time.

  “A Marlowe army is noisily making its way up the mountain path.”

  “Oh, great news,” Lucas moaned. “I’ll handle it,” he said to his father. “Jon, gather a few armed men to come with us. We will stop the Marlowes at the pass.

  Moments later, a large group of Mist soldiers led by Lucas trotted down the mountain path to meet the Marlowes.

  “I am Crown Prince Lucas. Are you aware you are trespassing on Mist land?”

  �
�Prince Lucas? I am King Jason of Marlowe. It is good to finally meet you.”

  The Marlowe king approached. Lucas went out to meet him.

  “You could have come down to the dungeon at any time for a little afternoon visit,” snipped Lucas.

  “How is the king? I hear he is gravely ill.”

  “He is old and frail. I am in charge now. What do you want?”

  “Peace, Prince Lucas. I want peace.”

  “Fine. You want peace, you can have it,” whispered Lucas. “I could care less about this trivial contest between the highland and the lowlands. Give me Sarah and you can have all the peace you wish.”

  “Lady Sarah is not with you?” asked King Jason.

  “No. She delivered me safely back to my family and my kingdom. And then she disappeared. Did she not return to you?”

  “No, she did not. You know, I sent her to heal your wounds only. I never intended for her to become enamored by you. She has been my ward for a year now.”

  “Just your ward, King Jason? Or your lover?”

  “Heavens, no, Lucas,” the king laughed. “I am adult enough to know she is far too much woman for the likes of me. Or for you, for that matter. Do I care for her? Yes, I do, but as my confidante, my advisor, and my trusted friend.

  “Lucas, you don’t think you are in love with her, do you? Do you realize she can cast spells? You may not really be in love, but only under her enchantment.”

  “No. I loved her before she ever touched me. I knew it immediately.”

  “I do not know or understand the concept of love or women or the bond between lovers. I am a man alone. I am wed to my kingdom. We have made our way up this treacherous trail today to ask for peace. Let us declare peace and join together to find Sarah. We will search from here back down to Marlowe. And then we will search all of Marlowe. I will send an emissary to tell you of our findings. And then, when Sarah is safely found, she can decide for herself whether she wishes to come back to us or stay with you.”

  “Will you abide by her decision, Jason?”

  “Yes. But will you?”

  Lucas eyed the Marlowe king and returned to his men.

  “I hereby declare peace!” Lucas shouted for all to hear. “Peace between the high country and the low country, from this moment forward. Are you in agreement, King Jason of Marlowe?”