The Changeling's Fortune (Winter's Blight Book 1)

by K. C. Lannon

Deirdre had been pushing down tears since they stepped inside the headquarters. She had been escorted straight back to a cell, and her new backpack, its contents, and her change purse had been taken. There were no windows in the cell; it was stifling.

  A few minutes after she arrived, a soldier passed by; she stood as near the icy bars as she could bear and asked, “Aren’t they supposed to be asking me questions? I haven’t done anything wrong, and I haven’t broken any laws or anything!” When the soldier just kept walking, she shouted, “What about Ms. Becket, at the dorms? She’ll be expecting me! Hasn’t she called?”

  “She was told you are being held for theft,” the guard replied, slowing his pace slightly. “She’s not coming, so you’d best sit tight and stay quiet.”

  “But…” Her chin began to quiver. “Am I going to just be left in here? Forever?”

  “Doubtful. We’d move you to another location for something like that. Now be quiet.”

  She sighed, glad her most immediate fear was dispelled. But they STILL might keep me locked up. But why? This doesn’t make any sense!

  Sleep didn’t come easily. It was noisy with drunkards and faeries being taken in and out of the cells around her. And there was nothing in her cell except for the cold cement floor.

  She was already awake when the first light of dawn came through the small iron-barred window. She was sitting with her back against the wall, feeling sick and sorry for herself. Tears had come on and off all night, and now they were rising up again, this time in frustration.

  I wish I was back at the orphanage. I wish I had never come to this city. And now, she sniffed, I won’t even be able to meet up with James like I said I would! She curled up, burying her face in her arms. I wonder if James will look for me when I don’t show up? Somehow I doubt it… He’s nice, but he’s just a kid. I wonder what he’ll do then? Will he go without me?

  Her eyes widened as she remembered him harping on about all his silly ideas about camping and traveling alone.

  “He’s going to get into so much trouble,” she whispered, looking up at the small window. “But what can I do? I’m not allowed to leave yet. Who knows how many rules I’d be breaking if I tried…”

  She sighed, leaning forward, shutting her eyes tight. What should I do? I promised James I’d go, and breaking promises is wrong. But I can’t just break the rules and run out of here! But if I don’t…

  “He might get himself killed,” she realized in a whisper. In her mind’s eye, she could only see all the close calls she’d either been in or witnessed while camping and hiking. And unlike her and the other orphanage girls, he was going to be totally alone, with no one to help him.

  She stood up, holding up clenched fists, glaring ahead in determination.

  “I said I wouldn’t let him go alone, and I won’t,” she decided.

  She hesitated only a moment when she realized she didn’t have a plan. Deciding to get out of the cell first, she went over to the bars and shouted, “I need to go to the loo!”

  No response.

  “I said, I need to go to the loo!”

  No response.

  “I’ll climb up and go out the window if you don’t let me go right—”

  “Shut up!” A white-haired soldier came around the corner; there were large bags under his eyes. He was probably finishing his night shift. Deirdre didn’t see any other guards around, so she guessed he was working overtime.

  He must not have anyone to spend the holiday with… that’s sad!

  “I need to go!” she repeated.

  “You have a pail in there, don’t’cha?” he shot back.

  “No, I don’t!”

  The soldier came to investigate. “Oh… I suppose you don’t.” He rubbed his eyes wearily, letting out a sigh.

  “So can I use the loo?” Deirdre persisted.

  “You aren’t allowed to leave the cell even if you just nicked something at the market,” he replied.

  She tilted her head. “Huh?”

  “You’re here because you tried to pinch a trinket. Just hold tight until your family or someone comes—”

  “I CAN’T hold it, that’s what I’m saying! Come on, there aren’t any other guards here to get mad at you,” she whined, guessing.

  “Even so, rules are rules!” the guard snapped, though his voice was uncertain.

  He’s really the only one here? Then…

  Sucking in a fake shuddering breath, she sunk to the floor. “Why are you so mean? I didn’t think I stole anything… I don’t even know why I’m in here! I just came to the city to go to school, and now I’m in jail and I don’t know why, and I can’t even use the bathroom like a normal person because you’re all cruel!” She fake-cried into her hands, continuing her plaintive wails. “I wanna go h-home!”

  When she didn’t stop crying for a minute or so, the guard began to mutter, shaking his head, “Bloody hell… I don’t even know why you’re here… you should’ve been handled by the juvenile officers. This isn’t my job.” He sighed. “Fine!” He took out his keys, heading to the door of the cell. “We’re just going there and then coming back here! And you’ll have to wear these”—he held up a pair of handcuffs—“with your hands behind your back. Understood?”

  “Behind my back?” She sniffed. “Are you SERIOUS? How am I supposed to—”

  “Fine, in front, whatever! But you’ve got to wear them. And no funny business. Got it?”

  She nodded, sniffling into her sleeve.

  The guard unlocked the door and gestured for her to come out. The keys were in his hand, and he briefly fumbled with them as he got the handcuffs ready.

  Darting forward and wrenching the keys from his hand in one motion, she slipped past him and ran for the gated exit to the rest of the building. The guard shouted, running after her; she shoved the keys into the locked exit and turned them, unlocking the door. The guard right behind her, she grabbed the door and swung it open at him as hard as she could, shutting her eyes.

  There was a loud clang, followed by a bodily, dull thud. Deirdre opened her eyes to see the soldier facedown on the ground. He wasn’t completely knocked out; in half a second, he began groaning, shifting.

  She fled, her heart racing fast, snooping through a couple of rooms until she found a room with her backpack. It was open; the guard seemed to have been cataloging everything.

  Scooping her things back into her backpack, she threw it on her shoulders and ran out of the room. By then she heard the soldier beginning to move, swearing.

  Racing down the hall, she opened a door leading to a narrow foyer. There were a few people there; she barely stopped herself from running across the floor and began to walk in what she hoped was a casual manner.

  At first no one noticed her, but when she was nearly at the door, the guard stumbled out of the detention block she had come from. There was a moment where everyone froze, looking at him. Deirdre recovered first and sprinted for the exit, even as he shouted, “Halt! Stop her! She’s not supposed to leave!”

  She threw the door open and bolted outside. The iron gates outside were closed; she tried the lock, but it held fast. The iron seemed to burn her skin. But when a couple of soldiers ran out the building after her, she grabbed the bars and shimmied up the gate. They shouted at her to stop; one took out a gun and fired. He aimed low, but the sound rushed her into action. She barely felt the sting of the iron in her haste to escape. At the top, she simply rolled off, landing on all fours like a cat.

  Her knees hurt and her hands were scraped, but she pushed herself up and kept going. The guards were unlocking the gate to follow, but she had already turned the corner by the time they were finished. Wind whipped past her, her hair streaming back as she ran as fast as her legs could carry her. As she ran into a crowd of people out for the holiday, she began to pace herself but didn’t slow more than needed. She only paused once to check the time on a clock post on a street corner; it was nearly time to meet James.

  The crowd thickened ahead, and s
he made a beeline for it. There were soldiers among them, and for a split second she hesitated.

  But how could they find me in this crowd?

  Glancing over her shoulder, she continued on and dove into the throng.

  * * *

  Iain was stationed to stand guard on the street across from Ferriers Town. The parade started from the royal palace, near the city center, and ended there after a loop around. He was to stand just in front of the crowd on one side of the street to keep people from crossing and to break up any rows or protests that could ignite.

  “I guess you won’t be seeing much of us anymore, aye?” Philip asked, sidling up to him. He was dressed in full regalia, and he looked quite official. “When you moving into your flat?”

  Much to Iain’s irritation, he was working under Philip Prance for the memorial, as he was in the youngest ranks at seventeen—nearly eighteen—and still considered to be in training under a commander’s supervision. At least Boyd was marching in the parade and would not be able to glare at him the entire time.

  In a way, Boyd harassing him was preferable to Philip trying to make small talk. While Boyd could be mean as hell, he at least was honest with Iain about his hatred toward him. Philip, on the other hand, was a more insidious creature, because he was passive, neutral; he neither condemned nor praised Boyd’s abuse.

  “Not likely. I still have to work with you, you know,” Iain replied without enthusiasm. “I’m taking James to see the flat sometime this week. Dunno when I’ll be moving in.”

  “Where is your brother at anyway?” Philip asked, glancing around as if expecting to find him lurking somewhere close by. “Follows you like a shadow, that one.”

  “He’s staying home today,” Iain muttered.

  “Ah, in trouble again?” Philip chuckled. “I know what that’s like, having a little brother and all.”

  Iain nearly choked on a laugh at the comparison of James and Boyd. The two could not be more opposite, and Iain felt extremely proud of that fact. The little trouble James’s mischief or curiosity occasionally got him into was hardly like the strife and torment Boyd inflicted regularly and with intention.

  The crowd behind Iain was growing more and more restless as the minutes passed, and as the music from the marching band could be heard from a distance, the excited chattering increased in volume. Iain’s eyes narrowed on a group of clearly Fae-looking individuals that were trickling out from Ferriers Town on the other side of the street. The crowd’s demeanor changed, and several people began to point in the direction of the town.

  Iain tensed, remembering what his father had told him earlier that morning. Turning to Philip reluctantly, Iain asked, “What’s with their lot?”

  “There’ve been reports of riots forming.” Philip then handed Iain a polycarbonate, transparent shield. Iain took it, testing the weight of it on his arm. It was sturdy and heavy, but he could lift it with ease. “I know you can handle yourself in a scrap. That’s why I stationed you here, in case anything goes down.”

  Iain nodded. Then, after a moment of pondering the statement, he asked, “Why would they riot?”

  “I wouldn’t think on it,” Philip said. “It’s their nature to cause trouble. I’m sure you can relate a bit.”

  Iain ignored the jab. He did not know faeries to be more predisposed to cause trouble than humans were. He’d never been bothered by many Fae during his shifts. They mostly kept to themselves. Then again, he thought he would be foolish to underestimate them, given what his father had divulged to him earlier.

  “With most of the Iron Infantry being in the parade, who’s looking out for the officials?”

  “Don’t worry about that. There’s more Iron Infantry soldiers keeping an eye on everyone, including your old man.” Philip clapped him on the back. “The only thing we Iron Wardens need to worry about is keeping the civilians safe and in line.”

  Soon the parade reached their street. Iain watched as the King’s Army marched along in neat, precise rows. He smiled faintly, feeling the same sense of wonderment he’d felt watching the parade with his father when he was a child. For a moment he caught himself tapping his foot along to the beat of the music but quickly corrected himself.

  You’re a soldier now. Not a civilian. No fun allowed, yeah?

  Still smiling, Iain straightened his posture a little when something bright and colorful caught his eye over the road. A flash of red hair. Deirdre bobbed through the crowd with a spring in her step. Iain wondered if she had anything to do with James’s current mood.

  Iain soon returned his focus to the parade and to the ever-growing cluster of Fae that were gathering on the other side of the street. He was glad James was safe at home even if he would have to deal with his sulking and brooding for the rest of the day when he returned home.

  * * *

  The music set a brisk tempo for Deirdre as she made her way through the crowds, giving all soldiers as wide a berth as possible. She aimed for a tall building beside the alley they were to go through to the city’s exit. The streets were packed with people; she accidentally ran into one man, whose thick, dark glasses slipped down his nose. His eyes were deep yellow, like a hawk.

  A faery. She gulped as he shoved past her, readjusting his glasses. I guess faeries are allowed here… though I guess there’s no reason why not.

  Smiling despite her nerves, she continued weaving through the crowd. The idea of faeries and humans celebrating together at such a lively event was a nice one; she wondered if this happened every year. If so, it certainly seemed like a good sign of humans and faeries getting along.

  I hope the soldiers don’t make any mistakes with the faeries like they did with me.

  Getting to the corner of the building, she jumped up its front stairs and stood up on her toes, scanning the crowd for James. Remembering how he startled her last time, she looked behind her and was only mildly surprised to see him emerging from the crowd. With relief, she didn’t see any books on his person. Actually, he was much more lightly packed than she had hoped.

  “Ready to go?” he asked with a small smile. “We need to hurry.”

  Immediately she nodded. “Yes, let’s get going.” As she followed him down the stairs and into the back alley, she asked, “Did you remember to pack everything you need?”

  “Yeah.” He glanced over his shoulder, as if expecting to see someone following. She looked around too, relieved that no one was watching them.

  Looking back at James, she asked, “And that’s a raincoat you’re wearing, right?”

  “Huh? No, it’s not.”

  “Ohh…” She pursed her lips. “Do you have one in your pack?”

  “No, I… wait.” He halted, holding her back with his arm. “Look, up there. We’ll have to wait until they pass.”

  She looked up; a few blocks down the alley was the large wall that encircled the city. She could see an exit; it was open, but there were only a couple of guards on the ground. They were walking briskly by, looking a bit bored.

  “They’re sweeping up and down this whole area,” James explained as they began to walk quietly and slowly toward the wall after the guards disappeared from sight. “We have about a minute to pass through before they come back.”

  Remembering some of what James had explained yesterday, Deirdre looked up at the wall; she could not see if there was anyone or anything up on the top or not. She pointed up at the top. “What about on the wall? Will anyone there see us?”

  “No, there are only a few people up there today.” James glanced up at the wall. “They’ll be looking out for vehicles and faeries; they won’t even notice normal-looking people like us. That’s why we don’t need to hide our faces or anything… they’d pay more attention to us if they couldn’t tell we were human.”

  “That makes sense. I never would have thought of that! That’s really clever!” She beamed at James, feeling relieved by his confidence and foresight.

  He did not seem to know how to answer, but he didn’t look
displeased as he gestured for her to follow.

  As they walked at a casual pace, Deirdre eventually asked, “Why would you need to hide your face though? You haven’t got into any trouble with the soldiers, right?”

  He shook his head but didn’t answer otherwise.

  Frowning, she pressed, “So is something else wrong? I mean, I don’t think anyone would bother with remembering what you look like.”

  “Umm…” His expression was somewhat offended.

  “I mean, you’re just a normal English kid,” she hurriedly explained.

  “Well, it’s just better that no one bothers to ask us anything. It’d just waste time.”

  “Oh.” She shrugged and followed him; they were only about a block from the wall and the exit. But already she could see a faintly green light from the other side, reflecting grassy plains and open countryside. Feeling the weight of the past twelve hours beginning to fall from her shoulders, she began to hum happily, though she kept her voice low.

  Chapter Thirteen

  While watching the parade as a boy, Iain had always been interested in seeing King Eadred, the head of the monarchy of Britain. Growing up, he had heard his father sing the king’s praises for the most part, unless it came to his lax Fae policies, which his father was very outspoken about and battled about frequently within the military.

  He had also heard his mother’s harsh critiques of the king’s treatment of minorities and immigrants. Despite all the mixed opinions he’d heard and his own slight distrust of the monarchy he’d struggled with because of those opinions, today would be Iain’s first time seeing the king while serving in part of his army. It would be a true honor, politics aside.

  Halfway through the parade, Philip nudged Iain’s arm and said, “Callaghan, you think we could chat for a bit sometime?”

  Iain gaped at him, wondering if the noise from the parade had deafened him somehow. Philip looked uncomfortable, as if he was surprised by his own question. Iain watched in wonderment as Philip began to fidget and mess with the buttons on his uniform. He was nervous.