By Darkness Hid

by Jill Williamson

  Inko paddled the boat through the mist. The water smelled rank and slapped against the sides of their boat, no doubt leaving a line of green slime. The Evenwall muted the afternoon sun, and the damp air clung to Achan’s face like sweat. Or was that blood? Achan could only see a foot or two of the scummy water on any side of the boat.

  Sparrow and Sir Caleb sat in the bow. Sir Gavin and Inko sat in the back. The two knights had rescued Sir Caleb when Sir Rigil and Bran had rescued Achan. They had been waiting in the cave when Achan, Sir Caleb, and Sparrow had arrived.

  Achan looked the boy over. Sparrow sat on the front bench facing him, mixing something gooey in a jar with a stick. The boy’s eyes were puffy as if he’d spent the day bawling. He still hadn’t explained his behavior in the Council chambers that morning. Achan didn’t entirely trust the little fox. His eyes caught sight of a sword hanging from Sparrow’s belt.

  “Where’d you get the blade?”

  Sparrow’s wide eyes darted to his. “I bought it. Jax delivered it with my satchel.” He glanced down. “Where did you get yours? I thought you lost it.”

  “He did. Twice,” Sir Caleb said. “And twice we’ve rescued it for him.”

  Achan looked at his boots. He was so thankful Sir Caleb had found Eagan’s Elk. If only he could learn to use it as well as Sir Kenton used his. He sighed. He couldn’t believe the incredible turn his life had taken. He didn’t want to think about it, which wasn’t difficult, considering their destination. They would soon enter Darkness, a place Achan didn’t want to go.

  He turned to Sir Gavin. “I thought you said never go into Darkness.”

  “Aye, that I did.”

  “And yet toward it we go?”

  Sir Gavin glanced at a sign on a building that they were gliding past. It read: Tanner. “Aye, that we do.”

  “Won’t we all go crazy in there?”

  “Not if we stay together. And right now we need a place to hide.”

  Great. Achan had gone from an invisible nothing to a hunted king. Way back in that barn in Sitna, when he’d rescued Mox from Riga and Harnu, when he’d longed to change his station, he’d simply wanted a cottage of his own and the right to wear whatever color pleased him. Now look at him. “Do you have a plan?”

  Sir Gavin chuckled. “Of course I have a plan. We head for Tsaftown.”

  “Lady Tara lives in Tsaftown.” Achan’s heartbeat upped a notch at the idea of seeing her again. Would their meeting be different with his new identity? He couldn’t help but grin. “How long will it take to get there?”

  Sparrow clunked the jar down on the bench and ripped the handkerchief away from Achan’s right cheek.

  “Ow! Take it easy, will you?”

  “Sorry,” Sparrow mumbled.

  It was not yet dark in the Evenwall, though it had to be nearing dusk. Few boats were out on the narrow canal they traveled. Inko wanted to steer clear of the main waterways, for fear that they were being watched.

  “Tsaftown is a very long journey,” Sir Gavin said. “Much longer in Darkness. And we are without horses. We could have Sir Rigil bring our horses to Allowntown, but it will take us almost a week on foot to reach them.”

  “So, maybe a month to reach Tsaftown?” Achan asked as Sparrow swabbed his cheek with something cool.

  “Or more.”

  Achan sighed. A long time, but at least seeing Lady Tara was something to look forward to. He did not relish entering Darkness, nor did he look forward to upcoming arguments in which Sir Gavin would try to turn him into a king. At least now he understood why Sir Gavin had never accepted the service he’d tried to give him as a squire.

  Sparrow spread more gunk from his jar over Achan’s cheek. It seeped into his cuts and burned. “Ow!”

  “Oh, stop being such a girl,” Sparrow said.

  Achan tried to block out the pain. “What do we seek in Tsaftown?”

  “Not Tsaftown, exactly,” Sir Gavin said. “IceIsland.”

  “IceIsland?” Sparrow cried.

  Achan wondered too what they sought in the biggest prison in Er’Rets.

  “We have friends to set free there,” Sir Gavin said. “Friends wrongly imprisoned. That’s where I went when Lord Nathak banished me. I was hoping to raise an army and come back for you. I ran out of time.”

  “What friends?” Achan asked.

  “Old Kingsguard friends.”

  Sparrow looked terrified. Then his lips curved in a goofy grin and his cheeks flushed. “I am going to do the other side now.”

  Achan raised his eyebrows and turned his head. “Thanks for the warning.”

  Sparrow gently pulled the handkerchief away and swabbed Achan’s cheek. He slathered gunk on, then froze, his fingers pressed against Achan’s wound, and looked up.

  The light faded, and Sparrow’s face vanished before Achan’s eyes.

  They had entered Darkness.

  NOT THE END

  This is the end of the book 1 of the Blood of Kings series. Book 2 continues the adventures of Vrell and Achan as they flee into Darkness to avoid Esek’s wrath. Sign up for newsletters from Marcher Lord Press or Jill Williamson’s Web site to get updates on the status of To Darkness Fled: Blood of Kings, Book 2.

  A Note from the Author

  Thanks for reading By Darkness Hid, the first installment in the Blood of Kings series.

  I’d like to hear from you. E-mail me with your thoughts on the book, and sign up for my free mailing list to get updates on the next book and my upcoming events. If you’d like to help make this book a success, tell people about it, loan your copy to a friend, or ask your library or bookstore to order it. If you want to do more, check out the other ways you can help on my Web site under: Be an Influencer.

  If you post a review of my book on Amazon.com and/or BarnesandNoble.com and e-mail me the link, I will enter you in a monthly drawing to win some great prizes. Check my Web site to see what the prize is for the current month.

  My e-mail address is: info@jillwilliamson.com.

  If you’d like to download discussion questions, see the book trailer, or explore Er’Rets a bit more with my interactive map, check out my Web site: www.jillwilliamson.com.