The Affiliate (Ascension Book 1)

by K. A. Linde

  “Is it the baby?” she finally asked.

  The fact that Kaliana had lost yet another one while Duchess Elida was months away from a baby of her own, in truth, troubled Daufina deeply. They needed a Dremylon heir. Nothing was secure without one.

  Edric sighed. “No. Though perhaps it should be.”

  “You need an heir.”

  “It was my father’s dying wish for me, Daufina. I know I need an heir.” His blue-gray eyes settled on her, and she saw the heaviness in them. “Maybe if I had cared more for that than what is troubling me, I would already have a baby on the way. But that’s not possible when you haven’t been with your wife.”

  “At all?” Daufina asked with raised eyebrows. “Edric—”

  “I know!” he snapped. “I should. It is my duty, and it must be done.”

  “Then, is it Cyrene? I thought you closed that matter when we arrived. I know her safety concerned you, but you stopped showing her favor. I thought—”

  “Whatever you thought was mistaken. I stayed away to appease a wife who I do not love. Yet I am king, am I not? I should appease myself, should I not?” His voice grew continually louder as if he were convincing himself more than her. “I invited Cyrene to my rooms.”

  Daufina tried to rein in her surprise. Edric had sworn up and down that he never wanted a mistress…not one in competition for his heart. He had tried so hard to love Kaliana, but the woman made it impossible for anyone to do so.

  “So,” she said quietly, “if you invited her to be with you, why are you angry? Are you angry with yourself for deciding to go through with it?”

  Edric laughed without humor. “She never came to me. She promised she would. I waited all night. I sent a maid to her chambers. She refused to even answer the door. It appears that even the King gets rejected.”

  “She is a fool to have done so.”

  “And do you know that it just makes me want her more?”

  “Oh, Edric—”

  “Your Highness!” a maid cried, scurrying into the study unannounced.

  Her face set in stone, Daufina turned to face the woman. No one burst in on the King of Byern. Even if she was here for the Prince of Eleysia, she should announce a royal emissary.

  “What do you want, girl?” Daufina asked coldly. “You just interrupted the King.”

  “My apologies,” she sputtered. She sank into a deep curtsy. “I just…went into the Pearl Bay Chambers to bring Affiliate Cyrene her morning breakfast and found her missing! Her room was in disarray, and some of her things were gone!”

  “What?” Edric and Daufina cried at the same time.

  “Yes. I know I was sent…last night.” Her cheeks colored. “I think…she must have been gone already! Do you think the killer somehow got into the castle?”

  “Absolutely not!” Daufina said.

  But one look at Edric’s pale face said otherwise.

  “Start a search immediately, Daufina. Look everywhere. Find any information you can.”

  “Edric, you’re not seriously considering that something happened to her?” she asked softly.

  “It all makes sense. She was the target, she was supposed to be with me last night, and now, she is missing. I think it is a very real possibility.” He strode around the desk and reached for her. “We cannot let anything happen to her, Daufina.”

  Just then, a Royal Guard walked inside. “His Royal Highness, the Prince of Eleysia.”

  Edric cursed under his breath. “Take care of this for me. I have to deal with the trade negotiations, but I won’t rest until she is found. Mark my words,” he cried before storming from the room.

  Daufina watched his retreating back as fear set in. If Cyrene was missing, potentially captured by this mysterious killer, then it meant none of them were truly safe, not even in the castle. And just as bad—in her mind at this point, even worse—Edric would not recover from this. She knew him too well. He would blame himself. He had already blamed himself. And she did not know what would happen to her King under such circumstances.

  Cyrene hastened her steps toward the tunnel entrance and swallowed back the pain of leaving Edric behind. She knew that once she’d stepped out the door, she had lost him forever. And no matter what the Braj had said about the rightful Dremylon heir, her heart still ached at the thought. But there was no turning back. She couldn’t stay here and wait for the Braj to come after her, hoping she would figure out her powers on her own. She had to take action. If that meant losing everything she knew…and loved, then so be it.

  Taking the most direct route to the hallway where the entrance was, she waited for the corridor to empty and then darted through the door. She slammed it shut as quickly as she had entered and took a deep breath. She wrenched the still burning torch she and Maelia had left on a hook at the top of the stairs and followed them down to the bottom.

  Rhea was waiting for her, as promised, on the last step, pacing impatiently. “Cyrene!” Rhea cried when she appeared.

  “Sorry it took so long. I got held up.”

  “I’m just glad you’re safe.” Rhea tugged at her red braid. “I know you’re not telling us something. You’re so determined to go to Eleysia because something is happening to you, but I don’t know what it is. I’ve been your best friend your entire life. I know you. So, what’s going on?”

  Cyrene sighed and nodded. She hated that they had to have this conversation now, but she didn’t know when they would be alone again. “I haven’t trusted anyone with this, Rhea, but I trust you.”

  “Of course you can trust me. We’ve known each other our entire lives.” She sounded as confident as ever, but a crease formed in her brow, and her lips were pursed with concern.

  “But, Rhea, you don’t understand.”

  “And how can I if you don’t even begin to explain?”

  Cyrene tightly gripped her leather bag in her hand as she retrieved the book from within. If I can’t trust Rhea, who out there can I trust?

  She cracked it open to the first page, and when she looked down at the beautiful font, the words were clear. Her heart rapidly sped up when she saw that she could read them.

  “I got this book from Elea the day of my Presenting. Do you see anything here?” She pointed to the iridescent font with its sharp edges and looping swirls.

  “No,” Rhea said, turning her head to look at the page. “It’s blank.”

  “No, it’s not. Words are there. I can see them. I’m the only one who can see them,” she said, her voice remaining level.

  “What do you mean?”

  “I mean exactly what I said.”

  Rhea stared at the page like the words might suddenly appear for her. “I’m sorry. I don’t see it. What does this have to do with the Braj and leaving for Eleysia?”

  “It’s the real reason I have to leave Byern.” She swallowed, not ready to tell her friend but knowing she had to tell someone. “I have…abilities, Rhea.”

  “What kind of abilities?” She narrowed her eyes.

  “It’s going to sound mad, but remember when you first found out about Master Barca? How you thought Bursts were magic?”

  “Yes,” Rhea answered hesitantly. “But they’re not.”

  “No, but I am. I have powers, Rhea,” she whispered. “I just found out, and I need to learn what it all means…how to control it.”

  Rhea stared at her, dumbfounded. She was so logical, such a straightforward, book-smart type of person. She probably couldn’t process this information. But it was out there now, and Cyrene couldn’t take it back.

  “Powers? Like magic told in stories?”

  “Kind of. I don’t know,” Cyrene admitted. “I don’t know what I can do or how to do it. I couldn’t show you or anything. But if Braj are real…is this that far-fetched?”

  “So, you think you have powers?”

  “Rhea, I do have powers. I think…it’s what the Presenting letter said. What you seek lies where you cannot seek it. What you find cannot be found. Rhea, I can’t se
ek out magic because it was already there, hidden away inside of me. And it can’t be found because I couldn’t look for it. It just was. No one else could find it unless they already had it, and I already had it. I feel like maybe…I’ve begun to fulfill my Presenting letter,” she said, “to fulfill the prophecy.”

  “By the Creator!” Rhea said, her hand going to her heart. “It actually…makes sense.”

  “I can’t tell the others yet. I told them as much as I was comfortable with. Will you hold my secret while we travel?”

  Rhea peered down at the dirty floor. Her face was a mask, but Cyrene instantly knew what her friend was thinking. She had known Rhea too long not to see it in her face. She really hoped she was wrong though.

  “I can’t,” she finally said. She twisted her finger around her long braid.

  “Rhea, come with me,” Cyrene pleaded. “We don’t have much more time to waste, but I need you with me.”

  She shook her head. “I can’t. I’m not like you, Cyrene. I never wanted adventure. I never wanted to leave Byern. I love Albion now, but that’s only because I was fortunate enough to have the best Receiver. Master Barca is a good man, and he treats me well. I’ve learned so much from him, and I enjoy the work. I thought I wanted to be an Affiliate. I thought I would be happy as an Affiliate, but I was wrong. I don’t think anything could make me happier. So, I can’t go. I know you’ll do great things because you were born to, Cyrene. I think I was born to watch you from the sidelines.”

  A tear fell down Cyrene’s cheek. She grasped her friend in a tight hug, ignoring her side. She hadn’t wanted to let Rhea go that afternoon in the pouring rain when she had made Second Class, and she didn’t want to now. It seemed so unfair that she would have to leave her best friend behind twice.

  “You’re going to do great things, Cyrene,” Rhea said. She hiccupped and covered her mouth as she struggled to hold back tears. “Know that I’ll always be here. I’ll always be looking out. I’ll always be your best friend. I love you.”

  “I love you, too,” Cyrene gasped out.

  “Just be safe, all right?” Rhea squeezed her hand.

  “I’ll do my best.”

  “Good-bye, Cyrene.”

  “Just until next time,” she amended.

  “Next time,” Rhea agreed with a smile.

  Cyrene wiped her eyes and then nodded. She placed the book back in her bag and then started out. She glanced back once at Rhea and gave her a faint smile before new tears fell.

  After she had walked a distance away from the castle, she pulled out the small map Orden had sketched for her—a direct underground route to their checkpoint—and followed it as it was written. Her side kept troubling her, and she had to take frequent breaks. She didn’t know how far she was going, but it felt like leagues and leagues underground with no light source other than the torch and no way to tell time.

  When she took the final bend, she was anxious to be above ground. There, before her, was a door. She hooked the torch back up, rushed the door, and pulled on the handle. It wouldn’t budge. She grunted in frustration as she tried to open it, but it seemed to be locked.

  She ran her hands along the seam of the door. There was a hole at one point that looked like it fit a key, and she had to assume that it was locked. She kicked out at the door. She was so close. She just needed to be on the other side of that door. There were no alternative routes in the tunnels, and she felt completely trapped.

  In an act of desperation, she placed her right hand on the wall near the hole and closed her eyes like the person in her dream of Serafina had done to open the door. That dream had allowed her to be able to read the book, so she might as well see if anything else in there had been useful.

  Cyrene waited for a few seconds, and seconds turned into a few minutes. She concentrated so hard that sweat was bursting out on her forehead, and her cheeks were flushed. And then, when she thought she was about to give up, something clicked into place, and the door swung wide.

  Her mouth fell open, and she stared down at the door in surprise. By the Creator! How did I do that?

  She accepted it, albeit begrudgingly, that she had just done it. And it would take a while for her to understand how she had done it. It was her whole purpose in leaving. It was her whole purpose in going to Eleysia. It was her whole purpose in seeking out Matilde and Vera when they should have died two thousand years ago.

  As she ascended the stairs, the early morning light greeted her in a small green field on the very edge of Albion borders. Ahlvie and Maelia were pacing a track into the grass between four horses. Orden was a distance off, looking out away from the city, standing next to a massive brown horse and a smaller packhorse with their bags and supplies loaded on it.

  “I made it,” Cyrene said.

  Ahlvie and Maelia jumped and rushed over to her. Ahlvie sagged in relief, and Cyrene could see the worry line across Maelia’s forehead.

  “We thought you were done for,” Maelia admitted.

  “Such faith,” she whispered, not wanting them to know how close she had been.

  “We’re glad you’re safe,” Ahlvie told her. “Where’s Rhea?”

  Cyrene pushed back tears and shook her head. “She’s not coming.”

  “I see,” Ahlvie said.

  Maelia gave her a hug. “I’m sorry.”

  “Right then. We have a long road ahead of us,” Orden interrupted, wearing his big brown hat again. “Let’s be on our way.”

  Maelia gave her a wistful smile and then followed Ahlvie to their mounts. Cyrene followed, brushed her hand against Ceffy’s nose, and smiled at her dear friend. She placed the contents of her leather bag into her saddlebag where it belonged, close to her. Her foot hooked into the stirrup, and she pulled herself into the saddle, adjusting to the seating.

  Cyrene looked behind her at what she was leaving behind—her city, her Affiliate position, her best friend, and Edric. She said a silent good-bye for now and promised to see them all again one day.

  Then, they set out, riding through the open field to the dirt road leading out of Albion to Aurum and beyond.

  And she hoped she would find all her answers.

  To Be Continued…

  Grab the next book in the Ascension series from USA Today bestselling author K.A. Linde…

  THE

  BOUND

  (ASCENSION SERIES, #2)

  Cyrene Strohm is a Queen’s Affiliate, a high-ranking official of the court of Byern, with power and privilege to spare. But she’s also a keeper of dangerous secrets: like the fact that she holds the heart of the King, and that she possesses magic in a world where magic no longer exists.

  Determined to discover what this means and how to use her newfound abilities, Cyrene sets off for the distant land of Eleysia. An island nation where Affiliates are strictly forbidden from entering.

  But the journey is perilous, and the destination may mean utter ruin, as Cyrene comes to learn that everything she’s been told her whole life—about her court, her homeland, and even herself—are bound in a beautiful lie.

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  THE BOUND

  BY: K.A. LINDE

  PROLOGUE

  Jardana’s body hummed with victory.

  Ever since she had returned to her rooms to find a note addressed to her from Prince Kael in their secret code, she had known that tonight was the night. Everything would change between them. Their little dalliance behind the scenes had gone on long enough. It was time to make this official.

  She was a Byern Affiliate, raised to be one of the most respected women in the entire country. And not just that, she was in a position to rule. Already, she was Assistant Director of Internal Affairs for Her Majesty, Queen Kaliana. Soon, she would rise from Assistant to the actual DIA for the Queen herself. The Queen’s right-hand woman. Her most trusted Affiliate. />
  And, if things worked out as she suspected they would tonight, she would even surpass that and become a Duchess, ruling over all of Albion, her husband second in line for the throne. A woman could get used to that.

  She tugged the black cloak low over her brow. The note had been clear that she was not to be seen when she left. Long ago, she had figured out more than one passage in and out of the castle grounds where no one would stop her from leaving, even in dire times, such as now with Affiliate and High Order murders and that annoying Cyrene’s disappearance.

  Truly, Jardana believed Cyrene was just trying to get more attention, as if the King’s pretend interest wasn’t enough. She turned her nose up at the thought. No, King Edric cared nothing for that girl. That was why Cyrene had vanished in the first place.

  Jardana rolled her eyes. Cyrene made her blood boil. At least Jardana wouldn’t have to deal with Cyrene again after tonight.

  The trek to her rendezvous point wasn’t that far, but she held to the shadows and avoided people. If Kael wanted a private proposal, then she would be happy to oblige him.

  She passed a woman in a dirty frock, who jumped backward at the sight of Jardana.

  “Get out of the way,” Jardana snapped irritably.

  The woman dropped into a hasty, clumsy curtsy. “My apologies, miss.”

  “Don’t you know your betters? I’m an Affiliate, not some lowly commoner.”

  Her eyes rounded. “Forgive me. I meant no offense, Affiliate.”

  Jardana glared at the woman. “Her Majesty will be hearing about this.”

  And then she strode away, listening to the woman’s pleas, with dark laughter buried within herself.

  She reached the secluded building that Kael had mentioned in his letter. She had memorized it before leaving and promptly burned it in the fireplace. No one was to know what was happening.

  Approaching the door, she tapped out the code—three taps, pause, one tap, pause, one tap, wait.