The Prince of Warwood and The Sword of the Chosen (Book 3)

by J. Noel Clinton

  “Drew?” he whispered, waiting for the older boy to turn.

  He glared up at him. “What do you want?” he spat.

  “Ah, well, I wanted to say sorry. I’m sorry I made that bat attack you in class today,” he stated biting his lip to keep from smiling. But, when Court snorted in his drink, he could no longer hold back the wide grin that snaked over his face.

  “Your apology is not accepted, Your Highness, but don’t worry. I’ll get even, and when I do, you’ll wish you had never been born!” he growled, his eyes flashing with fury.

  Xavier’s eyes jumped from Drew to Court who sat studying his brother suspiciously. Finally he looked at the older boy and shrugged.

  “Well, I tried. Dad can’t be mad at me just because you’re being an ass about it,” he muttered before turning and returning to his seat next to his father and Lana.

  For the remainder of the meal, Xavier found himself watching his father with Lana. Jeremiah’s eyes had a sparkle in them he hadn’t seen before. His smile came readily and easily, giving him a boyish, youthful appearance. He was completely enchanted by the woman sitting next to him, and he went out of his way to find reasons to touch her.

  Xavier wasn’t alone in his study of the king and Lana Applegate. Nearly the entire hall kept a watchful eye on the couple who seemed oblivious to everything and everyone around them but each other.

  “Did you know about this?” Loren questioned, nudging Xavier.

  He shook his head and answered through a mouthful of food. “No, I just found out today.”

  “Well? What do you reckon? Is Lana on the level?” Loren asked.

  He studied Lana for a moment before answering with a wide grin. “Yeah. She’s perfect! Dad won’t be able to get away with anything!”

  Loren chuckled heartily. “Good! Your father has been getting away with too much for way too long. He needs a good woman to keep him in line.”

  Chapter 13

  The River

  After mopping the Grand Hall following dinner, Xavier raced down the stairwell to meet his friends on the dormitory level.

  “About time, Wells! My haircut is going out of style!” Beck ribbed.

  “Wilcox, your hair was always out of style!” he teased back.

  The other boys groaned appreciatively as Beck seized Xavier and wrestled him into a headlock.

  “You think you’re so funny, don’t you?” he jeered, playfully rubbing his knuckles over Xavier’s scalp.

  “Get off!” he spat, giving his friend a hard jab in the gut before spinning out of his grasp.

  “Come on, guys! Stop messing about and let’s go find that river,” Garrett whined.

  With a cheer of agreement, the group made their way down the stairs and emptied out onto the seventh level corridor. As they walked past the warning sign, once again Frankie hesitated.

  “Remember Frankie,” Xavier told him, “As future king, I give you permission to enter the restricted levels and chambers of the mountain.”

  With a nod, he joined the others as Beck announced, “I think they said the river was down the tunnel on the left.”

  “Okay. Let’s go then,” Xavier ordered and led the group down the passage. Unlike most passages on this floor, this one was wide with a high ceiling and smooth, polished walls.

  “Uh, guys? Don’t take this the wrong way, but does anyone know who the guardian is tonight?” Mac asked quietly.

  All the boys looked at him.

  “What? I just like to know who’s going to punish us if we get caught down here again.”

  “We’re not going to get caught,” Xavier muttered.

  “I think it’s Sir Blaire?” Beck responded.

  “No, he had morning duty. The shift has changed,” Court reminded them.

  The boys stared at one another.

  “We’re not getting caught,” Xavier repeated stoutly.

  Then Harry whispered, “The king’s on duty. It’s his turn.”

  Every head turned in Harry’s direction. Finally, Beck choked out, “The king?”

  Harry nodded, and the boys’ eyes darted to Xavier, who immediately felt a wave of irritation.

  “What? Do you all want to back out now that you know we have to fool my dad?” he hissed impatiently.

  The boys exchanged uneasy looks.

  “God! You’re a bunch of babies! You can all go back if you want, but I’m going on,” he spat, turning and stomping down the corridor without looking back.

  “Come on guys. If Xavier isn’t worried about the king catching us, then we shouldn’t be either,” Court told them.

  “But, Court…” Frankie whispered. “Don’t you think Xavier has been a bit…risky lately?”

  “What are you blubbering about, Frankie?” Court snarled.

  “Well, he’s…” he looked at the other boys for support, but the others were suddenly interested in the toes of their shoes. “Fine! They won’t say anything, but we all think that since…everything that’s happened…since Maggie’s death… and especially after Mr. Minnows, Xavier seems…a bit… reckless. It’s as if he wants to get in trouble or hurt or something.”

  Court hissed disbelievingly. “I can’t believe it! Look, you know what he’s been through! You all do! Of course Maggie and Uncle Dublin’s deaths have him a little…off, but that’s more of a reason to stick by him. If you want to turn your back on him now, if you won’t support him when he needs us the most, then you’re not the friend he needs!” His angry gaze flickered to the rest of the boys standing behind Frankie. “Does anyone else have something to say about Xavier? If you do, say it now and get the hell out of here!”

  The group squirmed under his scrutinizing glare without a word.

  Finally, Mac stepped forward and declared, “I’m with you, Court. I support Xavier.”

  “Me too,” Beck and Garrett announced and moved to stand next to Mac and Court.

  One by one, all the boys sided with Court until Frankie stood alone looking uneasy. “I wasn’t turning my back on him! He’s our prince! You know that I’m on his side. I was only saying…oh, forget it.”

  “Guys!” Xavier interrupted, peeking around the corner of a jagged rock. “I found it! I found the river! Come on! You’ve got to see it! You won’t believe your eyes!”

  They raced after him and entered an enormous cavern. A frigid, vicious wall of wind generated by the violent water battered their faces and bodies. The boys skidded to a halt and stared at the spectacular sight in front of them. There was more than just a river here. At the far end of this massive cavern a thirty-foot waterfall crashed thunderously into the churning, wild river. The sound was deafening! The river water moved swiftly, weaving and cutting through the cavern floor. Slowly the group inched closer to the river’s edge. The water was crystal clear, and the rock bed was visible under the riotous surface. It was breathtaking and very ominous.

  “Whoa!” Beck muttered, speaking every boy’s thoughts.

  “Well, I didn’t come here just to stare at it,” Xavier stated, tugging off his shirt and kicking off his sneakers.

  “What are you doing, Xavier?” Court asked shrilly.

  “What does it look like? I’m going to swim out to that rock,” he answered, nodding to a large rock three meters from the hammering waterfall.

  “Why in the hell would you do that, mate?”

  “To see if I can. Why else?” he retorted, giving Court a devilish grin as he unfastened his jeans.

  “You’re completely mental! I can’t let you do it, Xavier! I can’t!” Court stated.

  Xavier’s spine straightened and met his friend’s determined eyes with unwavering stubbornness. Idly, he wondered if Court knew how much he sounded like his dad.

  “You can’t let me?” he hissed softly. “You can’t stop me! You’re not my father.”

  “No!” Court spat grabbing his arm. “It’s suicide!”

  “Get your hands off me, Court,” he growled. “Just because you’re too chicken to try it doe
sn’t mean I am. Now, back off.” He shoved Court away and stripped off his jeans.

  “Xavier, don’t do it! It’s…it’s too dangerous,” Mac protested weakly.

  He looked at Mac with wild eyes. “That’s what makes it such a rush to try.”

  For a moment, the boys stared at him flabbergasted, but when he turned and approached the savage river, they charged at him and tackled him to the stone floor.

  “We can’t let you, X! You’ll drown for sure! Don’t do it! Please!” Garrett urged.

  “Okay, okay!” he yelled. “I won’t do it…just get off me! Harry’s knee is crushing my spleen!”

  Slowly, the boys piled off the prince. Beck paused long enough to give him a wet-willy before Court pulled him to his feet with a wide grin.

  “It’s good to see you haven’t lost all your marbles. That river is too…XAVIER, NO!” Court bellowed as Xavier shoved past him and dove into the water.

  The boys raced to the edge of the river and frantically searched for any signs of the prince. For several long seconds, he’d simply vanished.

  “I’m going for help!” Frankie cried and raced from the chamber.

  Finally, Xavier shot to the surface about five meters downstream, sputtering. He pounded at the water trying to reach the rock, but it didn’t take long for him to realize that Court had been right. This was suicide! Why had he wanted to swim the river? It accomplished nothing! It changed nothing. Robbie still hated him. No, she not only hated him; she thought he was a murderer. Her father’s murderer! There was no changing that.

  The river was fighting back, pushing and pulling him around like a child’s bath toy. The under current twisted its watery tendrils around his legs and pulled. He struggled to keep his head above water as he turned and fought to get back to shore. But the river was too strong, and Xavier was losing. Suddenly the current yanked him deep beneath the surface, and he clawed at the water in a panic.

  “Xavier!” Court yelled, racing along the shore.

  “Where is he?” Garrett cried, as he and the other boys followed.

  “I don’t know!” Court screamed, nearly in tears, as he ran farther down the riverside.

  After several intense seconds, he emerged to the surface, coughing and wildly flailing his arms.

  “There!” Mac bellowed, pointing another four meters downstream.

  “Swim downstream at an angle to me, X! Don’t try to fight against the current,” Courtney hollered, but Xavier could barely keep his head above water, and he quickly disappeared again.

  “Xavier!” Court screamed, tore off his shoes and shirt, and before any of the other boys could stop him, plunged into the icy water after the prince.

  Meanwhile, Xavier fought to break free from the wicked undertow holding him prisoner. His lungs protested painfully, and his vision grew dim. He was on the brink of giving in to this watery grave when something amazing happened. As he inhaled the first lungful of water, his vision improved and the pain in his chest lessened. He exhaled the water and breathed in another lungful. His vision became sharper and clearer, and his mind more alert and aware.

  Now confident he wouldn’t drown, he had another concern. He didn’t have the strength to fight the water to get to shore, and the river would sweep him away to God knows where. On the verge of complete panic, he felt a pair of hands rake his head, grab him by the hair, and yank him to the surface. Courtney held him above the water and pounded against the river, trying to get them to shore, but his head kept bobbing under. It took the boys nearly a minute to swim six feet. It grew less and less likely that they’d have the strength to make it to safety. Suddenly, the water beneath them changed into a swirling, powerful tidal pool, sweeping them apart and dragging them under the bubbling water. They hadn’t traveled far when a pair of strong arms enveloped them and hauled them back to the surface. Then with a warm surge of energy, the boys collapsed onto the cold, stone floor at the river’s edge.

  Xavier coughed and spat water from his lungs as Ephraim Hardcastle dropped next to Courtney, who was a horrific shade of blue and deathly still. He watched in horror as Ephraim cleared his son’s airway and began CPR.

  After the second breath, Court choked and sputtered water. “D….Dad?” he coughed and began crying.

  Ephraim looked as though a light breeze would blow him over as he pulled his son into his arms. “Jesus, boy. I…I thought…” He couldn’t finish, and Xavier had to look away.

  “Son?” his father’s hoarse voice came from behind him. “Are you all right?”

  He turned and found his father kneeling, soaking wet next to the river. Unsure his voice would work, he nodded and looked away.

  “Ephraim, King Wells, we should get the boys to the infirmary,” Loren suggested, standing next to the pale, terrified group of boys, his arm draped around a red-faced Garrett.

  Xavier staggered to his feet, but his legs were too wobbly, and he collapsed. His father scooped him up and carried him from the river cavern.

  Both boys were taken to the infirmary and relinquished under the watchful eye of Tamarah Minnows. The instant they entered the hospital chamber, Jeremiah was ushered from the room to dry off and change into dry clothes, and Xavier was given warm pajamas and told to strip off his wet undershorts.

  Court, on the other hand, received immediate medical attention. While Ephraim stripped him of his wet clothes and dressed him in dry flannels, Tamarah busily listened to his chest with a stethoscope.

  “He swallowed a lot of water, Ephraim. He’s in danger of developing dilutional hyponatremia, more commonly known as water intoxication. And, being a near-drowning victim, there’s a risk for acute respiratory distress if the surfactant in his lungs has been compromised. He must be watched closely over the next 48 hours for signs of swelling in his airways. I’ll need to keep an eye on his sodium levels as well. He’ll need to remain in the infirmary for a few days,” she announced, gently brushing Court’s wet hair from his eyes. Suddenly, there was a scream as Rebecca Hardcastle burst into the room.

  “Ephraim?” she cried shakily, rushing toward him. “Ephraim? Is…is he okay? Where’s my baby?”

  Ephraim held up his hands to calm his wife. “Becky, he’s going to be all right. Calm down. He’s fine.”

  Rebecca burst into sobs as she went to Court’s side and enveloped him in her arms.

  “Mum, I’m okay. Please, don’t cry,” Court consoled hoarsely.

  Xavier’s chest grew tight and heavy, and his eyes stung with unwanted tears. His best friend nearly died today…no, correction, his best friend had died today, and once again, he had been at fault. Guilt mauled at him as he climbed into bed and buried himself under the covers and pillows.

  “Xavier, sweetie?” Mrs. Minnows called gingerly, peeling away the blankets and pillows. “Oh, honey. Courtney is going to be okay. I promise. I’m just keeping him as a precaution. That’s all.”

  He nodded and wiped his wet cheeks without a word.

  She gave him a small encouraging smile and asked, “Do you think you could sit up? I need to examine you and listen to your lungs.”

  He sat up and shuddered as she placed the cold metal stethoscope on his chest. Mrs. Minnows listened for several long seconds, a frown burrowing into her brow.

  “Hmm, that’s strange,” she murmured just as Jeremiah, in dry clothes, entered the room with Lana behind him.

  “What’s strange, Tamarah?” he asked, his voice spiking in alarm as Lana immediately went to Xavier’s side and hugged him close to her.

  “Well,” she began, straightening and looking at the king with a befuddled expression, “as I understand it, Xavier was in the water for nearly two minutes before young Courtney jumped in after him, right?”

  He nodded. “Yes, that’s right.”

  “Well, I find it odd that there’s no sign of the prince having fluid of any kind in his lungs when Courtney’s lungs sound like gurgling radiators,” she explained.

  Jeremiah’s brows shot up in surprise, and
he looked down at Xavier with nothing short of shock.

  “Xavier? Did something happen while you were in the water?” Lana asked quietly.

  He didn’t look at her but stared fixedly at his hands. “What do you mean?” he whispered.

  “When you were underwater, did you discover you could breathe the water as if it was air?”

  The boy’s head jerked up and his eyes fastened on hers. Slowly he nodded.

  His father whispered in disbelief, “An aqualung? He’s an aqualung? But there hasn’t been an aqualung since…”

  “Since my grandfather,” Lana finished. “Yes, it’s a very rare ability, almost as rare as aeronautics, but I recognized the effect. He appears to be unscathed from an incident that by all accounts should have killed him.”

  The king grew rigid as the realization of what could have happened sank in. A muscle in his jaw rolled, and he blinked back the fear filling his eyes.

  Lana looked at Tamarah Minnows. “If you’d take an x-ray of his lungs right now, you would see the book lung chambers still partially flared. In a couple of hours, the adaptation would no longer be visible.”

  “King Wells? Would you like me to perform the x-ray to substantiate the ability?” Tamarah asked.

  Jeremiah nodded, staring down at Xavier with shock.

  “Alright, I’ll prep the x-ray room,” she told them before turning and striding through a metal door at the far end of the room.

  For several long minutes, the three sat in an uncomfortable, tense silence. Xavier glanced sideways at his father who sat looking at the ceiling and taking slow, deep cleansing breaths. He was angry.

  Finally, his father’s turbulent eyes bore into him as he growled quietly, “Son? Never mind that you had absolutely no business being in those passages and chambers to begin with, but can you tell me how in God’s name you ended up in that river?”

  “Jeremiah, not now…” Lana interjected, placing a hand on the king’s arm. “The boy’s worn out.”

  “Lana! He could have been killed, and he endangered the lives of his friends! I don’t care how tired he is!” he blared.

  “Jeremiah Wells, don’t yell at me!” Lana retorted with quiet firmness. “I understand that his actions scared the life out of you tonight, and I’m sure Xavier realizes this as well. But, I think it’s best to save this conversation for the morning.”