The Heir

by Suzanna Lynn

  Luana wrapped herself in a blanket and ran to his side. “Ill? How? What has happened?”

  As Baylin relayed what the steward had told him, fear flooded his mind. “What if Father dies? I’m not ready to be King.”

  Luana reached up and cupped his cheek, discerning his worry and stress. “If only I could be there to help. I’m so sorry.”

  They were both silent for a moment as they stared into each other’s eyes. She stroked his cheek with her thumb and gave a soft smile. “Do not despair. Many have fallen ill in the Kingdom, but none have succumbed. Your father is strong; he will be okay.”

  Baylin leaned down and kissed her. “I’m sorry, but I must go. There may be little time left.”

  As Baylin hurried from the room, Luana called out to him. “Give him skullcap and passionflower.”

  “What?” he asked, turning to look at her.

  “Instruct Master Keon to make him a tea of skullcap and passionflower,” Luana explained. “It will help with the breathing and any anxiety he might be experiencing. I know Master Keon will most likely see it as a silly folk remedy compared to what he has been taught, but he has been more receptive lately. Trust me, it truly works.”

  Baylin nodded. “Thank you, my love.”

  The Prince rushed from the room, running down the dim halls and up a long length of staircase, all the way up to the royal medical chamber, which was kept separate for the King and Queen. He pushed the door open and saw the large room was filled with maids and stewards running around grabbing instruments and blankets as Master Keon instructed them. Others were stirring the fire, boiling water and doing whatever they were told to help in assisting the old physician.

  In the bed lay his father, grey in color as he coughed and struggled to breath. Master Keon stood over him, attempting to listen to the King’s chest with an instrument that reached from the physician’s ear to his father’s chest.

  Baylin’s mother, Queen Valasca, sat in a large ornate chair next to the bed, holding his father’s hand. Her face lined with worry as she looked up at her son. “Baylin, I’m so glad you’ve come.”

  Baylin hurried to the bed, kneeling down next to his mother, putting his hand on his father’s shoulder as the King endured another coughing fit that caused him to gasp for breath.

  “When did this occur? He had a mere cough this morning,” Baylin asked as he studied his father’s features. The King looked as though he had aged thirty years in the matter of a day.

  “It was so quick,” his mother said with sadness thick in her voice. “He retired early for bed and then the illness gripped him. His steward informed my maid that he was having trouble breathing and seemed very warm to the touch. By the time Master Keon was fetched, his skin was burning, and he acts as though he is drowning with no water.”

  Baylin placed a hand on his mother’s shoulder to comfort her. He had never doubted his parents’ love for one another. It was evident on his mother’s face that she feared losing the man she loved.

  The Prince looked to the old physician as he rubbed a salve on the King’s chest. “What has been done? What can be done, Master Keon?”

  “I’m afraid it is up to the gods now, my Prince,” the old man said with a furrowed brow. “I have given him everything that can be given. If only I could get his breathing spasms under control, I believe he would recover.”

  The Queen covered her mouth with her hand as she attempted to stifle the sound of her weeping in reaction to the old Master’s words. “My father is going to die? My father is going to die!” Baylin let the emotion wash over him for a moment. “No! This cannot happen. There must be something.”

  The Prince thought of what Luana had told him. “What of skullcap and passionflower? I have heard that, if made into a strong tea, it can help assist with breathing difficulties.”

  Master Keon raised his bushy grey eyebrows. “How have you heard of such things, if I may ask, my Prince?”

  Baylin feared if the physician had knowledge that the information came from Luana, he might be a bit resistant to it. However, he had faith in her and hoped Keon would too. “It was Luana. She insists it will help with his breathing.”

  “Ah, your young bed wife and her herbs.” The old man looked apprehensive. He leaned back, stretching his tired back, and placed his hands on his hips as he thought it over. “Though, I suppose they couldn’t hurt. But this is the King’s life we are speaking of.”

  “Please, Master Keon,” Queen Valasca pleaded.

  The physician’s expression softened. “Of course, Your Grace. I’m not completely unreasonable. The young woman does appear to have a gift.”

  Baylin felt the tension ease from his body as the maids set to work boiling water and gathering herbs for the tea.

  Once it was prepared, Master Keon administered the tea and was able to use his other herbs and salves to bring the King out of danger. However, King Ashmur had never fully recovered, and Baylin had seen the days wear his father thin.

  Baylin’s thoughts of the King’s illness diminished as he neared the war room. Even from down the hall he could hear a loud clamor of voices attempting to speak over one another. He arrived in the crowded room. The King had called every general in the Kingdom. The news must be urgent to have called them all here.

  As the Prince pushed his way through the mass of bodies, he was greeted by his friend Ferric. “Your Grace.”

  “Ferric, my friend,” Baylin said, patting the young man on the back. “What calls us from our beds this night?”

  “We have received troubling news.” King Ashmur’s gravelly voice echoed from his high seat, causing the room to go still.

  Baylin was surprised to see his father. He struggled daily to recover his strength and had been urged by Master Keon to take bed rest to recuperate fully. King Ashmur looked weary and much older than he should. The stress of illness and impending war continued to take its toll.

  “Father,” Baylin said, “what news do you speak of?”

  “Please, all of you sit,” the King urged.

  As the group of men bumped and tripped over each other to find room to sit in the congested chamber, Baylin made his way to the seat at his father’s right hand.

  Once all were seated, the room went silent, allowing for them to hear the King without the need to shout. “Men, I have received a bird from King Gideon of Mirstone. The troll hordes have breached the Kingdom’s boarders and are overrunning the villages.”

  The room erupted in gruff gasps and muffled discussion.

  Mirstone was one of the remaining five Keld Kingdoms. It lay to the southwest of Grasmere. Though smallest of all the Keld Kingdoms, Mirstone provided Grasmere with much-needed fruit from their abundant orchards along with large, powerful horses that could not be matched by any other in the world. Grasmere’s alliance with Mirstone not only solidified the fate of the people of both Kingdoms but also ensured the line of the royals would endure.

  Baylin turned in his chair to his father. “How is this possible? What of the royal family?”

  “The royal family is safe,” King Ashmur reassured. “King Gideon managed to get Queen Fia and their daughter, Princess Isla, out through a secret pass behind the castle. They are being escorted to Grasmere on a ship up the Crystal Waters. The journey will be longer by the water, but much safer given the circumstance.”

  Some of the men let out deep breaths and sat back in their chairs in relief. However, many still sat ridged, fidgety and restless. It was obvious everyone was troubled by the situation.

  “Your Grace,” an old man with a long grey beard said as he stood up. “Mirstone is but two days’ ride from here. Certainly we need to look to enforcing our own borders.”

  “What of the people of Mirstone?” Baylin interjected. “Surely King Gideon does not plan to leave them to the mercy of the troll hordes.”

  “No, my son,” the King coughed. “We will not leave the people of Mirstone to suffer such a fate. But we must first assess the situation. I have d
ispatched Lord Cadman with some of his men to weigh the numbers within the Kingdom so that we may quickly siege the troll army and lay waste to them.”

  Baylin clenched his teeth. Cadman. All in the Kingdom were aware of the fact that Baylin and Lord Cadman held no affection for one another. However, after Cadman’s attempt at raping Luana, it took all of Baylin’s control not to kill his uncle.

  Father trusts him far too much. As a young boy, Baylin had discovered the depth of Cadman’s treachery when he overheard him plotting to have both the Prince and the King killed. He had tried to warn his parents, but King Ashmur refused to listen. Cadman wants Grasmere for his own, and Father would blindly trust him with a mission of this importance.

  “Father, perhaps I would be more suited...” Baylin began.

  “What’s done is done,” the King interrupted. “Besides, your duty is here. I need you to see to the needs of King Gideon and his family when they arrive. I fear I’m not going to be the best of company and, as is tradition, a celebration must be prepared for them.”

  So I’m to play host while Cadman manipulates and corrupts this Kingdom. Baylin glared at the floor, feeling heat rush over his body. This cannot be allowed. I must make him see Uncle for what he truly is. Cadman seeks to overthrow the line and take the Kingdom, and Father sits by blindly and allows him to pull it from under us. The Prince began to grind his teeth in anger at the thoughts of his deceitful uncle.

  The debate of strategy and combat continued on into the night. It was truly exhausting to Baylin. These old men would talk until they were out of breath, yet nothing ever seemed to get done.

  The discussion wore down, and one by one the men excused themselves to return to their chambers. Baylin wished he could do the same, but his duty was to stay at his father’s side until all had departed. Ferric was the last of the men to remain in the room. This was welcome to Baylin as he felt he could be himself around his friend.

  The Prince stood from his chair, stretching his back after sitting for so long. He walked over to Ferric and patted him on the shoulder. “Could you give me a moment with the King? Wait for me in the hall so I can discuss something with you.”

  Ferric nodded. “Yes, Your Grace.”

  As Ferric walked out the door, Baylin turned to King Ashmur, who had feebly stood from his chair. “Father, I must protest in regard to sending Uncle to Mirstone. The assessment of the condition of the Kingdom is far too important.”

  The King shook his head in frustration. “Baylin, we have been over this. I trust your uncle completely. He cares as much about this Kingdom as you. He would die to defend it.”

  He’d kill to take it. Baylin balled his fists, trying to control his anger. “The last time we trusted his judgment in a situation like this, my men and I were nearly slaughtered.”

  King Ashmur looked at his son with sad eyes. “You have always distrusted your uncle, Baylin. He has his faults, I know, but if you could only see him as I do.”

  Baylin felt the heat rise in his face. “No, Father, you’re wrong. Your love for him blinds you. If you could but see he does not hold you in the same regard.”

  “He is my brother, Baylin,” King Ashmur shouted. The effort caused the King to waver and he reached for the arm of his throne to steady himself. The King turned to his son with sadness in his eyes. “Would you have me cast him out? Perhaps if your mother and I had given you a brother, you would understand.”

  The words caused Baylin a great amount of guilt. His parents had suffered greatly over the years. After Ashmur’s mother died giving birth to Cadman and their father passed a year later, Ashmur was crowned King at the young age of eighteen. The responsibility of a Kingdom was enough, but Ashmur made it his duty to be a father to his little brother, Cadman.

  Baylin grew up listening to his father reminisce over tales the brothers had shared. He knew his parents’ goal was to give him his own brothers and sisters; however, their desire was never fulfilled. Queen Valasca had been with child more than once after Baylin, but the gods saw fit to take them from her before they entered the world.

  Baylin’s thoughts turned to that of Luana and the child she had within. He felt a fear rise within him but refused to let it take him. No. We will not share my parents’ fate. His attention returned to that of the King. “Father, I would not ask you to banish him, but I would not have you stand by and have a veil of lies cloud your judgment of him. When I was a boy, I came to you and…”

  “Not this again.” The King sat back down on his throne, tired and weak. “You were simply mistaken. Your uncle…”

  “Cadman is a vile creature who would sooner see both of us dead than ruling Grasmere!” The anger within Baylin boiled up to the surface. “As a boy you disregarded my warning, but you cannot possibly tell me that now, as a man, I still misunderstand Cadman’s intent.”

  Baylin knew his words caused his father pain, but he felt it was his duty to warn him. The Prince knelt beside his father’s throne, looking up at him. “Father, I beg you to see reason. You know I speak the truth.”

  “He was once such a wonderful boy, your uncle.” A tear fell down the wrinkled cheek of the old King as he stared down at his son. “He was so full of life and laughter, so very innocent of the world and the evils that it held. It wasn’t until after you were born that the boy I had known turned into a dark, angry man.”

  Then he sees him for what he is. Baylin looked into his father’s eyes in shock. “You know what he is, yet you allow him to stay? Allow him to make decisions that carry the weight of the fate of our Kingdom?”

  King Ashmur reached out and placed a hand on Baylin’s shoulder. “Like I said, my son, he is my brother. I have hope the boy I raised will someday return.”

  Baylin was frustrated, but felt pity for his father. There is no point in carrying on this argument. Baylin stood as his father rose from the large throne. As the King made his way from the room, Baylin stopped him. “Father?”

  The King turned to face Baylin. “What is it, my boy?”

  “You should know I will do anything to protect our Kingdom. I will protect you, Mother, Luana and the people of Grasmere, by whatever means necessary,” Baylin said with utter surety.

  King Ashmur gave Baylin a weary smile. “I’m counting on it.”

  As Baylin and the King made their way out to the hall, they found Ferric waiting on them. Baylin remembered even during these uncertain times he had reason to celebrate.

  “Father. Ferric, my friend,” Baylin said. “I nearly forgot. I have something I must share with you both.” Though he was exhausted, the happiness Baylin had felt earlier in the evening returned at the thought of sharing his news.

  “Well, what is it?” the King urged, seeming anxious to retire to his chambers.

  “Luana is with child,” Baylin said. “I’m to be a father.”

  A wide grin spread across Ferric’s face and he clapped Baylin on the back in a sturdy embrace. “Well done, Baylin.”

  “Yes, yes.” His father smiled. “This is most welcome news. Welcome indeed.” The King reached out a frail hand to Baylin in congratulations.

  “Thank you, Father.” The Prince felt pride at being able to relay the news to his father and friend. All the other bed wives were heavy with child, and the lack of his own heir on the way had caused him some pain.

  Looking at the smile on King Ashmur’s face, Baylin saw the King as his father, not of his father as the King. He was certain the arrival of this child would bring them all closer. Perhaps the coming of a grandchild could persuade Father to renounce the bed wife law. Perhaps I can convince him to allow me to take Luana as my Queen. The thought gave him hope.

  The King looked tired. “Baylin, Ferric, you must excuse me. I do think it is time I retire. The Queen will certainly be waiting.” Both Prince Baylin and Ferric bowed respectfully as the King turned down a side hall toward his chambers.

  Ferric lingered a bit longer. He wore a smile across his face. “So you are to be a father, truly? H
ow does it feel?”

  Baylin thought about the question for a moment as he and Ferric walked down the long hall. The torches that lined it flickered, fighting to stay alive in the wee hours of the morning. The Prince strained his eyes, squinting to see through the dim light. “I’m not sure. I’ve hardly had time to think about it. I found out before being called to council.”

  “You mean you came to council instead of… um… celebrating… with Luana tonight?” Ferric’s laugh echoed off the empty hall walls. “You need to get your priorities in order.”

  Baylin laughed and shoved at Ferric. “There is plenty of time for that. Plus, you know even I must obey the King.”

  The two friends spoke and joked as they made their way through the halls. Ferric always put Baylin’s mind at ease. Their friendship was only second to that of Baylin’s love for Luana. As they neared a split in the hall, Baylin took his leave and headed back to his chamber.

  When he arrived, he found Luana asleep on the bed, covered in warm furs. He walked over to the hearth and threw another log on the fire, stirring the hot embers back to life. He crossed the room to the bed, removed his clothes and slid into bed. Luana gently stirred as the Prince pulled her into his arms.

  Baylin leaned in and kissed her eagerly as he held her in his arms. He ran a hand down the soft curve of her hip, allowing his fingers to trail between her thighs. His touch caused Luana to moan softly, arousing him. Baylin pulled her closer so that she could feel the stimulating effect she had on him.

  He deepened his kiss as he rolled, placing her under him. Luana spread her legs while her fingertips dug into the flesh of his hips, encouraging his desire for her. He pressed his hard member into her with one smooth thrust, catching her moan of pleasure with his mouth as it escaped her lips.

  Baylin held on to Luana’s waist as he moved within her. She raised her hips, allowing him to deepen his thrust. The sensation was so great, he could hardly contain himself.

  He broke their embrace long enough to whisper “I love you” into her ear. Luana moaned as his pace quickened and she succumbed to the pleasure. The sound of Luana’s desire aroused Baylin further, and he too let out a deep-throated groan as ecstasy flowed over him.