“You are asking me to bring proof that something does not exist,” Pavic said.
“Even if he had proof, which he doesn’t,” said Belphan, “we have further charges that bring his word before this council into doubt.”
“What charges?” Ricard asked.
“Treason and espionage.”
Pavic knew then that he was a dead man. One look at Torrin had convinced him that the junior counselor had betrayed him. Either the man had been fed false information to pass on, or had, in fact, conspired against him. It was clear now that Pavic would be executed, he had no way to refute it.
“What is this?” said Ricard.
Oveer spoke up now, his nasally voice sounding inflated with self importance.
“Pavic, High Counselor of Yelsia, conspired with one of my junior counselors to supply him with information, secrets of my kingdom and of Osla.”
“I did no such thing,” Pavic lied.
“Ah, but I have proof,” said Oveer.
One of the other councilors shoved Torrin forward. The man looked miserable, but he had no choice. He looked at the floor, refusing to meet anyone’s gaze.
“This is Torrin, a confessed traitor to the realm. He was bribed by Pavic of Yelsia to share secrets about this council and about the Torr.”
“That’s a lie,” Pavic said, but there was no conviction in his voice.
“Is it?” Oveer was gloating now. “I have a signed confession. I have witnesses who saw Torrin meeting with you. I also have witnesses that will testify that you paid off substantial gambling debts that Torrin had incurred at more than one establishment in this city. Do you still deny it, Pavic of Yelsia?”
Pavic felt tired. He had entered the court determined to do everything in his power to give Prince Wilam and Quinn the time they needed to escape, but Offendorl had been ahead of him every step of the way. The ancient-looking wizard was sitting back now, letting the kings that were obviously allied with him do the dirty work. Pavic knew it was useless to keep up the charade. He shook his head no.
“My fellow kings,” Belphan said in a loud voice. “Is it not obvious that Yelsia is conspiring against us? King Felix refuses to attend this council, an act of defiance that hasn’t been done in over three hundred years. His son, Prince Wilam, the Crown Prince of Yelsia, sneaks away from the Grand City. They harbor and aid a wizard, breaking the treaty and peace of the Five Kingdoms. We must act to stop this treasonous aggression, and we must act decisively.”
“What are you calling for?” Ricard said. “War? It sounds to me as if you are the one breaking the peace.”
“Don’t be a fool, Ricard,” Belphan said. “We all know that Baskla and Yelsia are in one another’s pockets.”
“For all we know, you could be in on this treason,” said Oveer.
“Oveer, you’re a fool who knows not when to keep his mouth shut,” said Ricard. “Zorlan, tell me you aren’t ready to go to war over these rumors.”
Zorlan did not speak at first. Everyone was staring at him, but it was obvious he was a weak man. Ricard had only recently arrived in the city, while Zorlan had been there long enough to be courted by the other kings and even Offendorl.
“Falxis does not look for war,” he said. “But neither will we run from it. Yelsia must answer for her crimes.”
“This is absurd,” Ricard said angrily.
“Good kings,” Offendorl said. “Do not fight among yourselves. Let us deal with the treason at court, then we shall make plans to deal with our wayward neighbor.”
At the ancient wizard’s signal, troops came into the court. There were guards with the Yelsian party behind Pavic, but he told them to stand down. The Oslian troops took custody of Pavic and forced him out into the middle of the court to stand beside Torrin. The younger man was shaking in fear. Pavic put his hand on the younger man’s shoulder.
“Die with honor,” he whispered.
“I don’t have any.”
“You were a sacrificial lamb. We were both deceived. All we can do now is die well.”
Torrin looked at Pavic with large, fearful eyes.
“You both stand convicted of treason and espionage,” Belphan said. “Your sentence is death.”
“Let me carry out the sentence,” said Offendorl, seizing the opportunity to display his power.
He raised his hand, a needless gesture, but he understood the need to be theatrical. He wanted the kings to realize the display of power they were about to see was coming from him. Torrin rose up into the air. He bellowed in fear and a wet stain spread across his pants. Then he was spread-eagled in midair, as if invisible ropes were pulling his limbs in different directions. The young man screamed in pain as his arms and legs were stretched, his muscles and ligaments starting to tear under the strain. His left arm popped out of its socket first, with a wet sounding pop that made Pavic’s bowels turn to water. Torrin was screaming in pain. Then his right arm snapped and was torn free of the young man’s body. Blood and gore rained down on Pavic. Then Torrin’s legs were stretched upward until they were angling up. The hips popped out of their sockets simultaneously, and Torrin finally passed out. Then, with a vicious jerk, his arm and both legs were torn free from his body, which fell to the floor to slap against the polished stone. Many of the councilors were physically sick.
Pavic stood still, staring defiantly at Belphan and Oveer. Then he turned to Ricard and spoke.
“See the true nature of the men you ally yourself with,” he said, and then he, too, was rising up in the air.
Pavic didn’t cry out, not even when he was dangled upside down and dropped so that his skull was cracked open on the floor like an egg. Then his body was lifted high in the air until his brain, magically severed from the spine, dropped to land in the blood-smattered floor.
* * *
Three days passed in monotony. They avoided inns and rode as long and hard as they could. They were nearing the border when they finally had to stop and rest. They made camp by a small stream just before sundown. Quinn took the first watch. Once again he stayed awake as long as possible. He paced and splashed water on his face until the night was nearly gone. Then he woke Wilam, who rose without a word. Quinn slept until midmorning, then they ate stale rations as they led their horses.
Both men felt better with a little extra rest and the horses seemed to appreciate the break as much as the men did. They were running out of supplies, so at the next village they stopped to resupply. It took three more days for them to cross the border and reach the coast in Falxis. They found a small port, not much more than a village really, and began inquiring about passage north. They searched for almost an hour before the small squad of soldiers found them. Quinn hadn’t noticed the soldiers, who wore civilian clothes over chainmail. Prince Wilam had no armor and Quinn had insisted the future ruler wear the mail he had purchased at Brimington Bay.
There were six soldiers, and they surrounded Quinn and Wilam in a half circle with the ocean behind them. Each of the soldiers had a long sword and a thick dagger that reminded Quinn of the cutlasses used by seamen.
“You’re under arrest,” said one of the soldiers.
Quinn thought briefly of just how much trouble he’d gotten himself into following Zollin out of Tranaugh Shire. Then he realized that these soldiers were between him and his son, and he steeled his resolve.
“On what authority?” Prince Wilam said angrily.
“King Belphan’s.”
“You have no right, we aren’t in Olsa,” Wilam argued.
“This right here gives me the right,” said the soldier, holding up his sword.
Wilam drew his own weapon. He felt like the weight of the world had been lifted off his shoulders. He wasn’t a good ambassador and running from danger didn’t agree with him. Now he could finally meet an adversary head on, and he was happy about it.
“We don’t recognize your authority and refuse to go with you.”
“We can do it the easy way,” the soldier said. “Or we c
an cut you down in the street. Makes no difference to us.”
Quinn knew that they couldn’t overcome six soldiers at once. He had no idea how talented Wilam was with a sword. He doubted that the Prince had ever faced an opponent who wasn’t afraid to hurt him. He needed to even the odds a little. In one fluid motion he drew both of his throwing knives and threw the one in his right hand at the speaker’s throat. It hit the mark, tearing through the soft flesh and flying out the other side. Blood sprayed in a crimson arc, and the other soldiers were stunned. No one moved except for Quinn, who threw the other knife. It was a left-handed throw and missed the soldier’s throat. Instead it caved in his chin, splintering bone and sending teeth flying. The man screamed and fell to the ground, writhing in pain.
Prince Wilam didn’t hesitate to take advantage of the soldiers’ surprise. He jumped forward and swung his sword at one soldier, who quickly raised his own weapon to deflect the Prince’s blade. Wilam then spun and ducked at the same time, avoiding another soldier’s thrust and slicing his sword through the man’s knee.
Quinn jumped forward, feinting with his sword, and kicked the nearest soldier between the legs hard enough to lift the man off the ground. Then he turned to another soldier and parried the man’s slash. He closed the distance between himself and his attacker, then rammed his forehead into the man’s nose, smashing the bone and cartilage. The soldier fell back, his nose gushing blood.
Wilam was forced to fight the final soldier, who was no longer in shock or surprise. The man was swinging his sword like an enraged lumberjack, and it was all Wilam could do to parry or block the vicious attack. Quinn reached into his boot and drew his third throwing knife. The man was moving too much to aim for his throat, so Quinn threw the knife hard at the man’s chest, but it sank into the soldier’s arm instead. The sudden pain caused the man to drop his sword and stagger back. Wilam shifted from defense to offense. The soldier, fighting for his life with only the thick dagger, made a good showing, blocking the Prince’s blows, but he couldn’t keep up the fight for long. Wilam knocked the dagger from the man’s hand, and the soldier fell onto his back.
Wilam pressed his blade into the soldier’s throat.
“How did you know we were coming here?” he asked.
“Didn’t,” panted the man. “There’s soldiers at every port and on every ship.”
“Who sent you?” Quinn asked.
“It was the King’s order.”
“King Belphan?”
“Yes,” grimaced the man, obviously in pain.
“Come on, we need to get out of here,” Quinn said. He was scanning the water and noticed two jolly boats with soldiers paddling toward them.
Chapter 31
Zollin and Brianna rode back to the villagers’ camp to rest. Zollin was exhausted and starving. Although they had some supplies with them, they didn’t want to use them before they set out into the mountains. There simply wasn’t enough food anywhere.
Zollin rode straight back to Kelvich’s little cottage. It was empty now that he had healed everyone from the village, so he found a quiet spot and went to sleep. Brianna, on the other hand, had slept through the night, although it had been difficult since she was tied up, hand and foot. Still, she wanted to make sure that there was food for Zollin when he woke up. She took the haunch of venison to Ollie, who immediately butchered it and began roasting the rich game meat. She checked their horses and checked their supplies. Then she stretched out under a tree and took a nap.
When she woke up it was late evening and she could smell the food that had been cooked. Ollie had done wonders with the venison. It wasn’t enough meat to feed the entire village, but she was able to add it to a mix of vegetables and make small pies. That, along with some bread and cheese, rounded out the evening meal. Brianna made sure that Zollin had plenty of food and wine when he woke up. They hadn’t talked much on the way back to the village. Zollin had trouble just staying awake. Now, however, Brianna was hoping he would feel like talking to her.
She sat waiting for him to rouse and wake up. She had been terrified when she woke up after being captured by the soldiers. She had been tied to the small pull cart and stretched out beside the buck she had killed. Her head had hurt and the rope had chafed her wrists. When the soldiers had gotten her back to their camp, Billips had heard their report and sent the deer to the cooks and Brianna to be held overnight under armed guard. She had tried to free herself for a while, finally giving up. She had lain back on the cot, which was nothing more than canvas stretched across a wooden frame, and wondered what Zollin was doing. She had wondered if he would come for her. She couldn’t blame him if he didn’t. It seemed like she was more trouble than she was worth. She had been captured by Branock, then she had hidden when they fought the dragon, and now she had been captured again. Hot tears had coursed down her cheeks until she’d fallen asleep. The next morning she had woken up when the guards surrounded her tent, their armor and weapons rattling. She had asked them to let her out, but they had ignored her. When the tent had ripped open, she had been terrified, but then she had seen Zollin and all her fears had fallen away.
He had been frightening with his power flowing over him. His voice was different, and his eyes seemed to smolder the way she imagined an otherworldly being’s might. The tiny blue lighting that crackled all over him seemed natural somehow, but it also made him seem terrible and unapproachable. She was afraid that she could never let her guard down around him. The truth was she was tired of fighting to keep her distance, but she was still too scared to give in to her feelings.
“You look like you’re wrestling with some heavy thoughts,” Zollin said.
He was still lying on the bed, but he had rolled over so that he could watch her. She smiled and tried not to let the tears in her eyes show.
“I have some food for you,” she said.
“Great! I’m starving.”
He sat up and then gripped the bed frame. He was dizzy, but he knew it would pass. She handed him a cup of wine. He had never cared for wine, but lately it was growing on him. He liked the way the fruity taste lingered on his tongue even after he had swallowed the drink. And of course, drinking wine seemed to revive his strength faster than anything else. He ate his small meat pies. The crust was crisp and flaky. It had a good flavor and went well with the cheese Brianna had saved. In fact, most of what he ate was her portion, but she didn’t mind. She wasn’t really hungry at all and just nibbled some bread.
“Can we talk?” she asked him.
“Isn’t that what we’re doing?” he joked.
“I’m serious, Zollin. I feel like I’m holding you back.”
His face fell. He didn’t want Brianna to leave him. He felt like if she stayed with him, he could win her over again. Nothing else seemed as important as having her affection, but he knew he couldn’t force himself on her. If she didn’t want to stay, he would let her go, no matter how much it hurt.
“I don’t think so,” he said.
“Come on, I keep getting into trouble. I was no help against the dragon at all.”
“Neither were the troops, but that may be different this time. With the dwarvish steel, perhaps we can wound it.”
“Maybe, but will you be able to fight the dragon and protect me, too? Wouldn’t you be better off going alone?”
“I don’t want to,” he said, feeling like a little boy who had lost his favorite toy.
“I don’t want you to, either,” she said, sensing his fear. “I want to be with you all the time, but maybe we need to consider the possibility that perhaps it isn’t the best thing.”
Zollin threw all caution to the wind.
“Do you love me?” he asked her.
“Of course I love you,” she said, not meeting his eye.
“No, I know you love me, but are you in love with me?”
She hesitated. She wanted to shout, yes! She wanted to proclaim her love and forget her fears and fall into his arms and never leave, but something wouldn’t
let her.
“I’m afraid to love you,” she said, trying to be honest.
“Afraid of what?” he asked.
“Of you, of what you can do or what you might become. Let’s face it, Zollin, you could be anything you want. You could have killed every one of the soldiers this morning. You could become King of Yelsia; who would stop you? Yet here you are, taking care of me and my petty concerns.”
“This is where I want to be,” he said. “None of that other stuff matters. I want to be with you. It’s all I want.”
She looked down, letting her hair shroud her face so that he wouldn’t see her smile. She had to admit that she wanted to hear him say that he loved her and wanted to be with her. Now, he had said that and more, but still, she felt selfish hanging on to him.
“Do wizards marry?” she asked him.
“I don’t know,” he admitted. “But I want to marry you. It was all I thought about when we were at Orrock. I just didn’t know how to go about it, and I thought I had plenty of time.”
“I don’t want you to give up your dreams for me,” she said.
“Brianna, you are my dreams. I didn’t ask to become a wizard. I mean, I know this is what I was created to be. Nothing in my life made sense until I discovered my power, but I’m more than just a wizard. I’m Zollin Quinnson and I love you, Brianna. Let me love you. I know I can make you happy.”
And just like that her fear broke. All the worry and doubts fled, like shadows before sunlight. She jumped into his arms and they kissed. Zollin felt tears running down his face and when Brianna noticed them, she sat up, looking at him.
Five Kingdoms: Books 01, 02 & 03 Page 110