Blinding Beauty (10 page)

The men that loitered outside
began to gather their belongings in a hurry before suddenly
streaming into the stable. Curious, Launce found himself at the
edges of the throng that was trying to fit itself into the stable
doors all at once. He allowed himself to be jostled and carried
along with the crowd.

“
With all the dignitaries
attending, you would think Rafael have hosted something a bit more
appropriate,” a man to Launce’s left grumbled. “If I’d known we
were to be housed and fed like animals, I would have brought my own
caravan.”

“
He wouldn’t have let you stay in
it and compete,” another said as they shuffled forward, although
Launce couldn’t see the speaker. “I heard him say the visiting holy
man wants us all in the same place to see which one the Maker
considers worthy.”

“
I think he’s lost his mind,” the
first speaker, a short, solid man, said mildly.

“
Why are you here then?” Launce
realized as the words left his mouth that they sounded rather
impertinent, but he was genuinely curious as to why such
self-important men would stoop to live in what they considered
squalor.

“
The same reason you are,” the man
said with more than a hint of annoyance. Lance sincerely doubted
that, but he pressed no further. Eventually, after being pushed and
stepped on more times than he could count, Launce finally made it
back to his bunk. As moments passed, the men still trying to find
their own beds, many of whom were more than a bit drunk, began to
move at a more frenzied pace.

“
What’s wrong with them?” Launce
asked a servant boy who standing nearby him.

“
You must be new.” The boy looked
him up and down curiously.”

Launce nodded.

“
Midnight has come,” the boy said,
as if that explained it.

“
So?”

“
Just after midnight, something
awful happens outside.” The boy, probably twelve or thirteen,
looked unruffled, but there was a slight tremor to his warbling
voice that gave him away. “How long have you been here?”

“
I arrived today.”

“
Then you have only been to the
ball,” the boy said. “The other nights, before you got here, were
different.” He smirked proudly. “My master arrived a week
ago.”

“
But what happened?” Launce
pressed, glancing around as they spoke to realize the men were
running even faster to finish whatever they were doing.

“
Every night, the king stations a
guard outside to make sure the competitors don’t sneak out. Since
we arrived, we’ve found each night guard on the ground in the
morning, dead as they come, pounded to death. I’ve never seen so
much blood.” The boy shivered, his brown curls shaking just
slightly with him.

“
No one hears anything?” Launce
asked incredulously. These men were certainly not Everard, but he
found it hard to believe that seven men could be pounded to death
without the company of men in the stable hearing a
thing.

The boy just shook his
head.

“
But what does the king say about
the men who have died?” Launce felt a warm bit of unease slither
through his body.

The boy shrugged, glancing over
his shoulder as he began to fidget.

“
But what if it’s dark forces at
work?” Launce prodded.

“
Someone suggested that, but the
king said that if one of you is going to be king, he’d better know
how to deal with such anyway. Look now, my master will be angry if
I’m not back with him soon.”

Thanking him, Launce let the
nervous boy go and settled into his own bunk. Before he could
wonder at such a strange turn of events, however, his eyes grew
heavy, and the bed was suddenly much more comfortable than he’d
first thought. As though sharing his sudden exhaustion, a chorus of
snores erupted throughout the stable. It was as though all work and
bustling had come to a complete halt, and no one cared any longer
if their personal chores were attended to.

This struck him as odd, but Launce
had just decided he would be better fit to search for the reason in
the morning, when he felt the bed tremor lightly beneath him. And
then again.

Surprised at his sudden lack of
will to get out of bed, Launce did his best to flip over, fighting
the crushing drowsiness with all his strength. The competitor’s
snoring continued for the most part, although Launce did hear
someone get up and relieve himself outside. Or at least, that’s
what it sounded like. Try as he might, though, it was all Launce
could do to keep his eyelids slitted open.

The tremors began to come faster
and harder, and through his nearly closed eyes, Launce saw a
strange dust floating around in the air, but only for a moment. The
ground was now quaking so violently, Launce felt as though he might
be thrown from his bunk. Fear gripped him as he tried desperately
to free himself from the grasp of whatever force held him in the
state of severe sluggishness, and the strange shaking only made it
worse.

As the earthquake grew in
strength, Launce could no longer see the room as his teeth jarred
and his body slammed into the wall repeatedly. Terror gripped him
as he realized someone had left candles upright on the table, but
as he prayed to the Maker to keep them from falling, sleep kept him
from finishing even that.

CHAPTER TEN

Brittle Hints

Launce
wanted to cringe as Everard studied him with that infuriating,
unreadable expression. Since Launce had awakened that morning, he’d
been dreading the scolding he was sure to hear for allowing sleep
to take him during the night’s quaking. The pastries Everard had
brought did lessen the sting, but Launce was a bit suspicious as to
how his brother-in-law had known he would be hungry. He didn’t ask
though. It was best not to expect too much from the king, even on
the best days.

To Launce’s surprise, however, his
brother-in-law slowly nodded.

“
I believe you are right,
particularly since no one here in the palace felt the quakes, and
many servants were awake much past midnight without a
problem.”

Launce nearly allowed himself to
gape, but managed to keep his mouth shut and his sarcastic comment
in as well. Everard’s agreement had been the last thing he’d
expected when his brother-in-law had sent a note early that
morning, telling Launce to meet him in the south corner of the
outer palace walk.

“
I just wish we knew where this
power was coming from,” Everard mused, turning to stare at the
distant seashore that glistened a pearly white in the
distance.

“
One of the men said the king
wants the competitors in one place so the holy man can see them and
judge whom is worthy.”

“
Have you noticed anyone who
stands out?”

“
Just self-important royals and
nobles and their servants.”

“
From the way you inhaled the
pastries,” Everard frowned, “I’m supposing they’re the same
self-important coxcombs who kept you from getting a decent
breakfast this morning, too.” He let out a gusty breath and ran his
hand through his short hair. “If you would just wear the Fortress
colors I sent, they would treat you with more respect.”

“
I won’t pretend to be someone I’m
not.” Launce kept his eyes on the hills behind Everard.

“
Whether you like it or not,”
Everard’s words were nearly a growl, “you are now attached to the
Fortress. It would be easier on everyone if you simply accepted
it.”

“
I am well aware of my
attachments!” Launce spat out. His sweetheart’s father had said as
much.

Everard fixed his burning eyes
back on Launce. “We don’t have time for this. Isa will be awake
soon. Today, I want you to look for any signs of power. See if you
can find any residue from last night. Look in the food, the hay,
even on the horses. Someone does not want you to see whatever
happens to those guards during the earthquakes.”

On his way back to the stables,
Launce swore to himself that after this, he was done being
Everard’s errand boy. Being summoned and sent on whim left a bitter
taste in his mouth. He would go home, help his father with the
shop, find a completely ordinary wife, and leave Fortress matters
be.

But then, that still left Isa
alone with him.

The stables were separated from
the main palace, but not far enough to fit Launce’s taste. The
palace, with its red clay roof tiles and whitewashed walls, spread
out in twists and turns in such a complicated manner that Launce
still wasn’t even sure that they resembled any sort of organized
thought. The stables, though, were simply long rectangular
structures, single rooms with double bunks built into each wall
across from the horses.

As he entered the main stable,
where all the competitors were staying, he tried to slip in unseen.
It wasn’t hard, considering most of the men were otherwise
occupied. Some napped, while others dueled or engaged in political
discussions. He found the horse Everard had sent for him and began
to groom him. Launce needed to think, and brushing the animal was
relaxing, something familiar. As he found a brush and began to
groom the horse, he couldn’t help but notice how striking the
creature was. As far as Everard could push him towards insanity,
Launce couldn’t fault the man’s taste in horses.

“
Fine charger you have
there.”

Launce turned to find the friendly
servant from the previous night standing behind him. Ease washed
through him as he returned the man’s grin.

“
It belongs to King Everard.”
Launce put down the brush and ran a hand down the animal’s shiny
coat. “But he is a fine one.”

The servant held out a cloth bag.
“I figured this lot,” he waved at the crowd of competitors and
whispered, “wouldn’t leave you much to eat. Hungry?” Launce had
inhaled the three sweet rolls Everard had brought him, but then
again, Launce was always hungry. They moved outside to sit on a log
at the fringe of the stable shuffle, where there was a bit more
space for Launce to dive greedily into the bag of eggs, bread, and
cheese.

“
I have to admit,” Launce said
between bites of the bread, which was still warm, “while I’m truly
grateful, I am a bit confused as to why you’ve shown me so much
kindness.”

Brokk smiled wanly. “I have a
confession of my own to make, I’m afraid. I haven’t been a servant
for King Rafael for very long. I traveled before that, and I’ve
seen more than I would like to recall.” His smile melted into a
fleeting distant look. But just as soon as it had fallen, he was
smiling once again. “As soon as I learned of what your sister did
at the Fortress, I wanted badly to meet her. I’m sorry if it seems
I’ve used you...” The older man pursed his lips and stared at the
ground.

“
I’m sure my sister would be
delighted to meet you.” Launce tried to give the man an encouraging
smile. “And I never turn down food.” When he said this, Brokk’s
eyes crinkled up pleasantly, and Launce had to feel pleased,
himself.

As he finished the eggs, Launce
suddenly found himself very curious. “If you don’t mind me asking,
where are you from, if not here?” Indeed, the more he studied
Brokk, the more the servant stood out against the others. Where
most of the native Cobriens had olive skin and dark eyes, this
man’s hair had once been red, or at least had carried traces of it.
His eyes were a pale blue, and his skin lacked the hardy warmth of
the Cobriens.

“
North,” Brokk answered, pulling
an apple from his pocket and studying it. “I doubt you would know
of it.”

“
What made you decide to leave?”
Launce tried to keep from sounding too curious, but there was
something different about the man, something knowledgeable. He
couldn’t explain why, but this servant seemed as though he knew
much, much more than what many of the men surrounding them knew
combined.

The older man looked down at his
scuffed boots and then out at the distant sea to the south.
“Sometimes decisions are made for us, lad,” Brokk said in a soft
voice. The sadness in his voice silenced any further questions
Launce was tempted to ask.

They stared out at the ocean for a
bit until in a more cheery voice, Brokk asked what Launce planned
to do with the afternoon. As he started to answer, Launce paused,
unsure of how much he should tell others about his errand from
Everard.

“
Have you heard of the murders
outside the stables every night?” Launce asked cautiously, trying
to guess at what the unusual little man knew.

“
The servants talk of nothing
else.”

“
I thought I would try and poke
around.” Launce tried to sound casual as he folded the empty bag,
afraid that he looked at Brokk directly, his nerves would give him
away.

“
May I give you a piece of advice
then?”

Surprised, Launce looked at his
new friend. The older man’s eyes were thoughtful as he gazed back.
When Launce nodded, Brokk’s smile nearly became a smirk. “Try
looking from a different perspective.”

“
What do you mean?”

“
Have any of them tried looking?”
Brokk waved his arm at the men milling about the
stables.