Last Knight (The Champion Chronicles Book 2) (6 page)

              He dropped to a knee, which caused a burning pain in his chest.  The pain had subsided enough that he had forgotten about the wound.  But the moment he leaned over, the sharp pain surprised him and caused him to let out an audible gasp.  He hoped it was not loud enough to scare away any small game that was nearby.

              It also brought back the anger that had built up inside of him.  It was more than just being hurt; they had humiliated him.  He knew it was his own fault for being overly aggressive and confident that his own skills were better than anyone else’s.  It wasn’t that they were more skilled than he was, it was that they knew how to fight.  Master Goshin had taught him how to swing a sword, defend himself in combat, and attack in combat.  But the elbow to the face was a harsh lesson in the difference between fighting and combat.  A lesson that if he didn’t remember, he knew would come back to haunt him.

              His mind had drifted so far from his task, that he wasn’t sure how long he had been sitting on the ground.  He stood, stretching out his stiff knees, and walked slowly along the barely noticeable path.  It wound its way through the underbrush in almost a straight line, probably towards a small watering hole or a creek.  At what he hoped was the perfect choke point, a place on the trail where the animal was certain to cross, he setup the simple snare trap.  He tied one end to a nearby tree and the other end an open loop along the trail.

              He took a quick measure of the forest around him.  He spotted several trees that made good reference points so that he could easily find his way back.  It could be some time before a rabbit or squirrel decided to take the path and if he were to stay around to watch it, they would certainly stay away.

              As quietly as he could, he returned back to Steven and Laurin.

              He found the open clearing, and even found their provisions on the ground next to an attempt at making a fire.  But they were gone.  His heart pounded hard as he looked around in a panic.

Chapter Six

Hibold pulled the fur-lined cloak over his shoulders and pulled it tight around his body to keep himself warm.  The luxurious item had been payment from the regional governor of the northeast territories after Emperor Hargon had sent him there to investigate a sudden drop in tax revenue.  Among the many issues he discovered, it was revealed that the governor was engaging in a relationship with one of his own second cousins.  Rather than exposing the affair to the governor’s wife and to the emperor, Hibold took payment in the form of this wonderfully warm cloak, as well as a chest full of gold coins.  Half made it back to the castle in the form of taxes owed, while the rest stayed hidden in his house.  Even his wife didn’t know about it.

              Although Prince Tarcious mentioned the various emissaries that were readily available in the palace, Hibold knew that was really not the case.  They stayed in the palace because the only way they could get a job was to beg and bribe their way to be chosen.  If he himself wasn’t going to be on the delegation to go back to Karmon, he needed to make sure that the job would get done right, and he only knew of one person that would be able to pull that off.  Once found, Hibold was sure that he would jump at the opportunity, but finding him was not going to be easy.

              Daytime was not the time to find this man, so Hibold waited until the sun had set.  Cold and wind made the walk miserable, but the street lamps were lit, allowing him to see his way through the city.  There were several places of disrepute that the man could be in, but there was one that was known to be his favorite, so Hibold took the chance on going to it first.  It was the farthest away, so by the time he walked through the door, he was thoroughly frozen.

              A very large man stood on the other side of the door, which protected him from the wind, but not the cold night air.  Made to look even larger by the thick wool clock he wore, the man was an imposing figure that stood well over Hibold’s height.  The large man glared down at the much smaller Hibold.  But his demeanor changed when Hibold slipped him a large coin with the face of the emperor on one side, and the image of an eagle on the other.  The large man’s expression softened and a wry smile slipped out.  With a quick wave of his hand, he let Hibold pass.

              The hall ran for some distance before it reached a stairwell that led down to a lower level.  A chandelier hung from the ceiling of the stairwell, providing more than enough light for Hibold to descend.  As he neared the bottom, raucous sounds and voices could be heard, which meant that he was nearing his destination.  There was also the slight scent of perfumes and incense that brought back images of his own wild youth.  Twenty years ago, he would have been panting and bursting at the seams with excitement at what the place offered, but now that he was older, and much wiser, he could only push aside the depravity that he was about to see.

              The bottom of the stairs opened up to a large room filled with people from the higher echelons of the political scene.  In a time long past, being seen at such a place would have been the ruination of one’s career, but now, if you weren’t seen, then you would be looked down upon.  But that was for the young and needy, the political up and comers who needed a boost in their career.  With his own career set, as well as his finances, there was no need for him try and impress his peers by frequenting these types of establishments.

              But as he looked around the room, he was reminded at the fun these parties offered.  Most of the immoral activity took place in one of the many small chambers that opened up off the large main room.  But inebriation removed many barriers of inhibition, so there was quite a number of sexual acts taking place in the open room.  Pitchers of thick, syrupy liquids were passed around to make one forget about what was going on, or the activities that one was doing.  Sometimes they were too potent and those that drank them would fall over and never get up.  But that was a part of the excitement.  Once you stepped through the doors, you never really knew if you were going to leave on your feet.  Or at all.

              As he made his way through the room, he wondered if anyone at all used the private rooms for their banal activities.  Every time he looked in a different direction, there were couples or groups of people copulating with no thought or regard to those around them.  Of course, with plenty of potent liquids to share, no one really cared.  He tried to avoid looking, or even staring, but it was hard to avert his eyes.  It wasn’t that he was a prude or disapproved of their behavior; it was just a bit over the top for a sober person to witness.  But he had to at least look at the faces to see if one of them might have been the man he was looking for.

              When he did see him, he let out a long sigh of relief.  Not only was he here, but he still had all his clothes on.  He was standing among a large group who were passing a large earthen mug among them.  Everyone was laughing and spilling as much of the liquid as they were drinking.

              The man noticed Hibold as he approached and called out to him.

              Hibold smiled and walked straight up to him.  “Berrien!  I am so glad to find you.”

              “And me as well!” Berrien replied with a slight slur in his speech.  “I have never seen you here!  Have you decided to finally let your hair down and partake in the magic of the night?”

              Hibold wrinkled his nose at the mug that was shoved at him.  “No.  I have come to see you.”

              Berrien laughed and the rest joined in.  Hibold was not quite sure what was so funny, but he joined in anyway.

              Once the laughter subsided, and Hibold got Berrien’s attention again, he leaned forward and said, “I have a job for you.”

              “A job?” Berrien repeated.  He continued to chuckle as if he could not control it.  “What job?”

              “It is a good job and it pays very well.  But you must leave immediately.”

              “And leave all this,” Berrien said with a wave of his hand.  “The night is still young!”

              Hibold grabbed Berrien by the front of his shirt and pulled him away from his group.  Berrien tried to protest and fight his way out of the grasp, but in the end he was compliant and let Hibold lead him away.  Once they were far enough away and out of earshot of the group, Hibold said sharply, “Listen, I am giving you a chance.  Do you want it or not?”

              Berrien glanced back at his group, but his eyes were fully cleared up.  “What is it?” Berrien asked, his slurring speech gone.  “What is the job?”

              “How much have you drunk?” Hibold asked.

              “Same as every night,” Berrien said.  “Just enough to look like I’m drinking.  That stuff tastes like death.”

              “Prince Tarcious is putting together a delegation to Karmon.”

              “Tarcious?” Berrien asked.

              “Don’t worry, he won’t know that it is you who will be going.  At least not until you are there.”

              “So he hasn’t forgotten?”

              “If you were him, would you have forgotten?”

              “I said I was sorry.”

              “You broke his leg.”

              “He recovered.”

              “He has a long memory,” Hibold said.  “He won’t let it go, but if you do this, then he will finally forgive you.”

              “Are you sure?  Being on the bad side of the emperor’s brother has not been really that great for my career.”

              “Which is why I’ve always been around to help you.”

              Berrien glanced around a moment and then looked back at Hibold.  “You have, but I think you have gained more than me with all these little jobs that I’ve helped you with.   How’d that thing go with Sir Heffinfool, by the way?”

              “Lord Neffenmark,” Hibold said.  “And not well.  That’s why I need you.”

              “Always cleaning up your mess, huh?”

              “Do you want the job, or not?”

              Berrien looked around one last time, thinking about all the fun and depravity that he would miss.  “What’s the purpose of this delegation?”

              “It’s too loud here,” Hibold said.

              Berrien smiled and laughed.  “Of course it is.  The perfect place for sharing secrets?”

              “Has a loud room ever stopped you from picking up what you wanted to hear?”

              The smile got wide.  “Of course not.”

              “There is a ship leaving for Karmon tomorrow.  It is a small cargo ship.  Be on it.  I will give you all the information you need there.”

              “Tomorrow?” Berrien asked, his eyes looking back at the entertainment around him.

              “First light.”

              “I’ll be there.  Do not worry.”  He patted Hibold on the shoulder and returned to the laughter of his group.

***

Queen Elissa stepped through the exit, holding the metal grate above her head.  Once through, she let it down slowly so that it wouldn’t make any sound.  She paused for a moment, and thought of Conner.  He had been here, only a few weeks ago, as he made his escape from the castle.  She wondered how he had felt at that time.  Was he scared and alone?  She could not imagine him being scared.  He never showed any fear, which surprised her.  She had seen the greatest of knights show fear, and admit to it.  But Conner was fearless, she knew.  And a survivor. 

The alley was shaded by the tall wall that surrounded the castle grounds.  The coolness of the afternoon sent a shiver through her.  Summer had passed into fall and the days couldn’t decide if they wanted to be warm or cold.  The cool day did offer her the opportunity to wear clothes that helped hide her appearance.  With her cloak pulled tightly around her and the hood below her eyes, she walked quickly out of the alley and into the city.  She needed to get away from the castle as quickly as she could.  All the responsibilities and duties that had been thrust upon her finally were so overwhelming she just couldn’t take it anymore.  Lord Martin was handling many of the daily duties of running the kingdom, but he was constantly worrying about this thing or that.  Everything was a crisis to him and he was constantly badging her to make decisions that he wanted her to make.

She missed the days when she and Melanie could ride out into the forest for a day’s adventure.  The first thing that she would do when she returned back to the castle after her walk would be to find her friend and take two horses for them to ride.  She was the queen!  She should be able to do anything she wanted.  But it had been even longer since she had seen her other friends in the city.  The ones who really needed to see her.

With a long stride, she made her way through the crowded streets towards the center of the city.  Keeping her eyes low and avoiding eye contact with anyone, she was able to maintain her anonymity.  The last thing she needed was to be recognized in the middle of the street.  It wasn’t long before she found herself on quiet streets near the main city walls.  She knew exactly where to go, as she had been there a hundred times.

The house looked the same.  It was really more shack than house.  A dirty curtain hung in place of a door.  With winter coming, it would take more than a curtain to keep the cold out.  Something would have to be done about that.

“Hello?” Elissa called through the doorway.

“Yes?” the voice was soft and quiet.

Elissa stepped through the curtain and was met with a joyous shriek.

A little girl rushed at her and put her arms around her, squeezing her tightly.

Elissa pulled away just so she could see the smiling face.  “Mary!  You are on your feet!  You are well?”

Mary gave Elissa a toothy smile.  “Yes.  I am better!”

Elissa knelt down and pulled Mary back into a hug.  She held her close and tight. 

After some time, it was Mary who pulled away. She wiped a tear from Elissa’s cheek.  “You are crying.  Are you sad?”

“No,” Elissa said with a wide smile.  “I am happy to see you up and running around.  The last time I saw you, you were so sick.”

“Mommy said it was because of you!”

Elissa shook her head.  “Oh, no.  It was all you.  You are strong.”

“She is right,” a voice said from the doorway.

Elissa stood to see Mary’s mother carrying a bucket of water.

“Hello, Minnie!”

Minnie bowed her head and curtsied.  “Your Majesty.”

“Minnie!  We are friends, you do not need to do that!”

              “But you are the queen,” Minnie said.  “It is what is proper.”  She set the bucket on the ground just inside the doorway.

              “Mary is doing so well!” Elissa said.

              Minnie tapped the bucket.  “It is the clean water.  When you told us to start using the well in the center of the city, it seems that many of the sick got better.”

              “That is good news!” Elissa said.  “I thought the water from your well tasted funny.”