Tethered (The Avenlore Series) (4 page)

I eased back through the bushes carefully, smoothing the fabric again once I was clear of the leaves and branches.  “It’s beautiful…thank you.”  I said quietly to the ground.  When he didn’t respond I looked up to find him staring at me, lips slightly parted.

His Adam’s apple bobbed once before he spoke.  “It suits you.” He said, words barely more than a whisper. Turning away quickly he added, “We should ride.”

Just as before
, he placed me in front of him in the saddle.  I had intended to give him the third degree, but I found my questions difficult to voice and the shock and severity of the situation finally began to take its toll on me. I worked to make my mind a blank and by inches began to succeed.  The exhaustion, both mental and physical set in and soon I slipped into unconsciousness.

***

A faint blue flame greeted me when I awoke.  I eyed it suspiciously as it produced no smoke or smell, but heat rolled off the tiny flames and kept the chill away.  The dampness was there though, I could smell it.  The walls of a cavern surrounded me, their surface sparkling lightly as embedded gemstones caught and reflected the light from the small blue flame.  The mouth of the cave filtered light in from the full moon outside and I could see him there, Liam. 

Back to me, he stared into the night, relaxed but
a hand rested on the hilt of his sword.  I joined him at the mouth of the cave.  “I’m sorry.  Did I fall asleep on you?”

“Only a little.” 
I could see his mouth pull up at the corner, but he didn’t turn to face me.

I blew out a breath, time for some answers.  “Who are the Black Knights?”

Now he looked at me, eyes wide.   “How do you know of the Black Knights?”

“I overheard some women, back at the village.
   So…who are they?” I replied.

He pulled both hands through his hair and I could see the internal
struggle behind his eyes and the resolve when the decision had been made.  “I haven’t told you, because I did not want to frighten you.  You were so shaken when I found you, I could not add to your burden.”

“But
you’ll tell me now?”  I pressed and he nodded.  “It…they have something to do with me, don’t they?”

“Yes,
they have everything to do with you.”  He said slowly, “I will tell you everything I know.”

Chapter 6

Liam took a deep breath and nodded once before he began.  “Avenlore is ruled by House Connolly of Castle Lux in the East, but only for last two hundred years or so.  Prior to their ascent to the throne, the land was ruled by the House Raythen of Castle Knox in the West.  They ruled fairly and justly for a century.  Then, an heir, Prince Hagin, was born to King Stephan and Queen Kaliope, he was healthy and strong until the age of fifteen when he was struck by a fever that slowly sucked his very life from his body. 

“The
castle’s Enchantress and healers worked tirelessly to save the prince, but no spell or herb or potion was able to touch the sickness.

“
Desperate to save his only son, the King summoned a Warlock he’d once crossed paths with as a younger man.  He commanded the Warlock to save the prince by any means.  The Warlock, called Elan, warned King Stephan that dark magic came at a high price, but the King was beyond reason.

“The dark magic purged the prince of his sickness, but he awoke a different boy.  The King was so overjoyed he couldn’t see the change in the beginning.  But, the Queen could.  She was horrified, and begged the Enchantress to cure the prince of the darkness.  The
Enchantress possessed no magical cure for the evil that lived within the prince and begged the King to destroy the boy before it was too late.

“Rage filled the King at her suggestion and he ordered his guard to take her life instead.  The Warlock was a
ppointed to her position and Queen Kaliope feel into great despair.”

My head was spinning
and while I was hanging on every word, he hadn’t come close to answering my question.  “While this story is heart wrenching and captivating, I don’t understand its relation to my question.”

His pale green eyes locked with mine as he spoke.  “To understand what is, you
must understand what was.”  He paused, waiting for my objection.

“Proceed.”  Was my only reply.

He nodded once and continued.  “The cost of black magic is a piece of one’s humanity.  The price is paid by the recipient of the magic as well as its wielder.  The spell used was so powerful that it drained the Warlock entirely of his humanity, while the prince retained only very little of his own. 

“
The severity the prince’s state was made clear when he demanded to resume his combat training only days later.  While sparring with a guard’s son in the yard, the prince became enraged when the boy defeated him.  He threw down his blunted sword and grabbed a sharpened one, which he drove through the boy’s back. 

“
When he was berated and punished by the King, the prince stole into his chambers and slit his throat as the queen slept beside him.

“
The Queen, in her sorrow, threw herself from the castle battlements into the sea the next morning.  

“
Hagin’s rule was cruel and ruthless and the land and people suffered greatly for it.  He put to death any who opposed him or disapproved of his ways and anyone of their blood, not even sparing children.

“
He raised his sons to be entitled and greedy and though the dark magic had not touched them, they were nurtured to become almost as horrifying as Prince Hagin himself.

“
The people felt defeated and feared to revolt.  But whispers of a Lord in the East who had a growing army of men began to circulate.  Lord Erik Connolly of Castle Lux had the ability to inspire hope and loyalty in men.  A beautiful and powerful enchantress called Soleil aided him and cast upon him and his followers a shield that would protect them from the influence of dark magic.”

I asked the obvious question.  “Why couldn’t the first witch do anything about the dark magic?”

He shook his head, “She was an enchantress, not a witch.  Her powers were quite weak in comparison to Soleil and in any case, shielding one from dark magic and purging the soul of it are entirely different.” He said as if the answer was common knowledge. 

“Huh.  So, this Soleil was better wi—enchantress than the first one.  Did they go to different w—uh…enchantress schools or something?”

Liam shot a measured look at me.  “Soleil was more powerful for…the same reason some are taller or stronger than others.  She hailed from a bloodline of powerful enchantresses.”

I guess that made sense.  “Okay, continue.”

“The combined forces of Soleil and Lord Connolly were able to defeat King Hagin and Soleil vanquished the Warlock Elan.  The people named Connolly King and Soleil remained as the enchantress to Castle Lux. 

“The sons, not quite men at the time, were pardoned and the King put to death.  King Erik was merciful and allowed the sons
of Hagin to retain Castle Knox. 

“
They harbored a grudge against any Connolly and raised their own sons to harbor it as well.  It was passed down through the generations and remains to this day.

“
Lord Soren, of Castle Knox at present, still harbors the same grudge.  He learned of a prophecy that promised to return the Kingdom to the hands of House Raythen.  The prophecy said that a Connolly daughter would be born and by her blood may House Connolly fall and
House Raythen be returned to power. 

“It was
made when she was still an infant, delivered personally by the Castle Knox Warlock called Alec.  Lord Soren commanded his men to seek out the girl and bring her to Castle Knox.  Most of the Knights and guards did not have the heart to carry out the orders, knowing what it would mean for the baby girl.  Those men were put to death and those who remained were rewarded by being spelled with dark magic, making them inhumanly stronger and faster.  These men were called the Black Knights of Castle Knox. 

“
The prophecy, as it turned out, was interpreted incorrectly, however, and they attacked a lower House of Connolly, taking the wrong girl.”  He paused and drew in a breath as he studied the ground.   “She is believed to have been killed regardless.”

Tears started to spill down my cheeks and his
eyes seemed to glisten as well as he continued.

“
They burned villages and towns to the ground in their search, leaving little life behind.  King Elias responded by beating back the Black Knights with his army and they retreated to Castle Knox, though his army suffered great casualties in the fight. 

“Lord Soren ordered that they discover the location of the child before proceeding further, to ensure they did not fail again.  He and Alec set to work enlisting spies and spells to find the girl’s location.  They were unsuccessful
all these years until a few nights ago.  They are still, however, unaware of what the prophecy truly said.  You see, the girl they have been searching for is easily identified.”  He paused, leveling me with a meaningful look.

Oh.
No, no, no, no, no.

His eyes burned a hole through me.  He took my left hand in both of his and gently turned it palm up.  My breath came in quick gasps now
, my heart slamming against my ribs, but he was completely calm and that was even more unnerving.  Breaking the gaze, he pulled my hand forward gently and traced a circle around my birthmark as I had done so many times before.

I couldn’t speak or move as
he continued to softly trace the skin at my wrist.  “You will know her by the sun upon her skin…”  He met my wide eyed stare.  “I didn’t know what it meant until you reached out to me, but then I was as sure of it as I am my own name.”

I jerked my
hand away and was immediately on my feet.  Slowly, I backed away from him, eyes wide, breath ragged, heart attempting to break free of my chest.  “How?  It’s not ….not possible!  I’m…I…I’m not even from here!”  My mind worked furiously to fit the pieces together.  This was so much worse than I could’ve imagined.  My brain demanded that I run, he was a threat, I wasn’t safe.  “How do you know these things?  What are you…what have you…you’re taking me to them!”  I accused as my heart rate ticked higher.  My heaving chest was unable to purchase sufficient oxygen from the air and my head began to spin and my limbs started to tingle.

He was on his feet now,
closing the space between us slowly, the horrorstruck look on his face mirrored my own.  Then his face fell, heartbreak all but written across his it.  “I would never…”  He trailed off in a whisper.  “I meant what I said when I told you that I would protect you.  I intend to deliver you to Castle Lux, where you will be safe.”  Conviction filled his words and something inside of me whispered that I could trust him.  He was close enough to touch me now, but he didn’t so much as lift a finger in my direction.  He looked into my eyes and spoke in a whisper, his voice pleading.  “I beg of you, M…Dani, do not fear me.  I cannot bear to be the reason for the look upon your face.”  

The whisper became louder, asking that I trust him.  And I believed it, I believed him.  In spite of this new, terrifying knowledge, I felt safe with him
…at least after the initial shock.  I couldn’t manage a verbal response so, I settled for few quick nods.

Only a foot of space separated us as we stood there
, trapped in a mutual gaze.  My mind raced with questions, each vying for space at the front of my mind.  While I would’ve preferred to stand there and stare into his eyes indefinitely, there were questions that had to be asked, things I had to know.

“I can’t be a…a daughter of Connolly?  No, that’s not possible.  I’m not from around here.”  I told him again.

“Yes, I can see you are unfamiliar with the area.”  He replied as his eyebrows knitted together.

I bit my lower lip and studied him.  While he knew a lot, it was clear he did not know everything.  “No, I mean, I’m not from here at all.  It’s like I’ve fallen into a different place in time.  Where I’m from, we don’t talk like you or dress like you or live like you.” 

I watched him, gauging his reaction.  His full lips thinned and his pale green eyes narrowed.  And then a light bulb seemed to click as his face took on a look of wonder.  When he spoke it was mostly to himself.  “Of course.  It was assumed impossible but, that’s why it’s perfect.” 

I shook my head at him and blinked rapidly.  “I don’t ---“

He cut me off, almost excited now.  “You crossed realms!”  One look at my face and he knew further explanation was required.  “Everyone assumed you were cleverly hidden away somewhere, but here, in the Kingdom.  But you weren’t, you were sent away to the safest place possible…another realm!  That’s why it took Alec seventeen years to discover your location.  And that certainly explains the way you talk and your clothing.”