Princess of Silence, page 39
part #1 of When Kings Collide Series
She was sprawled on the bed, wearing an elegant golden gown, her hair down and framing her face, though the way she had fallen, her head was turned to the side, one arm hanging over the side of the bed. She looked as if she’d prepared herself for her own funeral. A vial lay on the floor near her hand, the lid on the nightstand next to the bed, along with a piece of parchment, an open inkwell, and a quill.
He approached slowly, certain the woman had already checked to make sure she had expired and not sure he wanted to touch her either way. He’d encountered many dead bodies in his day, most recently his own cousin who had been moved to the catacombs late the day before. This was different. He didn’t want this one to be dead.
Her chest was still, and when he finally gathered the courage to touch her arm, it was cold. With a deep breath, he leaned in and placed his ear to her nose. Katherine wasn’t breathing. “Son of a bitch,” he muttered, standing and taking a step back.
The physician was there now, but once he entered the room, the man was no longer in a hurry. Leopold plucked the paper off of the table and moved aside. The physician’s examination was brief. “I’m afraid the reports are true, Your Majesty. She is gone.”
“Damnit all to hell,” Leopold muttered, wondering what he would do now. If Eleanora discovered what had happened, he’d have an opposing force behind him, with even higher ground than he held; he’d be completely at her disposal. Leopold had to make sure news of this didn’t reach the Nadorians before the Arterians were defeated and he could find a way to place his army between himself and Eleanora. Even then, it seemed impossible. And he’d let her in his back door!
“King Leopold?” Etsil called from the doorway. “I am so very sorry for your loss. We have much to discuss.”
“Will you give me one bleeding minute?” Leopold demanded, slamming his fist into the wall beside him. Etsil’s eyebrows shot up, and he disappeared out the door.
“What shall we do with her, Sir?” the physician asked. “She looks as if she prepared herself for entombment.”
“I can see that,” Leopold said, not sure what to do with the body. He looked at the woman weeping on the floor. “Where were you when this happened?”
“Asleep, Your Majesty,” she replied. “In the adjoining room.”
Leopold glanced behind him at the servant’s quarters, looking at the bed through the doorway. She may not have heard anything with the door shut. “When did you speak to her last?”
“She retired early, just after eating her evening meal. Said she didn’t feel well. I couldn’t blame her. Poor soul....” The woman broke into another fit of tears and became unintelligible.
Swearing again, Leopold told the physician, “I don’t know what to do with her. We can’t give her back to her sister, not like this. Take her somewhere. She’s no use to me now.” He began to storm out of the room but remembered the paper in his hand and glanced down at it.
Dear Leopold,
I will never be yours.
Katherine, Queen of Arteria
Shrieking in disgust, Leopold crumbled the paper into a ball and threw it at the weeping woman, pushing a few of the servants out of his way as he headed back to his map. Waging a war over a dead queen and taking the risk he may soon lose everything was not the way he’d intended to spend his morning. He had to find a way to blame this on Caleb so that, when Eleanora found out her sister was dead, she would take it out on the Arterians and leave him alone. He should’ve known better than to get involved in his cousin’s folly. Now, it might just be too late for him to get out alive, with his kingdom intact. “Damn you, Philip,” he mumbled. “I wish you were still alive so I could kill you again.” He pushed into the war room, hoping someone else would have a solution because, for once, Leopold was out of ideas.
Chapter 36
Locating the passageway up the side of the mountain would’ve been difficult if Caleb hadn’t had the assistance of the former Gradenian soldiers who agreed to show him where it was in exchange for a hundred pieces of gold each and new lives in Arteria. Once he had the road in sight, he had them escorted far beyond his line so there was no chance they’d find a way to send word to Leopold.
Eleanora was aware that his small band would be joining in with them as soon as they managed to scale the mountain. He’d kept a larger detail than what he intended to use to infiltrate Graden in case they ran into trouble on their climb. Leopold had dropped back so quickly to Castle Graden and the mountain he called home, the main force of the Arterian Army wasn’t that far behind him. Caleb doubted he’d encounter a threat of serious consequence while scaling the secret passage.
There were no mountains like this in Arteria, and even though all of them had fresh horses, it took its toll, and it took time. By now, he imagined Katherine had carried out her plan. He couldn’t think of her lying so still, her heart appearing not to beat. He just hoped he’d be able to find her once he entered the castle.
“Perhaps he’ll send her back to Eleanora,” David said, breathing heavily from the thin air. “Do you think that’s a possibility?”
“No,” Caleb said quickly. “Not with her behind him.”
David nodded. It had been wishful thinking. Leopold wouldn’t simply hand her over now that she was allegedly dead. They’d have to fight their way to her. Caleb was prepared to do that, but he was running out of time. The sun was about to reach its apex, and he had promised her he’d be back at her side by tomorrow evening at the latest. Keeping his focus on the task at hand, Caleb continued to climb the steep road in front of him, calling upon his horse to keep putting one front in front of the other.
Leopold stood on the battlement at the rear of his castle, looking up at the mountain peaks. Only two narrow roads wound their way up from that direction, and they were almost as treacherous on this side where they descended into his back garden, only a few hundred yards in the rear of Graden where the mountain evened out slightly into rolling hills. The advanced forces of the Nadorian Army had nearly reached the flat area. Soon, they’d be forming lines there, in his rear, bringing in their cannon, and then, when the Arterians began to march up the mountainside in front of the castle, the Nadorians would swoop from behind and join his forces already occupying the only flatlands in front of the castle, and sink their teeth into Caleb.
Unless Eleanora discovered the truth first.
He’d had Katherine’s body moved below the castle for the time being. He’d considered a funeral pyre. Eleanora couldn’t claim he’d killed her if there was no body, but it was against Gradenian customs to burn a body. His ancestors had believed one would need their body again when they reached the afterlife. Leopold was of the opinion nothing existed after this life, but he didn’t want to tempt the fates, not at the moment.
Another dispatch came in. Etsil read it. “They’re climbing,” he said, crossing back across the battlement as the wind threatened to take the paper from his hand. “Half the forces are moving up the road with the artillery; the others are attempting to scale the incline”
Leopold chuckled for the first time in as long as he could remember. “Good. That will never work.”
Etsil nodded, but he didn’t seem convinced. “They outnumber us enough that, even with only a half of their forces making their way up by the road, they could be a threat.”
“Point our cannon at them,” Leopold said, slowly, over pronouncing each word. “Stop them that way.”
“Yes, of course, Sir, but....” He stopped talking, and Leopold glared at him. He didn’t need to hear from his advisors that they thought he would fail to hold his own castle.
“What of that advanced force you told me about this morning, before Katherine.... Did we strike them down?”
“No, Sir. You never gave the order.”
Leopold’s eyebrows raised. “I’m certain I did.”
Etsil shook his head. “When the princess passed.... At any rate, it doesn’t matter. They were absorbed by the main force, Sir. They must’ve been a scouting party of some sort.”
Draining a deep breath through his nostrils, Leopold nodded, but he didn’t like the sound of that. He distinctly remembered telling someone to send a detail to dispatch them, whatever they were. He took another glance around at the Nadorian forces, seeing them pooling on either end as they completed their descent. He assumed that was so they could traverse around the castle more easily, a good plan.
His stomach twisted slightly as he took into account how many of them there were. Nadoria had been at peace for many years, since the Heathens had been forced back, and since then, he was aware Eleanora had been building her forces. Having those cannons pointed at his castle made him anxious. He wanted to trust her, but at the same time, he knew eventually she’d find out what had happened to her sister, the one she’d entrusted to him.
“Etsil,” Leopold said quietly, thinking of how idiotic Philip had been to wait until it was nearly too late to escape. “Should Eleanora discover the situation, are we left any clear routes down the mountain?” He had another fortress, in a distant mountain range, far to the north where it was so cold, it was nearly uninhabitable most months of the year.
“Not presently,” Etsil said, his eyes shifting as he considered the possibilities. “There is a passage in the catacombs that comes out near the remains of the northern road, the old one we lost use of during the avalanche.”
Leopold knew what he was speaking of. Only half the road remained after the incident that had claimed hundreds of lives a few years ago. It would’ve been impossible to clear the rock from the roadway, so they’d cut it over to join up with one of the existing roads on the west.
“Let us prepare, in case it becomes necessary. Only my closest allies, though. I can’t have a band of slow-moving imbeciles tagging along.”
Etsil nodded. “Yes, Sir. I shall take care of it.”
The wind whipped around Leopold as he turned away. With any luck, he wouldn’t have to use that route. It hadn’t been that long ago that he’d sat on his throne, laughing at Philip. Now, he may just have to turn tail and run as his cousin had done. In the distance, in front of the castle, cannon fire echoed off the mountainside. Those were his cannons; he knew as much. But the fact that they were firing meant the Arterians were within range. He took a deep breath, looked at the Nadorians one last time, and moved to the front of the battlements, glad he had a trusted ally at his back—for the time being.
The prickly sensation had started in her toes, winding its way up her feet to her calves and thighs to the tops of her legs. It spread through her fingers, then up her arms and into her shoulders. It was as if her entire body had been cut off from its blood supply, like when she’d laid on one arm too long, and now, it came to life with an electric sizzle, the sting of a thousand pinpricks.
The tingling in her scalp was the most troublesome. Before Katherine opened her eyes, she imagined a thousand tiny bugs crawling around in her hair. Caught at the periphery between wake and slumber, it seemed like hours before she was able to blink her eyes, turn her head, or breathe a lung-full of air. She fought to regain control of her body, remembering she had an important task to take care of but not quite sure what it was.
Drawing in a deep breath, she came to sitting, clutching at her chest as she coughed and wheezed. The air was musty and stank of rotten flesh, causing her to gag. After a moment, she settled down enough to slow her breathing and take a look around.
Her vision was obscured, and everything was a filmy white. Katherine realized why and felt her spine vibrate as she raised her hands to correct the problem. Her burial shroud was in the way. She pulled the thin fabric off of her face and brushed it off of her legs, sweeping it aside but not moving her hand too far. In the dim light, she couldn’t see what was next to her and didn’t think she wanted to know.
She sat for a moment and smiled at the realization that her plan was working. Leopold and Philip must have thought she had poisoned herself. While she’d hoped they’d simply ship her back to Nadoria, she’d been prepared for this. Leopold was likely afraid to tell Eleanora what he had done. It was clear to her, after she had discussed the letter her sister had written with Joan, Eleanora was feigning an alliance with Gradenia so that she could gain safe passage through the mountains. The proverb she’d stated at the bottom wasn’t familiar to Katherine at all and certainly wasn’t something her sister “always” told her. It was a riddle—a clue Joan had helped her to unlock. Leopold was the liar here, not Caleb, and Eleanora wouldn’t join sides with the likes of someone as evil as Leopold, no matter what Caleb had done.
The darkness was only cut by a thin line of light illuminating the floor near the door. She imagined that must be a torch in the hall. She had no idea how deep below Graden she was, but she would have to find her way out if she were to find Caleb. There was no way to tell how long she’d been here, but it didn’t seem like much time at all. Her throat was a little dry, but it wasn’t unbearable, and her stomach ached slightly with hunger; that was the least of her concerns.
Encumbered by the elaborate gown she was wearing, it was difficult to maneuver on the table, let alone run along passages and corridors. Her options were limited, but the idea of finding something less troublesome had her looking around. Her eyes fell on the body next to her.
It was a man. She couldn’t see him well, but she could see he wore trousers, which would be much easier to run in than the long golden gown she’d put on in order to dissuade Leopold from having her dressed by strangers. His black boots would be too large for her, but her slippers were still on her feet, and those would have to do.
Thoughts of taking the clothes off a corpse made her stomach roll. Could she even manage to remove them? The idea of what might be crawling in them was revolting, though she had to admit, from what she could tell in the dark, the body didn’t seem to have been there much longer than hers.
Shaking her head, Kathrine pushed down off of the marble slab onto the floor and crossed to the source of light. Thankfully, the door was unlocked. Why anyone would feel the need to lock dead bodies inside a crypt made little sense to her, but she would not put it past Leopold to do something so odd and unexpected. She pushed it open and made her way into a winding stone hallway.
The torch on the wall burned low, and she knew she wouldn’t have much time to determine where she was and how to get out before she was lost in the pitch black. As she reached up to remove it from its holder, her dress became ensnared on a splinter of wood from the door, almost sending her tumbling. That settles it, she thought. Let us check out the gentlemen’s attire.
Grabbing the torch and venturing back into the darkened tomb, she crossed to where she had been lying. The light illuminated the royal purple velvet of the man’s formal suit. It didn’t appear to be stained, nor did she see any holes. Taking a deep breath, she moved the torch up, trying to find a place to mount it, when the light fell on his face. Katherine’s hand flew to her mouth. Though his face was contorted in pain, she recognized Philip at once.
Her mind went back over all of the evil he had done--the torture he had inflicted on Matthew, his attempt to kill Margaret, the murder of Queen Beatrice, terrorizing Katherine for weeks. He was guilty of far more, she was sure. Still, seeing him lying there was unsettling. Leopold had said he was ill. He either understated, or Leopold was responsible for Philip’s demise. “Rest in peace, King Philip of Clovington,” she whispered. “Now, give me your trousers.” Finding the closest holder for the torch, she drew in a deep breath and went about the undesirable business of stealing the dead king’s clothes.
The castle was in an uproar. Joan was swept up in a crowd of dignitaries and servants running down the corridors, shouting, some of them carrying trunks or other valuables. Each time she tried to get down the passage she needed to access in order to return to Katherine, she was pushed back or nearly trampled. Now, she was so turned around, she wasn’t even sure where she was.
After overseeing the preparing of Katherine’s body, the blessing of the priest, and watching as she was placed in the king’s family tomb beneath the castle, Joan had been called upon to return to Katherine’s room and determine what to do with her things. She had requested that they be returned to Eleanora, but word quickly came that Leopold would not hear of it. Katherine’s trunk was packed and removed from her room, though Joan didn’t know where they were taking it. She realized Leopold was doing his best to keep Katherine’s death from Eleanora.
Memories of the last time she was in a castle that was under siege had Joan’s heart beating out of her chest. “Get out now! Save yourself!” people were shouting. “The Nadorians have turned on us!” shouted another. “All is lost!”
Many of them were fighting their way toward the entrance to the catacombs, where Joan had intended to go herself. The passages below the castle seemed the only way they might escape with the Nadorians so close to the rear of the castle and the Arterians bombarding the troops in front of Graden with cannon fire. The Nadorian guns hadn’t opened fire yet, but Joan imagined that was coming. Then, the panic would truly set in. She needed to reach Katherine. Joan was so turned around, she didn’t know where to go or what to do.
The walls shifted and swayed as a round hit nearby. Joan reached to steady herself against the stone as the tinkle of pebbles falling hit the ground around her. She thought the artillerists would spare the castle until Katherine was safely out. Perhaps King Caleb was under the impression Katherine had been returned to her sister. Or was it Eleanora who was firing on them? She couldn’t tell which direction the assault was coming from or if it would do permanent damage, but as the citizens of Gradenia continued to fly around her, Joan sank to the floor, paralyzed with fear.
“That’s too much!” Caleb shouted, wishing he could signal his artillerists not to fire so close to the center of the castle. He’d given orders to hit the periphery only, so that Leopold would understand he intended to take Graden, but as far as Caleb knew, Katherine was still inside of the castle, and he was about to enter it himself.
