Princess of Silence, page 42
part #1 of When Kings Collide Series
“Poor Rose,” Katherine said, wiping her tears and dropping to the floor next to her. “If it hadn’t been for her, you may have never found me.”
“I’m so sorry, Katherine,” Caleb said stroking her hair. “She was a brave soul.”
Katherine nodded. “That she was. Perhaps we could’ve been friends if... if ....” She wasn’t sure how to finish the sentence, so she didn’t. At least she’d given Rose the opportunity to daydream a bit about what it would’ve been like to live in the castle before she died. To Rose, she said, “Your sacrifice will not be forgotten.” Katherine pressed her eyes closed as Caleb removed the knife, and Katherine closed the woman’s mouth. She knew they wouldn’t be able to take her with them, but when the battle was over, and they could send someone in to retrieve her, she wanted Rose to look at rest.
Katherine remembered her brother and rushed off to see how he was. Before she even reached him, he said, “I’m well,” through clenched teeth. He wasn’t well, though. The others had torn open his uniform and bandaged him up, but already, scarlet stained the white bandages. They needed to hurry.
Two of the Nadorian soldiers hoisted James up, putting his arms around their soldiers, and Caleb reached for Katherine’s hand. “Come on, love. We must get out of here.”
She concurred and followed them up the staircase. Halfway up, she noticed a panel in the wall was open and imagined Leopold had used a secret passage to reach the catacombs. It reminded her of Matthew and how this part of her story had begun. Caleb tugged on her hand and she realized she’d slowed to look at the passage, so she hurried along, trying to keep her focus on getting out of the castle.
Smoke burned her nose and obstructed her vision before they reached the stairs. David stepped into the hall first. He held a hand up to his eyes and swiveled around before making a motion for the others to follow him. Katherine kept her head down and rushed alongside, Caleb hurrying her. Flames shot down from the floor above them, the wood beams in the ceiling ablaze, and it seemed every surface that wasn’t made of stone was on fire. Katherine began to cough, her eyes watering, and Caleb looped his arm around her, carrying her alongside him as they rushed to the front of the castle.
The men carrying James were struggling, tripping over debris they couldn’t see through the smoke. Caleb hurried past them, but Katherine didn’t want to leave her brother behind. “James!” she shouted, reaching out a hand.
“They’ll get him out!” Caleb shouted, not loosening his grip. He changed his clasp but didn’t release her, following behind David who was doing his best to find the closest exit.
A large timber above them gave way, falling to the ground, soot and ash spewing into the air as it crashed to the floor. Katherine screamed as it landed right in front of them, and Caleb pulled up short, surveying the situation.
On the other side, Katherine could see David through the flickering flames, daylight in the distance behind him. The blaze burned high, stirred up from the air as the timber fell. The heat was blistering, so she moved away, covering her face.
“We’ll have to go over it!” Caleb shouted to her. “There’s no other way.”
She glanced behind her, seeing the others in the thick smoke and flames beyond them. Down in the catacombs, she’d had no idea the castle was on fire. If she had, perhaps she wouldn’t have been in such a rush to leave.
David came close as he dared on the other side of the timber. “We’re almost out!” he shouted.
“Take the queen!” Caleb commanded. He didn’t wait for David to agree, and Katherine found herself in Caleb’s arms and then flying through the air. She bit off a scream as she sailed over the top of the flames, the fire reaching out for the back of her trousers but not licking the material. David caught her in his arms as if she were a small child.
He didn’t wait. “Caleb!” Katherine screamed, twisting in his arms but no longer able to see her husband through the smoke. David ran toward the fresh air while Katherine clawed at his shoulder. “Caleb!”
Leaping over smaller piles of burning rubble, the pair of them continued to put distance between themselves and the burning timber. Then, the light from an open door penetrated the smoke. Katherine only glanced in the direction they were headed, her eyes otherwise fixed on the smoky hallway where her husband and brother were trapped.
Outside, both of them gasped for air. David set her down but kept his body in front of hers, blocking her from the enemy. They were in front of the castle, on the northwest side, and in front of them, she could hear the sounds of battle raging on. It seemed they were safe in their current position, as she didn’t see a single Gradenian uniform, but she’d learned from Rose’s example and kept her back to the castle wall as she waited for her husband to emerge.
A few of the others came out, choking and gasping, their faces covered with ash. “Where’s Caleb?” she asked. None of them answered. Only coughed, gulping in fresh air.
“Wait here,” David said to her, and she nodded, knowing he wouldn’t leave Caleb in there alone. Now that there were others to keep her safe, he was going back in. She held her breath, waiting.
James and his two men came into view, and Katherine thanked the Lord her brother had made it. They carried him out, all three of them coughing, their faces blackened, and then Dale and the rest of them came out, leaving only David and Caleb inside.
“Where’s the king?” Katherine demanded of Dale as he coughed and sputtered.
“He’s...coming....” Dale insisted. Katherine hoped that meant he’d made it past the obstruction. She turned back to the doorway, her hands folding and unfolding as she waited, praying, muttering under her breath.
She saw a form emerge from the smoke but couldn’t tell which of them it was at first. David was taller and lankier, and she realized after a moment, she was looking at him as he made his way out for the second time. “Where’s Caleb?” she demanded before he even made it out the door.
David coughed—and pointed—and a second later, she saw him. Katherine’s heart fluttered as he cut through the smoke, covered in ash and soot but breathing and alive.
It took Caleb several minutes to clear his lungs of the smoke and begin to breathe normally again. Eventually, the coughing subsided, and Katherine wrapped her arms around him, hoping the last of their worries was over.
“The path to Eleanora looks clear,” David advised, wiping black filth from his face. “But we should be cautious. There have been archers in the mountains.”
Katherine nodded, and the men fanned out around her, their shields at the ready. James was losing color quickly, and they needed to get him to safety.
They took off across the courtyard, toward the back of the castle. Debris and fallen bodies littered the ground. Katherine kept her eyes on the mountains, looking for archers. They’d nearly made it to the cover of tress behind Graden when she saw a flash of black against the snow. “Archers!” she shouted.
The men threw their shields as a hailstorm of arrows collided with metal. Cannon fire rang out again, a sound Katherine had only been hearing in the distance until that moment, and a few seconds later, the arrows stopped.
Once again, they moved toward the trees, and then Katherine found herself surrounded by Nadorian forces. James was placed on a litter and carried away, Katherine shouting after him, and the rest of them continued to move toward the rear. The queen took a canteen she found thrust into her hand, happy to have the water and wondering if she was as covered in ash as the others.
Once they were well behind the lines, surrounded by the colors of her birthplace, Katherine let herself accept that she was safe, and her breathing evened out. She’d had Caleb’s hand in hers since she left the castle, but now, he let go of her. Pulling a cloth from somewhere inside of his uniform, he wetted it with a canteen he held in his other hand. Caleb wiped at her face, smiling down at her, and when he was satisfied, she took it from him and did the same.
“Are you well?” he asked her, his blue eyes even brighter than usual as he set the canteen aside.
“I am. I am so thankful to be back with you,” she replied, not quite getting all of the soot but thinking the job good enough. She dropped the rag so she could take his hands.
“Promise me, you’ll never die on me again,” he said, leaning in close, his lips hovering over hers.
“I promise,” Katherine agreed, praying it would be nearly a century before death ever tore them apart again.
“I love you, Queen Katherine of Arteria,” Caleb said as he moved in even closer.
“I love you, too, my king.” Caleb pressed his lips to hers, and Katherine wrapped her arms around him, thankful that she’d found her voice, proven herself to be more than just a pawn in a game of kings, and that discovering her true identity had led her to her happily ever after.
Epilogue
“Princess Kaylen may have my eyes and your hair, but she has her Uncle Matthew’s ability to escape,” King Caleb said, watching his daughter lithely climb over the top of a wooden gate he’d constructed in an attempt to keep her somewhat confined. She teetered across the floor on wobbly legs, chasing her older cousin who giggled and dodged out of her way.
Katherine laughed and scooped her daughter into her arms. “I’m so glad she has her cousin Marcus to play with. He will look after her, the way that James took care of me.”
“We will continue to visit as often as we can,” Margaret assured her as Marcus ran to his mother and buried his face in her skirts.
“Between that and your frequent visits to Ringley, they will always be close,” Matthew noted from his spot on the settee. He had healed nicely from his wounds, though he did walk with a slight limp as Russell had predicted. Katherine smiled at him, thinking of how overjoyed they’d both been when they were reunited after the fall of Gradenia. He’d held her loosely in his sore arms and wept, thanking her for all she’d done to get him back to Margaret. He continued to be a wonderful friend, and she was thankful he had led her to Caleb.
Kaylen wiggled in her arms, so the queen set her down, and the princess took off for her father who was sitting on the floor near a pile of her toys. He tickled her belly, and the toddler laughed with glee, falling into his lap.
Katherine caught his eyes over the top of their daughter’s head. The past two years since she’d returned from Gradenia had been the best of her life. Caleb had been the most loving husband she could’ve ever imagined, and she thanked God every day she’d been blessed with a marriage full of love. There was no greater force in the universe. It could make the mute speak, bring the dead back to life, and repair the most broken of hearts, those who thought they had nothing worth beating for.
James had been established as King of Clovington, and Eleanora had incorporated Gradenia into Nadoria, a process that was still ongoing but seemed fair since her trickery had led to the fall of Castle Graden. Caleb was content to let them claim the spoils of war. He’d said so long as he had Katherine, he didn’t need anything else.
Zurconia was flourishing now that their enemies had been vanquished and the king and queen were well and able to rule. All was right with the world, and Katherine prayed that it stayed that way. She envisioned a world where her daughter would always feel safe and be able to do whatever she pleased in her life. One thing was for certain, there would be no bartering over her daughter’s hand.
Somewhere out there, Katherine knew Leopold lingered. Occasionally, a report would come in of a sighting, usually from somewhere in the frozen northlands of what used to be Gradenia. Caleb had wanted to go after him, but Katherine convinced him to wait. She was tired of war and in need of a rest. Now that he could’ve gone looking for the tyrant without worrying over her safety, it seemed unnecessary. Leopold had no army, no kingdom, no weapons, and was no threat. So long as it stayed that way, Katherine determined not to let thoughts of him eat up any more of her time.
Kaylen’s laughter filled Katherine’s heart with glee. As her daughter took off after Marcus again, his giggles joining hers, Katherine dropped to the floor at her husband’s side. Slipping a finger beneath her chin, he lifted her face to his and lowered his lips, brushing hers softly. Katherine rested her head on his shoulder, knowing that meant he loved her. The message was loud and clear without any words at all.
The End
A Note from the Author
Dear Reader,
I originally published this novel in 2014 as Deck of Cards. It was my first novel, and I was absolutely ecstatic to get my book baby out there into the world. However, over the years, as I’ve now written over 45 full-length novels, I realized that Deck of Cards was not my best work. I thought that the story was a good one; it was the telling that needed some attention. So I decided to rewrite the book and try to incorporate as many of the lessons I’d learned about storytelling over the years in a way that would make the story better but stay true to the original plot and characters.
I worked on this project off and on for about nine months. I’ve gotten extensive feedback from one of my editors and made some changes that she suggested as well. The result is Princess of Silence. I hope that you enjoyed the book and that my work has improved the reading experience. While there are other changes I may have made to the story if I were writing it for the first time today, I didn’t want to alter the storyline or the way the book was originally written from multiple-points of view. I’m much happier with the book as it stands now, and I welcome your feedback. Please let me know if you enjoyed the book by leaving a review.
Book 2, Princess of Hearts, will be out in early 2020. This story will be Kaylen’s, Caleb and Katherine’s daughter. Will her mother’s wish for her come true—will she live in a land where her safety is never in jeopardy? Will she marry for love? Find out in Princess of Hearts: When King’s Collide Book 2, coming soon.
Find out about new releases, writing updates, and lots of great book deals when you sign up for my newsletter. You can download a novelette based on my book Beneath the Inconstant Moon when you sign up. Find Leaving Ginny here. You don’t have to have read Beneath the Inconstant Moon to enjoy this historical romance.
Thanks again for your support!
Also by ID Johnson
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When Kings Collide
Princess of Silence
Collections
Ghosts of Southampton Books 0-2
Reaper’s Hollow Books 1-3
The Clandestine Saga Books 1-3
The Chronicles of Cassidy Books 1-4
Celestial Springs Collection
Heartwarming Holidays Sweet Romance Books 1-3
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