Chapter 43 Keelan
“So, what do you make of the King?” I lay on my cot, staring at the ceiling.
After our initial audience with Alfred, Atikus and I were escorted back to the army encampment and placed in a small tent with two regulars assigned to guard their “guests.” Aside from the cots, the tent was empty.
Atikus paced between the beds, the only clear space that allowed more than a stride.
“He looked like the stress was starting to get to him. His daughter was kidnapped, his nation’s going to war. I can’t blame him for being on edge, but there was something more. I could feel it. We’re missing something important.”
“They weren’t telling us the full truth. I didn’t need my Gift to sense that.”
He nodded. “We’ve met before, the King and I, though he likely doesn’t remember. It was more than twenty years ago. The Arch Mage sent a delegation to Fontaine to offer assistance rebuilding one of their port towns after a hurricane blew everything to pieces.”
“I didn’t know we had good relations, other than through trade routes.”
“We haven’t, really, though we have never come to blows either. Velius thought reaching out in a time of need like that might lead us to a better place—show our good faith in building a stronger kinship.”
“Did it work?” I asked. “It certainly doesn’t look like it lasted very long if it did.”
Atikus stopped pacing and sat on the edge of his bunk. “I don’t know. The people of Cooper were thankful for our help, but the men around the King were less enthusiastic. It felt as though they were suspicious, waiting for us to make demands in return for our aid.”
“What happened afterward?”
Atikus shook his head. “I can’t recall anyone even mentioning the visit again.”
“That’s a shame. Sounds like a missed opportunity.”
Atikus was settling into his cot when the tent’s flaps flew open, and Commander Paul appeared.
“Hope you gents are well rested. The King would like to see you again.”
“That was quick. We’ve only been back here a few hours.” I sat up.
Paul chuckled. “Again, you’re asking me to jump into the mind of royalty? I barely understand them half the time, but I know how to follow orders. His Majesty requires your presence. I suggest you not take long to ready yourselves.”
Moments later, Commander Paul handed us off to the Royal Guard again. We were surprised when the giant leader of the King’s protection force opened the door and stepped back to allow us entry. He followed and took up a position near the table where the King and his son waited.
“Lieutenant, Mage, come and sit. Would you like something to eat? Or a drink, perhaps?” The King’s change in tone made Atikus’s brows furrow.
“I’d love an ale, Your Majesty,” Atikus said.
Alfred nodded to Justin. “And Lieutenant?”
“Uh . . . the same, thank you.”
Justin rose and scampered behind the bar, returning a moment later with three ales and a glass brimming with wine. I thought it odd that a prince of the realm would fetch drinks for his father and their guests, but neither the King nor his son appeared nonplussed.
“It is amazing what one can learn when he is King.” Alfred swirled his wine, eyeing me over the top of the glass. “You are quite famous on the other side of the mountains, Lieutenant.”
“I suppose, Your Majesty. Crime stories sell papers, and I’ve been fortunate to solve a few.”
Alfred turned to Justin. “Son, that is what modesty looks like. You will not see much of it from the people swarming around our court. Refreshing, is it not?”
Justin met my eyes. “Are you really as good as they say?”
I leaned forward, holding his gaze. “I am, Your Highness.”
Justin blanched and stared into his mug.
Alfred turned to Atikus. “And you, Mage, are known to us as well. I believe it has been twenty-two years since your last visit, though. Why have you avoided our hospitality for so long?”
Atikus’s brows rose. “Your Majesty, I had no idea you recalled my visit. It was an honor to assist your people in their time of need; though, I had hoped we could have found more opportunities to share with each other. It saddens me to think that our next engagement may be across a battlefield.”
Darkness clouded the King’s eyes, and his voice strained with each word. “I never dreamed my legacy would include another war.”
“It need not,” Atikus said.
The King stared into a darkened corner for a long moment before returning to the matters at hand.
“Regardless, I have never forgotten your efforts, Mage Dani. Members of our guild speak highly of you. They say you are an honorable man.”
“I would think so, Your Majesty.” Atikus’s cheeks reddened slightly.
“Good. Very good.” Alfred leaned back and paused a moment. “We need your help, and I have decided to trust you. You may refuse, but if you do, you will be considered prisoners of war and detained until our conflict ends.”
Atikus and I gaped at each other, dumbfounded.
The King spoke before we could voice our confusion.
“You already know that my daughter and heir, Princess Jessia, was kidnapped some time ago.
She and her captors were spotted on the King’s Road headed in this direction but have not been seen or heard from since.
There have been no demands, and I fear she is being taken to Irina’s Seat, following your Healer’s path.
“What only a few outside this room know is that my wife, Queen Isabel, also went missing a few days ago. She may have used an amulet to Travel in search of Jess. She and I argued about that option, but she has never been one to follow anyone’s advice.”
He sat back, shaking his head.
“We cannot discount the possibility that she was also kidnapped. If that is true, we have some serious issues with our personal security, because she would have been taken from the royal caravan in the midst of our army while we traveled here, and I have a hard time believing that theory.
Either way, the Queen and Princess are missing. I want you to find them and bring them back to me. Do this, and you will be free—and I will be in your debt.”
I was stunned. “Your Majesty, I’m sorry for your daughter and wife. I truly am, but . . . this makes no sense. What would your own Constables think? Your High Sheriff? And . . . you’re preparing to invade our country. Your people are riled up.
How do you expect anyone to cooperate with an investigation led by two Melucians? We wouldn’t even be able to talk to people without raising suspicion, and I can’t recall ever leading a successful investigation without interviewing witnesses.”
Breathing quickly, I sat back and ran my hand over my head while I stared at the King.
Alfred leaned forward and spoke deliberately. “The High Sheriff and his men are doing what they can, but some among them have been compromised. I need men . . . independent of political concerns here in the Kingdom.”
Atikus reached over, placed a hand on my arm, and spoke into my mind. “Keelan, I know this sounds impossible, but what choice do we have? He’ll just throw us in jail until the war’s over. I get the impression he doesn’t want the war, so we may be able to prevent something terrible. Hear him out.”
“Keelan, if you were to agree to the King’s investigation, how would you go about it?” Atikus’s fatherly tone caused the King’s brows to rise, but he remained silent as he sat back.
I paused a moment to gather my thoughts. “Well, I would need all the basic information. Someone who knows the facts would have to let me question them for as long as it took.”
Alfred leaned forward again. “What would you need to know? There can be no higher priority for the Crown than finding the Queen and heir.”
“What happened? When? Where? Were there any witnesses? Who were they? Where are they now? Was anything found at the location where each was taken? I’ll have a hundred other questions once we get into it.”
“I can answer most of those questions. Begin,” Alfred ordered.
I leaned my head toward Atikus, who said in my mind, “I believe the King just gave you permission to question him.”
“Your Majesty, you said the Princess was taken from the road. How long ago was that?”
“Nine days ago.”
“Were there any witnesses? Did your teams see anything?”
“Jess ran away with her boyfriend, Danym Wilfred, the High Sheriff’s son. One of our teams tracked them from the town of Spoke up the King’s Road. There were several units patrolling nearby, so the commander ordered a whistler to mark their location. That spooked the pair, and they fled.
Our units searched the area but found no trace of them. They simply vanished.”
No wonder he needs an outsider’s help.
My mind reeled at the notion of the High Sheriff’s son being involved in the kidnapping of the monarch’s daughter. Did that implicate the Sheriff, too? Or other members of the King’s Privy Council? Had we stumbled onto a coup-in-the-making?
“Tell me about Danym.”
“I barely knew him. Isabel and I did not even know they were seeing each other until a week or so before they disappeared. The pair had been meeting secretly in the woods just outside the Palace grounds.” Alfred turned to Justin. “Anything to share?”
Justin cleared his throat, and all eyes turned to him.
“I like Danym. He’s funny and smart, and he treats Jess like a queen. Well, she will be—you know what I mean.” He fidgeted with his hands.
“Do you know how long they had been meeting in the woods?” I asked.
Justin shot his father a glance, then stared back at his hands.
“Now is not the time to go quiet, Justin. Your sister’s life is at stake,” Alfred said.
“A little over a year.”
The King leaned back so fast he almost tipped his chair backward. “A year? Are you sure?”
Justin’s head rose, and he nodded.
Alfred threw his elbows onto the table and planted his face in his palms in a most un-kingly gesture.
I studied the interplay between father and son without reacting but decided it was time to save the King. He clearly hadn’t known his daughter was carrying on behind his back until recently.