The Dragon Knight's Curse (The Dragon Knight Series Book 2) (9 page)

“And he refused?” To me, she said, “Are your standards so damn high or do you only like other men?”

“Neither. As her question implies, she’s still looking for love, I’m not. I’m choosing to refuse her now so I don’t have to be crueler later.”

“That sounds like too much thinking to me.”

“Tell me, how many broken hearts have you left in your wake?”

Lucetta leaned back in her chair and looked up at the ceiling, looking as though she was actually counting those ragged organs. “Okay, okay, I
may
see a tiny bit of your side, but it still looks like she needs a good fuck.”

“Who doesn’t? Besides, no one’s stopping her from doing anyone else.”

“That’s true. Hey, Clarissa, do you want to have a few nights with Lorcan and me? We can certainly show you a few things.”

If a vampire had the ability to blush, Clarissa would be, but she just grinned awkwardly and said, “Uhh, no thanks. I mean, maybe later?”

“Well, think about it. I heard vampires have good stamina and can get rougher than most.”

Shortly after Ghevont ate a light breakfast, we went over to find the ship scheduled to take us to Bukuna. I told Lucetta to check back at the inn for our return every day at noon. If she had to split for whatever reason, then I asked her to leave us a message with the front counter. Meanwhile, I also insisted she try and learn anything she could on
The Blackfly
. Once those basic instructions were arranged, we boarded our modest vessel.

It was on the second afternoon at sea when I let an excited Ghevont into my cabin.

“I think I have something,” he said in a whisper, though Clarissa in the next cabin would have been the only one to overhear him if he spoke in a regular tone.

“Have what?” I yawned out.

“A possible answer to the vague letters. They’re worthless.”

“I hope that alone doesn’t excite you.”

“Hmm? No, no, of course not. They’re worthless, but it’s the business ones that might contain useful information. All those numbers would make a wonderful book cipher. And what book would the Advent use?”

I smirked. “
Summertide
.”

“Precisely. I know it does us no good now, but this would mean the Advent are not destroying but keeping their copies. There might be a higher chance we’ll find one after all.”

“But if Corbin is receiving and sending coded letters, then it means he has a copy hidden somewhere.”

“
The Blackfly
.”

“Probably, but without knowing where it’s docked, it’ll be a bitch to find. We can only hope its crew will return to Dranall at some point. Nice job, by the way.”

“I thought so.”

The constant northern winds stalled us a few times, but the trip was completed as the third sun began its descent. Bukuna, though a capital city, was barely half as large as Dranall and its speed of life seemed cut in half as well. Merely moving through the dull streets made one drowsy. Querying a few dozy citizens soon had us walking up to the metal fence of Equine Manor. Standing on either side of the gated entrance were two life-sized horse statues made of copper, now green after decades of exposure. Erected thirty yards beyond the gates was the house itself—a large two-story home of gray brick.

Next to the animal replicas were a pair of armored bodyguards, both of whom marched up to us with stern auras. Fearing these obvious professionals could spot a vampire, I told Clarissa and Ghevont to stay where they were as I went up to meet them.

The bigger man, who only looked so due to his bulkier iron armor, asked, “Can I help you, sir?”

“Is Rosemary home?”

“Who wants to know?”

“I’m hoping she might tell me.”

With a raised eyebrow, he said, “Don’t play coy here, son.”

“Yes, I understand. Look, I know about the tragedy she suffered in Remron. I’ve been looking for her nephews and I may know where one of them is. I don’t even need to speak with her, just somebody who knows her and the family.”

“And what’s your name?”

“Mercer.”

“Wait here, Mercer.” Turning to the man in shining steel armor, he said, “Ask Cole if anyone will see a visitor regarding the Remron kidnappings.”

The man clad in steel went back toward the gate, where he spoke with another guard within them.

Cole returned several minutes later with his answer, which was to allow me in. I wasn’t permitted to go in with weapons, so I gave all the weaponries I carried to Clarissa. I next told my companions to wait at the end of the path for me. The iron man then patted me down, quickly noticing the padding around my left arm.

“What’s under that?”

“An old injury.”

“Prove it.”

I unwrapped the cloth around my forearm, showing them the dark red chain-teeth rooted into my skin.

“The fuck is that?”

“As I said, an old injury. As much as I would like to, I can’t remove it.”

I was warily led into a cozy sitting room by Cole, where a small fire kept the space comfortably warm. Not ten seconds after taking a seat in a plush chair, a plump, old maid carrying a silver tray of tea cups entered through the double doors.

“Would you like s-” She was interrupted by her own scream and dropped tray.

An alarmed Cole unsheathed his short sword and shouted, “Madam Pharos! What’s wrong?”

She ignored him and said, “C-Cyrus? Is that you? Or has madness finally overtaken me?”

Conscious of a confused Cole, I gingerly stood up. “I at least hope you’re not mad, Madam Pharos.”

She shook as she stepped up to me, her crinkly hand coming out to caress my face. “Gods, it is you,” she said more to herself than anybody else. The short, corpulent woman embraced me. I hugged back, but out of pure courtesy to a memory I did not share. Pulling away and wiping a tear, she said, “Cole, make sure Lady Winfield is on her way. Tell her it’s Cyrus!” Once he was gone, she asked me, “What happened? Do you know where Alex is?”

“I’m sorry, I don’t. I’ll explain more when Rosemary gets here.”

“Yes, of course.”

I was helping the maid pick up her fallen cups and saucers when a thin woman in her early to mid-fifties entered. She had on a ruffling blue dress and her fading brown hair was braided tightly behind her. If she had been carrying a tray, she would have dropped it as well. She wanted to say something, but she instead choked up and burst into tears. I went to where she stood and brought her into my arms. She drenched my shoulder with enough salt water to make us smell like the sea.

The quivering emotion flowing out from her seeped into my skin, and for the first time in my remembered life, I shed a tear of my own. Not because I felt so much, but because I was feeling nothing at all. This was a woman who had raised me, yet her flower-scented perfume, firmly devoted touch, and the sound of her sniffling did not unearth that lost part of me, a part I now knew was truly gone.

When I sensed she had gained some composure over herself, I directed her to a small couch and we sat down.

Rosemary cleared her throat and said, “Look how much you’ve grown up! Leave us be, Sir Wesley. Phillis, inform the others that Cyrus has returned!”

“Hold on,” I said. “Rosemary, there’s something I need to tell you first. I wish I didn’t have to, but I must. I don’t, I mean, this might be difficult to hear.”

Rubbing my hand, she said, “Gods, what is it, dear? Please tell me what’s wrong. I will do everything to make things right again. The things you must have seen and heard. I don’t want to imagine it.”

“Have you wondered why you were expecting a man named ‘Mercer’ and instead got me?”

“I-I suppose that is strange.”

“It’s the name I gave the guards because it’s the name I chose after I escaped my captors. I chose it because I didn’t remember what my real name was. It wasn’t until Phillis recognized me did I know I was home.”

The housekeeper absorbed the information better than her mistress. She gasped and said, “A-are you saying you don’t remember us? Your past?”

“I’m afraid I don’t.”

“Impossible! Then how did you find us?”

“By following a hard trail.”

Rosemary’s eyes were blank for a moment before she twitched them back onto mine. “Nothing? You remember nothing?”

“I’m sorry.”

She embraced me again, tighter than the last. “What did those, those bastards do to you?”

“Don’t distress yourself by contemplating such things.”

“You’re right. You’re home, that’s all that matters now.”

“For a couple of nights.”

“What?”

“I fear I have to apologize to you again, but I can’t stay long.”

“What?! Why not?”

“There’s someone in Dranall I’m scheduled to meet, someone who might have more information about my kidnappers. Now that I know my brother is out there, I can’t leave him to a worse fate than mine.”

“Nonsense! You’re not much more than a child and you want to fight?”

“I’ve been fighting for as long as I can remember.”

“No, Cyrus, you can’t.”

“I know this is difficult to hear, but I’ve made too much headway to quit now. Besides, I sort of promised a dying woman I’d see this through.”

“A dying woman? You surely aren’t speaking like your old self.” She ran her fingers through my hair. “And you’re not bathing as often as you should. Gods! What you must have been through and I’ve yet to offer you water or fresh clothes!”

“Do you have enough for my two companions as well?”

“Companions?”

“Yes, they’re waiting outside with my, uh, offensive items.”

“I see. Of course they are welcome. Phillis, please instruct Sir Wesley to allow…” I told her the names when her expression implored me for the information. “For Lady Clarissa and Master Ghevont to be allowed inside.”

Before she left, Phillis bowed and said, “It’s wonderful to see you again, Master Cyrus.”

“I must inform every one of the news,” said my aunt. “Your uncle is in bed already, but he will gratefully be awakened for this, even if there is to be a sour note. Both of your cousins are also having dinner with some friends, and the Pendlecots also live with us. We wouldn’t be able to afford this grand home otherwise. We pooled our resources together after the second raid and moved to a less exposed place. Perhaps once you are reacquainted with everyone you will see how foolish it would be to leave and have us all worry again about you. There’s so much to catch up with. You yourself are an uncle now. Michael just turned two a month ago.”

She never took a relaxing breath between any words, all in an effort to hold back more tears. Since none fell from her welled eyes, the strategy worked. I stayed listening until Clarissa and Ghevont entered the chamber. To prevent humans from noting her cold hands, the vampire wore her black gloves. This permitted her to shake hands with Rosemary, though my aunt still pointed out that a bit of makeup would do wonders for her pale skin. My aunt also appeared perturbed when Clarissa handed me back my blade and daggers, but said nothing.

It was decided that she would gather the family into the dining hall and explain my situation before I made myself known, saving me from the awkwardness of seeing their joy dwindle into muddled contentment.

A few minutes later and Phillis led Clarissa, Ghevont, and I to the dining hall, where Rosemary stood with my misplaced family. Next to my aunt was my uncle, Kario Winfield, a dignified man who looked a little less so in his oversized blue robe and nightgown. Their children, whom Rosemary considered my brother and sister, each looked older than I was, but not by much.

My two year old nephew was held by his father, Spencer, who appeared to be as stately as his father, if somewhat pudgy. His wife was standing in the background. Her face was the type that could easily get lost in a crowd, but even under all her clothes I could tell she had a toned body and an outdoorsy spirit. Our sister, Erica, had a foot over the edge of portliness herself, but I was sure Rosemary was doing her best to make sure her otherwise sweet looking daughter didn’t cross over completely.

Erica made the first move. She rushed forward and used her youth to give me a hug stronger than anyone else’s. The men were more subdued, including the toddler, but the older men also joined Erica in a fleeting embrace. The next few moments were similar to the meeting with Rosemary and Phillis, but once that passed, a smoother dialogue occurred. Our conversation was complemented with some plates of hearty steaks and tepid tomato soup.

“If you don’t remember us,” began Erica, “then how did you track us here?”

“I recently found the office of one of my captors. A letter of his mentioned this place. You see, it’s actually my fault these people are interested in this family, why Alex was taken in the second raid. The spells they used on me made me a good fighter in their fighting pit and they believed someone else with my blood would also work well for them.”

“So you know who abducted you and Alex?” asked Spencer. “Have you directed the authorities to them? Are they still at large?”

“The man responsible for sanctioning the kidnappings is dead. The caster who experimented on me is also dead. However, they were a small part of the operation.”

“What do you mean ‘operation’?” asked my uncle.

“I can’t say much because I still don’t know much, but what I do say can’t leave this room, understand?” Everyone gave either a nodding or verbal signal that they did. “The Advent are not widely known, but they have a wide reach, though how they’ve obtained their influence remains a mystery.”

“The Advent? Isn’t that some mythical religion?”

“They are an old cult. They apparently wish to raise a dead being and are gathering power to do so. It’s my belief they’re responsible for the attacks on the valkrean. I’ve informed the Warriors Guild about them, but until more information is gathered, it’s not safe to openly speak of them, especially for this family.”

“Then you presume that Alex is being held by these Advent worshippers?”

I nodded.

“How horrible!” cried Erica.

“Indeed,” said Rosemary. “I know you want to find Alex, dear, we all do, but you can’t hope to battle an army of zealots on your own. Please, leave this to professional soldiers. Stay home with us. No more of this fighting talk.”

“Are you joking, Mother?” rhetorically asked Spencer. “I wish I could join him.”

“Spencer! Don’t you start!”

“Don’t worry, I’m no soldier, but it angers me that I can do nothing to help. Our family has suffered immensely and all we could do was run.”