Fear and Bitter Thorns (The Tahaerin Chronicles Book 3)

  FEAR AND BITTER THORNS

  J. ELLEN ROSS

  Copyright © 2015 J. Ellen Ross

  Cover design © 2016 Kate Stone

  Cover photo © 2014 Andrey Kiselev

  All rights are reserved by the author. No part of this e-book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles or reviews.

  By One-Armed T.rex Publishing

  Visit my website at www.jellenross.com

  Table of Contents

  Map of Embriel and Tahaerin

  Rebuilding

  Sarika

  Ostrava

  Iosa

  Streza

  Volode

  Lida

  Hunting

  Parade

  Lilika

  Eamon

  Caged

  Traitors

  Bargaining

  Demands

  Freedom

  Leaving

  Bolev

  Cheylm

  Returning

  Broken

  Mikhail

  Revenge

  Healing

  Morning

  Hunger

  Fleeing

  Vengeance

  Spymasters

  Running

  Betrayal

  Spith

  War

  Tamary

  Oszkar

  Acknowledgments

  About the Author

  Dedication

  To Dan, who once again, has loved me and encouraged me.

  Map of Embriel and Tahaerin

  Rebuilding

  Zaraki stood leaning against the great, black flank of his horse, watching the craftsmen across the yard. He did not need to supervise them. Kings did not supervise – he had men enough to do it for him. But he found the whole endeavor interesting as he watched them work with winches and pulleys, maneuvering the new doors to the castle into position.

  In his head, he figured the price of the wooden slabs, the cost of hiring the workmen. Even when taking into account the lower price Leisha had negotiated, the total still topped what he used to make over the course of an entire year. Now, he barely blinked at such things. He owned saddles costing more than a family might pay in rents for a month.

  Still, he admitted, the doors looked lovely. Ten feet tall and crafted from Embriel oak, swoops and swirls of iron covered the front of them. In the middle of each, hung a large emblem of a horse with a hawk on its back, crafted by master metalsmiths. The doors would last for generations.

  Assuming another invading army did not take the castle and hack at the doors with axes, as had happened to the last ones.

  Over half a year had passed since the Tahaerin army beat back the invaders from over the seas. Everywhere, people tried to put their lives back together and restore a sense of normalcy to the kingdom. People returned here to Lida because he and Leisha had returned, along with their royal court. Money followed nobles and royals alike.

  Seeing his lovely wife across the courtyard as she inspected other repairs brought a smile to Zaraki’s face. She always did. It seemed as though he had loved her for an eternity and three years of marriage had not dimmed or diminished what he felt. Today, she laughed and smiled as Symon showed her the workmen’s progress.

  Good, he thought, trying not to remember the tears and terror.

  Even though nearly a year had passed since Leisha had been kidnapped and imprisoned by Lukas of Embriel, he still watched closely for any sign of the fear that stalked her from time to time. Flush with power after the victory over the Deojrin, she had tried to cast aside the memories of her captivity and turned her eyes to rebuilding what their enemy had destroyed. She approved plans to repair their castle and made improvements, so no one would ever drive her from her home again.

  As Leisha set about remaking their kingdom, she forged ties with their nobles where none previously existed, binding allies to her and putting enemies to the sword. Two noble houses fell over the winter, their members scattered to the winds when their lords refused to bow to the ascendant queen. From the ranks of her allies, she pulled men to take the holdings at Stahle and Vasvar.

  And, after three years of ruling his holding at Cheylm, and helping Leisha guide Tahaerin through a war they nearly lost, Zaraki could see he had found his footing as king. He had grown more and more confident in his dealings with the lords, no longer afraid of how they might judge him for being born a peasant. Now, Leisha happily ceded responsibilities to him. In between answering petitions and mediating conflicts, he oversaw the rebuilding of his horse farm in Ola. He bought back breeding stock to strengthen his herd and made gifts of the fine Aulerons geldings to nobles who supported Leisha.

  They both tried to put the war behind them. But the shadows of her kidnapping had lingered over the unusually cold winter.

  There were times, still when Zaraki would awake from a dream of those dark weeks, panic-stricken, convinced Lukas held her and that he could not save her. In the darkness, he would reach out and finding her in bed next to him, he would wake her with his lips and his hands.

  “Please?” he would ask in a whisper, his mouth close to her ear, his voice hoarse with sleep and fear.

  And she would say yes. And he would take her in a frenzy, desperate to forget the heartbreak of that month. Trying to remember they were together and whole. Vowing nothing would ever separate them again.

  Once in a while, the nightmare visions Leisha dreamed while held captive in Embriel by her former lover returned to haunt her. She would bolt from their bed, ready to set loose the strange power she barely understood, to strike Lukas down. Even though the man was now a ghost, because Zaraki had slit his throat and spilled his blood, taking revenge for both of them when she could not.

  As she stood trembling, he would take her hand and draw her back to bed. Wrapped in his arms, she would fall asleep as he whispered reassurances and kissed away her fears.

  And so the wheel of the year turned and brought spring back to Lida.

  Capar shifted in protest at being used as a prop for his rider.

  “Sorry, friend,” Zaraki said, patting his horse’s long neck. “Shall we take our ride? I think everyone is ready.” He looked around and saw Aniska and Andelko readying their mounts along with a large contingent of soldiers and bodyguards.

  Sighing, he remembered when he could ride out of the castle alone. Hell, he could remember when nearly all of them could. But now, Andelko had been revealed to be Leisha’s first cousin after hiding for nearly twenty years. His childhood friend, Aniska, had married the miraculously resurrected prince. Where before, Leisha had been the last surviving Tahaerin royal, members now abounded. And none were permitted to wander unescorted through the town or countryside.

  Like a whisper of breeze, he felt Leisha’s presence in his mind.

  Is everyone ready? Am I late again? she asked with a laugh.

  You are, but Evka’s patient. Beside Capar waited Leisha’s chestnut colored mare. Once he would have fidgeted and fretted over Leisha’s riding, but her skill had improved after all those months in the saddle as they fled in front of the Deojrin’s advancing armies. He still did not trust her to ride without him, but as long as he rode nearby, he could relax. Andelko’s another story, however, he thought, knowing she would catch the words.

  My cousin can stuff it, she said, but he saw her wave to Symon and make her way towards the waiting horses.

  The two former Cursed mind readers trailed behind her like long shadows as she moved through the yard. Silent and watchful, Hanne and Edvard had become bodyguards of a sort. While many of the Deojrin slaves Leisha and the others freed during the war chose to stay in town or disappeared on their own, these two remained close. For Hanne and Edvard, the compulsions their masters had used to ensure their compliance still bound them and they found their new freedoms disconcerting. They seemed to prefer serving; they understood the structure and organization of the castle, and it brought them both comfort.

  Because of that and the extent of their abilities, Aniska allowed them to displace her men sometimes, and the two mind readers gained a sense of purpose. Zaraki knew they still struggled to adjust to life outside of the slavery they had grown up with. After all their help in winning the war against the Deojrin, he did not care if they spent the rest of their days here. As long as they were happy.

  In her riding dress the color of red wine, Leisha smiled as she neared him. The groom held the horses’ reins, and Zaraki offered her a hand to mount. “Shall we go inspect the walls, my lady wife?” he asked as Hanne and Edvard reached for their own mounts. Both had expressed an interest in seeing the repairs and new fortifications Andelko commissioned.

  “I think we shall, husband,” she said.

  “Do you promise to behave and stay close?”

  “Yes, of course, my love. When have I ever done anything but what you’ve asked?” When his eyebrows rose, Leisha filled the courtyard with her silvery laughter.

  Behind her, the two mind readers watched them, their heads cocked to the same side. Zaraki had long grown used to the silent regard of Leisha’s shadows. They watched everything, teasing apart interactions, puzzling over conversations, trying to understand how two people lived and loved one another. Hanne once asked him what being married meant and he had had no real answer. Loving Leisha felt as nat
ural as breathing. He never considered how or why it happened.

  ***

  The party wound through the streets and up to the gates along the southern wall. As the horses passed under the imposing stone towers, Aniska smiled seeing the hawk and horse flags flying alongside her own red and white hart. She and Andelko had chosen the symbol because his mother came from Otokar and it had long been a traditional mark of the old city. Lida had not seen two royals in residence in years.

  A long, windswept plain covered in stubby, dead grass greeted them as the party passed through the gates. Today, birds filled the skies as Lida shook off winter and the remnants of its occupation. Her marriage and elevation to Lady of Moraval only months old, Aniska often found herself gazing upon her adopted kingdom with new eyes.

  Marriage had changed the way she viewed home and permanency. It tied her to this land and the people here. Before, she had always known she could leave, pick up and start anew somewhere else. But now, she had a husband.

  Others might find it odd, she supposed, that becoming a Tahaerin noblewoman distressed her far, far less than did the wedding held in Velika Hall. But she still struggled with understanding how to be a wife. It did not matter that Andelko was a prince. She knew how to pass herself off as a noblewoman – had trained for it for years as a child. But a childhood in Ostrava never showed her how to live with a man she adored but whose love terrified her. Trust and vulnerability were gifts she rarely bestowed on others, and she struggled to open herself to Andelko.

  Here, on horseback, with the scent of salt wafting through the air and the hint of a spring to come, she could let go of her fears and look on her husband with adoring eyes. He began speaking and pointing as soon as the party passed outside the walls.

  While politics and diplomacy took up a great deal of time for all of them, she knew war and defense truly excited him. At night, in their rooms, he had filled her ears with his plans. Military men before him had long advocated for larger, stronger walls to guard Lida, but past Tahaerin monarchs chose to fortify other structures instead. Driven once from her home, Leisha would not make the same mistake. She poured money into Lida’s defenses.

  “We’re raising the walls here by ten feet,” Andelko said, gesturing to the stones being lifted into place. Cranes sprouted from the tops of the battlements and men shouted orders to one another.

  Behind him, Hanne’s quiet voice rose. “What are the holes running along the top?” She pointed to the new section of wall where a series of small gaps repeated at regular intervals.

  “They’re for the hourds,” Andelko explained. Seeing her confusion, he added, “Beams will go in there to support a wooden structure. It’ll project over the walls so soldiers can stand inside and hurl things down. And it’ll be covered to protect defenders.”

  Edvard consider this before asking, “Could mind readers stand in there as well? Unseen?”

  It pleased Andelko when they caught on so quickly. He smiled and said, “Yes, that’s the idea. As we talked about, it’s better to keep you all safe in the back, rather than marching up front the way the Deojrin do it.”

  As he pointed, Edvard’s head whipped around to stare back the way they had come. “Someone is watching us,” he said. “A man. Tarro, I believe.”

  Cursing, Aniska asked, “Embriel?”

  The man’s eyes lost their focus as he flung himself away from his body. His voice sounded distant, the words almost slurred as he spoke again. “Yes, spymaster, he is. Near the gate.”

  All monarchs spied on one another. It was expected, assumed. Because of this, unspoken agreements often existed between kingdoms where enemy spies, who committed no other crime than snooping, might be expelled rather than executed. Good spies cost money. But after what Lukas of Embriel did and after his father, the king of Embriel refused to intervene, Ani would not tolerate any incursions by their neighbor to the east. Spies from Embriel often dangled from the battlements outside the city.

  She opened her mouth, but Jan spoke first, jerking his head back towards the gate. “Gerrik,” he barked. “You heard Edvard. Find him.”

  Though she would never begrudge Jan or Eli their promotions, Ani still struggled to let go of the responsibilities ceded to them. Jan gave the orders. Silent, taciturn Eli managed the information flowing in from the small army of agents spread over the continent. What Zaraki started nine years ago, had grown into something far too large for only one or two people to maintain. And, her change in circumstances meant she had less time to devote to this job. Even so, Ani would have preferred to keep it all to herself.

  She loved Andelko, would even admit to loving being married to the man, but her pride – her Ostravan pride protested she should be the only one commanding the spies and bodyguards. Being the Tahaerin spymaster made her proud and gave her life purpose. Sharing had not been one of the skills Cezar taught his pupils. Still, she bit her tongue and let Jan do what he needed.

  For two more hours, the party rode around the walls. Leisha wanted to see what her money had bought, all the work and repairs. After the bitter winter, everyone rejoiced at feeling the spring sunshine and the breeze coming in off the ocean. They talked and laughed as the horses carried them around to the harbor gate.

  ***

  From atop the southern gate, under the blue flag with its gold horse and hawk, and under the red flag with its white hart, Dobromir watched the party with interest. He had been in Lida for two months, observing, probing at the Tahaerins and their strange, foreign mind readers. When the three soldiers wheeled their horses and turned back in his direction, he knew someone had spotted Tarro. Chuckling, he continued his patrol along the battlements.

  He had lost another one, but, that was the point of all this. Test the mind readers to see what they could do, how they protected their new masters. Because few truly understood how the strangers worked. A century ago, the kingdoms had attempted to purge themselves of all mind readers, and now only a few pockets remained. Mostly in the mountains of eastern Streza. When Leisha freed nearly three hundred of them from their Deojrin masters, many clung to her. It tipped the balance of power in her favor.

  Dobromir came to learn about the mind readers and observe their strange abilities. His employer sought vengeance for a murdered prince and had gone hunting for an Ostravan, someone with skills enough to infiltrate the Tahaerin court. Between jobs at the time, he had answered the call and found the work very much to his liking.

  He had lost several men besides Tarro recently and regretted none of them. Most ended their days swinging from the castle walls, just as Dobromir guessed they would when he chose them. These were disposable people, poor men with nothing to lose. So long as they followed his orders, and he could stay out of sight and observe the results, he counted it as money well spent.

  Now, he smirked as the royal party rode past the Harbor Gate. Mounting the steps, he climbed to the top to watch the horses moving down towards the shore. Here, stonemasons worked on a new tower to extend the city walls to. The section of wall had partially collapsed during the Deojrin invasion and had been cleared away several months ago. And so, there were no fortifications for guards to stand atop.

  No guards, but him to notice the small band of men creeping up from the sea.

  Last week, they had all gathered in a dingy tavern. Just watch them, Dobromir had said, counting out small piles of coins for each of them on the filthy tabletop. Get as close as you can without being seen. His employer had very deep pockets and very little patience so he could spend freely. Leftover soldiers from the invasion and those who lost everything in the war abounded, desperate for money and the chance to work.

  He obliged, paying them well but never mentioning he hoped they all died at their tasks. It made it so much easier if he did not have to kill them himself.

  Leaning out through the crenel, Dobromir kept his eyes averted from the dark haired queen or the two figures riding behind her. Those two, he knew – the gaunt man and the woman with hair like snow. He had seen how little it took to catch the mind readers’ deadly attention.

  The two parties drew closer to one another, though they could not see each other yet. Hidden by a hillock of sand and sea grass, the mercenaries, crept up the side, the sounds of their passing masked by the sound of waves coming to shore.