Adrienne (36 page)

“What do you want? Your queen isn’t here,” Hollace said quickly. He was thankful he had not called for Oringo. Hollace didn’t care if he died so long as his son survived to keep Kakra out of Malik’s hands.

“I know that. She is in Kontar…now a guest of Nadid.”

Hollace looked incredulous. “Nadid? What would the Queen of Kontar want with your wife, Malik?”

“We Kings of Ulan do not think our queens are useless like you Kakrans do. They are equal in rule, in wisdom and in power. My queen is very powerful, indeed. She wove an erasure spell around herself to fend off the effects of a confusion spell…all unconsciously,” Malik said in a proud voice. “If I have my facts right, she even disrupted a portal and landed directly on your lap, Hollace. How is that for power?”

Hollace turned a sickly shade of white. He sank back onto his throne.

Tacita sat heavily on the floor, not having a throne of her own on which to sit. She stared at Malik and asked, “Adele was that powerful and I couldn’t even feel it?”

Malik frowned. He asked, “Who is Adele?”

“I gave her that name when she couldn’t remember her own.”

“Her name is Adrienne, Queen Tacita. And what do you mean ‘sense’?”

“I am a child of Kontar. My father was a powerful noble, and high ranking in the branches of the Mage Guild. Hollace conditioned that I should never use my powers again when I became his bride. I had to renounce my powers by wearing this—” she fingered the mage metal chain around her waist, “—leash. But I cannot forget years of training because of my husband’s biases and fears. I remove the chain from time to time. I did so once to see if I could ascertain Adele…Adrienne’s true identity and proper place.”

“You sensed no power in Adrienne?”

“I sensed the magnitude of the spell that bound her mind, and a second spell that I couldn’t identify—”

“The confusion spell,” Malik supplied.

“Yes. But nothing in me sensed the erasure spell came from her,” she said in wonder. An admiring quality came to Tacita’s voice. “It was flawless. The silver marriage cord and the scar of the blood binding spell were absent. I suppose that is why you didn’t know she was here—you couldn’t track her.”

Malik shook his head. The discussion had gone off course. “Yes, the spell was powerful, but we waste time. Nadid has my wife. She means to siphon Adrienne’s magicks in order to make herself more powerful. With that power she intends to assassinate the current Mage Guild head, take his place, and then level
both
Ulan and Kakra to take as her own.”

“The hell you say,” Hollace yelled, coming back from the shocks Malik and Tacita had given him. He was beaten and betrayed all in the same breath. He thought himself clever to bind his wife’s powers with a mage metal chain. A chain she took off whenever she pleased and as often as she pleased, it seemed. His anger at her defiance and at Nadid’s audacity merged. “That
woman
couldn’t make Nadid that much more powerful.”

Malik said in a conspiratorial voice, “Nadid is third ranking in the Mage Guild. My wife…my Adrienne is an equal to my power. I walked into your palace as though your barrier did not exist, Hollace. A barrier, I am sure, your mages informed you was powerful enough to stop even the strongest Guild member.”

“You are that strong?” Hollace asked, disbelieving.

“The measurement for my power is off the Guild charts. Believe me when I say, if Nadid is able to harness my wife’s powers, neither Ulan nor Kakra will survive her attack.” He clenched his fists at his side. “We need to join forces and stop Nadid now, before it is too late.”

“You’re so damn powerful that you can fight Nadid on your own. Why should I help to save your wife? You may have married her but she has not begotten your heir yet. If she dies and you are killed trying to save her, I get your kingdom,” Hollace sneered.

“You truly are scared of magicks,” Malik observed with a nod. “That is why I came to you, actually.”

“What do you mean?” Hollace asked in a guarded voice.

Malik opened a portal in the floor. It overlooked a room, somewhere in the bowels of Hollace’s palace, that was full of mage metal orbs. He pointed out, “That same fear caused you to stockpile mage metal. You have the biggest cache in the world. It is the only reason I have never attacked you. I may have power, but that much mage metal would daunt even me.” Malik closed the portal. “That much mage metal would also stop Nadid and save my wife. The siphon will kill her.”

Hollace laughed at Malik’s words. “Tell me more good news.”

“I could simply tie Oringo’s life to that of my wife’s. The minute she breathed her last, so too would he,” Malik suggested. He raised his hand to do just that. “With the spell binding Tacita’s reproductive abilities, you cannot have anymore heirs and Chandra cannot inherit. I would win.”

“Spell? What spell?” Tacita asked in confusion. “You are mistaken, Malik. I had a difficult birth with Oringo. It rendered me unable to bear more children.”

“Because Hollace would not allow mages in his palace to ensure the safe delivery of his heir?” Malik asked.

Tacita nodded.

Malik arched an eyebrow at Hollace. “You are an idiot, cousin. There are mages aplenty in your palace. A reliable source informed me of the spies. One such spy attended Oringo’s birth to make it more difficult and thus hide the placement of a binding spell on Tacita’s womb.”

“I feel no magicks,” Tacita said. She threw the mage metal chain away. Her hands splayed in front of her belly, she tried to sense the spell Malik mentioned.

“You did not take off your shackle nearly enough if you cannot sense such a simple spell, Tacita,” Malik said. He made a beckoning motion with his hand. A light surrounded Tacita then shrank to focus on her belly; it whizzed down to Malik’s waiting hand. “This spell is from Kontar, Tacita. It is from Nadid’s father. He placed it on you so no other male heir would be born to take Oringo’s place if he died.” He crushed the ball of light and the magicks dissipated.

“That is no simple spell,” Tacita said. “Only a Mage Guild master could cast such a spell.”

“It is simple to me,” Malik said without a hint of bravado. He turned his attention back to Hollace. “Tell me, cousin. If one of us fails in Derex’s stipulations, what happens?”

“Then the other gains his kingdom.”

“Once the two kingdoms are rejoined, what happens if there is no male blood heir to inherit?”

Hollace answered in a quiet voice, “Kontar gains both kingdoms.”

“At some point, they became ambitious. Kontar does not want to see Ulan and Kakra joined unless it is under Kontar’s rule.” In a pain-filled voice, he said, “The spell they put on Tacita did not work on my mother; she sensed it. Instead, they killed her and blamed you. My father was killed so he would not find another bride. As a child I posed no threat and Kontar thought to control me through the Mage Guild. I quit to learn and control the magicks on my own, and it made me more powerful.”

Malik met Hollace’s eyes. “Do you understand what I am telling you, Hollace? Kontar has fueled the feud, not us. Kontar ordered the assassinations—all of them—and has done so for many generations. This was a plan long in the making. With the aid of my wife’s powers, Nadid will see the plan to its fruition.”

Hollace looked at his wife. Tacita remained stunned she had not felt the magicks that bound her womb. Hollace descended the throne dais and held out his hand to Malik. He said, “I don’t much hold with mages and their practices, but I know a blood oath is binding. A blood oath to prove what you say is true.”

Malik drew his dagger. He sliced his hand and then Hollace’s. He grabbed Hollace’s hand. Their blood meshed and intermingled. He said, “The blood will reveal all. Let the blame fall on whom it truly belongs.”

With those words, the men were taken over their respective histories. Assassinations, sneak attacks and plots of generations past were all laid bare for the other to see. And what they saw was the betrayal of a father’s trust.

“Our ancestors didn’t care anymore. But Kontar needed them fighting, needed the feud to remain fresh,” Hollace said once the spell finished. It felt like years had passed but the spell had done its job in mere seconds.

All heard and understood the implications of his words.

“I propose an end to it. No more blood. No more wasted life. Let us be joined as family, as Derex always meant us to be, instead of forever fighting. Help me save my wife and your kingdom will have a new ally, Hollace.”

Hollace gripped Malik’s blood-soaked hand. “Done…Cousin.”

* * *

Juven pushed Adrienne to the ground in front of the throne dais of Kontar. Offhandedly, Adrienne wondered if a kingdom existed that didn’t have its throne on a dais. She looked up at the woman who stared down at her.

Adrienne could see some of Malik and Hollace in the woman. She had black hair and slanted eyes like Malik, but her eyes were the same deep brown as Hollace’s. Unlike Malik and Hollace, Nadid was white. Literally. The woman looked like a corpse.

Nadid was swathed in the ceremonial robes of her station as third ranking in the Mage Guild, but the robes didn’t hide her curvaceous figure. She also had the height and the look of arrogance that seemed to be a family trademark. Adrienne had gotten sick of seeing it, to be perfectly honest. All this fighting and killing was all about family. Being married to Malik made Adrienne more family than she wanted to be, at the moment.

Nadid stood and walked down the dais steps. The lights in the flickering orbs that floated around the room made shadows and highlights play off Nadid’s jet-black, silky-straight hair. Her Guild robes, a deep royal purple, rolled and convulsed around her feet.

Nadid reached towards Adrienne but pulled back when Adrienne snapped at her hand.

“Little she-devil, aren’t you, Your Majesty?” Nadid asked. “It only makes sense. Malik wouldn’t have married you if you weren’t equal to him in attitude.”

The glimmer that shone in Nadid’s eyes gave Adrienne just enough time to brace herself before Nadid’s open hand made contact with her cheek. The woman put her full weight behind the blow. Adrienne’s head snapped to the side but her eyes stayed on Nadid. She hoped the hatred she felt showed in her eyes. Adrienne could feel heat of it just beneath her skin. She knew the mage metal collar was all that kept her from turning Nadid into a writhing ball of flames.

“Let that be a warning to you, Queen Adrienne. I don’t care that you are a queen. I don’t care that you are Malik’s bride. I am Nadid, Queen of Kontar and third elder of the Mage Guild. Once I have your power, I will be so much more.”

Adrienne faced her fully to ask, “What do you mean? What do you want with me?”

Nadid turned away from Adrienne. She pulled a small sack from her robes and held it out to Juven. She said, “I know this is not what you are normally paid for, Assassin. But you did your job well.”

Juven bowed before she took the money. She said with a smile, “Call me back when you want her dead. I would be more than happy to do it for free.”

“I have no need of you to kill the likes of her. You may go,” Nadid said. She didn’t wait to see if Juven left or not. She turned her attention back to Adrienne. Signaling two waiting acolytes, she started out of the room. They hauled Adrienne to her feet and pushed her to follow Nadid.

Juven taunted after Adrienne, “Die knowing I will return to my previous assignment of comforting your husband, Queen Adrienne.” She laughed when Adrienne tried to look back at her but the acolytes shoved Adrienne to keep her moving.

The sack of gold jingled as Juven tested its weight. She said in satisfaction, “One thousand pieces.” She gave another bow in the direction Nadid had taken. “A pleasure to be in your service, Your Majesty.”

She headed out of the throne room. As she walked, she pulled out an orb and concentrated. A tiny flash later and the pre-made transportation spell placed Juven directly in front of her horse. She’d left it at Caradoc’s cottage and used her orb to get Adrienne to Nadid quickly.

Retrieving and dropping off Adrienne had taken Juven less than an hour. She had enough time to do another job that had come her way before Sabri contacted her.

Juven grabbed her horse’s saddle and had readied to pull herself up when she jumped back instead. The horse gave a scared whinny and ran. Juven clutched her arm, blood seeping through her fingers. She glared at the lance embedded in the ground a few feet away.

Hani stepped out of the shadows. She said, “You’re getting sloppy, Juven. You should have had your horse meet you, not leave it where anyone could see and wait for you to come back for it.”

“Hani,” Juven hissed. She released her wound and crouched at the ready. “What do you want? Have the elders decided to test us again?”

“No. This is work,” Hani answered. She smiled with her normal good-natured manner. “It is funny to think we served in the same palace for well over a year and never knew the other was there. Maybe I’m getting sloppy, as well.”

“What?”

Hani pulled her dagger and her smile vanished. Her eyes narrowed and her voice dropped to one degree below freezing when she said, “Malik doesn’t appreciate you handing his wife over to Nadid.” That was all the warning she gave before she attacked.

Juven’s dagger met Hani’s a few inches from her throat. The blades threw off sparks when they clashed. Both women stared at each other.

“Haven’t we done this once already? It ended in a draw. This is pointless,” Juven said.

“It was a draw because a title wasn’t a good enough reason to kill you.” Hani added her weight and pressed her dagger closer to Juven’s neck.

“Your mistake. And not your only one, Hani.” Juven squeezed the orb in her hand. She disappeared and reappeared behind Hani.

Before the woman could react, Juven buried her dagger in Hani’s back. She smiled at the resulting scream.

Nadid and Adrienne walked down several corridors in silence. Finally they came to a door with a shield embossed on the outside. The shield showed a bird of prey looking down from a tree branch at a serpent coiled around a flaming battle-axe. Adrienne recognized the serpent; it was Malik’s family crest. She had a seen a flaming battle-axe all over Hollace’s palace—Kakra’s crest. It would seem the bird of prey portrayed Kontar in the role of watcher over the two intertangled kingdoms of Ulan and Kakra.