Every Battle Lord's Nightmare (14 page)

            “—make sure everything is ready when they give us the signal to close the gates.” The voice came from someone accustomed to giving orders, but it wasn’t LeGreen’s. Whoever the man was talking to mumbled something in return, and the conversation ceased. But the footsteps grew closer. Those men expected the hallway to be empty. Unless they exited into the main hall, they would be on top of her and Renken within moments.

            Atty started backing up. Her Ballock slid into her palm without thought. There was a fifty-fifty chance the men wouldn’t go down the hall toward the rear rooms, but it was a chance she couldn’t risk. If they happened upon her and Renken, she doubted there would be enough time for explanations before blood was spilled. With the element of surprise on their side, she knew Renken could probably take out the men on his own. But how would LeGreen take the news that two of his soldiers had been killed inside his lodge the same night he had guests? How could he not assume Yulen or his men had something to do with it, and retaliate?

            She tugged on Renken’s tunic, pulling him along with her. She heard the almost silent silvery whine as he drew his sword from its scabbard. He reached behind him with his other hand and touched hers tugging on him. Her shoulder bumped into the wall…and it gave way. Hastily, she pushed it open further and retreated inside, almost dragging the ex-mercenary with her. The two strange men passed them less than a heartbeat later as they stood just inside the doorway. They heard the footsteps stop not too far down the hall, then a door opened and closed, leaving them in absolute silence once again.

            Renken let out the breath he’d been holding. “Good job finding us a hiding place.”

            She didn’t tell him it had been by accident. “I’m not that hungry anymore.”

            “Neither am I. Let’s head back upstairs and let Yulen know what we heard. We need to figure out what those men meant.”

            She agreed and followed him back to the bedroom to awaken the battle lord.

Chapter Twenty

Suspicion

            He knew she was gone before he reached behind him to find the bedcovers flat.

           
And warm.

           
She hadn’t been gone long.

            Yulen rose into a sitting position. Too late, he realized he’d moved too quickly. His head began swimming, forcing him to lower it between his knees. He softly groaned. His sinuses were clogged again. Earlier, when he’d taken the medicine Thrasher had brought, he’d gotten some relief, but even that small concession had its problems. If he could breathe, his nose ran. If he was stuffed up, the pressure between his eyes was almost unbearable.

            “Atty, where are you?” he whispered, when another, more terrifying thought, came to him, and he jerked up, his spine stiffening. “Oh, God, don’t tell me you left without an escort!”

            He started to get to his feet when the door suddenly opened, and two figures hurried inside. In the darkness, he reached for his sword when a sweet presence insinuated itself within his heart.

            “Atty?”

            The door closed as she drew closer. “Shut your eyes,” she told him. He did, and became aware of a single flame brightening the room. The candle on the nightstand by the bed. He averted his face before opening his eyes, to find Renken standing by the door. The man’s sword was drawn. Glancing back at Atty, he saw her knife in her hand, raising his alarm.

            “What happened?”

            “I was hungry,” she admitted, giving him an apologetic smile.

            Knowing she was safe calmed him somewhat. He forced himself to keep silent and hear her out before saying anything more.

            “So I went next door to see if Warren or Garet would go with me down to the kitchen.”

            He caught a look pass between them before she continued.

            “We never made it that far. A couple of men passed us.”

            “They passed you?” he finally remarked.

            “We ducked into some kind of pantry,” Renken explained. “They never saw us in the dark.”

            Yulen gestured at his drawn sword, and the ex-mercenary re-sheathed it. “We heard them talking,” the man added.

            “About?”

            “We didn’t get all of it,” Atty explained. “Something about waiting for a signal for the gates to be closed. That’s all we caught before they went into another room down the hall.”

            “What hall? This hall?”

            She shook her head. “The hallway downstairs. The one leading away from the kitchen.”

            Yulen scratched his scar. “Wait for a signal for the gates to be closed. What gates? The compound’s main gates?”

            “I don’t know.” She frowned. “Honestly, I didn’t like the sound of it.”

            Yulen glanced over at the shuttered window. Getting back on his feet, he paused to see if another wave of dizziness would overtake him. When it didn’t, he strode over and opened it to look outside. “What time is it?” The moon had been swallowed by gray clouds, making it impossible to figure out where it was located.

            “A little after three, I think,” Renken answered.

            “Were the men in full dress uniform?”

            “Yes,” the two chorused.

            “I know what you’re thinking,” Renken added. “You’re thinking those men were coming off duty and went to their room, but you’re wrong. The soldiers’ barracks are over by the stables.”

            Yulen narrowed his eyes. “What about the officers’ quarters?”

            “They stay close by in separate lodges. I’m thinking those rooms down that hall here in the main lodge are for the kitchen help. Or servants.”

            Atty gave him a surprised look. “And you know this because?

            Renken grinned. “Because of a certain red-haired waitress who liked my attention.”

            “What else did you discover?” Yulen inquired. 

            “His men are very tight-lipped about this entire affair. But I did glean one interesting tidbit. LeGreen’s been getting ready for this trip for almost a year.”

            “A year?” Atty gasped.

            “And you were going to tell me this when?” the battle lord softly challenged.

            “The moment you walked outside your bedroom door,” Renken told him, giving Atty another look that Yulen couldn’t decipher.

            Atty ignored the man’s piercing glance. “What does it mean, Yulen? You think LeGreen’s covering up something big, don’t you?”

            “I can’t be sure, but personally I can only believe the long preparation to mean one thing,” he said. “LeGreen’s in on this with Highcliff. It doesn’t take a battle lord more than a week, maybe ten days, to prepare for a cleaning mission, or any sort of travel that would take them away from the compound for several weeks. Not if he’s already done it more than a couple of times. And I know for a fact that LeGreen’s well-seasoned in that aspect. But when you’re planning something as big as a summit…”

            Atty broke in. “Yulen, it took you several months to plan out the conference at Alta Novis, on top of the anniversary party you mixed in with it. But most of that took place after you’d sent out the invitations. Why would they need a year before sending out the invites?”

            “They would if they brought other battle lords in with them,” Renken answered with a dark tone. “They’d need that much time to plan everything exactly the way they wanted, so it would end exactly how they wanted.”

            Yulen rubbed his forehead, hoping it would help him think more clearly. “It would explain why LeGreen kept side-stepping my questions tonight as to who else had been invited. He’s protecting those who are in on this thing, along with him and Highcliff.”

            “What thing?” she insisted. “Are you saying there really isn’t a conference? That they’re using the summit as a ruse to cover something else?”

            “Oh, I think there’s going to be a summit, all right.” He sighed. “But in the event it doesn’t end the way they want it to, they may be prepared to provide an alternate solution.”

            “Why an alternate solution? Why wouldn’t the battle lords want to establish treaties between Mutah and Normals? It’s a win-win for both sides.”

            “Well, apparently some battle lords don’t like rocking tradition,” Yulen admitted. “They don’t want Mutah to have any rights others than what they specifically allow them to have.”

            He saw Atty grow pale as an ugly truth reared its head. “You said there could be an alternate solution. What kind of solution?”

            “The only other kind there is,” Renken answered for the battle lord. “If they don’t get their way, they’ll kill for it.”

            Reaching up, Yulen took one of her cold hands in his and gazed into her eyes. “Yes, my love. We’re talking drastic measures. Now, we could all be wrong about all this. We could be missing some vital information that would tell us otherwise. But right now, this is all we have to go on. And as such, we have to act on it and be prepared.”

            “Prepared for what? Spit it out, Yulen.”

            “I’m talking about genocide, Atty. The nearly complete eradication of an entire species.”

            “But battle lords have been trying to do that for centuries,” she argued. “I don’t see how this would be any different.”

            Yulen nodded. “You’re right. They have, and with some success. But somehow, I think LeGreen and Highcliff are using this summit as a ways to a means. By gathering us all together, it eliminates the need for them to go out hunting for Mutah.”

            “So you think there will be more Mutah there? Other compound representatives?”

            “Yes.”

            “D’Jacques.” Renken drew their attention. “Let’s assume that’s what’s planned. But we know the Mutah won’t be there in total. Even if Highcliff and LeGreen do manage to have the ones in attendance killed, there are still more compounds out there.”

            “Which they will eventually discover. Didn’t you see LeGreen’s face when Twoson told him he was from a Mutah compound?” Yulen slowly shook his head. “If events don’t turn out as they plan, LeGreen and Highcliff’s men could take the Mutah there as prisoners and torture them until they reveal the location of those compounds.”

            He felt Atty shiver, and turned to her. “Cold?”

            “No. Just makes me sick thinking about that possibility.”

            “But you said the
near
eradication,” Renken brought up. “Why not all of them?”

            “Because we’re still good for something,” Atty bitterly answered back. “They’ll keep some of us to do their most degrading and menial jobs. And because we make good whores. Or don’t you remember?”

            Renken apologized. “All right. So what’s our next plan of action? How do we counter, check, and mate their opposition?”

            “I don’t know,” the battle lord admitted. “Until I know more, I’m at a loss. Do you have a suggestion?”

            “Not at the moment, no.”

            “Then we keep our eyes and ears open even further. We must remain on high alert.” He patted Atty’s hand. “Let’s hope and pray we find a way to stop those men before all hell breaks loose.”

            She smiled and kissed his hand in answer. And for the first time since they’d left Alta Novis, Yulen was glad he hadn’t forced her to remain behind due to her pregnancy as he’d originally planned to do.

Chapter Twenty-One

Questions

            “Must she ride along with us while we discuss business?”

            He didn’t know how he did it, but Yulen managed to give the battle lord a look that didn’t border on total disgust. “Any business I deal with, she’s also a part of. We rule Alta Novis jointly. She stays.”

            He saw LeGreen’s eyes dart over to where Atty rode behind. “Very well. We have three days before we reach Rocky Gorge. Before we get there, I dare you to convince me I should sign a treaty with abominations.”

           
A definite dissenter,
Yulen acknowledged to himself. Given the fact that this would mean shaking up eons of tradition, he understood why LeGreen would be reluctant.
Welcome to my world, Don. Trust me, it’s not that bad. In fact, there’s a whole lot more good to it than you could ever believe.

            He glanced upward. The day was sunny and cloudless, giving out a little heat. It was enough to keep them from shivering in their coats. Yulen checked behind him where Mastin and Paxton were flanking Atty. Renken was a little further back, acting as a secondary backup. It was a solid tactical maneuver in case someone tried to pull something from the rear. Sniffing, he cleared his throat.

            “What could I possibly say to change your mind when there’s never been a reason for you to reconsider any other time?” His voice was worse, almost to the point where he could lose it if he didn’t watch himself. It made him wonder if LeGreen was deliberately trying to make it to where he’d be unable to talk at the summit.

           
Listen to yourself, D’Jacques. How much more paranoid could you get?
Maybe the man was honestly wanting to hear from him. Maybe he sincerely wanted a different future. Then again, maybe all of this was a ruse for something Yulen had yet to discover. So far, Atty hadn’t sensed anything threatening, but that didn’t mean there wouldn’t be down the road.

           
LeGreen grinned without humor. “I’ve heard a lot about you over the past couple of years. About things you’ve done. Things you’ve said. I dismissed most of it as hearsay, mind you, until I could get it straight from the horse’s mouth. So tell me, D’Jacques. Do you really believe Mutah are superior to us?”

            “In some ways, yes. Are all of them? It depends. I haven’t met every Mutah.”