Prince of the Blood (50 page)

At the far end of the hall, Miya moved to a large closed door and said, “Your brother is in there.”

Borric gave her a shove. “Open it and go through first.”

The woman put her hand on the latch and moved it, pushing open the door. She entered and moved the door open wider for Borric. He followed, ahead of Ghuda and Suli.

She led them through a short reception room to another door, where the opening procedure was repeated, but this time, once Suli passed through, she slammed the door behind him, and yelled, “It’s Borric of Krondor! Kill him!”

Armed men in the trueblood guard uniform sat around the room and at Miya’s words they were on their feet, weapons slipping from scabbards.

The servant announced Lord Nirome and Erland bid him enter. The stout noble hurried in and bowed before the Prince. “Highness, Lady Miya said you had something you urgently wished to discuss with me.” Then Nirome noticed James and Gamina, who were sitting opposite Erland, just out of sight of Nirome when he entered. “My lord, my lady. I didn’t see you at first. My apologies.”

He’s anxious to speak to you alone
, Gamina sent to Erland.
In fact, he’s very upset we are here
.

“Have you any word regarding Baron Locklear?”

Nirome shrugged. “Had we, you would have been advised at once. I must make you understand that most of us who sit in council with Her Majesty are not so personally outraged. We lost a cousin at most, while She Who Is Kesh lost a daughter. While mother and daughter were often at odds over court matters and the politics of the nation, nevertheless the feelings they felt were very strong. And as you have no doubt repeated to yourself a hundred times over, there is no logic in any of this.”

“That’s what I was hoping you’d say,” said Erland.

“I am a pragmatic man, Highness. My role throughout my time in the Gallery of Lords and Masters has often been that of a conciliator, for as you have no doubt seen, we have many diverse people in our Empire. Kesh is a pluralistic nation, with a very different history than your own Kingdom. You were a common people in ancient days, despite language differences. You have only two major subject people within your borders, those of Yabon and our former countrymen in your own Crydee, while Kesh is a nation of a thousand languages and customs.”

He’s stalling for time
, James sent via Gamina.

Why?

Gamina answered,
He wants to speak with you alone … no, he wants to get you alone … his mind is racing … he’s not focusing the way you do when you speak to me … he’s thinking about …
Suddenly Gamina’s face went white and a second later James almost leaped to his feet, his sword in hand. The stout noble sensed something from Erland’s expression or from the sound of James’s standing, but he turned quickly, his staff of office brought before him in a protective gesture.

“What is this?” said Erland.

Gamina said, “Borric is alive. He’s somewhere here in
the city. Nirome wants to take you somewhere in the palace where friends of his can kill you.”

Erland couldn’t take it all in for a moment. “What?”

Nirome’s face went ashen. “What … is the lady saying?”

James said, “My wife has certain talents, my lord. And among those is sensing falsehood. Now, what part have you been playing in the murder done this night?”

Nirome edged toward the door and James moved to cut him off. Erland had his sword out and said, “Where is my brother?”

Nirome sought an exit, and when none was available to him, seemed to visibly wilt. “Mercy, my lord Prince, mercy. I will confess, but you must promise to intercede with the Empress. I did only a minor bit, to further the ambitions of Awari. He’s in league with others, General Beruck and Lord Ravi, who he’s promised concessions; they will use the Inner Legion and the Brotherhood of the Horse to check the Imperial Guards and the Order of Charioteers. They threatened to kill me and many others if I didn’t help; I was only trying to prevent the needless spilling of Keshian blood. It has gone so far beyond my worst fears … I will do whatever I can to make amends, but the culprit is Awari. It was he who plotted his sister’s death and is planning on killing you and marrying Sharana.”

“His own niece?” said Erland.

James waved his sword a bit. “It’s been done before in the earlier dynasties of the Empire. If a succession was seen as weak, claimants married a cousin or even a sister or brother to bolster the claim on the throne. And with so many related to the Empress, a great many truebloods are cousins.”

Nirome said, “Just so. But if we are to save your friend, we must hurry. He’s imprisoned in a lower level of the palace and injured.”

James glanced at Gamina and she said,
I can’t tell
.

What?
asked Erland.

He’s very clever and his mind is very agile. He may not know I can read his surface thoughts, but he suspects some magic is at play and keeps his mind repeating what he has told us. There are hints of other images and some feelings … he’s lying about the scope of his role, but I can’t tell how much. You must be wary of him
.

Erland said, “Now, what about Borric being alive?”

Nirome said, “It’s thought to be true. A slave escaped within days after being brought to Durbin by desert raiders. It is thought he killed the wife of the Governor of Durbin to mask his escape. He matches the description of your brother.”

He’s … hiding more. But that’s more or less true
.

Erland said, “We have to find someone whom we can trust.”

A servant arrived at the doorway and Erland’s attention was drawn away for a moment. Nirome struck out with his staff of office, and far more quickly than his weight promised, he dodged James’s blow. Shouting “Get the guards!” to the girl, Nirome swung widely with his staff.

The girl hesitated only an instant, then ran screaming for the guards through the doorway. James grabbed at Nirome’s arm and got struck with the staff on the shoulder. Erland jumped forward and grabbed the staff, forcing the heavy courtier back. As the Prince brought his sword up to menace the court officer, soldiers of the Inner Legion, led by a Captain of the Household Guard, entered the room.

Instantly swords and spears were leveled at James and Erland and the Guard Captain, in the white kilt of a trueblood, cried, “Surrender your weapons or die!”

Erland thought about resistance for only an instant, then gave his sword to a guard. “I need send word to the Empress at once. There’s been a vile betrayal.”

Guards took James and Erland by the arms and the Captain said, “Shall we kill them?”

Nirome said, “Not just yet. Take them to the empty wing and for the sake of our lives don’t let anyone see you doing it! I have to find Miya and Toren Sie and we’ll join you.”

Suddenly Erland realized that this stout man of obsequious manner had stationed men loyal to Prince Awari around this wing of the palace—which was how he was able to murder the Princess Sojiana and cast the blame on Locklear.

“You killed Sojiana,” Erland said. “And Locklear.”

Nirome’s manner changed and he became, instead of the fawning sycophant, a grim-faced man of determination and purpose. Picking up a walnut from the table, he crushed it with his bare hand before Erland’s face. “You silly boy. You’ve blundered into matters so far beyond your understanding.…” He studied the Prince. “Had your brother the grace to die in Krondor, and your father to send threatening notes to the Empress, none of this would have been necessary. If you cooperate and don’t cause a fuss, I’ll happily send you back to your father in one still-living piece. I have no wish to deal with an angry Kingdom, and once the Empress accedes to our plan, we have no further need for you.”

To the guard captain he said, “Take them now, and watch the witch woman. She’s from Stardock and has some sort of power to know what you’re thinking if you’re not careful.” He glanced at her and said, “We may have to keep her. That would prove a useful talent. But if any of them causes you any difficulty, kill them.”

The soldiers obeyed without hesitation and in a moment were taking the three from the apartment, making sure there was no chance of escape.

The armed men hesitated a moment, startled by Miya’s unexpected alarm. Borric took no time to think; he reacted. He threw his dirk at the first man to rise, taking him in the chest. Another went down from a vaulting lunge that cleared five feet, and three men withdrew in haste as they brought up their own weapons.

A coughing scream ended by a sickening crack told Borric without looking that Ghuda had silenced the woman who had lured them here with a quickly crushed neck. Then the mercenary said, “Make room, Madman.”

Borric knew Ghuda was unlimbering his bastardsword and needed more room for it than the rapier or shortsword that Suli carried. Borric was concerned for the boy, but could not spare any attention for him. There were three angry guardsmen trying to kill him at the moment.

Borric parried a thrust from one man with his dirk, and took another in the throat with his rapier, ducking under a thrust by the third. A solid crash behind and a scream cut off suddenly and Borric knew that Ghuda had taken out another man. Four quickly down and still no attempt to organize. Borric pressed his attack. He slashed wickedly at a man’s head, taking off an ear. The man fell, crying in pain and unable to defend himself, and Borric killed him with his dirk while slashing at the remaining man.

Borric heard the solid noise of steel cleaving meat and bone and judged Ghuda had killed or disabled the fifth. The Prince parried a blow toward his own head by the last man he faced and ran him through.

Borric turned quickly to discover Ghuda kicking one man in the groin while trying to free his hand-and-a-half sword from the man he had just impaled. Suli was backed into a corner, frantically waving his shortsword, keeping two men at bay. But a third was moving to come at him on his left side, and Borric leaped atop a table, sprang, and
came down in time to kill the man from behind. He then struck out and wounded one of the two remaining men attacking Suli. But as that man went down, the other thrust with his long sword and the boy screamed.

Borric hacked with the edge of his blade, cutting at least three inches into the neck of the man who had wounded Suli. The man made a pitiful noise, much like a mouse’s squeak, and collapsed to the floor. Then it was quiet.

Borric pulled off one dead man who lay atop Suli and knelt beside the boy, who was covered in blood and vainly attempting to hold together a gaping wound in his stomach. Borric had seen such wounds in the field before and knew Suli’s life would be over in minutes.

Feeling a cold certainty unlike anything he had known before, Borric took the boy’s hand. Suli’s breathing came in shallow gulps and his eyes were beginning to glaze over. His face had a waxy cast to it and he tried to speak. Finally he said, “Master?”

Gripping Suli’s hand, Borric said, “Here, Suli.”

“I was your servant?” the boy asked quietly.

Borric gripped Suli’s hand hard and said, “You were a fine servant.”

“Then it will be written in the Book of Life that Suli Abul was the servant of a great man, the servant of a Prince.”

Limp fingers slipped from the Prince’s hand. “Yes, little beggar. You died the servant of a Prince.” Borric had seen death before, but not in one so young. Feelings of impotence at being unable to protect the boy overwhelmed him. For fully a minute he knelt, certain that if he could but think of something, the proper thing to do or say, somehow Suli wouldn’t be dead. He gently squeezed the boy’s fingers, as if to discover a pulse or movement, but all he felt was profound stillness. Then he became angry.

Ghuda’s voice said, “We can’t linger. There are twelve corpses littering the floor. As soon as someone walks in here, there’ll be hell to pay. Let’s go!”

Borric was up and moving. He knew that he had to reach his brother or the Empress within the next few minutes. Hostile forces moved within the palace of Kesh, and no one could be trusted.

They hurried back the way they had come until they reached the hall with the sentries. Borric motioned with his head and walked calmly past one pair into another dark hall. Then, halfway down the length of the dark hallway, he heard muffled voices approaching. As one, Borric and Ghuda ducked into the recesses of a doorway, just as another pair of men hurried past.