The Chaos Crystal

Books by Jennifer Fallon

Demon Child Trilogy

Medalon
(1)

Treason Keep
(2)

Harshini
(3)

Second Sons Trilogy

The Lion of Senet
(1)

Eye of the Labyrinth
(2)

Lord of the Shadows
(3)

The Hythrun Chronicles

Wolfblade
(1)

Warrior
(2)

Warlord
(3)

The Tide Lords

The Immortal Prince
(1)

The Gods of Amyrantha
(2)

The Palace of Impossible Dreams
(3)

The Chaos Crystal
(4)

PROLOGUE
 

Seven years ago
...

The thick stone walls of Lebec Prison seeped misery as a rule, which made this day quite unusual. For the first time in months, Bary Morel had hope. He hurried after the guard escorting him to the Warden's office, filled with an emotion he thought he'd never feel again. Despite everything that had befallen him since they'd raided his house a few months ago and found him treating a runaway feline in his basement, finally, out of nowhere, there was a glimmer of hope.

The Duke of Lebec had come to visit him.

Morel had no idea why such an important man would take the time to visit a convicted felon. Admittedly, he'd once enjoyed a tenuous connection with the ducal family. He'd visited the palace a number of times when the current duke was a boy if the old duke's regular physician was out of the city. But he hadn't seen Stellan Desean for a number of years. Not since he'd been called to treat a young man at the palace — a friend of the new duke's who'd almost died from food poisoning — a few years back.

Bary couldn't think of any reason why Stellan Desean would visit him now. Only that he had — and it must mean good news. Dukes didn't bother delivering bad news personally; they left that sort of thing to their underlings.

Maybe Arkady had managed to gain an audience with him. She promised she'd try on her last visit,

despite his attempts to discourage her from doing anything so brazen. In reality, Arkady had nothing else left she
could
do. They were out of money. They couldn't even afford the most basic representation to lodge an appeal through legal channels. And even if they could, there would be no chance of overturning the conviction — not with the calibre of witness the court had been able to bring against him.

Bary stopped for a moment, gripping the wall as his lungs spasmed painfully. The guard heard him coughing and stopped, turning to look at him.

'You all right?'

'I'll be fine
...
just give me a minute to catch
...
my breath, would you?'

The man waited until Bary had recovered sufficiently to continue. When the doctor pushed off the wall, he resumed his walk toward the Warden's office, albeit at a less enthusiastic pace.

The Warden wasn't in his office when they arrived. He had already vacated it for the duke. Stellan Desean was standing by the window, staring out into the rain that trickled down the glass and pattered softly against the stonework. He was wearing a fur-trimmed cloak against the cold. He turned as Bary entered, indicating with a wave of his hand that the guard should wait outside.

'Dr Morel.'

'Your grace.'

Stellan smiled. 'Please, take a seat. You look like you could use it.'

Bary did as the duke suggested, gratefully taking the chair opposite the desk. He coughed again into his bloodstained kerchief and then focused his attention on his visitor, who frowned at the sound of his rattling chest.

'I see your daughter was not exaggerating the seriousness of your condition,' Stellan remarked, studying him closely.

'She was able to gain an audience with you then?' Bary said. 'I'm assuming that's why you're here?'

Stellan nodded and took a seat in the Warden's big worn leather chair. 'To call it an audience would be a kindness. If you must know, she pushed her way past all the people I have in place to prevent precisely that eventuality, burst in on me in high dudgeon and began berating me soundly for allowing you to spend a single minute longer than you had to, here in prison, all for the crime of being nothing more than a great humanitarian.'

Bary wished Stellan's neutral tone gave away some sort of hint about what he was feeling. Arkady's interference might have doomed him, rather than helped him.

'I'm sorry, your grace. She wouldn't have intended to offend you
...'

Stellan was smiling. He held up his hand to stop Bary's apology. 'It's all right, Dr Morel. I was happy to hear her petition on your behalf. Once I realised who she was, of course. I didn't recognise your daughter at first. She's grown into a stunning young woman. You must be very proud of her.'

Bary nodded, his eyes misting at the thought of what she'd done to protect him. Bursting in on the Duke of Lebec and demanding his release was the least of it. 'She is a very good daughter,' he agreed, wiping his eyes. 'You have no idea.'

'She demanded I pardon you.'

Bary smiled wanly. 'She's optimistic, too.'

'And very eloquent. She tells me she's studying to be a historian.'

Bary nodded. 'She wanted to be a physician but they wouldn't consider her application at the university because she's female.'

'I'm sure the powers that be have a good reason for their stance.'

Not one that will ever convince Arkady they're
nothing more than misogynist fools.
He shrugged, not

sure what his daughter's academic aspirations had to do with anything. 'Well, unless you know the reason and can defend it soundly, your grace, I suggest you don't bring up the subject with my daughter.'

Stellan smiled even wider. 'Yes, I learned that the hard way.'

'It was kind of you to spare the time to hear her out, your grace. And to take the time to visit me.'

Stellan's smile faded. 'I have to admit, Dr Morel, I'm not here just to pass the time of day, or look up an old family servant, if your infrequent trips to the palace even qualify you as that.'

Bary's heart skipped a beat. That didn't sound very encouraging.
Tides, what did she say to the man?
'Then why have you come here, your grace?'

'Because I believe we can do each other a favour, Dr Morel,' the duke announced. 'We both have something the other wants.'

Bary couldn't help but smile at that remark. 'Well, you certainly have it in your power to grant
me
what I want, your grace,' he said. 'But I cannot, for the life of me, imagine what I can offer you.'

'I could give you a pardon,' Stellan agreed, leaning back in the Warden's chair. 'But not without causing considerable comment. You were caught red-handed, my friend, helping an escaped slave evade capture. Even worse, the main witness who testified against you is a very prominent member of Lebec university's faculty. I can't just dismiss Fillion Rybank's testimony out of hand because I happen to like you more than him.'

At the mention of Rybank's name, Bary could feel his ire rising. What that man had done to his daughter was beyond unconscionable and it made him sick just thinking about it. Arkady didn't know her father knew about what went on, of course. As far as she was concerned, he was still ignorant of the whole affair. It was with bitter irony that he recalled worrying about her a few years ago, when he came to the realisation

that his daughter probably wasn't as innocent as he would have liked. He'd thought she was sleeping with the Hawkes boy at the time. He was a decent enough lad, it turned out, for all that he was a bit of a rabble- rouser. They'd been inseparable, after all, for most of her formative years.

Bary wished now that his daughter
had
been sleeping with young Hawkes. That, at least, he could have dealt with like any father. But the truth — the bitter knowledge that his daughter had given herself to a man like Fillion Rybank for years to buy his silence, believing she was saving her father from being arrested — was almost more than he could bear to think about.

Arkady worried about him now because she thought he was sick with consumption. She had no idea that his physical illness was nothing compared to how nauseous with guilt her sacrifice had made him.

'That man is the criminal,' Bary said, clenching his fists. 'He blackmailed an innocent child for sexual favours and yet he walks free, while I am in prison for the crime of helping a wounded Crash.'

'Your wounded Crasii was an escaped slave, doctor,' Stellan reminded him. 'And while I'd love to do something about Fillion Rybank for what he did, neither you — and certainly not your daughter — is willing to testify in an open court to what he did. That does rather tie my hands in the matter, don't you think?'

'Then you've come here today for what reason? To tell me you're sorry you can't help?'

Stellan shook his head. 'On the contrary. I can help you. A great deal. I'm prepared to give you a pardon. You could be out of here by the end of next week.'

'But there is a condition,' Bary said warily, not fool enough to think there were no strings attached to such a generous offer.

'Just a small one,' Stellan said. 'I want to marry your daughter.'

Bary stared at the duke. 'You
what?'

'I need a wife, doctor. More to the point, I need a wife who'll not
...
make certain demands on me — demands I'm not in a position to fulfil. Arkady fits the bill perfectly. She is astute, intelligent, articulate, glorious to look at, and has a very good reason to broker a deal with me that suits us both. So everybody will be happy. You'll get your freedom, I'll get my heir — and, incidentally, get the king off my back about me getting married, which is an added bonus.'

Bary looked at him, dumbfounded. For a moment, the offer made no sense.

'Why?' This was a wealthy, handsome duke, who was third in line for the throne. What possible reason could he have for turning down every eligible highborn woman in Glaeba, to take the penniless daughter of a convicted felon as his wife? 'You can't possibly be in love with my daughter.'

'No, of course not,' the duke said. 'Nor is she in love with me. But she has agreed to this.'

Tides, what is that girl thinking?

And then it came to him. His late-night visit to the palace several years ago, to attend a young man suffering the effects of eating a meal of bad oysters. He'd not thought much about it at the time, but his patient hadn't just been visiting the Lebec Palace. He'd been in the duke's bed.

'You need more than a wife, I think, your grace. You need an alibi.'

Stellan didn't answer immediately, but when he did, he didn't try to deny the accusation. 'She will have wealth. Position in society. Tides, I'll even endow the university so they have to keep her on there, if I must. I will make no demands of her other than she is discreet and conducts herself in a manner befitting a duchess. And I give you my word I will never force myself on her the way Rybank did. I will see to it your daughter never wants for anything, doctor, ever again.'

'Except a chance to be happy, perhaps?' 'What do you mean by that?'

'My daughter is in love with another man, your grace. You can't tell me she's doing this willingly.'

Stellan shook his head. 'She tells me her young man has left Lebec to take up a position in Herino with the King's Spymaster, as his apprentice. Declan Hawkes has apparently chosen a career with Daly Bridgeman over your daughter. Hardly the actions of a lovesick young man wishing to take a wife. Anyway, Arkady assures me he is merely a good friend and not a consideration.'

You foolish girl. You can't throw away your
happiness for me. Not again.

Bary shook his head. 'I'm sorry, your grace. I know you mean well, but I can't allow this.'