Chapter 4
Josette had forgotten what it was like to work with another person so near to her. She forgot that the division of labor made it easier to get tasks accomplished and how, during the winter months, the extra warmth was welcome.
What she did not predict was the fierce protectiveness she felt when someone came too close to Paige or when a man's eyes lingered too long on her.
Or when a wolf the size of a small pony watched over her as she slept and did not seem the least bit threatened by Josette's sword, point right at its face.
Paige slept on, near to the fire, and the wolf sat, glanced between the girl and Josette, and yawned.
Josette didn't know if that was because it was tired or if it was saying, My teeth are far more terrifying than your tiny sword, human.
It pawed at its neck and looked at Josette.
In all of her time and training at Nightfell, she had never been taught what to do with a wolf that seemed more human in its mannerisms than even she did. If it attacked, Josette wasn't sure she could kill it, even with Eros's help.
Which was odd. Eros should have woken her up when the wolf came too close, but instead, the war horse only watched on between the two of them before turning her back on them and disappearing to wherever she went to during the night. Josette wasn't worried. She would return.
Hopefully not to two dead bodies, a voice whispered in her head.
The wolf was as black as Eros and the only thing that gave relief was one giant paw that was white and bright blue eyes that followed Josette curiously.
Josette hoped that the rumors she heard of men turning into wolves in these woods was just that; a rumor.
But the way this wolf stared at her frightened her. Like it understood not to come too close.
It pawed at its neck again.
It stared at her.
She stared back.
"Kane," Paige whispered, awake and sitting up by the fire.
"Stay back. It's been stalking us all night," Josette said.
Paige stared at Josette curiously and stood up. She approached the giant wolf like she would Knight, the tiny puppy that belonged to Alyx, and held her hand out.
The wolf clamped its huge jaw around her forearm.
Josette reacted without a single thought. She leaped forward and landed a punch to the wolf's shoulder but it felt like she punched a wall. She reached for her dagger but then she realized-
Paige wasn't screaming.
She wasn't struggling or even bleeding. She simply stood there and watched Josette.
"You... haven't met Kane, have you?" She asked.
The wolf still had its jaws wrapped around Paige's forearm but it was only holding her still, not hurting her at all.
"What-?" Josette gasped.
"Kane. He belongs to Eamon. He has been shadowing Nicolas and I for days now. He likes to watch us and sometimes sit with us while we eat. I think that's only because we feed him though. I have wondered if Eamon put him on duty to watch us," Paige said and pulled her arm from Kane's mouth and made a face at the drool there.
Kane pawed at his neck again.
"Did you know he was here?" Josette gasped and stepped away from the wolf.
"No. I hadn't seen him but he is rather sneaky when he wants to be. He is also gentle as a lamb," Paige said and reached forward and scratched Kane on his shoulder. He pawed her hand away and scratched at his neck.
"And covered in fleas it seems," Josette said.
"No, Eamon would never-" Paige said and scratched at Kane's neck. "What is this?" She said.
She dug her hands deeper into Kane's fur and was so close to him that Josette feared she would die from a heart attack.
Paige pulled a long, dark rope from around the wolf's neck and freed something else from it.
Grateful, Kane began to vigorously scratch his neck.
Paige unfurled a note from the rope and handed it over to Josette. Paige wasn't entirely confident with her reading abilities yet.
Josette took the note and read it by firelight.
While you said you didn't want to take any men with you, you said nothing of wolves.
I wish you well.
Eamon
Josette decided then and there that she would kill the Crown Prince of Ataton, just for the fear he caused her.
"How well trained is he?" Josette asked and tossed the note into the fire.
"He is very well trained, both as a guardian and as a means of protection," Paige said and buried her face in the thick fur at his neck.
Kane's tongue lolled out as he stared at Josette and she didn't perceive him as the most intelligent creature on the planet.
But in a pinch, his thick fur would help to keep them warm, especially as the snow began to sift down to the ground.
"Can I send him back to Eamon?" Josette asked.
Paige frowned at Josette and Josette stared back, a flat look on her face.
"Kane, go home," Paige said quietly.
Kane sat, silent and still, and stared at Josette. He seemed to understand who gave the orders around here.
"Kane, go to Eamon," Paige said, this time more sharply.
Kane took Paige's thin arm in his mouth once more but did not otherwise move.
"I think that's a no," Paige said and stared at the drool that was gathering on her arm and dripping to the ground.
"If we return home without Eamon's pet, he has no one to blame but himself," Josette said out loud.
"I don't think that is possible. I think Kane will be the one returning us home," Paige said.
∞∞∞
Alyx struggled still with the urge to lash out at people. He tried calming breaths and he tried stepping out of the room; but he was King and there were always people that needed him.
"Is there a polite way to tell the Duchess of Lancaster that if she tries to sic her daughter on me once more, they will both end up as toys for Valentine's amusement?" Alyx asked Gael one day. He was pinching the bridge of his nose and trying to focus on the task at hand.
With everyday that passed by, more and more people were attempting to win Alyx over, and he grew tired of it. One day, someone would try to win him over and would end up with one of his blades buried in them.
Valentine sat in the corner and when he heard his name, he looked up and gave them a ghastly smile.
"I'll ask Auelina how to phrase that," Gael muttered and looked over to Ely. Ely nodded and left the room at once.
"How is Auelina? Does she have everything? Does she need anything?" Alyx asked. Focusing on Auelina and her upcoming child gave them all something pleasant to look forward to when they did not receive word on Evander or their enemies pushed too close.
"She fares well. I did want to ask you-" Gael began but they both turned when the doors in the council room opened and Eamon stepped in with a bloody and dirty Cade on his heels.
Gael and Alyx stood immediately.
"He is fine," Eamon said and held his hands out to stop Alyx and Gael from jumping down Cade's throat. "I made him go to the healer before we came here."
Cade nodded and bowed clumsily. "Tired, is all."
"Tell us," Alyx said and gestured to the table. He looked over at Lord Ethan but he was already whispering to a servant who was nodding. She left the room with three others in her wake.
Cade left them two weeks prior and in that time, they only received the occasional letter or update from a scout. Neither Gael or Alyx admitted it, but they lost nights of sleep, thinking of Cade out there, without one of his brothers to guard him.
"It wasn't just a single nation, brothers," Cade said and glanced between Alyx and Gael.
Brothers.
It still warmed Alyx to hear that word used with him so casually.
"It was four. Scouts from the Vresal nation, a man sent by Thomas himself, and two other nations whose names escape me," Cade said and took a drink from Alyx's goblet. He winced when he realized what he had done but Alyx waved it off.
"Do we have the names?" Alyx asked and looked to Eamon.
"We do. And the heads of their men are on their way back to their nations," Eamon said proudly.
Gael went a little pale.
"Good. And you, brother? How are you? I know you are not injured, but how are you?" Alyx asked and kept Cade under his gaze.
Cade nodded and his gaze was distant. "The Ataton men- they-" He nodded and took a drink from Alyx's refilled goblet and nodded again. And took another drink. "They fight, Alyx."
Alyx wasn't entirely sure what he meant by that but when he looked back over his shoulder at Eamon, there was that same proud gaze on the Crown Prince's face.
"No word of Evander?" Alyx asked softly.
Cade's eyes refocused on Alyx and he reached out and took Alyx's hand. "If I had any word on Evander, the gods above and below could not stop me from returning to you and letting you know. Eros herself would not be fast enough. But no. I have not heard anything."
"The man that Thomas sent?" Gael asked.
"Is waiting for Valentine in his quarters," Cade nodded.
"Excellent. Duty calls. Your Majesty?" Valentine asked.
"Please," Alyx said and dismissed him.
Valentine all but ran for the door, his black robes a silent shadow behind him. He was kept busy these days and seemed delighted for it.
"What next?" Alyx asked and looked at everyone around them.
"That would be your decision," Eamon said.
Although they had some differences in customs, Eamon had proven himself an invaluable resource when it came to what Alyx did and did not do. He was Crown Prince of his own nation and much like Evander, ran the Ataton kingdom even though both his parents were still alive and well. The people gave their respect to Eamon and not to his father because King Therris did not try and hide his cowardly ways. It seemed like the people of Eamon's kingdom respected a show of force more than a king who did not want to pick up a sword.
Alyx frowned and tapped his fingers against the scarred table.
"I do not know," he finally admitted and felt the flush of shame bloom on his cheeks. He hated that he was not trained in all the ways that he could be helpful, that he did not always know what move to make next. The flood of information was almost always too much and to direct his own men and sometimes even Eamon's proved to be overwhelming at times.
"That's why they make councils," Gael said and stood. The servants came in and Cade stood as well. Servants began to unstrap his armor from him right there and another set of servants came in and began to lay out a feast on the table.
Gael laid out a map on the table. "Show us where the borders are the weakest."
Eamon looked over at Nicolin who stepped forward. Unlike most of his brethren, his hair was blonde, almost white.
Nicolin stepped forward and with small figures, he laid out where the borders were being pummeled the hardest.
"Should I lead men-" Alyx began, the feeling of dread unraveling in his chest.
"No!" Eamon all but shouted and Gael looked like he would be ill at the idea.
Alyx turned to Eamon. "I did not realize that you had such a distrust of my skills."
"It's not that. But-" Eamon looked distressed, like he had spoken out of turn. "Send for Lissandra," he muttered to a servant.
"From- from the Isles, Your Highness?" The servant whispered.
"Yes. Unless she is somewhere else, than send for her from there," Eamon replied, testy.
"Eamon," Alyx said.
He turned to Gael who held his hands up. "You outrank me, Prince Eamon."
"He is your brother."
"He gave you orders. Specifically."
"Gael."
"Will someone tell me what they are not telling me?" Alyx asked, exasperated.
"The King had instructions for this very scenario. He asked that until his welfare is known, that you are to be kept by Gael and Eamon's side, specifically in the castle walls. That if your safety is risked, so goes the country," Cade said casually as he began to pile his plate high.
Alyx's mouth dropped open.
"He still does not think that I can take care of myself. From wherever he is, he insists that there is someone else at at my side that he believes can protect me better than himself. Unbelievable," Alyx snarled.
"It's not a terrible plan. When I saw the Vresal army they threatened things that no sane man would consider," Cade said casually.
"Aimed at royalty, no doubt," Eamon said.
Cade pointed a drumstick at him.
"You are the last surviving King. Wherever you go, so goes the country," Eamon said.
"And you agree with Evander's orders?" Alyx asked.
"I do. I believe that he was wise to have mentioned it in his last directions," Eamon nodded.
"So you would do the same? If you were married to someone who was perfectly capable-" Alyx started.
"It's not about you in the slightest, Your Highness. In fact, it has nothing to do with you at all. It has to do with the safety of the country," Eamon said.
"And there is the rest of the royal family here to take my place," Alyx said. He gestured to the two princes at his table.
Eamon pulled Gael's chair out and sat down next to Alyx. "I'm not sure you truly understand your place, Alyx. In times of turbulence and upheaval, the people of your country look to you for guidance. It is not unlike a scared child looking to their parents for reassurance. And right now, your people look to you for that guidance and reassurance. If you are foolhardy to risk your own health then you are not trustworthy as a leader. You must learn that you have to put your people first. And right now, these people need your reassurance."
Alyx clamped down on his reply that he did not ask for this place or for this amount of responsibility. He had only asked for Evander.
Instead of saying anything of the kind, though, he pursed his lips and nodded. "Fine. I will do as Evander asks. Only until he returns to us and then I plan on showing him who can take care of who."
"I believe he already knows that," Eamon said.