Chess Series: Book Two
Buy links are affiliate links if available.
Chapter 1
I wish I could say the morning dawned clear and beautiful. It was cold and cloudy. Dart, Piers, Alecks, Anders, Celeste, and I set out after breakfast, hoping it wouldn’t rain.
Because Roi was on an island, there were two ways to get to the mainland — the lone bridge, or via ship. There was only one place where a bridge could be built to connect the city to the mainland, and was unfortunately on the other side of the city from where we wanted to go. But a ship with the horses would be more trouble than it was probably worth, so we opted to cross the bridge and go around.
The weather improved a bit when we reached the mainland. It was still mostly cloudy, but at least it was warmer. We stopped at an inn for lunch and to give the horses a rest, but then set out again soon after. We spent the day in friendly conversation and a bit of teasing. I got some more history lessons on Jador — royal lineage back several generations and how the former palace was destroyed by fire and cannon bombardment in a foiled revolution over a hundred years before. We also speculated on ways to bring down the rest of the organization we knew was still out there — although the biggest problem was connecting Petidar to everything. And short of getting a confession, none of us had any solid ideas. Once more I disagreed with the assessment Lucian had once given me — that Petidar was good at scheming on paper, but a coward when it came to execution. If there was a way to get to Petidar directly I was sure we’d discover not only a devious mind, but an intricate execution — after all we hadn’t been able to tie him to anything else, even though we were positive he was at the top of it all.
Finally, by mid afternoon, the sun decided to break through the clouds and grace us with it’s light. We made one turn in the road and the sun was right in my eyes. I squinted, then, feeling silly, I directed my horse closer to Anders, reached over, and snatched his hat off his head. It was too big and I had to tip it back so it didn’t fall over my eyes. Which really didn’t help with the sun, but that didn’t mean I was going to give it back either.
He laughed at me and took it back, settling it on his head and pulling it down to shade his face. I narrowed my eyes at him, then snatched a pistol out of the holster on his saddle and aimed it at him. “Give it back.”
He shook his head, still smiling, and handed the hat back. I nodded and returned the pistol to the saddle, then settled the hat on my head.
Celeste made a gagging noise. “You guys are so cute I’m going to be sick.”
I looked at her and said, “You’re just jealous because your guy doesn’t wear a hat.”
She shrugged. “That’s true.”
We rode for a few more minutes before Dart asked, “Anyone familiar with this area? It’s getting late and we should figure out where we’re going to stop for the night.”
We were in a spot where there was a long stretch of sparsely populated countryside — beautiful, but devoid of lodgings. Piers suggested, “I think the next town should be less than an hour’s ride if we wanted to just push on.”
Anders shook his head. “There’s a bit of woods in the distance. That usually means a river. Which means fish for dinner. Maybe a rabbit if we get lucky.”
Dart looked at me and I shrugged. I said, “Fine with me. It might get chilly overnight, but we can take shifts maintaining the fire and a lookout, I presume.”
Everyone nodded and we headed for the trees. When we arrived, I gratefully got off my horse and stretched out my legs. I said, “I have no idea how to catch fish, let alone gut and cook them. Unless you want dinner burned, I suggest you leave making the fire to me and put someone else in charge of the food.”
Anders chuckled, kissed my forehead, and said, “I’ll work on getting some fish. Dart and Alecks are pretty good at finding rabbit, if it’s to be found. Piers can help you with the fire.”
An hour or so later, we ended up with fish and rabbit, a satisfying meal. We’d found some logs and flattish rocks to sit on during dinner, but, once we’d finished eating, Anders opted to sit on the ground in front of me, between my spread legs, his arms on my knees. Celeste leaned against Dart, his arm around her shoulders.
We’d built the fire higher as it got dark, although once both moons had risen, there was a good amount of moonlight since both were around half full. Piers and Alecks were talking quietly on the other side of the fire, although they were too far away for me to tell what they were talking about. A couple of times Piers looked over at me and gave me a slight smile, which made me think that he was keeping his conversation with Alecks quiet so as not to disturb Anders and me. Or Celeste and Dart who were a few feet away from us talking as well.
Anders leaned his head back so he could look up at me. “Remember how you said if your life was a game of chess that you’d want to ride off the board with one of the knights?” I nodded. Of course I remembered that conversation — it had led to me calling him sir knight for one thing. He continued, “You got to ride off the board with your knight after all.”
I smiled, and leaned down to kiss him upside down. “Yes I did.” I paused and he lifted his head again. I leaned down to say by his ear, “Intellectually, I know they’re not doing so, but given the whole purpose for this trip, I can’t help but feel that the others are thinking about it when they look at us.”
He turned, so that he didn’t have to tilt his head back to meet my eyes. He whispered, “The ‘where I’ll have lots of sex with Anders’ part?”
“Exactly.”
He smiled gently, “They’re not. But you know what? So what if they are? Just smile and they’ll know I did a good job.”
I snorted. “Okay, I see your point. Although it would still be better than my wedding night. When Alecks had the task of escorting me across the palace.” I shuddered.
“Don’t worry. I’ve got my dagger handy.”
I smacked his arm without thinking and ended up smacking against the hard leather pauldron. I shook my hand. “Ow.”
He laughed, “It’s not like I haven’t been wearing it for hours, Your Majesty.”
“I think I hate you, Lieutenant. As for your dagger — keep that thing away from me.”
I hadn’t realized I’d stopped speaking as quietly when Celeste said, “Is that what you’re calling it now? A dagger?” She lifted one eyebrow.
“I meant a literal dagger. As in the slicing implement that cut a certain dress I wore.”
Her face fell and she looked like she wanted to snatch the words back out of the air. “Right. Sorry. Forget I said anything.”
Piers frowned and said, “Someone cut your dress with a dagger? Was this an attack you didn’t report?”
Celeste looked even more guilty, but Dart and even Alecks had curious looks on their faces. Anders met my eyes and squeezed my leg. “You don’t have to tell them if you don’t want to.”
I looked at him and said, “I know.” Then, I took a deep breath and spoke to everyone else. “But, yes. Someone decided it would be a good idea to make a dress with twenty-four tiny buttons up the spine. And AKJ decided to bypass the buttons with a dagger.”
Dart asked, “Asshole King of Jador?”
I nodded. “And the laces on the corset too.…On our wedding night.” For Piers’s benefit I added, “Which meant the dress was unwearable after that.” I bit my lip as the memory came back, along with the feeling of humiliation that went with it.
Piers shook his head and gave me a sympathetic look. “I know we’re supposed to protect the king, but I’m starting to agree that the new title fits.”
Alecks said quietly, “I remember that dress. Quite beautiful, but sleeveless.”
I nodded and said, “Yes, not my finest moment.” My voice caught on the last word.
Anders grabbed my hand. “Hey — you did nothing wrong.”
Alecks, to my complete surprise, stood up from the other side of the fire and came over to kneel on one knee in front of me. “I don’t know what happened after that, but I can guess. And Anders is right. Nothing about that could have been your fault.” He reached for my hand and kissed it.
I felt a tear fall and I said, “Thank you.” He nodded and returned to his side of the fire. I wiped the tear off my cheek and said, “Okay, tales of how the king humiliated Retta are now over. Perhaps we should get some sleep.”
Anders shifted so I could stand up. Dart stood and came over to give me a hug. Even Piers put his arm around my shoulders and said, “I’m sorry.”
As we all settled around the campfire, wrapped in our cloaks and blankets, or Shield Guardsmen if you had them, I looked around the fire. I remembered the conversation I’d had with Anders weeks ago where he’d asked me if I believed in my heart that I wasn’t alone. I wasn’t sure then, but I knew without a doubt now that I was not alone. There were five people around me who cared for me — Retta, not the Queen.
Anders whispered in my ear, “I love you, my queen.”
I turned my head enough to whisper back, “I love you too, sir knight.”
∼∗∼∗∼∗∼
The next morning was chilly and cloudy again. I splashed my face with cold water from the river and shivered. Then, I paused for a moment, closed my eyes, and took a deep breath of the morning air. For a brief pause in time, I was fully present — there in a forest, beside a river, surrounded by friends. I was still a queen, but I let that fade away and was just me.
I was startled from my reverie when Anders slipped his arms around me from behind and pulled me back to his chest. He whispered in my ear, “Have I told you lately how utterly beautiful you are?”
I smiled and turned my head to kiss his cheek. “You’re breathtakingly gorgeous yourself.”
He turned his head enough to give me a lingering kiss. Then, he pulled away and said, “We’re ready to go if you are.”
I nodded and he took his arms from around my waist, but I took his hand and linked our fingers together as we walked back to the horses.
By that evening, we’d reached the mountain pass that led to the temple. We stayed at a large inn that night, close by a major river, within riding distance of the next province. It was also a major stopping point for anyone, including merchants, heading to the temple.
No one recognized me, but there was a bit of buzz over four Shield Guardsmen and two women traveling alone. Not as much as I expected, but given the traffic coming through, maybe it wasn’t as odd as I thought it was. We stayed to ourselves, and kept quiet. I insisted they not treat me as the queen in any way. They agreed readily.
I couldn’t help thinking that the people of Petidar Province were much nicer and easier to get along with than their duke.
Stew was brought to our table, and we all ate. The server, an older woman who may have been the innkeeper’s wife, came over with a round of drinks and she gave me a second look. “Have you been here before?”
I shook my head. “No, ma’am. I haven’t had the pleasure.”
“I swear you look familiar. But, I’m probably thinking of that girl who went to the palace.”
I took a sip of my wine, and gave her puzzled look before asking, “I’m sorry, what girl?”
“Young girl, about your age. Made a big stink when she stayed here, like she was royalty or something.” She waved her hand dismissively. “Heard she was the daughter of a Count or some such. Explained she was going to meet her husband at the palace.”
I set my glass back on the table carefully, keeping my expression neutral. “I don’t suppose she had long blond hair and green eyes? Excellent at sneering?” A perfect description of Beth, I thought.
She nodded, then laughed. “That would be her. You know her then?”
“Unfortunately. I work in the palace sometimes and see her occasionally. Not very nice.” I grimaced slightly and shook my head.
“Did she ever get married? I figured that was just a story she was telling.”
“I haven’t heard that she was engaged, no.” I was starting to put some pieces together.
“Wedding probably fell through when he met her. But, I apologize, I’m talking your ear off and you want to eat.”
“It’s alright. I appreciate the conversation.” The server left and I looked at everyone else at the table, my eyebrows raised. “So, does anyone want to bet that the husband the little twit was going to meet was AKJ?”
Alecks said, “As the daughter of a duke, it’s not a terrible match. A princess is a better one, though.” He smiled.
“Maybe that’s another reason AKJ was so quick to take the deal with Dad. He wanted to avoid marrying her.” I rolled my eyes and took a bite of my stew.
Piers looked puzzled, then said, “But why sleep with her now?”
I shrugged. “Let’s not forget what the A stands for.”
Dart frowned slightly and said, “Piers is right. If she was going to marry AKJ then why is she still there? Why hide who she is? Why take a position as a servant?”
Anders sighed. “Her father. He’s got to have something to do with it.”
I thought for a moment. “Didn’t you say he was related to AKJ?”
Alecks shrugged and said, “Yes, but distant cousin on his mother’s side or something. Barely close enough to even mention.”
“But enough to get him closer to the big chair if his daughter marries,” I said. Everyone nodded and I continued, “Let’s suppose that was George’s plan — get Beth to marry AKJ. Then, maybe AKJ has some kind of accident. The daughter now sits in the big chair. We know she’ll do what her father wants, so he gets named co-chair. Bing, bang, boom. All tied up.”
Piers said, “Except AKJ makes a deal with someone else, and the daughter is left without a husband. So, George does what? Hides who she is by getting her a position as a servant?”
Anders nodded, then added, “Which gets her close enough to plant evidence to bring down the new wife.”
I said, “But she didn’t count on the new wife being such a bitch.” I snorted and smiled. Anders and Dart chuckled, Celeste rolled her eyes, and Piers grinned.
Alecks smiled and shook his head. Then, his expression turned more serious and he said, “I didn’t mention it before, but that was nice work you did at the prison.”
That surprised me and I gave him a small smile. “Thanks.” Then, I sighed. “Clearly, she doesn’t have as stiff a spine as her father.” I finished my stew, and put down my spoon. I asked seriously, “So why all the other stuff? All the other threads you’ve been uncovering?”
Dart answered quietly, “Because when your aim is for the big chair, you’ve got to make sure there’s enough people to back up your claim should anyone protest it should belong to someone else.”
Celeste had been listening, but not contributing. Her brow furrowed and she asked, “But why did the father try to seduce the new wife? Where does that fit in the plan?”
“There’s any number of reasons,” I said with a shrug.
Celeste tilted her head and thought for a moment before she said, “But which one is the real one? That’s the one that probably ties everything else together. Does he want his daughter in the big chair, or would he rather sit next to the new wife?”
Piers added, “And what if the new wife bears her husband children? Where does that leave the father?”
A sick thought occurred to me. “What if George, his plans having fallen through for his daughter, decided he was going to make sure there’s a child?”
Anders looked at me, a frown on his face. “And then AKJ finds out about it and has him executed. Where is he then?”
I shook my head and held up one finger. I said, “Not if he kills AKJ first. Then the wife gets the chair, and he declares himself the child’s father, which he figures the wife can’t deny. The only way to calm down the resulting mayhem is to either kill or exile all three, or just accept his claim and he gets the chair.”
Piers frowned and said, “But, he failed.”
I nodded. “Right, so he tried to bring down the new wife in retaliation. Probably gave his daughter the idea that she could marry AKJ after all, so she goes after AKJ. And, we know she was successful at that.” I rolled my eyes.
Anders gave me a wry smile and said, “She may not have the scheming mind to come up with it on her own, but she’s got her ways of getting what she wants.”
I snorted, then smiled. “Or the man she wants?”
He sighed and rolled his eyes. “Once again, she was a mistake. I thought she was looking for companionship, I was unattached, it seemed like a good idea at the time.”
Celeste asked curiously, “Do you think you were part of some larger plan?” He shrugged.
I shook my head with a smile and said, “More likely she just thought you were hot and wanted to get in your pants.”
The server chose that moment to come back to the table to ask if we wanted refills. She looked at Anders and smiled. I said in a loud whisper, “Not saying she has bad taste, mind you.”
She patted me on the shoulder, as her smile widened. “He’s quite a looker, isn’t he? But it’s clear he’s only got eyes for you. Hold onto him, dear. That’s the kind of love that still burns years later and makes you feel young again.”
She left and there was silence around the table for a moment before Anders frowned and said, “I’m not sure how I’m supposed to feel right now.”
Celeste reached around me and squeezed his shoulder. “A bit like a hunk of meat, but also complimented.” She smiled and shrugged.
I said quietly, “And thank the Goddess she has no idea who I really am.”
And with that, we finished our drinks and decided to retire for the night. We got two rooms — one for Celeste and me and one for the guys. Although they decided to rotate shifts outside our door throughout the night. Probably not necessary, but better not to take a chance.
As we laid down to sleep, Celeste gave me a serious look and asked, “Do you think Beth hooked up with Anders as part of some plot?”
I thought for a moment, then shrugged. “I don’t know if it started out that way, but by the end, she’d fallen for him. It was quite sad, really. She allowed her father to manipulate her into setting up the man she loved. I honestly believe she thought he’d just get locked up for a while and then would be free again. I don’t think she knew the penalty for treason or if she did, she didn’t realize that’s what she was accusing him of.” I closed my eyes briefly as I shook my head.
Celeste was quiet for a moment, her expression thoughtful. “Why do you think she’s really sleeping with AKJ?”
I made a dismissive noise and shrugged again. “Because her father told her to? Because she likes the power trip? I don’t know. I’m pretty sure she’s regretting it now though. He’s a disappointment even if you haven’t been with Anders. And if you have? AKJ isn’t a better deal by any stretch of the imagination. But as long as she doesn’t want to kill me, she’s free to have him.”
She nodded slightly, her expression sympathetic. “I wish there was some way you and Anders could have a happily ever after.”
I sighed, then swallowed as tears pricked my eyes. I answered quietly, “Me too.”
"Queen Excerpt," Copyright © September 7, 2022 by Cathy Draig.