© 2018 by Jill Williamson
Published by Bethany House Publishers
11400 Hampshire Avenue South
Bloomington, Minnesota 55438
www.bethanyhouse.com
Bethany House Publishers is a division of
Baker Publishing Group, Grand Rapids, Michigan
www.bakerpublishinggroup.com
Ebook edition created 2018
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means—for example, electronic, photocopy, recording—without the prior written permission of the publisher. The only exception is brief quotations in printed reviews.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data is on file at the Library of Congress, Washington, DC.
ISBN 978-1-4412-3084-3
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, incidents, and dialogues are products of the author’s imagination and are not to be construed as real. Any resemblance to actual events or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.
Cover design by LOOK Design Studio
Author is represented by MacGregor Literary, Inc.
Contents
Cover
Title Page
Copyright Page
Map of Er’Rets
Key Players
Hinck
Grayson
Trevn
Hinck
Charlon
Gozan
Kalenek
Trevn
Grayson
Qoatch
Inolah
Kalenek
Trevn
Oli
Trevn
Oli
Trevn
Grayson
Hinck
Grayson
Qoatch
Grayson
Inolah
Qoatch
Kalenek
Trevn
Oli
Mielle
Gozan
Hinck
Trevn
Oli
Mielle
Qoatch
Onika
Charlon
Trevn
Oli
Kalenek
Hinck
Trevn
Oli
Inolah
Kalenek
Gozan
Hinck
Mielle
About the Author
THE KINSMAN CHRONICLES
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Key Players
ARMANIA
House Hadar
Trevn-Rosâr Hadar, king of Armania
Hawley, Trevn’s onesent
Ottee, Trevn’s honor man
Sir Cadoc Wyser, Trevn’s High Shield
Rzasa, Trevn’s backman
Nietz, a guard
Bonds, a guard
Jhorn, Master of Requests
Grayson, a spy
Mielle-Rosârah, Trevn’s wife
Tonis, Mielle’s onesent
Pia, Mielle’s High Shield
Bero, a guard
Abree, Mielle’s honor maiden
Onika [ON-ik-ah], the True Prophet, a blind woman
Kempe [KEM-pay], Onika’s personal maid
Rustian, Onika’s dune cat
Zeroah Barta-Hadar, the dowager queen
Doth, Zeroah’s guard
Ephec, Zeroah’s guard
Brelenah-Rosârah, the dowager queen mother
Hrettah-Sârah Hadar, Trevn’s half sister
Rashah-Sârah Hadar, Trevn’s half sister
Enetta, Hrettah and Rashah’s nurse
Inolah-Sârah Orsona-Hadar, Trevn’s half sister, mother of Emperor Ulrik and Prince Ferro
Princess Vallah Orsona, Inolah’s daughter, Emperor Ulrik’s sister
Princess Tinyah Orsona, Inolah’s daughter, Emperor Ulrik’s sister
Sir Doran, Inolah’s High Shield
Kreah, Tinyah’s nursemaid
Other Armanians
Oli Agoros, Duke of Canden
Kipp, Oli’s honor man
Danek Faluk, Duke of Highcliff
Zura, Danek’s wife
Hinckdan Faluk, Earl of Dacre, a spy, a seer
Barek Hadar, Duke of Odarka
Arzah, Barek’s wife
Lady Brisa, daughter of Barek and Arzah
Lady Trista, daughter of Barek and Arzah
Joret Vohan, Earl of Idez
Cabena, Joret’s wife
Sir Ransen, son of Joret and Cabena
Enko, son of Joret and Cabena
Madara, daughter of Joret and Cabena
Rennik, son of Madara and Jarmyn Koll
Tace Edekk, Duke of Raine
Gitla, Tace’s wife
Lady Imara, daughter of Tace and Gitla
Lander Leevy, husband to Lady Imara
Captain Korvoh, captain of Tace’s private army
Natod, Tace’s onesent
Gunrik Koll, Earl of Blackpool
Sabin, Gunrik’s wife
Sir Jarmyn, son of Gunrik and Sabin
Dendrelle, Sir Jarmyn’s wife, Tace and Gitla Edekk’s daughter
Finbar Wallington, Duke of Everton, brother of Mahat, father of Finnel Wallington
Gia, Finbar’s wife
Hirth, son of Finbar and Gia
Allain Ortropp, a nobleman
Rayim Veralla, captain of the King’s Guard
Sir Keshton, Rayim’s son, an officer in the army
Zanre, Rayim’s son, swordplay drillmaster
Father Burl Mathal, medial priest of the Arman church
Admiral Aldair Livina, admiral of the king’s fleet
Norgam Bussie, captain of the Seffynaw
Novan Heln, a guard
Collak Ensley, general of the Armanian army
Rowan Winstone, marshal in the Armanian army
The Omatta Clan
Rand, leader of the Omatta
Meelo, Rand’s son
Zahara, Rand’s daughter
BARTHIA
Barthel Rogedoth (also known as Prince Mergest III), self-titled king
Timmons, Barthel’s onesent
Dendron, a great shadir, bonded to Barthel Rogedoth
Paliki, a slight shadir in Dendron’s swarm
Agmado Harton/Harton Sonber, Barthel’s general, a mantic
Yobatha, a common shadir, bonded to Harton
Captain Orbay, captain of Barthel’s guard
Laviel-Rosârah, former queen of Armania, Barthel’s daughter
Iamos, a common shadir, bonded to Laviel
Sârah Jemesha, Trevn’s aunt, Oli and Eudora’s mother
Zeteo Agoros, Jemesha’s husband, Oli and Eudora’s father, former Armanian general
Sir Briden, captain of Zeteo’s army
Eudora Agoros, daughter to Jemesha and Zeteo, Oli’s sister, Barthel’s wife
Daliza, a slight shadir, bonded to Jemesha
Filkin Yohthehreth, Rôb prophet, a mantic
Mikray, a common shadir, bonded to Filkin
Zithel Lau, Rôb priest, a mantic
Shama, a slight shadir, bonded to Zithel
Zenobia, a mantic
Kabada, a common shadir, bonded to Zenobia
Mattenelle, called Nellie, a mantic
Hwuum, a slight shadir, bonded to Mattenelle
Lilou Caridod, a malleant
Mahat Wallington, a malleant, brother to Finbar Wallington
SARIKAR
House Pitney
Princess Saria Pitney, daughter of the late King Loran
Sir Menel, Saria’s guardsman
Sir Oris, Saria’s guardsman
Princess Nolia, Saria’s aunt, sister to the late King Loran
&nb
sp; Finnel Wallington, Nolia’s husband, son of Finbar and Gia Wallington
Sir Malder, Finnel’s High Shield
General Norcott, general of Sarikar
Wolbair, a prophet of Arman
RUREKAU
House Orsona
Emperor Ulrik Orsona, emperor of Rurekau
Sir Iamot, Ulrik’s High Shield
Taleeb, Ulrik’s onesent
Jazlyn, Ulrik’s wife, empress of Rurekau, former High Queen of Tenma
Qoatch [KO-ach], Jazlyn’s eunuch slav, a seer
Niklee, an acolyte
Prince Jael (Adir), son of Ulrik and Jazlyn
Princess Jahleeah (Noyah), daughter of Ulrik and Jazlyn
Zinetha, nursemaid to Ulrik and Jazlyn’s children
Prince Ferro Orsona, Ulrik’s younger brother
Thallah-Rosârah Orsona, former queen of Armania, Trevn’s mother, Ulrik’s great-aunt
General Balat, head of the Igote guard
Kakeeo, Rurekan sheriff
MAGOSIA
Ruling Clan
Charlon, Magosian Chieftess
Shanek, Charlon’s son
Rurek (Gozan), a great shadir, bonded to Charlon
Masi, a slight of Gozan’s swarm
Sir Kalenek Veroth, protector of Shanek, number One of Charlon’s Five Men
Kateen, First of Charlon’s Five Maidens
Astaa, Second of Charlon’s Five Maidens
Roya, Third of Charlon’s Five Maidens
Rone, number Two of Charlon’s Five Men
Nuel, number Three of Charlon’s Five Men
Vald, number Four of Charlon’s Five Men
Gullik, number Five of Charlon’s Five Men
Amala, Kalenek’s ward, Mielle’s little sister
NATIVE CLANS
Ahj-Yeke Giants
Bolad mi Aru, headman of Ahj-Yeke
Uul-Yeke Giants
Jiir-Yeke Giants
Abaqa mi Niseh, headman of Jiir-Yeke
Duu Ovdog, a kholoi priest
Puru
Muna, a matriarch
Conaw, Muna’s grandson
Hinck
Hinck sat at the desk in his cabin aboard the newly repaired Greenore, carving a new bow and wondering if he could really commit murder.
Truth be told, he’d rather not kill anyone, certainly not a woman, and especially not a woman as vengeful as Rosârah Laviel. If he should fail, the scars on his face would be mere scratches compared to how she would torture him.
Master Nesos had finished the repairs on the ship three days ago. At Rosârah Laviel’s command, they had set sail for Armania the next morning. If Hinck hadn’t lived through it, he would have thought packing up an entire village in one day impossible. His back ached from his short stint at slave labor. Hunching over his carving was no way to loosen stiff muscles either.
His old bow worked fine, but he needed an occupation now that Nellie was gone. In all his hours on the practice range, giving poor instructions to the compelled Puru archers, his own skill had improved a great deal. He could do this. If he could restrain Sârah Jemesha and Eudora so that neither could heal the rosârah.
“May I come in?” a woman asked.
Hinck jumped at the sound of Eudora’s voice. She was standing just inside the doorway; he hadn’t even heard it open. “You already have,” he said.
She closed the door and leaned against it. “I don’t want to marry you.”
Hinck almost laughed. “Then tell Rosârah Laviel you refuse.”
“You know I can’t do that.”
Hinck went back to his bow. “Well then. Thanks for visiting. Come anytime.”
Eudora walked to his side. “We made a good team once.”
Hinck set down the bow and pushed back from the desk. “You used me to get revenge on Sâr Janek. For us to have been a team, you would have had to inform me of your plan in advance. Which you did not.”
She folded her arms. “I didn’t take you for the type to hold a grudge.”
Hinck snatched up his bow and scraped off an uneven patch. “I’m not holding a grudge, but that doesn’t mean I want to marry you.”
“So we are agreed. We both don’t want to marry the other.”
“Apparently not.” He wished she’d say what she had come to say. He had no desire to invade her thoughts and suffer through that self-absorbed mind of hers.
She fingered the curls of shaved wood on the desktop. “I never wanted to rule.”
“You told me this long ago, yet you married Rogedoth, so perhaps you don’t know yourself as well as you think you do.”
“You weren’t there. You didn’t see what he did. How they”—her voice fell to a whisper—“forced me.”
Hinck smoothed out a lump in the wood.
“I wed the Pontiff against my will,” she voiced. “Laviel compelled me to obey him.”
Her sudden switch to mind-speak made Hinck look around for shadir. He saw none.
“I don’t support this enterprise,” she said. “I expect you will deny it, but I don’t believe you support this either. I think you are loyal to House Hadar.”
Was she trying to trap him? “I proved otherwise by drinking the root juice.”
“I know you, Hinckdan. Your heart is pure. Nothing but duty and honor could possibly compel you to join King Barthel in this madness.”
“What do you want?” he asked aloud.
“To show you.”
He lowered the bow to his lap and met her glistening amber eyes. “Show me what?”
She slid her fingers over his cheek and hooked them around the back of his neck. He shrugged his shoulder in an attempt to throw off her touch.
“Please,” she whispered. “Close your eyes and unshield your mind.”
Though he felt ridiculous, her odd behavior had piqued his interest. He lowered his shields and let his eyes fall shut.
Memories flooded his mind. Eudora and her parents entered Seacrest, found Laviel, Rogedoth, and Zithel Lau waiting in the small throne room. Laviel told Eudora she would marry Rogedoth. She and her parents protested. Tried to leave. A struggle ensued. Laviel used magic against them. General Agoros fell to the floor. Sârah Jemesha and Eudora raised their hands in defense, but before their magic could manifest, Laviel captured them in an invisible vise. Zithel Lau performed a wedding ceremony.
Her memories continued to zip through Hinck’s mind. A forced consummation to match the forced ceremony. Attempt after attempt to conceive a child. Eudora continually tried to use her magic to escape, but not only did the compulsion prevent it, her shadir abandoned her to serve Rogedoth’s great, leaving Eudora with no means to defend herself from the trap into which she’d fallen victim.
Eudora removed her hand, and the memories stopped.
Hinck opened his eyes, dumbfounded by the overwhelming compassion she had stirred within him. “How did you do that?” he managed to ask.
“It’s part of my new magic. I learned it by accident.”
Hinck hadn’t heard of anyone else doing such a thing. “Why show me?”
“So you would believe me when I say I’m not one of Rogedoth’s minions. Nor is my mother or father. We are his prisoners.”
So it seemed from what she had shown Hinck. “I’m sorry, lady,” he said, and found that the words were true. “What you have suffered is reprehensible.”
Tears welled in her eyes. “Thank you for saying that. You are right that I took advantage of you once, Lord Dacre. I know now that such a thing is abominable, so I apologize and beg your forgiveness.”
Hinck had never seen Lady Eudora Agoros so humbled. Words with any profound meaning failed, so he simply said, “You have it,” though what he’d experienced with Eudora and what she’d suffered at the hands of Barthel Rogedoth were in no way similar.
“I had hoped you would forgive me.” She smiled. “And I wonder if you might find it in your wholesome heart to help a lady in distress.”
Hinck’s suspicions rose. “Help you do what?”
“Help us—help me and my parents kill Rosârah Laviel.”
Hinck again looked for shadir, certain that Rosârah Laviel’s common, Iamos, might drift out from the wall at any moment and catch them talking treason. But they were alone.
“Are you all insane?” Despite what Eudora had shown him, he wasn’t quite ready to confess that his own premeditation of murder matched hers.
“Mother says this is our only chance,” Eudora said. “We must act before Rosârah Laviel takes Castle Armanguard and compels herself a loyal army.”
“Her shadir is too powerful,” Hinck said.
“Surely your shadir is stronger, lord. It healed you from the root juice.”
“That was no shadir, lady. That was Arman.”
Eudora’s face crumpled in confusion. “A god healed you? How is that possible?”
“As I lay dying, the prophetess Onika voiced me. She told me to submit to Arman and he would vouch for me at the gates of Shamayim. I did, and he healed me.”
She considered this. “Then surely with the help of your god we can defeat Laviel.”
“I don’t know that Arman works that way, but I will voice Miss Onika to ask her advice.”
“Then might we make a plan?”
Hinck thought it over. If Eudora could be trusted, and if she and her mother refused to heal Laviel once Hinck shot her down, his plan would have a much greater chance of success than it did at present. “If Miss Onika thinks it wise, I will consider it,” he said.
“Oh, thank you, Lord Dacre!” She kissed his cheek, and he stiffened, annoyed.
Eudora left, and Hinck went back to his bow, the adrenaline racing through him slowly subsiding as he worked. The thought of joining with Eudora on anything made him uneasy. Was this a trick to trap him once and for all as a traitor? Was there any way he could know?
But of course there was! He climbed into bed and shadowed Eudora’s mind, surprised to find her motivations sincere. He spent some time in Sârah Jemesha’s mind as well, then monitored General Agoros. While the sârah had ambitions of her own about putting her son Oli on the throne instead of Eudora, and the general saw himself as king, the threesome really did intend to kill Rosârah Laviel before they reached land.
Hinck could not overcome his astonishment. He voiced Trevn and told him all that had taken place. Trevn didn’t see how Eudora’s involvement changed anything and agreed that Hinck should ask Miss Onika’s advice. When Hinck voiced the prophetess, however, she needed time to consult Arman.
So Hinck waited. And waited.
A servant called him to the midday meal, but he sent the man away, claiming an upset stomach. Finally, as the sun began its descent toward the horizon, Miss Onika knocked.