Union (12 page)

She took each article of clothing, folded it carefully, and placed it in the trunk where Sarenne was doing the same with Nykin’s. They were almost done—Kalis and Sarenne were in the back of the closet sorting through socks and undergarments, as Ryneq and Nykin sat at the table, nibbling on snacks that Ryneq had sent for earlier—when Nysad hurried into the room, looking a mixture of angry and relieved.

“Sire.” Nysad marched over to where they sat.

Ryneq was immediately on his guard. He pushed his chair back and, with a sense of dread coiling in his belly, turned to face Nysad.

“I think we’ve found the spy.”

Hushed voices from the other side of the room reminded Ryneq they were not alone, and he didn’t want to discuss this in front of anyone other than Nykin. Ryneq held his hand up for Nysad to stop talking, got out of his chair, and headed over to the two maids before Nysad could say any more.

Kalis and Sarenne were kneeling on the floor, collecting up articles of what he recognized to be his own clothing. “Sorry, Your Highness,” Kalis apologized as she stood up with an armful of Ryneq’s socks. “I tripped and fell.”

Ryneq smiled at her. “No need to be sorry, Kalis, accidents happen. But, why don’t you and Sarenne take a break and finish these in a bit.”

Kalis bowed her head and motioned for Sarenne to finish what they were doing and leave.

“I’ll see you later,” he said as they walked past him and out the door. He watched them disappear down the hall and around the corner before closing the door and joining Nykin and Nysad again.

“Tell me,” Ryneq said as he paced in front of the windows. He heard Nysad sigh behind him, and he knew from that sound alone that the spy was one of their own men.

“I just finished questioning the last of the guards, Sire, and two of them can’t account for their whereabouts for the night you were captured. The night we came up with the rescue plan.”

The scrape of a chair was the only other sound in the room.

“After that, everyone who knew about the plan was either on patrol, in the barracks, or riding to the rendezvous point. That night was the only chance the traitor would have had to get the information to Hatak.”

“Who?” Ryneq turned to face him.

“Talis and Danek.”

Ryneq nodded. He knew exactly who Nysad meant. He remembered training with Talis when he was younger, and Danek had joined the guard after his father had been killed early last year.

“I asked around the other guards,” Nysad continued. “And after some encouragement, they reluctantly admitted Talis got so drunk that night, he passed out, and they had to carry him back to the barracks. He didn’t move until noon the next day.”

Ryneq scrubbed a hand over his eyes and felt exhaustion seep into his bones. One of his own men, he could hardly believe it. “Are you sure that Danek’s the traitor?”

“No one else had both the knowledge and the opportunity.”

“Does he know you suspect him?” Nykin asked, and Nysad shook his head.

“No.”

Nykin had spoken for the first time, and Ryneq was pleased to see that Nysad answered him without hesitation. He wouldn’t tolerate anyone treating Nykin with anything less than the respect he deserved, and as Ryneq’s consort he should be involved in such discussions.

Nysad leaned forward to rest his elbows on the table, looking just as tired as Ryneq felt. “I finished interviewing the rest of the guards as planned and then came here. I didn’t want to act without consulting you, Sire.” He looked up at Ryneq, waiting for his decision.

Ryneq sighed. This was really the last thing he needed just before he was about to leave Torsere for at least the next seven days. “Do we know if he’s still meeting with anyone?” With Hatak and a lot of his higher-ranking soldiers dead, Ryneq wondered if Danek had anyone left to contact. Not that it mattered. Even if he wasn’t giving the lowland armies information now, he’d done more than enough damage already. Ryneq wouldn’t stand for anyone betraying Torsere like that, no matter who they were.

“I don’t believe he’s left the castle since we returned, Sire, but that’s not to say he doesn’t plan to soon. Does it really make much difference, though?” Nysad knew it didn’t, and by the look on his face, understood that Ryneq was just trying to prolong the inevitable.

“No, I suppose not.”

Ryneq walked over to the bed. He sat down and quickly put his boots back on before grabbing his jacket off the back of the chair. “Very well, Nysad. Let’s get this over with. I can’t leave tomorrow without knowing that Danek is safely locked away.”

Ryneq sighed again as he met Nykin’s gaze. “I’m sorry, Nykin.”

This was turning out to be the worst two days they could have possibly chosen to announce Nykin as his consort. Ryneq had barely spent any time with him, and even though all the interruptions had been unavoidable, he felt like he was letting him down.

Nykin still managed a smile, though. “It’s okay”—he looked over at the open trunk on the floor—“besides, it looks like I have some packing to do.”

“We have people who do that for us, you realize?” Ryneq sighed when Nykin shrugged at him, and had to concede that it might take a while for Nykin to get used to his new role. Ryneq motioned for Nysad to wait for him outside, and when they were alone, he beckoned Nykin with the crook of his finger. “Come here, please.”

Nykin shook his head but smiled and got up from the table. “Only because you asked so nicely.”

He walked over toward where Ryneq still sat on the edge of the bed and came to a halt directly in front of him. He quirked an eyebrow in a
now what?
expression, and Ryneq urged him closer with a hand on each hip, until he ended up straddling Ryneq’s legs and settling onto his lap.

“We don’t really have time for this,” Nykin whispered, his lips brushing against Ryneq’s in barely there kisses.

“I know.” Ryneq slid his hand up to grip the back of Nykin’s head, holding him firm as he deepened the kiss, and moved his hips in a slow, gentle roll. Nykin traced the lines of Ryneq’s jaw with his fingers, eventually cupping his face. Ryneq wished they could just shut out everything and hide away—just for a little while. With a sigh, Ryneq drew back and placed one last kiss on the side of Nykin’s mouth. “I won’t be long.”

Nykin rubbed his thumbs over the sharp cut of Ryneq’s cheekbones, staring intently into his eyes. “Be as long as you need.” He shuffled back until his feet were back on the floor and held out his hand to tug Ryneq up after him. “I know it won’t be easy for you.”

“I’ll see you later.” Ryneq fastened the ties on his jacket, smoothed down the soft material, and left the room before he was tempted to change his mind.

N
YSAD
WAS
waiting for him outside, leaning against the wall of the passageway with his head resting back and his eyes closed. He stood to attention as the door shut loudly. “Ready, Sire?”

“As I’ll ever be,” Ryneq replied, and his voice even sounded grim to his own ears.

The Torserian Guards lived in the barracks on the east side of the Stone Palace, unless they were married, and then they were given a house in the lower town. Ryneq and Nysad were silent as they walked through the halls of the palace to get to the barracks. Ryneq barely noticed the beautiful stonework of the arches and doorways as they passed through them.

Danek would be charged with treason and tried before a court of his peers, as required by law. They couldn’t make that happen before the wedding, so Danek would be held in the cells under the palace until Ryneq’s return.

The building housing the soldiers’ quarters was separated from the main palace by a large courtyard used for weapons training. The afternoon sun warmed Ryneq’s face as they crossed the flagstones, and he paused to watch the soldiers spar. The harsh clang of metal on metal rang out all around them, and Ryneq marveled at the skill of his men.

“Sire?”

Nysad gestured over to the building in front of them, and Ryneq nodded before turning toward it. Nysad went first, opened the large oak door to the barracks, and stepped inside. The room itself was huge, but barely half-full at this time of day. Most of the guards were out on patrol or training. Only the guards who’d been on night patrol were in there now, lazing about on their beds—some still asleep, but most talking quietly among themselves.

The soldiers saluted Nysad when he entered, but apart from that, they carried on as they were. When Ryneq entered the barracks, every man stood to attention, and suddenly the room became so quiet Ryneq could hear a pin drop.

Nysad motioned to the two soldiers nearest to them. “Calen, Tymol. With us.” They looked at him curiously but saluted again and fell into step beside him. He led the way through the rows and rows of bunks. The building was a large T-shape, and Nysad turned to the left when they reached the end. “We’ve come for Danek,” he said, keeping his voice low, and if the two guards were surprised, they didn’t show it. “If he runs, use whatever force is necessary to restrain him.”

“Yes, sir,” they replied as one, and Ryneq caught the curious look that passed between them.

Laughter drifted down from the far bunks, and Ryneq’s chest tightened at the sound. He could see by now that it came from Danek—his head thrown back in amusement at something one of the others had said. The fact that he could live among his fellow guards as if nothing had happened made Ryneq’s blood boil.

It was entirely possible that Danek had given Hatak and Seran vital information about their first attempt to get Princess Cerylea to Alel. The lowland armies had been far too well prepared and knew just where to attack for it to be a coincidence. Ryneq thought about all the men—
his men
—who had died in the forest and on the banks of the Neest River, and he clenched his fists as he tried to contain his anger.

The four men, including Danek, abruptly stood to attention and saluted, casting wary glances between Ryneq and Nysad. Ryneq’s gaze narrowed to just Danek, and although barely noticeable, Danek had a definite tremor in the fingers of his left hand—his sword hand. Danek knew exactly why they were there.

He met Ryneq’s eyes with a defiant lift of his chin and didn’t even flinch when Nysad ordered Tymol and Calen to seize him. The two guards acted at once, without any hesitation, and Ryneq wondered if their lack of obvious surprise meant anything.

“Danek,” Nysad moved to stand directly in front of him, blocking Ryneq’s view. “You stand accused of treason and from this moment forth will be held as a prisoner of the realm until such a time as you can be properly tried for your crimes.”

Ryneq heard the shocked gasps and muttered curses from the other three soldiers next to Danek.

“There must be some mistake, Danek is no tr—”

“There’s no mistake.” Nysad’s voice was cold. “Is there, Danek?”

Danek just shrugged in response. His lack of a denial caused a mixture of disgust and disbelief on the faces of the men next to him. At least Ryneq felt reassured that Danek had been working alone.

“Take him to the cells,” Nysad ordered, but Ryneq stopped him with a hand on his arm.

“Wait,” he said, stepping forward. Nysad nodded and moved out of his way. “I want to know why you did it, Danek. Why you felt the need to give information to our enemies that cost the lives of your fellow soldiers?” He tried to keep his voice even and lacking all the pent-up rage he felt inside, but he suspected he hadn’t quite succeeded.

Danek kept silent, his eyes cold and dark as they fixed on Ryneq’s.

“Well?”

One of the guards restraining him, grunted harshly into Danek’s ear. “Answer the king when he speaks to you.” He gave Danek a hard shove with his elbow.

Danek took a deep breath and let it out slowly as if he needed to calm down, and Ryneq waited impatiently to hear what he had to say.

“My father died because you failed to protect our village,
Sire
.” His tone was flat, expressionless, and it made Ryneq feel uneasy. “You and your sister promised to look after all the people of Torsere, but obviously you didn’t mean the outlying villages—the ones closest to the borders.”

“Your father died in a farming accident, Danek. How is that the king’s fault?” Nysad said, shaking his head in disbelief.

“The constant threat of attack made him careless. We felt like we were on our own out there, and the worry was too much for him. He made a mistake and it cost him his life.”

“We patrol the borders every day,” Ryneq said, watching the way Danek’s eyes betrayed no emotion, even though he sounded distraught. He didn’t know if Danek was telling the truth or not, but he certainly wasn’t as affected as he wanted everyone to believe.

“It’s not enough.”

“Why did you join the Guard, if you feel this strongly about it?”

“We needed the money. I hate farming, and with my father gone,” he spat the words out, “it was either this”—he gestured to his uniform—“or work in the fields for ten hours a day.”

Danek looked down at his hands for a second, and that was when Ryneq noticed the nasty-looking scar. It ran from the tip of Danek’s ring finger to just below his wrist.

When Danek finally met Ryneq’s gaze again, his smile was bitter. “Hatak made me an offer I couldn’t refuse.”

Athisian filth
. If Hatak had threatened Danek, if he’d somehow forced him to betray his kingdom, then that was a totally different matter altogether. The realization must have shown on his face, because as soon as Ryneq opened his mouth to say as much, Danek immediately cut him off with a shake of his head.

“No. He didn’t force me into it, because I didn’t want to refuse.”

Danek lifted his chin a little higher, almost sneering at Ryneq now, and Ryneq let him get away with it, because he needed to hear the rest of it. Needed to understand how this had happened so he could ensure it never happened again.

“When Hatak’s men came to our village and offered me enough money that neither me or my mother would ever work another day in the fields or anywhere else”—he met Ryneq’s gaze and smiled—“I was more than willing to spy for him.”