Well of Tears (Empath Book 3) (8 page)

When a knock came at the door, they both
tried to stifle their laughter. Convinced that, after drinking too
much ale they were disturbing the rest of the inn, they thought
their muffled silence would make the intruder go away. When the
knock came again, Eden got unsteadily to his feet and staggered
across to the door. Eden only opened it an inch at first, but
opened it wide when he saw who stood there. River walked in, and
the boy looked embarrassed to be there. No, that wasn’t right.
River wasn’t a boy—he was older than Eden. Quinn had to keep
reminding herself of that. There was no real comparison between
them.

“River! Are you okay? What are you doing
here?"

“I heard you laughing. I felt lonely, so I
just thought I’d come and say hello.”

Eden didn’t answer his brother, so unused he
was to this kind of gesture. River took this as a sign, and started
stammering with embarrassment. “I…I mean if that’s okay? I didn’t
mean to intrude?”

Eden waved his hands, trying to stop himself
from laughing. “
River, don
’t worry. Come
and sit with us, you’ve only had Harn for company haven’t you? I’m
sorry we haven’t spoken much. It must have been miserable for
you.”

“He’s not pleasant company, I have to
say."

“Why did you accompany him?” This was from
Quinn, not Eden who already knew the answer.

“My father’s not really one who takes no for
an answer. He was convinced that, if I didn’t go with Harn to Port
Kahnel, then Eden wouldn’t have come back. He thinks you might have
gone elsewhere."

“Elsewhere? There is nowhere else.”

“I mean to Vance. Father thought you might
have gone back to Everfell."

“With Sammah there? I don’t think so."

“Still, he didn’t want to take the risk,
that’s all. So he ordered me to come, because he knows you trust
me.”

“Well, that was true enough. And it was nice
to see your face after being presented with Harn. That man alone
would have been enough to turn me on another road.”

River smiled awkwardly, and Quinn couldn’t
help but explore the man’s feelings. She kept on thinking that
River was like her; or at least the girl she had been before her
experiences with Sammah, and in Farn. River was awkward and shy,
and inexplicably so. He was the son of a great lord, and second in
line to inherit the lands of Sevenspells. By all rights, he should
have been bristling with confidence, strutting around like his
older brother, demonstrating to the ladies of the court how much of
a prize he was. Instead, he seemed like stammering, simpering
half-idiot, barely able to finish sentences most of the time.
Sandwiched in between his two brothers, River looked positively
incapable of rule. Quinn was certain, if anything befell Rowan,
that Shiver would disinherit River in a heartbeat to make sure Eden
would be the one that would take his seat next. What she found
inside River wasn’t surprising. He was a maelstrom of emotions. The
overriding one was fear, which was odd, considering he was sitting
with his own brother. Embarrassment was there, and so was
nervousness. Did he not want to go back to Sevenspells?

“What was Kahnel like? Did you have to stay
there long waiting for us?”

Eden filled a wineglass for his brother,
passing it over. He kept the ale for himself—evidently River
didn’
t favour pale drinks.
“It was
eventful enough. I hate Kahnel. It stinks of fish, and all of the
men are loud. If I’m being honest, I would have rather stayed in
Sevenspells."

“With you, that’s saying something. You hate
it here.”

River didn’
t enjoy living
in Sevenspells
—to say he hated port Kahnel more was not
complimentary to the place. Quinn couldn’t agree with him—she’d
loved the feel of the port. If she ever managed to settle anywhere,
she was sure she’d pick there.

“And Harn? Has he been okay with you?”

“He’s being ridiculously pleasant to all of
us since he was made captain of the guard. It’s amazing how
something as simple as a title changes a man.”

“And who else has is it changed? How was our
father behaving now that he thinks he is king?”

“He’s not acting any differently. As
intolerable as usual. Rowan’
s gotten
worse.
”

“Worse? What do you mean?”

“When you were made chamberlain, and you were
spending all your time with Vance, he was convinced you were going
to betray us. He kept on talking to me, telling me how you weren’t
one of us anymore and you couldn’t be trusted. He told me to stop
speaking to you, so I did, like a fool. Then mother arrived, and
she agreed with everything Rowan said. She told us she had seen
father down in the cells, that he’d spoken to you. He was on your
side, which Rowan couldn’t believe. Rowan decided for all of us,
since he was the Lord of Sevenspells at the time, that none of us
could talk to you. We were effectively told to excommunicate you
from the family—because he
knew
that you’d turned against
us. Then he found out you were going to Sha’sek…” River glanced at
Quinn, and he seemed to hold back out of fear.

“It’s okay,” she said. “Carry on, none of the
rumours about me are true.”

Eden placed a gentle hand on Quinn’s. “River,
you can trust her. I trust her.”

This affirmation seemed to give the boy
courage. “When you went to Sha’sek, Rowan took that as a sign.
That, he said, was the final straw. He was convinced that you’d
never come back from the islands. He was preparing a writ to remove
you from the line of succession. Then, thank the spirits, father
escaped."

“He was going to do that! How? That wouldn’t
be allowed!"

“He was the rightful Lord of Sevenspells, he
could have done what he wanted."

“But someone else would have had to agree
with him—corroborate. Are you saying mother agreed to that?”

“I think he was forcing her into it. She
didn’t want to."

“I’ve never known anyone to force our mother
to do anything she didn’t want to do—never mind Rowan.”

“
Well
, it didn’t
happen, and then father escaped, and he tore the document up. He
told Rowan that he was being a fool, and everything you were doing
was for the good of Sevenspells. After that, everything in Everfell
went terribly wrong. We got out of there so quickly, and we were
lucky that we lost so few men. I don’t think Daggerdale or Kahnel
were so lucky with their retinues. When it was clear that Sammah
was in charge, father immediately had a messenger bird sent out to
Sha’sek. When we got word that you might be heading back here, he
sent me and Harn to Port Kahnel. He said we would stay there for as
long as it took, for you to either come back, or a messenger bird
signalling your death arrived with us. That’s how certain he was.
He knew you’d come back to us, or you’d die for our cause.”

Eden resisted the urge to tell his brother
that he
had
almost died on the crossing back. River hadn’t
asked about his bruises. River never would. Bruises were normal
amongst the sons of Shiver.

“What actually
happened
in Everfell?”

River hesitated. “
I still
don
’t know, Eden. It was so confusing, and like I said, it
happened so quickly. The king told us, Rowan and me, that the trial
for our father and the baron was being delayed. He didn’t tell us
why, just that it was. We thought it had something to do with
you—with the girl. Rowan started asking questions, and went to
challenge Sammah about it. That same night, Sammah just…walked out
of his cell.”

“Walked out?”

River nodded.
“Walked out. There was no blood, no fighting. Not at first, anyway.
Vance declared that he’d been wrong—that Sammah had been innocent,
and Shiver was the criminal. That’s when everything went to hell.
Rowan, Calvin, and Venn fought to get Shiver out of the cells. We
barely got out of there with our lives. It was only because so many
men held loyal, and the guards in Everfell didn’t know what was
happening, either. Father claimed that Sammah had done it with
treachery, with someone gifted, from Sha’sek. But Quinn wasn’t
there anymore, and no one knew who else could do it.”

“And you all ran?”

River nodded.
“We
did. Father didn’t want to go, not straight away. He wanted to find
Sammah and kill him there and then. He said he should have been
allowed to, and Vance had stopped him from doing that during the
wars, and caused all this mess anyway. The other lords had
overruled him, and he wasn’t king, not yet.”

“But then they voted him?”

“When everything settled down, and it became
clear what was happening, yes.”

“But all along my father believed in me? What
Harn is saying then, about him disinheriting me—is that true?”

River started picking at his fingernails,
which were already immaculate. “That bit is true.”

“Do you have an intended now, then?”

“I’m betrothed, yes. Father set up my match,
and promised that it could wait, as long as I brought you back
here. We’ve received word that Rowan is already married.”

“Already? That…wow. That didn’t take
long.”

“Father is worried about the stability of the
kingdom. I think he was even disappointed when none of us turned up
any bastard children as potential heirs. Either way, he’s after
grandchildren now, so be warned. Oh…I’m sorry.”

River had glanced at Quinn, who was keeping
her face deliberately blank. “It’s okay. Don’t worry, your
highness. It’s nothing I haven’t heard before.”

“Please, call me River. Any friend of my
brother’
s doesn
’t need to show me any
airs and graces.”

“Thank you, River.”

Quinn liked this misunderstood prince. He
reminded her of the way Maertn had been before leaving Everfell. He
reminded her of herself when she had been a maid.

“So, who are the lucky ladies?”

“I’m marrying the Lady Tanya of Kahnel.”

“Tanya…Calvin’s eldest? That’s a fine match,
especially for a second son. You’ll be second in line to
inherit.”

“I never wanted to be in line to inherit
anywhere, never mind
two
provinces I despise,”
River said miserably.
“I was looking forward to my
quiet life living hidden in Rowan’s shadow, obscured by your fame.
No one was meant to remember Lord River of Sevenspells. Now I’m a
prince, and worth marrying off to eldest daughters. I never wanted
any of this, Eden. Why don’t we get a choice in this?”

“The only thing we can’t choose is who we are
born to be. We can only make the best of the life we have been
given.”

Quinn’s voice was distant, and her response
had been automatic. Both of the young men turned to her.
“That’
s deep, Quinn.
”

“And it makes sense don’t you think, Eden?
You’ve lamented before, about being born in your position. Why?
There are thousands of people in Everfell that would trade with you
in a heartbeat.”

“They’ve never met our father. Or our older
brother.”

“And do you think they’re any worse than
brothers, fathers, and uncles across the country? You aren’t the
only ones with problems. Look around you. At the wealth you have,
and the privilege. If you want to escape your family, you can. You
can get on a horse and go for a ride. You can hide yourself
somewhere else in your castle. River, you’re going to be able to
hide in a completely different province—one that you could one day
rule
. And you consider that a
bad
thing? Listen to
yourselves.” Quinn sounded disgusted, and both men looked suitably
embarrassed in the face of her onslaught. “There are people out
there with
real
problems. Men
who
toil all day and still struggle to put food on the tables for their
families, for one…”

“And what do you know of that kind of family,
Quinn? You grew up in Everfell. Your father didn’t treat you to the
luxuries we’ve been used to, but you were safe.”

“
Safe
? My father used to send me with
hired mercenaries to question all manner of men. I wasn’t even ten
years old when I questioned my first rapist, and I don’t want to
describe to you what
that
felt like. And at least you know
you belong here. I’ve never belonged. When the truth came out,
about what I was, I was sent away. Exiled, Eden. Can you say that?
Can you tell the people around you anything about yourself, that
would make them want to send you to another country, for life?”

Quinn was out of breath; she had barely
stopped relentlessly pummelling him with her words. Eden just
stared at her. He didn’t have an answer.

Quinn had promised herself that she wouldn’t
use her ability against him again, so she did pay him that honour.
She didn’t, however, want to see him again for the rest of that
day, nor on the climb up to Sevenspells. It was clearer now than
ever before, that they had been born too far part to be happy
together. So much of her still yearned for him, but there was a
core part of her brain, hidden safe behind walls of iron, that knew
Quinn had to start distancing herself from Eden before it was too
late. Her heart would be broken, but if she severed their ties now,
it would mend.

“You’re father’s going to be introducing you
to your betrothed tomorrow, I have no doubt. I think it best I say
my goodbyes now, my lord.”

“Quinn please, don’t go. Not like this.”

It might have been the wine influencing her;
it might have just eliminated the last of her fear, but Quinn knew
even in her cold anger, that she was doing the right thing.

“This is the only way it can be, Eden.”

* * *

The hooves of her mount scraped against the
rough stone of the cliffside, spilling clusters of pebbles down the
path they had already tread. Quinn tried not to look down the side;
the sight of Lancing down on the valley floor was galling, and
every time she caught sight of the ever-shrinking homesteads below,
Quinn thought she would heave. She concentrated on Tarik instead,
still being carried in a pallet drawn by a couple of horses. Quinn
had decided to travel at the back of the caravan of horses and
wagons. Riding with the dwindling remains of the caravan’s
provisions, any wounded—only Tarik had that dubious honour—and the
healer to tend him. Ross had tried to travel with her, but Eden had
called him to the front of their riding party. Eden had wanted
Quinn there too, but she had pointed out she was not of any worth.
Both Eden and Harn had disagreed, for different reasons, and Harn
had placed a handful of soldiers some distance behind the caravan
to make sure that Quinn didn’t bolt for freedom.