Brice didn’t look appeased. He took her upper arm in his hand and pulled her closer. “Remember. They’ve had six years to plan for this. They have mages and a hoard of gold to buy weapons and fighters. There’s no telling what they’ve prepared in that time, but I think they will be waiting.”
He was right. She was not going to waltz into Eagle’s Nest and surprise them while they sat sipping afternoon tea. A battle lay ahead. Hannah pulled her arm away and twisted her shoulders, feeling the comfort of the throwing knife below her neck. Her hand went to her waist and touched the hilt of that small, curved blade, then her hand slipped down to the inner side of her thigh where the thin rapier rested. Her baggy pants would allow her to reach it if needed.
“I also want a bow,” she said, thinking of the charm she carried in her backpack that made the arrows never miss. She reviewed the other charms and found nothing that would help in a battle for a monastery high in the mountains. “This old monastery they’re in, is it sitting on top of a solid rock spire, like some I’ve heard about?”
Brice said, “No, I thought of the same and asked. It’s not even walled, just a long low series of stone buildings connected to each other in a haphazard manner, all with steep roofs because of snow buildup. Over the years, they built a new annex when needed, but because of the weather, they connected the new with the old because the winter snows prevent them from going outside.”
Hannah said, “It sounds a mess.”
“Well, it wasn’t built as a fortification, or to be beautiful, but still, once inside, it’s a maze of passages and hallways. You could get lost in there and retrace your route without ever knowing. Any fighting will happen in a confined space where a bow won’t help because the ceilings are too low for arrows. Even swords will be restricted in the small spaces.”
Brice is worried. Hannah still decided to carry a bow, but she wanted a look at the buildings. Their exteriors might help with the best way to attack. Perhaps they could see smoke from chimneys that might indicate which buildings to attack—and how. Cut off the food storage and control the kitchens and the battle could be won.
Maybe they’ll fly flags to indicate the right place to attack, too. She was glad she hadn’t spoken her ideas aloud. She was a princess, not a soldier with a lifetime of experiences to draw upon. She glanced at Brice and took note of the stern set of his jaw. With luck, she would never see that expression pointed in her direction.
He said, “I think you and I should slip ahead of the army and maybe see what they have waiting for us.”
The general walked nearer. “What was that?”
Brice said, “We’re thinking of going on ahead and spying on them.”
The general rolled his eyes. Then he stalked closer so he could speak in private. “Do you believe it’s sound warfare to place your two most valuable people in the most danger? If Princess Hannah is killed, we may as well all go home and face whatever takes place because, for Peermont, the war will be over.”
Even Hannah had to admit the wisdom of his stinging words. “We just feel we have to do something.”
“Let me send two squads ahead to secure the way, and when we get within sight, you can offer suggestions—and I may listen.” The general waited until both reluctantly nodded. Then he turned his back and started issuing a flood of orders again.
Hannah took note. She’d watched him do the same a few other times. The general looked at the required end result, decided the best way to achieve it, and barked orders to accomplish each step. He never took an active part, but detailed each instruction in such a way there was no argument, and each of his men knew what was required—and expected. She could learn from him.
Thinking of his expertise, and her history, she realized a major element of her education was lacking. As a servant, while a child, she had given few, if any orders. While working as a sailor, she was a common deckhand, and again gave no orders. Living for five years in Gallium had been as a student with Maude, both for learning magic and fighting, and there had been little opportunity for leadership. She came to the realization that in her lifetime she had seldom been a leader—not in the sense the general was.
Elenore is better prepared to be Queen. The stray thought had been hidden somewhere in the dark recesses of her mind, a deep fear she didn’t wish to admit or face. However, being prepared and being a good queen were two separate issues. If Elenore had funded the revolt, the attempt to overthrow the crown, if she was willing to risk countless lives to satisfy her lust for power, and if she was willing to offer fabulous rewards for the death of a child-rival, she needed to be stopped.
There. Hannah admitted her fears and framed her future in a few words. She might not be the best trained, but she could learn. Her cousin Elenore and Lord Jeffery were in for a fight.
She told the general, “I will do more than offer suggestions. But I wish more from you, sir. I have no training to be a leader and being Queen is going to be difficult without those skills. Will you help train me?”
His expression changed, then twisted almost into a laugh that he managed to squash at the last instant. “You may not have formal training, but I’ve never seen a better natural leader. I’ll try to help, but all you need is the confidence to speak up, but when things are happening, you are the leader. Make no mistake about that.”
“Thank you. But I’m still worried. If I meet up with Princess Elenore, what do I say?” Hannah waited for his response as all traces of humor fled from him.
He cleared his throat. “Say? You might say to your Knight that you wish him to remove her head, but you don’t say anything to her.”
“I can’t do that.”
He rolled his eyes again but said nothing. A messenger appeared at his side, standing at attention ready to report the troops were ready to depart. The general turned to Hannah. “Princess, with your permission?”
“You have it.”
“There, was that so hard?” He teased. His aide rushed to their side and waited for anything the general might need. The aide was very good at his job, almost blending into the background as the column began to walk in loose formation. A sergeant called for the pace to increase, and the order was repeated as it was passed along.
Hannah watched the process. The general provided the information for the end result, the officers used their men to accomplish it, and the sergeants made it happen. She watched squads near the front spread out to either side and race ahead, while the main body of men moved in twos and threes, allowing the space to widen between them. The forest at their sides was hardwood trees, the undergrowth thick, and the path was narrow enough for three to walk beside each other in most places, but it was by no stretch of the imagination a road.
Small streams flowed across the trail, forcing them to step over them, sometimes scrambling on large rocks to keep their feet dry. The forest floor was covered in dense undergrowth, tangled vines, small bushes, and grass. Looking ahead, the trail rose with nearly every step, and within an hour it narrowed until travel was single-file. The soldiers walked in a steady, distance-eating pace they could maintain all day, and all night if required.
The weather was still warm, the sky clear, and only a few stinging insects landed on Hannah. The peaks in front of them were white. However, her mind was not on travel, but what she would find at the Eagle’s Nest and beyond. One step led to another. She ignored the rocky ground, the clouds scuttling past, the hawk that circled above, and the men marching in front and behind.
Elenore, I’m coming for you.