I turned to him. “Your sword was not issued by the army.”
“A gift from my father.”
I glanced at mine. “A gift from my king.”
“Have you ever seen or heard of such a thing?”
“No. In some manner, they must be enchanted. How, I have no idea,” I said.
“Like magic?”
“Exactly like magic,” I said. Then, an idea came to me. “Old magic, not the kind mages these days use. The maker may have enchanted them, or another, but one thing seems clear. The swords are meant never to be crossed.”
“The brothers!” he gasped.
“I don’t know what that is.” I handed him a jar of water and noticed Anna was standing next to me, intently watching the soldier.
*He is not scared. Not of you. And he tells the truth.* Anna’s words were as clear in my mind as if she’d spoken aloud, but the soldier heard nothing.
“Your name?” I asked.
“Fielding. A recent recruit to the Army of the Council.”
I asked, “A willing recruit?”
He hinted at a smile. “Unwilling recruits die, so that makes me a willing one, I guess. If possible, I’d still be working on my father’s fishing boats.”
Flier came to my other side and asked abruptly. “Why have you brought this man with us?”
I decided to semi-lie to avoid an uncomfortable explanation of a subject beyond my ability to understand and one that might confuse the issue further if I tried. “He may know things that will help us.”
Flier didn’t appear convinced, but said, “Prisoners surrender their weapons.”
“Not this time,” I told him. To Anna I asked, *Can you always tell if Fielding is lying?*
*If I’m concentrating on his mind when he shares something. I mean, I can’t go back in time and tell if he lied before.* She gave me the same sort of look Kendra does when I ask something I should already know.
To Fielding, I said, “Will you keep our truce and promise not to harm anyone here?”
“If they attack me, I’ll defend myself. Otherwise, I want to know what’s happening between us as much as you.”
*Truth,* Anna said. *He’s telling the truth, but what’s he talking about?*
*Not now,* I told her, determined to continue the conversation on my terms, but pleased that Anna had confirmed he was not lying to me.
Fielding said, “If your king presented your sword to you, you must be important. If it was the King of Dire, I wonder why he would present such a treasure to one from Kondor.”
That was an insightful question. I decided to follow up with one of my own. “If your father presented your sword, I’d have to assume he was also an important man, not a simple fisherman. Yet, you are a foot soldier of Vin, and that makes me wonder.”
“Perhaps we should discuss this later when alone and in more civil circumstances,” he said.
I glanced around at the rebels, two of whom had taken up positions in the desert to warn us of pursuit. With Kendra’s dragon out there, we didn’t need them, but military discipline demanded guards be posted. The others were lying or sitting on the sand, most with their weapons and a jug of water nearby. I said, “No, I think this is a good time.”
Fielding reacted as if I’d struck him, as his chin drew back, and his body tensed.
*Careful,* Anna warned me.
I continued, “Tell me about your father.”
There was a slight but perceptible hesitation. Then he said as if resigned to talk of things better left unsaid, “He was a minor noble and a soldier in the King’s Army, that’s the Army of Vin before the king fell. While serving in a foreign land, he was given the sword as a reward for meritorious service. He used his reward money to buy several fishing boats.”
Flier came to sit beside me. He’d been listening to everything. “The king fell? Tell us about that.”
“Who are you?” Fielding asked.
“The king?” Flier prompted again. “Tell us.”
I noticed Flier didn’t answer the question. He probably wanted the prisoner to know who was in charge, as well as not knowing Flier was from a prominent family and possibly influencing the answers.
Fielding said, “I’ll summarize, and you can ask questions after if that is agreeable. King Flan, the Revealer, has a single son, Prince Alvar, who was Commander of the Seas. The prince’s ship burned and sunk within sight of two other ships. There were few survivors, none of them the prince. The next in line of succession was elderly and feeble, too much so to wear the crown. After him, the line was conflicted between two families with equal claims.”
Flier nodded, his eyebrows furrowed as he sorted out the information. He seemed to understand and agree with what Fielding said.
Anna entered my mind. *He’s holding back.*
I gave her a brief nod but said nothing, waiting to see how the conversation continued.
Fielding continued, “King Flan took ill after the death of his son. Most assumed he dwelled on it too much and his health declined. Within the castle, a Royal Regent was considered who would rule until the king recovered, or until the rightful heir determined, but there was conflict on who the Regent should be, and eventually a committee was agreed upon to rule.”
Flier’s eyes flicked in my direction and back to Fielding again. It was the same story as Dire, Dagger, and Trager. Anna had told me Fielding was holding back important information.
I said, “You know things that the average person does not. Why?”
“I listen and observe.”
He was evasive.
*He’s still holding back.* Anna confirmed my own thoughts.
Not lying. Holding back. There was a difference. I reviewed what I knew to be true and saw the obvious. “I think I understand. Your family was one of those in contention to assume the crown.”
He hung his head and waited before raising it again and saying, “Yes.”
Flier said, “Let me guess. Your family members also met with a series of accidents. You joined the new army under an assumed name, after allowing your hair and beard to grow as a disguise.”
Fielding was on his feet, his hand on the hilt of his sword, but hesitated to draw it when nobody else reacted. We sat and watched him. For me, I believed that my magic could slow his hands and feet while I stood and drew my weapons, if necessary. A small whirlwind in the sand behind him confirmed my small magic was with me and ready for instant use.
*It’s all true,* Anna confirmed.
Fielding’s eyes were on Flier. “How could you know all that?”
Flier said, “We’ve met before, a long time ago. When you were called by another name, as was I. My father is Hiram of the house of Rodin, the merchant. I was called Jewel.”
“I remember,” Fielding said slowly, as he sat again. “Our families were friendly.”
Flier continued, “Of the two houses in contention for the throne, yours has the stronger claim. If your father is no longer alive, that makes you the crown prince.”
“The prince in hiding is more like it, Fielding whispered.
CHAPTER TWENTY
Princess Elizabeth
As if by accident, Will brushed past me on the Gallant’s deck as I prepared to step on the gangplank. “Excuse me, Princess Elizabeth, I stumbled.”
He didn’t slow but departed the ship as if on a mission. Timor threw him a nasty look for pushing ahead, but I noticed Lady Grace’s eyes twinkled. That tiny incident told me Timor knew nothing of Will, but she did. She had also been appointed to accompany me by my father. Lady Grace was more than a scribe.