A Thousand Heartbeats

“Tell me again exactly what they said,” Kawan ordered for the tenth time.

We were in a small room, discussing the arrival of our unexpected guests. My mother was there, along with Aldrik, Slone, Illio, and Maston.

“It’s as I said before,” I answered evenly. “They surrendered their weapons and delivered the message that King Theron has invited us to a summit on some island. Beyond this, I know nothing.”

Kawan turned to Blythe. “There was no fight in them,” she said, “not even when we locked them in their cells.”

“Which have guards this time, I presume?” he asked, glowering at me.

“Naturally.”

He leaned back and huffed, scratching his unkempt beard with his thick fingers. After a moment, he started howling with laughter, throwing his head back and slapping a hand on the table in front of him.

“Imagine that,” he said. “Had I known it’d be that easy to get them to roll over, I’d have taken their princess ages ago.”

“But that’s the thing,” I said. “We took their queen ages ago. No one came to seek us out then.”

“Given how uncoordinated that move was, they must have thought it an isolated incident. Now they know people are coming for them, and this is a means to an end.”

It didn’t make sense to me. There had been three years for them to find out we’d been behind the attack. What’s more, if we killed their queen and kidnapped their princess, why would they offer us peace? I didn’t trust any of this. But I could speak of my distrust all day long, and it would change nothing in the eyes of Kawan.

“How do you want to proceed?” I asked.

“The first step is questioning,” he said decisively. “Separate them. Ask them the same questions. Aim to find what’s consistent in their statements. They don’t eat or sleep until we have our answers.” He paused for a minute. “And see if you can weed out the weakest one.”

“For any specific purpose?” I asked.

“I haven’t decided yet.”

I nodded. “Might I suggest sending Blythe in for the first round?”

He looked at me with skeptical eyes. “Why?”

“You should have seen her riding with her bow and arrow. They weren’t half as stricken by me as they were by her. And I think it might put them off to be questioned by a woman.”

Kawan looked between the two of us. “Very well. I want information. Numbers, size of their army. I don’t want peace, I want all of it. I want to tear every single brick of their castle down.” The last of his words came out in a low growl.

“Yes, sir.” I turned to leave, and Blythe followed.

“Should I go straight into an interrogation?” she asked when we were out of earshot.

“I think you might need different strategies for each. The one carrying the flag would probably answer anything you asked. The one in the middle, though?”

She sighed. “He was so panicky. Maybe try to talk first? Have a conversation?”

I nodded. “That’s a good idea. I think he may be the weak link of the three, but I could be wrong.”

“I’ll do my best,” she assured me.

I reached up, placing a hand on her shoulder. “I know you will.” Her eyes went wide, and I cleared my throat as I pulled my hand back. “I’m going to see if I can scrounge up some paper.” Annika had pointed out our lack of a library, and while I was honored by my oral history, I knew there was also strength in the written word.

I marched to my room. In the back of my desk was my very small pile of carefully guarded blank sheets. I grabbed a few, along with one of my oblique pens. The ink was going to be another problem. I opened the jars and saw dried, powdery clumps at the bottom. I hoped that some water would bring the ink back to life. I tucked the paper and pen away and clutched a jar securely in my palm, then rushed back to Blythe.

I could hear her voice from the hallway in the dungeons, coaxing Skittish into speaking. I found two stools and set them side by side to make a desk. There was some stale water in a nearby bucket, and I dipped my fingers in it, letting the droplets run from my fingers into my dried ink.

I really hoped this would work.

We’d divided the men into separate branches of the dungeon, the idea being that if they wanted to communicate, they’d have to call out, and we’d hear it all. This meant that, from my location, I could hear Blythe’s conversation, even though I couldn’t see her.

“I know,” Blythe said sweetly. “We crossed that terrain recently as well. Not all the way to Kadier I don’t think, but I understand what you’ve been through.”

“I hate that trek. And I hate this cell. We already told you we’re here peacefully. Why are we locked up? Why did you separate me from my friends?”

“We need to talk to each of you, that’s all. And you’re down here for your own safety. We don’t know how you’ll be greeted upstairs, so we ask for your patience.”

“Huh.” He seemed satisfied with that.

“I’ll do what I can to make you more comfortable, but I can’t promise much. We live lean lives.”

“Life in the barracks isn’t much better.”

I could almost see Blythe sympathetically tilting her head, a smile in her eyes as she asked her next question. “Is your king stingy with his soldiers? And after all the work you do!”

“He’s been on edge in the years since his wife went missing, constant patrols. Do you know how many miles I walk in a week? Not enough for the pay, I’ll tell you that.”

“That’s so sad,” Blythe commented. “Does he keep a lot of troops in the palace, then?”

“Yes, but the majority are positioned around the far edge of the grounds. He doesn’t want unwelcome guests getting too close.”

“I understand. We’ve been keeping an eye out for company ourselves,” Blythe replied.

There was a moment of silence, and I wondered just what was happening.

“You don’t have to worry about a thing,” Skittish responded in a low voice. “You’ve got him scared.”

“What do you mean?” Blythe matched his tone.

“He holds everything with a tight fist. His children, his crown, his kingdom. If he’s willing to talk, you’ve spooked him.”

There was another beat of silence. I could tell that Blythe was doing the exact same thing I was: reveling in the thought of an intimidated king.

“Thank you,” she told him. “I’ll be back with more information soon.”

I listened as she opened and closed the lock. I poked my head around the corner, and I saw in her eyes the hope I felt in my chest. She hurried over to me, speaking in a whisper.

“Did you hear that?”

“I did,” I confirmed, wearing possibly the brightest smile I had in a decade. “I was skeptical, but he sounds like he’s telling the truth.”

“Lennox, if it is true, there’s a chance it could be . . .”

“Bloodless.”

She nodded.

“We need to keep a record of everything they’re saying.” I dipped my pen into the ink and drew a test line at the top. It was a little thick, but it would work. I went to pass the pen to Blythe, but she blushed and dropped her head.

“I don’t know how,” she whispered.

I could see the admission was upsetting for her, so I said no more.

“That’s all right. I know.” I felt a little embarrassed. This was twice now that the issue had come up, and it was becoming awkward being the only one who could read. Then again, until recently, there hadn’t been much use. “When we come into our kingdom, you will have so much free time, you’ll laze your afternoons away reading,” I told her. “I’ll teach you when we get to Dahrain.”

“Really?” she asked with a smile.

“Of course. Now, let’s get this down before we forget.”