The Night Queen (Romantic Fairy Tales for Adults Book 1) by Denise Daye

Author:Denise Daye [Daye , Denise]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2022-07-25T16:00:00+00:00

Chapter 14

Alrick

S itting on the back of Fiona, I watched Mina’s face resting motionless between my chest and upper arm. Her features looked serene, angelic. After her eyes had fallen shut, she had naturally placed her head there for comfort. It must have been a few hours since I had checked back on my horse and found Henrike sitting next to it, the reins of her own horse in hand. We decided it would be better to let the horses and our own beaten bodies rest before the sun rose. The rain had stopped, making way for the bright light of the moon. Judging by its position in the sky, I guessed it was around midnight. My whole body was aching from the fight last night. I had taken quite a few blows and even a shallow cut to the chest, so rest sounded welcoming, yet I didn’t move. I was too worried I would wake Mina if I tried to get us both down off the horse. It seemed a sin to disturb a face so peaceful. And I didn’t want to face the questions I knew she had, either.

The Rhine King’s proposal was a messy one to begin with. When I visited him that night of the ball to say my farewell, I had expected nothing in return. I wasn’t even certain he would see me. But then he told me of his worries for peace in all of the kingdoms, not only the war-torn North. He thought Louis the Great was scheming against him, binding the North by marriage to his daughter, only to use it to build his army. An army waiting for the Rhine King’s death and the day his hated daughter would take the throne. The Rhine King had blamed himself for this dilemma, as he was the one who’d banned her from his sight because she reminded him too much of his beloved wife. Now his daughter had grown selfish, spoiled, and unkind. The Night Queen, they called her—hated, feared, and said to be a witch.

If it was only the riches and lands he had offered me, even if it was enough to rebuild my estate and provide for my people again, I would have said no. His plan of traveling north disguised as commoners was mad. But I did understand the dilemma he was in and hated the prospect of a wider-spread war.

So, I agreed to take his daughter north and make her believe she was fleeing of her own will, hoping the hardships of an uncomfortable journey would bring some change to her.

But I hadn’t anticipated her hardships would include a merciless hunt for her life. I tried to make sense of it, had gone through last night’s events a hundred times in my head, and still arrived at the same conclusion. This was no attack by common thieves. Their worn and dirty clothes were a farce. The quality of their swords and the way they handled them were proof. These were mercenaries.

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