Innkeeper Chronicles 3.5: Sweep of the Blade Read online

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  and a soft red comforter. Its legs were carved into the tree roots, its

  headboard was a tree trunk, and the tree’s craved branches provided the

  canopy. A rug spawned the length of the floor, painstakingly depicting an

  image of a female vampire knight fighting a murr, a massive crocodile-

  like reptile, in a dozen shades of red, burgundy, and white. Beyond the

  bed, a door stood wide open, showing her a glimpse of the bathroom

  with a colossal stone tub. A second door cut the pale grey stone next to

  the entrance to the bathroom.

  On her right, a fire was laid out but not lit in a fireplace that was tall

  enough for her to walk into it. A collection of chairs was arranged before

  it, around a low table. A large banner of House Krahr stirred in the

  breeze, dripping from the wall next to the window, so if someone sat in

  the largest chair, the banner would serve as the backdrop. Maud

  squinted at the chair. A small crest was carved in its back, two stylized

  fangs.

  It was a beautiful room, elegant in its simplicity and timeless, every line

  and every angle a perfect blend of function and aesthetics. She couldn’t

  have made a better room for herself back at Dina’s inn, if she tried for a

  week.

  “No.”

  “Are the quarters not to your liking?” Arland asked.

  “What are you doing?” she asked through clenched teeth.

  “I’m showing you your rooms.”

  “This is the room of a Marshal’s spouse.”

  Arland looked into the room, his expression puzzled. “You think so?”

  She resisted the urge to punch him. “Yes, I think so. It has the House

  Krahr banner positioned behind a chair with Marshal’s insignia on it.”

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  Arland blinked and rubbed his chin. “So it is. How peculiar.”

  “My Lord Marshal.”

  “My Lady Maud?”

  “I’m not your wife. I’m not even your betrothed.”

  “Where would you like me to put you?”

  “Not here.”

  “I don’t know a room suitable to a woman I asked to marry me and who

  replied with ‘Maybe.’”

  “That wasn’t what I said.”

  “You said, ‘Arland, I’m sorry, I can’t marry you right now. I need time to

  decide.’”

  It was an exact quote.

  “I assure you my recollection is accurate. Your words are branded in my

  memory. Did I misinterpret?”

  She opened her mouth. He had her there. “No.” It was a maybe.

  “Aside from my mother’s quarters, this is the most secure place in the

  castle. By assigning these quarters to you, I send a clear signal to

  everyone within my House. I think of you as my betrothed and I expect

  you to be treated accordingly.”

  “It’s not an honor I deserve. I don’t bear the title of your fiance and I

  don’t wield any of her power.”

  “Last time I checked I was the Marshal of House Krahr,” he said, his voice

  gentle. “Assigning honors to my guests is my prerogative.”

  39

  And he just reminded her that she was stomping on the most basic rule

  of vampire hospitality: one abided by the laws of the host’s House. It

  would be a mortal offense to refuse the rooms given to her by the

  Marshal. From his point of view, no other quarters could be assigned to

  her either. If he sent her down to the guest rooms, it would look like a

  dismissal. Here is the woman who rejected me, I brought her here, and

  now I don’t want anything to do with her… It made him look bad. It made

  her look bad. There were no winners in that scenario.

  “Would you prefer some other woman takes these quarters?”

  There was no point in lying. “No.”

  “Very well, then.”

  “This will make things harder,” she said.

  “Are you unfit for the challenge?”

  She glared at him.

  Arland grinned and handed her a key. It was a real key, heavy, metal,

  and cold. “That door next to the bathroom opens into a passageway

  leading to my quarters. There is a second door there. I left it

  unlocked. There is only one key, my lady and you have it. If you have any

  need to see me in private, all you have to do is unlock your door and walk

  down the passage way.” He bowed his head. “My lady.”

  She pictured herself smacking him on the head with that damn key, but

  there were five people watching.

  “Thank you, my lord,” she said. She’d loaded enough steel into the

  words, that even the densest vampire wouldn’t miss it.

  “Make yourself comfortable,” he said and went back down the hallway.

  40

  Helen slipped into the room, dropped her bag, took a running start, and

  leaped onto the bed. She bounced straight up, waving her tiny arms.

  “Wheeee!”

  Wheee. That was about right. She’d remembered Dina saying Arland

  had the subtlety of an enraged rhino. Her sister didn’t know him at

  all. Neither did she. Which was why she told him maybe.

  Maud stepped into the room, listened to the barely audible click of the

  electronic lock, and slid the heavy metal bar in place, barricading herself

  in the Marshal quarters.

  She was not unfit for the challenge. This was going to be one hell of a

  visit. Either way, it was time to unpack and settle in.

  Maud made it four feet from the door before a knock stopped

  her. Maybe Arland forgot something…

  She unbarred the the door and swung it open. A female vampire knight

  stood in the hallway. Broad-shouldered, sturdy, with a lustrous mane of

  chocolate-brown hair, she wore the full syn-armor. Her dark eyes stared

  at Maud, and she felt herself weighed, measured, and judged in a split

  second.

  “My name is Lady Alvina, daughter of Soren,” she said. “You may call me

  Karat. That’s my battle name. I’m Arland’s cousin. His favorite

  cousin. And you are the human gold-digger who rejected his proposal. I

  think we should talk.”

  41

  Chapter 3 Part 2

  February 2, 2018 by Ilona

  Maud leaned against the doorway and studied her nails. “If I were a gold

  digger, I would’ve married him already and come here as his wife. There

  would be nothing you or your whole House could’ve done about it.”

  42

  Lady Karat narrowed her eyes. “You seem so sure that you have my

  cousin on a leash, ready to do your bidding.”

  “Nobody in this Universe, man or woman, could put Arland on a leash.”

  “You know what I think?”

  “I have no doubt you’ll enlighten me.”

  “I think he wanted to play hero. He found you, an exile living in squalor

  with your daughter, and he decided to rescue you. You preyed on his

  noble instincts, manipulated him, and now you’re toying with him. It

  appeals to your pride to have the Marshal of Krahr pining for you like

  some lovesick puppy.”

  And that was exactly the welcome she’d expected. “It’s refreshing, Lady

  Karat.”

  “What?”

  “Your honesty. I’d prepared myself for murmured insults behind my back

  and ugly glances. I thought perhaps it would take your House a
couple of

  days to build up enough outrage to throw it in my face, but you laid it all

  out in my first hour on the planet. Why, I haven’t even had a chance to

  wash my face after the journey. Truly, you’re a credit to your bloodline.”

  Lady Karat’s dark eyes sparked. In that moment, she looked remarkably

  like her father. “Did you just call me a poor host and insult my family?”

  Maud gave her a narrow smile. “Well, clearly.”

  “And now you called me stupid.”

  “No. Only slow-witted. Are you going to do something about it, or can I

  start unpacking?”

  Lady Karat grinned. “My father was right. I do like you.”

  43

  Apparently, it was a test and she’d passed. Vampires and their games.

  Nothing was ever simple. Maud sighed and stepped aside. “Come in.”

  Karat strode into the quarters and saw Helen on the bed. “Cute kid.”

  Helen bounced off the mattress, flipping in the air, and landed on the

  pillows. “Are you going to kill Mommy?”

  “No,” Karat told her.

  “Good.” Helen went back to jumping.

  “Does she expect you to be killed by random strangers?” Karat asked.

  “That’s the way things were on Karhari.”

  Karat eyed Helen.

  Helen gave her a cherubic smile.

  “She would attack me if I tried, wouldn’t she? She’s building up enough

  bounce to jump across the room.”

  Maud nodded. It was customary to offer refreshments when someone

  visited a room. Where would they have put them? Ah. A faint outline in

  the wall betrayed a niche. She stepped to it, deliberately turning her back

  to Karat, and ran her fingers along the crack. A square section of the wall

  slid forward, revealing a shelf supporting a bowl filled with small pieces

  of jerky twisted into knots and a big bottle of blue wine. Six heavy tulip-

  shaped glasses cut from sparkling crystal waited next to the wine.

  Maud took the wine and two glasses and offered one to Karat. Soren’s

  daughter landed into the nearest oversized chair. Maud twisted the

  round stopper out of the wine bottle, breaking the seal, poured them

  both a glass, and sat into the other chair.

  44

  Karat sipped the wine. “My father asked me to assist you. He’s invested

  in this pairing. I don’t know what you said or did, but that crusty old

  bastard is singing your praises.”

  “In the words of your cousin, Lord Soren’s ‘grizzled exterior hides a gentle

  heart.’”

  Karat chuckled. “Sure, it does. He is suffused with warmth and

  sunshine.”

  Maud toyed with the wine in her glass.

  “Wondering whether to trust me?” Karat asked.

  “Yes.”

  “I’ll make it simple for you: you have no choice. You could go at it alone,

  but it will be much harder. Our House is old and complicated.”

  “Why are you helping me? After all, I manipulated Arland and preyed on

  his heroic instincts.”

  Karat swirled the glittering blue liquid in her glass, making the crystal

  throw a filigree of highlights onto the table. “Arland appears to lack in

  subtlety and seems easy to influence, in truth he’s anything but.”

  “He very carefully cultivates that image.”

  Karat nodded. “You noticed?”

  “Yes. He told me he was no poet, but a simple soldier, and then delivered

  a declaration of love that could’ve come straight from Of Blood and

  Honor.” In fact, it could’ve been included in any vampire saga. It was

  elegant and beautiful, and she’d memorized every word of it.

  Karat raised her eyebrows. “You read.”

  “I do.”

  45

  “Oh good. To answer your question, better people than you have tried

  to manipulate my cousin and failed. He has never proposed to anyone

  before. He had dalliances, but nothing serious. If he asked you to marry

  him, he must love you. And you must feel something for him, because

  you came here without the protection that would’ve been afforded to

  you had you accepted. You’re not his bride. You’re not

  betrothed. You’re nothing. I can see you’re not naïve and you’re familiar

  with our customs. You knew how you would be received, but you came

  anyway. There is something here that the two of you have to figure out,

  and you can’t do that if you are expelled out of our territory or killed. I

  want Arland to be happy.”

  “That’s it?”

  Karat nodded. “Yes. And if he marries, my father will start nagging him

  about children instead of bugging me to get married and get on with

  producing grandbabies. A break from his concerned inquiries would be

  most welcome.”

  “That bad, huh?” Maud asked.

  A shadow of defeat passed across Karat’s face. “You have no idea. Do

  we have a deal?”

  Maud drank her wine. She could trust Soren’s daughter, or she could go

  at it alone. She’d known a number of knights who would’ve come to her

  room just like that, with sincere offers of help—and would’ve proudly

  stabbed her in the back at the first opportunity. Afterward, they

  would’ve boasted about their own cleverness.

  Karat didn’t seem to be one of them. Maud’s instincts told her she could

  be trusted. Her gut had never failed her before.

  “Yes, Lady Karat. We have a deal.”

  46

  Karat sat up straighter. “Good. I’d like to know what we’re working with

  here. What’s your status with the Ervan?”

  “I was married to Melizard Ervan.”

  “Yes, Father told me. Marshal’s son?”

  “Second son.” She’d sunk a lot meaning into that first word.

  Karat toyed with her glass. “House Ervan is a young house. Some

  younger Houses tend to overcompensate by holding fast to the ancient

  traditions even when they no longer make sense. The times when the

  heirs were always warriors, no matter their skill.”

  “My husband was a superb warrior. In personal combat, he knew no

  equal. But he wasn’t as good of a commander as his older

  brother. Melizard liked to play games. His brother didn’t. The knights of

  Ervan trusted him over my husband.” The troops had sensed something

  in Melizard that she didn’t see until the very end. He didn’t value

  them. They were means to obtain a victory and then serve as

  adornments when his success was celebrated.

  “My brother-in-law was groomed for the position of Marshal, and my

  husband was to be become Maven.”

  Mavens handled negotiations for the Houses. They served as

  ambassadors and deal makers. The position would’ve conveniently kept

  Melizard busy and frequently taken him and his schemes away from the

  House.

  “Mavens are respected and feared,” Karat said.

  “He wanted to be a Marshal.”

  There was so much more she could say. About Melizard’s night rages,

  when he stalked back and forth across their quarters like a caged tiger,

  ranting about his family, about his brother being handed everything

  47

  while his talents went unrecognized. About schemes, and petitions, and

  endless plans to prove he was t
he better of the two. About the time he

  marched into his parents’ quarters and demanded to be made Marshal

  only to return like a beaten dog with his tail between his legs. So much

  more.

  “My husband was the youngest son. Admired, babied, and

  spoiled. Denied nothing except what he wanted most of all. To become

  a Marshal, no,” she corrected herself, “to be made Marshal. To have the

  title handed to him.”

  “What did he do?” Karat asked.

  Maud glanced at Helen and lowered her voice. “He tried to murder his

  brother.”

  48

  Chapter 3 Part 3

  February 9, 2018 by Ilona

  Karat sipped her wine. “Personal combat is a perfectly acceptable way

  to settle grievances between competing siblings.”

  If only. Maud leaned back in her chair. “It wasn’t personal.”

  “What?”

  “My husband arranged an ambush for his brother.”

  Karat blinked. “I don’t understand. You did say your husband was the

  better combatant.”

  49

  “My husband also was told in no uncertain terms that his brother would

  become the marshal, and any attempt to sabotage that rise would be

  unacceptable to his parents and his House. He knew if he challenged his

  brother, it would provoke rage among the House. So, he convinced a

  group of his knights to jump his brother as he was coming back from an

  errand. Meanwhile he and I attended a celebration at his cousin’s

  house. The cousin’s older son was granted knighthood. During the

  celebration, my husband made it a point to overtly flirt with a

  woman. He must’ve hoped I would make a scene. I left instead, but that

  was enough. Everyone had noticed our presence and my exit. He was

  establishing his alibi.”

  Karat had forgotten about her wine. “That’s highly dishonorable.”

  “That’s what I told him, when he explained all of that to me that night.”

  “What was his justification?”

  Maud sighed. “That he did it for us, for me and our child. That this way

  we would be more secure, and Helen’s future would be assured.”

  “Did you believe him?”