The Veredor Chronicles: Book 02 - The Journey West (14 page)

King Edric picked up a glass and took a sip of water. He eyed Eben for a few moments before continuing. ‘
To form the alliance with Everdon I have promised my daughter’s hand in marriage to King Lenard. She is the only heir I have. I believe that a marriage between the Crowns of Irvaria and Everdon at this time would forge the alliance we need and ensure our survival.’

Eben felt a lump
gathering in his throat. ‘As I said to you yesterday: surely she can choose who she wants to marry,’ he said, trying to keep a polite tone but failing.

‘Yes,
it is the eternal law; she can marry whoever she wishes, yet my daughter knows her duty, and she will do what is right to save her people,’ replied King Edric. ‘My agreement with King Lenard is bound by honour. King Lenard knows she does not wish to be courted by him, but he believes strongly that with time she will agree to marry him. You requested to see her. I do not doubt from her behaviour yesterday that she would also like to see you again. I can only assume that your intentions are to begin a courtship. Regrettably, I cannot give my permission; I am sorry, but I must forbid you to see or court my daughter.’

Eben fell s
ilent. He knew he could not accept the King’s mandate, and he was aware that the King knew his thoughts.

‘
Can you assure me you will not attempt to see her again?’ asked King Edric tensely.

Eben r
emained silent. ‘I cannot make this promise,’ he said firmly.

‘
You leave me no choice, Eben Ecorian. I have given my word to King Lenard. I must keep my word. If you attempt to see my daughter I will send you from Faircastle and forbid you to return. As long as you stay away from her you will remain as free as you are now. I realise that you are a man of honour; I know you will follow your heart, but I am also a man of honour, and I must keep my word to King Lenard. I am glad to have you as a guest in my palace. I wish to honour you as the Ecorian should be honoured; however, you must accept that this is my home. These are my rules, and you must obey them.’

**

‘Forbidden! But why?’ asked Red, shocked at hearing of the King’s mandate.

‘I gave my word
I wouldn’t tell the reason, but I cannot accept this.’

‘
But how will you see her?’ asked Stella. Eben had no idea and shook his head.

‘You could climb
the outer wall,’ suggested Red.

‘Don’t make such a suggestion,’ said Stella crossly. ‘Eben would
surely die if he fell.’

‘True
, climbing the wall would be very dangerous,’ said Cassiel. ‘But I just can’t think of any other way to enter the royal chambers.’

‘
If the outer wall is the only option I will have to take it. At least I won’t have to worry about any guards out there.’

‘
How will you know which is her window?’ asked Cassiel.

‘I will
have to hope for the best,’ said Eben with a smile as he stepped out onto the balcony and looked up toward the levels above. The outer stone wall was vertical; small gaps between the stones where the only place for him to take a grip. The others followed him out onto the balcony. They looked up.

‘Eben, it looks very dangerous,’ said Stella.

‘Stella is right; this is too risky,’ said Red, shaking his head. ‘Actually, I think that it’s probably impossible. You should reconsider and wait to see her another time.’

Eben
stood on the railing. He found a place to grip and edged upward, ascending the sheer wall gradually. He climbed slowly, taking as much care as possible.

‘Be careful, Eben,’ called Stella softly
. He glanced down and was surprised how far he had already ascended. The solid ground was at least two hundred and fifty yards below. He felt slightly dizzy as he realised how high up he actually was. His fingers ached as he continued to climb. His friends watched on anxiously. Eventually, after several minutes, he found he was near the upper windows.

He
finally reached a window. Climbing onto the ledge below, he glanced inside. There was an empty sitting room, with a small desk, several wooden cabinets, a table with three bottles of wine, and a bowl of fruit.

The window was not locked and Eben found it easily opened. He slid through into the sitting room. He crossed the room to the door and gently turned the handle, opening the door just enough to see outside. An empty hallway was revealed. He stepped out and tread lightly, listening for any voices as he went. Suddenly a door opened; two men stepped out of a room ahead. He quickly opened a door and dashed into a small room. The two men passed by outside, not aware of him at all.

‘What are you doing here, Eben Ecorian?’ asked
a woman’s voice. He turned to see Lila sitting at a desk, staring up at him in shock. He was in a small bedchamber with a desk, some shelves, and a single window.

‘I’m
looking for Princess Apherah.’ Lila smiled at hearing his words.

‘You won’t find her h
ere. This level is the royal staff quarters. Princess Apherah lives on the uppermost floor.’

‘Can
you take me to her?’

‘I
f I was caught I would be punished for helping you. King Edric has banished me to my quarters for a week for delivering your message to Princess Apherah yesterday. If I took you to the Princess he would probably have me thrown into the dungeons.’

‘Can
you tell me where to go?’

‘Of course
,’ she said, taking a piece of paper from her desk. With some charcoal she sketched some directions. He took the paper and smiled to her.

‘Thank you, Lila.’

‘The map will lead you to the stairs used by the royal staff. They will take you directly to the main royal living quarters,’ she said. ‘Take this key; it opens the door at the top of the stairs. I hope you find her.’

‘I’ll do my best,’ said Eben, stepping into the corridor.

He edged forward along the corridor in the direction of the stairs. After a few minutes the map led him to a small ascending stairwell. He could hear voices in the distance growing louder. He quickly climbed the stairs; after about twenty feet the stairs turned back on themselves sharply. At the top of the stairwell he came to a small landing and a solid ironclad door. A brass bell was hanging on a hook beside the door. He could hear heated voices inside.

‘I simply cannot marry the
Everdonian. He is completely mad! I will never agree!’

‘Listen clearly
,’ said another woman’s voice firmly. ‘King Lenard is our ally, and he belongs to a good family. We simply cannot afford to go back on our promise. You are not yet twenty years old. You do not know what is best for you.’

‘Mother, I know well enough
that marrying him is not good for me.’

‘
This is not about you, Apherah. This is about the kingdom you will one day rule. We are facing an enemy we have never faced before; our days may be at an end. Our alliance with Everdon hangs in the balance. Your marriage to King Lenard will ensure our two kingdoms are united against the Prince of Shadows. This marriage is not about what you want. You must put aside your own wishes for the good of Irvaria. This is the way a good ruler should act.’

The Princess was silenced
by these words. Eben wondered what he should do. He simply couldn’t enter the room with Queen Sera present, and he didn’t want to go back down the stairs because of the risk of being seen.

‘But i
t doesn’t matter if we have an alliance or not. Without Eben Ecorian we don’t stand a chance against the Prince of Shadows. We should be trying to build an alliance with him.’

Again there was a
long silence before Queen Sera spoke. ‘Eben Ecorian is young; I hope that he is not as foolish as you. Be sure that we do have an alliance with him through our friendship with Ortaria. Your father knows we cannot overcome the invading army unless we have an alliance with King Lenard. Even with Eben Ecorian on our side we will not win without Everdon.’ There was a short pause. ‘Apherah, you will forget about the Ecorian when you begin to place your people above yourself. I know you met with him when you tried to escape to Elcalee. The Ecorian is handsome but so is King Lenard in his own way.’

‘Eben Ecorian understands
me. He was prepared to fight the Royal Guards to protect me. He cares about me,’ she said softly.

‘Don’t be
foolish, Apherah. Such thoughts are not for someone of your level of responsibility,’ said the Queen. ‘I am sure you will make the right decision. We will conduct your wedding with King Lenard before the army marches south. The alliance between Irvaria and Everdon must continue. I will leave you to reflect on this conversation.’

A few moments later Eben heard the creaking sound of a
door opening and then the thump of it closing. He waited for at least thirty seconds and then placed the key in the door. He opened the lock and gently pushed the door. A large sitting room was revealed. He looked around and couldn’t see anyone. The room was indeed luxurious, with fine silk pillowed chairs, fine couches, and wooden tea tables. Royal red curtains fell beside the windows, and crystal chandeliers hung from the ceilings above. The wide windows revealed a magnificent view over the city. Eben glanced around and Princess Apherah was nowhere in sight. He stepped into the room and quietly crossed the floor.

There was movement from
out of the corner of his eye. He saw a blade fast approaching. In an instant he drew his sword and deflected the incoming blade. Princess Apherah dropped the short sword and stared at him in a state of shock.

‘I’m sorry, Eben
. I thought you were an assassin. Why didn’t you ring the bell?’ Her eyes were wide with surprise. ‘How did you get by the guards without being seen?’ she asked as the initial shock melted away.

‘That was
the easy part.’ he replied, placing the Sword of Light back in its scabbard. Eben looked at her and was again struck by her immense beauty.

‘You really shouldn’t be here, Eben. My father will banish you from F
aircastle if he catches us together.’

‘I
don’t’ mind if he does,’ he replied, feeling untroubled by the consequences. ‘I came because I wanted to see you again.’

S
he stared at him for a moment, expecting him to say something more. ‘Is that all?’ she asked, raising an eyebrow.

‘I
have to say I was disappointed to read that you are actually considering the possibility of marrying King Lenard.’

‘It is not an easy decision,’ said Apherah, frowning and looking away. ‘I am only considering the marriage becaus
e my people are threatened. We need the Everdonians.’ She looked sadly toward the window. ‘I have little choice, Eben. My father is insisting that I go through with the marriage. My attempt to escape Faircastle was a desperate move to avoid the inevitable.’

‘There m
ust be another way,’ said Eben.

‘Why do you
care so much, Eben?’ she asked, staring at him with sad eyes.

‘Because I want to protect you, and I…’

Footsteps could be heard coming from behind a door. Apherah grabbed him by the hand. They dashed behind the red curtains just as a door opened and someone entered the room. She looked up at him with a sweet nervous smile as they stood completely still.

‘Apherah!
’ called King Edric’s voice. They both held their breath and listened as the footsteps crossed the room and then faded away.

‘It’s my father,’ she whispered
. ‘Let’s go.’

Apherah led him across the
room and to a stairwell that ascended sharply. In seconds they had climbed the steps to an upper doorway. She pushed open the door at the top and the rooftop of the palace was revealed. A completely flat stone surface was surrounded by a waist high wall that followed the outer edge. Seven towers rose high into the sky above. Eben looked at Apherah as he watched her silky hair blow in the wind. She looked at him and smiled sweetly. A moment later she glanced up at the flags flying high above.

‘The White Unicor
n once flew where the White Dragon now flies. I wonder if it will fly again?’ she asked, looking back to him. Eben glanced up at the red flags. For a few moments he thought about what she had said. He then looked back to her, her ocean coloured eyes were fixed on him, and her beauty was overwhelming.

‘T
he White Unicorn will only fly here again if you are the one to raise the flag.’

‘Only an Ecorian has the right to raise the flag
of the Ecorian Empire,’ she said, staring at him inquisitively.

Eben nodded and smiled.
She beamed at him when she realised what he really meant. They moved closer, and he took her hands. He looked into her eyes and knew in that moment she understood. Apherah smiled radiantly as all her sadness drifted away and was replaced with hope and joy.

‘Apherah, would you consider…’

The door from the stairwell burst open. King Edric stepped onto the rooftop followed by a dozen guardsmen. He marched toward them with hard and angry eyes. They turned to face her furious father.