Shadows of Kings (The Kin of Kings Book 3) Page 3

  He cursed under his breath. “I think all the guards were summoned to defend against the invasion of Krepps.”

  Alabell nodded grimly. “So we’d better get to them as soon as we can.”

  Basen cupped his hands around his mouth to shout at the Krepp at the front, “It’s a prison down those steps. Rickik and the other Krepps are not there.”

  All the Krepps stopped, probably because their leader halted them. He yelled back to Basen, “What is prison?”

  Basen shouldered his way down the stairs with Alabell right behind, keeping a tight grip on his hand. “It’s where bad men live as punishment for a crime.”

  The Krepp did not reply, but at least he didn’t move. Soon enough Basen and Alabell made it through to the front.

  “I smell Krepp,” the Krepp said, pointing down the stairs dimly lit by sconces on the walls. This was as close as Basen had been to the cells, for he never had any interest in going down here. He smelled nothing and wouldn’t be able to see anything until they descended the stairs, but he knew enough to be confident there were no Krepps down there.

  “We look fast,” the Krepp argued, hurrying down the stairs once again. “How big is prison?”

  Basen sighed. He and Alabell kept up as he answered, “Not very big. The last king accepted money from those who committed lesser crimes rather than imprison them.” He wasn’t sure the Krepp understood, but he took the opportunity to ask an important question. “What is your name?”

  “Crim.”

  So he and Alabell had been ignored before. Basen tried to relieve his building frustration with a few breaths.

  “The rest of your Krepps might be in danger,” Alabell said, her tone sharpened by annoyance. “We have to get to Rickik now, and this is not the right way.”

  Crim didn’t quite have a nose, Basen saw as he looked closer, just two holes above his long mouth. The Krepp tapped them as they twitched. “I trust smell.”

  The stone walls at the bottom were crumbling and uneven. Barred windows allowed in faint light, making the dungeon eerie. There was only one way to go, and a jailer emerged from the shadows, most likely to investigate the noise. At the sight of the Krepps, he let out a shriek and fled.

  Crim began to chase him, yelling, “Tell me Krepps where is!”

  The jailer kept going but shouted back, “To the right.”

  Basen was amazed. There really were Krepps here. But why? Where had they come from? The jailer kept on running until Crim shouted, “Stop or I kill you when grab you.”

  The jailer froze and slowly turned around.

  “Take me to Krepps,” Crim demanded, making fists as he approached.

  The jailer looked old and frail. He carried no weapon, just a pail of water for thirsty prisoners. He wasn’t a threat to anyone. He gave Basen and Alabell a pleading look.

  “You won’t be hurt,” Basen promised. “Just cooperate.” Then he told Crim, “This man helps the prisoners by bringing them what they need. There’s no reason to kill or punish him.”

  If Crim understood, he didn’t show it. He grabbed the old man’s shoulder. “Take me to Krepps.”

  The man nodded in fear and hurried in the direction he’d pointed. They came to wide blocks of cells, each large enough to hold fifteen prisoners. The first one caged a group of pungent yet lively Krepps. None of the barely clothed creatures seemed to notice Crim’s Krepps as they stood around four of the creatures sword fighting with blurring speed. Basen couldn’t decipher if there were teams or if each individual fought for himself, nor could he tell if this was for sport or if they intended to hurt each other.

  “They begged for swords for days,” the jailer said nervously. “So I spoke to the warden and he allowed us to give them four.”

  Crim didn’t seem to hear or understand. He shocked Basen by grabbing the jailer by his chin. “You humans capture Krepps?”

  He spoke as if they were beneath him.

  Basen wanted to tell him that Krepps were belligerent and violent, and they’d probably been imprisoned for good reason. But even if Crim understood, it wouldn’t do anything but anger him, so Basen swallowed his pride.

  “I have nothing to do with these Krepps being captured.”

  Crim ignored him and struck the bars with his weapon to get the Krepps’ attention. They stopped fighting and looked at him, then all ran to the bars in what seemed to be excitement. Krepps behind Basen crowded around him and Crim. Their stink invaded his nostrils while their hard skin rubbed against his arms and ears. He squirmed his way out and found Alabell and the jailer looking on with frozen faces.

  “Why are they in prison?” Basen asked the jailer.

  “They came to Tenred looking to do something about the Krepps who died here during the war. I think they wanted their corpses for burial, but they were spitting and angry and difficult to understand, even with Nebre, the Kreppen translator. They yelled and fought the guards.”

  Alabell took on a worried look. “How long have they been here?”

  “A few weeks. We don’t want to kill them, but we don’t know how to get them to leave once we let them out. We buried their dead along with our own, and there’s no way of knowing exactly where each of those bodies are. We’re not about to let them tear up the entire graveyard.”

  “So they fight each other for entertainment?” Basen asked.

  “They seem to be training most of the time, pointing and demonstrating and trying not to hurt each other, but it does happen frequently. They’ve become much easier to manage since we’ve given them the swords. Before, they spat and yelled at us. Some even threw their excrement.”

  Crim pushed his way through the Krepps and grabbed the jailer by both shoulders. “Open it!”

  The poor jailer couldn’t even speak he was so terrified. Basen told Crim, “He doesn’t have the keys. He can’t open it.”

  Crim certainly understood this time, looking at Basen for a long moment before slowly turning back to the jailer, who he refused to let go.

  “It’s true,” the jailer added. “Only the warden knows where the keys are for each cell.”

  Crim shook the jailer. “Take me to keys.”

  “All right!” the jailer said with a shaky voice. “Let me go, and I’ll bring you to the warden.”

  “Wait,” Alabell said. “First tell us where all the guards have gone.”

  “They heard about an invasion of Krepps into the lower level kitchen, so all were called to defend the castle. They should be there.”

  “They’re not,” Alabell informed him. “We just came from the kitchen.”

  Crim pointed to his nostrils. “I find them. First open for Krepps.”

  The jailer glanced at Alabell and Basen. “Will the warden be harmed?”

  “No,” Basen said, though he wasn’t confident in his answer.

  It wasn’t as if he had the power to stop Crim and thirty Krepps.

  The jailer seemed to understand this, taking in a nervous breath. But without any options, all he could do was sigh and start back the way they’d come.

  On the other side of the hall, human prisoners had gathered around the bars, sticking out their heads with curious eyes. One of them far down called out, “Basen, is that you?”

  His heart shot up to his throat as he recognized the woman’s voice.

  “God’s mercy, mother?”

  She wept and she cupped a hand over her mouth as he ran to her. She extended her arms through the bars. His heart swelled as he took her hands and remembered all the love and support she’d given him throughout his seventeen years. Her betrayal meant nothing in that moment. She’d raised him right, and he would always cherish her for that.

  “Get the key for this cell, too, jailer!” he yelled.

  Alabell looked torn between going with the Krepps and the jailer or staying with Basen as she spun back and forth. The Krepps were shoving the jailer unnecessarily as he was already walking away with them.

  Basen yelled again, “Crim, don’t hurt
any humans, understand?”

  Crim shot a look over his shoulder and spat, whipping his head so that his saliva flew over all the following Krepps and nearly struck Alabell. That seemed to make her decide to stay with Basen, as she gave one last look to the Krepps before hurrying over to him.

  “Are you Juliana Hiller?” Alabell asked.

  “I am.” Tears streamed down from the dark eyes Basen thought he might never see again. He’d longed to see her face, to feel her embrace. Her hair was straight and black, looking almost as it had before. Hopefully she hadn’t been here long.

  “I would’ve given anything to speak to you,” Juliana said. “I’m so happy I now have the chance. I never wanted to separate from you or your father.”

  “I know, mother,” he said without thinking. “I never thought you would choose to abandon our family for Tegry.” As he spoke the words, he realized that this was indeed what he’d always assumed. It was easy to blame his mother for all the terrible days he’d suffered with his father since their exile. She had stayed in the castle with her husband’s brother, as his new wife. His old wife had been exiled with Henry and Basen, though she’d separated from them as soon as they’d reached Kyrro. Basen had no idea where she was now.

  When hunger had kept him awake in the workhouse, he’d thought of his mother living in luxury with the king. But it was only because he had so much anger, and that kind of rage needed a victim. Deep in his heart, he knew his mother would’ve come with them if given the choice.

  “Tegry forced you to stay in the castle, didn’t he?”

  She looked down and let go of his hands. “He forced me to do a lot of things.”

  Basen knew his mother to be beautiful, not just in his eyes, and even more so in her youth. She was fifty-one now, only seventeen when she had her first son, Lexand Hiller. It wasn’t until long after Lexand died that Basen, his father, and the rest of Ovira for that matter, found out that Tegry was Lexand’s blood father. Henry had raised the child as his own, and Basen assumed Henry would’ve killed his brother after finding out the truth, if given the chance. That’s why they were exiled—because Tegry couldn’t have gotten away with executing his brother, his nephew, and his current wife for no reason.

  “He only cared about my ability to birth,” Juliana explained with a cold look in her eyes. “Victoria was more beautiful than me, but she’d lost several children, one after another. Tegry was too impatient for her body to recover, always filling her belly with another child in hopes of having a boy.”

  Basen had often wondered why Tegry and Victoria had stopped having children after two daughters. Rumors had said nothing of Tegry’s impatience and forcefulness, though. I’m sure he controlled what was said around the castle, probably with the help of my father. Everything else had been controlled, so this wouldn’t have been any different.

  Juliana’s voice began to shake. “I wanted to tell Henry after Tegry forced himself upon me, but I couldn’t imagine any good would come of it. If Henry had tried to kill Tegry, he would’ve been executed whether he succeeded or not. Tegry didn’t want his brother to know what he’d done, so it seemed best to keep it a secret. I never got a chance to explain myself when the truth came out. Tegry had me locked in a room while you and Henry were taken out of Tenred.”

  “I understand, Mother.” Basen was such a fool to ever think his mother would abandon them. She always did what was right. It was a difficult subject to speak about with his father, so they didn’t. Basen had seen glimpses of his father’s devastation during their trip to Kyrro. Henry often seemed lost and confused, two traits he’d never shown before.

  Juliana looked cautiously into Basen’s eyes, certainly longing to hear about Henry.

  “Father’s all right,” Basen explained. “But both of us have been caught up in this war.”

  Wrinkles creased her brow. “How? Are you doing something with Krepps?”

  “I’ll explain everything once we have more time.” He looked over his shoulder, hoping to see the jailer and the Krepps returning with keys. They were taking too long. Something was wrong. “Alabell, can you check on them?”

  She nodded and hurried off.

  “Basen, if you’re involved in the war, you might not be safe in this castle.” She spoke in a low voice and looked over her shoulder at the other female prisoners in her large cell. They stared back, clearly listening.

  “She really the queen?” asked one of the younger women wearing a mean look on her face.

  “I told you I’m not the queen,” Juliana said over her shoulder in annoyance. She looked back at Basen. “Ignore them. Why are you here in the castle? You might be in danger.”

  “I’m with Kyrro now. I came here with a small group from the Academy. We brought Krepps with us to recruit allies.”

  “Oh no, no.” She shook her hands, gesturing in a panic for him to leave. “You have to go now if they aren’t returning with the keys.” She tried to look down the hall but couldn’t fit her head through the bars.

  “I don’t see them yet. But Mother, our group is much larger and more powerful than you saw. We accidentally separated from everyone else and have to find them before we can leave.”

  “No matter how powerful your group is, you’re in danger if you’re allies of Kyrro.”

  His stomach felt as if he’d swallowed a stone. “In danger of what?”

  “Of who controls this territory now. Go, Basen. If you find the keys, then hurry back, but if not you must leave.”

  “I can’t leave you or the rest of my group.” None of this made sense. Hopefully his mother had misunderstood the situation, and that’s what all this worrying was about. Whenever she’d gotten like this in the past, he’d eased her mind after a bit of explanation. “Kyrro controls Tenred. We should be safe enough here to pass through. It’s not as if we’re trying to claim the territory.”

  “Kyrro controls nothing here.” She gestured for him to leave. “Go. There isn’t time.”

  “I don’t want to leave without you. Is Javy Rayvender no longer king here?”

  “Tegry’s daughters control everything now, including him. They’re secretly aligned with Tauwin, as they were while Tegry was still alive—during the war between Tenred and Kyrro. They were furious with their father, who everyone assumed would take Kyrro quickly. So during the last war they amassed their own followers and eventually a small army, planning to kill Tegry and claim Kyrro for their own. But everything changed when Kyrro won the war and sent Javy, who would’ve figured out there was a whole other army to worry about. He was captured and would’ve been killed, but he convinced Tegry’s daughters that he didn’t need to remain loyal to Kyrro. He just wanted to live and have some power, which psychics confirmed enough for Tegry’s daughters to trust him. He now acts as the king in case anyone from Kyrro comes to recruit allies…then they’ll be killed in a surprise attack. Like you, Basen, and everyone you brought. He’s here only to trick people in your position.”

  “God’s mercy,” Basen muttered. “How do you know all of this?”

  She bit her lip in a guilty look he’d never seen his mother make before. She’d always been perfect, which was why the betrayal with Tegry was such a shock.

  “Because I plotted with them. I despised Tegry as much as they did, if not more. I wanted him to be punished for what he put our family through, and I wanted to reunite with you and your father. So I helped Crea and Gayla any way I could, which was mostly memorizing information from documents that I was privy to during my role as Tegry’s new and ‘happy’ wife.”

  She sighed. “Tauwin wasn’t much better from what I heard about him, but it was his father who we dealt with. Ken Takary’s death came as a shock and almost made Crea and Gayla decide not to continue their alliance with the Takary family. But Tauwin convinced them to continue the plan they’d made with his father—even after Kyrro won and Tegry was killed.

  “I was detained and put in prison before I even knew the war’s outcome. His daughters
must’ve known that I wouldn’t have wanted to continue the plan. With Tegry dead, I could leave and find you and your father. But they didn’t want me to reveal their plan to anyone, so they put me here.”

  Basen was heartbroken his mother had suffered so much. He shook his head at how much damage Tegry had done to their entire family. Even after his death, his effects on them still lingered.

  “Go,” his mother urged. “Leave this castle as soon as you can.”

  “I must find the rest of my group. And if I can get you out of here with us, then I will.”

  “Only if it doesn’t endanger you anymore than you already are. Go. I love you.”

  “I love you, too.”

  It felt like he was leaving a piece of himself behind as he ran out the way he’d come. He hurried up the stairs two at a time and soon was back in the hall with the warden’s quarters. Krepps were gathered outside, with Alabell and the jailer standing among them with concerned faces. Within, it sounded like the room was being destroyed, wood crashing and breaking.

  “Is the warden in there?” he asked Alabell.

  “No, he must’ve fled when we went down to the prison. The Krepps have been looking for keys but haven’t found them yet. I was worried they’d go elsewhere as soon as I came down to tell you.”

  The warden probably took all keys with. Dammit. Basen would have to come back for his mother later.

  “Crim!” Basen yelled into the room. “Rickik and the other Krepps are in danger and need our help right now!”

  Crim shoved through the huge bodies to get out into the hall. “Certain?”

  “Yes. We have to find them.”

  “Then I smell for them.”

  He yelled in Kreppen, and all the Krepps stopped. At hearing the news, they hissed and drew their weapons.

  CHAPTER THREE

  Cleve looked hard into Javy’s eyes. What was he getting out of this? He’d betrayed Kyrro, obviously, but Cleve couldn’t imagine the citizens or army of Tenred following him. Had someone forced him to turn against his own countrymen?