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On Cue

Chapter 32

Standing side by side with Damon in the soft glow of candlelight, Etienne stared at the ancient shrine and couldn't believe it. All these years, and an ancient fox shrine had been under Wychowl? It was the size of any shrine standing out in a forest, and so, in the small dark room beneath the castle, it appeared massive, looming against the wall, towering as it reached to the high ceiling, covered in white candles and gleaming coins. The shrine was to Hildrith'el, and a tall statue of a great bird stood with wings spread behind the altar, its bright eyes reflecting the many flames around it. The shrine even had a portal: an archway stood in the very center, but unlike most shrines Etienne had seen, no demigod statues were guarding it. A panel beside the inactive portal was glowing with symbols, and looking at it, Etienne realized that he had a quick and easy way to travel to and from Wychowl directly under his castle. And it had been there for centuries.

"Beautiful, isn't it?" Damon said quietly.

The large black Pointer had brought Etienne to the shrine, intent on telling him everything that King Bastian should have told him before his death.

"Each castle in each kingdom has a portal under it, and all the portals are connected to one place," the Poston king said. He gestured at the panel, and Etienne could see there were actually two symbols on it, above which the name of a location had been carved. So the portals weren't connected to one place. Both symbols were glowing and active, but the name above the symbol on the right was half scratched out. Sum . . . Valley? The other place was --

"Avilire," Damon read aloud, clasping his paws behind his back again. "It's a castle out on some secret island, where the rulers of the nine kingdoms once gathered in peace to discuss the future of our world. There hasn't been a gathering since before my grandfather was born, though. No one wants to discuss their differences anymore. Now we just shoot first --"

"-- rape and pillage later," Etienne joked dispassionately.

Damon smiled.

"Maybe a gathering is just what we need," Etienne said thoughtfully. "If everyone could see what a paranoid lunatic arse Adrian is, they might turn against him."

"Only he's not a paranoid lunatic arse," Damon said and shook his head. He glanced at Etienne. "Believe me, I'd know. Prince Adrian is a very sane, very rational arse." So saying, he turned away and started slowly back up the passage, walking at his ease.

Etienne followed. "Okay, so he's not a raving lunatic. We could make him look like one."

Damon chuckled softly. "Good luck with that. Adrian has been playing the game a long time, Etienne. You won't make a fool of him that easily."

Etienne snorted. "If you think so highly of Adrian, why don't you marry him?"

Damon laughed softly. "Speaking of which . . . I must confess, I've become rather fond of your . . . ambassador."

Etienne's eyes narrowed. "What?"

"Judith. The bitch is inescapably lovely. I'm afraid I may have to seek your permission yet again to steal another of your friends from court."

"What?" Etienne repeated. "Judith? No. You can't be serious."

"Oh, but I am. I find her absolutely riveting. And I believe the feeling is mutual. I didn't think it possible, Etienne, but she actually gives head better than my second wife, may she rest in peace."

Etienne made a face. "Bloody hell. No details!"

Damon laughed softly. "I do admit I feel rather guilty about taking your friends and confidants. First Decius, now Judith. Which is why I decided to ask first before I . . ." He stopped and pulled out a small velvet box, flipping open the lid. ". . . propose."

Etienne stared with a sinking heart at the engagement ring winking in the gloom. After a long pause, he swallowed and said unhappily, "It's up to Judith what she wants to do, Damon. Not me." He hated the sadness in his voice and the sympathy that rose in Damon's eyes.

Damon closed the box and tucked it away in his tunic. "It is during a rather difficult time that I'm asking you for so much, isn't it? Your daughter is missing, your son is in danger, and here I am, stealing all the beasts from you who could possibly make you smile."

"That's assuming Judith will say yes," Etienne teased and walked on with the Poston king's chuckles behind him. "So . . . you said the portals are all connected to one place."

"I did."

"But there were two symbols on the panel. Don't tell me you didn't see that," said Etienne.

"Ah, yes," Damon replied, and he sounded very tired. "The SummerValley. The portal to the place still works, of course. But my father cautioned me never to go there. And neither should you."

"Why? Sounds like a nice place for holiday."

Damon chuckled. "It is more dangerous than it sounds, your majesty. This castle? It wasn't built by us dogs. It was a fox castle in times of old. Originally, it was a beautiful palace and the stronghold of Nadheertia's half-sister, Queen Teshale. King Antony built over it when he took it, as he took everything else. Haven't you noticed some of the rather delicate elegance in the architecture? The stone vines and flowers curling over archways? Remnants of Teshale's ancient palace."

Etienne snorted. "And he renamed it Wychowl? No accounting for taste."

Damon smiled, his eyes on the stone floor. "When Ti'uu sent us forth to rule over Aonre, the foxes panicked. They tried to seal off the SummerValley and every portal to it."

"Why?"

There was a pause, and Damon said heavily, "The Summer Valley is the place where all dogs began. There are many who believe that returning there . . . could be the end of us."

Etienne snorted. "Superstitious nonsense. I bet the belief spread to hide yet another truth we'd be ashamed of, that's all. Like maybe dogs were created from a fox's arse or something."

"The end of us, indeed."

Etienne laughed.

They rounded a corner, turning down another dark passage, following the light of the torches on the walls. The shrine was very deep underground and just past several other secret passages only the royal family and their closest servants would know about. Zeinara would have taken such a passage out of the castle. Etienne wondered listlessly if she'd stumbled across the shrine.

As they continued on, Etienne wished Damon hadn't brought up his son. He'd been trying to forget for days. He wanted to just close his eyes and pretend all of it wasn't happening, but he couldn't. He had a son. All these years, and Azrian hadn't bothered to tell him! The very thought made him incredibly angry. How could she keep something like that from him? All the times they'd met in the Halfway Place and she'd said not a word! And now their child was in danger and there was nothing he could do. He didn't even know where his son was! According to Princess Ethelyn's vision, Prince Adrian was going to burn his son with magical flame. The curse from Judith's book, all of it was unraveling, happening right at that very moment, and the thought that he could do nothing about it frightened and angered him more than anything.

And S'pru was burning. Etienne awoke one night with a terrible pain in his back. It was as if he'd had arms there and someone had cut them off. Then he looked out his window and saw S'pru burning and he knew Azrian was in danger. But what could he do? He wasn't a demigod anymore. He couldn't even find his own daughter, let alone fly up to S'pru and save Azrian. He tried to reach her in the Halfway Place - as he had been trying for years - and still . . . nothing.

At night he didn't even sleep. He just stared out the window at S'pru and willed Azrian to be alive.

"How are things with thee, uh, Kingsley affair?" Damon asked into the silence.

"You mean Jonathan," Etienne said darkly.

"Yes."

As promised, when Etienne failed to produce Robin, Jonathan went public with the knowledge of Mogethis and Nkwe's true identities. Now the public hated Etienne, but they also hated Jonathan and all of the Kingsleys for harboring the foxes during the incursion and allowing them to live. Under different circumstances, Etienne might have found the irony amusing, for he had allowed Kesuk to take Mogethis and Nkwe away so that he could execute them. It was Kesuk who allowed Nkwe and Mogethis to live, not the Kingsleys. The sleigh dog cut off their ears and presented the bloody bits to Etienne as proof that the foxes were dead. But Jonathan couldn't know that. He didn't know the full story and only had the distorted view of an outsider. Etienne kicked himself for not telling Jonathan the truth, but he wasn't certain it would matter. Like everyone else, Jonathan had been itching for any excuse to turn on the foxes. And Etienne had indirectly given it to him.

The ban on the Hunt was ignored by the masses, and a hunt for Mogethis and Nkwe immediately ensued. Dogs everywhere wanted their blood, as they were now more than convinced the princess had been kidnapped by them. As a result, foxes were being slaughtered left and right, shot on sight, bagged and skinned. Many were killed because the dogs believed they were Nkwe or Mogethis, but many more were killed because jaded professional hunters had taken Jonathan's revelations as an excuse to engage in their old professions. Varimore was madness at the moment. And all because of Jonathan.

"It's going about as well as one can expect," Etienne said wearily. "I haven't heard back from Captain Franklin in quite some time. Either the search party is dead or they just haven't found Robin and Zeinara. So . . . nothing to worry about."

Damon laughed sadly at the king's sarcasm. "Heavy hangs the head . . . If it's any consolation, Etienne, I will wait until Spring to ask Judith to marry me. I doubt she'd say yes if it meant possibly dying in a fashion similar to my other wives, supposedly due to some 'curse.' Besides, her favorite flowers will be in bloom."

Etienne smiled. "Thanks, Damon."

"No trouble at all, your majesty."

They came to the end of the passage, and Etienne pushed open a section of the wall - which was actually a portrait of one of his ancestors - to find himself back in the bedroom he'd been sharing with Decius for twenty years now. He stepped aside, allowing Damon to emerge before closing the portrait again. Other portraits of his ancestors lined the walls and were in reality just more doors hiding more passages out of the castle. Zeinara had one such passage in her bedchamber, something Etienne now deeply regretted.

Decius was kissing Icarus tenderly when they entered the room. Etienne was only grateful the two weren't banging over the desk. The slaves scrambled apart, Icarus blushed scarlet, and Decius set to work pouring out drinks. Etienne and Damon retired to the armchairs before the hearth and accepted their glasses when they were brought to them. Without a word, Decius also offered Etienne an unopened letter and stepped back.

"Bloody hell, what is it now?" Etienne grumbled. He set his drink aside and fumbled the letter open.

"Good news this time, I hope," Damon said.

After scanning the letter, Etienne let it fall and stared, unseeing, at the fireplace. "Don't get your hopes up."

Damon frowned. "What is it, your majesty?"

Etienne pushed a paw back through his mane and took a shaky drink. "Want the good news first or the bad news?"

"We could use some good news," Damon said dryly.

"I know where Zeinara is. She's in Osterwill, in the Nufetriaz Marches. Staying with a relative, in fact."

Damon raised his brows. "Well, that's good. Is Robin with her?"

"No," sighed Etienne. "My son is. And unless I accept Jule McIntyre as my heir, he's going to kill him."

Damon glowered. "That bastard._Does he really think he can _blackmail his way onto the Emerald throne?"

"Apparently so," Etienne said wearily. "He's already married Zeinara."

"Son of a --! Say the word, your majesty, and I'll send --"

"No," Etienne said quietly, tiredly. "The last thing we need is to stir up a war with Maldoene, for god's sake. King Marcus Kildare wouldn't hesitate to strike. You know the Kildares hate the Kingsleys. They've been looking for an excuse to kill all of us for years."

"That's why my assassin would go. I could send someone to slip in and kill Jule in his bed. Then he'd rescue Zeinara and your son and bring them here to Wychowl. No mess, no fuss." Damon gestured a lazy ring-laden paw and took a drink. "The farce of a marriage would be over, and we could pin his death on someone else. Maybe that Tabitha whore."

"You would risk open war with them?" Etienne shook his head. "I can't let you do that, Damon. If your assassin was discovered, it wouldn't bode well for you and Poston."

"What will you do then?" Damon said reprovingly. "Allow this abomination of a marriage to continue? Zeinara would never forgive you."

"I don't want her forgiveness, just her safety."

Damon made a disgusted noise. He was angry, and Etienne knew why: Etienne had already promised Zeinara to Damon's son. Damon was set to make Prince Sterling the ruler of the free world. Jule McIntyre was now the only thing standing in his way.

"So what are you going to do?" Damon repeated coldly.

"What I should I have done before," Etienne said.

Damon waited, his brows lifted.

"I'll send one of my assassins," Etienne said grimly.

Damon smiled. "Very good, your majesty. For a minute there, you had me worried. We must keep all ties with Maldoene secure. Something is happening in S'pru, and it won't be long until that fire comes down here. When it does, the nine kingdoms will stand together to face it."

"Or we could send someone up there to put the fire out." Etienne sighed. "Where's a demigoddess when you need one, eh?"

Damon nodded. "Or just a very powerful sorcerer."

As if on cue, someone burst through one of the portraits behind them. Etienne and Damon twisted around in their chairs and stared with open mouths as two foxes collapsed on the carpet, bloody and gasping.

"What the --?" Etienne began, but two mastiff guards burst in from the hall, and in a flash, were marching toward the foxes with rifles aimed.

"No, wait!" Etienne commanded and scrambled from his seat.

The mastiffs halted and looked at Etienne uncertainly. It was clear to them that the foxes were intruders and should be dealt with. Even Decius and Icarus seemed perplexed as to why Etienne didn't just let his guards do their job.

"I know one of them!" Etienne said and moved quickly through the room. Several papers went flying off the desk as he fell to his knees beside the foxes. The black fox looked just like . . . but it couldn't be! Etienne reached with a shaking paw and turned the black fox over. He went still. It was.

"E-Etienne?" coughed the black fox hoarsely and tears of joy sprang to his eyes.

Etienne smiled sadly. "Hello, Asres."