Chapter 42

We had eaten early that morning and had packed enough food to last us the rest of our journey. Cardinal city was a little less than a day away. Once there, we would go to the Kestrel’s house they owned when they were summoned to court. Our horses were fresh and ready to haul us to our final destination. I dreaded our arrival at my old home. The beautiful childhood I had in Cardinal city was now tainted by the events during the uprising.

Cardinal city sat atop a mountain. The steep rocky mountainsides protected it, and the only way in or out was through the thick, dark forest that lined it from the south. It was a stronghold. The only way the city could be attacked was from the woods, leaving the attackers vulnerable to the assaults by the gatehouse and battlements. The northern, eastern, and western sides had fortified and patrolled walls that blended with the jagged rocks of the mountain that descended to the ocean. The ramparts served as the first line of protection for the castle and its inner city. It reminded me of a peninsula, except air surrounded it, and the city was high above the clouds.

I had thought long and hard at how Osprey had commandeered the castle. He had had to have done it from the inside first. Then, once the outside walls were garrisoned by his men, he could have brought forward the catapults that were most likely hiding in the forest and used them to destroy the castle walls. He must have carefully planned it for months, not to mention the difficulties he must have encountered bringing those catapults through the forest undetected.

Xander explained how we would need to get into the city, but the only wild card we had in our hands was Nimu. He had moments of lucidity, then he would return to his demented state. We did not know if he could make it across the gatehouse without blabbering nonsense and make the guards suspicious. According to Xander, all of us except himself wouldn’t need to speak.

Before arriving within the city’s view, I had changed my riding attire for a respectable dress that made it difficult to ride on horseback. I needed to ride side-saddle, and I was afraid this might look fishy since noble ladies usually arrive in a carriage, not atop a horse. Not only that, but side-saddles were also different from regular riding saddles, and since we didn’t have a real one, I was highly uncomfortable sitting on my horse. My hair had been braided and hid under a big ridiculous hat Xander had bought in Waxwing village before departing. Diana had pinned it in place, so it didn’t blow away with the wind that rose the higher up the mountain we went.

It was nearing sundown when the gatehouse came in sight. My heart leaped to my throat, and my face became paper-white. The sun shone deep red, making everything take on a reddish tint. Luckily, it would hide my hair colour. I pinched my cheeks to force a bit of blood back into them and smoothed the wrinkles of my dress. Diana looked me over and nodded her head, which I thought meant “you look fine.” I was slightly relieved, but my stomach kept churning.

Nimu sat in front of Diana. She tried to soothe him and tell him to keep silent. I just hoped everything would go well.

“Halt and state your business.” Called out the head guard.

More sentries spilled out and fanned around us.

“I am Lord Alexander Kestrel, son of Duke Kestrel. I am here on business investigating rebel activities. They attempted to take my life, and I am here looking to consult the Arcane Library for any information that would aid in my quest. I understand his highness, King Osprey, has been collecting intel on the rebellion cause.”

Xander followed his statement by letting them know who we were to add our names to their ledger. Nimu stayed silent while they inspected our bags. I soundlessly prayed to the Faiths that he kept quiet.

“My Lord, welcome to Osprey city. If what you say is true, please allow one guard to escort you and your party to your home here in the city.”

I darted my eyes towards Diana, who only shrugged her shoulders at my questioning look. Osprey city? That bastard Osprey changed the name of my home. I was fuming on the inside.

The head guard then allowed us entry through the gates. I still had pressure in my lungs as we moved inside the city. It was making it hard to breathe. It could also have been my corset that was too tight. My senses were on high alert for anything. I didn’t want anyone to recognize me. I looked everywhere to see if the remains of my parents were still hanging from the walls, but it relieved me to see nothing.

We passed through the cobblestone roads where many vendors were closing shop for the night. They stationed guards almost everywhere, ensuring order and being ready to intervene if something went awry. Our guide took us near the city's center, close to the castle, and bid us farewell once we reached a lovely little townhouse in a row. The row of houses hadn’t changed since I was here. They had also been previously used to house the king’s advisors in the past. While most of them had a residence in the castle, others had preferred to stay in the city with their families while staying here.

The city still looked the same, but its feel had changed.

“There’s a curfew, so you should all go inside before they pester us,” Xander mentioned while giving the reign of his animal to a small stable boy that had appeared. The boy moved over to us, ready to take ours as well.

“I need to send word to my father about what has happened. He most likely heard that I was in an explosion. I’ll let him know we are here to continue the investigation. I’ll return shortly. Don’t answer the door to anyone except me.”

“Yes, milord.” Answered Diana.

We all dismounted and headed in. Diana and I set on making fires to warm the house. We then removed the cloths that draped the sofas and tables. This house had not been used in quite some time. It was stuffy, with dust moats floating around everywhere. We would need to air it out. Leo helped us prepare the beds and get some water boiling for all the basins and tubs so we could clean the dirt of the road off our faces.

By the time we were done, Xander had returned, and we sat in the dining area, going over what was going to happen the next day.

“They’ll likely inform someone at the Arcane Library that I intend to come over to look at the information they have gathered on the rebels. I presume someone will knock on our door tomorrow morning and escort us over there. The library is well guarded and only a select few can enter. Since you are my fiancée and Diana will pose as your lady’s maid, you should be allowed to come with me, but they’ll probably show you to a section that’s not very interesting to pass the time. Once in there, Diana, that’s when you and Ida find whatever it is you are looking for.”

“That shouldn’t be a problem. I know that building inside and out. We can take a secret passage that will lead me right where I need to go. You’ll need to give us about an hour before I get what we need. Do you know if the Arcane Library still has the memory room?” Diana asked Xander.

I had heard of the memory room. It was an area in the library where they stored magical orbs that contained memories. If something important happened in the presence of a magic wielder, that wielder could hold their memory of the event in a magic sphere. Afterward, you simply needed the right spell to look at the memory as though you were there. Many used it to record meetings or important events. The orbs would look like small crystal balls. I remember my father had sent his collection there. The library's curators did not know how to look at the memories, but they stored and protected them, nonetheless.

“I’m not sure.”

“I’ll try to find it. There are a couple I’d like to look at. Ida will help me out with the spell to unlock them.”

“But I have no notion on how to open them, Diana. If it’s too risky, then we should hold off getting to them.” I said, a little uncertain.

“Nonsense. I am certain we’ll be able to figure something out. I want to see if your father recorded you being bound. If he did, we’d know exactly who to look for.”

“But Nimu said that that person was already looking for me. Shouldn’t we just wait until they find us?”

“I’d rather not take that chance, Ida. Nimu says a lot of things. Some are very plausible, while others need to be taken with a grain of salt.”

I pressed my lips into a thin line. Diana had a point. However, I still thought that it was too dangerous. Should I not be able to cast the spell that unlocked the memory orb, it would hinder us, and we could get ourselves caught. We couldn’t also forget that this place was likely crawling with hunters. We needed to be stealthy, and trying something that we didn’t even know would work seemed like a bad idea. Still, I trusted Diana and her judgment, so I nodded, and we completed the plan.

After the following day, we would finally know what I was or be imprisoned on death row for treason. Both options scared me to death, but we didn’t have any other options. We had come this far; it was not the time to back down.