Page 22 of Immortal Sentry

Panic caught Eron by the throat. His heart raced. Leave here? Leave Kene? “But aren’t we a thorn in the king’s side, stealing from his wealthy friends? Isn’t that enough?”

“We are. But now you must be more than a thorn. You must be a lance. I have no way of restoring your memories. They’ll come back over time. You were too young to deal with what happened to you, and between a mage and your own horror, they were blocked. There are no guarantees, but you might remember someday.” Kene leaned forward and placed a kiss on Eron’s brow.

Now, to ask the next logical question. “What now?” Bits of the overheard conversation flitted through Eron’s mind.

“Because you are ready, and you’re needed. But remember, you are like the son I once longed for, so this tears at my soul.At the next full moon, I must return you to your life. Remember this. There will always be a place for you with me.” Kene pressed her forehead to Eron’s. “Always. Be you Lord Edry or Prince Eron, king or thief.”

Chapter Nine

Eron and Kene rode south, camping out and then spending an evening at Simona’s inn before moving on. Were they going hunting? Kene remained tightlipped throughout the journey. Dark thoughts must be clawing at her mind. She hadn’t smiled or spoken much at all since the mage’s nighttime visit, and she’d looked upon Eron with what looked to be pity when she thought no one could see.

And tonight marked the full moon. Dead leaves crunched under the horses’ hooves.

“This is where we stopped the last carriage.” That venture earned them a tidy sum, though Eron sometimes wondered if the handsome young Davin listened and found himself a better protector.

Eron had tucked a few coins into Davin’s pocket to help him escape.

“We’re not here to hunt.” It wasn’t like Kene to be so tight-lipped.

“Then what are we here for?” Would she tell Eron all about the mysterious mage’s visit?

“You shall see.”

The words sounded so ominous. They finally dismounted in a clearing in the woods. Rotted timbers might once have been a cottage, and a tumble-down, vine-covered patch could have been a shed of some kind.

Wait! These woods seemed familiar. Eron and Kene had indeed relieved a coach of excess baggage here not too long ago and several times before. He’d wanted a kiss if Davin’s pretty lips hadn’t recently been wrapped around the arrogant duke’s prick.

Eron waited through several moments of uncomfortable silence before asking again, “Where are we?”

“Where I found you.”

Eron looked around. Nothing appeared familiar, and yet… A grizzled grandfather of a man, putting Eron on a horse. Traveling here.

Then the man…

They’d killed him. Men in uniforms killed him. Who was he? “Stable master.”

Kene turned to face Eron. “What did you say?”

“The stable master brought me here. Soldiers killed him. The king. My Father. Why would he send soldiers to kill the man who rescued me? Or did he kidnap me?” Thoughts swirled in Eron’s head, a glimpse here, something nearly catching in his mind, then spinning away again.

Kene placed a hand on Eron's shoulder. "He rescued you the day your father was killed."

“And you happened to be here for me?” Eron couldn’t keep suspicion from his voice. He suddenly viewed Kene with new eyes, unsure if he liked what he saw. Had all their time together been based on some scheme?

Kene stepped away, staring at the ground. “I rode hard to get here when I heard of the planned attack. It wasn’t you I hoped to save, but your brother. He was all I could think about. When I found you here, spirited away, I knew my Dafron was dead.”

“Your Dafron?”

“Yes.” Kene looked up, defiance in her eyes along with a haze of tears. “MyDafron. Then your protector died, and I took you instead.”

“You never meant to save me?” Eron’s entire worldview upended.

“It’s not like that,” Kene blurted, running her fingers under her hood and through her hair. “I didn’t know you, but I saved you for Dafron’s sake. I would have saved your sister, too, had I been able, and have listened to every bit of news I could get about her. But it’s for your own sake that I kept you, raised you as my own, no matter how hard that was to be reminded of my failure.”

“Yes, I suppose I was a burden.” Eron marched closer to see Kene eye to eye.

“No!” Kene took Eron’s chin in one hand. “Not a burden. Never a burden. It’s just that… that… well, you are the very image of your brother. So much alike that, at times, it makes my heart hurt to look at you.” She took a stone from her pocket. “The mage who visited gave me this for you. Keep it on you at all times, and whoever looks and would do you harm won’t see the real you. They’ll see you as whatever isn’t a threat.”

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