Page 125 of Knight's End
I gave them a smile. And then my eyes drifted over my knights once more. They stood smiling, polite, completely unaware of what I was about to do.
My heart swelled so large I thought it would burst through my chest.
“You may not know that Queen Diamoni, our Declan’s mother, tried to steal him back when we went to work out treaty terms.”
A gasp went up through the crowd and Declan’s eyes flew to mine. I turned and kept my gaze steadily on his light blue eyes. I watched my blond scholar’s face grow pink as I continued. “You may not know that she tried to use him as a weapon when the sea witch attacked her gates.”
Mutters started in the crowd. But I had only begun. “Despite this betrayal by his own mother, our Declan showed true loyalty to Evaness. He was essential in capturing Queen Isla. Without him, we wouldn’t have formed a treaty with Rasle.”
I turned to Blue. His eyes were dark, and his mouth set in a steady line.
Go ahead,he mentally told me.
I looked back at the crowd. “You may not know that King Raj tortured his oldest son for many years, turned him into a bluebird, and sent him here as part of a plot to murder me. Despite all of that, Abbas, whom I’ve come to call Blue out of fondness for that little bird, has proven himself loyal. He has sacrificed himself in so many ways. Most recently, he helped read thoughts, so I didn’t blunder my way through negotiations with Gitmore. He helped secure the undead army that fought the sea witch.”
Applause erupted and I paused again.
I turned to Connor. He chewed his lip thoughtfully as he stared at me, giving me a knowing shake of the head. He whispered, “Now I know why you didn’t want to practice with me.”
I ignored him and turned back to the crowd. “Connor has used healing magic to save the lives of countless soldiers. He helped save Ryan midair. He saved Princess Avia from what was certain death. And those are his dramatic contributions. But he’s also been our diplomat. He’s reached out to Macedon and Lored. He’s the one who got the Queen of Gitmore to agree to a meeting. Without his many skills, I can assure you, we wouldn’t be here today. He works tirelessly, often in the background, to ensure Evaness has the best possible existence.”
Applause took over once again.
I turned to Ryan. My dark giant stared down at me, the smallest of smiles on his face. His eyes were full of love and promises of future spankings if I sold him out like the other three. I simply smiled back up at him and then turned to the crowd as my arm swung to point at him.
“We all have always known Ryan is an amazing soldier. A local man who rose through the ranks. But his dedication to all of you, his refusal to quit, is beyond anything I’ve ever seen. Did you know he used his magic under the sea? He’s the only reason we survived under the ocean. He fought against all that water for nearly a day. Because of him, we were able to rescue Princess Avia. His strength is indescribable. But his loyalty to all of you is even more so. Ryan was injured in battle, and when we offered to use rare magic to save him, he refused. This man refused to be treated any better than a soldier. He wouldn’t let himself be treated better than any of your sons.”
A roar ran through the crowd.
I waited until it had died off. Then I said, “I know that among you, Quinn has a reputation as eerie. I don’t know that an effective spy master can be much different. But let me tell you, this man has suffered, more than I can even describe. He was given wish powers. Every single one of his three wishes went to protect this country. Every single one of those wishes cost a living nightmare.”
The intake of breath was audible. The crowd knew exactly what I meant. Of course, rumors had been circulating for days. So, some version of the story had gone around.
I continued, speaking over the whispers, “The worst of these nightmares was that he was forgotten. I didn’t recognize him. My knights didn’t recognize him. No one knew him. In my mind, there can be no worse fate. To do so much yet fade into the ether without anyone remembering your name. That’s why …”
I paused and took a deep, bracing breath. My chest was weighed down by the intensity of what I was about to say. Nervous excitement ran underneath my skin as I announced, “That’s why I have decided that today is the end of the knights of Evaness. I will no longer allow these men who have sacrificed so much, and given so much, to be considered less than me. By royal decree, I officially revoke the Hierarchical Law Seventeen, which states the Queen’s husbands are to be called knights. Instead, I present to you, the five kings of Evaness.”
* * *
Kings, Dove?Quinn shook his head as he walked to the window and looked up at the moon. His serious gaze contrasted the thoughts he sent to all of us.I don’t know if Connor can handle that.Quinn sent us all an image of Connor gnawing on the jewels of his crown like a squirrel gnawed on acorns.
“I’m fine. It’s Declan you need to worry about,” Connor retorted as he kicked off his boots in my chamber and strolled over to get a bowl of grapes.
“Me? Why me?”
Ryan laughed as he sat in his chair by the fire. “Because you’re the one who’s most likely to go about making ridiculous laws, like telling people to stop dumping their piss pots in the street.”
“Well, that’s just common sense,” Declan retorted. “It should have been a law years ago.”
Ryan rolled his eyes.
Blue asked, “What the hell else are they supposed to do with them?”
Declan sighed. “We need a collection system. It’s been on the back of my to-do list for years, but maybe now—”
“No. You have more important things to deal with than shite,” Connor grumbled. “We have a winter to get through.”
Declan rolled his eyes. “Ryan’s got it covered. We worked on grain yesterday.”
