The Blacksmith Queen (The Scarred Earth Saga, #1) - G.A Aiken Page 0,72
her stomach. “These scars will remain for the rest of my life. So I’ll never be able to forget. But is what she’s done any worse or different than past Old Kings that ruled these lands?”
“Not these lands, Keeley. Never these mountains. The Amichai Mountains have been the lands of the Amichai centaurs, the dwarves, the wood elves, and the barbarian tribes for eons. Only once has any Old King attempted to control these lands and that happened so long ago, I can only say my ‘ancestors’ were there because the use of ‘great-great-great’ would go on for so long you’d get bored and wander away.”
“And what would change any of that now?”
“Your sister.” Caid blew out a long breath and decided to barrel forward with the truth. Keeley had been lied to enough. “We have our own seers. We’ve never just relied on the Witches of Amhuinn with their math and science, because we are one with our gods and nature. Those things combined with our own witches keep us safe.”
“They warned you about Beatrix?”
“No. They told us a queen would be the only thing that stopped the advancement of enemies into our territories and the complete and utter destruction of our mountains. We thought that meant Beatrix . . . we know now that our seers meant you.”
* * *
“But why?” Keeley finally had to ask when she found her voice again; she was so stunned that her tears were no longer flowing. “Wouldn’t Gemma be a better option? She’s a War Monk. She has battle skills. She’s actually been somewhere besides our farm.”
“And she loathes Beatrix with all her heart. That rage and hatred blinds her in a way it does not blind you. It also matters that you weren’t gone for over a decade. You probably know Beatrix better than anyone else. Can guess what her next move will be. Figure out where she’ll strike next.”
“That’s easy enough,” Keeley replied without really thinking. “She’ll want to lock down the security of the royal palace and surrounding lands, and then she’s going to focus on Marius’s brothers . . . and why are you staring at me like that?” she abruptly asked.
“Do I actually have to say? Or can you figure it out on your own?”
She rubbed her forehead. “What if despite all this vast knowledge of Beatrix, I still fail?”
“We all die.”
Eyes wide, Keeley turned her head to look at the Amichai. He gazed back . . . blankly.
“You are such a rude bastard!” she said on a laugh, bumping him with her elbow.
“You were clearly waiting for me to say something like that,” he actually laughed with her, “and I hate disappointing you.”
Exhausted but not in the mood to sleep yet, Keeley rested her head against his shoulder. They sat like that for a long time, neither saying anything. Caid just allowing her time to make up her own mind. But Keeley knew that he was right. She really didn’t have a choice. Whatever happened from here on out would be her sister’s . . . no, not her sister. Beatrix. It would Beatrix’s doing.
“I’ll do it,” she finally said.
“I know. And I will be with you while you do.”
Keeley shook her head and sat up. “No. You and your sister have done enough for—”
“Don’t even bother to argue with me. It’ll be useless. Because we both know that I’ll only do what I want and so will my sister. She’s infamous around here for doing what she wants.”
“Look at that . . . my queenly orders are already being ignored.”
“They are, but for good reason. You’ll need us by your side when you meet with each group. They are not friendly to strangers. Especially human ones.”
“Who will be the hardest to deal with?” she asked, getting to her feet, Caid right beside her.
“The barbarian tribes. Definitely.”
“I thought maybe I’d start with the dwarves first but now I think the barbarians should be first.”
“No,” Caid said with gruff determination. “We will not start with them.”
“I like to get the hardest thing out of the way.”
“And that’s excellent logic when one is creating a great sword. Not when you’re attempting your first alliance. For your first alliance, you should definitely start with the dwarves. But, and I mean this sincerely, Keeley, I’d stay away from discussing your being a blacksmith.”
Keeley gasped. She couldn’t help it! “Why wouldn’t I discuss that? I love discussing that!”
“They’re dwarves. You can’t compete with dwarves.”