Chapter 60
Daphne and Arthur shared dinner in a warm quiet, neither intruding on each other’s quiet thoughts. It was nice to sit together. For a little while, it felt as though they were back in Sharp Armor. They changed for bed and climbed in to cuddle close together in the center of the bed.
Arthur sighed, “I really like this bed.”
Daphne laughed, “It is really nice not to be crammed together.”
“I love you, Daphne.” Arthur kissed her head and stroked her hair gently, “I promise I’ll keep you safe. Just like always.”
“I know.” She smiled, shifting a bit closer to him, “I love you too, Arthur.”
She sighed, slipping into sleep as quickly as she could manage. She drifted into the darkness of sleep until a woman’s weeping started drawing her out of it.
Who was crying?
She opened her eyes and looked up into a face she had only seen in portrait, crying softly above her. Her mother’s golden eyes looked down at her, remorseful and pained.
“Don’t cry, love,” a man’s voice said, coming into view as Daphne shifted. She felt warm, safe and so small. The man was handsome with dark hair like hers and eyes like her grandmother’s.
Her heart jumped as she realized that the man was her father. Was it a dream or a memory? She wanted to ask but all she managed was a soft cooing sound. She reached out and saw tiny, soft hands reaching up. Her mother gave her one of her fingers.
“What else can I do knowing what’s to come?”
Her father’s expression turned stiff and he lifted her out of her mother’s arms, cradling her close.
“We’ll find somewhere to live where no one will find us. Where you can find us when it’s over.”
“You and I both know that isn’t likely.”
His eyes turned dark. He felt tense and Daphne had the feeling that this was something they’d argued about before.
“Find us when it’s safe to.”
Her mother sighed and leaned into view with a little smile, pressing a kiss to her head.
“Live a long happy life,” she said. “Find love and happiness as a normal woman. That’s all I can hope for you, Daphne.”
Daphne opened her eyes to the soft light of the morning coming in through the windows. Arthur was gone already. She sat up sharply, thinking about the dream. There was no doubt that it had been a memory of some kind, but what did it mean? It seemed as though her mother had been in trouble. As if she had sent her and her father away for their safety and they were supposed to be reunited.
She shuddered thinking about what her grandmother told her about her parents. She’d lied about her mother dying in childbirth, but had she also lied about her father's suicide? They had seemed to love each other dearly. He seemed resolute about waiting for her to join them when it was safe for her to do so, but had it ever been safe? What could she have been involved in that they had to separate?
She knew now that she was born in the last year of the war against the vampires, but she was human. There was no reason that her mother would be involved with that.
Had there been a human war she had never heard about?
She sighed and ran a hand through her hair before getting out of bed. She dressed quickly and headed down to the kitchen to get some late breakfast. The dream came to mind as she wandered the castle looking for Arthur.
Arthur had been having dreams about his past for a while now. If there was anyone she could talk to about it, it was Arthur. However, when she found Arthur he was in the courtyard with a large group of werewolves going through training drills.
They looked different from the drills he’d gone through in Sharp Armor, and Arthur seemed to be leading the instruction.
She couldn’t disrupt him training their defenses for this, so she headed back to the kitchens to help restore the provisions and organize the carts that would be leaving when the werewolves left the castle in a few days.
She hoped that she would get to see him again before lunch, but he skipped lunch and dinner came without sight of him either. She woke alone again the next day and didn’t see him all day. The servants said that he was still on the grounds, but none of them could direct her to exactly where he was.
She knew he came to bed every night, but not seeing him was making her more anxious. Had something else happened and he was just trying to protect her? Maybe the situation at Sharp Armor had gotten worse?
She huffed, feeling ridiculous. Arthur wouldn’t hide anything like that from her. He was probably just busy. The least she could do was to be just as busy. She went to join the servants patching clothing and weaving blankets and took up a pair of leggings and a needle and thread.
She tried to focus, but her mind kept wandering to the dream. She winced at a prick of pain in her finger and dragged her thoughts back as her mother’s voice, full of worry and regret, filled her head.
What else can I do knowing what’s to come?
She pulled her thoughts back to the present as she poked herself again and glared at the patch she was showing. It was ridiculous. She’d sewn patches into clothes hundreds of times since she was old enough to hold a needle. It shouldn’t be so hard to focus on such a simple task.
Find love and happiness as a normal woman. That’s all I can hope for you, Daphne.
“Daphne,” Mamie called. Daphne looked up at her. She hissed as she poked herself and sucked on her finger. “That’s the third time you’ve poked yourself… At this point, it would be treasonous to let you keep trying.”
Her face burned with embarrassment at the soft giggling that went around the group. She sighed and put the needle back in the pincushion.
“You know… I think I heard the soldiers come in for dinner if you wanted to eat with His Majesty?”
Daphne wrinkled her nose, “He probably isn’t going to be there long—”
A gasp filled the air as the maids bowed their head, “Your Majesty.”
Daphne turned seeing Arthur standing in the doorway. His hair looked a little wet as did his clothing, but it didn’t seem to be sweat. Had he tried to clean up before coming here?
“Daphne?” Arthur said, smiling at her. “Care to join me for lunch?”
Daphne nodded, getting out of her seat and going to him as quickly as she could manage. He took her hand and she waved Mamie goodbye.
Arthur led her through the castle towards a secluded atrium where lunch was laid out on a low table and flowers were set in a vase. Daphne chuckled, thinking of the bouquet he’d brought her back on Sharp Armor.
“You already have all the points, Arthur,” she teased.
Arthur gave her a serious look, “And I should make sure not to lose them. I’ve missed you. I’ve been running around with training and everything….”
He squeezed her hand, “I thought… it would be nice to spend some time together.”
She nodded, “It is. Thank you, Arthur.”
They sat at the table and ate. They were halfway through the meal when Daphne remembered that she wanted to tell him about her dream.
“Arthur, I had a dream about my parents.” He sat up and leaned forward with a little smile. His expression was eager and expectant. “They were—“
“Excuse me, Your Majesties,” Blade said coming towards them. Daphne tried not to sigh as she looked up at Blade. “It’s… a matter of importance.”
Arthur sighed and looked at Blade, “I know it is if you’ve come to find me. What happened?”
Yesterday, Blade led the first patrol after training the werewolves that had come to help Sharp Armor. It had gone smoother than the last time they’d had aid from other territories until they neared the border.
Just inside the vampire lands, a group of vampires had been waiting, seemingly watching for them to come by. Blade had been apprehensive, but the vampires didn’t make a move to attack them.
“What do we do?” One of the werewolves asked.
Blade told them to stand down and went to the edge of the tree line. He was close enough to be heard but far enough to have time to react if they proved to be hostile.
“Are you werewolves of the kingdom’s forces?” The one in front asked in a clear and authoritative voice. Her tone was cold, but she didn’t seem hostile.
“Why do you ask?” Blade asked.
“We’re an envoy from the vampire monarchy,” she said, scanning the group. “We want to speak to the king of the werewolves.”
