Chapter One
Freya rode through the streets of the city with her companions, but in her memory she was back to being all alone. Kalborg was the city where she'd been born and raised, at least until she'd reached the age of just past twelve. That was when she'd run away from home, leaving behind her merchant family and a life that was already beginning to bore her to death.
Her parents had refused to hear about her doing anything but learning "womanly" things around the house, in preparation for her doing those same things for a husband. For the rest of her life. And the way they'd lectured her every time she got into a fight with one of the boys. Good girls don't do that, they'd repeated over and over. Good girls behave themselves and do as they're told. Well, she'd pretty much proved what kind of girl she was when she'd packed a few things and left that city.
"This place looks pretty prosperous," Evrin commented from where he rode his own horse to the left. "And the people look more satisfied than not. I guess that revolt they had a few years ago really did make things better instead of worse."
"From what I heard, it would have been worse if they hadn't had that revolt," Shinder answered from his place to Freya's right. "The company was in a different kingdom at the time and I was with them, but the word was the king here was a greedy fool who didn't have the sense to know when to stop stealing from his subjects. He announced a law that would have turned everyone in the realm into a beggar, and that was the final straw. The people pulled him down, and the new king immediately started to change things."
Mention of the company brought a pang of regret to Freya, just as it probably did to her four companions. The mercenary company had been Freya's home for about six years, but a couple of months earlier their captain had made a fatal mistake. He'd accepted a commission from the wrong people, and the second fight against their opponents had become their last. There weren't even a full dozen survivors of that fight, and Freya and the others with her were the only ones among the survivors who had stayed together.
"And a couple of years ago things changed again," Loria said from just ahead, where she rode next to Reggin, turning slightly in her saddle. "The new king died of something natural even though he wasn't all that old, and the people worried about his son and heir taking over. But the newest king turned out to be at least as good as his father if not better, and he even won the fight against one of this realm's neighbors when the other king tried to invade a short time ago. His troops took a beating because they were outnumbered, but the new king still won the fight."
"And now they need experienced fighters to help train the new army they're raising," Reggin added to Loria, his tone making it sound as if he were reciting a boring lesson. "Yes, dear, that is why we're here now, looking for a new home at least until we locate another company willing to take all of us. Or take those of us who aren't tired of living free and easy."
No one said anything in response to Reggin's prodding, mostly because they'd heard his complaint before. All five of them had been wounded in that last fight, some worse than others, and both Loria and Shinder had mentioned in passing that they were thinking about retiring from the life of a mercenary. Oddly enough those two were both blue-eyed blondes, Loria in her early thirties with Shinder a few years older. Evrin, like Reggin, with brown hair and eyes and in their mid to late twenties, hadn't said anything about retiring. But Evrin didn't make a habit of announcing his intentions, so it was anyone's guess as to what he'd do.
Which left Freya, the youngest of them by a handful of years or so. She hadn't been hurt all that badly in the fight, so the idea of settling down didn't appeal to her very much. There were still things she wanted out of life that she hadn't found yet, which meant that when Reggin left she would probably go with him even if the others didn't.
Freya was closer to the others than she was to Reggin, who tended to be a troublemaker when he got bored, but he wasn't someone you had to watch your back with. He respected Freya as a fellow fighter, and once they'd shared sex a time or two he'd even stopped thinking of her as female. Or at least he'd stopped staring at her with hunger in his eyes. Freya knew she wasn't particularly gorgeous, but with Reggin all you really had to be was female…
"It's almost noon," Evrin said after a minute or so, obviously changing the subject Reggin had raised. "Do we find an inn and take rooms and a meal before going to the palace, or do we go directly there and hope they'll feed us? Those clouds moving in say we're probably in for some rain."
"If we're taken on, they'll probably give us rooms as well as feed us," Freya pointed out while the others considered their options. "Why spend the silver on rooms and food if we don't have to?"
The others all said something to show they agreed with Freya's idea, so the matter was settled. What Freya didn't say out loud was that the sooner they got to the palace, the happier she'd be. Moving around in the city it was always possible she'd run into someone who remembered her even after something like ten years, but that wasn't likely to happen in the palace. She hadn't mentioned that Kalborg was her original home, and hopefully would never have to.
The palace was located in the middle of the city, a handy place for a good king, a stupid place for the kind of king who had been pulled down. Only two guards stood with their halberds in front of the main gate leading onto the palace grounds, and it was fairly obvious the guards weren't there to keep out attackers. They were supposed to keep out gawkers and those who wanted to pester the king, and the two knew immediately that Freya and her companions didn't fall into either category.
"You folks here to apply for jobs?" the guard on the left asked, glancing around at all the leather the newcomers were wearing. Leather usually meant mercenaries, and the well-worn sword hilts visible confirmed the easy guess.
"We heard your king needs instructors for his new fighters," Reggin confirmed, his faint smile probably showing he'd noticed the hopeful tone the guard had used. "We're all battle-experienced, so we thought - "
"The man you want to see is Captain Orin Stater," the same guard said at once with a wide smile. "Tell one of the men standing a post near the palace, and they'll go and get him. Good luck."
"Thanks," Reggin answered, and Freya could see that he fought not to laugh at the guard's eagerness as the two men stepped aside to let them through the gate. And it was fairly clear why the guards were so eager, Freya thought as she and the others continued on. The two men had been holding halberds, but they hadn't been holding the weapons in the right way. They didn't know how to use the halberds, and were looking forward to changing that dangerous state of affairs.
"Nice to see that we're really needed," Evrin murmured from Freya's left as they moved at a slow trot toward the palace. "If they try to hire us for coppers we can laugh in their faces and walk away."
"Without having to worry about fighting our way clear," Freya agreed with a grin. "All we'll have to do is yell 'Boo!' and they'll turn and run. Maybe we ought to try it even if they don't offer us coppers."
"Let's not exercise our senses of humor unless we're provoked," Shinder said from Freya's right, faint exasperation in the way he shook his head at her. "We all know how much you like to play tricks, Freya, but you have to know that this isn't the place for it. We need a safe place to rest up for a while, and taking hire here will also fill our pouches instead of costing us every copper we have. For once try to behave yourself."
Freya smiled but didn't answer in any way, a response that was guaranteed to annoy Shinder. She wasn't scatterbrained enough to ruin things for everyone because she couldn't keep from playing tricks, but there was no need to say so. From time to time Shinder liked to play the "older and wiser head" to her "wild child," and showing her annoyance did nothing to discourage him from the practice. Pretending she was going to do the exact opposite of what he'd said worked much better, causing him to think twice before he started up with her.
If the ride had been longer Shinder might have added to what he'd already said, but a moment later they drew rein in front of the palace. Reggin started to ask for Captain Orin Stater, but the guardsman he spoke to smiled and shook his head.
"No need to send for the captain," the guardsman told them. "We saw you coming so we sent word right away, and that's Captain Stater right there."
The guardsman nodded toward a big man who was striding toward them from the right, in front of another uniformed guardsman who was probably the one who had gone after the captain. Stater, with black hair and eyes, also wore a uniform, but the way he moved said he could use the sword hung to his left.
"Good morning, people," Stater said as soon as he stopped not far from where Freya and the others sat their horses. "Is there something we can do for you?"
"We heard you're looking for weapons instructors," Reggin said, showing his own smile for the smile Stater was giving them. "Our company was recently disbanded the hard way, so we're available for hire. You'll probably want a demonstration of how good we are, and if so we'll be glad to come back after lunch to give you one."
"After lunch will be fine, but there's no need for you to go elsewhere to eat," Stater answered, his dark eyes almost gleaming. "We'll be glad to feed you, and then you'll be right here for the demonstration. One of my men will show you to the stables, and after you give your horses to the grooms we'll supply a place for you to wash up after your ride. When you're ready you'll be shown to the mess hall - if you all agree."
Freya and her companions lost no time agreeing, and then they followed the guardsman who was assigned to show them where the stables were.
"Five new instructors is more than that man hoped to get," Evrin murmured as they rode slowly after their guide. "I could almost see him figuring out how many more men he can recruit with five of us to do the teaching."
"Or three, at any rate," Freya murmured back. "The good captain was looking with greedy eyes at you, Shinder, and Reggin. Loria and I got no more than a glance."
"That's because he hasn't seen you and Loria using weapons," Evrin answered with amusement. "Don't tell Reggin I said so, but everyone considered you two 'delicate flowers' better fighters than Reggin. If, after the demonstration, Stater doesn't offer hire to you and Loria as well as to us, we'll probably end up moving on."
Freya nodded her agreement with that, feeling again the warm acceptance that good companions brought. She'd never had that kind of acceptance from her parents, but the substitute family she'd found, the company, had done the job right.
It didn't take long to hand their horses over to the stablemen after they'd all taken their saddlebags. Their guide waited to show them to the rooms they'd been told about, and Freya exchanged a wry smile with Loria when the men were given private rooms but the two women were shown to the same room. Granted there were two narrow beds in the room, but that wasn't the point.
"Looks like Captain Stater is willing to keep us around to make the men happy," Loria commented as she dropped her saddlebags on the lefthand bed. "If he still hasn't changed his mind after we show him what we can do, I'll be moving on."
"You and me both," Freya agreed, accepting the righthand bed for her own saddlebags. "And Evrin has already said that if we two don't get hire, he'll be leaving with us. Reggin will probably go too, but I'm not sure about Shinder. Shinder said he needs a safe and quiet place for a while, a place like this."
"If Shinder needs to stay, we'll have to let him know it's all right with us," Loria said with a sad smile. "He's probably still hurting some and just decided against mentioning the point. He's like that, you know."
Freya nodded to show she did know, then she and Loria took turns using the wash basin. The clock hanging on the wall said it was just past eleven thirty, which turned out to mean they weren't called immediately for lunch. Freya moved her saddlebags to the floor and lay down to rest for a few minutes, and when Loria was done washing she did the same.
No more than a minute past noon there was a knock at the door, which turned out to be their guide telling them it was time for lunch. Their three male companions had already been called, so once Freya and Loria joined them they all followed the guide again. The mess hall was very large, but there weren't all that many men filling it. Or trying to fill it. The guardsman who was their guide led them to a round table large enough for six, then told them to make themselves comfortable until the food was served. He walked away after giving them a smile, and once he was gone and they'd all taken chairs, Reggin leaned forward to put his arms on the table.
"They seem to think I'm the leader of our bunch just because I did all the talking," he said softly enough to keep his voice from carrying to anyone not at their table. "They had me write down all our names and how long we were with the company, along with any rank we might have been given. They'll probably think I'm lying when I said that Loria was one of our captain's lieutenants."
"Freya and I have already talked about this," Loria said while the men all showed wry smiles. "If, after we do our demonstration, they still think she and I are nothing but bedwarmers for you three, she and I will be leaving. But that doesn't mean you men have to do the same. If you need to stay, we expect you to do it."
"I don't need to stay, so if you two end up leaving I'll be going with you," Evrin said at once. "But I agree that all of us don't have to leave just because some of us do. You and Shinder think about what you want to do, Reggin, so when the time comes you'll have made up your mind. Right now that looks like our food about to be served."
Which ended their private conversation for a time. Freya accepted the plate of food and cup of tea she was served without saying anything, wishing she'd had the brains to tell them all not to use her last name. It wasn't likely that someone would actually connect her with a merchant in the city, but it wasn't smart to take chances. Oh, well, even if she was recognized, she was well past the age where her parents would be able to reclaim her.
The food was actually pretty good, and even the tea was more than just colored water. Another server brought a pitcher filled with tea, so they were all able to have more than just a single cup. When the food was gone they all sat for a while with refilled teacups, and then their guide showed up again.
"If you folks are ready, Captain Stater has things set up for your demonstration," the guardsman said as he looked around. "If you'd like one more cup of tea first, though…"
"No, we've had enough tea," Evrin said as he got to his feet, joined by Freya and the others. "You go ahead and we're right behind you."
The guardsman nodded and led off, and the rest of them followed at the slightly eager pace the man set. Stater was probably the one who was eager, Freya knew, and their guide was just responding to his boss's attitude. They were led to a large salle d'arms, a training room that had eight men waiting in it. Stater was one of the eight, and when he saw Freya's group he smiled. Three of the men waiting with Stater held wooden practice swords, which made it clear that Freya and Loria hadn't been imagining things.
"Reggin will start us off," Evrin announced once the group got close enough to Stater and his people. "After that the rest of us will take their turns."
"Certainly, certainly," Stater agreed as Reggin began to remove his swordbelt. "Whatever order you care to follow is fine."
Reggin handed his swordbelt to Shinder, then walked over to accept one of the wooden practice swords. He'd smiled wryly at the group before turning to Stater and his people, giving Freya the impression that Reggin knew he was actually the weakest fighter among them. Not that he was weak or a bad fighter. It just happened to be that all the others were better with weapons than he was.
But the palace guardsman who faced him didn't fall into that category. It took no more than five minutes before Reggin "killed" his opponent, and that widened the smile Stater showed. The captain was so pleased that his smile didn't disappear even when Loria removed her swordbelt and stepped forward next. Stater's smile just turned indulgent, as if he were humoring the men he wanted so badly to work for him.
Two minutes later Stater's smile disappeared entirely. That was how long it took Loria to "kill" her own opponent, a good deal faster than Reggin had managed. Freya took her own turn then, and when she managed the same only a few heartbeats longer than Loria took, Stater looked stunned. Evrin stepped forward then, and Reggin's former opponent came to meet him. Evrin also ended the fight quickly, and then he turned to Stater.
"We'd like to ask the favor of you simply taking our word for the fact that Shinder is just as good as the rest of us," he said. "Shinder faced three swords against his one during that last fight, and his wounds aren't healed enough for him to be in top form. He can teach, but actually using a sword right now won't help his wounds to heal properly. So… Are you willing to offer hire to all five of us?"
"All five of you," Stater echoed, disturbance clear in his expression. "I never imagined that women could be so - But for men to take lessons from a woman! There's bound to be trouble, you know it as well as I do."
"You can't believe that women were treated gently in our company just because we're women," Loria countered with a sound of ridicule. "We had to learn how to handle any trouble that came our way, and those who couldn't handle it usually left. Freya and I didn't leave, so what kind of trouble can your recruits possibly offer that we haven't already come across and dealt with?"
Stater didn't answer her question, not when he seemed to be thinking really hard. A moment later the gleam had returned to his eyes, and then he nodded.
"Five of you instead of three, yes, I think I can live with that," he said, this time looking around at all of them. "We'll give it a try for a couple of months, and if it doesn't work out I'll have three instead of five. Are you willing to go along with that?"
"As long as things don't have help in not working out, sure," Evrin agreed as he reclaimed his swordbelt. "If our ladies turn out not to be able to handle things there won't be a problem. If you try setting them up instead, you'll be left with one or two rather than three."
"One," Reggin said from where he stood, the word flat and final.
"None," Shinder stated, his expression as inflexible as Reggin's. "We're family, and family sticks together."
"So there you have it," Evrin summed up with a smile that had very little amusement behind it. "Can you accept our terms, Captain Stater? If not, we'll appreciate your saying so right away."
"So you can all leave," Stater said with a nod, showing he understood completely. "Believe it or not, I like the way you're proving you're capable of loyalty. I give you my word that there won't be any funny business where the women are concerned, not if they can do as well as they claim they can. Let's all go to my office and we can discuss what your wages will be."
"We'll also have to discuss separate quarters for Loria and me," Freya put in as the others got ready to follow again. "We like each other well enough, but not so much that we want to be in each other's lap."
Stater was momentarily surprised over that, then he showed a rueful expression as he nodded. It seemed that Captain Stater wasn't used to having women complain about what they were given, but Freya knew that he'd either get used to it or be short five instructors.
They followed Stater back into the hall, but didn't get all that far. Half a dozen steps along they were overtaken by a large group of guardsmen, and it was perfectly clear that these guardsmen weren't eager new recruits.
"Captain Stater, just a minute," one of the guardsmen called out, stopping the small procession. "His Majesty would like to speak to these people briefly, and then you and they can get on with what you're about."
"Captain Fergol, of course," Stater answered as he tried to hide his surprise. "I'll leave it to you to guide them to my office when His Majesty is done with them. I'll see you folks later."
And then Stater walked away, leaving the group with the newcomer guardsmen. Freya glanced around to find that the others understood the same thing she did: that these men were a private guard force for the king.
"It really won't take all that long," the man called Captain Fergol said, gesturing some of his men into leading off back the way they'd come. "Our king wants to make sure that the people he's putting in charge of our new volunteers won't do more harm than good. There are too many people in this world who would rather take advantage than do a job right, and we already have enough of that kind in our kingdom. No sense in adding any more."
Freya could feel her companions relax just the way she was doing. The interview the king wanted made sense, fitting in well with what the man was supposed to be like. And he was new at his job, so keeping an eye on everything also made sense. He'd speak a few words to each of them, try to make sure they didn't intend sitting around or making trouble instead of working, and then they'd be able to get back to talking about how much they'd be paid.
The escort led them to a hall with lots of doors on both sides, and they were each given a door to go through. When it became her turn Freya walked inside to find a small meeting room, large enough for maybe half a dozen people, with chairs and small tables scattered around. There was an unlit fireplace at the back of the room but no windows, the two lamps on the walls providing more than enough light. There was also a tea service on a sideboard to the right, so Freya walked over to fill a cup. There was no knowing how long it would take the king to arrive, so waiting without refreshment didn't make sense.
Freya was in the midst of putting honey in the tea when the sound of the door opening surprised her. She hadn't expected the king to arrive this fast, but when she turned away from the sideboard she found someone other than the king. Two someones, in fact, who were more than a little familiar. Even after ten years her parents hadn't changed all that much, except for the fact that they wore really expensive-looking clothes. And her mother's dark hair was put up with what looked like pearls…
"Freya, is that really you?" her mother whispered, light eyes wide. "You're a grown woman now, and I almost don't recognize you. Oh, my baby!"
"She stopped being our baby even before she left, Emilia," her father said with an odd smile as he closed the door behind the two of them. "But she's back safe and sound now, and that's all I care about. It must have been the gods who brought us to the palace today, and I'll thank them forever for this gift. Welcome home, daughter."
Freya had been all but frozen in place until now, but it suddenly became possible to pull herself together.
"I'm not anyone's gift, and this isn't my home," she stated, turning back to pick up her cup of tea. "If you think I've forgotten how you consider gifts from the gods, I haven't. Was there anything else?"
"Girl, what are you talking about?" her mother exclaimed, now looking upset. "Tombin, what does she mean?"
"I'm not sure, Emilia," her father answered, confusion clouding his light eyes. "Freya, what are you talking about?"
"I'm talking about that litany I was forced to hear over and over as a child," Freya said after sipping at the tea. So they'd been here in the palace, and after somehow hearing her name they'd come running… "'My children are all gifts from the gods,' you always said. 'In order for you children to be properly thankful for having been given a good home, you must now obey your parents in all things without complaint. We know what's best for you, after all…' But you didn't know what was best for me, which is why I found a different home. I'm here to do a job, and that's all I'm here for. It was … interesting seeing you again."
"You always were too involved with your own opinions to ever consider other people's viewpoints," her father answered with a sigh, ignoring the way she'd tried to dismiss him. "You refused to give our ideas the least, smallest chance, so how can you possibly know we were wrong?"
"You had twelve years of chances, and never once noticed how badly I did with your wonderful ideas," Freya countered. "You were both too busy to notice, and it became my fault for failing at a perfectly good idea. Did you really think I'd forget all those stupid lectures about how I had to apply myself if I wanted to grow up to be a proper young lady? Well, guess what. I grew up to be something better, substituting my own ideas about proper. And yes, you're right, I do like my own ideas better."
Freya gave them the kind of happy smile she usually used to start a fight, but all that happened was her mother closing her eyes and her father shaking his head with another sigh.
"I'll admit that not knowing what we had in mind made things harder on you," her father said, a touch of sadness in his voice and manner. "But you were just a child, Freya, much too young to understand what was involved. You're not a child now, though, so I'll explain what I couldn't tell you then. You needed to learn proper behavior so that you would make your husband proud once you two began to live together. You were married to Jorian Stell when you were a baby and he was a small child himself. Kellin, his father, and I wanted our families combined, and you two were the ones who accomplished that."
Freya just stared at her father's beaming smile for a moment, and then she shook her head. The idea of having been married as a baby should have shocked her, but she found that she wasn't even a little bit surprised.
"If you're standing there expecting me to accept being treated like a slave, you're in for a rude awakening," Freya drawled, trying to make sure that her parents understood how serious she was. "Jorian may be fool enough to go along with that arrangement, but I'm not. My advice would be to have that marriage annulled right now if it hasn't already been done, which gives you something to do when you leave here. As in, leave here right now."
"But you can't refuse," her father protested with a small laugh of incredulity. "It's already done and you can't undo it, not to mention the fact that Jorian doesn't want to undo it. Kellin is gone, and his son loved and respected his father too much to tarnish the man's memory by going against his wishes. We found out that you were still alive even though we didn't know where you were, and Jorian has been waiting impatiently for you to be located. Now that you have been…"
Her father's words trailed off as he turned back to the door to open it. A large man stood outside, and when the newcomer stepped into the room Freya could just see the boy he'd been. Jorian had grown up to be a handsome man with very light brown hair and blue eyes, but none of that mattered in the least. Freya had no interest in being married, but then she couldn't stop a frown. Jorian wore fairly ordinary clothes, but he had this odd, jeweled band around his forehead…
"Your Majesty," her father said as he bowed and her mother curtsied. "Allow me to present the return of my daughter Freya. And, of course, your queen."
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