Hmm, which gentleman would it be? I briefly pictured him with Michan and perhaps it would because Klyn oversaw everything surrounding the stable, and Michan was a stable hand. Additionally, Klyn had walked in on Michan as he impaled himself on a post he had sanded down. Indeed, they were delightfulimages.
I had my pleasure items placed on the table on the balcony that Roisin and I would use soon. But I was not ready for her yet. I sat down on the settee with one of my new books. I had actually become engrossed in the book when I heard theboys.
“Over there is the stable. Sir Klyn is in charge of it. He will probably have you help out in there. It is also where they repair the carriages,” Liam toldSean.
“I would like working on the carriages. Last night was my first time in acarriage.”
“How did you and your pop travel to Drishane?” Ethanasked.
“Wewalked.”
“Damn, how long did that take?” Ethaninquired.
“Days. We did not use the main paths. We traveled through theforests.”
Interesting. That may have extended their travel to Drishane considerably. Staying off the paths would mean they would not beseen.
“Did you see any witch or warlock camps?” Michanasked.
“A few, yes. One night we slept near one of their camps, and the warlock invited us for ameal.”
“What was it like in Stonebridge?” Ethanasked.
“Different. There were lots of new people all of the time. Fishermen and explorers from otherplaces.”
“It was just you and your pop?” Michanasked.
“Yes, just us. He wanted to move here to get away from theviolence.”
“Lots of people say that Stonebridge is violent and dangerous,” Liamsaid.
“You cannot always believe what you hear. Especially from people who are not from there. But yes, Stonebridge was dangerous. Our home was taken one night. We losteveryth—”
Sean’s voice suddenly cut out. I stood up to look over the balcony and could see them clearly in the distance. I noticed a few more clouds had rolled in as I watched them approach the short bridge that goes over a narrow creek leading to the woods. Their voices picked up again, and I sat backdown.
“Do you guys know what the mark is on the Queen’s leg?” Seanasked.
“It is from Lochlann Mortas,” Liamsaid.
Hearing that name was enough to throw me back to that atrocious night two hundred yearsago.
“What is that?” Seanasked.
“It is not a ‘what.’ Lochlann Mortas is the leader of the Carpe Noctem,” Ethan informedSean.
“They are the vampires that are responsible for the Drishane massacre two hundred years ago. Legend has it that they swept through the town undetected during King Darick’s Annual Festival,” Liam retold thestory.
“Carpe Noctem killed everyone in Drishane except for QueenOctavia—”
“She was a princess back then,” Michan interruptedEthan.
“They killed everyone but, Sir Klyn found Princess Octavia just in time. He took her to a warlock deep in thewoods—”
“It was not a warlock, it was a witch,” Michan interrupted Ethanagain.
“It was Sir Klyn’s sister. She was a witch. That is where he took her,” Liam corrected theinformation.
“Right, sorry. Sir Klyn took her to the witch and nursed her back to health. However, because she had been bitten by Carpe Noctem, if she survived their venom, she would become a vampire,” Ethanexplained.
