Trick of Shadows (The Duskhunter Saga Book 2) Read online

  Copyright © 2021 by Sara C. Roethle

  All rights reserved.

  No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.

  Cover Art by Deranged Doctor Design

  Created with Vellum

  Contents

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Chapter 19

  Chapter One

  An air of foreboding permeated the walls of Castle Helius. Markus and Isolde, when they were around, watched me warily, though I was no threat to either of them. Markus’ secret was the same as my own. I wasn’t telling anybody.

  I had never learned how the Potentate knew I was in danger when he sent the pair to aid me against Karpov. If either of them knew more about it, they weren’t sharing.

  Or perhaps I was just making everything about me. Maybe the sense of unease just had to do with the looming vampire war. We had told the Potentate what we learned of Karpov’s intent, and that others would surely soon pick up his crusade. If the younger vampires managed to kill off the ancients who kept them under control, the Ebon Province would be bathed in blood.

  I couldn’t let that happen, and not only because the killing of a certain ancient would end my life too.

  My boots tapped lightly across the smooth stones leading to the main keep. A messenger had found me that morning with word that the Potentate desired an audience with me. The Seeing Sword rode my shoulder, silent since the night Karpov was killed.

  I tossed my red braid behind my back as I opened the heavy oak and iron door. I had acquired new armor since my old set had been lost in Charmant. My leather cuirass forced my back straight, though my shoulders wanted to hunch. I’d been waiting for the moment the Potentate told me he knew everything. That he knew I was a vampire’s human servant. The way he’d been watching me in the dining hall told me he at least knew more than he was letting on. He watched me like I was a strange new creature, and he was trying to figure out my use.

  I walked past an older hunter as I made my way up the staircase. Surely I was just imagining that he looked at me strangely. I’d heard no whispers behind my back. No one had questioned how such a small band of hunters had managed to kill four ancient vampires along with a slew of young ones. Steifan and Tholdri had been listening closely for such talk, but whenever the event was mentioned it was not with an air of skepticism. Markus, Tholdri, Isolde, and I were highly capable, and Steifan and Niall had told the tale of our bravery. Never mind that none of us would have survived the night if Markus and I weren’t both human servants, and if Asher had not been fighting on our side.

  I reached the Potentate’s door, which swung inward before I could knock. My eyes landed on the Potentate as I stepped inside.

  He stood leaning against his desk, arms crossed. “You appear ready for battle, Lyssandra.” The lines around his eyes wrinkled with a small smile. “Do you have a mission I am unaware of?”

  I stopped gnawing the inside of my cheek and lifted my chin, moving further into the room. “My only mission is to serve the Helius Order.”

  His bony shoulders drooped. If I didn’t know any better, I’d say he was tired, but men like the Potentate rarely showed weakness.

  His intelligent blue eyes glanced me over, eventually settling on the hilt of the Seeing Sword peeking over my shoulder. “How has the Voir L’épée been serving you?”

  I shifted my weight to the other foot, feeling uncomfortable standing in the center of the room, but he hadn’t invited me to sit. Three chairs sat empty near the cold hearth, and another behind his desk. The wide open door was my only comfort. If we were discussing something important, he would have closed it.

  “It is a fine sword,” I said. “Finely honed.”

  He pushed away from his desk, stepping near. Though he had grown thin with age, he was still a head taller than me. His eyes seemed to bore into my skull. “And has it warned you of dangers? Tholdri told me of the Nattmara you slew.”

  Was he trying to get me to admit that the sword had spoken to me? It had been his sword, he knew of its gifts, yet he’d never mentioned it.

  “It thrums through my mind any time someone means me harm,” I said. “If I had realized that’s what it did, not just warning me of predators but of any who meant me harm, I might not have come so close to becoming the Nattmara’s meal.”

  His frown let me know I’d misspoke. “I suppose that is my fault for not being clearer?”

  My jaw hung open for a moment. “Not at all, it is my fault for misunderstanding. But I learned quickly enough, and it is a fine sword.”

  He turned away, pacing back toward his desk. I wished he would hurry up and tell me what he wanted with me. I was so nervous it felt like there were sun ants marching up and down my back.

  He moved his palm across the worn surface of his desk, keeping his back to me. “You will go to Silgard. A duchess has been found drained of blood. Two of her ladies are missing.” He glanced over his shoulder at me. “You will bring Steifan.”

  “What about Tholdri?”

  Suddenly his eyes held a hard glint. “What of him? You may have required aid in defeating Karpov, but this should be a simple task. Slay the monster responsible for killing the duchess, and bring its head to the Archduke. Make sure Steifan learns something this time.”

  I swallowed my next remark, hiding my blush with a bow. “We will depart at once.”

  He dismissed me with the wave of a hand.

  I counted my steps as I retreated to the door. Mustn’t look too eager to escape.

  When I was out in the hall, I heaved a sigh of relief, then focused my thoughts on the task ahead. Silgard was the largest city in the Ebon Province. Hunting in such a populous location might prove difficult, especially if the vampire had human servants living within the city walls. The vampire could have any number of well-guarded hiding places.

  I walked down the final set of stairs, reaching the main entry, then stepped outside. I needed to gather my belongings, but first I had to find Steifan to ensure he’d be ready to depart. I almost hated to take him into more danger, though he usually fared better than I… which I was sure was just pure dumb luck.

  I had only taken a few steps down the stone walkway when a shadow crossed my path. A tall, female shadow. I lifted my eyes, already knowing who it was.

  Isolde braced her hands on her hips. She wore a plain cream colored shirt and dark breeches, no armor, so she wasn’t going anywhere outside the castle. Her black hair hung in a dark ponytail, leaving her severe features unadorned.

  She looked at me as she might a stain on her clean shirt. “What did the Potentate want with you?”

  I crossed my arms, jutting my hip out to one side. “And what business is that of yours?”

  Her eyes narrowed to mere slits. “You know why—”

  I lifted a hand to cut her off. “It’s nothing that concerns you or Markus. Simply a mission in Silgard.”

  Her brows lifted. “In Silgard? And the Potentate is sending you?”

  I couldn’t help my slightly mocking smile. Isolde was my senior
, if anyone got to go to Silgard, it honestly should have been her. That thought alone stopped me. Why had the Potentate chosen me? Steifan made sense, he would know how to charm the dukes and duchesses, but so would Isolde. Finally, I shrugged in reply, not knowing what else to say.

  She didn’t seem to notice my sudden worry. With a flick of her ponytail, she gave me a final glare, then turned and walked off.

  I glanced at the hilt of the Seeing Sword peeking over my shoulder. “You could’ve warned me an enemy was nearby,” I scoffed, then started walking.

  I pushed thoughts of the Potentate and Isolde from my mind. There would be real enemies on the road. And come nightfall, there would probably be vampires. I hoped it wouldn’t be anyone I knew.

  I searched through my weapons trunk, ensuring I had everything I might need. I already wore my armor and my sword, and had packed two spare sets of clothing. I hoped the mission would take no more than a week, but there really was no saying. It would take several days to ride to Silgard, and hunting the vampire might take more than one night. If it was killing high-ranking nobles whose deaths would be immediately noticed, it was either extremely intelligent, or extremely stupid. If we killed it in one night it was just stupid, and probably new dead. But if the creature eluded us it was older dead, perhaps even ancient and another proponent of Karpov’s new order.

  I lifted my head at a knock on the door. I’d be leaving soon, so I hadn’t locked it. It opened before I could invite the knocker inside. Steifan was the first to enter, followed closely by Tholdri. Steifan was expected, and Tholdri, well I supposed I expected him too, even though he had no reason to delay our mission.

  Watching me still kneeling by my trunk, Tholdri walked across the small room and sat on my cream coverlet. He raked a hand through his impressive golden locks, then aimed his speculative gaze at me.

  “Don’t look at me like that,” I sniffed. “The Potentate gave me a mission, and it has nothing to do with Asher.”

  Tholdri lifted a brow. “How did you know that’s what I was thinking?”

  Steifan leaned against the wall near the closed door, watching us.

  Clutching two spare daggers and a bundle of crossbow bolts, I stood. “Because you’ve asked me about him every single time I’ve left the castle.”

  He shrugged, giving me a charming smile that would melt lesser women in their boots. “You can’t blame me for worrying, Lyss.”

  I set the weapons on my bed beside him. “I most certainly can. Now is there anything else? I want to put good distance between us and the castle before dark.”

  “Eager to be away from the Potentate’s watchful eye?” he asked.

  I shook my head, though in truth that was part of it. “The duchess cannot be given her rites until we examine her. It’s warm enough in the South that she will be growing riper by the day. I would not delay our arrival.”

  I walked across the room to my stuffed saddlebags, wondering how I would fit any more weapons within.

  I could feel Tholdri’s eyes on my back. “Don’t you think it’s odd that the Potentate is sending you away so quickly after we told him of the vampire war? You would think he would want one of his best hunters close at hand.”

  “He has you, and Markus and Isolde. Someone has to go to Silgard.”

  He stood and moved in front of me, preventing me from avoiding his gaze. “And if you see Asher along the way?”

  I did better than meeting his gaze, I affixed him with an icy glare. “Then I ignore him. Unless he has news on the vampire situation, I have no use of him.”

  “I’ll be with her,” Steifan said from behind my back.

  Tholdri and I both looked at him, but Tholdri beat me to saying what we’d both been thinking. “And what difference does that make? She’s going to do as she wishes regardless.”

  Steifan shrugged. “Whatever you say. I just meant I could be there as a voice of reason.”

  I glared. “I do not need a voice of reason.”

  “Yes you do,” Tholdri and Steifan said in unison.

  I sighed and shook my head. “I won’t do anything stupid, and I’m anxious to take to the road.” I looked to Tholdri. “And I’m just as anxious as you to discover why the Potentate is sending me.”

  Dismissing Tholdri with a final meaningful look, I turned to Steifan. “Go ready the horses. I’ll meet you at the gate shortly.” I looked him up and down. He wore his armor and his sword, but . . . “You do have everything you need ready, don’t you? I’d hate to delay further.”

  His eyes darted, giving away his sudden worry. “I’ll meet you at the gates shortly. I have only a few more things to attend.”

  Tholdri walked toward the door and clapped Steifan on the shoulder. “I’ll have the stablehand ready your horses.”

  Steifan’s hazel eyes shimmered with relief. “You have my thanks.” He opened the door and hurried outside before I could make comment, shutting it quietly behind him.

  “Am I really that scary?” I asked Tholdri.

  “He doesn’t want to disappoint you. I think it’s quite sweet.” He went for the door, then turned with his hand on the knob. “Promise me you won’t do anything stupid, Lyss.”

  “I’ve already decided I can’t kill Asher when a vampire war is about to begin,” I explained. “The order needs me.”

  He opened the door. “I’ll see you soon then, and don’t get Steifan killed.”

  Whatever clever retort I might have thought up was cut off by him exiting and shutting the door behind him. I stared at the door for a minute, then went back to my preparations, sparing the occasional glance for my bookshelf. In a secret cubby behind it was all of my research done to find Asher. So much time wasted, when all I had to do was nearly die to draw him out.

  Now I had him, but I wasn’t quite sure what to do with him. Part of me still wanted to kill him, to end my existence as a vampire’s human servant. But another part of me, a dark hidden part I would never admit to, wasn’t sure if I could.

  I arrived at the gates before Steifan, and couldn’t quite contain my irritation. The stablehand—a young male hunter whose name I didn’t know—quickly handed me my reins with eyes averted. Maybe I was scary, or maybe my nerves painted everything in a dark light. Perhaps the stablehand was just distracted and not frightened of me at all.

  I stood outside the wooden wall of the stable with my horse and waited. I’d been given a well-muscled brown mare which I’d ridden many times before. While the horses were not assigned to individual hunters, most of us had our preferences, and the young stablehands tended to remember. For eventually, if they trained well, they would climb up the ranks. And any young hunter would do well to be liked by whatever mentor was assigned to them. Anything less might get them killed.

  Steifan had never had to remember horses to earn favor. Because of his wealthy family, he’d skipped many steps.

  I petted my mare’s forehead as the sun shifted high enough in the sky to project our shadows across the dirt road leading toward the gates. Steifan had wasted so much time we wouldn’t make it far before dark. Normally I would travel through the night, but that might not be wise given the state of things. If vampires wanted to kill freely, they’d be keen to eliminate vulnerable hunters.

  I watched as another shadow was added to mine and the horse’s, but didn’t react.

  “Isolde told me of your mission,” Markus’ voice said to my back.

  I shifted my stance, bringing him into sight. “Yes? What of it?”

  He pushed a short lock of brown hair away from his strong-jawed face. He wore a simple white shirt with pearl buttons, and tan woolen breeches, no armor. So like Isolde, he was not on assignment and could have been sent to Silgard instead of me. “I just think it’s odd that you’re being sent so far away under the circumstances. If it is a simple killing, one of the lesser ranking hunters could have been sent.”

  I sucked my teeth. “Yes, it has been established that it is quite odd, but I’m not sure what anyone ex
pects me to do about that. The Potentate orders and I obey.” My horse tugged at its reins, upset that I’d turned my attention away without offering any treats. I gave her the rein’s full length so she could snuffle at the ground, even though there was no grass to be found.

  Markus’ playful smirk made his face seem a little less harsh. “You follow orders? You could have had me fooled.”

  I laughed, relaxing. I wasn’t used to having any sort of repartee with Markus, but he was at least slightly less sour toward me than Isolde. Perhaps it was because we shared the same secret, though we had discussed it no further since I first learned he was also a vampire’s human servant.

  I scanned the road to the courtyard beyond for any sign of Steifan, then turned back to Markus. “I obey where it matters, and I have an inkling you do the same.”

  “Yes we are similar in that way, I suppose,” he agreed. He spotted Steifan at the same time I did, carrying two heavy saddlebags brimming with who knew what. “This is goodbye then. Do take care you return to us.”

  I looked to see if he was being sarcastic, but he had already turned to walk away, and Steifan was nearly upon me. His black chin-length hair fell forward over his reddened face, flushed either with the effort of hauling the heavy bags, or out of embarrassment.

  The stablehand spotted him and approached with a second horse, a white and gray dappled mare.

  I nodded a greeting to Steifan as he reached my side, then looked up at the sky. The sun had moved again. We’d be lucky to make it to a village before dark. While Bordtham and Charmant could both be reached in a day’s ride to the north, villages were more spread out to the south and east until you got closer to Silgard.

  Once Steifan’s saddlebags were strapped to his horse, he turned to me. “It really wasn’t my fault. My father happened to arrive just as I was getting ready to depart. Now I have an entire list of nobles I am supposed to endear myself to in Silgard, including Duke Auclair, the victim’s husband.”