Destiny's Queen

By J.D. Rogers

Since her mother's death, Lila Marie Haran has avoided taking part in the Princess Wars. But some things can't be avoided forever, and whether Lila's ready or not, judgment day is coming. If Lila hopes to survive, she will have to master her powers and become the woman the prophet's wrote about long ago, the woman known as Destiny's Queen.

• Language: English
• Publisher: J.D. Rogers
• Release date: Feb 9, 2017
• ISBN: 9781370966615

J.D. Rogers

J.D. was born and raised in Montana. He studied history at Montana State University, before attending Hamline University School of Law in St. Paul, Minnesota. He returned to Montana where he set up his own practice. He started writing fiction to improve his writing skills as a lawyer, discovered he enjoyed it, and has never stopped writing. J.D. still makes his home in Montana.

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Destiny's Queen

Princess Wars—Book Two

J. D. Rogers

***

Smashwords Edition

Text copyright © 2016 by J. D. Rogers

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form, except for quotations in printed reviews, without the written permission of the author.

All characters are fictional. Any resemblance to actual people, living or dead, is purely coincidental.

COVER PHOTO: Courtesy of Pixabay.com

Smashwords Edition, License Notes

This ebook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This ebook may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each recipient. If you're reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please return it to your favorite ebook retailer and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.

Contents

Prologue

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

LOST IN TIME

BOOKS BY JD ROGERS

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Prologue

I was six years old the first time I saw the Cemetery of Would Be Queens. It was a warm summer evening. The sun was low in the sky, casting everything in an orange glow.

The cemetery was located at the top of a hill just north of the Summer Palace. A hill that stood out from the surrounding hills, which were covered with grass, wild flowers, trees, birds, and butterflies. In sharp contrast, the hill containing the cemetery was brown and lifeless. There was no carpet of green grass, no yellow and purple wild flowers, no trees, no birds, no butterflies. Even the warm summer breeze seemed to avoid that lifeless hill.

My mother didn't allow me to climb the hill with her. She made me wait at the bottom with Patera LaCere, Captain of the Queen's Guard. I didn't argue with her, mostly because I didn't want to go up there. The place scared me.

I stood next to Patera and watched as my mother headed up the hill alone. Who's buried up there?

Your mother's sisters. Among others.

I didn't know she had any sisters.

She had five sisters.

And they're all dead?

Yes.

When did they die?

Before you were born. Before your sisters were born.

They must've been way older than her if they died before any of us were born.

Patera didn't say anything. He just stood there and watched my mother walk up the hill.

How come there's no grass on this hill? I asked. Or flowers?

Keep watching, Patera said. You'll see.

It was pretty clear that Patera didn't want to answer any of my questions, so I stood silently and watched my mother climb the hill. There were no headstones up there, not like you saw at other cemeteries. As as far as I could see there was nothing up there. That hill was as barren and as lifeless as anything I had ever seen.

When my mother reached the top of the hill, I realized that the place wasn't as barren as I had thought.

Do you see them? Patera whispered.

I saw them, looking just like you'd expect ghosts to look, white, transparent, floating above the ground instead of standing on it. There were dozens of them and they were all young and female.

Who are they? I whispered.

Your aunts, and great aunts, and great great aunts.

Why are they buried here?

Your mother will explain that to you, Patera said. When she returns.

That was the day I learned how the next Queen of Adah would be chosen, through a series of battles between me and my three older sisters, battles which were known in my homeland of Adah as the Princess Wars. Every ghost on that hill had once been an Adan princess, just like me. Every one had lost the Princess Wars.

***

Fourteen years later, my mother passed away and my sisters and I began our version of the Princess Wars. Actually, it began an hour before my mother died, when I had a vision of my oldest sister, Bedonna, running her mammoth broadsword through my heart. Naturally, I didn't stick around to see that happen. I slipped out of the palace and headed west on horseback. My goal was to win the support of General Dacus and the Army of the West. I knew that General Dacus didn't like or trust Bedonna. He knew that she longed to go down in history as a great conqueror, no matter whose blood she had to spill.

I reached the Army of the West only to discover that General Dacus wasn't in control. One of his commanders, Trager Selis, had tossed General Dacus in the dungeon and proclaimed himself King of the Western Hills. Turned out he was being controlled by a powder witch.

I managed to kill the powder witch only to be drugged by a man she brought with her, a man from the lands located on the other side of the desert. That man was Edgerton Hooks and he was Chancellor of Vassa. His queen was dying and she needed an heir. Not just any heir. She wanted a princess, and as luck would have it, I was the first princess to cross Edgerton's path. That was why he kidnapped me. That was why he was taking me back to Vassa. And why he took the time to teach me the Common Tongue, not to mention the history of Vassa and the countries that surrounded it.

What he didn't tell me was that his queen had enemies, people that wanted her dead. People that wanted me dead. I learned that the hard way, when assassins attacked us, and then again when men posing as river pirates burned our ship.

One of the people that wanted me dead was the Duke of Genese. A man who was supposed to be an ally. A man I had just dined with. A man I just had a vision about. A vision that warned me that when dinner was over, and I had retired to my suite, he was going to try and kill me.

Chapter 1

The Duke of Genese entered my room wearing the same black and gold outfit that he wore at dinner. The Knights of the Royal Brotherhood medallion hung from his neck, identifying him as a man that was opposed to women sitting on thrones. Women like me. He clutched his sword in his right hand.

I've been expecting you, I said, once he was inside the room.

As I spoke, Bokham, my personal guard, closed the door and took up a position in front of it, sword in hand. The duke heard the door slam shut and spun around.

I raised my cutlass in front of me. Don't worry about him. He's not here to kill you. He's just here to make sure you don't run away.

The duke glanced at Bokham, then at me, then at Bokham, then at me. The look on his face said it all. He didn't know what was going on, but he knew that things weren't going the way he planned.

I'm going to kill you myself, I said. When you're dead, I'm going to take that medallion you're wearing as a trophy. Perhaps, I'll wear it the next time I meet Maximillian Bedard.

The duke glared at me, then raised his sword and charged forward. The fight didn't start the way it did in my vision. In my vision, I was the aggressor. In reality, the duke was the aggressor. I parried his charges with the cutlass in my right hand. After a couple of minutes, I switched the cutlass to my left hand, and let my right arm rest. A couple of minutes later, I switched back.

We danced around the drawing room, iron clanging against iron. We danced into my bedroom, over my bed, and back into the drawing room. I continued to switch hands. The duke continued to swing his heavy broadsword with both hands.

Eventually, a sheen of sweat broke out across his brow. He probably wanted to take his heavy velvet waistcoat off, but I didn't give him that luxury. A short while later, he began breathing through his mouth. A short while after that, he paused to catch his breath.

That's when I went on the offensive, giving him no chance to rest. We danced around the drawing room again, into the bedroom again, across the bed again, and back into the drawing room. Iron clanging against iron. This time he was backing up. This time, I was pressing the action, taking the fight to him.

You don't fight like any woman I know, the duke said.

That's because I'm not like any woman you know.

How did you know I was coming for you?

What do you care? You'll be dead soon.

The duke didn't argue with me. Probably because he knew the truth. Even if he managed to defeat me, which must've seemed doubtful at that point, he wouldn't have enough strength left to defeat Bokham. He knew that he would die tonight, either by my hand, or Bokham's.

Eventually, the duke became too weary to keep up with me. My attacks began to draw blood. At first the blows were just glancing, no more than nicks. As the fight wore on, the cuts became deeper and blood began to seep through the duke's expensive clothing. That sapped more of his strength and slowed him down even more.

The end came suddenly. We were in the drawing room when the duke dropped his sword. I lunged forward, plunged my cutlass deep into his gut, and left it there.

He looked at his skewered stomach and dropped to his knees. He wrapped his hands around the blade, tried to pull it out, but lacked the strength. All he succeeded in doing was cutting his hands.

While he knelt there, dying, I walked up to him and removed the medallion from around his neck. This is mine.

The duke didn't argue. He didn't do anything except gasp a couple of times, collapse onto his side, and die.

I better tell Edgerton and Romeus what happened, Bokham said, sheathing his sword. He headed out of my room, then stopped and looked back at me. If your sister is better than you, then you're right. I wouldn't want to face her.

By the time Edgerton and Romeus arrived, I had pulled my cutlass out of the duke's lifeless body, wiped the blood on his velvet waistcoat, and sheathed it.

What happened here? Edgerton said.

What did Bokham tell you?

Just that there was something we needed to see.

The duke came here to kill me. I held up the medallion. Do either of you know what this is?

The looks on their faces told me that they both knew what it was.

Where did you get that? Romeus said.

The duke was wearing it around his neck.

It's a medallion, Romeus said. It's worn by . . . .

His voice trailed off. Either he didn't want to tell me what it was, or he was too embarrassed to tell me.

She knows what it is, Edgerton said, studying my face. She's a seer. That's how she knew he was coming here to kill her. And if she knew he was coming here to kill her, then she knows why.

He looked to me for conformation. I nodded. It's worn by men of royal blood. They belong to a secret society called the Knights of the Royal Brotherhood. They're opposed to any woman sitting on any throne. This is why Queen Catlett sent you to Adah. She didn't want just anyone as her heir. She wanted a princess that wouldn't be afraid of a group of men that had dedicated their lives to killing her. There's only one place in the world where you can find a princess like that.

Adah, Edgerton said.

I slipped the medallion around my neck and tucked it inside my shirt. I turned to Romeus, and said, Is the king a member of this society?

No.

Are you sure?

Yes.

Why?

Because he has a daughter.

I don't know why that surprised me, but it did. The King of Holt has a daughter?

Yes.

Does he have a son?

No.

How old is his daughter?

Ten, Romeus said. I think she's one of the reasons the duke joined the KRB. He resented the fact that she would ascend to the throne instead of him.

Does the king know his brother was a member of the KRB?

He suspected, but I don't think he knew for sure.

Who will take the duke's place here in Genese?

I don't know.

How will the king react to the fact that I killed his brother?

I don't know.

Will it have an adverse effect on his relationship with Queen Catlett?

I don't know.

Why should it? Edgerton said. He attacked you. You didn't attack him. The fact that he came to your room with sword in hand is proof enough. The fact that you took that medallion from around his neck is proof enough.

Since we don't know how the king will react, Romeus said. It might be best if you're out of the country when I tell him of his brother's death.

What about Captain Hubbard and his men? I said. And the men you sent out to aid them?

Until the king declares otherwise, our two countries still have an alliance. If Captain Hubbard and his men are able to reach our border, they'll be given safe passage.

We'll leave at first light, Edgerton said.

No, I said.

Edgerton looked at me. I think it best if we get you to Vassa as quickly as possible. Before we run into more trouble.

I killed the king's brother. The least I can do is explain how and why it happened.

Not to dwell on the obvious. But if you do that, the king might throw you in the dungeon, maybe even execute you.

Executing me would embolden the KRB.

So? Edgerton and Romeus said together.

Once I was out of the way, who would their next target be? Aside from Queen Catlett.

The king's daughter, Romeus said.

Like it or not, Counselor, the king needs me alive. Romeus didn't argue, although it looked like he wanted to. When Captain Hubbard and his men arrive, when the gowns and boots I ordered are finished, we'll ride to the king together. I'll explain to him what happened and why he needs me. There'll be no rift in his alliance with Queen Catlett. I won't allow it. In the meantime, Counselor, you should give the duke whatever sort of burial you think he deserves.

Romeus rounded up some servants to remove the duke's body from the floor, ordering them to wash it and prepare it for burial. Shu found another suite for me to sleep in, one which didn't smell of blood. Much to my surprise, I had no trouble sleeping that night.

They buried the duke the next morning, in a cemetery behind his castle. The same cemetery where the all the other dukes were buried. Romeus, Shu, and the duke's four suitors attended his funeral. The Lady Tabitha didn't. Neither did I. It didn't seem right to kill a man and then attend his funeral.

Captain Hubbard and his men arrived that evening, tired but alive. Maximillian Bedard's pirates gave up the chase when they encountered the duke's horsemen. Luckily, the duke never told his men that he had a secret alliance with the King of Dunre. If he had, Captain Hubbard and his men might be dead.

The next morning, the gowns and boots I ordered arrived at the palace for a final fitting. I told the tailor and the cobbler that I needed them by tomorrow morning. Both assured me that they would be ready.

Horses were procured, and the next morning, we set off for the King of Holt's palace. We took the road that bordered the Istansada River's southern bank, heading for the City of Hensel, Holt's capital. Hensel was located in the middle of Holt. Like Genese, it bordered both sides of the river. Like Genese, most of the buildings were made from logs, with a few of the larger ones being made from stone. Like Genese, there were no bridges crossing the river. Rowboats ferried people between the cities's northern and southern halves.

A castle sat on the highest hill that overlooked the river. It was built in the same style as the duke's castle, a gray granite box with red roofed towers of various heights placed randomly around the castle. The only difference I could see between Hensel and Genese, was that the king's castle was on the southern side of the river.

Are you nervous? Shu asked me as we rode through town.

About what?

Having to tell the king that you killed his brother.

I defended myself against a man that invited me into his home then tried to assassinate me. I have nothing to be nervous about. No matter how much the King of Holt loved his brother, I suspected he loved his daughter more. I was counting on that love to help him see my side.

I was wearing one of my new outfits. A red velvet riding skirt and a black velvet top with long sleeves, a scoop neckline, and a built-in corset. My boots were like the ones the Lady Tabitha wore, except they had a much lower heel, kind of a cross between the dress boots she wore and the riding boots the men wore. A black velvet cloak with a red silk lining completed the outfit.

As usual, my hair was pulled back into a ponytail and tied with the choking device. The cutlass remained strapped around my waist. I was also wearing the Ruby Crown. Much to my surprise, Edgerton secured it from my things after he drugged me.

I was saving this as a surprise, thinking you might want to wear it when you meet Queen Catlett, Edgerton said, when he brought me the crown. But I'm thinking it might not hurt to wear it today, to remind the King of Holt that he's dealing with high royalty, and that his actions will carry repercussions.

Shu wore an outfit identical to mine, except it was made out of black velvet. The Lady Tabitha wore her usual form fitting gown and high heeled boots. The gown was silk and bright yellow in color. Because the outfit restricted her mobility, she had to ride sidesaddle and be helped on and off the horse. Bokham wore his red and white uniform. Edgerton wore his usual black. Romeus wore the same thing as Edgerton, perhaps it was the standard uniform for royal advisers, perhaps he was still mourning the duke's death. Captain Hubbard and his men wore their freshly washed red and white uniforms.

There was no wall surrounding the king's castle. Like the duke's castle, a pair of guards with pikes manned the front doors. Where the duke's men wore black and gold livery, the king's men wore silver and blue, blue knee breeches, blue tunics, and silver breastplates with a gold crown inlaid on the chest.

Romeus informed the guards that we had news concerning the Duke of Genese. All of us, save for Captain Hubbard's men, were admitted into the king's throne room. It was empty when we entered, but the king arrived minutes after we did.

He was a taller, older version of the duke, same jaw, same cheekbones, same eyes, same brown hair. The same classic good looks that drew women to his brother. The only differences were the gray hair around his temples and a clean shaven face. He dressed much more casually than his brother. Black riding boots, worn brown leather breeches, and a white cotton shirt that tied in the front. Only a blue velvet waistcoat that