The Unhappy Heart (Book 1 of The Wolfheart Trilogy)

26. A Conscience Awakens

It was pitch black in the stables, but not as dark as the man's mind. 

He leaned heavily against the wooden stall, his gaze staring mindlessly into the shadows. As his vision slowly adjusted, he could make out the shapes of the trough and stacks of hay. By his side, the tall bay stallion lowered his head to nuzzle his owner gently. Blade moved his hand to stroke the soft velvety nose.

"What am I doing, Deryn?" he asked, startling himself with the loudness of his own voice. 

The horse rumbled in reply, now butting Blade in the chest with the hope he had some treats concealed somewhere. Blade as usual did not disappoint him. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a sliced apple he had stolen from the kitchen. Deryn took a piece gently from his open palm. For a while, the only sound was the horse enjoying the crisp treat. Blade's gaze went back to the shadows. He started in fright, the remaining slices of apple, dropping into the straw at his feet. For a brief moment, Blade had thought he had seen a pale face staring back at him. But there was nothing there. He let out a deep shuddering breath.

"Did I go too far, Deryn? Have I become the monster instead?"

His mind began to turn back to the events from earlier that day.

* * * * *

Blade looked up from the map, as the door swung open to reveal a frightened looking soldier. The soldier's expression faltered, becoming almost disappointed at seeing Blade alone.

"Captain, do you know where Lord Rane is?" the soldier asked, hesitantly.

Blade frowned thoughtfully. "He often leaves the palace grounds at this hour. He should return shortly though." He paused then added. "Is something wrong?"

The soldier glanced around the room, before inching closer.

"It's about the king, sir. I think he has run away."

Blade immediately straightened at those words. "What do you mean?"

The soldier hesitated again, seemingly studying Blade closely. "Well, he went to see his brother. I think he knows the truth and has run away."

"Brother? Runaway? What do you speak of, man?"

The soldier looked flustered and stepped back. "Forget what I said, sir," he mumbled. "I just thought.." his voice trailed away with confusion.

Blade strode around the table and grabbed him roughly by the neck. "What is going on? You thought what?"

"I...I thought that since you are Lord Rane's right hand man, you knew it all. Please, please don't hurt me. I had no part in it."

The soldier than began to spill out every detail he knew. He told of the prisoner in the tower and how he had really been the young prince Cole, whom many had thought to be long dead. He told of how Lord Rane had used the boy to bait Andrea into capturing the wolf.

This part Blade knew too well. It had been him who had taken the crazed boy into the woods and told him to kill a wolf in exchange for better lodgings. Weary of the cold cramped room, the desperate boy had eagerly agreed to do anything. Blade knew well it would be his death, but as Lord Rane had told him, sacrifices had to be made in war. And it was better to sacrifice a sick and mad criminal then to sacrifice a good soldier who had a family to care for. He had questioned however, the importance of capturing this small white wolf who appeared in every way to be a harmless lost creature. But Lord Rane had quickly eased those concerns. King Dade was haunted by his dream and was losing hold of his sanity. If they could capture this wolf, King Dade could be at rest and they could continue to use the king to control the soldiers. Besides, Lord Rane had told him, you could never trust a loner. For loners were much stronger than one often realised. Loners had no pack to rely on. Because of that, loners often resorted to other means of food.