Page 96 of Destiny of a King

“The path narrows farther ahead, but once beyond it the travel grows easier,” he said. “If we keep a steady pace, we should reach Thorskaill Village shortly before dusk.”

Dravic glanced toward the gray sky. The light would begin fading early, and the cold had sharpened considerably since leaving the last village.

“Will we be welcomed?”

Ernach smiled faintly. “You are in Driochmor, my king. Welcome is never guaranteed.”

Dravic frowned at him.

“But you will be given shelter,” Ernach added. “The people of Thorskaill have little interest in who rules beyond Driochmor as long as whoever enters their village brings no trouble.”

“I seem to be bringing a considerable amount of trouble with me.”

Ernach chuckled. “Then perhaps we should not tell them.”

Dravic almost smiled. Almost.

Adira caught it and wondered what Ernach had said. She had come to recognize that particular look. The king was amused, though he would probably deny it if anyone dared suggest it.

She settled more comfortably against him as the two men continued to talk. Every so often a sound penetrated the silence, nothing she could grasp, nothing as clear as his name had been. Still, she listened, wondering if another word might find its way to her.

“What did my father know of Driochmor?” Dravic asked.

Father.

Adira heard it and for some reason it sounded familiar to her. But how could that be so?

Ernach took his time answering. “More than your grandda wanted him to.”

Dravic’s attention sharpened. “Explain.”

“King Halric did not trust Driochmor. He feared what he did not understand, and there was much here he did not understand. Your da was different. He was curious about things Halric preferred left alone.”

“My father came here?”

Father.

There it was again. Adira heard it clearly.

“Aye.”

“How often?”

“Enough that people knew him.”

That surprised Dravic.

Growing up beneath his grandfather’s rule, Dravic had believed his grandda told him all he needed to know about his da. But his grandda had never mentioned that Edric had shown interest in Driochmor and had visited here. Why hadn’t his grandda told him that? Looking back on it now, there had always been remarkably little substance to the stories about his da.

A skilled swordsman. A fine hunter. A keen strategist. A strong leader.

All were words his grandda had repeated over and over.

Now there seemed to be an entire life no one had bothered to tell him about.

“Why did he come here?” Dravic asked.

Ernach glanced at him. “You ask questions that have answers attached to other questions.”