Queen of Lost Stars (Dragonblade Series/House of St. Hever) Read Free

day’s ride from Beeston, arrived on a cold and smoky dawn. Anchorsholme was part of the de Cleveley lands and they were loyal to Edward, so the king staffed a small contingent of crown troops at the castle.
    It was this contingent, led by Sir Nicholas de Dalyn, who rode upon the battle at Beeston and immediately began dispatching any Welsh they came across. There were only about two hundred men, however. Not a huge amount of men against so many Welsh, but they had been a fresh and welcome addition to the English nonetheless.
    “My lord!” Nicholas called out to Kaspian as he fought his way towards the massive knight. “You have my thanks for holding the battle until we arrived. My men and I have been without action for so long that this excitement is a welcome change!”
    Kaspian very nearly grinned at the humor; he knew Nicholas and had fought with him before. De Dalyn was an excellent commander and a powerful knight, which gave Kaspian a good deal of relief to see him. But he was also arrogant and ambitious; Kaspian seemed to remember hearing, long ago, that de Dalyn was one of those men who had no problem stepping on, or eliminating, others in order to see his goals achieved, but Kaspian had never experienced such a thing. He was simply glad the man had come with reinforcements. His character, for the moment, was not at issue, at least not in the midst of the battle.
    “We have been holding the battle, indeed,” he said, kicking aside a Welshman who had been trying to gore one of his soldiers with a spear. “Now that you are here, we can stop dancing with these fools and go in for the kill.”
    De Dalyn grinned. He was big, blonde, and handsome. “I would be agreeable to that,” he said, holding his big, brown warhorse steady as the animal tried to charge forward. “How long has it been like this?”
    Kaspian looked up at the structure of Beeston high on its rocky hill. “The Beeston commander tells me that the Welsh have been at him, periodically, for the entire month but only in the last week has it grown this serious. My men and I have been here for two days and it has been a steady fight, just as you see it.”
    Nicholas, too, looked up to the castle on the hill as the battle went on up at its gates. “Then I say we end this,” he said. “I have been bored out of my mind at Anchorsholme, to be truthful. I would much rather have a command at Beeston or Lavister Crag.”
    Kaspian smiled, a humorless gesture. “You cannot have it,” he said. “It is a prestigious castle and a world of my own to govern. If you want the command, you will have to wait for me or l’Ebreux to be transferred to another post or die. We like it here.”
    Nicholas had his attention on a fighting group that was moving in his direction. His broadsword was at the ready. “Will you not reconsider?” he asked. “I will gladly surrender Anchorsholme to you.”
    “I do not want it.”
    “What about l’Ebreux?”
    “I will not let him leave me.”
    Nicholas shifted his broadsword so that it was closer to the men who were moving in his direction. He seemed to be off the subject of moving to Lavister, at least for the moment. There were more important things at hand.
    “I have already seen the de Poyer brothers, somewhere off to the north,” he said. “Is l’Ebreux here, too?”
    “He is,” Kaspian said, eyeing the same group of battling men shuffling towards them as they fought and grunted. “The last I saw him, he was over near the road that leads up to Beeston. He and his men were fighting off a pack of Welsh. Find him and help him.”
    “How many men did he have with him?”
    “Not many. Hurry and find him.”
    A flash of something dark and calculating moved across Nicholas’ features. It was there for an instant and then it was gone; Kaspian never saw it. He was focused on the collection of Welsh and English combatants that were steadily moving in his direction. As he charged towards the crowd of battling men,