Down in the pit, Richard smiled openly at his opponent, and the two men shook hands. I relaxed even further. Although I’d never seen anything like this, it did appear to be more of a game than anything else.
More matches followed, all between one of the nobles and a paid fighter or soldier Henri had hired. Each fight was similar to Richard’s with a display of footwork and circling and swinging. One of the nobles won and then two of the mercenaries, but each match ended with smiles and the shaking of hands. By the close of the fourth match though, Sebastian owed Rolf five silvers. Jarrod never placed a bet.
Finally, I heard a few loud cheers and looked down to see Kai coming out the door and taking his place in the pit for the final match.
People in the crowd were smiling. They might not invite the Volodanes to house parties, but apparently, quite a few of them had already seen Kai fight.
“No one will bet against him,” Rolf said in my ear. “This one is just for show.”
I watched in anticipation, my expectations high . . . but then I looked at Kai’s opponent. He was tall with long arms. His head was shaved and beads of sweat ran down his temples. It wasn’t warm down here.
There was a sheen across his face, and his eyes were glazed. He gripped the hilt of his sword tightly.
“Something’s wrong,” I whispered to Rolf. “You need to stop this.”
He glanced down at me. “Don’t say that aloud. You’ll embarrass Kai.”
The fear inside me grew as the two men began circling each other. This mercenary was different from the others. His expression was desperate.
“Ask your father if I can read that man,” I begged Rolf in a low whisper.
I dared not act without permission as Jarrod might want me to read one of the nobles later, and I dared not use up my strength now without his agreement.
“Megan, quiet,” Rolf answered in what almost sounded like annoyance. “Kai knows what he’s doing.”
As if to entertain the crowd, Kai flipped his sword once and caught it. People applauded and cheered.
Then, in a flash, he moved fluidly inside his opponent’s guard and nicked the man’s shoulder.
As he continued moving past the man and was turning back, the mercenary abandoned all rules of the match and swung for Kai’s face, slicing his cheek open. Unprepared for this, Kai stumbled, and the man swung downward, cutting through the back of his right knee.
“No!” Sebastian cried, jumping to his feet.
People in the crowd gasped.
But it was too late. Kai fell backwards onto the floor of the pit. The man gripped the hilt of his sword with both hands and rammed it through Kai’s chest.
Sebastian was screaming. He and Rolf both jumped down into the pit, but guards were pouring out the lower door, and one of them reached the scene on the ground first. That guard thrust a dagger through the side of the mercenary’s throat.
“No!” Sebastian cried again, still running, and he shoved the guard away.
I knew why. He wanted someone to question.
Rolf was on his knees beside Kai, his face a mask of disbelief.
Kai’s eyes were open, but he wasn’t breathing. He was dead. Had he been expecting a death match, he could have defended himself, but he’d gone out only to spar. Jarrod stood beside me with his eyes on his dead son, as if unable to absorb what had just happened.
The guard who’d killed the mercenary wore a light green tabard bearing the crest of the Monvílles.
I looked instantly to the Monvílles. Both Rosamund and Phillipe were on their feet with expressions of equal shock. Only Allemond remained calm and seated.
I knew I should wait for permission from Jarrod, but this wasn’t my old world, and the rules here were different. Focusing all my strength, I reached out for Allemond’s thoughts, and a wall of satisfaction hit me.
His thoughts and emotions rushed through me as he looked down. He’d been frustrated by Jarrod’s continued postponements to ride out to meet him, so he’d decided to try another tactic.
He found an ex-soldier who’d married, had children, and tried his hand at farming. A bad crop had forced the soldier to borrow money at high interest. Another poor year had left him in dire straits. He and his family were about to be turned from their home to starve.
Allemond had offered to pay the entire debt and interest if the man would kill Kai in the ring. This man had killed before, many times, and he agreed.
He’d probably known he was signing his own death warrant as well, but at least he’d saved his family.
Allemond sat looking down at Kai’s dead body with great satisfaction. Kai was the one the others had loved. Allemond had spotted that much at the dinner party at the Volodanes. Now, not only had their numbers been decreased by one, but the three other men would be thrown into mourning. They would be careless and easier to manipulate.
I pulled from Allemond’s mind and looked down into the pit. Rolf was still on his knees, his face white. Sebastian wept openly as if he didn’t care who saw him.
Not long after, Jarrod, Sebastian, Rolf, and myself were alone in a cellar room beneath the manor. Kai’s body had been laid out, and Lord Henri had ordered we be given a moment of privacy.
Kai’s eyes had been closed, and his long, brown hair spread out around his head on the table. There was a bloody hole in his chest where his heart should have been.
The pain and rage in the room were palpable.
Jarrod could barely speak. Sebastian couldn’t seem to stop moving, and Rolf simply stood by his dead younger brother.
Quietly, I told them what I’d seen in Allemond’s mind, and Rolf’s eyes lifted to my face.
“I’ll kill him,” Rolf whispered.
“What do you mean, you saw these things in Allemond’s mind?” Sebastian asked.
Jarrod raised a hand. “Not now.” His breathing was ragged. “That’s why his guard reached them first. He ordered the mercenary to be killed so the man couldn’t be questioned.”
Rolf started for the door. “I’ll kill him,” he repeated.
“No!” Jarrod barked. “You cannot start a blood feud here!”
Rolf whirled, glaring.
“There’s no proof,” Jarrod added. “If you run a sword through Allemond, we’ll lose all the ground we’ve gained.”
“I don’t care! Kai is dead, and you don’t seem to . . .” Rolf trailed off and choked once. “Kai is dead, and I’m killing his killer.”
“Let me do it,” Sebastian said quietly. His eyes locked on Jarrod. “Give me a free hand, and there won’t be a blood feud.”
Rolf shook his head. “Father, no. You can’t turn him loose. There’s no telling what he’ll do.”
“I know exactly what you’ll do,” Jarrod returned. “You’ll walk out there and attack Allemond with no proof. What will you say? That your wife read his mind?” He turned to Sebastian. “No, blood feud?”
Sebastian shook his head. “Give me one more night here. No one will even blame me.”
Slowly, Jarrod nodded. “All right.”
Rolf exhaled through his teeth.