Beast by Abigail Barnette Page B

the riders following behind them in an orderly line.
    “My lady,” Philipe called, his grin transforming him from the man he was to the boy he’d been all those years ago. Her chest tightened. “How do you like my army?”
    “Your veil, Johanna,” Wilhelm said quietly, offering her his arm.
    She let him pull her up to ride behind him. “I left it. I thought I was rushing headlong into battle.”
    “I thought the same,” Philipe laughed.
    “You both honestly thought I would lead twenty armed men to the gates of Hazelhurn with no protection in mind?” Wilhelm did not laugh as Philipe did. “I am insulted.”
    “Calm yourself, brother,” Johanna soothed, though she was still troubled. “I confess, though, I do not understand. Why are these men here?”
    “Albart’s madness has spread like wildfire through the kingdom,” Wilhelm said tightly. “There are reports from the palace that the peasantry is like to revolt. The king has imposed a grain tax that will starve many before the winter is out.
    “The men with us come from Lord Desch. He’ll send more, and he’s already rallied two other nobles to fight Albart’s forces. These are good men, and they would not oppose a just ruler, know that. But Albart is no longer capable of justice. He would see the kingdom torn apart before he would give up control of it.”
    “Certainly war will tear the kingdom apart as certainly as starvation and taxes.” Johanna cared not what happened in the world outside of the valley. Now, that world seemed bent on entering not only the valley, but the home she had considered safe. Now, there was no safety, no surety. She leaned against her brother’s cloak.
    Philipe drew up beside them. “Johanna, please know that I am as opposed to war as any man. But I have seen firsthand my father’s cruelty. He is not the ruler he was all those years ago.”
    “There is much that needs to be done,” Wilhelm continued. “These men will help us rebuild what we can, and start a camp for the ones who will arrive. Other lords will be sure to follow.”
    “Well, glad I am that you have considered everything,” Johanna snapped.
    Philipe laughed at her. As if he had any right to laugh. She leaned her cheek against Wilhelm’s broad back. “I am glad you are safe, brother.”
    “And Philipe?” Wilhelm asked, the hint of a smile in his question.
    “If he must be well, then I suppose I must be glad for it.”
    Wilhelm and Philipe both laughed at that, but Johanna felt nothing but fear. They were boys still, playing at war.
    If they do not succeed, at least let my brother live , she prayed. Guilt pricked at her conscience, and she added, only to assuage herself, Perhaps Philipe, as well. If it isn’t too much trouble.

 
     
     
    Chapter Seven
     
     
    In the glory of Lord Köneig’s rule, and for centuries before, when the north had been a kingdom of its own, the halls of Hazelhurn would have supped and slept a thousand men comfortably. Now, finding space and food for twenty men seemed near impossible.
    Johanna reluctantly admitted that Philipe was not completely useless. It had been his idea to erect a single, large tent from the four that had made the journey with the small company. The men erected posts and stitched together canvas, until a large, three sided canopy filled most of the courtyard. The stone corner of the remaining wall of the great hall lent the final side to the tent, and on the other side, just a step through a window, a cook fire blazed. The heat from the makeshift kitchen provided the men sleeping outside heat, along with rusted metal braziers that hadn’t been lit since the night of the great fire.
    The men had brought wine and food, along with their bed rolls. They would be comfortable for a few nights, but after that…
    “What then?” Johanna asked, following behind her brother as he placed trenchers on hastily constructed trestle tables. “We had one chicken left, and Philipe and I ate it when it looked as