The Royal Series 0 - A Royal Archive

Chapter 1

"I was not aware of that," she confessed, nervously chewing her lower lip.

"No, and he would not tell you so," Braddock admitted. "but, if he feels mistreated, he will use that knowledge against you. He will see you sent away or punished. I cannot allow that."

He only realised he had said too much when Yalena met his gaze and leaned in to kiss him.

Braddock stood abruptly and cleared his throat. "We shall bury the woman before we leave camp. See if you can discover any who must be notified of her death," he commanded, before turning and leaving.

He could not afford to let Yalena turn his head. He was still the Captain of his men and had to maintain respect at all times. He certainly could not be thought of as having stolen Augustine's girl.

***

For a full week, Yalena would not look at him. She obeyed his commands like every other subordinate, but would not meet his gaze, nor exchange pleasantries.

Braddock knew why.

He could also tell from the longing glances Augustine gave her that she had called off their 'fling', before it became a problem.

It was so strange to have a woman in the ranks that he still had not become used to it. Yalena required her own tent, her own latrine, privacy when changing and bathing, as well as a less demanding training schedule. All on Commander Lee's orders. She often disappeared to her tent, in the early morning light, to read or keep her own company, while her brother stayed with the men.

Balloch slept in the men's quarters and acted as though he were another soldier under their command. He was nothing more than an errand boy, made use of to keep him busy and when times were tough. He also proved to be a great morale booster, telling silly stories and jokes, when the men were down.

Braddock could not have been more grateful for his presence. But he was a package deal; knowing that Balloch was with them reminded him that Yalena was there. Alone. Always alone and so very tempting.

"Yalena!" Commander Lee shouted for her, as he stepped out of his tent, with a worried frown.

On another early morning walk, before turning in, Braddock stopped and watched as Yalena exited her tent, bundling a blanket around her shoulders.

The commanded seemed as discomforted as he was, to see that she had probably been undressing when he called to her. "Come here a moment," he asked, less gruffly.

Yalena had no shame in her stance or facial features, as she walked towards their commander, with nothing more than an underskirt, an under top and a blanket to cover her modesty.

The second she was near, Commander Lee spoke up. "There has been another girl discovered. Like the last two," he announced, reminding Braddock of the disturbing trail they had been following. "It must end. These girls are becoming younger, so my surgeon claims. We must stop this madman, before he strikes again."

Yalena nodded, but looked puzzled. "What do you wish of me?"

"I want you to go ahead, alone. With one pack of provisions, one horse and no weapons, I want you to be his next victim," Commander Lee explained.

"No!" Braddock shouted his protest, before he could think the matter through. With a deep sigh, he marched to their sides and faced his commanding officer. "Sir, you cannot ask this of her. Whoever is doing this is becoming more violent with each attack. The last girl was long dead, before we found her. She had been cut..." He trailed off, unable to speak the awful words.

The last girl they found, almost exactly a week ago, had been mutilated beyond recognition. There were talks that she had been butchered like the fabled Jack the Ripper's victims, but Braddock knew that was not true. Jack had been a man skilled with a blade, compared to this monster who ripped and gutted on a whim.

"What if she cannot fight him?" Braddock tried again, sure there had to be another way. "What if this is neither vampire nor human? What if the wolves are back? They would kill her," he warned.

It had been a century or more since a werewolf existed, but he would not have brought them up if the attacks had not been so savage. In this world, such as it had become, there was cause to doubt everything they knew as truth and believe anything were possible.

Yalena looked away, fear in her eyes, but a determined set to her jaw. "I would do anything to prevent another girl from being attacked," she told the commander.

"You are a girl!" Braddock protested. "Or have you forgotten that?"

With a deep sigh, Yalena turned to face him, anger changing the hue of her eyes to a stormy green. "I am never allowed to forget that I am a woman. Separate sleeping quarters, separate bathing facilities. Treated like a china doll. You men will not swear in front of me nor fight against me, yet I cannot count the number who have come to my tent and offered 'solace' in my lonely hours," she said, her voice low and furious. "You are the only one who treats me as an equal, Braddock. If I must take every womanly task, to prove my worth to this army, then so be it. I will not see another child ripped apart by a monster, just because you are afraid to let me be a woman, for once!"

He was shocked by her outburst, but Commander Lee seemed pleased as punch, ignoring the accusation of how many men had sought her out for companionship. The very thought made Braddock nauseous.

"Do what you will." He sighed and turned away, disappointed and saddened by her words. The accusation that he was the only man to treat her as an equal stung. He had thought that may be a good thing, perhaps even what she wanted. But it did not sound that way. It sounded as though he had let her down, somehow.

How was he to know the number of men who propositioned her, if she would not speak to him? Was he to stand guard outside her tent, every night, just to fend them off, one by one? She would berate him, if he even attempted such a thing.

Braddock washed his hands of her. Yalena was one woman he would never understand and he was through trying.

"I will, anyway." She shot back a reply, before he had gone much more than thirteen steps. It did not surprise him in the least. She must always have the last word.

This time, he would let her.