Kingdom's Edge by Chuck Black Read Free Book Online Page A

must do. They have disgraced the Prince and the King!”
    A long moment of silence was my only answer. I moved toward the door hoping that at least a few men would follow. Some did.
    William, Rob, Barrett, and I stealthily moved from street to street, making our way toward the square. The others stayed behind.
    â€œHow are we going to do this with only four of us?” William whispered as we crossed our last street before reaching the square.
    â€œI’m not sure,” I whispered back. “Let’s take a look at the square from behind that brick wall by those trees. We’ll form a plan from there.”
    We moved carefully to the low brick wall. Our backs were completely covered by the thick trees on one side, and the brick wall protected the other. From this vantage point, we could easily see the entire square, including the large oak tree in the center, thanks to the light of a half-moon.
    Something was wrong.
    My eyes were fully adjusted to the dim light, but I could not see the body of the Prince. I forced my eyes to decipher what must be an illusion caused by shadows. As I focused more carefully, I could see the rope, but His body was gone.

    Â© Marcella Johnson
    â€œWhat did they do with His body?” I asked the other three.
    â€œI don’t know,” Barrett said. “But look on the ground beneath the tree. The guards are either asleep or knocked out cold.”
    â€œI don’t like this, Cedric,” Rob said. “Let’s get out of here before we’re found out and hanged ourselves.”
    At that moment, we froze and my heart nearly stopped beating. Just a few feet away, on the other side ofthe brick wall, stood a large man. In our earnest desire to see what had happened at the oak tree, this fellow must have quietly made his way to our cover and was now upon us.
    â€œWhy do you look for the Prince here?” the man said in a thick accent I’d never heard before.
    â€œWe came to bury the body,” I said. “Can you tell us where they’ve taken the body, sir? Where is the Prince?”
    The large fellow gave a slight chuckle. “Do not worry. The Prince will find you!”
    With the speed of a cat, he jumped the brick wall and disappeared into the shadows of some trees. I thought I heard a scrape of steel on brick as he crossed the wall. He was gone as quickly as he appeared.
    â€œWhat is that supposed to mean?” William asked.
    â€œI don’t know,” I said. “But I agree with Rob. It’s time to leave this place. Let’s get back to Barrett’s shop.”
    â€œW HAT DO YOU MEAN someone’s taken the body?” asked Jonathan, one of the other knights in Barrett’s back room. “Surely it must have been the Noble Knights. No one is foolish enough to try such a risky task—present company excluded, of course.”
    â€œLook, if it was the Noble Knights, then why were two guards sleeping beneath an empty oak tree in the middle of the square?” Rob asked. “The guards must have been overtaken and knocked out. Then someone took the body. I don’t know why, but maybe it was the large fellow who nearly scared us out of our wits.”
    â€œWhat large fellow?” a fellow knight asked.
    â€œJust as we were getting ready to leave, a large—”
    I stopped midsentence. Footsteps were approaching from outside Barrett’s shop. We all grabbed for our swords.
    â€œSomeone must have followed you,” Jonathan whispered.
    The footsteps grew louder. We stared at the back door. There were at least six men by the sound of the boots on the cobblestone. We braced ourselves for the deadly fight that surely would come if these were Noble Knights.
    The men walked to our door … and passed. We all breathed a sigh of relief and relaxed our swords.
    â€œGreetings, gentlemen.” A voice spoke from behind us, yet was in the same room.
    I dared not turn to see the owner of the