Warrior by Violette Dubrinsky Read Free Book Online Page A

Wilhelm had been a good
    king. Fair and brilliant, he was a man
    of
    the
    modern
    world.
    He’d
    implemented fairer laws for widows,
    cut taxes for those barely earning a
    living, punished those who deserved it
    regardless of social class or income.
    Jaisyn had cried uncontrollably on
    the day of her father’s passing. From
    the next morning forth, Jaisyn dried
    her tears and took charge. She
    couldn’t inherit the kingdom like a
    son, but with no St. Ives heir to claim
    the throne for the first time in the
    history of the succession, she could
    act the part of heiress . She was in
    charge of the funeral arrangements,
    and her father’s political advisors and
    generals consulted her in the uncertain
    interim. Like a true queen, Jaisyn took
    on the burden of rule, and earned
    respect and allegiance from those
    who’d served her father.
    Though there were whispers of
    potential uprisings, Wilhelm’s sudden
    death made it difficult. The army
    surrounding the Lytherian City housed
    sixty thousand men loyal to the St.
    Ives family. There weren’t many who
    could match that sum in the quick
    time frame necessary to pursue a
    coup. Wilhelm might have been a
    scholar, but he’d understood war well.
    That and the fact that Jaisyn had the
    backing of her father’s most loyal
    advisers and generals, gave her time to
    focus on her family.
    She comforted her sisters and
    welcomed the condolences of other
    family
    members,
    especially
    her
    cousins, the Dukes of Halifax and
    Neren, who came to the city to be
    with the family as they grieved. The
    peerages of Halifax and Neren had
    been created when two of Jaisyn’s
    female ancestors married noblemen of
    Lytheria. To secure the position of
    any heir from those unions, King
    Anathil had bestowed the title of duke
    unto their fathers and made it such
    that any male heir would inherit the
    peerage, and the wealth, alongside it.
    Xander Richardson, the Duke of
    Halifax, seemed sincere in his
    condolences, but the words of Kegan
    Reinhardt, the Duke of Neren, didn’t
    sit well with her. He was the oldest
    male of her cousins, and the way in
    which he spoke of Lytheria affirmed
    Jaisyn’s belief that he intended to
    challenge her for it. Jaisyn sighed and
    decided to cross that bridge if, and
    more than likely, when it came. She
    turned her attention to Kegan. The
    family of the deceased king was
    seated around the long table for an
    after-funeral repast. As Jaisyn was the
    acting head of the St. Ives family, she
    sat at the head of the long table.
    Mathilda sat to her right, Isolde to her
    left and next to them, Kegan and
    Xander, respectively. Kegan was in
    deep conversation with Mathilda and
    from the blush upon her sister’s
    cheek, she knew he was being
    flirtatious. Kegan was not married, but
    from what she’d heard from her
    father
    as
    he
    engaged
    in
    idle
    conversation,
    and
    seen
    on
    the
    occasions Kegan paid homage, he was
    a rake. Jaisyn didn’t see any particular
    handsomeness in the man, but his
    eyes
    held
    something
    startling,
    something that would captivate some
    and repel others. It repelled her; she
    hoped it did the same for Mathilda.
    Jaisyn moved her thoughts from
    Kegan
    and
    looked
    around
    the
    rectangular table. Dukes, duchesses,
    earls and countesses, some she’d
    never before met, all sat there. The
    descendants of her ancestors; the
    wives of those descendants; the
    illegitimate children of kings and
    princes. Family.
    Lunch was almost over and Jaisyn
    was glad for that fact. She wished to
    be alone with her sisters. Most of the
    family gathered were people she’d
    never seen before and she preferred to
    mourn with those who’d known her
    father intimately. Instead of these
    nobles, she wanted to be with her
    sisters, General Urian, Malcolm.
    She looked to the wooden clock
    upon the wall. Broming, another port
    city of Lytheria, had sent these time-
    telling machines to the palace when
    her parents married. It was close to
    three in the afternoon.