Horizon Storms - Kevin J. Anderson [235]
This derelict, though, was a treasure trove. And he had it all to himself.
Kotto would have to start from scratch, but he was up to the task.
Chapter 120 — KING PETER
Within seconds of meeting the young Prince, Peter decided that Daniel was indeed an unlikable boy. OX had given the King a map that guided him through the underground tunnels and halls to the hidden suite of chambers where the young man was held under pampered house arrest. Peter leaned casually against the door frame. “So you’re Prince Daniel?”
Wary and annoyed, the boy looked up and guiltily wiped sticky fingers on a fine bedspread. Peter wondered if the kid had managed to smuggle candy into his rooms, despite the Teacher compy’s prohibition of treats except as rewards for good behavior.
His face was plump with baby fat. “Who are you?” Peter couldn’t believe the Prince didn’t recognize a face that was ubiquitous throughout the Hansa worlds. Then Daniel’s blue eyes narrowed. “Hey, you’re the King! King Peter.” He frowned. “You’re not supposed to be here.”
Peter wondered if the boy’s eyes were really blue, or if they had been artificially colored like his own. “Well, we have lots of things in common. Maybe I can give you some advice on being part of the royal family.”
“I’ve got all the advice I can stand.” Daniel fluffed up his pillow and plopped back on his bed. “It’s not as if a King does anything except smile and cut ribbons and hand out awards. Why should I have to go through so much boring instruction? I could do all of those things in my sleep. They should just leave me alone.”
“The Hansa will never leave you alone.” Peter stepped farther into the room. “You’re their prisoner.”
“I am not a prisoner—I’m a Prince!”
“Didn’t they snatch you from your family? Didn’t they take you away from your home?”
Daniel gave a snort. “They rescued me from a miserable life with a bunch of losers. I had a stepfather who never paid any attention to me except when he wanted to beat me. My mother died a long time ago. I have an older sister, but she’s just a slut, never concerned about anything but her boyfriends.”
Peter remembered his own family and their warm time together. He would have returned to that life in a minute, given the choice. “How can you say that about your family?”
“I don’t care about them. If they came here, I’d rub their faces in the fact that I’m living in the Whisper Palace. I’m now the Prince, and they’re still…nothing.”
Peter found himself immediately angry with this young man. He was sickened by the very possibility that his beloved Estarra might have been forced to marry someone like Daniel. “They’re probably dead. The Hansa killed them to leave no loose ends for you.”
Daniel hesitated, but his shock was short-lived. “Good riddance.”
Peter squeezed his eyes shut and in his mind saw a flash of his mother and brothers, incinerated in the explosion of their dwelling complex. Even his estranged father had also been murdered to remove any connection to the newly created royalty.
This was worse than he’d imagined. “You’re not fit to be a King,” Peter said in a low, cold voice. “With an attitude like that, you barely qualify as a human being.”
“I’m going to take your place someday,” Daniel snapped. “I know what the Hansa wants, and I know how much you’ve screwed up. I’m better qualified to be a Great King than you are.”
The King chose not to continue the unsettling conversation. “That’s enough, Daniel. You’ve shown me everything I needed to know.”
Peter turned around and left the Prince behind, still ranting. Daniel must never be allowed to become the King. At least that was something he and Basil Wenceslas could agree on.
That evening, after a long and tedious trade banquet during which Peter sat in formal clothes and smiled but said nothing, Queen Estarra appeared excited and secretive, though she would not explain why. Finally, saying she had a headache, she asked Peter to take her back to the royal wing. The King made appropriate excuses and farewells, bowed and waved. Chairman Wenceslas dismissed