recognises you even though I am not your aegis. Your presence sickens me, Leo.’
Leo looked at him, open-mouthed.
‘That came out the wrong way,’ Kilt backtracked. ‘What I’m trying to say is that what you saw me experience with Loethar is, to some degree, how I feel around you.’
‘I make you feel ill?’
Kilt nodded. ‘I have worked very, very hard to overcome it. But it is always there. Your father did the same to me. The first time I saw the king from a distance my magic responded to him; that’s how I knew what I was. That’s why I made my home up here in the highlands, so I could avoid the towns and city, live as an outlaw, keep to myself and only have people around me I could utterly trust.’
‘And that’s why you’ve been avoiding me.’ Kilt watched the young king throw a glance at Jewd.
‘I have kept my distance, Leo, but I have not avoided you. Apart from your dealing with Freath, I am proud of you and what you have become. I just find it hard to be around you for long periods.’
‘And it’s different with Loethar?’ Jewd asked.
Kilt gave a snort of despair. ‘Wildly different. I lose control. He nearly undid me back there,’ he admitted. ‘And he knew it. If he has another attempt at me, I won’t win. I was only able to resist this time because all of you came to my aid.’ Kilt shook his head with disgust. ‘Loethar’s a Valisar!’ he spat. ‘Incredible! He murdered his own brother.’
‘Half-brother,’ Leo corrected. ‘And he would take you to task over that. My father killed himself to prevent Loethar having the satisfaction.’
Kilt shrugged. ‘Half-brother, full brother. Did your father know they were related, do you think?’
Leo shook his head wearily. ‘I don’t know the answer to that. My heart says no, but Loethar seems to think my father was aware of him. My father was a man of secrets. It’s possible he could have known — that might explain why he went to such lengths to have the plan in place for me should Loethar overrun the Set.’
Kilt agreed. ‘I didn’t know Brennus in the way that many did but my instincts combined with what I’ve learned over the anni suggest that he was perfectly capable of having this information and acting upon it.’
‘Why didn’t he just send an army in and kill Loethar if he knew?’ Jewd wondered.
Leo shook his head. ‘That would not be his way. My father was not a coward but confronting Loethar on his territory, with nowhere for an army to take him by surprise, no familiarity of the lay of the land or helpful knowledge of what the enemy was capable of, would have definitely made him reluctant to take that approach. And perhaps he wasn’t completely sure of Loethar’s birthright, so he waited for Loethar to come to him.’
‘Very costly,’ Jewd remarked.
‘In hindsight, yes. Too costly,’ Leo admitted. He frowned and turned back to Kilt. ‘So in Loethar’s presence you will always feel nauseous and without control?’
‘In his presence I will be at his mercy. I will be made well again, of course, but only when he’s bonded me.’
Leo nodded and looked at Jewd, who wore a quizzical expression. ‘The Valisar must consume part of his aegis to trammel him.’
‘Consume? As in eat?’ Jewd qualified, a look of dismay on his face.
Kilt nodded at the same time as Leo and Jewd looked away, disgusted, then stood. ‘Well, that’s going to happen only over my dead body, Kilt.’
Kilt smiled sadly. ‘I don’t deserve you, Jewd.’
‘No, you don’t,’ the big man replied. ‘You don’t deserve Leo or Lily or any of the people who support you.’
Kilt nodded in acknowledgment. ‘There’s more, and you might as well know it, now that I’m being forced to bare my soul,’ he said. As his companions threw a worried glance at each other, he continued, ‘I don’t know what it is but I’ve felt a disturbance.’
‘Disturbance?’ they asked together.
Kilt considered how best to explain himself. ‘Not so long ago I suffered a sort of dizzy spell. I thought it was still part of the same response to Loethar but I’ve been thinking about it and it was not. I have no doubt now. It had a different signature … it felt different. I don’t really know how to describe it and while this might sound fanciful, the only way I can pin it down is to say that it felt very clean … a really pure sort of magic.’
‘Loethar’s is tainted, you mean?’ Jewd tried.
Kilt shook his head. ‘No, not exactly. Loethar and Leo possess no magic of their own. Neither of them is empowered in the way that say I am or any Vested is. But both are Valisar and a Valisar can respond to the magic of the aegis. I should also tell you, Leo, that your Valisar magic is very weak. I’m grateful for that or I would never have been able to live around you.’
‘Trust me to be the weak link in the family,’ Leo replied quietly but savagely. ‘I suppose Loethar is strong?’
Kilt nodded.
‘Go on,’ Leo said, his mouth twisted in private disgust. ‘What about this new feeling you’ve experienced? Who or what is it?’
‘I don’t know. I can only use the word pure because it feels like it has its own source, its own reason. But beyond that I don’t understand it.’
Each of them paused to consider this new revelation but it was Leo who broke the silence. ‘Well,’ he said, straightening, ‘we can’t worry ourselves with what we don’t know, don’t understand yet. We have enough to frighten us right now. We need to make adecision about Loethar and we have to consider the next step for Lily. Whatever else is hurtling at us can wait as far as I’m concerned.’
Jewd nodded. ‘I agree. Let’s make a decision about Loethar. Do we kill him? I’ll oblige if no one else has the stomach for it.’
‘No,’ Kilt said. ‘His death achieves little right now. We need to know more about why he’s here. Why he’s alone. What his intentions are.’
‘To bond you, clearly,’ Leo said.
‘No, that’s not right. He had no idea that his aegis was roaming the north. And if I wasn’t the attraction the most obvious conclusion is you,’ Kilt said, stabbing a finger towards Leo. ‘Except he didn’t even know you were alive! He wouldn’t have even recognised you or known you were the missing Valisar if you’d introduced yourself under a guise. So he’s here for different reasons. And he certainly didn’t arrive here willingly. Why did he travel north? Why alone? We need to learn as much as we can to help Leo’s chances.’
‘All right, but we can’t let him near you,’ Jewd argued.
‘We don’t have to. I will speak with him,’ Leo said, his tone brooking no argument. ‘It is my place, anyway, to do so. His challenge is essentially at me.’
Jewd frowned. ‘If he’s the rightful heir, where does that leave you, Leo?’
‘Leo is heir,’ Kilt growled. ‘His father was king. He is next in line.’ He looked at Leo. ‘The fact that your grandfather sowed wild seeds on the plains is not anyone’s concern. Loethar is a bastard heir of mixed blood. Brennus married a royal; you are a blueblood. That gives you rank.’
Leo didn’t look convinced. ‘I suspect we won’t get an opportunity to argue it in front of the nobles. Loethar took the crown; he has worn it for over a decade now and let’s be very frank, his people are now comfortable with who is ruling. The fact that he is Valisar only improves his position, if I’m honest.’
It was Kilt’s turn to share a worried glance with Jewd. ‘Are you relinquishing your claim, Leo?’
‘Absolutely not! I’m simply stating