The Royal Hunter Part 44

motioned to Talia with a wide grin on his face before turning back to open the

window. "There's a good mate."

Talia reached him just as he pushed up the sash to allow Ringer to flutter in.

"He's gorgeous," she said, watching as the small snow owl landed on Archer's arm. "How can you tell it's him?"

"Other than the fact that most owls don't land on my arm, you mean?" He laughed at her pointed look. "I can just tell. It's in the eyes." He reached up and stroked the owl. "We're mates."

He looked back at her in time to catch the wistful look on her face. It fled a

moment later as her expression shifted to a wide smile. "Baleweg!"

Archer turned to find the old man standing on the other side of the window.

"Go to the door, I'll meet you there," Baleweg told them.

Moments later he was ushering them into his small kitchen where he had tea brewing. "I'd ask what brings you here, but I fear I already know." He looked to Archer. "The queen wishes to know more about Emrys."

"Yes." Archer squeezed Talia's hand beneath the table. "We think he was

instrumental in Eleri's death."

Baleweg's expression reflected little. "In what manner do you believe him to be involved?"

Talia cleared her throat. "We think Catriona's mother used his skills to hunt my mother down. That's why we moved so much. We think her death wasn't an accident."

"And her rationale for wanting Eleri dead?" Baleweg's already pale skin went whiter as he raised his hand to stall her response. "No, you needn't say it." He turned to Talia. "Gynan was your father."

It wasn't a question. Talia nodded, her eyes gla.s.sy. "Catriona is my half sister."

"I had no idea," Baleweg said, almost to himself. He bowed his head and Talia moved closer to him.

"It's not your fault. You were honoring her promise."

He shook his head. "Always too lost in my studies. I should have paid more

attention. I knew when she died, but in my grief I was worried only about not betraying her trust. I never thought to question-" He broke off and his shoulders shook slightly.

Talia leaned forward. "Baleweg-"He looked to her, his brilliant blue eyes filled with pain. "I wasn't aware her death was anything but accidental. I should never have been involved in her life to begin with. I was always so careful to remain apart. I should have never befriended her."

"Why? She valued your friendship, you have to know that."

But he didn't hear her. "I hoped our brief time as friends had gone undetected.

If I'd had any sense of it..." His shoulders shook again and his face seemed to crumple. "I didn't sense it."

Talia's eyes welled with tears, too. "It's not your fault. I don't care what your skills were, you're human and you can't be expected to know everything. "

Temper flashed through the pain. "I should have known this!"

"How? How could you have? Emrys didn't have anything to do with my mother before she left, did he?"

"No. And your mother wasn't the focus of this, not then and not now. Nor are

you. You're merely p.a.w.ns in a game that has gone on far longer than it should

have." He moved away from her. "It was me. It has always been me."

Archer sat forward. "You said before that Emrys likes to toy with you. Are you saying his dealings with Gwendolen so long ago, and now with Talia, the queen, and Chamberlain, are all part of some game he's been playing?"

"Yes." Baleweg rose and went to the counter, slowly preparing another cup of tea."Why?" Archer and Talia demanded simultaneously."What is his connection to you?" Archer demanded. "Why the games at all?"Baleweg took another moment before turning to face them. "I was his mentor, of sorts."

Talia's mouth dropped open. "You taught him?"

A faint smile ghosted his lips. "You find that so hard to believe?"

"No. I mean, I'm not surprised that you could teach him. But you said he

was... evil. He couldn't have learned that from you."Baleweg shook his head. "Not evil. Not in the sense you mean. Soulless maybe." He sighed, as if struggling to find the words. "He lacks morality, or a sense of it. As I said before, his powers expanded easily and quite far, very quickly and with frighteningly little effort. He enjoyed stretching those powers, applying them to amus.e.m.e.nts that had little to do with learning and more to do with entertaining himself. He doesn't see himself as being on the same plane as mere mortals. He sees himself as above all that."

"What happened between you?"

Baleweg's expression shuttered then. "I felt he should focus on finding out the

extent of knowledge that was out there for him to obtain." He fell silent for a long moment, then sighed again and said, "What I didn't realize, at least until it was too late, was that by pushing him to discover just how far-reaching his abilities were, I was enabling, enhancing even, his natural proclivity for the rest." He looked to them. "I learned that you can reach to the farthest boundaries of the mind's ability and discover wondrous amazing things. But you cannot learn to have a soul if you were never born with one." He sat down heavily across from them. "My greatest failing was not realizing that until it was too late."

Archer took Talia's hand, and held it tightly. "How long ago did you two part ways?"

"A great deal longer than you could possibly comprehend."

Talia shivered then, or maybe it was Archer.

"I take it the parting wasn't amicable?" Talia asked quietly.

Baleweg shook his head. "He enjoyed mocking me, mocking my dedication to

the educational aspect of the skills we possessed."

"How did you hook up with him in the first place?" Archer asked. "How could you know he had the same abilities you did?"

Baleweg looked down at his hands. So quietly they almost couldn't hear him,

he said, "He was born of me.""He's your son?" Talia asked in a stunned whisper.Baleweg looked to her. "No. More a... scientific experiment." He sat heavily.

"I suppose I must tell you the whole of it." He folded his hands and closed his eyes. "A very long time ago 1 was consultant to a king. It was another time, another place. Distant from here, from all you know. I was young then, naive about the powers of the mind, but I was obsessed with learning more. And perhaps I was a bit reckless in how I went about doing so. I agreed to some rather... questionable studies in return for the funding of my own interests. Emrys was the result of those studies. The geneticists named him. It's a Welsh form of Ambrosius." He opened his eyes then. "It means immortal."

Talia clutched at Archer's hand. "So what exactly is he?"

"In your time, I believe he's called a clone."

Talia slumped back in her seat. "Born of you. Literally. "

Baleweg nodded. "Only enhanced, biologically, supposedly to emphasize my

strengths and minimize human weaknesses. Things didn't go as planned." He shook his head. "But then, they rarely do."

Archer tried to digest it all. Baleweg's hermit-like existence and his aversion

to all things royal made far more sense now. "So he helped Gwendolen because he knew of your affection for Eleri?" Baleweg nodded and turned to Talia. "I didn't have a great deal of contact with her, but I came to feel a great deal for her anyway. She was impossible to deny. She had such energy, such desire to learn. I admit, I was lonely. Starved for such stimulating interaction." He seemed to sink into himself. "Emrys had left me alone for some time at that point, pursuing his own pleasures, if you can call them that. I thought him bored with my simple life and pursuit of knowledge." He shook his head. "I suppose no matter how much I learn, I can still be a fool."

Archer stood. "Okay, so we all screw up. I don't think anyone blames you, Baleweg, but people's lives are at stake, lives your-whatever you want to call him-is presently amused with. So why don't you tell us what we can do to stop him?"

Baleweg said nothing, turning to Talia instead. "There is so much more for you to deal with than we knew. I'm sorry I couldn't have prepared you better. Had I known of your father I would have understood your lack of healing abilities. We never spoke of such things. Our time together was spent in learning." He smiled then and a glimmer of strength returned to his eyes. "I do know that she was overjoyed to discover herself with child, despite her fears for her safety, and therefore yours. Our kingdom was in chaos at that time and anyone close to the king was in peril. Parliament was a den of snakes and the threat of a takeover was very real. Naturally, I a.s.sumed her fears were political in nature, but once I successfully helped her to safety, I retreated heavily into my studies with no interest at all in the state of the monarchy." He reached for Talia's hand. "Forgive an old man his broken heart."

"Oh, Baleweg, I don't blame you."

But it was clear he still blamed himself. "So what is to happen now? What are

the queen's plans?"

"She wants me to raise her son," Talia said quietly. "She's going to die and leave him to my care." She raised her eyes to Baleweg's. "The future king."

Baleweg's expression gave away nothing of what he might be feeling. "You

will heed her wishes, then?"Talia opened her mouth, then shut it again and lifted her shoulders. "I'm... I have no idea what to do, or what I can do. I didn't come here planning to stay."

Baleweg touched her arm lightly, sending his comforting tingle humming down the entire length of it. "Do not worry about this now. There is much yet to come."

Archer's gaze narrowed as he stepped closer. "What do you mean? Do you

know something we don't?"