The commander nodded as he went back to watching the game for a time. After the cheering for another play out on the field died down, he regarded Jagang with a sidelong glance.
“Since you are sure to win, Excellency, it’s really only an insignificant promise of a reward, an idle bet. If you really believe that your team will certainly triumph, then I wouldn’t have the pleasure of ever collecting such a reward.”
“Then there would be no point in such a bet.”
Karg gestured out at the Ja’La field. “You are sure of your team’s success, aren’t you, Excellency? Or are you having doubts?”
“All right, Karg,” Jagang said at last, “if you win, she is yours for a time. But only for a time.”
Commander Karg bowed his head again. “Of course, Excellency. But, as we all know, you have no need to actually fear your team losing.”
“No, I don’t.” Jagang’s black eyes turned to Nicci. “You don’t mind my little wager, do you, darlin?” His grin returned. “After all, it’s only hypothetical, since my team does not lose.”
Nicci arched an eyebrow. “As I told you when I first arrived, it doesn’t really matter what I want, now, does it?”
Jagang’s smile remained as he watched her for a moment. It was a smile that looked like it covered thoughts of bloody murder at her public insolence.
As the intensity of the play on the field built, the crowd all around started pushing forward, trying to get a better view. Jagang’s guards reacted by driving men back, giving the emperor even more room. They wanted to be sure that they had the space they needed to protect him. The spectators, seeing the guards’ ill humor, reluctantly moved back.
As Jagang and Commander Karg watched the game, becoming completely absorbed by the action of the field, Kahlan checked on her special guards and saw that they, too, were getting caught up in the game. They kept moving up, a little at a time, craning their necks, trying to get a better view. Kahlan edged closer to Nicci. As the royal guards put muscle in their effort and moved the spectators back, it gave Kahlan and Nicci a wider angle of view so that they could see more of both the field and the players.
“The team with the red paint is run by the man I told you about,” Kahlan whispered. “I think he painted himself and all his men with the red paint so that no one would recognize him.”
As players ran past they got their first clear view of the wild designs painted on all the men of the red team.
When Nicci saw those designs, she looked startled. “Dear spirits…”
She took a step forward to get a better look. Kahlan, concerned by Nicci’s abrupt change in demeanor and obvious alarm, went with her.
That was when Kahlan spotted the man everyone called Ruben. He was running up from the left with the broc tucked tightly in against his chest as he dodged men diving for him.
Kahlan leaned closer to Nicci and gestured to the left, drawing her attention to the man called Ruben.
“That’s him,” Kahlan said.
Nicci leaned out a little to look where Kahlan pointed. When she saw him, the blood drained from her face. Kahlan had never seen anyone go so ashen so fast.
“Richard…”
The instant Kahlan heard the name she knew it was right. The name fit the man. She didn’t know why, but it just fit him.
There was no doubt in her mind that Nicci was right. His name was not Ruben, it was Richard. She felt a strange sense of relief just to know his name, to know his real name.
Kahlan, fearing that Nicci might faint, put a supporting hand to the small of the woman’s back. Beneath that hand she could feel Nicci’s whole body trembling.
Dodging men as he ran headlong up the field, his wing men to each side, the man she now knew was named Richard saw Jagang out of the corner of his eye. As he ran, his gaze swept behind the emperor and met Kahlan’s gaze. The connection, that recognition in his eyes, lifted her heart.
When Richard spotted Nicci standing next to her, he missed a step.
That instant of hesitation gave the men chasing him their chance. They smashed into him, slamming him to the ground. The impact was so violent that the broc went flying.
Richard’s right wing man dropped his shoulder, plowing into the rivals, sending them sprawling.
Richard lay facedown, unmoving.
Kahlan’s heart felt as if it rose up into her throat.
Just in time, the other wing man used an elbow to the head of a man about to crash down on top of Richard. As the opponent tumbled down to the side, Richard finally began to move. Seeing men flying past above him, he rolled away from the battle as he caught his breath.
In a moment he was on his feet, if somewhat wobbly at first.
It was the first mistake Kahlan had ever seen the man make.
Nicci’s lower lip trembled as she stood frozen, staring at Richard. Tears had welled up in her blue eyes.
Kahlan suddenly wondered if it could be.
She discounted the possibility.
It simply wasn’t possible.
CHAPTER 29
As he sat in the fading light, knees pulled up to his chest, listening to the ceaseless sounds of the enemy encampment out beyond the ring of wagons and guards, Richard heaved a despondent sigh. He ran the fingers of one hand back through his hair. He could hardly believe that Jagang had somehow captured Nicci. He couldn’t imagine how such a thing could have happened. Seeing her with a Rada’Han around her neck made him sick.
It felt to Richard like the whole world was coming apart.
As much as he dreaded even considering the thought, it seemed like the Imperial Order was unstoppable. Those who wanted to decide for themselves how they would live their own lives were being methodically subjugated by the Order’s uncountable followers, followers fanatically devoted to depressingly deluded beliefs, followers eager to enforce their faith on everyone else. Such a concept violated the very nature of faith, but that didn’t matter to the true believers; all men had to bow and believe as they did, or die.
The believers in the teachings of the Order went where they wanted, when they wanted, slaughtering anyone in their way. They now controlled most of the New World as well as all of the Old World. They had even infiltrated far off Westland, the place where he had grown up.
It felt to Richard like the whole world had gone mad.
Worse yet, Jagang also had at least two of the boxes of Orden. He always seemed to have everything well in hand.
Now he had Nicci.
But if it broke Richard’s heart to see Nicci with the gold ring of a slave through her lower lip, once again the captive of a man who had abused her so terribly in the past, it made his blood boil to see Kahlan also a captive of that same man.
Richard was also deeply dispirited to know that Kahlan didn’t remember him. She mattered to him more than anything else in the world—she was his world. But now she didn’t even remember his name.
Her strength and courage, her compassion, her intelligence, her wit, her special smile that she showed no one but him, were always in his thoughts and in his heart and would be until the day he died. He remembered the day they were married, remembered how much she loved him and how happy she had been just to be in his arms. But now she didn’t remember any of it.
He would do anything to save her, to return her to who she really was, to give her back her life—to have her back in his. But who she was, was no longer there, within her. Chainfire had taken everything from them both.
It didn’t really matter how much he wanted to live his own life with Kahlan, or how much he wanted other people to be able to live their own lives. The people of the Imperial Order had their own designs for mankind.
Right then, Richard could see only a bleak future.
Out of the corner of his eye he saw Johnrock scooting toward him. The heavy chain clattered as the big man pulled it across the hard, rocky ground.
“Ruben, you need to eat.”
“I did eat.”
Johnrock gestured to
the half-eaten piece of ham balancing on Richard’s knee. “Only half. You need your strength for tomorrow’s game. You should eat.”
Thinking about what was going to happen the next day only further served to tighten Richard’s stomach with anxiety.
He picked up the thick piece of ham and held it out, offering it to Johnrock.
“I’ve had all I want. If you want it you can have the rest.”
Johnrock grinned at his unexpected luck. His hand paused, his grin faltering. He looked up into Richard’s eyes.
“You sure, Ruben?”
Richard nodded. Johnrock finally took the ham and tore off a big bite in his teeth. After he swallowed, he nudged Richard with an elbow.
“Are you all right, Ruben?”
Richard sighed. “I’m a prisoner, Johnrock. How could I be fine?”
Johnrock grinned, thinking Richard was just being funny. When Richard didn’t smile, Johnrock turned serious.
“You got knocked in the head pretty good today.” He leaned a little closer, lifting an eyebrow at Richard. “Not too smart of you.”
Richard glanced over at the man. “What’s that supposed to mean?”