Excerpt from The Southern Queen
“Do you trust your friend?” Eleanor broke the silence softly to Gabriel. “Is he a fair man?”
“Why do you ask?” was all he said.
“I have been listening to him talk to my soldiers and I am in fear of my life. They wish to kill me tonight, I gather,” she spoke lowly to not gather attention to their conversation. The men laughed loudly ahead. “I do not wish to die.”
Gabriel thought silently and said nothing. She awaited a response from him that never came. The afternoon was waning, and he sorted through his logic and morality on the situation.
Of course Craven would convince the soldiers that they should kill the Queen, abandon the cause and go back to the South, while Craven took the gold all for himself and whatever he could carry and abandon his duty. This also called to question whether Craven meant to kill Gabriel during the scuffle to leave with a clean conscience, which would logically be the easiest solution to all of Craven's problems. Gabriel was suddenly angry, but he knew that when the time came, he would be the only one to save the Queen and restore honor to the North. Unfortunately, this also meant the odds were four to one, and that didn't look good for him either.
“Boy!” Craven called to him. “Set up the camp and make some dinner for us soldiers, would you? We're going to go scout the trail a ways and make sure there's not mischief about.”
Gabriel unloaded the tents and began to set up the Queen's first. He wracked his brain trying to figure out when and how they could escape. Queen Eleanor sat on a log near him and stared at him, wringing her hands.
“Do you think I can outrun them?” she asked.
“No,” he said flatly.
She looked at the ground defeatedly. “I suppose the Gods will it to be my time. Maybe this is how my father gains total victory, in the hills and in secret. I will perish and he will soon follow me peacefully but with no resolution. What will become of our people? Will they continue a war after we're gone in the name of two people who refused to be family?” she thought aloud. “I want peace for all of us, not just for his conscience.”
Gabriel built a fire and began cooking a lamb stew. He gathered wood and made the camp in good order. His father had taught him that even though the mind can be occupied, the hands need not be idle. He had resolved to save the Queen. He had resolved to kill the others if he had to. He would be tired afterwards, so at least the food was made and the camp was suitable.
After a few hours, the sun had set and the others returned. They all gathered around the fire and ate greedily. The Queen ate nothing but stared into the night-cloaked forest, presumably reasoning herself out of escape.
“Boy,” Craven growled through mouthfuls of stew. “You did good today. Go gather more wood before bed.”
The Queen's eyes looked at Gabriel with a deep resignation. It was time. When he left for firewood they would slaughter her and not lose sleep from it. He forced himself to leave through the bushes and hide and wait for them to act.
Gabriel climbed into a tree less than 30 steps from camp to observe how it would be done. Craven was cruel. The soldiers were acting in fear of their own lives at this point. He did not blame them. The mettle of men is tested in the face of death, his father had said.
“Go find the little twat and kill him,” said Craven to one of the soldiers as he finished eating.
The soldier stood and entered the woods where Gabriel had been with his knife drawn out to slit the boy's throat. Gabriel watched the man walk directly underneath him, searching the dark and listening for him. Gabriel dropped out of the branches and onto the man, drawing his own knife and stabbing him in the neck through to the hilt. The soldier made a terrible gurgling sound as the knife stuck out of his neck, blood gushing like black tar over his cloak. He fell to the ground and ceased to move. Gabriel took the man's longsword and drew his own knife back from the man's throat.
He had just killed a man. All of this time at war and he'd never done it before. Now it was done, and it didn't feel as terrible as they made it sound in church.
Suddenly, he heard a woman shriek. The Queen!
Gabriel rushed back quietly, hidden in the dark forest around the camp. One of the soldiers restrained the Queen and held her left hand down stretched across one of the crates. The last of the soldiers lay on the ground dead. He had probably had a change of heart and tried to save her. Craven was standing over her with his pocketknife waving menacingly.
“Now, the time has come for us to get what is owed to us, lady,” Craven said and traced the blade along her hand. “These rings are beautiful, aren't they? And such fine fingers they rest upon.” He tapped on her chastity ring with the blade. “I want this one first. Take it off.”
Her eyes widened with fear. “That ring was given to me when I took my chastity oath during my coronation. It has not moved for twenty years. It won't come off.”
Craven shrugged nonchalantly and swiftly cut off her finger. She let out a blood chilling scream and the soldier held her still. Gabriel gasped and held his hand over his mouth to silence himself. He had to figure out how to better the odds before he could save her.
Gabriel looked at his knife, still covered in the other man's blood. Something in him ran cool and calm when he remembered throwing knives with his father when he was young. He could kill one of them from a distance and then she could escape. He took aim at Craven as he had a clear shot while the greedy old man carved the Queen's dismembered finger from inside the ring.
Gabriel took a deep breath and threw the knife. He could hear it swishing through the air, and apparently, so did Craven. He turned in time to face the knife as it cleft into his chest with a thud.
“Shit!” he snarled and fell backwards against a tree with the force of the throw. Gabriel rushed through the woods in anger and sliced the old man's skull in two with the sword before another word was spoken.
He then pointed the sword at the man who was holding the Queen, now not as tightly as before. “Hands off her.”
The soldier threw her down and drew his own sword. “I've eaten shits like you for breakfast. Come on with it, boy.”
Gabriel had never had to sword-fight outside of training before, but his brain was a melee of anger and fear and he charged the man with expert stancing, circling him like a hungry shark. The power of each blow forced the soldier down and back until he was nearly on his knees being beaten down by Gabriel.
“I yield! I yield!” the soldier said, hoping the assault would cease and lowering his guarding arm.
“Not today,” Gabriel said, kicking the soldier to the ground and driving his sword into the man's eye and through his brain. The man seized then fell still.
Title: The Southern Queen
Genre: Historic Fiction/Fantasy
Age Range: Young Adult to Adult
Word Count of Selection:
Word Count of Total Work as of 6/27: 16,269
Author: Kaley Keane
Fit: The Southern Queen is a great fit for any publishing house because it feeds off of the fantasy mania that has captivated historical fiction readers with the introduction to such works as The Mists of Avalon and A Game of Thrones, though the focus is more on the humanity of the characters instead of the supernatural aspects of their stories. I have created a strong group of characters who have struggles that are easy for readers to identify with.
Hook: Gabriel, a poor trapper's son, finds himself thrust into the middle of the reunification of the two kingdoms that have been at war since before his birth. With his help, the Southern Queen gives purpose and prosperity to a people who have never known true peace.
Synopsis: After abandoning his post to guard the coast, Gabriel leads Queen Eleanor through the treacherous road to the citadel. They are met with her father, King Alimond, who is the Queen's sworn enemy. A treaty is made as King Alimond confesses that he is dying. The Queen and Gabriel return to her palace to prepare for unification of the two lands upon her father's death. A plot to assassinate Queen Eleanor is exposed in court, and Gabriel is accused. The morning of Gabriel's execution, his only option is to escape in order to save her from her own terrible mistake.
My Bio: I'm not very interesting myself.
Platform: Making social impact with unlikely characters who are relatable in order to include demographics that may be underrepresented in literature while telling entertaining, moving stories
Education: Currently attending Northern Arizona University after quite a long sabbatical following high school
Experience: One short science fiction story, one science fiction novelette, one young adult/female-centric novelette all self published on Amazon
Personality/style: Some humor but motivated by emotion and an elevated timbre of prose
Hobbies: I write, read, make music, and I am learning to walk again after foot surgery.
Hometown: Yuma, AZ now living in Kingman, AZ but moving to Flagstaff, AZ in August of 2017
Age: 29