by C. J. Pinard
“No. Tell us where King Zackary is. Right now!” Griffin seethed.
The bandit shook his head. “You’ll never see him alive. An eye for an eye. A life for a life. He killed my mother, your brother is next.”
“He’s obviously a thief and a liar,” Alexander said, an amused look on his face. “And a bad one, at that.”
The bandit looked at Alexander. “I’m not a liar. My mother worked in Zackary’s castle and she died there. Nobody even cared.”
“You presume to know people’s feelings, now? I’m sorry for her death, but how is it Zackary’s fault?”
“They just had a horse and carriage bring her body to the village with a telegram with some useless bloody apology. Don’t even know how she died. I hate you royals.”
“Sounds like natural causes, so I ask you again, what’s Zackary got to do with this? Seems a bit extreme, eh?”
The bandit closed his eyes and said quietly, “Just kill me. I’ll never tell you where he is. In fact, he’s probably already dead.”
Griffin swallowed hard, but maintained his composure. “If that’s the case, you owe us his body. Same as he did for you. An eye for an eye.”
The bandit said nothing else. Just closed his eyes, rolled his head to the side, and spread his arms wide on the ground as if already dead.
“Dramatic little jester we have here,” Alexander said, shaking his head. “He’s a right fit for the theatre, eh?”
Griffin got up, looked at the three guards, and pointed to the bandit. Then he gestured for Barclay and Alexander to follow him. Once out of earshot, he folded his arms over his ripped, bloodied tunic and said, “I say we bring the bastard back to the castle, put him through a few rounds with the iron maiden. That’ll get him talking.”
“Agreed,” Barclay said, excitement in his light-brown eyes.
“I say we keep searching the woods. Their hideout cannot be far from here if they’re nabbing people. Thieves tend to shit where they eat,” Alexander cut in.
“True,” Griffin said. “Okay, three of us go searching. Ten men to guard this little jester is plenty.”
“Yes, Your Majesty,” Barclay said. Then he turned around and addressed the ten soldiers. “The kings and I are going in search of Zackary. If we don’t find him within an hour, we shall return. Make sure this one stays put, and no killing him!”
“Yes, sir,” they murmured in unison.
The two kings and their captain mounted their horses and began to slowly ride deeper into the forest, leaving behind the laughing bandit.
Chapter 11
Her hand flew to her mouth. “This cannot be!”
Mathias chuckled and looked at David. “Would you please stay outside and keep watch?”
“Yes, sire,” he replied quickly, posting up outside the door before Mathias closed it.
“How is it the outside looks so mundane and decrepit, yet inside it holds such breathtaking beauty?”
Mariselle couldn’t believe her eyes—or her nose. It was the most beautiful garden greenhouse she had ever seen, and the pungent fragrance that floated in the air was intoxicating. And it wasn’t just any garden; colorful, gorgeous flowers were in full bloom. Plants grew as tall as the roof, some of their leaves shimmering with magic. She looked up and saw a clear coating over the roof, but none of the sparse straw could be seen. She imagined whatever clear substance it was let just enough light in during the day to nurture the plants.
She walked over to a large red rosebush and fingered one of the flowers. Leaning down, she inhaled its familiar scent and closed her eyes. “Absolutely amazing. May I?”
Mathias replied, “Sure, but just one.”
Mariselle carefully pulled one rose from the bushel and brushed her fingertips over its soft, velvety petals.
“See? I told you you’d like this place.”
She looked at him, wonder in her big green eyes. “I’ve been living here for a couple of months now. How come I didn’t know this was here?”
“You saw the outside, love. You probably paid it no mind on your way out to the stables. I presume you’ve been out to see the horses?”
She nodded. “Oh, yes. I went out almost every day when I got here. I was terribly depressed at having to leave Alex and the North Haven, and was still missing Griff. The horses helped. I still go out there often.”
Mathias smiled. “That doesn’t surprise me one bit.”
She grinned shyly and looked around the garden. A large, glimmering pink flower caught her eye, and she wandered over to it. The flower itself was about as big as her head, and had four leaves pointed in different directions. From the bottom came thick, green vines. They hung all the way to the floor and then seemed to be climbing up the walls of the greenhouse.
“I’ve never seen a plant like this before. What is it?” she asked.
Mathias came up behind her, standing so close she could feel his breath on her neck. “It’s called a malgaesec plant. Like most of the plant life in here, it has magical properties. Please be careful around this one, though. It’s the most powerful one in here.”
Mariselle twirled the rose in her hand and brought it up to her nose. “Why? What is special—ow!” She pulled her hand up to see a drop of blood on her fingertip. “Blasted thorns!”
“Let me see,” Mathias said, grabbing her hand. “It’s just a prick. But, perfect timing.”
She frowned. “What?”
Mathias reached down and plucked up one of the malgaesec flower’s vines. With a small knife he’d pulled from his pocket, he made a tiny puncture in the vine, and immediately the glowing green slime began to ooze out. He used the tip of his knife to extract a small dollop, and then dropped the vine to the floor.
“Give me your finger,” he said, his hand out.
She did as she was told, and watched as Mathias used the knife to smear the salve on her fingertip. “Ow, stings.”
“Just watch,” he replied excitedly.
She gawped in awe as the goo moved around her finger and then eventually disappeared, along with the tiny cut. “Amazing,” she breathed. “How?”
“Magic,” he said, not letting go of her hand.
They stared at each other for a long minute before the cramps low in her belly reminded her that she probably wasn’t pregnant with Zackary’s baby. She sighed and gently pulled her hand away.
“What’s wrong?” he asked, concerned.
She smiled weakly. “It’s nothing, Mat. Just womanly problems.”
“Ah… I see.”
“So, how long has this garden been here?” she asked in deflection.
He cleared his throat and wandered over to a tall plant resembling a Venus Flytrap. “Very good question. When we demolished Castle Rothhaven, each of us took a fourth of the foliage from massive garden with the intent of planting our own at our respective castles. It didn’t amount to much, so instead of a big castle garden, we created these little greenhouses to house the magical plants. As you can see, the malgaesec plant is very valuable, and we would not want it to get into the wrong hands. In fact, nobody but a Rothhaven can enter the gardens. It’s spelled that way on purpose.”
“So you got a witch involved to protect its secrets and make the outside look unsightly?” she asked, carefully plucking the remaining thorns from her rose stem and dropping them to the ground.
He nodded. “Yes, we did. We had to. She was paid handsomely for her work, too.”
“But you said these magical plants were at the original castle. Who made them so?”
Mathias’s brow furrowed together, and he began to speak, but then clamped his mouth shut as if trying to find the right words.
Mariselle tucked the rose behind her ear and closed the distance between them. “What is it? You can tell me.”
He looked down into her beautiful pale face and expectant eyes and said, “I’m told Angelique created the garden as a gift to our father before things went sour between them.”
The horses’ hooves trotted o
ver the dead leaves blanketing the forest floor. As the night grew colder, a fog began to descend and float just over the felled leaves. It wisped about in swirly clouds around the horses’ legs as the kings and their captain weaved between the trees, looking for any clue as to where King Zackary could be.
After fifteen minutes of silence, Griffin said, “You don’t think he’s dead, do you?”
Barclay looked to Alexander, who shot him a worried look. Then, the king looked forward. “No, I don’t. I know our brother is still alive. I would feel it if he were dead. Don’t you agree, big brother?”
Griffin nodded slightly. “I suppose.”
“Don’t let that knob-head rattle you, sire,” Barclay started. “He was nothing but a mere fool, trying to get a rise out of you. Once we locate King Zackary, I will slice off his head with glee.”
Alexander chuckled. “You sure do have a way with words, Barclay.”
The captain bowed as best he could on his horse. “Why, thank you, Your Highness.”
The two royals laughed. That broke the somber mood of their trek, and they began to talk.
“Where could they be holding him?” Griffin asked, scanning the forest. “Perhaps we should have waited until daylight?”
Alexander craned his neck to look at the sky. “There’s full moon, we can see just fine. It’s not as if a house or building would go unnoticed by us out here.”
“Yes, but we’ve only gone in one direction. The place they are keeping the king could have been in the other direction,” Barclay chimed in.
Griffin nodded. “True. I was thinking the same thing.”
“We have an hour,” Alexander said. “Let’s make the most of it. If we don’t locate some kind of dwelling in that time, we shall turn around and rally with the guards to formulate another game plan.”
“I vote the iron maiden,” Barclay replied with a slight chuckle.
“If it comes to that, then so be it,” Griffin said. “I don’t care much for human torture, but if that’s what it takes to get the slimy little bastard to talk, then so be it.”
“Do you really think his mother died while working at the West Haven?” Barclay asked.
Alexander lifted a shoulder and let it fall. “Hard to say. Zack didn’t keep an exorbitant amount of staff on, so he should have known them all. Hopefully, we can ask him if any middle-aged women had died suddenly recently.”
“I, myself, think he’s lying. I think they took our brother for money, but we intercepted before they could send a ransom note,” Griffin added.
There was a short pause as they continued to ride through the dark forest, until Barclay commented, “I also think he’s full of malarkey, Your Majesties. His eyes shifted left as he was telling the story. Everyone knows fibbers look left when they are conjuring up lies and stories.”
Griffin chuckled. “Everyone, huh? Well, not me, mate. Never heard such thing.”
Just then, the scent of jasmine hit their noses as a bright, floating apparition of a beautiful woman appeared before them. The three halted their horses and drew their swords as their animals whinnied.
The three stared in shock at the ghost.
“Stay back, witch!” Griffin said, his hand and sword trembling.
Alexander had seen this apparition before. “You keep plaguing us. Why?”
“You’ve seen her before?” Barclay asked under his breath, not taking his eyes off of Hecate.
Before he could answer, Hecate said, “The curse is close to being broken. Stay in the forest, find King Zackary. He still lives. You are close, do not give up, my kings.”
“But… but how is the curse close to being broken?” Griffin asked, still trembling at the sight of a ghost.
“Loooove,” Hecate replied, drawing out the word. “Love will break the curse. Mariselle is the key. Now go.” She quickly vanished in a wisp of smoke, the light she’d created fading.
“What in the bloody hell was that!” Barclay exclaimed, trembling.
“She came to me in a dream, told me to take Mariselle. I…” Alexander was also shaking, trying to find the right words. “I mean, I would have regardless, but she was very adamant that I had to bed her. But I still do not understand why. It did not result in a pregnancy, it only made us both heartbroken.”
Griffin’s eyebrows went up. “You, too?”
He nodded.
Barclay put his hand up. “Pardon me if I am out of line, sires, but both of you have, ah, lain with the lass, Mariselle?”
Griffin scrubbed a hand over his face and nodded. “And Zackary, too.”
Barclay chuckled. “Well, that I knew. The whole castle staff can hear them sometimes.”
By the way the kings were looking at him with their pained expressions, he immediately regretted speaking up. “I apologize, Your Majesties. You can feel free to send me to the guillotine now,” he joked.
“It’s quite all right, mate. It started out of necessity, since she seems to be the only fertile maiden in the land, but we can all agree we’ve grown quite fond of her,” Alexander commented with a sigh.
Barclay only nodded, not wanting to put his foot in his mouth once more.
“Let us keep riding. By the way that witch spirit was talking, seems she wants us to stay away from Zackary’s castle for a while,” Griffin said, yanking the reins and beginning to trot onward.
I’m sure I can presume why, Alexander thought with a sting of jealousy in his chest at the thought of the youngest Rothhaven looking after Mariselle.
Chapter 12
Mariselle shook her head. “Well, that’s quite the stinger, isn’t it? What a twist of irony.”
“You can say that again,” Mathias replied, nodding as he gestured around the indoor garden. “At least something good came out of their seemingly toxic relationship.”
Mariselle brushed her fingertips over a large white lily. “The good and the bad. There always has to be balance. Although…” She sighed. “The bad she’s brought upon far outweighs the good of this magical garden. It’s beautiful, and that green salve is quite helpful, but it won’t do anyone any good if our entire race of people die out.”
Mathias wrapped her in a hug and she snaked her arms around his back.
She felt tears well in her eyes as she said, “Can you imagine how awful it will be for the last remaining people? Everyone around them dying? Being left all alone to die?”
He brushed his hand over the top of her hair and then kissed the top of her head. “It won’t happen. Even if we can’t find a cure for the curse, I’m sure the citizens of Syracuse will begin to move away to other countries so they can live on. We just don’t want it to come that. I’m optimistic the curse will be broken. I’m told you’re the key to that.”
She pulled back and looked up into his gleaming aqua eyes. “So I’ve been told. Doesn’t seem to be working, though. I’m pained monthly with this bloody curse, and it’s all for naught.”
Without any more words to comfort her, he grabbed her hand led her out of the greenhouse. They walked hand-in-hand past the field leading to the stables and through the courtyard. Once inside, he let go of her hand and thanked Sir David for the escort. The knight nodded and disappeared down a hallway.
“Thank you for showing me the garden. It’s beautiful and I can’t wait to spend more time in there,” Mariselle said, hugging Mathias again.
He squeezed her in return, and grinned down at her. “Don’t forget, a Rothhaven has to open it for you, though.”
“That’s right. Well, I’m going to retire for the evening. Will I see you at breakfast?”
He nodded. “Absolutely.”
She climbed the staircase, and once she reached her quarters, she immediately knew she needed to use the bucket. Walking as fast as she could, she hiked up her skirts and bit her lip to keep from crying when she saw blood between her legs.
After cleaning up and changing into her nightdress, she blew out the candles around the room and lay down on her bed in the fetal positio
n to stay the pains plaguing her womb. Silent tears fell as she felt, yet again, like a failure. So much pressure had been put on her, and there wasn’t a damned thing she could do but keep trying to bear a child for one of the kings.
And what of Zackary? Disappointment flooded her as she realized she wasn’t having his baby. What if he were dead? That baby could have been her one link to having a piece of him. A direct heir to take his place, should he not still be living.
The quiet tears turned to sobs. She couldn’t handle the thought of Zackary being dead. No, her tender heart would not be able to bear such a tragedy. She wiped her wet cheeks with the back of her hand and sent up a silent prayer to any god who would listen that Griffin and Alexander would find their brother quickly, and that all three handsome boys would return to the castle safely so she could smother them in hugs and kisses.
The thought reminded her of Mathias. The boy was a hugger. She loved the way her body seemed to mold perfectly with his. And the way he looked at her… it was so contrary to the way his brothers gazed at her. Mathias was a little different from Zackary and Alexander, though. He reminded her of Griffin a little. Sort of reserved and gentlemanly, but playful when the time called for it. The two middle Rothhavens, they were aggressive and broody, though Alexander more than Zackary. That boy was all play and no work, and went after what he wanted with no questions asked. He was confident and gorgeous.
Mariselle closed her eyes and thought about seeking out Mathias for comfort. She wasn’t sure if he would be able to withstand her being in his bed without any sort of sexual touch, but she craved his arms around her, telling her everything would be all right.
A light knock at her door caused her to roll over. “Enter.”
“Milady, you’ve turned in early this evening,” Shawna said, smiling motherly at her.
Mariselle simply nodded.
Shawna looked at the way she was curled up in bed and immediately knew. “Your monthly, miss?”
Mariselle nodded. “Yes.”
Shawna sat on the bed next to her and rubbed her hand along Mariselle’s back.
