WINDKEEPER

by Charlotte Boyett-Compo

  "How do you know that?" Legion countered. "That is not common knowledge."

  "I know everything there is to know about him, Lord Legion."

  "Aye, you know more than you should." He took her arm. "I will not allow you to hurt him, lady. Not ever again."

  "You have my word, sir. When the time comes, I will leave him and never return. I would do nothing to hurt him in the eyes of his people."

  "Aye, I know that right well enough!" Legion spat.

  "Legion," Teal warned.

  Legion looked to his friend. "This foolishness can only cause Conar trouble, du Mer. Is that what you wish for your friend?"

  Teal took Liza from Legion’s hard grasp and pulled her against him. He could feel her sobs as she trembled against his chest. "Let him have his freedom until that freedom is snatched away."

  "Snatched away?" Legion exploded. "Is that how you see his marriage?"

  "Isn’t that how you see it, Lord Legion?" Rayle asked. His face wore a kind expression. "It is how all of us see it. Are you different in your opinion of the bitch from Oceania?"

  "This will only cause him more pain," Legion said stubbornly.

  "He’s a man full grown, Legion," Teal told his friend. "He is responsible for his own mistakes, if this be a mistake."

  "You think it isn’t?" Legion asked.

  "I think he should be the one to make the choice. Not you."

  Legion stared, looking from one man to the other. He could see they were both behind Conar’s insanity and his shoulders slumped in defeat.

  "All right," he murmured, his mouth pursed into a hard line. "I can see where your loyalties lie." He stepped forward and cupped Liza’s chin in his strong fingers. "I love my brother more than anything in this world, and I would never see him hurt if I could prevent it. If you are what he wants, then you will be what he gets until the day he can no longer put off this hell-spawned wedding."

  "As I stated, I love him as well, Lord Legion."

  Legion could see the truth of what she said. "I know you think you do." He took his hand away and looked at Teal. "Keep this lady company while I see to him."

  Teal nodded and glanced at Loure. Neither man was sure that this was the best thing for Conar, but neither would deny him the happiness he had long been denied. Neither were they sure it was the best thing for any of them, Liza included. Something dark and disquieting seemed to fill the night air like a warning and both men felt it to the marrow of their bones.

  Legion found his brother sitting against a tall oak, one hand viciously stabbing the ground with his dagger. Conar glared at him as Legion hunkered down beside him. "I won’t argue with you, Legion," he said testily.

  "Then don’t. I came to discuss with you a way we can keep Papa from finding out about Liza and having the flesh stripped from your backside."

  "You would help me do that?" Conar’s tone was incredulous, for he had feared opposition.

  Legion shrugged. "Against my better judgment, aye, I will." He ran a hand though his prematurely graying hair. "But I swear, Conar, I don’t see how you can keep this from blowing up in your face. What happens when King Shaz finds out? And he will. You aren’t supposed to be consorting with a mistress for six months prior to the wedding."

  "Does that vile man expect me to be a stone? He and that warrior-wife of his postpone the gods-be-damned wedding at their convenience, yet I am to remain celibate indefinitely?" He looked away from his brother. "I think that’s a bit much to ask of any man."

  Legion smiled. "Well, I do, too, but obviously they look at it differently. I can understand their concern for their daughter’s health. I’m sure she has remained pure for you."

  A rude snort shuttered from Conar. "Who the hell would bed the bitch?"

  "True," Legion mused. "If she’s as bad as Rayle says, I doubt anyone would try." He saw Conar glance at him. "Look at it this way. Burlap bags make suitable veils, too, little brother. If the bitch is a nag, put a feedbag over her ugly face."

  Conar shook his head. "With my luck, she’ll want to screw while every candle and chandelier in the room is lit."

  "The better to see your magnificent body, sweet Prince," Legion whispered, nudging his little brother’s leg with his own and wagging his dark brows.

  "You can jest all you want, A’Lex," Conar snarled, "it isn’t your body she’ll be pawing!"

  "Thank the gods!" Legion swore in a gush of relief that made his brother chuckle.

  "I can always close my eyes, I guess." Conar laughed at his own expense. "Or I could use the burlap to drown her in Lake Myria."

  "Now that’s a thought," Legion said, pretending to think it over. "Maybe the bitch can’t swim."

  "She’s probably got gills and fins. Most amphibians do," Conar said in disgust. "Only the gods know how truly bad the hag looks."

  Legion smiled. "Maybe she’ll surprise you and be as devoted to you as this Liza seems to be. Even if she’s the ugliest hag in the Seven Kingdoms, kindness counts for something."

  "As long as I have Liza, The Toad can be whatever she may be. It won’t matter." He looked at his brother. "I won’t give her up, Legion. Not now and not after the wedding. I’ll tell The Toad that, as well."

  "And risk being hitched to an Oceanian flogging post?" Legion shook his head. "That’s folly, Conar."

  "It doesn’t matter! If pain is the only way I will be allowed to keep Liza, then pain I will endure." His face went hard with memory. "It’s nothing new to me."

  "Conar, just think before you act. That’s all I ask."

  "I have thought, big brother. I will not give up my one chance at love."

  Legion turned his head away, hearing Liza’s words in the back of his mind. Conar wouldn’t be given the choice of whether or not to let Liza leave. The girl had meant what she had said. Once the wedding was sealed, Liza would leave, never to return. Legion didn’t question how he knew that. It just seemed right to him.

  "So where do we put your lady in the meantime?"

  "I’ll have to find a place in the village for her…"

  Vehemently shaking his head, Legion discouraged that notion. "Servants’ tongues wag. Soon everyone in the keep would know about her, including Papa. You can’t put her in the village, and you sure as hell can’t bring her into the keep. It has to be some place close so you can visit her and yet far enough away for Papa not to get wind of it."

  "I don’t know of such a place."

  "But I do." Legion looked at his brother. "Ivor Keep."

  "The old keep at Epstien?" Conar thought about it. Their father had given the keep to Legion as a present for his coming of age many years earlier. It was rarely used except as a place to spend the night when traveling to Oceania. Only a small skeleton crew manned the keep and the place was far enough from the capitol so those servants who did live there were not likely to make visits to Boreas.

  "It’s within a day’s ride of Boreas."

  "That was where Mama ran when she left Papa on their wedding night." A smile lit Conar’s face. "I was conceived there."

  A frown marred the humor on Legion’s face. "You’d best make sure no child of Liza’s is conceived there."

  There was a hard note of challenge in Conar’s voice. "What if there is?"

  Legion fused his gaze with his brothers. "It would be unwise for a child of this lady’s to be born. Such a child would be more than just a loved byblow, Conar, and you know it. That child would be all."

  "As the mother is all," Conar said softly.

  "Aye, I can see that, Conar." Legion glanced toward the distant glow of the campfire, picturing Conar’s lady sitting there. "But I would have you think long and hard on this. What if a child was born from this love and then a child was born from your marriage? You would be legally and honorably bound to make the second child your heir. What if no child came of your union with the Princess Anya? You still could not claim Liza’s child as your heir. The crown would then go to Coron’s firstborn because we both know Galen will never sir
e a babe."

  There was pain in Legion’s voice. "I know all too well how it feels to be illegitimate, little brother; to be the son of a man who can not do for you what he wants. When a royal offspring comes into this world and can not be claimed as anything but a moment’s pleasure…it hurts. It hurts in a way you will never know."

  Chapter 17

  * * *

  Liza looked about the master’s chambers at Ivor Keep and smiled. Lush furs were spread out on the cold stone floor and elaborate tapestries of naked wood nymphs being chased by randy satyrs lined the thick walls. A huge brass bed gleamed in the center of the room and was covered with a plush throw of pure white ermine, soft to the touch, sensuous to stroke. Sitting on the high mattress, she sank into a down-filled softness that made her eyes widen. The whole room was very masculine, not a single feminine frippery to soften the bold male look. The chamber even smelled masculine: the aroma of cinnamon and leather, tobacco and lime filled the air.

  She glanced at the ceiling and giggled. A huge scene of frolicking wood nymphs played over the frescoed surface.

  "I’ll have the servants bring in different furnishings," Conar told her as he stretched out across the bed beside. She sat with her knees drawn up in the circle of her arms. " ’Zelle can help you decorate it to your tastes." He ran a finger down her leg and smiled as she squirmed.

  "I rather like it this way. It has a certain decadent charm." She looked at the heavy velvet hangings tied around the four-posters. "This is a room for seduction, Milord."

  "Aye, that it has been." He grinned.

  Liza cocked a brow.

  "Not me, but Legion. And our father before him." Conar propped his head on his hand. "Have I told you about my mother’s wedding night?" He wrapped his hand around her calf.

  "No, but I would like to hear."

  "I’m not sure you should."

  "And why not?"

  "You might get ideas."

  "Oh, and I haven’t already?" She grinned.

  Conar laughed and tugged on her leg. "You have the most wicked eyes, lady."

  Liza pursed his lips. " ’Tweren’t my eyes that caught your attention, Milord."

  "True."

  "Your mother?" she prompted.

  "Aye. She was from Virago. Her mother was a Serenian, but she married one of the royal heirs from that wild land. My mother was born in Virago and she was married there at the ripe old age of thirteen to a nobleman’s son."

  Liza’s brows shot up. "Your mother had been married before?"

  Conar nodded. "I don’t know that much about him, for Mama never spoke of him. If Papa knows much, he hasn’t told me. They say he was a traitor, this man, and he was hanged somewhere outside the town of Derry-Byrne. They wouldn’t allow my mother to have his body for burial. Virago has the same laws as Serenia. A traitor may not be buried in his home soil; he must be cast into the sea." Conar’s face darkened. "When I am King, that law will change."

  "Were there children from that marriage?"

  "No, no children. My mother was left alone. Within a week of his death, my grandmother died as well, and my mother was sent to live at Norus Keep with her maternal grandmother, my great-grandmother, Violette."

  "She went to live in that horrid place?" Liza was shocked. "But why?"

  Conar shrugged. "I don’t know. It must not have been so bad back then."

  "It is an evil place," Liza protested.

  Conar looked away from her. "At any rate, my mother went to visit the dowager estate that is very near my father’s game preserve in Colsaurus. Papa was there at the time with a few of his half-brothers, no doubt raiding the countryside for game as well as girls, and he happened to see this lovely lady riding by on a big white stallion. She had flowing gold hair to her hips and the most beautiful blue-green eyes he says he has ever seen. She frowned at him as she rode by, not realizing, I am told, that it was the Heir-Apparent to the throne of Serenia she was ignoring. Papa says his heart melted at the sight of her. He fell in love with her then and there."

  "You McGregor males are ever taken to falling in love at first sight, aren’t you?" she teased.

  Conar looked up at her with steady eyes. "When we fall in love, Lady, it is forever."

  Liza smiled. "What then?"

  Conar was silent for a moment, but when he spoke again, his voice was soft and filled with wonder. "He followed her to Norus and when he tried to gain access to the keep, he was denied. Technically, the keep belongs to our family since it is on Serenian soil. But back then, Norus had been a wedding present to my maternal great-grandmother from her widowed grandmother and so her heirs had the right to say who could, and could not, enter the keep, whether he be King or not."

  "How can that be? If the lands are held by your family?"

  Conar smiled. "Norus sits on four acres of land that at one time was Viragonian soil. It was seceded to our family at the death of the Outlaw, Syn-Jern Sorn. But it was still held in the Hesar family up until my mother’s marriage to my father."

  "So Virago claimed it?"

  "Aye. By right, my father, although he was King, could not enter without the King of Virago’s permission and that wasn’t likely to be given for they weren’t on good terms at that time."

  "But he did enter." Liza smiled at Conar’s wink.

  "He laid siege to the keep." Chuckling, he laid flat on the bed and crossed his hands under his blond head. "That siege lasted nearly twelve days."

  "Sieges being a most uncommonly expensive enterprise," Liza commented.

  "Indeed. But my father vows it was worth every gold coin he spent."

  "What happened then?"

  Conar looked at her. "My mother sneaked out of the keep late one night and made her way to the tent where my father slept. I am told they made love that very night and she agreed to marry him."

  "He knew she was of royal blood?"

  "He knew more about her than she about herself, he has often said." Conar smiled. "Less than a month later, they were wed at Boreas."

  "And they lived happily ever after," Liza said dreamily and laid beside her lover.

  "Not exactly."

  "Oh?"

  "Papa can be an obstinate cuss at times and on their wedding night he was less than mannerly in his way of handling the wedding feast. He paid more attention to his cronies than he did to my mother, and he winked one too many times at the servant girls for my mother’s liking. As a result, she gave him an ultimatum. Either quit the banqueting hall and make haste to their rooms, or else she’d leave on her own. Papa had had too much to drink and it had gone to his head. He told her: I am Master here, woman; you are my property."

  "Oh!"

  "So, taking three servants with her, my mother left the keep and rode out of Boreas in the middle of the wedding reception and somehow wound up here at Ivor."

  "Your father wasn’t too happy, I bet."

  Conar chuckled. "Not happy, at all, Mam’selle. He took chase and found her here, but she had barred the gates against him." He turned over on his stomach and laid an arm over his lady. "But McGregor men can be steadfast in their approach to their women. He climbed the damn east wall." Conar grinned, thinking of his father’s escapade as a youth.

  "You are joking?"

  "He nearly broke his neck climbing the wall into this very chamber. When he swung his leg over the windowsill, he saw my mother lying in this bed, gazing at him with a tender smile."

  "What did she say?"

  "She said: What took you so gods-be-damned long, Gerry? The champagne is getting warm!"

  Liza giggled. "She must have been a very wise lady."

  "Indeed, she was. He opened his mouth to yell at her, demanding to know what she thought she was about, when she pulled back the covers and he could see she was naked beneath the great fur. He didn’t ask her anything else that eve."

  "She had wanted him all to herself."

  He nodded, running his hand down her spine. "It would appear that was the case."

  "
So they spent their wedding night here in this bed?" she asked, snuggling against him.

  "Aye, and they made the most of it." He nuzzled her head with his chin.

  "How so, Milord?" She listened to the steady beat of his heart next to her cheek.

  He moved over her, bringing his face to the nape of her neck to place a light kiss there. "They made me here that night."

  * * *

  For four months Liza lived at Ivor Keep near Epstein. On occasion she would leave for days, even weeks; once nearly an entire month. Conar came to expect, if not accept, her sporadic departures, seeming to understand her need to go off to herself at times.

  After the first few frantic episodes, he even stopped trying to find her, for he realized his attempts would be futile. If Liza did not wish to be found, she would not be.

  He would rant and rave when she returned, but always they would end up in wild, twisting passion in the big brass bed, totally lost to what went on around them.

  Including the constantly postponed wedding between Conar and the Princess Anya.

  The friendship between Liza, Legion, Teal, and Rayle grew in leaps and bounds. Her expertise as a horsewoman, added to her aptitude with dagger and crossbow, had well-benefited them on occasion. Her constant good cheer and wit, her uncanny way with herbs and potions, did much to render her a saint in their eyes. But it was her great love for their friend and brother that made them care so deeply for her.

  No woman would ever love Conar the way Liza did.

  And if the wedding contract still lay in the Tribunal’s vaults unsigned, then was that not proof the gods had smiled on Conar’s love for the girl? Did it not mean this union had been predestined? Why in six months’ time, had no one spoken out against the young Prince and his ladylove?

  * * *

  "Highness!"

  The warrior shook the Prince again, dodging the flailing arms and clawing fingers. "Highness, wake up! ’Tis the dream again. Wake now!"

  Conar came bolt upright in the bed, his face pallid with terror, his body drenched in perspiration. He stared without recognition at the man who hovered over him, whose hands were tight on his forearms, gently shaking him. His breath came in great heaves as he tried to draw air into his collapsing lungs and his hands pulled at the flesh around his closing throat, desperately trying to open the closing passageway.