Gods, this is my chance.
“No, I think I am—I know I am. I would like to be with just one woman. She would have to be very special. But it seems my duty doesn’t really allow me the time.”
Lucia looked away again, not quite hiding her disappointment.
“But maybe,” he said.
“Why maybe?”
“I’m not sure. If the right woman came along. I don’t know. It doesn’t really make sense.”
Lucia stared at him with a sharp, tender look in her eyes. A smile tugged at one corner of her mouth.
“I’ve been thinking about you a lot,” he said. Her smile widened, but she obviously wasn’t going to make this any easier for him. Ilario cleared his throat. “I really enjoyed being with you the last time we saw each other. I felt like I was finally beginning to know you.”
She cupped one side of her face, from chin to ear, and waited for more.
You want me to say it. All right.
“I absolutely loved that time with you, Lucia. I would say I care for you, but that wouldn’t be proper for me to talk about, would it?”
“Why not?”
“Who am I to think about you? I’m the furthest thing from royal stock—I’m not even a native Rezzian. And your father employs me. I’ve thought about this more than you’ll ever know, but I’m already lucky to be so close to your family.”
“You’re where you are because my father admires you. He knows your heart is good. My life is mine to live. Whatever I decide, my father will need to accept it. And he likes you.”
Ilario lowered his shoulders along with his glance. “I respect your father. He’s given me so much. I could never do something to upset him. You couldn’t be with me, anyway.”
“I can do whatever I want.” She patted the bed. “Come sit by me.”
Ilario’s heart raced with excitement. All right. If that’s how you feel about it … I won’t be afraid either. Who knows? Maybe your father would approve. He already trusts me with his son’s life.
He sat next to her and stared at her soft skin and proud face. Lucia looked as receptive to him as he’d ever seen, though her eyes were fearless. Ilario could barely breathe. No man could be worthy of you. But if you give me the chance, I would try.
He leaned forward and kissed her. She met him without hesitation. Her lips were soft and confident; his lips tingled against her flesh. She responded to his forceful movements, answering with even greater passion.
Ilario felt whole, reunited with some part of himself Lucia seemed to possess. He pulled her closer.
She pulled away and squeezed his knee, looking deeply into his eyes.
I want nothing more than to know the depths of your heart, Lucia.
“We’d just have to start somewhere and then find out where things go,” she said.
“That’s what I want. We need to defeat Pawelon and get out of this valley. Get back to Remaes, discuss this with your father, and,” he tried to win her over with his wide smile, “keep both you and Caio in the holy city.”
After Lucia stood up, Ilario followed her lead. She embraced him, and he wrapped his arms tightly around her waist. “I’m very sorry,” she said. “We don’t have time now. We need to rest and wake early.”
Right. If I can even get to sleep after this.
“Pray that all goes well tomorrow,” she said.
“I will pray to Lord Sansone for a swift victory. Lucia, I want to know you. I want to know things about you that no one else has ever known.”
She kissed him again, with her sweet tongue exploring his mouth. He wrapped her up and pressed her full chest against his. Feeling her feminine strength against his body filled him with yearning. It’s been so long. She pushed him back with one hand, flashing her seductive smile.
“Until the morning, beloved of Sansone. Help Caio. Give him confidence.”
“I will.” Ilario glanced at Ysa’s armor with an enormous grin. “I can’t wait to see you wearing all of that.”
She only winked and pushed him toward the doors.
This is really happening.
The doors shut behind him, and Ilario rejoined Caio. The young Haizzem had all of the guards laughing about something, but he turned right away and gleamed at Ilario with the purest acceptance.
I love her, Caio.
Chapter 16: The Long Wait
The previous night.
RAO’S STEPS ECHOED as he passed his father’s guards and walked under the archway to the rajah’s quarters. Burning lamps flickered and gave the place an oily scent. Dim, orange light flitted around the cavernous space like a somber ghost. The dilapidated stonework provided nearly all the decor.
Five paces to Rao’s left, his father sat behind a massive desk upon which rested a metal goblet and a plate of crumbs from his dinner. An open passage behind the rajah led to his bedchamber. One other large object furnished the room, a dark hand-carved table and eight matching chairs.
The only item with any real color hung behind the desk. The painting stole Rao’s awareness and breath, fixing his vision inside its solid frame. He’d last seen it when he was a child, before the war, when his father still lived in Kannauj. He wanted to run to it, to study the likeness of his mother and his brothers.
Instead, he strode to the desk and raised a fist in salute to the unresponsive man before him. “Hello, Father.”
The rajah’s silent stare felt especially cold in the emptiness of his hall.
What have I done to deserve your scorn? Before I came here, I’ve done all you’ve ever asked of me.
“I spoke with Indrajit.” His father stood and returned the salute with a giant fist. He placed his hands on the desk and leaned forward. “He told me you refused to fight.”
Really? “Is that all he said?”
“He told me you helped him once things looked grim. He said you stopped the storm.”
“Well, yes, I—”
“Is it true?” Devak narrowed and focused his black eyes.
“It was a terrible situation, I—”
“I don’t want your modesty. I need facts.”
“Yes, I used my sadhana to stop the storm. I think the royal daughter caused it. If I’m right, she’s extremely powerful. She was actively controlling the sky. It was—”
“I know. Too many of our men died.” His father straightened up. “Why didn’t you fight when the battle started?”
You’re about to lose whatever respect you might’ve had for me.
“I believe it was reckless to risk our entire army, and wrong in principle to be the aggressors. Our defenses have been successful. Why—?”
“I think you’re half-right.” The rajah crossed his arms over his thick chest. “It was reckless. I don’t care about your principles, but I had my reservations about Indrajit’s strategy.”
Rao stared at the swaying flame of the lamp nearest to the painting, letting his father’s words sink in. “I didn’t expect to hear this.”
“Indrajit has yet to disappoint me. But it sounds like we were fortunate you were there.”
“Thank you, sir.” Rao felt his chest expanding with his next exhalation. His shoulders relaxed.
“You’ve done well for yourself. Narayani’s stunning. How is she adjusting?”
“She seems in good spirits. I wonder if you have any trusted men who could watch over her when I’m away?”
“My best men guard me alone. If she wants to stay in my chamber during the day, she’s welcome to. It is always well guarded.”
“Thank you. I will tell her.”
“Don’t worry about Indrajit’s men. He’ll make sure his daughter is taken care of.” Devak walked around to the front of the heavy desk, and crossed his arms again before he spoke. “Rao, when I hit you I was protecting Indrajit’s honor. And I was angry at you for coming here.”
Rao looked at the stone floor, hardly believing that Rajah Devak was explaining his actions—not with an apology, but maybe with some degree of remorse?
“You’re a grown man,” he continued. “Your actions and accomplishments make that clear. I didn’t want you here, but you’ve earned the right.”
“I want to fight for you,” Rao said. “If I am ever to be rajah, I should be willing to do the same things that I ask of our soldiers.”
“That’s debatable, but I’ll leave that decision to you.”
“Thank you. Father, I’m only here to help you.”
“This isn’t about me. It’s about our way of life. Our freedom and our culture. And punching the dogs right back in the mouth.”
“I agree.”
“Rao, I’m going to put you in charge of your own unit.” His father spoke in the same rumbling monotone as always. “You and Indrajit aren’t working well together. You’ll take the men you brought from Kannauj and direct them independently from Indrajit’s commands. You’ll choose their orders. So far, your instincts have been …” He stopped for a long breath. “Very good.”
“Thank you, sir.” Rao had expected to be punched again, sent back, berated, punished, or worse. “I won’t let you down. Aayu and I will work together and we will impress you.”
“Good, then. When their Haizzem comes, we’re going to have to find ways to counter his powers. Either that or we’re going to need other creative solutions.”
“I agree. I’ve been thinking on this ever since I saw the solar flash. I’m going to do my best to come up with some way to stop him.”
Rao’s attention returned to the painting. “Father, I haven’t seen this portrait since I was a boy. May I have a look?”
His father raised his arm and waved his hand at the cracked but vivid canvas.
Rao stepped slowly toward the scene.
His mother—Kunti was her name—stood beside his father twenty years ago, holding two toddlers who clung to the sides of her body. She had light skin for a Pawelon. Her face was proud, with the same high cheekbones Rao possessed. Her stare penetrated, but there was an undeniable sweetness to her eyes. His father actually had hair then, long and thick. His mother’s black hair ran past her waist where the painting ended.
Devak looked at him occasionally, stroking his chin.
“Can you tell me more about what happened to them?” Rao had long assumed his father had ordered everyone silent on the matter. Throughout his life, no one answered his questions about his family. They only said what he’d already heard many times, that they died in a tragic accident while traveling.
“No. We have more important things to think about.”
Listening to the cool wind blowing outside, Rao stared again at his mother’s face, noticing her strong smile and athletic build.
I have not one memory of you, not a single one.
His father walked to the other side of the room. He stared through a hole in the stone wall that functioned as a window.
Rao forced himself away from the painting and walked back to the archway. “I should go. Thank you for having faith in me.”
Devak gazed into the night, with his back turned to his son. He stayed silent as Rao started down the stairs.
Chapter 17: An Innocent Plot
NARAYANI LAY ON AN OPULENT BED of pillows, staring at the crumbling ceiling and listening to the wind howling through the eroded holes in the stone tower. The quarters she shared with Rao were just high enough to give a view beyond the fortress’s outer walls during the day. At night, the darkness was undone by seven rustic oil lamps.
“Do you think this tower is safe?” she asked Aayu. “What if it collapses?”
“Yes, it’s well supported.” Aayu stopped pacing and jumped up and down on the ancient floor. “It’s stood here for longer than anyone knows.”
“Stop, you’re scaring me. I believe you.” She sat up and noticed Aayu’s tight lips and tense forehead. He was still angry with her.
“You want something.” He resumed pacing. “I can tell because you’re looking at me.”
She let out a frustrated sigh. “I don’t just look at you when I want something.”
“Yes, you do.”
“I don’t want something from you—I want to make things easier for you. What if you taught me the mantras for your sadhana, then I could protect myself better. You wouldn’t have to worry so much—stop laughing!” He didn’t. “You don’t know this, but I meditate.” I mean, I tried a couple times. “I don’t tell anyone that.”
“That’s funny. What’s even worse is the thought of you hiding all over this fortress, spying on everything and everyone. I like being able to keep track of where you are.”
“Oh sure, you’d rather I be defenseless and get assaulted by some brute that hasn’t seen a woman in ten years.”
Aayu stood still and glared. “Oh sure, Cousin. That’s it.”
She didn’t see Rao until he’d taken a few steps into their chamber. His head hung low and his shoulders drooped with exhaustion.
“You’re just in time,” Aayu said, “to hear her arguments for why I should train her to be a sage.”
Narayani shot him a sour look. “You need to stop making things up.”
She hurried to Rao and kissed his lips, feeling a warm rush of passion through her body. Her fingers pressed into the fleshy palm of his hand and she pulled him deeper into the room. “Look, my father collected all of these pillows for me. Wasn’t that nice of him? Lie down. You look terrible.”
Rao collapsed just as she thought he would.
“How did it go with the old man?” Aayu sat, leaning back against the stone wall closest to Rao.
“Altogether, much better than I expected.”
“So he’s fine with us being here?” Aayu asked.
“Maybe more than fine. He’s given me command of the soldiers who came with us from Kannauj. We’re to act as an independent unit.”
“That’s incredible. Ha!” Aayu smiled his giant smile and looked at Narayani before turning back to Rao. “Congratulations.”
“He even agreed that Indrajit’s strategy was reckless.”
“Rao,” Narayani interrupted, “you look exhausted, mentally and physically.”
“And then some more. My spirit feels like it’s been bled dry.”
“I have something I want you to take. I’ll hear no argument about it.”
Narayani slipped around the musty old linen she’d hung over the entrance to their bed chamber as a curtain. She knelt beside the feather bed she would share with Rao and rummaged through her belongings. She had carried all of her medicinal herbs and tinctures in the same sack as her clothes and jewelry, which was why she was only able to bring eight changes of dress. The glass vials clinked together as she dug through them looking for the ashwa.
She hurried back to Rao and put the dry root in his hand. “Suck on it and chew it very slowly. It will restore you completely and give you more energy than you thought possible. But eat it all the way through. Ashwa is very rare, so don’t waste any of it.”
Rao puckered his face as he sucked on the root. He coughed. “Thanks,” he joked in a high-pitched voice.
“No complaining. You’re going to feel so alive when you wake up tomorrow.”
Rao nodded and labored to smile as he chewed the bitter root.
That’s it. Just do whatever I tell you and you’ll be fine, she thought.
“Good,” Aayu said, “because I think they’re going to need us. Rao, you didn’t finish telling me what happened.”
Rao continued the story he’d started before his father called for him. “So, somehow I was able to negate the connection between her and the storm. I wasn’t sure what to do after that. I could have been more aggressive, but … I decided to offer her a way out first.”
Rao looked at Narayani and Aayu, hesitating. “I sent her a thought-form of peace, one that went deeply into her being. By that time, I couldn’t remain in my subtle body any longer. When I talked to Indrajit, he agreed to pull back—reluctantly—and the Rezzians watched us go.”
Narayani looked at Rao
for some time, trying to imagine the scene.
“That’s absolutely incredible, bhai. I’m so sorry I wasn’t there.” Aayu looked down, kneading his hands. “I should’ve been with you. It could’ve gone so much worse.”
“We lost a lot of men, but it ended as well as it could have. I’m going to need you tomorrow with our unit. We’re going to be acting on our own. My father told me we don’t have to follow any of Indrajit’s orders if we don’t want to.”
Over the next few hours, they talked about every topic on their minds: the horrible taste of ashwa, how Narayani disguised herself and hid among the servants, the mountains and the desert they traveled through, the invading army, the family portrait in Devak’s quarters, Indrajit’s attitude about the war, and Briraji’s abilities as a sage.
Narayani was able to feel comfortable and safe that night, because Rao and Aayu seemed to let go of their resentment and accept her being there.
In the back of her mind one thought still distracted her. She had no idea how long her father would allow her to stay in the citadel with Rao.
If I could convince Aayu to teach me his sadhana, I wouldn’t have to worry about my father telling me to go—and then if I wanted to, I could even witness the fighting up close. I could be there to help Rao …
Chapter 18: Preparations for War
AFTER A BRIEF AND RESTLESS SLEEP, Caio journeyed out from the camp along with Lucia, Ilario, and ten warpriests selected by his father. The king declared the ten to be the most perfect spiritual warriors in the Rezzian army and gave them the task of protecting his children, no matter the cost.
It hadn’t been easy for Caio to convince his father that he and Lucia should go out on such a dangerous mission, but appeals to faith and the appeal of Lucia’s strategy won the king over. Lucia reminded their father that Caio, as Dux Spiritus, had the right to pursue any tactics he chose, and that his son’s will was divine. Caio didn’t want to force his father to do anything.
Caio sensed that his father couldn’t pass up the chance to have his Haizzem clear the way for his army; it was too great a tactical opportunity, and he was excited to see what his son could do. Vieri consented only after making them promise that if they encountered trouble, they would flee and let the warpriests sacrifice themselves to protect them.
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