by Nesa Miller
“Here you go, love. Keep it on top there.”
Linq eyed his friends, sensing the turmoil between them. Judging by Inferno’s reaction, Dar had not made the best impression on the man. “How much do you know of Dar before he met Etain?”
Disgusted by the question, Inferno turned away, crossing his arms. “I know he’s a bloody wanker. That’s enough.”
“Things aren’t always as they appear, mate. Maybe if you knew his story, you’d better understand his ways.”
“We should listen,” Spirit said. “Linq’s known the man longer than any of us.”
Inferno grumbled and leaned back, a glower on his face. “I doubt the elf has anything to say that I’d wanna hear.”
“Maybe not, but I do.” She turned to Linq. “Tell us about Dar.”
Having formed an alliance with the Alamir, the elves would sometimes loan out their younger warriors partly to secure the relationship with the fledgling race, but mostly as a way for the young elves to gain practical experience. Part of a small reconnaissance band, Linq and his men had been assigned as lookout for Bok intruders detected near a new Alamir territory. For the most part, the days and nights were quiet. Until the day they found a stranger stumbling through the woods, a great sword strapped across his back.
“I remember when I first saw the man for myself.” Linq’s eyes widened, using both hands to tell the story. “He stood well over six feet and had shoulders that seemed to span the width of a large tree trunk. He was as solid as one, too, which we found out later.”
They weren’t sure if he was friend or foe. Having never seen one of his kind, the elves followed him at a distance, watching and learning what they could. If he were Bok, he could prove dangerous.
“The stranger staggered around for days, lost in another world. He didn’t eat and only slept after he fell to the ground from sheer exhaustion. Even then, he’d twitch and mutter. When he woke, he’d resume his staggered quest, walking aimlessly with no apparent destination in mind. Every day was the same.
“One afternoon, he collapsed, as expected. It’d been a few days since his last sleep. But something was different this time. There were no twitches or mutterings. We thought he’d found his nirvana and had passed into whatever afterlife his kind believed.
“I was the lucky one sent to check.” A smile came to his lips. “Damn near lost my head, too. I thank my elven fathers his reflexes were off, or I wouldn’t be sitting here today.”
Linq returned the ice pack to his knuckles. “It’s not our custom to ignore a cry for help, whether voluntary or involuntary. So, we carried him to our camp where our healer took over his care. He caused quite a stir with his outbursts and curses. None of us had ever heard such strange words.”
Inferno raised a brow.
Linq smiled. “Although the stranger’s return to health was slow, the healer eventually began to see progress. I checked on the patient every day.
“Regardless of whether he understood me or not, I sat with him at night and talked to him. He wouldn’t speak; however, judging from the sparkle in his eye, I knew he was listening.” Linq chuckled to himself. “I finally realized he understood everything I said.”
Inferno shifted in his seat and crossed one leg over the other. “I take it this stranger turned out to be the bleedin’ two-timing demon.”
“Dar is a noble warrior who has proven his worth many times, in battle and out.” He looked Inferno in the eye. “I would ride with him anywhere.”
Inferno leaned forward, tapping his fingers on the table. “Aye, the man’s got a fair arm about him, but it doesn’t make him noble.”
A thought ran through Linq’s mind. Dar, you have a tough row to plow with this one.
“Would you like a brew, love?” Spirit asked, rising from her chair. “Yer throat must be bone dry with all this talk.”
“Thank you for the offer, Spirit, but the telling of this tale requires something stronger. Do you have a pint you don’t mind parting with?”
“Cheers.” She patted his shoulder and went to the cupboard, taking out three pint glasses. “Etain mentioned a family…a wife and children.”
Linq was hesitant to talk about Dar’s private life. However, aware of Inferno’s paternal instincts toward Etain, he hoped that explaining the existence of the family, and his loss, would help bridge the gap between the two men.
“Alexia was his wife; Victoria and Henri, his children.”
Inferno jumped up from his chair, knocking it over. “A bloody wife and kids?” Felix’s nails clattered against the stone floor as he scrambled to get out of the way. Ruby barked, surprised by the noise. “This proves what I’ve been saying all along. He’s a lying, two-timing bastard.”
“I’m getting to that part,” Linq said calmly. “Sit down and listen.”
“I’ve heard all I want to hear,” Inferno bellowed, his face turning red.
Spirit returned with three full pints in hand and set them on the table. “Pick that chair up and sit yer arse down. Let him finish the story. Our lass wouldn’t be involved with him if he were such a man.”
Inferno scowled in return. “Her judgment of the man’s character isn’t the most reliable. She’s lost her bleedin’ mind.” He righted the fallen chair and sat down with no small number of muttered curses. After a long draw on his pint, he looked from one to the other. “Well, what’re ya waiting for? Make with the telling.”
Felix snorted and lumbered around the table, plopping down next to Spirit. Linq drained half his glass and licked his lips, feeling refreshed by the rich ale. “Ah, thank you, Spirit,” he said, grateful for more than just the opportunity to quench his thirst. “Once I realized Dar understood me, I saw him in a different light. He must have sensed a shift in my perceptions because, as the days passed, he began to open up. On one of those occasions, he told me the history of his people. Of their quest to maintain the fragile balance between good and evil, and their belief the universe must remain balanced or all creation would be lost.”
Taught to fight at a young age, Krymerians were unmatched as warriors but weren’t a cohesive force. Dar’s great-grandfather, Dareios, brought the clans together and ruled for many years. By the time Dar inherited the throne, their numbers had dwindled due to constant battles between the Krymerian clans, the Bok, and toward the end, the Alamir.
“Must’ve happened long before we came along,” Inferno said.
“Aye. In the Alamir measure of time, it was hundreds of years.”
Dar’s father, King Dari, desperate to maintain the royal line, made plans for Dar to marry the last of the young females. Like Dari’s grandmother, she came from a strong southern clan. Lady Alexia and Dar wed, hoping to keep the bloodlines pure and prepare the next generation of warriors. Despite it being an arranged marriage, they grew to love one another and had two children. Victoria was the oldest at six, and Henri was two years younger.
Ruby sat up and rested her head on the elf’s lap. “They were long dead by the time my path crossed Dar’s.” Linq stroked the wiry fur, comfortable within his surroundings and soothed by the strong drink, his mind drifted to other memories of the Krymerian…his quiet brutality and fierce loyalties.
“Come on, man. There must be more,” Inferno barked.
Shaken from his reverie, the dreamy expression left the elf’s face. “Forgive me. It’s easy to get caught up in the memories.” He contemplated the amber-eyed head in his lap. “You’re a bonny lass, Ruby girl.” She closed her eyes and sighed. “Where was I? Oh, yes. Dar stayed with us for a while. We fought an untold amount of battles against demons and Bok. The man had a definite death wish. He was the first to charge into the fight, taking chances no sane person would dare.” Linq raised a brow for emphasis. “He was as silent as death on the battlefield, didn’t utter a sound. He’d drift through the masses like a ghost, taking the life of any who ventured within reach of his blade. The younger warriors began to call him Rólegur Kappi, the Silent Warrior. His skill as a swordsman earned him t
he respect of our greatest Meistara Vopn, Master of Arms.”
He paused to drain his mug. “Anyone ready for a refill?” Spirit shook her head. Inferno pushed his mug toward the elf. “Pardon me, milady,” he said to Ruby, then stood.
Linq continued the story as he crossed the room, shadowed by his new best friend. “After each victory, we would hold a small celebration in honor of those who had fought. Dar would attend out of respect for those warriors who had died.” With the first pint tapped, he set it aside to tap the second. “There were nights maidens would ask him to dance. Many invited him into their beds.” He turned his head to look at Inferno. “He respectfully declined every one. If he were ever tempted, he hid it well.”
He released the tap just in time to avoid an overflow and returned to the table. Settled in his seat, Ruby at his side, he placed the ice back on his knuckles.
“The whole time he was with us, I didn’t know him to bed any woman. Although we thought it odd, we attributed his strange behavior to grief over his lost family. From the bits and pieces he let slip, I imagine their deaths were brutal. In Alamir time, his heart and bed have remained closed for over a century.”
Inferno’s eyebrows nearly met his hairline. “He’s not been with a woman since the death of his family?”
Linq shook his head. “He was little more than a shell of a man, living only for the next battle.”
“Bloody hell.”
“Aye. Dar would say never bed a woman for lust. Listen to her blood. If she is the one meant for you, you will hear her song. Etain’s blood must sing to his loud and clear.”
Inferno lifted his glass. “Aye. A fucking chorus line.”
He laughed. “When I heard he was here, I had to come. Your invitation to the barbeque a few weeks back gave me the perfect excuse to break away.”
“It was Midir,” Spirit said and blushed, realizing she had voiced her thoughts out loud. “The brother. He murdered Dar’s wife and children. And then there’s the wee babe.”
Linq tilted his head, intrigued by her insight. “Dar didn’t say how they died, only that they were gone. What did he tell you, Spirit?”
“It was something the lass said after his bleedin’ Council attacked him. She went into his mind to make sure he was all right. She said Midir murdered everyone.”
“His brother was a subject we weren’t allowed to discuss. You say there was a baby? I wasn’t aware Alexia was pregnant.”
“No, not his wife,” Spirit said. “Etain’s sister, Faux.”
Linq couldn’t hide his shock. “A sister? I take it the baby belongs to Dar?”
“Aye,” Spirit said. “We didn’t know she had a sister, either, until she showed up a few weeks ago.”
Inferno practically preened. “Yer holier than thou lord ain’t as high as ya make him out to be.”
Linq ignored him. “How does Etain feel about the…situation?”
“I love the lass, but I’ve given up trying to make sense of the whole affair.” A grandfather clock down the hall chimed. “Pardon me, Linq, while I start tea.” Spirit turned to Inferno. “Love, would you light the barbecue?”
“Aye.” He got up and walked to the door. “I’ll light the fire, but it’s not steak I’m lookin’ to grill. Come, Ruby, Felix. Let’s stretch our legs before supper.”
Linq cocked a brow. “I'd like to hear more, Spirit.”
“If you want to chat, you can do it whilst helping with tea. Get some veg from the fridge and get ‘em washed.” She busied herself with preparing several steaks for the grill. “Etain thinks that since she and Faux share the same blood, Dar somehow got his signals crossed.”
He found the makings for a fresh green salad and carried them to the sink. “How is it Dar came to, well…meet this Faux?”
“Not long after the girls showed up here, he summoned ‘em to his place.”
“From what you said earlier, it was the first time you’d met Faux?”
“In all the time Etain lived here, she never mentioned a sister.” Spirit slapped the slabs of meat over, seasoning the other side. “Then she shows up one day on me doorstep, asking if we’d look after her. She didn’t give much explanation, other than they’d become like sisters.”
“Could they be sisters?”
After washing her hands, she located a cutting board and large knife for Linq. “She told us her family was dead. I can’t explain it but have a good look at the two of them together when you get a chance. You’ll see it.”
He considered the two women as he sliced into a tomato. “If she is Etain’s sister, how could Dar not have met her?”
Spirit cocked her head to the side. “The same way Etain never met Midir.”
“Touché, Spirit,” Linq said, presenting the knife in salute. “Is it usual for there to be more than one Alamir in a family?”
“It can happen, but I don’t believe the Alamir would ever claim her,” she said, amused. “A while back, the Ambassadors exiled her for causing trouble between clans. With Dar being a chieftain, their paths wouldn’t have crossed unless she’d made trouble for his people, which I don’t think she ever did. Otherwise, I think we’d be in it up to our ears now.”
Spirit placed the steaks on a platter. “She was content until Etain shared her blood with that upstart, Freeblood. If I remember right, she saved him from bein’ roadkill.” Her imitation Texan accent made Linq laugh. “He needed blood, and her being who she is, she didn't think twice about giving it. His blooding roused Faux from her island exile, and Bob’s yer uncle.”
“Freeblood… Another new name,” Linq mused. “Do you think Dar wanted to meet Faux because her blood held the song?”
“Perhaps. Dar and Etain have history, having shared blood more than I care to know.” She shook her head. “None of it makes sense to me. He’s been constantly drawn to our girl, but chooses Faux to bed.”
With the tomatoes sliced, he tackled the lettuce. “Well, Etain is a warrior. Perhaps he thought Faux more suitable in the role of mother.”
Spirit laughed out loud, catching Linq by surprise. “You’ve not had the pleasure, have you?” She covered her mouth with her hand, giggling. “Goddess of us all! Faux, a suitable mother? No. If the singing blood thing is true, I think his sharing blood with Etain altered her song to a level he didn't recognize until after the deed was done.”
Linq stopped what he was doing, waving the knife in the air as he spoke. “So you’re saying if her song was altered, with Faux having the purer blood, he possibly misinterpreted whose blood was singing to him?”
Still laughing, she picked up the platter and headed to the back door. “After what you just told us, Linq, I think it more a case of a man celibate for well over a century suddenly meeting a demon in perpetual heat.”
7
New Alliance
Etain walked into the kitchen, expecting to see Spirit busy with supper, but found the room empty. Hearing voices in the garden, she stopped at the kettle on the countertop, checking her reflection in its mirrored surface. Not a bruise in sight. Placing a smile on her face, she popped her head out the back door.
“Anyone need a refill?” With the confirmation that everyone was okay, she tapped a brew for herself and joined them.
“Then it’s all set,” Inferno said just as she stepped into the garden.
“What’s all set?” She chose an empty chair between Linq and Spirit. “Hi, Linq. When did you get here?”
The elf cleared his throat. “I heard Dar’s High Council had come to town and thought he may need assistance.”
“Aren’t you a great friend?” She patted his arm. “It was rough for a few minutes, but we were able to fend them off.” She smiled at Inferno. “Didn’t we?” She didn’t see Linq share an uncomfortable look with Spirit.
“Aye,” Inferno grunted, busy with the steaks.
Noticing the tension in the air, Etain turned to Spirit. “What’s his problem?”
Spirit leaned over, squeezing her knee. “Don’t w
orry about it, love. He’ll be fine. Aren’t you a pretty picture of happiness this evening?”
Etain opened her mouth, but Inferno spoke. “Aye. I’ll be fine in two days’ time.” Even at this distance, the fire in his glare burned into her.
“Not now,” Spirit warned her husband.
“It will be now,” he grumbled over the lid of the grill. “I’ll not have any more shenanigans under me roof.”
Etain gave him a puzzled look. “What’s in two days, Inferno?”
“I don’t give a tinker’s damn what’s happened in his past. He’ll not be using you like a bleedin’ tart.”
She felt a tingle on the back of her neck. Thinking it in the best interest of the mug, she set it on the ground. “What are you babbling about?”
“Etain,” Spirit touched her arm. “Linq told us about Dar’s past…to help us understand him better.”
Etain’s gaze drilled into that of the man glaring at her from across the garden. “And…?”
Inferno shot out from behind the grill, barbeque tongs waving in the air, his eyes ablaze. Etain came up from her seat, followed by Linq and Spirit. “And, bach feinir (little lass), you’ll be properly wed to that demon day after tomorrow, or you’ll be banished from me home.”
Her hands balled into fists at her sides, trying to keep her cool. “You’re going to banish me from my home unless I marry Dar?”
“Whatever it takes to get through that thick skull of yers.”
“I will not be dictated to,” she said in a low voice.
“Ha! Ya have a way with yer words, merch (girl). Ya been nothing but dick-tated to since ya met the wanker.” Flames licked out from his fingertips.
Spirit moved over to Linq and pulled on his sleeve. He shook his head. “Someone should referee,” he whispered.
She whispered in return. “I’m off to find Dar. Arguments between these two never go well.”
“You will not force me to marry.” Etain’s voice resembled a growl
“Oh-ho!” Inferno rocked on his feet in a Victorian show of piety. “So, he’s good enough to bed, but not good enough to wed. Is that it?”
