by Candy Nicks
"How can I smell of Jarek, if you killed him?"
She nods and places a gentle hand on his arm. “Yes, how can you? I must have imagined it.” She lays her head on his biceps. Sol's shoulders drop. He takes her in his arms and holds her close to his heart. One day, when time has taught him that what he did was the only way, they will speak of it.
Wrapped warmly, they sit and watch the day fade into night. Many years pass before he tells her of the secret hidden in the ravine.
* * * *
He would have sneaked into Wolf's Valley when all were asleep. Tian was his wife, not a prize taken in battle to be paraded for his glory.
Tian has other ideas. “You are ashamed of me?"
"Don't be silly, woman. You know I'm not.” He fastens the straps holding the bed-rolls. Whistles to the horses. “You really want the whole Settlement out, gawking at you? That's what will happen if we dare to show our faces in daylight."
"No.” She stares him down, a challenge in her eyes.
Sol smiles. “Look at you, my darling girl. Why would I ever be ashamed of you?"
"I don't want people looking at me."
"They won't, I told you—"
She touches his lips, stopping the words. “I don't want them looking at me. I want them looking at you."
"At me?"
"Did you not dream of this glory?"
His heart starts to thud. “Once, I did. And then I met you."
Tian picks up the coffee-pot. Throws the dregs onto the camp-fire. “Have your moment, Sol. My marriage gift to you."
He's already living it in his head. Ancel's quiet pride, Carine trying hard not to show her relief at his return. Tallin the poet immortalising his quest in words that will be repeated often down the years.
And Finn? How will he react when he meets the sister he never knew?
"You would do this for me?"
She pauses. “One day, you will be leader. It will be good for you, good for the people of Wolf's Valley to see you bring home your wife."
"That it would.” In one swift movement, he scoops her up and twirls her around. “See my mountains?” He points to the jagged horizon. Behind the distant peaks, the late spring sun is nudging its way heavenward. “They're beautiful, Tian. You, the wolf, you'll be happy there."
She's very still in his arms, intent, gazing with wolf eyes at things he cannot yet see.
"We'll build our own home and fill it with children, Goddess-willing. Tell me what you see, Tian."
Tilting her head, she takes another long look. “Journey's end, Sol. I see journey's end.
The End.
Thank you for reading. CN
[Back to Table of Contents]
Other books in the Moon Child Series
Book One
The Moon Child's Wish
Fictionwise number one bestseller.
A love so alien, it could only be achieved by magic.
When taken by slavers, Moon-Child Carine sees her best chance of survival in the Eagle Warrior who lies dying in the corner of the dirty slave cage. Trained in magic, she uses her Wish-in-Hand to save his life and then bonds with him, despite the fact that Moon-Children and the Tribes of the Eagle are natural enemies.
Ancel, famed Eagle warrior and champion of the tournaments, is furious when he realises what she's done and vows to resist the pull of the Bonding, even though his honour requires that he repay the gift of his life by protecting her.
Carine promises that if he gets her to safety, she will find a way to release him. But the Wish has chosen well and as time passes Carine realises that their feelings for each other are not just based on magic—are they?
Sold to a den of sin as a Bonded pair, they are expected to entertain the clientele with anything that is required of them. People come from miles around to see the famed Eagle warrior fight for his lady and kneel at the feet of a Moon Child, but Ancel is increasingly reluctant to fight for the pleasure of decadents and Carine realises that the nightly battles will eventually be the death of him.
When she realises that she has the means to save him, she must examine her feelings and decide exactly what she's willing to sacrifice for this man who has come to mean everything to her. Is their love real, or just a madness brought about by the Bonding? And if it is, just what is she prepared to do in order to set him free?
Book Two
Lupine
Carine struggles to keep the truth about her soul from Ancel, but now eight years later, it seems the Goddess has truly abandoned her. And the Lupines, wolf/man shapeshifters who hold the secret of the Soul Cleansers, have been hunted out of existence. Or have they? One day a man with eyes the colour of gold appears, badly injured, at the Settlement walls. As they battle to save his life both Carine and Naima, Ancel's daughter, realise that he's a throwback to a time they thought long gone. Perhaps the key to Carine's salvation.
Finn has spent his whole life in captivity. Born with a special gift, he has been kept a slave and paraded for the amusement of the crowds. Until the day he makes his glorious bid for freedom. On the verge of death, he finds himself at the walls of one of the Settlements and is saved by a young woman called Naima who is determined to keep him alive.
Finn and Naima dream of a future together, but as he reveals his true identity, they realise that their happiness might have to be put aside for the greater good. Finn must heed a higher calling, and no matter how much he tries to deny it, he is bound by the will of the Goddess.
Does he choose a life with Naima, or fulfil his destiny, knowing he might never see her again? And will Naima find the courage to let him go?
About the author
I live in the UK at the edge of the Lancashire Moors and I'm married with two children. To date, I've written paranormal and fantasy romance which I publish through Alinar Publishing.
Thank you so much for reading my book. I hope you enjoyed it.
All the best, Candy.
Website
www.candynicks.com
www.alinarpublishing.com
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