Princess Avenger - Brightcastle Saga Book 1

by Bernadette Rowley

  She must. Alecia reached out again and felt along the wolf’s neck until she came to the shoulders. She took a deep breath and vaulted onto its back, onto his back.

  “It is Vard,” she said to herself. “It is only Vard. All will be well.”

  The huge wolf bounded away, the gait like that of a horse, only smoother. The powerful muscles of his limbs bunched and stretched beneath her. She clutched his long hackles and gripped with her knees, becoming one with the wolf. Sounds of pursuit fell away as they raced through the woodland and entered the denser forest that lay north of Brightcastle. The wolf stopped once for a drink at a stream and Alecia strained her ears for sounds of pursuit, but the wind in the trees and her racing heart were all she heard. When they continued, they splashed in the shallows for some distance before gaining the bank once again.

  Finally, when she felt she couldn’t hold on for another minute and her body was slumped with exhaustion, her mount stopped. He whined. Alecia didn’t need any further invitation to slide to the ground. Her legs folded under her and she sat on the damp earth. It was too dark to see her surroundings but she sensed Vard pad away and crawled after him. She could have been crawling over a precipice, but Vard’s low whines kept her shuffling forward until she felt dry dirt under her fingers.

  The air was cold here but the wind had died. She shivered. Where had he taken her? The panting of the wolf sounded a few paces away. He whined once more. What would he do now that the danger was over? Would he remember her? As she sat, her fingers fell upon the rough cloth of a sack. She drew it into her lap and hugged the bag to her. They appeared to be in a cave, the entrance to which was outlined by the creeping light of a new day. When she looked in Vard’s direction she could make out the huge form of the wolf. He licked his feet, his eyes flickering to her uneasily.

  The cave continued to lighten and Alecia was able to see the magnificent creature that had rescued her. He was massive, the largest wolf she had ever seen. His thick pelt was a dark gray with lighter belly hair, and his feet were the size of small dinner plates. Golden eyes watched unblinking, glowing softly, as Alecia shuffled back against the opposite wall of the cave. It was foolish to stare but she couldn’t take her eyes from him.

  The wolf bounded to his feet and let out a whimper. Alecia yelped too and flattened herself against the rock wall. The wolf padded towards her, eyes fixed on hers. She had no weapon if he decided to attack and even with one, she would have felt as helpless as a babe. Those eyes were mesmerising; the pink tongue licked the black lips and the mouth opened to reveal fearsome teeth, much larger than a dog’s. In seconds, the wolf stood close enough that his hot breath brushed her cheek. He stared for a moment then lay down, his belly facing her. He whined again and began to lick his pads. Bloody gashes marred the pads of three paws.

  “I’m sorry you suffered for me, Vard,” she whispered. She put her hand out and rubbed the side of his chest. The wolf went on licking the pad of his front foot, and as Alecia became more confident in her stroking, the wolf sighed and lay back, eyes closed. She smiled and shuffled closer to the beast that was Vard, finally laying her head on his shoulder. He was so soft and Alecia was exhausted. In moments, she fell asleep in the warm embrace of her rescuer.

  Chapter 20

  When Vard awoke, he was himself again: the human who was not quite human. The sharp pain of loss hit him, and fear at feeling the loss. That hadn’t happened before. His only teacher had warned him that with each transformation he’d lose a little of his human self and become more animal. The trouble was that Vard could phase into three different creatures. Which one would he ultimately become and how long would it take? Could the change be slowed or halted? The time had come to find the answers.

  His eyes fell on the sleeping woman beside him and his unease grew. Images of her being ravished by Lord Finus flashed into his mind. Disgust gripped his stomach and he shook his head. The Alecia he admired wouldn’t allow her body to be molested by one she hated, at least not without a fight. Would she?

  He pushed down his anger and examined the princess again. Even in her nightgown, with her hair full of twigs, she was beautiful to him. He’d never before realized how beautiful. Much of that loveliness came from her bravery, her spirit. Alecia had forced her way into his heart in the past weeks but she couldn’t stay with him. She wouldn’t want to. His chest ached at the thought. He wanted her to need him; wanted her to want him. The heat in his core grew. He wanted to possess her.

  Vard stopped himself, breathing slowly and drawing on the core of calm within the stone for aid. Alecia had the courage of a lion. No woman he’d known could have endured what she had and survived. She deserved so much more than this -- a filthy cave in a forest and a changeling for company.

  He pushed himself to his feet, groaning as aches and pains made themselves felt. His feet were agony. They alone should force him to stay in this cave for days yet. He didn’t have days.

  Vard pulled the cloth sack from Alecia’s limp hands and rummaged around inside until he found the flint and tinderbox. The firewood he’d prepared yesterday was dry and soon a cheerful blaze dispersed the cold and shadows in the cave. The rustle of fabric made him turn to Alecia. The wariness in her gaze hurt.

  “Good morning.” His voice was harsher than he wanted.

  Alecia flinched and drew her nightgown tighter. “Good morning.”

  He removed a pot from the sack and left the cave in search of water. The chore gave him more time to think, away from the presence of the princess. What was he to do? How had he become so entangled? Too soon, the pot was full of water and he headed back up the hill to the cave.

  Alecia had tried to straighten her hair but the injuries to her face were what drew his eye. He placed the pot on the fire and knelt before her. “Are you well?”

  “Tired,” she said. “Where are we?”

  “In a cave to the northeast of Brightcastle. It’s not too late for you to return.”

  “No,” she said. Just like that and without hesitation.

  “I don’t think you can stay with me.”

  “I made my choice,” Alecia said. “I will travel with you for as long as you will allow it.”

  “It’s not safe. The road will be long and hard.”

  “Last night you kept me safe. I am not afraid.”

  Vard could see she lied. “You are frightened, and wise to be so.”

  “I think it is you who are afraid,” she said, sparks snapping in her eyes.

  “You’re right. Frightened for your safety. Frightened of what you will give up if you stay with me. Even with Hetty’s help…”

  “Hetty? What do you mean?”

  Vard frowned. Would it really help to explain what the witch had done? He so wanted Alecia but dared not hope she could be content with a life on the road. Honesty drove him to speak. “Your friend has enchanted this amulet.” He held the stone up.

  Alecia stared at the talisman, the rays of the early morning sun reflected in its crimson depths. “It has changed.”

  “The stone now aids my control more than it ever did. I can deny the bear. As long as I have it, I believe you’re safe from any threat I pose.”

  “The wolf?”

  “Yes, and the hawk.”

  Alecia’s eyes glowed, her face coming alight as he had not seen it for days. “I have seen your hawk form. You are magnificent.”

  She leaned forward and the neck of her nightgown gaped. Vard closed his eyes, pushing the sight away, and rose to stand, gazing out at the forest below. Alecia joined him, placing her hand on his arm and turning him towards her.

  “Do you not see what this means, Vard? I no longer need fear the bear.”

  “If that were the only obstacle…I’d be stupid to think you can accept what I am. Foolish to believe you could be happy with me.”

  “I can learn to accept what you are Vard.” Her eyes, looking up at him, held no artifice. Her soul was bared; all the fear, pain, hope and longing were evident in that
lilac gaze. He licked his lips and her eyes followed the action, her tongue mimicking his unconsciously. He groaned.

  “You don’t know what you’re saying.” He raised his hand to stroke her face then stopped himself. He had to maintain control.

  Alecia caught at his hand and placed it on her chest, on the bare skin above her breasts. She gasped as the action brought the familiar snap of chemistry. It was nearly Vard’s undoing, but he pushed the flood of desire aside and forced himself to calm.

  “Feel that,” she said. “My heart beats because of you. Without you, I would be dead now.”

  “That’s nonsense,” Vard snapped, his control slipping. He pulled his hand from her skin.

  “It is pure fact,” Alecia said. “You rescued me three times. You saved me from Finus and from myself. You have given me reason to live and hope. If you leave me, I will truly have nothing. I love you, Vard. I know you feel something for me. Do not be afraid that you repulse me.”

  “It’s not your feelings that scare me, Princess, but my own…” Vard’s voice trailed off.

  Alecia gaped like a fish out of water. She shook her head. “Even your contempt of me is preferable to a loveless marriage. I know what you saw last night, but I did not welcome Finus’ attention. I had lost hope. Somehow it did not matter anymore.”

  Vard raised his hand and let it fall, his mind full of the scene he had witnessed back in the castle. Finus’ hands on her, stroking places only a lover should. “When I entered that room and saw you with him, every particle screamed for me to turn and leave but I couldn’t. It was torture.”

  Alecia clasped her hands over her heart, her breasts rising and falling with a force that stirred the hunger in his loins. Bright hope lit her lilac eyes.

  “You do care for me,” she breathed. “You must believe I hated every one of Finus’ kisses, every touch of his hands.”

  Anger rose up in Vard and a low wolf growl escaped before he could stop it. He placed his forefinger on Alecia’s lips. “Don’t speak of it.”

  She grasped his wrist and pulled his finger away. “I must make you understand. I had truly lost everything. It did not matter what he did to my body because it was an empty shell. You rejected me and then I discovered your true essence. The shock was too much. Then to have Finus…Please tell me you forgive me.”

  Guilt slammed into Vard’s gut; guilt at believing the worst, at putting her through this pain and at not telling her the truth of his purpose in Brightcastle. “There is nothing to forgive, Alecia.” He must tell her everything but first she needed to listen to his heart.

  He pulled her against his chest, his lips moving against her hair. “There is no one I admire more in this world than you. You’re brave and beautiful, generous and caring…”

  Alecia stared up at him. “You think I am beautiful?”

  His hand touched her throat. “Even in this grubby nightgown, with bruises over your face and neck and smelling like a wolf, you’re beautiful to me.”

  “So these feelings that worry you are…?”

  Vard groaned and pulled her closer to him. He tilted her head back, his thumb brushing the softness of her mouth. How could she still be so uncertain? Did she not feel the fever of his heart just as he could feel hers? He lowered his lips to Alecia’s and all coherent thought fled in that moment. “I want you,” he said, his mouth trailing down her throat, over the yellowing bruises. “I love you,” he breathed, nibbling along the neck of her nightgown. “I need you,” he said, nudging aside the bodice of her gown and kissing her nipple.

  Alecia groaned and pushed her hips against his. “I have dreamed of hearing you say those words.” His lips returned to crush hers, his tongue invading the soft warmth of her mouth. She arched her body against him and he moved his thigh between her legs, brushing her sex. Alecia sighed and wrapped herself around Vard’s thigh, gripping his hips and thrusting against him.

  He groaned. It would be so easy to allow this; to strip the clothes from her long limbs and give her what she demanded. He was ready to bring her into the fullness of womanhood, consummate the moment that had begun that day in the meadow with their first heady kiss. He pulled away. Alecia must know the whole truth.

  “What is wrong?” she said, a frown marring her brow and hurt in her eyes. She placed her palm on his chest and he closed his eyes against the longing that swept him. The moment passed and he looked fully into her soul, bared for him, exposed and vulnerable, trusting him as only a lover could.

  “There is one more thing you must know,” he said, holding her gaze, willing her to understand. “Before you sacrifice your virginity, you must have the truth about me.”

  Fear clouded her lilac gaze. “There is nothing you can tell me that will stop me from loving you, Vard. You were meant for me and I for you.” She ran her fingers down his chest and a surge of pure lust choked him. Oh Goddess, let her understand. Let her forgive him.

  “You must hear this.” He broke contact and turned away, giving her the chance to react without him watching, allowing him to avoid the hurt he knew he’d see.

  “I came to Brightcastle because I was hired to perform a task.”

  “I know that, Vard -- “

  “Please, Alecia, just listen. I don’t know who hired me. The money was a handsome amount. I kept enough to fund my travel here and gave the rest to a priestess of the Mother. I was to travel to Brightcastle and take up a commission as captain in the prince’s army and head of his personal guard.”

  “Vard --”

  “I was to kill your father.”

  Silence greeted his words but the dull thump of her heart missed a beat and then raced away. Vard pushed on. “The prince is a poor leader, cruel to his people. I believed the assassination would serve my Defender principles. I deluded myself that I could, in good faith, murder Prince Zialni. I failed on both my first and second attempts. Doubt stayed my hand. I had become your protector and that duty was all-consuming. I couldn’t hurt you by killing the one parent you had left; the man you loved above all others.”

  Vard faced the woman who had so fundamentally shifted his life focus.

  Alecia gazed up at him, her eyes more serious than they had ever been. “You are wrong.”

  “I know I was wrong to accept that task. I’ve failed you in so many ways. Perhaps I’m unworthy of the title of Defender. I’m certainly not worthy of your love.”

  “I meant you are wrong about the man I love above all others.” Alecia gazed up at him, close but not touching. “You are that man. I love everything about you; your strength, your integrity and, most of all, I love your very reason for living; this drive you have to protect the weak, the innocent. How could I not love you, Vard? I feel the same; I always have. We will protect them together.”

  Vard frowned. “You forgive me?”

  “You did not know what you agreed to, and your goodness, your caring, stopped you from acting. There is nothing to forgive. Now, make love to me.” She pulled loose the ribbon at the neck of her nightgown and the garment dropped from her body. The pantaloons joined the gown and Alecia stood in the gentle light of the morning sun: full breasts, long legs, slim waist and soft, soft skin.

  It was all his for the taking, but he didn’t go to her. He just looked, allowing days -- no, weeks -- of need to push him to the peak of longing. Vard delayed the moment when they would be one, almost afraid to cross that line, wondering what he would find beyond it.

  But Alecia stepped close and wrapped her arms around his neck, resting her glorious curves against his taut length. The trust and love in her eyes stole his breath, and his body responded, his arms curling about her waist. He wrapped one hand in the length of her golden hair and gently pulled, tilting her head so that the soft expanse of her neck was exposed. A pulse beat there, strong and fast and charged with excitement.

  Vard gasped at the rush of desire that hit him, wrapped around his chest, smashed at his loins. He brought his mouth to ravish the bruised skin where her life force beat.
Alecia moaned and pushed her hips against him but his mouth continued down to her chest, over her breasts to her nipples. The magnificent flesh was hard with need and grew ever harder as his tongue flicked, his lips sucked.

  His fingers trailed to her waist then drifted lower and she wrapped one leg around him, giving him ready access to her sex. His fingers entered her and she gasped, shuddering against him. He found the core of her desire, the hard spot that pulsed with a life of its own, and he ran his finger over it, delighting in her shuddering sighs until she let out one long moan and her body melted into him. Vard held her, supported her supple flesh as she breathed heavily in the aftermath of her climax.

  Finally, Alecia looked up at him. He raised one eyebrow and she blushed.

  “That was…that was… I never imagined how it could feel.” She beamed up at him and Vard’s heart swelled with love for his princess.

  A sudden frown marred the soft skin of her brow. “I need to be one with you.”

  Vard grasped her shoulders as she pushed forward against him again. He held her apart. “You are sure this is what you want, Alecia? Once you take this step, all will change. You’ll be a woman, and I don’t think I’ll be able to walk away.”

  Alecia’s smile lit her face, her hungry lilac eyes firing the slow burn in his loins. “I am your destiny.”

  All the barriers Vard had carefully constructed came crashing down, and he crushed his princess to his chest. Words clogged his throat, so he showed her the depth of his love instead. His lips met hers in one long, tender, soul-affirming kiss that deepened until Alecia moaned, allowing his tongue to explore the deepest reaches of her mouth. Her fingers wove through his hair, tugging gently, stirring his desire until he couldn’t wait any longer.

  Vard pulled his mouth from Alecia’s long enough to spread her discarded nightgown at the front of the cave. He lifted her in his arms and she laughed as he gently laid her on the garment. He bent to kiss her again but her frantic hands tugged at his clothes. Vard stood, slowly peeling off his tunic and then his breeches and hose until he stood naked before her.