Adam returned with a large black stallion that I recognised as my father's.
"He will be mad at me for stealing him," I mused, as I packed my things into the saddlebags.
"He is the fastest, though," Adam replied, checking the stallion's hooves. Then he turned and, brushing off his hands, looked me in the eye. "I am certain there is a good reason for what you are doing. Your father will understand."
"Hm, yes," I said doubtfully, and Adam helped me into the saddle. "He does not understand much."
"I think maybe that's what makes him a good lord," said Adam with a smile, and then he wished me luck before I spurred the stallion out of the courtyard to the castle gates.
Suddenly, I was aware of a presence next to me. I looked over to see a dark-winged figure keeping pace next to me as I rode.
"Head west," said Draeden. "It is about a two-day' ride. If you hurry, you can get there before Dante."
I nodded, determined to do so. "Why are you helping me all of a sudden?" I called to him. "I thought it was forbidden."
"It is not forbidden to aid someone in their task if they have chosen to pursue it," he replied. "I had to wait until you decided to do it yourself."
"Brilliant," I said, and Draeden laughed and rose up into the air, leaving me to ride through the night.
Two hard days of riding later, I arrived at another small village, much like the one in Rell, with an old, crumbling castle at the head of it. Dismounting from my horse at the gates, I attempted to make myself as presentable as possible after riding for two days, and then requested an audience with the lord and lady of the castle. The doorman seemed startled, but led me inside, where I was introduced to an aging couple, the Lord and Lady of Gian.
"My name is Marcus," I said. "I come from the neighbouring serfdom of Rell."
"Ah, yes." Lord Gian's dark eyes crinkled as he smiled. "I have met your father."
"What brings you to Gian?" asked Lady Gian, looking at me a little suspiciously.
I took a deep breath. Now I would find out if Draeden had been telling the truth, or if I really was crazy. "Your son."
Lord Gian blinked. "Samuel? Yes, what about him?"
"Ah … " I wondered exactly how to proceed. "Have you by any chance been contacted by a wizard named Dante?"
"Why, yes!" exclaimed Lord Gian. "Yes, we have indeed! It turns out Samuel has quite the latent magical ability. Dante's taking him to the palace to train him."
"Dear, please show some restraint." Lady Gian was holding on to Lord Gian's arm and still looking at me very suspiciously.
"That's what I've come to talk to you about," I said. "I must urge you not to let your son go to the capital with Dante."
"What?" Lord Gian sputtered. "And why not? This is an excellent opportunity for him."
"Yes, and what do you know about it, anyway?" accused Lady Gian.
"A lot," I promised her. "Look, I know it might seem like a good opportunity, but it's actually a trap—"
"A trap?" cried Lord Gian. "Preposterous!"
"Yes, Lord Dante is a good wizard with an excellent reputation!" continued Lady Gian. "Are you accusing us of not taking care to ensure that our boy is safe?"
"No!" I said, raising my voice a little. I could feel the conversation slipping away from me. "If you'd just listen—"
"I don't like your tone," Lord Gian said. "In fact, I think you're up to no good. You say you are from Rell, yet you dress like a rich socialite from the capital. Why should I trust you with my son?"
"You don't have to trust me with your son," I said desperately. "Just, please, let me explain to you what Dante—"
"I think you'd better leave," interrupted Lady Gian, "We are perfectly capable of judging character for ourselves, and we don't appreciate uninvited guests."
I had every intention of not moving until they calmed down and listened to me, but Lady Gian then proceeded to summon the guards, and I had a hunch that seducing the guards to let me go might not endear me to her.
A few minutes later, I found myself forcefully expelled from the castle gates and alone outside. After making my way to the outskirts of the forest, I tied up my horse, perched myself up against a log, and allowed myself to sleep for a few hours. When I awoke, the sky was darkening, and Draeden was tending to a fire that had not been there when I had fallen asleep.
"I'm glad you're doing this." He smiled at me and sat back with crossed legs, folding his wings in such a way that they seemed to disappear. "It's strange. I don't remember ever caring so much about the fate of a few humans."
"Why do you?" I wondered. "I thought that fairies didn't care about humans."
"We don't," agreed Draeden. "We do not consider them to be as important to us … because we do not understand them. But really"—he smiled at me—"we are not that different."
I laughed at him. "Really? I don't understand you at all, Draeden."
"You would if I cared to explain myself to you," he replied. "But I don't." He stood. "I have to go now. I … " He hesitated. "I probably won't return."
"What? Why?"
He shook his head, smiling slightly. "Haven't you read the stories?" he asked. "That is the way of things with fairies. We are only really around as long as you need us."
"I thought … " I began, but Draeden only shook his head again.
"Dante will arrive tomorrow morning," he said, "Please … please do not allow him to take that boy."
"No," I promised. "I won't."
"Ah." Draeden smiled. "I always believed in you." He disappeared into the darkness, as if he had never been there at all, and a few minutes later, I fell into a deep, heavy sleep.
I awoke at dawn and made my way back down to the castle. My heart sank when I recognised a familiar wooden carriage parked at the gates. Dante.
Determined, I made my way up to the guard.
"Ah, you," he said, rather politely. "I am told not to let you past this point."
"Sorry. I don't have time for this. Let me in."
Without another word, the guard opened the gate for me and led me to the front doors of the castle.
I found Dante speaking with the Lord and Lady Gian. Standing next to them was a young, nervous-looking boy with a pale face. Dante was speaking to them in a low, liquid voice, and I knew that he was winning them over. I wasn't going to let that happen.
I was quite pleased to see the colour drain from Dante's face when I strode up to him.
"You!" cried Lady Gian. "What are you doing here? How did you get in?"
"Yes, Marcus," Dante said carefully. He was fighting very hard to maintain his composure, but I could see that he was sweating. "What are you doing here?"
"Stopping you," I replied, and turned to the couple. "I apologize for my rudeness, but this man is planning on selling your son to slave traders!"
"That is a lie!" Dante had reached out with a thin, knobbly hand and gripped my arm tightly. I could feel his magic working on me, beginning to spread that horrible, irrational fear throughout my body. But I wouldn't let it.
Ripping my arm from Dante's grasp, I forced all of my power onto him, bending him under my will. "Tell them the truth, Dante. Tell them what you really plan on doing to their son."
"I'm … taking him to the palace … " gasped Dante, his voice ragged with the strain. "To train him … "
I tightened my mental grip on him and slid my next words out as a low, liquid command. "Tell them the truth."
"I … " Dante gasped as if in pain. "I-I-I … I'm taking him to the capital … southern traders pay a lot of money for … young boys … "
Lady Gian gasped, and I immediately released my mental grip on Dante, causing him to trip backward and instinctively begin to back away from me.
"Damn you," he panted. "It's a lie … you meddling little country brat!" He spat out the last words, his cool, suave demeanour completely broken down to reveal the slavering, disgusting animal that he was. "I … " He reached out a clawed hand. "I will kill you! I will make you wish
you had never been born!"
I slapped his hand aside, and then, for good measure, slapped him across the face. "You bastard," I hissed, surprised by the shaking emotion in my voice. "You lying, soulless scum! Mark my words, you will take responsibility for what you've done!"
Dante's face distorted for a moment, and I thought he was going to spit on me, but then, he turned on his heels and ran.
For a moment, I thought about following him, but I knew it wasn't up to me to decide his fate. I turned back to the family. Samuel had gone pale, his eyes wide, and Lord Gian was staring at me with his mouth open. Lady Gian was shaking.
"How awful!" she gasped, staring after Dante. "What a horrid, wretched man! To think … " She grabbed Samuel and embraced him tightly. The boy seemed a little confused as to what exactly happened, but I could sense his relief that he wasn't going to be sent away. Then Lady Gian turned to me. "I am so sorry. Is there anything we can do to repay you?"
"No," I assured her. "Nothing but some supplies for a trip to the capital." I had made up my mind, and I had absolutely no intention of letting Dante weasel his way out of anything this time.
I rode hard to the capital, making it in just over two weeks. When I arrived at the palace, I was dismayed to see the same two guards as before still standing watch.
"I need you to let me in," I said.
"Not a chance, young man," was their reply.
"I'm sorry," I said, "but people's lives may be at stake. Let me in."
They did so instantly.
The palace was all but empty, and I realized that the court must have been in session. Ah, well, all the better. The court took place in a wide oval room, and when I burst in, a hundred or more eyes turned to face me.
"What is this?" the king exclaimed as I strode up to him, his voice echoing over the stunned silence of the court. "Who are you? What merits this?"
"My apologies, Your Majesty." I dropped to the ground in a deep bow, and then stood to face him. "I must inform you of a matter of great importance. It concerns the treachery of a member of your court and the possible murder of several young country nobles."
"Ah? And who are you?"
"Your Majesty," I began, "I am one of the young men whom your wizard, Dante, kidnapped and attempted to sell to slave traders."
There was an audible gasp, and then whispering from several members of the court, but the king held his hand up and immediately silenced them. He was looking at me with narrowed eyes, obviously intrigued.
"Attempted, you say?" he asked. "And how did you escape?"
I bit my lip. "I … I have magical powers. I can … control the minds and bodies of people around me."
There was another outbreak of whispering, but the king did not attempt to silence them this time. "And how am I to believe you?" he asked me over the noise of the court.
For a moment, I was at a loss, unsure of how to prove my powers, but then the queen leaned in to whisper to the king. I recognised her then: she was one of my best paying customers, the one who never revealed her identity. They spoke quietly for a few minutes, and then the king turned back to me, raising his hand once again to silence the room.
"The queen knows you," he said. "She vouches for your power."
I turned and nodded at the queen, who gave me a small smile.
"You say the Wizard Dante kidnapped you?" the king continued.
"Yes," I confirmed. "Or rather, he brought me to the capital with the promise to establish me with a job at the palace and proceeded to stage an accident, knock me unconscious, and sell me to slave traders. Your Majesty, I know this sounds outrageous, but it is true. I've heard it from his own mouth. I am sure that if you question him, you will discover that this is the truth. He attempted to do it to me, and it is very possible that he has succeeded several times in the past. I swear that what I say is true." I dropped to my knees again, hoping desperately that he believed me.
The silence was almost painful as the king considered my words. Finally, he said, "Very well. Your story has merit. We will conduct a search of the Wizard Dante's quarters and question him when he returns to court. You have my word that it will be done."
"Thank you," I exclaimed, relief spreading through my body. I got to my feet, bowing again, and then made to leave.
"Wait." I turned back to face the king. "You say you have the power to control men's minds and bodies?"
I nodded. "Yes."
"Ah. And what is your name?"
"Marcus," I replied. "Marcus of Rell."
The king nodded. "Very well, Marcus. You are dismissed."
I left quickly, knowing exactly where I wanted to go. No thought crowding my mind, aside from the intense desire that I had been repressing for far too long.
I ran nearly all the way to the Parlour, arriving out of breath.
"Hello, handsome," one of the girls called out when I approached, and then squealed when she saw that it was me. "Marcus!"
"Hello, love!" I cried, responding enthusiastically to Aria's excited embrace. She took me by the hand and dragged me into the Parlour, calling aloud that I was back.
"It's only for a little while," I chided her, while being swarmed by girls. "I can't … " I trailed off when Titiana waddled into the room, looking more than a little surprised to see me, and for some reason, a little angry, as well.
"Hello, Marcus."
I gulped. "Hello … Titiana. Ah, is Hale here?"
"He is." She looked down at me. "In fact, he has barely left his room since the night you left."
I felt a wave of guilt rush over me, along with a sudden, strong desire to see Hale, to talk to him, to make sure he was alright.
"He's upstairs," said Muse quietly.
I nodded and climbed the familiar staircase to Hale's bedroom. Taking a deep breath, I raised a fist and knocked heavily on the door. "Hale?" I called. "It's Marcus."
The door opened almost instantly, and Hale stood there, looking absolutely awful. His face was paler than usual, his eyes hollow, and it looked as though he had lost weight.
I gasped. "Hale? Are you alright?"
Hale stared at me, and then suddenly, he was hugging me, his soft, thin body pressed up against mine. "Marcus … Marcus, you came back!" he gasped against my shoulder. He drew away and looked up at me, his sea-blue eyes glistening with tears. "I'm sorry, Marcus," he whispered, "I thought I'd lost you forever."
"No," I whispered back, gently wiping a tear from his cheek. "No, I'm sorry. I'm sorry I left. I shouldn't have. Not after … "
Hale gasped again and withheld a sob. "I'm sorry I kissed you!" he cried. "I shouldn't have, I know. But I … I can't help it, Marcus. I'm glad I did it. I'd do it again."
"Then do. Please."
And then Hale's lips were pressing against mine, warm and soft and wet with tears. He pressed closer to me and held me tighter, his mouth moving passionately against mine, as if he meant to never let me go. We stumbled into his room, and I slammed the door shut behind us, and then Hale dragged me to the bed and pulled me down on top of him. We clung to each other and kissed until it was hard to breathe, our breaths coming in tight, heavy gasps between long, wet kisses.
"Marcus … " Hale whispered, when we finally had to stop to breathe properly, "Marcus, I … I don't know if I can say this … "
"I know." I hardly dared to believe it was true, but knew it nonetheless. "I love you, Hale. I love you."
Hale tilted his head back with a wide smile. He was so beautiful; I wanted to keep him forever, to just hold him like this until the end of the world. And I wanted to hear him say it, too.
"Please, Hale," I begged. "Please tell me you feel the same way."
"Yes," he breathed, pulling me closer. "Yes, Marcus, I love you so much. Please don't ever leave me."
Elated, I kissed him again, with more heat than I had ever thought I possessed. I had never felt anything like this—not when Draeden had given me my powers, not when I had watched Li and Saraman make love, not even when I had stopped D
ante and spoken to the king in front of hundreds of people. None of those moments had made my heart beat that quickly in my chest, made my body alive so with adrenalin and light and pleasure.
"Mm … Marcus," Hale moaned, his voice thick and breathy. "Please, Marcus … I want you."
"Ah!" My hips drove into him involuntarily, my body reacting against my will. "Hale … are you sure?"
Hale looked at me again for a long moment. A small smile played on his lips, although his eyes were serious. "Yes," he finally said. "Yes, Marcus, I've never been so sure of anything."
My body reacted to his words, and I knew Hale could feel me pressing against his leg. I was embarrassed for a moment, but he only smiled and pulled me closer to him."Please," he whispered, and then I gave in. I couldn't control it anymore—I wanted him. With every fibre of my being, I wanted to make love to him, to take him, to own him. I had wanted to for so long.
Tentatively, I placed my hands on his body and began to slowly draw his loose robe away, revelling in every bit of skin that was exposed. I lowered my mouth to his neck, and then began to slide my tongue along his body, his collarbone, his chest, surprised and pleased when I heard him moan lightly in response. I flicked my tongue over his nipple and gasped when I felt a tight, strong surge of pleasure. I suddenly realised that I was already unconsciously using my magic to feel what he felt, and I drew back, unsure if I should continue.
"Ah?" Hale gasped. "Marcus, what is it?"
"I'm sorry, Hale … " I whispered. "I'm not sure if I can help it, but … do you mind if I use my magic?"
Hale's eyes widened for a moment, but then he smiled mischievously, and whispered, "I would love that." Then his smile disappeared and he looked at me seriously. "No one," he began, "no one has … ever cared about making me feel good, you know. Not really. I'm … not sure what it's like." He smiled again, and I could feel him shaking a little. "I'm nervous, actually."
The Fairy Gift Page 12
