Dark Rain

by J. C. Owens

  Hredeen swallowed hard, his face abnormally pale. “They will demand my return, yes.”

  Taldan wanted to scream at him, wanted to ask if there had ever been anything real about their relationship, the way Hredeen had touched him with such…

  He jerked back and turned sharply away. It hadn’t been real. It was all clear now. He had been ripe for the taking, desperate for love that had been so lacking in his upbringing. Like a lamb to the slaughter.

  “Get out. You can tell your ‘masters’ that you succeeded in your secrecy, in your cursed duty. You saved the Emperor of Anrodnes.” And destroyed the man. “Get out of my sight.” Rage flowed over him so that he shook with it. The sudden influx of emotion almost overwhelmed him. He had no idea how to contain it.

  He would not look at Hredeen. Vaguely, he heard the sound of retreating footsteps, but he was fighting his own inner war, and could not react, could not even comprehend what was now lost.

  Anger, such unstoppable anger.

  A hand took his clenched fist, gently enfolded it within a warm grasp.

  He looked up, fighting back the emotions that wanted to destroy him, and met concerned green eyes.

  “Your Majesty,” Raine said. “Taldan, please. He…”

  “Don’t,” he said sharply. “Don’t defend him.” He clenched his teeth on the curses he wanted to release.

  Raine met his eyes with considerable courage, given the situation. He looked as though he wanted to say something more, but then bit it back.

  Taldan fought to control himself. Raine had done nothing wrong. Had indeed stepped up when Taldan could have died from the backlash of the Illumitae and saved Taldan’s life. Taldan no longer believed in Raine’s guilt as regards the Odenar rebellion. With their link, he knew so much more about the man, his desires, his fears, his hopes and dreams. Raine would never betray him. Not like Hredeen had…

  He remembered the feel of the young man in his arms, the attraction that had sparked when he had carried him away from where Raine had been assaulted.

  Perhaps there was something more here. Something that could grow, given half a chance.

  Something that contained no lies.

  He wished his brother was here, wished for his council. His Chosen, Naral, and his brother were all he could trust at this moment. Perhaps Isnay as well.

  The rest he would guard against.

  CHAPTER FIFTEEN

  Hredeen

  “I’m going to miss you.”

  Hredeen sank into the hug that Naral offered, fighting for composure, clinging to the man shamefully.

  His horse stood ready, the few belongings he chose to take with him packed neatly in the saddle bags. So little to show for the last eight years. There had been things that Taldan had gifted him that he had not been able to part with, little things that were easily carried. Perhaps, in time, he would be strong enough to cast them aside, move on, but that time was not now. Not in the foreseeable future.

  The thought reminded him, and he reached up and unclasped the ornate broad collar necklace that had adorned his neck for the past eight years. He instantly felt its loss as it slid down into his grasp. He stroked his fingers over it, wanting to weep, holding tears back with a strength of will refined over long, long years of training.

  He thrust it into Naral’s hands, clenching his jaw. “Don’t give it back to him. He’ll just destroy it, the way he is feeling. Put it in the vault, tuck it away. Maybe someday another concubine will wear it, and may it bring better luck to them. Its beauty deserves to be revered.”

  Naral took it gently, letting it lie over his palm, the jewels sparkling in the sunlight. “This was given with love, deep love.” His gaze rose to Hredeen. “That love still exists. No matter how his hurt may conceal it, it is not extinguished.” He took one of Hredeen’s hands and kissed the back of it with a reverent courtesy rare in Naral’s nature. “Give it time. He will come to his senses.”

  Hredeen shook his head, stroked a fond hand over Naral’s cheek. “We were not meant to be, he and I. If his anger at me helps him to get through this, then I freely accept it.”

  Naral tugged him close once more, hugged him tightly again. “You go with my eternal thanks. If you ever need anything at all, you have but to ask. I could send guards with you…”

  Hredeen returned the hug tightly, before stepping back, chin held up, a light laugh escaping his control.

  “I am an assassin, my friend. I need no guards.”

  Naral gave a crooked grin, sadness in his eyes. “No. I don’t suppose you do. Regardless, take care of yourself, and I meant what I said. Remember that.”

  Hredeen nodded and swung up on his horse with a single leap. Gathering the reins, he met Naral’s look. “Take care of him for me.”

  Naral gave him a salute before patting his leg. “I will. We’ll see each other again, Hredeen. I feel that.”

  Hredeen nodded, though there was no hope in his heart. “I pray that it be so, and in better circumstances than these.”

  Naral stepped back. “Stay safe, regardless of your vaunted talents. Don’t make me come to save you.”

  Hredeen managed a faint smile. “I’ll try my best. Farewell.”

  Naral shook his head. “Blessings upon you.”

  “You as well.” Hredeen turned his horse sharply, keeping his eyes front and center as they trotted through the vast courtyards and finally out the massive gates of the palace. So familiar, so loved.

  He did not look back.

  The passage through the city took time, for it was early morning and the merchants were opening, the customers beginning to arrive. Dressed as he was, in plain traveling clothes, no one looked twice at him, though a few admired the gray stallion he was riding.

  He left the city gates and let the stallion head into a canter. An hour later, he reached the great forest that stretched out all the way to the far mountains, its shade a welcome relief after the glare of the now fully risen sun.

  A rider waited for him at the edge of the forest.

  Sarnwa nodded as he guided his horse close, and they clasped forearms in the traditional greeting of their kind.

  The other assassin’s gaze was assessing but not without compassion.

  “They have a new assignment for you,” Sarnwa said.

  Of course they did. Like the tool he was, he would be used, over and over, until…

  He closed off all thoughts of his eventual, inevitable demise. Death was not feared by those that danced in her shadow. Especially now.

  He nodded, assessed the other man. “You as well?”

  Sarnwa shook his head. “My duty is not done.”

  Hredeen fought back a pang of bitterness. At least one of them would have their emperor and his heart.

  Sarnwa offered the roll of parchment that contained Hredeen’s orders, and he tucked it into the pouch at his waist. He bowed to the seventh-level assassin as was proper, then without further ado, turned his horse’s head toward the far mountains. As was custom, he would be alone when he discovered where his path would lead.

  Alone.

  * * *

  Isnay

  Isnay watched the line of people snake past Antan’s ornate casket in the viewing room. Most of them he deemed to be curiosity seekers, but there were those who sincerely wanted to leave a blessing upon the man who had been chosen by their emperor, who had died through no fault of his own in an event never before encountered in the long and illustrious history of the empire.

  Never had an attempt been made to either steal the Illumitae or to use it to assassinate the emperor.

  Never had a Chosen died before ever having accomplished his task.

  Isnay saw it as a much greater tragedy than that.

  He glanced to his left, to where a small huddle of people stood greeting those who came, shaking their hands, accepting the condolences with grim, tight faces.

  Antan’s family and friends.

  Among them, someone who was more. Antan’s lover. Isnay had r
ealized that fact when he had first brought them into the viewing room.

  The look upon the young man’s face, the utter devastation and outpouring of soul-deep grief had easily told the tale.

  Isnay had felt ill. He had known Antan was reluctant, not wanting the position of Chosen. That had been completely evident even though the man had done his duty to the empire. But it was left up to the decency of those who decided which candidate would be sent to ensure that they were free of emotional entanglements. In this case, they had clearly been cruel enough to send Antan to be a candidate, regardless of his relationship with another.

  Isnay wanted to rend them limb from limb for what they had done. With his diplomatic connections, he was going to discover exactly who had perpetuated this atrocity.

  But then what? Nothing, however, could heal what had been sundered so brutally.

  Antan was dead, his lover bereft.

  Now, the body would be brined, contained in a barrel for the long journey home, so that he might be buried in the lands of his birth.

  Isnay turned away from the misery, speaking softly to the two members of his staff who were in attendance before he quietly left.

  For once in his life, he could not be patient and diplomatic enough to remain. The events of the last few days made him feel immeasurably older and so very weary.

  A pall hung over the palace, over the city, as though the populace held their collective breaths, wondering what would happen next, how the new emperor would react to the attempt on his life. To the death of his Chosen.

  Isnay and Naral had people working on the matter. Taldan had the Shadows cooperating on it as well, and Isnay had no doubt that the truth would float to the surface, no matter how great an attempt to bury it. He didn’t think the plot had been tied to Odenar, though he couldn’t yet be certain. If this was yet another act of rebellion and war from one of the empire’s territories, it would shake the Imperial Throne to its core.

  Some of the imperial army was far off in Odenar, with no word of Zaran and how things were progressing.

  If this new plot led to a need for conflict, then the rest of the military could soon be deployed elsewhere. A war on two fronts never boded well for any country, even an empire the size of Anrodnes.

  He rubbed his brow, worried about Raine as well.

  His friend was in an untenable situation at best, with the new emperor heartsore and not completely rational.

  He didn’t envy him the task of forging a path as the Chosen.

  * * *

  Raine

  “We cannot delay the Choosing ceremony any longer,” Emperor Taldan stated. “It will be held tonight.”

  Raine’s heart began to pound, his breath erratic. It took courage to turn to face the—no, Taldan—he had to remember that. It only aggravated the man when he referred to him by his title, and right now, aggravation was the last thing he wanted to give.

  He could literally feel the pulses of pain and guilt that fairly radiated off Taldan, and he wanted so badly to help, to try to find anything at all that might…

  Who was he fooling?

  He hardly knew the man, a man who had lost the one he loved through betrayal, and who felt that he could have saved his original Chosen. What hope did he have of winning Taldan’s love?

  Still, Raine could not completely understand why Taldan had reacted so violently to the reveal of Hredeen’s identity. He could feel the man’s hurt and feelings of betrayal through the link they shared. Yes, Hredeen had lied and concealed that he was an assassin. But he had also saved Taldan’s life. That was why he had come to Persis, to Taldan, in the first place.

  But perhaps Raine was not a good man to judge. After all, he’d had his own secrets…

  He snorted quietly at his own naivety. The assassin was not free to remain, Taldan had made that perfectly evident. Still, to cast him aside with such anger… It worried Raine, both for Taldan’s emotions and pain and for the chance that some day he might be cast aside as coldly.

  Now, the specter of their physical joining to complete the Choosing had reared its head, and Raine felt a surge of panic overwhelm him.

  Did Taldan know of Raine’s innocence?

  Hesitantly, he rose to his feet and crossed the room to where Taldan was standing staring out a window, hands clasped behind his back. The sound of Raine’s footsteps seemed to bring him back from wherever his thoughts had been ranging, and he turned his head, cold eyes fastened upon his Chosen in impatient query.

  Raine thought there was no good or polite way to say it, and certainly Taldan was in no temper to be patient with blathering.

  He thought his face might burst into flame with the embarrassment he felt, but that didn’t stop him. “I’m a virgin.”

  Taldan blinked as though the words made no sense whatsoever, his brows gathering together in a deeper frown than before. “Virgin?”

  “Yes.” Raine’s voice choked off, and he could not gather himself to explain the matter further.

  Taldan eyed him with cool speculation before something in his expression softened ever so slightly.

  “I’m not a cruel lover, Raine. Thank you for telling me the truth. I will ensure that your first time is a thing of pleasure and not fear or pain.”

  Raine took a step closer, his hands closing into whitened fists.

  “I know I’m not your first choice, and certainly there were others who could have done a far better job than I’m capable of, but I will do my best to honor this position. I will strive to learn all that you teach me.” He flushed even more deeply. “In all things that you deem as my responsibility.”

  For the first time in days, Taldan really looked into his eyes.

  * * *

  Taldan

  Taldan pulled himself out of the mire of pain-filled thoughts, struggling to devote his entire attention to his Chosen. The young man deserved at least that.

  The announcement of his innocence caught his attention and held it. That knowledge brought a sense of responsibility and even tenderness to the fore. Raine would remember this night forever, and it was up to Taldan to give him a pleasant memory, not a traumatic one.

  It was a worthy task that blessedly took his mind off other things that he was refusing to allow entry into his thoughts. The past was just that, the past. He had an empire to rule, two conflicts brewing. His own personal desires had to be buried deeply. If he had any choice, they would never come to light again.

  This young man was his Chosen, a partner in the future of the empire.

  It was up to him to ensure that worked in whatever way was possible.

  “Thank you for your pledge, Raine. I have no doubt that you will be a worthy Chosen.”

  He wondered if Raine felt that the ghost of Antan stood between them, that it would always be speculated whether Antan would have been a better Chosen than the young Yoldis.

  He felt a pang of sympathy for Raine. That would not be a comfortable thing to carry.

  There was a knock on the door, and it opened. Isnay entered, bowing deeply.

  “Your Majesty, it is time to prepare Raine for the ceremony.” After a single shocked glance, he kept his gaze lowered as was proper.

  Taldan realized that he wasn’t wearing his mask. He hated the thing, which was one of the reasons he took it off whenever possible. He should worry about such a precedent as he was setting, but it was difficult to care at the moment.

  It was at that moment that he realized the mask’s true purpose. To conceal the emperor’s humanity, his emotions, to make him the perfect ruler, cold, calm, mystical, more than human. To hide behind it. For the first time, he would welcome its cold embrace.

  It made him wonder if his father had always been so emotionless as he had assumed. After all, the mask had hidden everything…

  * * *

  Raine

  Raine stared at the large circular stone that lay within the room. An ornate mattress, covered with the symbols of each god, lay waiting. Far above, a hole in the ceili
ng opened to the sky, and he could see clouds passing overhead, dark and sullen. A good omen. Rain was considered one of the greatest blessings of the gods, one of the reasons Raine had been named as he had.

  For once, he prayed that he could be blessed, not cursed as he had often believed.

  It seemed that he would be given the potential for a new life, a new path he had never dreamed possible. He just had to reach out and take it, prove that he could be an asset to Taldan, not a sad second choice.

  Antan had been a kind, talented man. Raine hoped that Antan’s spirit would be urging him on, telling him that this was possible.

  He lifted his chin and sucked in a deep breath that bolstered his courage.

  He stood beside Taldan, both of them in pristine white robes, symbolizing the purity of the bond they would finalize this night.

  He glanced at Taldan’s masked face and fought for optimism.

  The emperor turned to him, and Raine held out his arm for the traditional wristband. It was truly beautiful, of a dark metal inlaid with diamonds, like stars in a night sky. It snapped closed around Raine’s wrist, and Taldan turned the key, locking it.

  Raine stared at the symbol of his possession, unable to understand how he felt about it.

  Demarin stepped forward, hand outstretched. Nervously, Raine took the man’s hand, unable to believe he was actually touching the former emperor. Granted, he seemed more a man now, free of the mask, free of the divine energy, but still.

  Demarin glanced at him, and there was a surprising amount of support in that look. He led him to the circular altar, then reached up to unlace the robe. Raine had been guided through the process only an hour before, so he was informed enough to control his urge to cover himself. The highest ranked members of the court were present, and he could feel their stares upon his flesh, judging him, criticizing no doubt.