by Kiki Leach
I gulped and placed my hands alongside my waist and stiffened my back.
“Why was your door locked?” I asked, carelessly slipping past and into the room, hoping to give off a daunting impression as opposed to the yearning one I was sure had come through in my eyes. I placed a hand around my throat and squeezed a little in the hopes that my feelings would subside. “Why aren’t you dressed for our morning walk?”
He shrugged and made a face. “I seem to be moving a bit sluggishly today, my favorite girl. Perhaps the mood outside is reflecting my own.” He pulled for his boots, gradually slipping on each one.
I went over to his window and looked out, tracing my eyes across the sky once more. I noticed a slither of the sun peeking out from behind a large cloud and pointed. “There’s a part of you that wishes to be that sun,” I said.
He walked over and lifted my hair to the other side of me. His fingers trailed from my shoulder to the middle of my back. “Perhaps it means my sun has arrived.”
He pressed his lips against me and extended his tongue on my skin. The feeling of it overpowered me as always. I rolled my eyes into my head and fell back. He wrapped one hand around my waist and began yanking at my gown with the other.
“We mustn’t,” I said in a quiet voice. He ignored me and continued nibbling and licking my skin. He moved his hand to my breast, squeezing, then between my legs. “Norvack, don’t.”
He stopped and quickly lifted his hands from me. I turned to face him and he stepped back a few feet, tilting his head apologetically.
I straightened my gown and exhaled. Then I went over for the tunic and he followed after. I gripped the neck and placed the opening over his head, tugging the edge as he smiled at me, watching with a certain fondness as I dressed him. I slid it down, allowing him to shove his arms through the sleeves and tied the thin laces at his chest.
“Now, come with me,” I said. “I wish to show you something.”
He looked down at himself and arched his brows. “Shall I remain dressed for it?” he asked in a humorous tone.
I snickered and took his hand. “Yes. Come, we are going to the field.”
We quietly traipsed around the premises of the palace, I with my hands alongside me, he with his hands firmly planted at his back, his fingers intertwined. He seemed to admire the atmosphere, as I continued to admire him.
“The sun has finally pushed itself past the clouds,” I said, cracking the silence between us. “It seems as if it’s going to be a beautiful day.”
He nodded, only partly paying attention to my words, as something else began to capture his mind, though I wasn’t sure of what.
“Norvack,” I stated.
“Hmm?” He looked to me momentarily and smiled. “Oh, yes. The air is quite nice as well. Crisp.”
“You seem to be troubled. Was it because I -- ?”
“No. No,” he said.
“Then, what? And why was your door locked this morning?”
“To keep my parent’s from intruding upon more of my affairs without warning.”
I sniffed and crinkled my nose. “What affairs?”
He said nothing, and then circled before me, walking back against the weight of the wind. “Have I told you that you look as delectable as ever today?”
“No, but I assumed you believed as much as we were in your chambers.” I stopped walking and clutched his arm. He stared at me in a questioning manner. “Please tell me what affairs you speak of.”
He took his arm from my hand and spun around on the balls of his feet. He walked away a little and fiddled with his hands, a trait which was so out of the ordinary for him, I was certain something dire was wrong.
“Norvack, what is it?” I asked in dread.
“After two months at war,” he began, “my men finally return from battle tomorrow.”
“That’s wonderfu1!” I exclaimed. “It means the war is over. Your men have defeated the King of England and his army, yes?”
He nodded with a small grin. “Yes. My men have overthrown his country and in return, Denmark has become much more powerful, politically speaking.”
“Then, why so sullen? We should be celebrating this defeat and your victory, especially since the very idea was deemed so impossible by so many; your family and naysayer’s alike. There should be a banquet in your honor!”
“That would be ideal, to celebrate with you my favorite girl.” He sighed. “But my father has once again managed to dampen all celebrations for the time being.”
“What has he done now?”
“It is nothing he has done as of yet, but more of what he wishes, or plans for the future. For our future.” He paused. “He wishes for this marriage to be declared invalid once more, now on the grounds of witchcraft.”
“Witchcraft?! He in fact believes I bewitched you into marriage?”
“It is what he claims, as he has no other weapon to use against us anymore in convincing the church and court of its invalidity.”
I shook my head and scrunched my brows, amazed at the great lengths his father had chosen to go through to eliminate me from Norvack’s life. “Why now?” I asked. “Why after all this time, after everything?”
“Your influence during our private time together has made its way to my time spent with the king and queen. My father is now more determined than ever to end our marriage in fear that I am currently a threat to his place on the throne, and within the monarchy. My men defeating the King of England in a war during which many of my father’s men died only increased this fear.”
“Your father is…” I stopped myself from speaking too unpleasantly of him, more than I had already. “Far be it for the king to actually applaud his son, instead of using his victory to defeat him. This is why you refused to dine with your parents this morning.”
“Indeed. I feared my father would encourage discussion. I wasn’t to learn of this latest plan until much later. However, one of my men overheard the king speaking with a member of parliament and informed me prior to breakfast. Now understand, my power has increased as of the battle’s end and my victory, and I am ensuring that this will not happen. As with all things, the king shall remain adamant, but I will not allow him to disrupt what we have grown to have overtime, trust, loyalty. We have created an unbreakable bond, you and I. My time spent healing was better spent with you at my side.” Norvack stopped walking and slipped his hand beneath mine. I watched our fingers entwine and for the first time, I noticed how mine seemed so thin and tiny, almost childlike against his overwhelming masculinity. He stared at my wedding band, tapping it with his thumb. “Do you ever remove this?” he asked.
“No, never.”
“Do you cherish it as I cherish you?”
I laughed. “I could cherish nothing as you cherish me. Though…”
“What is it, Cinder girl?”
I breathed in deep, shaking. “Norvack, I… There’s something I wish to inform you. These months we have spent together, building our bond as you call it, I… Well, they were unexpected, everything that was said and occurred between us. I have learned so much about you overtime. You have allowed me to see a side of you that I was certain never existed. And now that I am certain--”
He quickly dropped my hand and caressed my face, pulling me to him. I swallowed hard, mesmerized by his seductive green eyes. Oh, what a spell they put upon my heart.
“Are you informing me that you are in fact mine?” he asked. “Officially?”
“I…” My eyes and thoughts went back and forth as I looked at his face. And then I uttered, “I’m your wife.”
And his face dropped in disappointment, as if I had just informed him that I was pregnant with another man’s child. He held me a bit longer, then slid his hands from my face, down to my throat and then shoulders. He stepped back and looked at me for awhile, amused and saddened at the same time.
I knew it was what he didn’t want to hear, that I was essentially his wife and nothing more, but even as I lead up to it, I could
not manage to bring myself to admit the truth aloud, that I was his, and that I had been for months, possibly even as he said, since the beginning when I was summoned. It was much easier when I was unaware, or rather, it was much easier when I did not care at all, and was aware that I didn’t.
He cleared his throat and returned to the open field. “Why did you wish to bring me out today?”
“We always take a morning walk.”
“Yes, though you seemed to have more of a purpose for something else today.”
I turned in the direction of the stables. “I wish for you to ride again. It’s a passion you will possess forever, and you deserve to be on that horse once again.”
He smiled. “Your faith in my abilities is staggering.”
“It’s been a month since you have been without that awful cane, Norvack. You have managed to do what a number of people never believed you could, and in such a short amount of time. You are standing and walking better than even prior to the attack, your wound has completely healed. You miss riding as I miss…” I pondered.
“Painting?” he asked.
“I have never painted a canvass a day in my life.”
“You fell in love with something you could never obtain for yourself.”
I looked to the sky and smiled at the irony. “It seems we are in fact two sides of the very same coin.”
“Perhaps at one time. Though I finally managed to obtain my greatest desire.”
“All while purposely avoiding the other.”
He took me by the arm and we stopped walking again. He shrugged. “Why are you so eager for me to ride again, my favorite girl? I don’t understand what you receive from it.”
“I receive nothing other than seeing you happy.”
He traced his fingers across my stomach. “You make me happy.”
“I shouldn’t be your entire world.”
“Why not?”
He grinned, as did I.
“It’s unhealthy,” I said, looking up at him with a passionate gaze. “I as your only passion and desire.”
“But you have already made me into a much better man.”
“Riding again will not take away from that. It’s part of who you were, and who you are.” I clasped my hands together, placing them under my chin. “When I was a girl, there were times I would see you on that stallion as you rode into the village for sweets. I was certain even then, that you were only seeking out the company of a willing maiden, but seeing you on that horse… it was breathtaking. So much that at times, I didn’t care why you were in the village and as much as I despised you, there were times it ceased to matter.”
He continued caressing my stomach and moved in closer. “Seeing me on my horse, it made you feel things?”
I dropped my hands and knit my brows. “I never said that.”
“You felt something. You felt what I did, even then as you claim you didn’t.”
I spun away from him. “Norvack.”
“Cinder,” he said. He looped his hand around my arm and whirled me back, crushing me to him. As he stared down into my eyes, I was so desperate to know what he was thinking, why he looked as if he wanted to make love to me and escape from me as quickly as possible at the same time. “I shouldn’t jeopardize my healing in riding so soon.”
“So soon?” I said quietly, almost panting. “Are you fearful of--”
“No,” he interjected, his voice hard, sharp. “I was skittish, but I have no true fears, except for losing you.”
“I’m here. And I shall remain.” I slipped my hand inside his and curled my fingers around the back, pressing our palms together. “Take me to the stables.”
He was fairly resistant, but after awhile escorted me to his horse’s pen.
The horse was still when we arrived, save for his tail swatting flies, and I leaned over the door to pet him. Then I reached down for the lock and handle. “Shall I?”
Norvack stood on the other side and shook his head as the horse neighed. “No.”
He was reserved, cautious. One arm was folded under the other as he cupped his chin between his thumb and forefinger. His eyes were solely focused on the stallion. I strutted toward him, breaking his concentration.
“I would like to teach you to ride again. You can hold onto me as we glide through the forest on horseback. Imagine me as your protector, a shield from all things evil, the King of England, your father, Willem’s ghost.”
He laughed and pushed a curl behind me with the edges of his fingers, then glided them around to my collarbone. “You are my protector.”
“And you, mine,” I said.
He lowered his hand to mine, rubbing his thumb back and forth across my wedding ring again. And then he glowered a little and tilted his head as he moved back to my eyes. “You are my wife. And indeed my greatest companion… Wait here.”
“Where are you going?”
“I shall return soon enough.” He smiled and kissed my hand. “Wait for me.”
As he took off for the palace, I turned to his stallion and continued petting him.
When light footsteps began crossing over and breaking twigs near the back of the stables, I jumped back in a fright. Then I craned my neck and leaned forward to get a better look at what I had heard. As I called out for someone, the queen began approaching with fistfuls of her gown, holding it high to keep the edges from rubbing against the ground.
I removed my hand from the horse and sighed. “Lovely timing,” I snapped. “What do you wish for, your Majesty?”
“I am in search of the prince and was confident I heard his voice. Is he with you?”
“Not at the moment. He went back inside the palace but shall return soon.”
She glided forward and nodded. “I’ll wait.” I muttered an expletive to myself and gnashed my teeth. She didn’t seem to notice as she stood aside me, so fixated and admiring the horse. “I have always been in awe of this.” She gestured to him. “As a child, Norvack seemed to spend more time riding than with me.” She reached for him then, and he turned away, trotting to the corner. Eliza made an expressively surprised and embarrassed face and drummed her fingers against her palm. “I can only imagine what he thinks of me.”
“The horse? I’m sure he senses your resentment, if anything.”
She placed her hands before her, enfolding them. “As do you.”
I thought of her words and we turned to one another.
She straightened herself and cleared her throat. “The king once again wishes for the marriage between you and my son to be declared invalid.”
I swallowed hard. “Yes. He is now accusing me of using witchcraft to lure the prince. It seems the Sheriff has continued to manage an influence over your husband in the same manner he accuses me of influencing your son. Prior to his visit, the king himself declared to me on my wedding day that he in fact did not believe I bewitched Norvack. And suddenly, he wishes to use such a claim against me. A claim that only the Sheriff was known to often accuse me of. Now that he has defeated the King of England, your son has more power than ever before. His authority over the court, the parliament and this country will continue to grow.”
“As will your authority over him.”
“He listens to me,” I said. “He values my opinion as much as my body. I have retained my voice in this marriage, and may become louder than ever before as time continues on.” I smirked. “The king will not receive what he desires of me. Norvack and I have created something real, and true, and honest. We have a kinship, an unbreakable bond. Try as he might, no man nor woman or whore will ever come between that.”
She scrunched her brows and shook her head in complete astonishment of my words. “My God, girl. You are determined to stay married to my son, even at the remaining cost of your own life. Continue to deny if you must, but you are indeed in love with him, Cinder.”
I gulped, losing my nerve. “I never said--”
“No woman in your position would remain married to a man who’s father incessantly
sought her blood on a scaffold unless it were love. Is he aware of your feelings?”
“I don’t feel anything.”
“Cinderella,” she said in an exhausted tone.
She curled her hand around my wrist and tried turning me around to face her. I was stubborn, sinking my feet into the ground, refusing to look her in the face. I didn’t want her to see the emotion forming in my eyes, the tears developing and rolling down my cheeks. She moved around and I tried turning again, but she took my face in her hands, which were as soft as silken sheets, and smiled at me. I frowned, unsure of her sincerity, fearing she could just as easily pull a knife from her pocket, place it at my throat and eliminate me for her husband instead. As a tear fell, she wiped it away with her thumb and I flinched.
“You despise me,” I said as more tears fell.
“But my son adores you, and always has. Each day I spend with him, you are the first on his mind, and the last. And your feelings for Norvack are real, and they are clear. You make him happy. I would die for my king,” she said. “And you, for your prince.”
“I am not like you. I refuse to become completely helpless to Norvack, despite everything.”
“Oh, my dear.” She took her hands from my face and placed one over the other at her waist. “Love is universal, and if one is fortunate, eternal. My love for the king, your love for my son, may not be one and the same. However, it is true.”
“Your king still wishes death upon me. Whatever I may or may not feel for your son will not matter if the king once again declares to have me permanently eliminated from his life.”
Her eyes fell and she exhaled, defeated.
“Mother?” said Norvack walking up behind her.
I turned away and wiped my face to keep him from seeing my tears.
Eliza looked to her son and immediately kissed either side of his face. “I have been in search of you all morning.”
“Here I am. What did you need from me?”
“Your presence. Since you refused breakfast, the king and I are adamant that you dine with us for supper.”
“Father is adamant, and we are both aware of why I refused to dine in the grand ballroom this morning,” he snapped.
