As Tarn lifted his head, Niska gave a lazy, satisfied smile. Glancing hungrily down at his engorged sex, she eased her buttocks closer to him. Tarn’s lust was aroused and he entered her with one smooth stroke, feeling her curl her legs possessively around his hips. He placed his chained hands on her narrow waist to help support his weight. As her muscles tightened around his cock, he gave a soft groan. He had been denied his release for so long, and his pleasure peaked swiftly as he savoured the silken heat of her sex.
‘You fill me so completely,’ Niska gasped as he rode her hard, thrusting into her relentlessly, until his climax came in a sudden rush of sinful bliss.
Niska pulled him closer and took possession of his mouth, kissing him with unrestrained fervour as her second orgasm overwhelmed her. Tarn felt her vagina pulse hungrily around his cock, draining him of the last vestiges of his passion.
Niska gave another satisfied sigh and tenderly stroked Tarn’s cheek as he withdrew from her. ‘If only I could persuade Sarin to give you to me. I can see now why he keeps you for himself. You were magnificent, Tarn.’ She rose to her feet, pulling her skirt together to cover her sex. ‘I’ll come again, perhaps tomorrow,’ she added with a malicious smile. ‘I’ll expect you to display even more ardour than you did today.’
Rianna left Sarin’s bed, and returned to her quarters. Since Tarn’s attack on Cador, Sarin had insisted she lay with him every night. He was no longer heedful of her feelings, expecting her to partake in all manner of erotic delights. Rianna shared her husband with his pleasure slaves, both female and male. However, Sarin never allowed the men to touch her too intimately. If they ever had a child he intended to ensure it was from his seed and none other.
Rianna was helplessly enmeshed in Sarin’s sensual web of carnal delight, which indulged her senses and drained her of all emotion. She missed Jenna, and had become very reliant on Yasmin of late, yet she could never speak of her feelings for Tarn, for that might prove to be too dangerous. Yasmin was in Lesand’s employ but she still had some sense of loyalty towards Sarin.
‘My lady, you have a visitor,’ a maidservant announced, as Rianna entered her chambers.
Rianna sighed; she was in no mood for company. She felt warm, sticky and incredibly weary after her night of indulgent excesses. She knew it would not be Chancellor Lesand, even though she’d been trying to obtain an audience with him for a number of days. Male visitors were not allowed in this part of the palace. It was out of bounds, even to Sarin’s male slaves.
She tensed in surprise as she walked into the main reception room and discovered her visitor was Niska.
‘This is quite unexpected,’ Rianna exclaimed.
Niska rose to her feet and smiled politely. ‘Lady Rianna, forgive the intrusion. I wish to speak to you on a very personal matter,’ she said, glancing pointedly at the maidservant.
‘You may leave us.’ Rianna dismissed the girl with a wave of her hand, and seated herself on the divan opposite Niska’s chair. ‘What do you want?’ Rianna asked coldly.
‘I’ve come to offer you my help.’
Rianna stared at her suspiciously. ‘Why would I want your help?’
‘You wish to leave this place, do you not?’ Without waiting for an answer Niska added, ‘I’ve no reason to hide that my one aim is to be rid of you. With you gone, Lord Sarin and I can become close again.’
‘I thought your intention was to leave Lord Sarin and go to Kabra with Cador. You told me so yourself.’
‘That was my initial plan,’ Niska replied. ‘Because of you, Sarin is now suspicious of Cador. It’s likely he won’t offer him the throne of Kabra, as he now seems to think that Cador might try to raise another army, and lead a second rebellion. With the royal coffers of Kabra open to him, and the king’s guards on his side, Cador might well succeed where Tarn failed.’ Niska smiled conspiratorially. ‘In the circumstances it seems sensible to keep all my options open.’
Remaining suspicious of her unwanted visitor’s motives, Rianna stared penetratingly at Niska. ‘What exactly are you suggesting?’
‘I will help you escape. You will disappear, and Lord Sarin will eventually become weary of looking for you. Then he will be mine completely. However, you cannot return to Harn. I can arrange a ship’s passage to another country, preferably one that has no ties to Percheron.’
‘Why should I leave?’ Rianna challenged. ‘I’m Lord Sarin’s wife.’
‘His unwilling wife,’ Niska corrected. ‘Your lover languishes in the dungeons. If he were ever to be released it will only be to become Lord Sarin’s pleasure slave again, or be sold on the block. With my help you and Tarn can be together at last.’
‘You mean for Tarn to leave as well?’ Rianna asked incredulously. ‘You’d help us both to get away?’
‘I know you’d never be willing to leave without him,’ Niska replied. ‘Tarn is in good health at present. I visited him in the dungeons and found him even more defiant than ever. Sarin hasn’t truly tamed Tarn, and I doubt he ever will.’
‘But your accomplice, Cador, wants Tarn dead,’ Rianna continued.
‘Just because Cador wants Tarn dead doesn’t mean I do. I am my own woman,’ Niska said proudly. ‘I’ve risen high for the daughter of a slave, and I intend to rise even higher. I’ll never allow any man to totally control me, neither Cador nor Sarin.’
‘I cannot believe I am hearing this,’ Rianna said.
‘You first instinct is to refuse my help, is it not?’ Niska continued. ‘In your position I would feel just the same. Consider this: do you have any other options? If you want to spend the rest of your life with Tarn, you have to put aside your suspicions and trust me.’
Rianna shook her head. ‘I’m not certain . . .’
‘Then be certain,’ Niska said frustratedly. ‘I am doing this to achieve my own selfish ends. In order to get what I want, I must help you and Tarn. But if you do not want my help . . .’ She rose to her feet. ‘Then I bid you good day, Lady Rianna, and promise I will not speak of this again.’
She began to move towards the door. ‘No,’ Rianna said. ‘Wait. Let us discuss this matter further.’
Niska smiled. ‘So you are interested in what I have to offer.’ She stepped back to Rianna and lowered her voice. ‘I have more power than you know. There are a number of guards and slaves in the palace in my employ, and I have contacts in the city, merchants who will find me the captain of a vessel who’ll give safe passage to you and Tarn.’
Baral hurried up the steps that led to the bowels of the palace. He hated the dungeons, they made his flesh creep. Of late he’d been forced to visit them a number of times. Chancellor Lesand insisted on regular reports about Tarn. He’d interceded on the prisoner’s behalf to ensure that he was properly fed, but he had been unable to improve the conditions Tarn was kept in; that was Lords Sarin’s prerogative alone.
Much of Baral’s time was spent moving about the palace, gleaning news from those secretly in the Chancellor’s pay. Lesand liked to be aware of everything that went on at Court, however small and insignificant it might appear. It was well past noon, and the reception rooms of the palace were empty; most of the courtiers were resting in the heat of the day. Baral wished he too was resting, as he mopped the perspiration from his brow with the edge of his sleeve.
Just ahead, he spotted Cador, striding purposefully along the empty corridor. Baral’s instructions were to find out all he could about Cador, so it seemed circumspect to delay his return to Chancellor Lesand and follow the nobleman.
Cador turned right, into an open-sided corridor which overlooked a small courtyard. A woman was sitting on a bench waiting for him. Baral recognised Niska’s pale, silvery hair. Baral crept forward to hide behind a large marble statue, just able to overhear their conversation.
‘Is it settled?’ Cador asked agitatedly.
‘Yes,’ Niska confirmed. ‘She was naturally suspicious at first, but I eventually persuaded her to trust me.’
Cador gave a har
sh laugh. ‘All is arranged for tomorrow night?’ Niska nodded as he added, ‘We’ll be rid of that interfering whore forever. I loathe her even more now for causing Sarin to doubt my loyalty.’
‘It may take some time before he begins to trust you again,’ Niska pointed out.
‘It will be easier when both Tarn and Rianna are dead.’
‘You’re convinced that Sarin will decide to execute them both if Rianna is caught helping Tarn to escape?’
‘He’ll have no other choice,’ Cador assured her confidently. ‘It would make him appear weak if he did not. Sarin likes to appear a strong, ruthless monarch.’ Frowning at her troubled expression, he continued, ‘I thought you wanted this as much as I?’
‘Rianna, yes,’ she confirmed. ‘I’ll not shed a tear for her. But Tarn is different.’
‘So you still lust after him?’ Cador’s face contorted with fury. ‘He has to die, otherwise it is possible Lord Sarin might question him, torture him into revealing how great a hand I had in persuading Tarn to lead the rebellion. If Sarin discovers the truth, he’ll never trust me again.’
‘I would rather Tarn did not die,’ Niska said determinedly. ‘If that appears so, I want you to plead for his life. A show of mercy on your part might help assuage Sarin’s suspicions of you. Then you can persuade Sarin to sell Tarn instead. If Sarin is offered a large enough sum, greed will make him agree.’
‘All that, just so you can make Tarn your pleasure slave,’ Cador growled. ‘Is he worth the trouble?’
‘Yes.’ Her pale eyes lightened with excitement. ‘Imagine it, Cador, Tarn would be your slave also.’
‘The thought does have some merit.’ He touched the bruises that ringed his neck. ‘Death does seem too easy an option for him.’
‘Then promise me we can keep him as our slave at least for a short while. Owning Tarn will give you the power of life and death over him, Cador.’ She kissed his cheek and pressed the palm of her hand against his groin.
‘How can I refuse you anything?’ He groaned as she pulled open his breeches and lowered her head.
‘Chancellor?’ Rianna exclaimed in surprise, as she found him waiting in her bedchamber after she returned from the bath house. ‘I did not expect to find you here.’
Lesand smiled tightly. ‘I doubt Sarin would chastise me for flouting his rules. No part of the palaces is out of bounds to the Chancellor of the kingdom. I ensured that no one saw me enter.’ He pushed the door of her bedchamber shut. ‘This conversation must be between us alone, that is why I decided not to call you to my chambers. I had no wish to arouse any suspicion.’
‘What is it?’ Rianna asked, fearing the worst.
‘I’ve heard of your plan,’ Lesand said grimly. ‘And I cannot allow it.’
‘You’ve witnessed Tarn’s fate, Chancellor, the way Sarin has enslaved and humiliated him,’ she said, her eyes filling with unshed tears. ‘Can you deny Tarn the chance to break free from his misery?’
‘If Niska’s scheme goes ahead tomorrow night, you will be far from free,’ he replied, looking at her with deep concern. ‘The guards will be told in advance of your plan to free Tarn and escape with him. You will both be apprehended when you try to leave the palace. There is only one punishment for such a crime; do you know what it is, Rianna?’
She swallowed hard and shook her head. ‘No,’ she said quietly.
‘Public beheading,’ Lesand replied. ‘Both you and Tarn.’
‘So Niska wants us dead?’
‘Cador,’ he corrected. ‘He is the prime instigator of this plan. Cador knows it was you who planted seeds of suspicion in Lord Sarin’s head. If you are apprehended while helping Tarn escape, he rids himself of two troublesome problems at the same time.’
‘What can I do, Chancellor?’ she said, clutching at his sleeve, knowing that all her hopes for the future were now extinguished. ‘I fear for my life and Tarn’s. If Tarn doesn’t escape he will either die in the dungeons or be forced to resume his position as Lord Sarin’s pleasure slave. You helped us once, can you not do so again?’
Lesand frowned. ‘I hoped never to be faced with a decision such as this, Rianna. I feared it might come to this when I helped you in the first place. What I have learnt of late leads me to presume that Cador was one of the Kabran nobles who persuaded Tarn to lead the rebellion. Why should Tarn be punished while Cador is not? Tarn is a far nobler and more trustworthy man than Cador.’ Lesand’s expression softened as he took hold of her hand. ‘Your suspicions about Cador were valid, Rianna. If Cador comes to the throne of Kabra, he will eventually persuade others to join him in invading Percheron and deposing Lord Sarin, but with Tarn free, the noblemen and lesser princes from surrounding kingdoms will not support such a plan. If I help free Tarn, I effectively help Percheron.’
‘So you’ll come to our aid?’ she asked eagerly.
‘The garment you’re wearing isn’t suitable for travelling,’ he remarked.
‘We leave now?’ she queried incredulously.
‘Just as soon as you are suitably clad,’ he agreed. ‘Lord Sarin is detained on matters of state, so he’ll not send for you this evening. I did not inform you earlier, just in case my plans were forced to change.’ Lesand watched Rianna rummage in a cedarwood chest and pull out the breeches and doublet she had worn for riding at home in Harn. ‘Far more suitable. Make haste,’ he added.
Swiftly, she changed, donning her riding boots and a plain, black wool cloak. Dusk had already fallen. The night was warm, but it could turn cold later and they would be travelling far, so the cloak was a necessity.
‘This way.’ Lesand led her into the anteroom leading off her bedchamber and pulled back a heavy wall hanging to reveal a small door. She followed him through the door into a dusty passageway. ‘This is one of many similar corridors all over the palace,’ Lesand explained, as he picked up the lantern he had left ready.
They walked along a twisting passageway. There were other narrow corridors branching off at angles. It would be an easy place in which to get totally lost.
Eventually Lesand opened a door and guided her into a large chamber, with dark, rather gloomy furnishings. ‘My quarters,’ he explained, handing her into Baral’s care. ‘Now wait here and be very quiet.’ He strode briskly through a curtained doorway.
‘Through there is the Chancellor’s office,’ Baral whispered. ‘You can watch, but ensure you’re not seen,’ he added.
Rianna tiptoed to the curtain and peered through a narrow opening at the side of the fabric. Lesand was seated in a large imposing chair. ‘Enter,’ he said, as there was a sharp rap at the door of the chamber.
Two guards escorted Tarn into the room. Tarn’s skin was damp and his hair wet. Before leaving the dungeon, the gaoler had thrown a couple of buckets of icy-cold water over him to wash away the dirt and grime of his squalid cell.
‘Chancellor,’ Tarn acknowledged, with a brief bow of his head.
‘Leave,’ Lesand told the soldiers. ‘I have instructions from Lord Sarin that this prisoner is to be questioned.’
‘But Chancellor,’ the guard interrupted.
‘Be gone,’ Lesand snapped. ‘The prisoner is chained, I’ll come to no harm.’
Tarn remained silent until the guards had left, then he said coldly, ‘Are you certain I won’t harm you, Lesand?’ He lifted his manacled hands. ‘I’ve managed to do my guards harm chained as I am.’
‘I am certain,’ Lesand said, rising to his feet. ‘It’s safe to come in now, Baral.’
Rianna didn’t wait for Lesand to call her. She rushed into the room and flung her arms around Tarn. ‘My love!’
Tarn looked at her in bewilderment. ‘Rianna?’
‘The Chancellor is to help us escape,’ she said, hugging Tarn, then kissing him passionately.
‘Rianna,’ Lesand said agitatedly. ‘Baral has horses, weapons and provisions waiting. Step back. Baral has to remove Tarn’s chains before he can dress. We must hurry!’
Chapter Eleven
/>
WHEN DAYLIGHT CAME, Tarn and Rianna were well away from the city of Aguilar, heading in a northeasterly direction. Tarn had decided to head for Kabra, as he wanted to see his ailing father one last time. Also, there were friends in Kabra who would help them travel to lands in the east where Lord Sarin’s influence did not reach.
The cool breeze brushed Rianna’s face and ruffled her tangled hair. At last she felt free and happy. She knew Sarin’s men would soon give chase, but the guards would be under the impression that Tarn was alone, still chained and on foot. First they would look for him in the palace, and then the confines of the city. Her disappearance would probably not be discovered until this morning, so they should have a good few hours head start.
Her only sadness was that she’d been forced to leave her pretty mare, Freya. She was too gentle a mount for the rough journey they faced.
‘Do you think we could stop to eat and water the horses?’ she asked Tarn. They had been travelling swiftly in order to put a distance between them and any pursuers.
‘Are you weary, my love?’ he asked anxiously.
‘No more than you,’ she smiled. ‘Neither of us have ridden much of late.’
‘A short rest will ease the stiffness from our limbs.’ He followed her gaze to his groin. ‘You need not worry,’ he added with a wicked grin. ‘Only one thing will ease the stiffness from that!’
Taking hold of the reins of her mount, Tarn guided the horses beneath the shelter of a thick clump of trees. Dismounting, he tethered the horses, then held out his arms to her. Rianna gave a soft, happy laugh as she fell into his embrace.
‘I never dreamt such a moment as this would ever exist,’ Tarn said, kissing her with unrestrained passion.
She was shaking with need by the time he let go of her. Almost stumbling in her haste, Rianna threw off her leather doublet. ‘I want you now, Tarn,’ she said breathlessly.
His hands trembled as they slid under her linen shirt to caress her naked breasts. Rianna moaned, pushing herself closer to him, her fingers fumbling with the fastening of his breeches.
Savage Surrender Page 22
