Knight of Valor: Knights of Valor

by Elizabeth Drake

  Chapter 49

  Sir Marcus and Brelynn spent the morning winding across the rolling hills and through the countryside to the King’s Road.

  The fresh scent of tilled earth and growing things drifted on the breeze. Bird chatter followed them, the happy songs warming the chill air.

  Late that morning, the cow path they’d been following merged with the King’s Road, and Brelynn understood why the Tribunal had gotten to Woodfield so quickly. The flat well-maintained surface let them travel much faster. Her new mount was a significant improvement over poor Rocky, and while she still hated riding, the hours on horseback were far more endurable.

  She chatted with Sir Marcus as they rode, trading stories and enjoying his company. They encountered quite a few farmers and merchants on the King’s Road, and Sir Marcus exchanged quick pleasantries with them before he led Brelynn on, the heavily laden wagons unable to keep pace with them.

  “Rocky is slow,” Brelynn said as she waved to a farmer and his son as she and Sir Marcus passed them.

  “That’s a kind assessment. Your current mount is better for endurance and carrying a heavy rider than speed. Uncle Leopold raises horses. Perhaps we can go out to his farm sometime and you can ride one of the fast ones.”

  “I’d break my neck. And if the horse didn’t do it, your uncle would.”

  Sir Marcus grinned. “Believe it or not, he likes you. Or at least respects you.”

  Brelynn snorted. “I’ll take your word for it. Still, it sounds like you enjoy your uncle’s horses.”

  “I do.”

  “There you go. That’s something you can do in retirement.”

  Sir Marcus shook his head. “Sounds silly after all I’ve seen, but I don’t want to see a mother lose her foal again. Besides, my Aunt Matty would hunt me down and drag me back to Aerius.”

  “That’s your aunt whose teaching you how to keep books and look after your lands.”

  Sir Marcus nodded. “Aunt Matty makes it look easy. Her father was a viscount, so I guess she’s been doing it all her life.”

  “That means your grandfather was a viscount. You’ve got blue blood instead of blue eyes. Never seen that purple color. Does it run in your family?”

  “While neither my father nor Uncle Leopold have them, they run in the Valerian family and seem to go along with magic resistance.”

  “You’re not the first Valerian impervious to magic.”

  “Too bad my father didn’t inherit it. He’d have survived his fight against the necromancer if he had.”

  “Maybe,” Brelynn said. “It takes more than magic resistance to win a fight, especially against a smart necromancer. But you already know that.”

  “Still don’t know why the gods blessed me with it and not him.”

  Brelynn kept her thoughts about that to herself. “I wonder where the resistance comes from. Maybe it’s the gods’ gift to your family for so many generations of service.”

  “Some have said that, but others say we have a drop or two of dragon blood in the family.”

  “What do you think?” Brelynn asked.

  “My father told me it was dragon blood, and if you’re blessed with it, the Dragon God expects great things from you.”

  “Do you believe that?”

  Sir Marcus shrugged. “He believed I could do great things.”

  “He was right about that, at least,” Brelynn muttered.

  “He was right about a lot of things, and wrong about many more. I didn’t see that when I was a kid, and I wanted to be just like him. My Aunt Matty had other ideas. As I’ve told you, she’s a formidable woman with a great deal of power in Tamryn.”

  “What did she want you to do?”

  “I’m not sure,” Sir Marcus admitted. “She never told me.”

  “I like her already, and now you have a very important reason to retire.”

  “I do?” Sir Marcus asked.

  “A lucky arrow would end your dragon line.”

  “I never thought of that.”

  “You’d be a great father.”

  He frowned. “I never really knew mine. Not sure I’d know what to do.”

  “I saw you with the priest’s sons and practicing with the boys back at Silas’s. You could figure it out.”

  “Anyone who married me would be disappointed that I’m not the legend they think I am.”

  Brelynn laughed. “That’s right. You’re shorter than you’re supposed to be.”

  Sir Marcus shook his head, but a smile tugged his lips.

  Chapter 50

  The sun hung low in the sky when Sir Marcus and Brelynn came to a mid-sized town. The town boasted an inn, but then most towns on the King’s Road had inns.

  Listening to Sir Leopold’s advice, they stopped for the night so they could enjoy a hot meal and sleep in a real bed.

  The cobblestone streets of the town were swept clean, and the traffic on them was orderly. The twin spires of a massive stone cathedral reached towards the sky and towered above the homes and shops that lined the thoroughfare. Most exteriors were freshly painted, and many had ornate shutters or flower boxes. The scent of fresh bread and roasting meat called the townspeople to dinner.

  As Brelynn rode beside Sir Marcus to the stables, a few men stopped and pointed at him. By the time they were walking towards the inn, a small crowd had gathered.

  Several children approached the Great Lich Slayer, their eyes wide as they craned their necks up at their hero.

  Brelynn conjured candy and slipped it to Marcus. She then nudged him and whispered, “Give it to them.”

  Sir Marcus crouched down and held out his large, armored hands. The children stared at the candy then up at him.

  “You’ve all been good?” Brelynn asked, arching her brow as she smiled at them.

  The kids nodded, and a little girl with blond pigtails came forward and plucked a piece of candy from him. She popped it into her mouth and grinned.

  Children chomping on candy and clamoring for Sir Marcus’s attention soon surrounded him.

  “Do you know how to get to the inn?” Brelynn asked the little girl with pigtails.

  She nodded.

  “Could you take us there?”

  The little girl beamed, took the Lich Slayer’s hand in her little chubby one, and led him to the inn.

  The crowd followed.

  Brelynn sat Sir Marcus at a center table with the children seated around him while she arranged accommodations and supper.

  When she returned, she put a hand on his shoulder and smiled down at him. He laid his hand over top hers and smiled back. Brelynn got more than a few sideways looks, but no one questioned her presence beside their Lich Slayer.

  Sir Marcus tensed under her fingers, and Brelynn wrapped an arm around his shoulders. “Relax and just be you,” she whispered.

  “I’m not what they think I am.”

  “Let them do the talking, and they won’t know.”

  “It’s never that easy.”

  “You’d be surprised,” she promised.

  Everyone already knew about his deeds, and Brelynn used that to get those gathered to share their own stories. Half the town had a tale they wanted to tell, some serious and some funny.

  Sir Marcus listened to them all, asked questions, and either laughed along with them or looked appropriately impressed.

  Eventually, a group of bards eventually took up telling stories, and Brelynn clapped along with the crowd as the flowing ale, bright music, and good company saw the candles burn low.

  When the opportunity to finally excuse himself came, Sir Marcus thanked the townspeople for their hospitality and promised he would be back should his duties permit. He then slipped away with Brelynn.

  Once they were upstairs in their room, Sir Marcus closed the door and sighed in relief.

  “I see why you didn’t want to take the King’s Road.”

  “It makes being inconspicuous hard,” Marcus said. “And if Calmont were still alive, all of those people wou
ld be in danger.”

  She considered the innocent townspeople and wondered if she should tell Marcus about Arch-Grimveldt Korvar.

  Tell him what? That the necromancer still wanted her?

  Sir Marcus already knew that.

  And Arch Grimveldt Korvar had no other operatives in Tamryn. He was of little threat back in Oskelez.

  Brelynn smiled up at her Knight. “You look tired. I’ve never seen you tired.”

  “Does that mean you’ll magic me up hot water?” Sir Marcus stared into the empty wash tub.

  She grinned, waved her hand, and the bath filled with steaming water. She bit her lip and looked away as he washed up with his usual efficiency, though he seemed to enjoy the warm water.

  Her heart pounded as desire and something stronger, something far more dangerous, seeped through her veins.

  The Twins’ curse hadn’t lessened at all. If anything, it was stronger than ever.

  The thought constricted her chest, but there was no use denying it. She didn’t want to love him knowing that whatever was between them would end when they reached Aerius.

  Not that the Twins cared.

  While Brelynn had never wanted Their gift, she hoped the pain of losing him would be worth the time they had together.

  As sadness tightened her chest, a cold breeze whispered over her shoulder, and she shuddered.

  Lucky nudged her hand, and Brelynn crouched down beside him and rubbed his ears. The cold vanished.

  “You okay?” Sir Marcus asked.

  “Tired,” Brelynn confessed and focused on her dog.

  “You can tell me anything.”

  She stared up into his pale eyes. Yes, she could tell him, but then she’d lose this time with him. “I’ll wash up, and we can both get some sleep. It’s been a long day.”

  Once she’d finished her bath, they lay down together and Marcus draped an arm around her and held her close. His breathing slowed to the rhythm of sleep, and while she felt warm and safe beside him, it took Brelynn until the moon was high in the sky to tame her wayward heart enough to let her sleep.

  Chapter 51

  The next several days passed much as the first had on the King’s Road, and Brelynn longed for a quiet evening where she could enjoy her last days with Marcus. Selfish, maybe, but she would rather follow cow paths and sleep under the stars so she could have him to herself.

  At least then they would have some real time together.

  As the dinner hour approached, Brelynn glanced over at Sir Marcus, his armor gleaming in the late afternoon light as he sat tall and strong in the saddle of his brilliant white charger. It was no wonder why he was recognized as they entered a town.

  “What if we disguised ourselves before going into the next town?” Brelynn asked. “We won’t say you aren’t the Great Lich Slayer, but we won’t make it obvious, either. Would that break any of your vows?”

  “I don’t think so, and I’d like a quiet evening. What do you have planned?”

  She snapped her fingers and replaced her plain clothes with a velvet riding habit similar in style to a lady’s she’d seen in the last town.

  Sir Marcus blinked at her. “You look nice.”

  “You won’t pass as a farmer, so I have to look the part, too. Can you make your armor look like a gentleman’s clothes?”

  “Yes, why?”

  Another wave of her hand and Bastion’s brilliant white coat turned dappled grey. “Knights aren’t allowed to lie, but I’m under no obligation.”

  “Brelynn…”

  She plucked a gold ring from her pack and slipped it on her left ring finger.

  “What’s that for?”

  “Be sure you’re in gentlemen’s clothes before we get to town. We’re trying to be inconspicuous.”

  It was close to the dinner hour when they arrived in Roanoke, and Marcus changed his armor for gentlemen’s clothes. They received the occasional nod or smile, but no one stopped or followed them.

  Marcus enjoyed the anonymity.

  He glanced at the towering spires of the Dragon Church. They were close to Aerius, as attested by the larger and wealthier towns crowned by ever taller churches.

  The streets of Roanoke were as clean and orderly as he expected, and its inhabitants well dressed. Nothing like it existed in the eastern provinces. At least, not yet.

  After they had taken care of stabling their horses, Brelynn slid her arm through his and laid her hand his on sleeve. Without thought, Marcus laid his hand over top of hers, and they walked together to the inn.

  The inn was spacious, clean, and busy with evening customers.

  Brelynn smiled at the innkeeper. “We got a late start this morning and won’t be able to make Waterford by tonight. You wouldn’t have a room available, would you?”

  “Got one left for you and your husband.”

  “Perfect,” Brelynn said.

  Husband.

  The word rang in Marcus’s head.

  It was a word he’d never thought would apply to him, yet it felt right with Breynn. To have and to hold. To wake up to her each morning and fall asleep beside her each night. To love, cherish, and protect her.

  It encapsulated all he wanted, all he felt, and wrapped it in legitimacy.

  His Aunt Matty and Uncle Leopold agreed on few things, but they’d both insisted he marry for love and not duty. He hadn’t thought himself capable of love, not after all he’d done, all he’d seen.

  But he loved Brelynn.

  Yes, he loved her.

  Maybe she’d ensorcelled him, trapped him in some spell or other, and if that were the case, he was happier under her spell.

  He was happier than he’d ever been.

  Perhaps that was how Raymond had felt, but Brelynn had always respected Marcus’s vows. Had always respected him.

  Marcus wanted to be with her now and forever. His to love, cherish, and protect.

  But he didn’t have to protect her from who he really was. She already knew him, the real him, and she’d never wanted him to be anything else.

  Not even taller.

  “Lost you for a minute, m’lord,” the innkeeper said as he handed Marcus a key and smiled at Brelynn. “You’re a lucky man, m’lord. I hope you enjoy your stay.”

  “Thank you,” Marcus said as he stared down into Brelynn’s luminous aqua eyes. They were the first thing he’d noticed about her, and they were even more beautiful now that he knew the compassion and intelligence that lay behind them.

  He was a very lucky man.

  Marcus scooped Brelynn into his arms and carried her to their room.

  He wanted her and all that could be between them.

  He’d destroyed Calmont, and Brelynn was free to decide. He would let her choose, give her all she wanted and take all she offered.

  “Nice touch carrying me up the stairs,” Brelynn said.

  Marcus kissed her, his lips soft against hers, tentative and tender. The heat of her soaked into him as she wrapped her arms around him and pressed her fingers into his broad shoulders. His muscles tensed as she touched him, as she stroked up along his arm and teased her fingers through his hair.

  He angled his head over hers and deepened the kiss, his mouth hot and demanding on hers. She gave him all he wanted, and she parted her lips, offering him more, wanting him to take more.

  And he did, his tongue surging inside, meeting hers, dueling and dancing as he carried her to the settee. He kept her wrapped in his arms as he sat down, his hands now free to touch and explore her.

  Teasing his fingers over her cheek, he dipped lower, stroking her hair, her shoulders and the curve of her back.

  He wanted her, all of her, and he wanted her forever. To know that they could savor each touch, each kiss. That he was hers as she was his. He wanted her to give him everything as he gave everything to her.

  He wanted her as his wife.

  Lifting his head, he parted their lips.

  She groaned as he pulled away, and her eyes fluttered open to me
et his gaze.

  “Marry me, Brelynn.”

  “What?”

  He brushed his lips over hers and nibbled her ear. “Marry me. We lied and told the innkeeper we’re married. Let’s make it not a lie.”

  She blinked. “I didn’t lie. I just didn’t correct him.”

  “Neither did I.” His strong hands skated down her body, tracing her lush curves. He cupped her breast in his hand, and she gasped as he teased his thumb over it.

  “I won’t trap you because I lied by omission.” Her words tapered to a whimper as his other hand slid under her top and stroked the silken flesh of her back.

  She felt even softer than he’d imagined.

  “My name will protect you in Tamryn.” Marcus kissed the smooth column of her throat and nibbled her collar bone as his thumb continued to stroke her swollen breast. “King Eli won’t be able to send you away even if you can’t help his son.”

  “Marcus,” she said as she clung to his shoulders and tried to catch her breath. “I don’t need rescuing, not at that cost to you.”

  Despite the knot of lead in his stomach, Marcus met her gaze. “I’m not rescuing you.”

  “You’re not?”

  “Sometimes I want to conquer rather than protect. To take what I want. I want you, now and always, and I’m trying to make it less selfish.”

  “Selfish? Giving me the protection of your name hardly seems selfish.”

  “I want to wake up to you every morning and have you beside me every night. I never want to lose you. Not to Calmont. Not to King Eli. Not to anyone.”

  “You’ll never lose me.”

  “I won’t if you promise to spend the rest of your life with me.”

  She stroked his cheek. “I want to take all your offering. More than anything. But I can’t. Not like this.”

  His chest tightened, and his throat constricted. “Not like what?”

  “You deserve better.” Brelynn’s voice caught. “You deserve someone you love. You’ll find that if you give yourself time.”

  “I’ve already found it.” He closed his eyes, clung to his courage, and opened himself to the pain of the Twin’s gift. “I love you, but I understand if you don’t feel the same way. I will still protect you and get you to Aerius.”