by Sage, May
“You get to sleep first, but I’m claiming the bath!” she said.
“Not yet,” Vale replied, still looking out the window.
The bedsprings squeaked as Devi sat up behind him. “Why, what’s the matter?”
He reluctantly walked away from the window, itching to see what was wrong with Rhionhave. He felt like he was missing something important that might serve him well later, but remaining at the window through the night wouldn’t get him answers.
“Nothing,” he replied, joining her. “You’ve done well for a new rider, but we both know how much you’re hurting.”
He hadn’t realized it until he’d channeled her and felt her pain. Vale had been a seasoned rider from a young age, and over the centuries, he’d never lacked practice. He hadn’t understood the toll the journey was taking on her.
He sat next to her on the bed and put his hand on her shoulder, pressing hard with his thumb.
Devi whimpered and groaned the harder he pressed.
“Lie down on your front,” he told her.
She obeyed immediately, eagerly. Vale removed his wet cloak, straddled her back, and kneaded her shoulder with both hands, pushing into every knot he found. She yelped once or twice, and practically purred too.
His hands worked her back, spine, sides, hips, and then the curves of her firm ass and her legs; every part of her body, every corner. He pulled her boots off to massage her calves and feet, and then he started on her arms and hands.
“Turn around,” he told her.
She flipped onto her back, and he propped her head on his lap to massage her head first. He undid her braid and threaded his fingers through her hair to get to her scalp. She smiled, eyes closed.
“This should be your profession.”
Vale chuckled, working on her neck.
At long last, he stated, “I’m done for now.”
She opened her eyes and asked, “Can you carry me to the bath? I don’t think I can walk.”
“Don’t push it, Rivers.” Nonetheless, he got to his feet. “I’ll start the bath. Rest now. It’ll be my turn in the bath after the food gets here.”
Finding eucalyptus oil on the shelves above the large dragon-claw tub, Vale put a few drops in before drawing a warm bath. Back in the room, he found Devi lying exactly where he’d left her. He walked to the bed, wrapped his arms under her back and knees, and lifted her.
“Hey, I was kidding! I can walk.”
Unlike the first time he’d carried her that way, she wasn’t struggling to get out of his arms. Vale set her down on a plush velvet stool in the bathroom and walked out with a parting, “I trust you can manage now? Or do I have to change your diaper too?”
Moments later, there was a firm knock on the door. Vale opened it without concern; tired as he was, he’d identified the presence long before it had reached their door.
Thomson had come up himself, probably to limit their run-ins with his staff in case things went awry.
“Thank you, old friend. Come in,” Vale said, taking the tray of clam chowder, mashed potatoes, and stewed venison and setting it down on the coffee table.
The owner reluctantly stepped inside the room and closed the door.
“What has happened here?”
The fae sighed. “They came just yesterday, a bunch of longcoats from the city. Not the local guards, those are just fine. The longcoats said we’re too lax, that war’s coming to our doors and we can’t afford to have them pirates, them strangers, them children running around. We ignored them; we always do, you know? And then they started shooting. Everyone who said a word, who disagreed. Some kids, too. They’ve imprisoned people. Some got a whipping in the town square; others we’ll have to bury. I dunno what’s going on, I really don’t. They say you’re wanted for a lot of money and harboring you is treason. I say they’ve killed townsfolk for sport. I’m not giving them nothing. You do your thing and keep causing them trouble, you hear?”
Vale assured Thomson he certainly intended to, before going to his bag and withdrawing a bond. The silver sheet was among his smaller ones, unlike the thin gold flower he’d used to purchase a horde of dyrmounts, but it was worth the entire inn five times over.
“You’re taking a huge risk for me. I will not forget this,” he said, and handed him the payment.
Thomson shook his head. “Can’t take that. What will they say if I popped it in the bank, hmm? They’ll certainly know where it came from.”
“Perhaps, but in ten or a hundred years, you may make use of it. I’ll pay you the usual gold coin, too, so you can deposit it now.”
After some convincing, Thomson accepted the money.
“I have people to take care of here, good people, so you keep the curtains closed, and you use that magic of yours outside the room,” Thomson warned as he left.
Vale assured the man he would and went to close the curtains.
He remained seated in an armchair for a long time; how long, he couldn’t tell. Vale had much to think of.
What was happening in Rhionhave was revolting. He wanted to lash out, but he remembered Elden’s wise counsel. Slaughtering the longcoats would serve but a few—just the people of this small town and only for a time. Then there would be whispers that he had been here, and someone would reveal the direction he’d left. He would not endanger the entire quest for his personal satisfaction.
But this had to stop.
For the first time, Vale realized there was no easy way out. He could not let either of his brothers take power; he could not bow to them and disappear, not if this was what would happen under their rule.
Vale didn’t just have to survive. He had to conquer.
He didn’t hear Devi come out of the bathroom, but suddenly, she stood in front of him, wearing breeches and a loose shirt that fell to her mid-thigh. Her long hair was loose and fell in waves down her back.
“I need to become king of the Isle,” he said out loud, stating a simple fact he’d only just accepted.
A fact she’d known from the start.
“You do.”
“I’ll suck at it. Really, I’ll be terrible. There are millions of things I don’t care to deal with at Carvenstone, and I get Kallan to do them—open my mail, check the perimeter in the cold mornings. I hate the cold,” he confessed. “Carvenstone is all right, but the Court of Crystal is fucking freezing year-round. And I’m a bastard in the eyes of the scions. They’ll never accept me. My rule will end in a matter of days. They’ll slit my throat in my sleep. And they should. You remember how I bought a fortune’s worth of horses on a whim? I may ruin the realm. The realms.”
To his astonishment, Devi laughed. “The fact you’re so worried about failing is why you will be a great ruler, Vale. You’ll listen to your council and delegate tasks you aren’t good at. As for keeping your neck on your shoulders, literally every monarch has that concern. That’s why they have guards posted at their doors. You’ll call Kallan and whoever else you want to stand by your side.”
“You,” he told her.
Devi blinked.
“If the day comes when I am seated on that blasted throne, I will call upon you to stand by my side. How will you answer?”
She hesitated. “I will tell my king I’m his to command. Unless he’s being a dick. Then I’ll kick his ass first.”
Vale smiled, letting her lighten the subject. He’d asked a question she wasn’t yet ready to answer. No matter. He’d ask again.
“Let’s eat before the food gets cold,” he proposed, and served the two bowls of chowder first.
She sat on the opposite armchair and accepted the food with thanks.
“I feel very refreshed, by the way. Ready to take first watch.”
“Good. I need to rest.”
The likelihood that he might sleep, considering the many concerns that filled his mind, was rather grim, but he had to do his best to rest while they had the chance. The War of the Realms had taught him that, during a conflict, there was no way to know when
they might next eat or sleep safely.
They ate both courses in silent appreciation, and then Vale moved to the bathroom, undressed, performed the simplest of ablutions, and returned to the room stark naked.
“Oh!” Devi said, eyes wide open to devour him from head to toe, before turning around with a blush. “A warning would not have gone amiss, you know.”
Vale laughed. Retrieving his bag, he pulled out the soft pair of breeches he wore to bed when he had company. He got dressed and lay down under the cover.
He might have passed out had he not channeled Devi earlier, but as he wasn’t as drained, he failed to succumb to sleep, ruminating over what he’d learned this week: tales of scions and gods, the fact he had a second brother, the death of his father, the existence of the divine instruments, and, above all, Devi, daughter of Elden, master mage, dear to all elves, redoubtable, and perfectly suited for him.
Just when he’d been ready to abandon all pointless attempts to rest, Devi joined him on the bed and sat up next to him.
“You’re tossing and turning. We can’t keep using the blackfire stone continuously, lest it loses its power, but if you’re cold, body heat might help. I can stay awake and alert so long as I remain seated, I think.”
His heartbeat slowed, and his mind focused on the moment. Having her right next to him allowed him to stop thinking of anything else, anyone else. Just her.
And then he was asleep.
Fifteen
Wiser
Vale was a heavy sleeper. She’d gathered as much in the Valley of Doom, but he’d passed out on the cold, hard ground then. Now, on a bouncy, supportive mattress, wrapped in warm, fluffy covers and furs, with a feather pillow under his neck, he had no inclination to rouse.
Close to dawn, Thomson knocked on the door with breakfast. She thanked him and tried to wake Vale for the first time. “Vale? Breakfast is served.”
To leave at daybreak as he wanted, they needed to eat and get ready.
There wasn’t a peep from the silent, unmoving male tucked in bed. He’d fallen asleep on his side and remained that way for hours on end.
She returned to the bed and shook his shoulder.
He shifted onto his front and placed the pillow on top of his head, decisively shutting her out.
“We should eat and get going before the town awakens. That was the plan, right?”
“Plans change!” he mumbled.
She had to smile. After considering her options, she chose to let it go. He’d let her sleep all night; surely he deserved the same courtesy. He’d get up soon enough.
Two hours later, she sighed. Dawn had come and gone. The town was awakening. They’d considerably complicated their exit now, unless they opted to remain another day.
Four hours later, she checked his pulse.
“I’m alive.”
“And awake,” she noted.
He hadn’t moved at all.
“I refuse to acknowledge that fact yet.”
So, he wasn’t a morning person. She chuckled at the entirely unexpected characteristic.
“You woke up before most back in Wolven Fort, the first time we met.”
“Yes, in Wolven Fort,” he repeated. “I never could sleep well among a swarm of hypocrites, thieves, and butchers.”
Devi rolled her eyes. “It wasn’t that bad.”
“Or you didn’t know them that well. A dozen years of acquaintances does not make you an expert, little elf.”
Finally, he lifted his pillow from his head, emerging with a bird’s nest of light brown curls atop his head.
“Breakfast was served around five. It was delicious. Yours is now cold.”
“I’ll live,” he replied, sitting up on the bed, bare-chested, his very hard muscles on display.
Devi had to look away. He was exquisite from the moment he rose! How infuriating.
“So, what’s the new plan, Sir Sleep-a-Lot?”
“I’m not sure yet, but it absolutely depended on my recuperating first, evidently.”
“Evidently,” she echoed.
He went to the coffee table and attacked his cold porridge with gusto, no complaint crossing his lips. Vale was the opposite of precious.
She realized she was noting his attributes, as if trying to define him, understand who he truly was. Intelligent, sometimes kind, often rude, always arrogant, and a heavy sleeper who didn’t need luxuries to be content, despite his rank.
“I say we leave publicly, heading south, then turn back as soon as the town is out of view and walk north. Once we reach the sea, we can return to Wyhmur and make the rest of our way through the woods to Cor’s Gates.”
Devi frowned.
North of the seelie realm was a mile-wide stretch of water called the Arched Sea; it ended where the forest of Wyhmur and the southern border of Corantius met. Even in times of peace, that pass had always been guarded by elves south of the border and by Corantians north of their fences. Arriving by Wyhmur was dangerous. It would be expected, and the gates would be watched closely.
Fae avoided the Arched Sea, for it was known to house many ancient spirits.
“Wouldn’t it make sense to cross into Corantius by water?”
Vale shook his head. “Not with the horses, and I’m not inclined to part with them if it can be avoided.”
She bit her lip. “Are there not areas where the Arched is narrow?”
Vale inclined his head. “Yes, west of Cor’s Gates, there’s a point where there’s only a hundred feet of water between the seelie realm and Corantius, if I recall. There is even a bridge that traders can cross, but it is well guarded and far from the Court of Stars.”
Ignoring the second point, she asked, “As well guarded as Cor’s Gates?”
Vale took a moment to think it through. “It will add many miles to our journey, but it may prove less perilous. Very well, we’ll make for the Low Crest Bridge. Do you mind if I take the bathroom first?”
She’d already washed earlier, and he hadn’t bathed the previous night. “Go ahead,” she said, somewhat awkwardly.
The innocent exchange had reminded her that they were sharing a room, a bed. At least now she was sure that, for all his teasing, he didn’t have any serious intentions to seduce her; he might have been too tired the previous evening, but he could have tried his luck this morning. He hadn’t.
Good. It was good, she told herself resolutely.
Neither of them had unpacked. Vale had left his shirt out, and she’d washed it, along with hers, and left them out to dry next to the fireplace. Now she folded his and put hers back on.
Vale didn’t take overlong to bathe; he came out wet, with a towel around his waist.
“Would it kill you to show some degree of modesty?”
“I cannot show what I do not possess, little elf. Thanks for washing my shirt.”
“Don’t get used to it,” she retorted, fiddling with the handle of the bag just to have an excuse to look away as he dressed right in front of her.
The infuriating male was probably flaunting his body on purpose, aware of the fact she was moments away from turning into a puddle of lust. It was unfair that nature had created a male who was so irresistible and exasperating all at once. If he’d been a full-fledged god of old and his worshippers had named him for his gifts, he would have been known as the god of temptation.
“I am decent. You may stop pretending to avert your eyes.”
“You’re aware that the world doesn’t revolve around you?”
“I’m psychic, Devira. It’s not my fault your mind screams obscenities every time you watch me undress.”
“Don’t confuse your dreams for reality, Blackthorn.”
He might have a point, but her shields were up, and she hadn’t felt him invade her mind. She doubted he actually knew she inwardly drooled when she saw him. “Ready?”
Thomson was busy in his office, but Vale paid for their board at the bar while they waited for the horses, leaving a generous tip.
Wi
th one glance, Devi confirmed all their belongings had been brought along with Alarik and Midnight. Then they were on their way.
The moment they walked through town, she tensed, feeling eyes on her from every corner. Her grasp on the dyrmount’s reins was perhaps a little too firm. She itched to ask Vale if his illusion was working. Thomson had seen through it. What if others did?
They crossed paths with many villagers who watched them with mistrust and too much interest. She was glad they’d planned to go south first. People would talk. There was no doubt about it.
Vale pulled on Midnight’s reins, stopping him. His expression was unreadable but so very cold. She halted next to him, but in no time, he was trotting forward again.
Devi opened her mouth to speak, but Vale’s words entered her mind. “Say nothing. Do nothing. For the love of all gods, keep trotting.”
She had so many questions. They were answered as they advanced and the cobblestone town square came into view.
She couldn’t process what her eyes were seeing. She couldn’t move or talk. Vale leaned toward her and took Alarik’s reins to guide her away, prying her out of this living nightmare.
A silent and terrified crowd was assembled in front of a newly built wooden scaffold. Up on the platform, there were a dozen fae in pillories, and fae in long coats with whips were lashing them, each strike drawing blood.
Some of the prisoners were youth, no older than fifteen or sixteen—children, even to her eyes.
“What is—”
“They broke curfew,” Vale stated simply.
She froze. They were getting whipped because they’d been out after dark?
“Vale…”
“Recall what your father said.”
She didn’t have to ask what he meant. She remembered Elden’s parting words: If you value the lives of the few over the many every time you have a hard choice to make, you are doomed.
Devi had taken them as sage counsel. She’d believed them. She’d promised herself she would consider the consequences before acting rashly. The wise course of action was to keep going with their heads down and ignore the plight of these people. So what if they were tortured? They’d learn tomorrow. Eventually, no one would break the rules.
