by Amanda Fleet
He dragged me between two houses. No lights illuminated the space. Anger mingled with my fear. Faran’s words from when I’d first returned to The Realm came back to me: Valgan has a nasty reputation. He wouldn’t think twice about forcing you to his rooms. Well, he wasn’t going to force me to do anything.
I jabbed back with my elbow, stamping on his instep at the same time. Not before his free hand had groped my breast, though. My temper flared. His hand came away from my mouth, and I turned on the spot, punching out in a rapid one-two, both fists connecting with his face.
Valgan’s yells drew some of the villagers from nearby houses. Just in time to see me knee Valgan in the balls and drive my elbow down into his shoulders. He crumpled to the dirt, and I crouched down, the point of my dagger resting in the space below his Adam’s apple.
“You touch me again, and I’ll kill you,” I said, my voice low and gritty.
Faran clattered into the alley, dropping the blanket. “Aeron?”
“I’m fine. This piece of shit thought he was going to teach me a lesson. Unfortunately, his arrogance vastly outstrips his skills.”
“What happened?” Faran stood next to me, filling the narrow space.
I leaned on the dagger, enough to draw blood, but no more. “He tried to molest me.”
Faran reached past me and grabbed Valgan by the throat. He hauled him to his feet and slammed him against the wall. “You touched my wife?”
Valgan gurgled, barely able to breathe through the choke-hold.
I rested my hand on Faran’s shoulder. “Actually, I think this is a perfect example to demonstrate the consequences of breaking the law. After all, Valgan, you’re the one who wanted to see transgressions punished.”
Faran looked over his shoulder at me, frowning.
“What’s the penalty for assault?” I asked, fire still burning inside me.
Valgan paled. Faran’s lips twitched in a smile. “Eight lashes, usually.”
Behind us, half the village had gathered, jostling and chattering. Valgan coughed, and Faran loosened his grip enough for Valgan to breathe more freely.
Tarn pushed his way to the front of the crowd. “Lady Aeron? What’s happening?”
I turned to face the throng. “The Guardians are responsible for maintaining law and order as well as for capturing demons. The law applies to all, including Guardians. This man assaulted me this evening and will be punished accordingly.”
I glanced back at Faran, who spun Valgan and slammed him into the wall of the building. Two soft clicks and Valgan’s hands were cuffed behind his back.
I leaned in to hiss in Valgan’s ear. “I think the lesson will be learnt by you, not me.”
There was a whipping post at the centre of the village, though given I’d seen laundry strung from it earlier, I suspected it was never used for its original purpose. Faran marched Valgan to it. All of the villagers gathered to watch, pushing and shoving to get the best view.
“Strip,” snapped Faran, uncuffing Valgan.
Valgan stared from Faran to me and back, but didn’t move.
“Don’t make me add disobedience to your charge sheet,” I snapped. “Strip to the waist.” I turned to Tarn. “A whip, if you please?”
He scrambled away. By the time he returned with it, Valgan had removed his jacket and shirt, and Faran had cuffed him to the whipping post. And the realisation of what I’d started was beginning to hit me.
“Me or you?” asked Faran as Tarn handed the whip to me. “The offence is against you.”
Part of me would have been happier allowing Faran to administer the eight lashes, but I wanted to show Valgan how foolish it was to mess with me. That said, the idea of actually whipping someone made my legs wobbly.
Faran stepped in to speak softly to me. “Have you ever flogged anyone before?”
“Nope. Have you?”
“No.”
Oh, well. I hoped I could aim straight enough to not make an idiot of myself. I gathered myself and rolled my shoulder, then cracked the leather whip across Valgan’s back, making him yelp. My legs trembled, but I delivered another strike. I might have hated Valgan, but this was horrible. While I prepared myself to hit him a third time, Faran dipped his head to whisper to me. “Don’t forget this bastard tried to stab you.”
I nodded.
The third blow landed cleanly, but the shakes in my arm meant the fourth almost missed. Faran stepped in and took the whip from me. I hoped no one else could see just how much I was shivering when he did.
Whatever concerns I had about flogging another human, Faran didn’t share them. At least, not if the other human was Valgan. Four more lashes striped Valgan’s back, each one making him bellow. I remembered how silently Faran had taken his punishment the day before.
Faran handed the whip back to Tarn and looked at me. I didn’t know what he wanted and frowned. He gestured to the crowds with his head. My mouth opened and closed a couple of times, but I wasn’t in the right state to speak to the village.
Faran strode forwards to stand in the space between Valgan and the people. “As Lady Aeron said, no one is above the law, not even Guardians. We understand that there may be good reasons why the statutes are not being followed, but if anyone breaks the law without justification, they will be punished.” He turned to Tarn. “Valgan must stand there for fifteen minutes before being released. No one is to touch him in those fifteen minutes.”
Tarn nodded, wide-eyed. Faran scowled at the crowds, who peeled away quickly, then marched back over to Valgan. “You step even a hair’s breadth out of line again, and you’ll be up on charges of insurrection.”
“How can you bear to be married to her?” Valgan spat. “She’s a traitor and a slut.”
Faran glared at the back of Valgan’s head. “Fifteen minutes. Don’t make Lady Aeron increase it to thirty.”
As Faran joined me, I wondered if I’d made a huge mistake. I had enough enemies as it was, and if Faran was to become Elected Successor again, he needed votes. Valgan had friends on the Council. I flicked my head at Faran to come further away from Valgan.
“Have I just screwed up your chances of getting re-elected?” I whispered. “He might be a little shit, but he has friends in high places, doesn’t he?”
Faran smiled. “Yes, he does, but that’s not how Valgan works. He’ll never respect either of us, but at least you’ve demonstrated the folly of his actions. Valgan won’t say anything about getting flogged. It damages his credibility far more than it does yours or mine. But if you’d not done this, he’d have crowed about how weak we were. You’re reporting him, aren’t you?”
“Should I? Isn’t the flogging enough?”
“No. Write him up. I’ll join you once his fifteen minutes are up. Sorry, I left the blanket where I dropped it.”
“Okay.”
I retrieved the blanket, then returned to our lodging, nodding to the watchman as I went in. I scrawled the barest of reports of Valgan’s actions and my response, sealed it, and tucked it in my bag, ready to give to Lord Sondan when we returned to the city.
Report done, I walked through the village to the last building. The dirt road stretched away between fields, and song-birds were finishing up their dusk-chorus. I wrapped the blanket around me and settled my back against the wall, my legs stretched out in front of me. The evening air cooled my cheeks, and I gazed up at the stars. I couldn’t recognise any constellations. Outside and everything familiar seemed a million miles away, and my insides felt hollowed out, leaving just a shell of me.
Faran joined me a few minutes later and sat on the ground next to me.
“How’s Valgan?” I asked.
He snorted. “He’ll live.” He looked across. “Are we sharing that blanket?”
I handed it to him, then shifted until I sat in front of him. I leaned my back against him, looking at him over my shoulder. “Can we cuddle?”
His eyes widened. “We’re in public.”
I made a point of scanning left
and right. We were utterly alone. I arched my brows. “One, who can see? Two, we’re married. Three, I thought we were trying to rebuild things between us. Four, you’ve got the blanket and I’m cold.”
He closed his eyes briefly, then wrapped the blanket around us both. I snuggled back, resting my head against his shoulder, soaking up his warmth. We sat in silence, me gazing at the stars, Faran barely relaxed behind me.
“You seem sad,” he murmured, lacing his fingers through mine. “Are you still upset about punishing Valgan?”
I rubbed the back of my head against him. “A bit. It’s one thing to know he should be punished and be pissed off with him for what he did. It’s another to actually dish out the penalty.”
He said nothing. Maybe he hadn’t found it hard at all. I squirmed around, needing comfort.
“Kiss me?” I whispered.
He tensed, instantly checking if we were still alone. It would take more than one night of being in the provinces to unbutton all the years of living in the city, with its protocols and restrictions. I yearned to show him what life was like Outside. I pressed my palm against his cheek, drawing him into a long kiss, but he didn’t relax.
I moved back. “I sense you’d be happier kissing me in our rooms.”
He bunched his lips. I nestled back against him and stared up at the sky.
“I feel lost,” I said. “I don’t recognise the stars. And there are two moons.”
“How many are there Outside?” His breath warmed my cheek.
“Just one.”
“Let me teach you some of the stars?”
He released one of my hands so that he could trace out constellations, naming them and telling me the stories. None of it seemed familiar. As he was outlining a bear, Tarn approached, coughing delicately.
“Lady Aeron? The curfew bell is about to ring.”
“Oh. Of course. Thank you, Tarn.” I scrambled up and held my hand out to Faran. “We should go. And anyway, I’m shattered.”
We walked the short distance to our building and turned in. There was no bathroom where we were staying, but a jug of water, a bowl and two thin towels had appeared from somewhere, and we washed quickly. The water was cold.
Faran stripped down to his shorts and climbed into bed. “There’s not much space. You’ll have to sleep on top of me.”
I joined him in bed and stretched out along him, grinning. “I’m fairly sure it won’t be the first time. You are quite lumpy, though.”
He sniggered, the look in his eyes making my stomach flip.
I shook my head. “Even if we were newly married, you’d be disappointed tonight, sunshine. These walls are paper-thin, and I wouldn’t give Buggerlugs next door a soundtrack to wank to.”
A flicker crossed Faran’s brow. “You dropped into English and lost me. Buggerlugs? Soundtrack? Wank?” I explained, and he laughed. “Hm. Maybe you’re right.” He wriggled underneath me. “This bed is definitely too small.”
“Are your legs hanging out the bottom?”
“Yes.”
“Turn on your side then and we’ll spoon.”
After much shuffling about, we finally managed to find a way to fit in the bed and the blankets still cover us. Faran nibbled my ear, sending goose bumps racing over my skin.
“Oi.” I squirmed. “I’m exhausted. Don’t forget I had a three-mile run in the middle of everything, some of it carrying a demon on my shoulder.”
“You did well. It would have escaped and attacked the next village if you hadn’t brought it back.” He shifted slightly. “Where can I put my hand?”
I smiled. His hand was currently wedged between my breasts, outside my top. “Round my waist.”
His hand slid down to my middle. “You said tonight that you felt lost. Do you wish you were still Outside?”
He wasn’t going to like my answer. “Sometimes. I know I belong there. I don’t think I belong here.”
He cuddled me a little closer. “Why? You fight well. You’re fair as a Guardian. You led well today. And I know what happened with Valgan upset you, but it was the right thing to do.”
“Hm. But I believe in more rights for women and more rights for the people. I haven’t got the hang of the strict hierarchy here, and I think the stiffness and formality of the city are pointless at best and counter-productive at worst. And at least half the people here think I’m a traitor and should be hanged or banished again. Faran, Outside I had a completely different life. The Realm was something I dreamed about. I never thought it was real. I don’t think I belong here.”
“And me? Do you feel you belong with me?” His voice cracked.
I stroked his hand. “You’re the really tricky bit. You make me happy. You make me feel safe. Okay, you also wind me up and drive me insane at times, but mostly things are good.” He chuckled behind me, and I smiled. “If I wasn’t with you, I think I would leave if the demons and Aegyir were trapped again.”
He tensed. “Please don’t leave me again. You’ll break my heart.”
“I won’t. I didn’t choose to the first time, remember. Maybe you could leave with me.”
His breath faltered. “And go Outside? To live? Forever?”
I swallowed. “Mm. I mean, it wouldn’t be without its own issues, like the fact you can’t speak English and don’t have any proof of who you are. But yeah, I do think about it.”
Silence behind me. I rubbed the back of his hand and moved it so that I could kiss his fingers. “Talk to me?”
“I’ve sworn to be with you until I die, and protect you with my life. I love you. I want to be with you forever. But I don’t want to leave The Realm. My life is here. All of my friends and family are here. I didn’t like it Outside. It was noisy and confusing, and I felt isolated, even with you there. You may not feel as if you belong here, but I know I don’t belong there.”
I twisted so that I could see him. His eyes were full of sadness, and I stroked his cheek. “I know. I’m not planning on leaving. I just fantasise about a life Outside with you, that’s all.”
He bit his lip. “You won’t leave me?”
I shook my head. “No. You’ve grown on me. Now go to sleep.”
I waited until he smiled before turning back on to my side, feeling him settle behind me. Maybe The Realm would grow on me too.
6
The following morning after breakfast, we packed up, ready to return to the city. My charm hadn’t glowed since we’d dispatched the demon in the barn, and Faran and I wanted to get the two vessels safe in the vault as soon as we could. I stood in the middle of the village waiting for Valgan and Faran to join me. The bright sun didn’t quite offset the chilly breeze, and I hugged my jacket to me. Two women pegged out laundry between two houses, a wary eye on me. I smiled at them but they turned away. A few yards away, a group of children re-enacted what they thought we’d done when we trapped the demons. They had some of it right – three of the children surrounded a fourth, pretending to stab him, except with sticks rather than daggers – but then, they seemed to be covering the poor lad in dust from the road. I went over.
“Hey, guys. What are you doing?”
“Killing demons!” one of them cried, gleefully, his brown hair sticking up in unruly clumps.
“Wow. How are you doing that?”
“Why don’t you know? You’re a Guardian.” The little boy was about seven, and he straightened up and put his hands on his hips as he stared at me.
I grinned. “Yes, I am, but maybe there are lots of ways, and I only know one. Why don’t you tell me your best method?”
“You have to surround them,” shouted one of the other kids – a fair-haired boy, a little younger than the others.
“And stab them. Here and here and here.” Another kid pointed to roughly the right places.
“And then you cover them with magic dust and that kills them,” said hands-on-hips kid.
“Magic dust?” I crouched next to them. “You don’t cut their heads off, turn them into smoke and put
them in a vessel?”
“No!” said hands-on-hips boy. “Because then they might escape. If you put the magic dust on them, that kills them forever!”
“Oh, I see.” Their enthusiasm made me smile. Maybe I’d have a kid like this, one day. “And where does the magic dust come from?”
“The same place your stones are from.” The youngest boy pointed to my charm-bracelet and my talisman. “The magic dust is made out of the stones, all ground up.”
“And that kills them forever?”
They all nodded fervently.
“Well, I’ll bear that in mind. Thank you.” I straightened up, my heart missing a couple of beats. Was there something in this? Could we be rid of Aegyir and the others permanently?
Faran and Valgan joined me, Valgan sneering at the children, who scattered, hooting and hollering. Faran scruffed up the hair of hands-on-hips boy as he passed, then mock-boxed with him, laughing. My chest filled with warmth, surprising me. He’d make such a good father, and although I wasn’t ready for kids yet, it would kill me if his children weren’t also mine.
“All set?” I asked. “Do we have a ride back to the city or are we walking?”
“A cart may pass us,” said Faran. “Or we can wait.”
“Oh, let’s start walking. I want these vessels in the vault as soon as possible.”
We bid our farewells to Tarn and Leta and started on the road back towards the city, our boots crunching on the gritty dirt. Both men were silent. I was glad not to hear any of Valgan’s diatribes, but Faran’s earlier smiles had gone, and he was even quieter than usual. I quickened our pace briefly so that we moved out of earshot of Valgan.
“You okay?” I said.
He glanced at me then fixed his gaze on the track again, his shoulders tight. “No.”
“What’s wrong?”
Faran cast a swift glance over his shoulder at Valgan. “I’ll talk to you when we get back.”
“Okay.” I wished Faran could speak English.
Valgan upped his pace and drew level with us. “Are we really going to walk all the way back to the city?”