The Rover Princess
Legends of the Old Lands- Book One
The Aevarat Galaxy
Table of Contents
Title Page
The Rover Princess (Legends of the Old Lands)
Sheharla
Chapter One
Chapter Two | Rafael
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten | Rafael
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen
Chapter Fourteen
Chapter Fifteen
Chapter Sixteen
Chapter Seventeen
Chapter Eighteen | Rafael
Chapter Nineteen | Rafael
Chapter Twenty | One Month Later -Rafael
Chapter Twenty One | Two Months Later - Rafael
Chapter Twenty-Two | Three Months Later - Rafael
Chapter Twenty-Three
Chapter Twenty-Four
Chapter Twenty-Five
Chapter Twenty-Six
Chapter Twenty-Seven
Chapter Twenty Eight | The Rovers Star – Rafael
Chapter Twenty-Nine
Chapter Thirty
Chapter Thirty-One
Chapter Thirty-Two
Chapter Thirty-Three
Chapter Thirty-Four
Chapter Thirty-Five
Epilogue
Deleted Scene
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
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Also By D.E. Kilgore
About the Author
The Rover Princess
Copyright © 2021 by D.E.Kilgore
All rights reserved. Printed in the United States of America. No part of this book may be used or reproduced, stored or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, scanning, or otherwise in any manner whatsoever without written permission except in the case of brief quotations bodied in critical articles or reviews.
It is illegal to copy this book, post it on a website, or distribute it by any means without permission.
This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, organizations, places, events, and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.
For information contact :
http://www.authordekilgore.com
Cover Art by Maria Spada
Edited by J.M.Ivie
Deleted Scene Edited by Cundiff Editing & Copywriting
E Book ISBN: 978-1-7367670-2-3
Paperback ISBN: 978-1-7367670-3-0
First Edition: May 2021
Sheharla
Legend speaks of a mighty and fierce Dragon who dropped from the sky, valiantly fighting a band of thieves and heroically saving a damsel who was very much in distress. After thoroughly saving the damsel from her captors, the Dragon escorted her back to the nearby village the damsel called her home. The Dragon did not ask for her hand in marriage, but the offer was made, and the offer was accepted. From that day forward a contract was struck. Protection for a maiden. Centuries passed as the contract ebbed and flowed, the village growing into a great city.
This is where my story comes into focus. My family can trace its lineage all the way back to the very first damsel, and as a royal, we had certain obligations. When I was born, first female in the line since the original maiden, my life was already planned for me. From the day I took my first breath, my life was not my own. I was destined to marry the Prince of the Dragon Mountain Stronghold once I came of age.
I was raised with the inevitability that one day a Dragon prince would call upon me to be his prized possession. I grew up knowing this to be my fate until the day I decided fates be damned, I would live my life the way I wanted.
So, I did what any teenaged princess would do.
I ran.
Little did I know how dangerous the woods were beyond our great city walls. From brutal windstorms to poisonous swamps, to shapeshifting creatures that prowl the night, to thieves that would do anything for money. Yet somehow, I found myself freed the night I ran.
I thought my story started when I found salvation along the river bend stumbling upon a Rover’s camp. I thought the fates rewrote my story when the Rover’s took me in, teaching me how to survive and triumph within the mighty forest.
I thought myself liberated when I was given the opportunity to run a safe house, where Rovers and wanders just like me could rest before heading back out into the unknown. Yet I was mistaken.
The fates will always find a way and my two worlds finally collided twelve years later.
My name is Maribella Soma, first born Princess to the City of Sheharla, and an ultimatum has been laid down. I am to return, or my baby sister is to marry the Dragon Prince.
This is where my true story began... the night I learned you cannot outrun the fates.
Chapter One
A coy smile cut across my lips at the knock on the door. Three raps, pause, then two more in quick recession. After operating my safe house for the past three years, only one person I knew knocked like that. Elbow deep in the soap bucket, I didn’t bother wiping off my hands before running to the door, suds flying over the floor and wall. Throwing the door open, I snatched my wanderer by the front of his coat and dragged him inside.
“Hey there, Sweetness.” Rafael chuckled, allowing me to pull him into the cabin, out from the torrential downpour of rain. Closing the door, the wind fought me the whole way, until Rafael leaned over and thrusted his arm out. The wind was no match to the Dragon shifter standing behind me. Throwing the door bar down, it locked, and I sucked in a deep breath.
“Miss me?” Rafael’s rumbling voice had me turning, meeting his caramel eyes before he leaned down and kissed me on the forehead.
My breathing labored. He took a step back and turned, hanging up his small travel bag on the side hooks of the cabin wall. I blamed the rough wind outside and my battle with the door for my breathlessness. It had absolutely nothing to do with the Dragon shifter in tight travel leathers standing before me.
Nope, not at all.
“Hurry up and get to the back where it’s warmer.” I mockingly growled, playfully shoving him toward the living area.
“All right, all right, I’m going.” Rafael threw his hands up in surrender before striding over to the aged table and chairs.
I glanced fleetingly in his direction as he stripped off the weathered and patched leather overcoat he always wore, draping it over one of the table chairs.
“There’s stew simmering on the fire. Make yourself comfortable,” I murmured, trying not to drool as I ogled Rafael’s firm back muscles.
He was leaning down to warm his hands over the cooking fire, and I turned away before he could catch me staring at him. Occupying my thoughts elsewhere, I made sure the door and window shutters were locked tight for the umpteenth time. The wind had picked up, and a brutal thunderstorm was already upon us. Thoroughly failing to distract myself from Rafael and the kiss he had planted on my forehead less than a minute ago, I drifted back to the table where he was sitting. Taking a deep breath, the smell of ozone, forest, and cold mountain air from his home permeated my senses. He always smelled good and—crap. He was talking.
I hastily grabbed a chair, pulling it up to the fire, and sat next to him, quietly wondering if he had noticed I was smelling him instead of listening.
“... I don’t bring much news, but I did stop in Sheharl
a.”
I perked up as Rafael turned, presenting me with a crinkled, but no worse for wear, letter.
Reaching out to pluck the letter from his hand, it suddenly was no longer in front of me, but dangling above my head.
“You really want to do this, Dragon Boy?” I asked, lips twitching into a grin.
Rafael pretended to ponder my question, and I launched straight up, grasping for the letter. The smooth paper brushed my hand as Rafael let out a startled yelp, but managed to jerk his hand back and tilted precariously on his chair.
“Damn it, Rafael, you know I hate this game. I never win,” I grumbled and halfheartedly stretched up, hands a good foot lower than they needed to be to snatch the letter from him.
Time to pull out the big guns, then.
Pouting, I made my eyes as big as they could, and put a wobble to my voice. “Please?”
Rafael hesitated, bringing his arm down slightly before narrowing his eyes. I could tell he was about to call me out on my horse shit of an act from the wicked smile forming on his face. Rafael knew I had a temper, and I never begged. Taking his second of hesitation, I used it to my advantage, jumping up and placing the ball of my foot on the lip of his chair and shoved. Rafael’s whole body froze as the chair rocked and spun, crashing to the ground. He rolled backward, landing in an unsteady crouch. I jumped him, using my momentum to flatten him out onto his back. We scrambled, and Rafael’s hearty laugh reverberated through my small cabin as I straddled his chest with a now very crumpled letter in my hands.
Victorious!
I let out a loud whoop before settling more comfortably into my position on Rafael’s chest, making haste in opening the letter. I shook my head as I broke the wax seal, the Sheharla royal emblem depicting a maiden tied to a post looking up to the sky. Supposably waiting for a Dragon to whisk her away and the contract to be brokered between Sheharla and the Stronghold. Not only was it antiquated, but I still had no idea whose bright idea it was to make that our symbol. It showed the city as weak, in my opinion. Having to barter for protection against other cities, unable to put up a fight against the creatures lurking outside our borders. Sheharla had a capable army and did not need the protection the Dragons provided anymore. The only danger was a Dragon clan asserting their dominance over our city. This was a topic brought up by the royal house and council throughout the centuries, yet it never went anywhere. Unfolding the letter, Rafael moved slightly under me, and I looked down to see he’d gotten comfortable, hands resting under his head. He jerked his chin up, motioning for me to read what the letter had to say, then closed his eyes as if he were settling in for a nap.
Snorting at his audacity, I turned my attention back to the letter. My heart sank, and all the blood drained from my face at the very first line.
To My Fearless Sister,
I turned twelve today. I awoke to a summons from Father...
My fingers grazed the tear stained ink, smudging through my sister’s words.
I naively thought it was going to be for a surprise party. Instead, when I met Father in the throne room, there was a dragon emissary waiting. They came in human form, slipping into the castle like our defenses were nonexistent. The dragon was ferocious looking, even in human form. Tall and skinny as a willow whip, permanent scowl etched into a mature yet not aged face. I watched him lean in, giving Father a summons before turning his eyes to me.
I wanted to run. I wanted to run so badly but I was frozen in place as the Dragon man strode past me. He paused at the doors before looking back and nodding his head to Father. I knew something horrible had transpired when Father nodded in return, before looking at me.
The anger reflected deeply in his eyes.
He motioned me forward, and I could barely make out the words as they fell from his lips. He told me you were alive.
I did not betray you. I do not know how your secret came out. The summons requires you, Sister, first born daughter of Sheharla to present yourself at the next contract day. If you fail to show, one of two things will happen. The contract will be broken or, because I am now of age, I will replace you.
Father chose the latter.
I’m so scared. I can’t be brave like you were at my age. I need these walls around me. Just the thought of traversing to the Stronghold and being surrounded by the unknown gives me breathing fits. I am ashamed to state the fragileness of my body, but I belong with the familiar. The library, the palace gardens, and the warm summers Sheharla offers.
I know we never met in person. You left days before I was born, but I’m begging you to save me. I feel so ashamed even asking this of you. You owe me nothing, you owe this city even less, but I don’t know what to do. Father has put me on full day and night watch to make sure I don’t do anything to escape his deal with the Dragons.
I guess this is my goodbye letter to you. Maybe one day I’ll be able to write to you again.
Love your baby sister,
Elizabeth Soma
Second born Princess of Sheharla
Bile rose in my throat and I scrambled off Rafael, heart beating in my chest like the storm raging outside. Scrambling across the floor, I made it three footsteps before a taut, muscular arm gripped me around the waist and jerked me back into a hard chest.
“Maribella, what’s wrong?” Rafael murmured, slight panic shrouding his face. I shoved the letter into his free hand. He didn’t let go, but instead dragged me backwards. The next thing I knew I was sitting on Rafael’s lap, the side of my face pressed into his neck, one arm still wrapped around my waist.
I tried pushing my panic down to think logically, but the only thing circling around my mind was that I needed to go. Exactly what way I would be running was still up to debate. Stealing a glance, I saw the flash of anger cross Rafael’s face, only to be replaced with a cold, hard indifference. I’d never experienced that face before, and it chilled me to the bone. The sound of the letter crumpling in his hand echoed throughout the cabin and Rafael stood, maneuvering me into the chair he just vacated in one swift move. Amber glinted deep within his caramel eyes, a clear sign Rafael and his dragon were not happy. He kneeled, snagging my hand and caressing my knuckles gently, in direct opposition to the rigidness his whole body was exhibiting. Catching my eyes, Rafael’s nose flared in anger. “Maribella... Princess.”
I sucked in a breath.
Never once had Rafael called me by my title. It was our little secret. A stray thought that maybe it’d been Rafael who betrayed me scurried across my mind, but I quickly dismissed it. He would never.
His jaw clenched, and Rafael stood, turning away, presenting me with a very nice view of his butt encased in black travel-worn leather trousers. On any other occasion I would’ve appreciated the view, but not tonight. Not with the next words tumbling out of Rafael’s mouth.
“Don’t go back.”
His command had me reeling, and anger began to build low in my chest. Rafael had no right to tell me what to do. My legs shook, but I was able to stand, knowing that when Rafael turned around, he would see the anger flushed heavily across my cheeks.
“You will not tell me what to do, Rafael. Not with this. I knew one day this could happen, and it did.”
The snarl cutting across Rafael’s lips made me want to take a step back, but I held my ground against my body’s instincts telling me to run. I thought his cold, hardened face was the scariest thing I’d seen. I was wrong. His eyes blazed bright amber, and the energy surrounding his body began to build forming phantom wings at his back. Rafael was close to losing control. A different type of panic began to build in my body. Rafael was the first Dragon I’d ever dealt with close up. If I was mildly panicked at this sight, then I could only imagine what my sister would have to deal with.
Choice made in that instant, I took a step closer, gazing up into Rafael’s eyes. “I’ve had twelve years of freedom, Rafael. I’m not doing this just for my sister. I’m doing it for all the maidens in my city. This might just be the chance we get to break this a
trocious contract for good.”
My hand shook, but I reached up, placing my fingers on Rafael’s rigid jaw. Tension vibrated throughout his body as Rafael looked down, meeting my eyes.
I gave him a sad smile. “Tell me, Rafael. You hail from the Mountain Stronghold; do you know of the prince?”
The silence built between us, and I let out my breath when he finally blinked, eyes turning back to their normal caramel.
“He is a horse’s ass, that’s for sure,” Rafael murmured, firmly grasping my fingers that were still resting on his jaw. “Maribella, you don’t have to do this.”
Tears formed in the corners of my eyes, and I looked away from him. “Rafael, you read my sister's letter. You and I both knew something like this could happen some day.”
I’d hoped it would never happen, but that was delusional of me to think. When I found out about the birth of my sibling, that there was a second princess of Sheharla, the countdown started. When Rafael first showed up at my cabin three years ago, I thought that this was it. The Dragons had found me. Yet instead, I got a glorious three more years. When Rafael showed up with a letter a month later, the first from my sister two and a half years ago, I jumped on the chance to get to know more about her. Now, a ball of sadness settled into my chest, and I sat down, fingers slipping from Rafael’s hand.
“She is smart and kind. I cannot let her innocence be ruined by this.” My voice cracked, unshed tears threatening to spill from my eyes. Rafael remained standing and I didn’t have the heart to look him in the face.
“He’s not a bad guy for a Dragon, but he could be better. He’s a coward.”
I sniffled and couldn’t help my hiccuped laugh as Rafael tried to comfort me about my future husband. Normally it would take me pestering him for a good hour before he opened up about anything to do with the Stronghold. Dragons were secretive by nature, even ones who wandered. In all honesty, I wouldn’t have thought Rafael knew who the Prince was nor what his temperament would be like.
“He’s also stupid. As are most Dragons his age.”
My escaped laugh surprised even me, and a smile slowly engulfed my face. “Seems like a pushover.”
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