"It was an excellent alliance." Aster smiled ruefully. "These things happen a lot in kingdoms ruled by men."
"I know, but we Amazons hate it."
"That's why I never dared tell you my admiration."
She didn't comment, but decided to keep an eye on the prisoner who had made such a bold declaration of love. Maybe the two of them could escape. Maybe they could call on the Varian Emperor. Or maybe they could console each other, who knew. Jessamine didn't love her husband, but the Sannish prince had touched her.
***
Ileana had given birth to Oro, and as soon as the baby could be nursed by somebody else, she had left the palace with Carino, moving around the country and abroad, first with Clelia, who owned a shop at Maadre and had introduced them to more traders than they could remember, then with Antonella, who owned one of those fast ocean-riding ships with black sails so typical of the Queendom of Maadre.
They had practiced foreign languages, talked to Kelvan traders and were more updated on Jessamine's health than the council or Morwenna. When war exploded between Sannish and Kelvans, Ileana and Carino went back to Maadre thinking now would be a good time to strike and free Jessamine.
The first bad news from home was that Theresa had passed away during their absence and the new High Priestess hadn't fully grasped her duties yet. Or rather, she was very careful in all her decisions, therefore very slow, and if she could stick to tradition, she would apply it to the letter. Except Jessamine's situation was something new that needed quick action.
Then the council led by Morwenna didn't seem too keen on raising the army again. After all the country had been at peace, albeit queen-less. Why waste more lives in an overseas campaign that might end badly anyway?
Frustrated, Ileana went back to her friends who couldn't believe their ears. Clelia gave her the money to hire a captain of a warship, Antonella said she'd take her and as many women she could gather to the Kelvan Kingdom to free Jessamine right away.
They spread the word of the two-ship rescue expedition, asking for volunteers, as Ileana didn't have the power to summon the army or the navy. They discovered many lower grade officers of the army weren't happy with the generals' policy and gladly took their leaves to join them.
Soon the two ships were armed and ready to go, their black sails eager to catch the fastest wind. It would still take months to get to their destination, and two ships couldn't possibly beat the Kelvan fleet, but it was a beginning.
***
Keldar wanted to break his enemy and tortured the heir of the neighboring kingdom, hoping the old king would surrender. He had no idea his wife took care of the prisoner, comforting him as soon as the warder finished his job.
Aster didn't court her, but looked at her in a way that warmed her heart. Jessamine fell in love with the prince who adored her in silence, and one day she kissed him. Thus they became lovers in the dark cell while Keldar had to deal with the Sannish, who, in spite of the capture of the heir, refused to surrender and threatened to call the superior army of the much bigger Varian Empire.
Jessamine thought her heart had died with Notturno. She was surprised to feel it again next to Aster. Even if the prisoner was always crushed, unshaven and in a sorry state, his mix of boldness and tenderness reminded her both of Notturno and her brother Carino.
She was very happy to tell him she was pregnant.
"You have a husband," he said, serious.
"I didn't allow him to touch me since you were captured," she replied. "His caresses disgust me now that I've met you."
"What will he say when he finds out? He's a cruel man, Jessamine, I don't want him to hurt you." He sounded worried and she embraced him with love.
"He can't hurt me more than he already did," she whispered in his ear. "Don't worry, Aster, we'll be all right."
She was in love again, and nothing else mattered all of a sudden.
***
"You're pregnant?" Keldar frowned. "How did that happen?"
"How did it happen before?" Jessamine said innocently.
"I don't think its mine."
"You've lost track of time, dear."
He glared at her. He remembered perfectly well when the last time they had made love had been. The day before Aster's capture. Since that day, his wife had found the lamest excuses to keep him away. Too taken by the war, he hadn't insisted. But now she was pregnant. And he was almost certain he hadn't done it.
Again he was present at childbirth, sullen. The baby girl had blue eyes like him and her mother, but the way Jessamine looked at her... she must be somebody else's daughter! Jessamine had used her new half-freedom to find a lover and cheat on him. How dared she?
"Who is the father?" he demanded.
"You, dear," she answered without looking at him. She was too busy adoring her newborn.
"You liar!" He exploded. "I haven't touched you in months! And you've never looked at our children like that!"
"All right, she's not your daughter," she shrugged.
"Who is the father?" he repeated through clenched teeth. He'd beat that name out of her if she didn't say it. His famous self-control that made him look icy and more threatening than his foes was about to break.
"Aster." She looked him in the eyes at last, challenging him like she had done in the cage. "Because he didn't force me, he respects me, and he loves me."
"What? Guards! Bring Aster of the Sannish, now!" He had been patient with her. But enough is enough. She'll see what he could do. His wounded heart hungered for a bloody revenge now.
Soon enough Aster was thrown to his feet. Keldar kicked him in the face, splitting his lip. Pitiful prince, how could he touch his precious wife? She must have gone to him, as he was locked up!
Keldar couldn't hurt the love of his life, therefore his hatred poured over his rival.
"Look," he told him, pointing at his wife and the baby on the bed. "Look at them, as they're the last thing you'll ever see!"
Aster glared at him and didn't answer. Those blue eyes had seduced Jessamine. Those blue eyes now staring tenderly at his wife. Keldar's hand went to his belt, but he wasn't wearing a sword. A soldier offered his, but he refused with a sharp gesture.
He took his knife instead. He'd rip those damned eyes out of their sockets and kill that sight forever. Jessamine tried to stop him, but she was too weak. She screamed her hatred and her anger, but he didn't listen, tearing those blue eyes off his rival, who didn't moan. Aster turned away his disfigured face, but Keldar forced him to face Jessamine until he exhaled his last breath.
Aster died and Jessamine stared petrified at his bloodied body. Keldar glanced at her, then grabbed the newborn, still boiling with fury. He couldn't touch her, but he wouldn't allow her little bastard to scorn him forever. His heart was bleeding and he wanted to scream, but he wouldn't let her see how much he was hurt.
"Where are you going?" Jessamine shouted as he stormed out of the bedroom. "Keldar! Give me back my daughter!"
He ignored her. That night he forced her to watch as her baby was sacrificed by a sect in the castle underground. She knew nothing about those rites and lost consciousness in his arms when the sacrificial knife cut off her baby girl's wail.
Keldar took her in his arms, feeling content at last. He stared at her sweet face, his heart warm again. She was his. Nobody would touch her ever again.
***
"I hope you abandoned the idea of cheating on me," Keldar said. His tone was icy. The anger was gone, and he behaved as if nothing had happened. Gone was also his passion and any trace of tenderness. "Anyway, as I don't trust you anymore, from now on, you'll wear this."
"What's that?" Jessamine stared with horror at the... thing. All metal, must be cold on her skin like chains, like him. Her hatred for him was a hundred times stronger than when he had first captured her. Mostly because his unexpected fury had killed another man she had fallen in love with. And now he had recovered his self-control, but he was different. She must have driven him over the edge. But then, so h
ad he. They were hurting each other as much as they could now, a private war had just begun.
"It's a chastity belt," he mocked. "Used in the Varian Empire. I decided to introduce it to my own house. I'll keep the key around my neck and will take it off only when I want to use you."
"Bastard!" she hissed. It was useless. They put the chastity belt on her in spite of her resistance. It was like being chained, or locked in the cage again. She was a prisoner one more time - not that she had been free before, but this looked just like the beginning of her stay at the castle. He'd probably forbid her to leave her room as well, now.
"You're a wild beast, darling," he said with the sarcastic tone he was now using to address his wretched wife. "Should I take it off and calm you?"
"Don't touch me, you disgusting pig!" She screamed. "I hate you!"
"Again, my dear?" He shrugged it off. "Only because I tore to pieces Aster under your eyes and had the fruit of your love killed? You'll get over it. You can't win against me."
"Keldar, I swear one day I will kill you," she said, calming down. "You won't be stronger forever, and I'll get you sooner or later!"
"In the meantime you're my slave again," he said, bored. He stole a long kiss from her and left, leaving her alone with her desperation.
***
Jessamine brooded in the nursery with her two children. A hooded servant came in with fresh pastries, and as the children assaulted him, light reached his face and Jessamine's heart missed a beat: Carino had managed to enter Keldar's castle!
She grabbed his wrist and took him to the window. The children didn't bother to follow, very happy to keep stuffing their little mouths with pastries.
"Carino, how did you...?"
"I'm a man," he grinned. "Dressed like a servant, nobody would question me. Ileana is waiting outside of the castle."
Of course, he hadn't come alone. But he had been brave enough to enter the wolf's lair to see her alone. That wasn't something most men of the Queendom of Maadre could do.
"You look sick, Jess." His smile vanished.
"I am sick," she said with a grimace. "I need to get out of here."
"We need you back. Morwenna is unsuitable as queen."
"I know." She pondered. She knew her younger sister wasn't fit to be queen. "What did she do?"
Carino gave her news of home after four years of total silence. It was good to listen to him after such a long time. She had missed him, and Ileana, and even Morwenna, who was now twenty-two. She was sorry to hear Theresa was no more, and glad to hear of the volunteers gathered by her best friend, while her sister and the council hadn't done anything to free their rightful queen. Until Ileana and Carino had decided to do it on their own.
Jessamine missed her other children, Joelia and Desiderio, Notturno's off-springs. Kalvin and Nives weren't the same thing, mostly because she hated their father as much as she had loved Notturno.
She told Carino about Aster. She showed him Keldar's children. She told him she wanted out. She must go back home. She had to take her throne back and control the situation. It was time to free herself from that prison and get her revenge. She had enough of Keldar anyway.
"Go to the Sannish king," she said, determined.
***
Ileana bowed in front of the Sannish king. Jorem, Aster's cousin, pulled her up and invited her to tell the reason of her visit. The old king looked very tired: news of his son's death had reached him and he didn't know what to do next.
"My queen, Jessamine, sends me," Ileana said. "She offers the Kelvan Kingdom if you help her to get rid of her husband."
"What's your queen's plan?" Jorem asked. After his cousin's death he had become the head of the Sannish army and, being the next in line for succession, also the new heir.
"Attack the Kelvan royal castle. I can have two ship filled with soldiers backing you up if you need help."
"Where are the ships?" the Sannish king asked, worried. "Have we seen any black sail lately?" he asked Jorem.
"No, not even the traders came in this year," his nephew replied.
"We're anchored in a small archipelago, out of sight," Ileana smiled. "Traders are with the soldiers, they'll come in as soon as this war is over. Jessamine is waiting for us, for you to strike King Keldar straight at home. She'll let you in. But remember she wants Keldar for herself."
"Keldar killed my son," the old king said, sullen and desperate.
"My lady had a daughter with Prince Aster, killed by Keldar," Ileana said. "And she's been his prisoner for four years now. Allow her to take revenge on the man who humiliated her and killed two of her lovers."
"Tell your queen I'll attack in six days," Jorem said. "How come she doesn't want to keep the Kelvan Kingdom?"
"Our country is bigger than both of your kingdoms, and we don't feel the need to expand our possessions," Ileana smiled. "It's hard to keep something beyond the sea. By giving it to you she hopes to make an alliance and avoid further invasions."
"I could marry her," Jorem suggested.
"I believe Jessamine has had enough of foreign kings," she said. "We don't marry. Not even for alliance purposes. Do you accept her proposition?"
Jorem looked at his uncle who nodded slowly.
***
Keldar was caught completely by surprise when the Sannish attacked his castle, backed up by a small contingent of Amazons. He expected some retaliation after Aster's death, even if he had stopped the invasion campaign, but didn't think someone would betray him. But he found himself prisoner, kneeling in front of the Sannish King, Prince Jorem and his wife.
Jessamine ripped the key of her chastity belt off his neck and went to rid herself of the uncomfortable metal underwear. Then she ordered him whipped and left him tied under the sun with no food nor water while she discussed with Jorem and his uncle the terms of their alliance.
Finally Keldar in chains was thrown on an Amazon ship and the queen went back to her homeland after four years of captivity. The capital welcomed her with flowers and cheers, and the prisoner in bad shape she dragged behind was covered with insults and spat upon. Somebody even threw stones at him.
Keldar was locked in a cage in the town's main square, still incredulous at the sudden end of his reign. The intervention of the Varian Emperor hadn't been necessary, that snake of his wife had undone him. And now he was kept as an animal just outside the royal palace, and any woman could have a way with him if she wished so.
Eventually they took him out of the Cage, washed and shaved him, and took him to an arena. He wondered what else Jessamine had in mind for him. Did she want to turn him into a Gladiator? He'd show her he still was a very good warrior.
But the royal grandstand had an empty throne and Keldar discovered his adversary was her, Jessamine, more beautiful than ever in her metal plates and mail-shirt, her eyes filled with hatred. He wondered why he loved her so much and why she hated him so much in return.
She smirked and attacked first. Keldar defended himself as best as he could, but he was weakened by the Cage and kept seeing the woman he loved in her, so ended up allowing her to kill him. He lowered the guard and let her blade sink in his body, as cold as a winter day.
He fell to his knees as she raised the bloodied sword under a standing ovation.
"Thus dies one who tries to tame the Amazons queen!" she shouted. She was silhouetted against the sun, a merciless goddess of war. The second ovation faded in Keldar's ears. His heart stopped.
3. Massimo
Jessamine stared gloomily at the children playing in the palace garden. Her eyes went to Primo, who was now twelve, and thought about her little Prince who hadn't survived. Primo was growing up very well, looking much like Carino at his age. Ileana had been luckier than her.
He was the eldest, but he allowed the girls to run the game, both his sister Selene and the future queen Joelia. The two girls were nine and enjoyed tyrannizing him.
Then there was Desiderio, her first surviving boy, now seven. He sat in a corner with
Aurora, Ileana's third-born, who listened to him with wide blue eyes. Desiderio had black hair and eyes like his father, never forgotten Notturno.
Oro and Kalvin, both four, were fighting in the grass. Oro was Ileana's son, and Kalvin should have inherited the Kelvan throne, except his mother had withdrawn him to seal the alliance with the Sannish: there wasn't a Kelvan throne anymore, thus Jessamine had brought him to Maadre along with little Nives, who sat staring puzzled at her brother fighting with Oro.
"Enough, children!" Ileana rushed out of the palace and divided Oro and Kalvin. "Goddess, Jess, what were you waiting for?"
"Sorry," Jessamine grumbled. Oro and Kalvin were the same size and neither could win when they fought. Kalvin had been spoiled at his father's castle, but Oro was quickly taking him down to earth: he wasn't a prince anymore, and he was as worthless as any other boy of the Queendom of Maadre.
"Come on, children, be nice," Ileana said. "Primo, keep an eye on these two."
She pushed Oro and Kalvin towards her firstborn, then sat near Jessamine with a snort. She stared worried at her queen and best friend's dark face.
"Jessamine." She took her hand, hoping to bring her back to the real world. "You can't go on like this."
"I'm managing the Queendom, observing my duties, what else do you want?" Jessamine answered absent-mindedly.
"I want you to live," Ileana said. "You should have another baby."
"Six, of which four still live, aren't enough?" Jesamine snapped. "Notturno is dead, Ile, I don't want another man. I had found one, but he has been killed too. That's enough."
"But you're only twenty-seven! Listen, why don't you do it for our country? Pick up a good looking man and have another baby. But he must be the most handsome, so you'll have the most beautiful daughter and nobody will bother you ever again."
"Why, isn't Joelia pretty?" Jessamine pouted. "She survived this far, she can easily inherit the throne."
"What if she doesn't? Will you give it to Keldar's daughter?"
"Uhm... no, Nives is not in the line of succession."
"Then you need another daughter, just in case. Jess, I do it for you. I'm your Healer, you should listen to me. I'm not telling you to fall in love again, but to awaken your body and your female instinct. Even your maternal sense seems asleep at the moment."
Tales of the Queendom of Maadre Page 19