“What about your wife?”
“We each have our own rooms. I do not go into hers and she does not come into mine. This suite contains a guest room. That is the only bed we have ever shared.”
This was all Sam needed to hear and she was soon removing Brin’s clothing just as slowly as he was removing hers, kissing each new piece of skin as it became exposed.
Their love making was slow and gentle and even better than either of them remembered. Afterwards they lay in each other’s arms, both knowing they had things they should be doing, but neither caring.
“Is it true that you got Brianna pregnant on your wedding night and have not touched her since?” Sam asked as she stroked his hairless chest.
“Not quite,” Brin replied. “It took a bit longer than that, but we have not been together since she found out she was pregnant.”
“So what happens to her now?” Despite trying not to, Sam found she liked Brin’s wife and could not bear the thought of her being alone.
“She already has a lover in mind,” Brin told her. “This goes no further, but I think Nisse is really looking forward to my departure.”
“So that’s who he was talking about,” Sam said cryptically, but refused to explain the comment, no matter how much Brin badgered her. She soon found a way to make him stop asking by rolling on top of him and giving him something else to concentrate on.
Eventually they reluctantly got dressed and were about to leave his room when the reality of what she had just done hit Sam like a physical blow and she collapsed back onto the bed.
“What am I going to say to Dean?” she asked in a strained voice. “How can I tell him I am leaving him without hurting him the way I did you?”
Brin sat down beside her and took her hand. “Do not worry. He already knows. I asked his permission before speaking to you.”
“And he agreed?”
“Yes. He only wants what is best for you and he knows that is me.” He smiled at her. “I did promise to keep my hands off you while he is around though so travelling with you is not going to be easy for any of us.” He paused before continuing. There was one more thing he needed to discuss with Sam and now seemed as good a time as any. “Since making the decision to leave the city with you I have been thinking about Kat.”
“You want to leave her here,” Sam stated. It was not a question and there was no hostility in her voice. Brin nodded. “I was planning on leaving her behind with you,” Sam continued. “It will not be safe for her to travel with us and technically she never went on the quest so there should not be anyone out to kill her. This will be the safest place for her, especially now that you will no longer be staying here.”
Brin breathed a sigh of relief. He had been afraid that Sam would disagree and had been dreading having an argument so soon after reconciling. “Brianna is happy to play the part of step-mother until you return and it will give her the opportunity to really get to know her younger brothers.”
“And she needs to get used to being around elves if this is where we will be living for the rest of our lives,” Sam added.
Brin gave her a quick peck on the lips before pulling her to her feet. “Then maybe we should go and tell her together.”
Chapter 7
Young Katherine was sleeping peacefully in Sam’s bed when the happy couple went to see her, so the talk they needed to have would have to be postponed for a while. Brin had a lot to do, so he reluctantly left Sam’s side and headed to his study, after first agreeing not to tell anyone about their reconciliation until both Kat and Dean had been informed. A gong sounded, announcing that food was being served in the dining room, but Sam ignored it. Not only had the thought of the conversation she needed to have with Dean completely taken away her appetite, but also she was not yet ready to see him and she was certain he would be there. Instead, she headed to the bathing room. It was probably her imagination, but she could still smell Brin on her skin and speaking with Dean before washing away the scent would be cruel.
Dean, however, did not make it to the dining room. He knew, or at least suspected, that Brin had told Sam of his plans and he had no wish to see her. He knew it was pointless to postpone finding out her decision, but that would not stop him doing all he could to avoid her. He had seen Brin go into his office, but did not follow him. Sam would speak to him when she was ready and she would make sure they were alone when she did.
The absence in the dining room of Dean, Sam and Brin did not go unnoticed, or without comment. “Anyone know what is going on?” Ria asked. “Dean looked like the end of the world had arrived when I last saw him, Brin was looking absolutely stunning and I have no idea where Sam has gone.”
“I can tell you one thing,” Tor said. All eyes looked in his direction. “Brin has decided to come with us when we leave tomorrow.”
“That explains a lot,” Ellen commented, while Patrick rubbed his hands together in delight.
“This is going to make travelling more interesting,” he said gleefully.
“Interesting for who?” Ria enquired.
“Well certainly not those three,” Patrick replied.
“You really are a horrible man,” Ria told him, turning away from him in disgust.
“I thought you knew that already,” a familiar voice said.
“You made good time,” Tor observed as he shook hands with Seth before kissing Dal on the cheek. “I was not expecting you until this evening.”
“My wife could hear a bath calling to her so we went faster than we really should have done,” Seth explained. “So what have we missed?”
Tor told the new arrivals about Brin’s wish to travel with them, then Dal left to find the bathing room. Sam was still there when she entered, dressed in just a towel, and Dal was shocked to see how miserable she looked. Without saying a word, she walked up to her and put her arm around her shoulders.
“I know how you feel,” Dal said sympathetically. “Having to travel with someone you want more than life itself but you cannot have is almost unbearable.”
Sam pulled out of the embrace so she could look at Dal. “I wish that was the problem,” she said forlornly. “You don’t know the half of it.” Then she forced herself to smile. “Thank you for looking after Kat until Hawk brought her to me. I will see you later. There is someone I have to speak to.” Without another word, she left Dal to enjoy her bath alone.
Once she was dried and dressed, she took her daughter, who had just awoken, to the dining room where the others were still eating. “Please can you take care of Kat for a while?” she asked Ria. “There is something I have to do that I cannot put off any longer.”
“Of course,” Ria replied and Sam left the room, still unable to even think about eating anything. “Off to persuade Brin to stay here?” she asked once Sam was out of earshot.
“I do not think so,” Tor replied. “There is something else going on, but I have no idea what.”
Sam’s first port of call was Dean’s room, but she found it empty. Unsure where she should try next, she stopped a passing maid and asked if she had seen Dean. Luckily, the young elf had and told her to go to the royal garden. Sam had no idea there even was a royal garden and was forced to ask for directions. She found Dean sitting alone on a bench, staring at the trees. He heard her approach, but did not look round.
“You chose Brin, didn’t you,” he said conversationally, as though it was a casual question instead of the hardest thing he had ever had to ask. Only when she did not answer did he turn around to look at her. Silent tears were running down her cheeks as she nodded her head. He stood up and walked over to her, placing his arms around her and gently cradling her against him.
“Shhhh,” he continued. “There is no need for that. We both knew that I was only filling in for him until he realised what an idiot he had been to let you go.”
“I’m sorry,” she sobbed. “I never meant to hurt you.”
“I know sweetheart. I know.” He held her tight, waiting for her to stop c
rying. It took a while, but eventually she pulled away from him and dried her face with her hands.
“I do love you,” she said in a shaky voice.
“But you love Brin more.” She nodded her head. “Then you are doing the right thing. Now please leave me alone for a while.” He did not say it in a nasty way, but Sam could hear in his voice that it was a demand not a request. He turned her around and gently pushed her back the way she had come. Reluctantly she returned to the palace and did not turn around to see him crumple to the ground in despair.
She went in search of Brin and found him alone in his office, bent over his desk reviewing documents. He glanced up as he heard her enter and the look on her face told him that she had been speaking with Dean. “You need a drink,” he informed her and moved to a cupboard which was along one wall. He withdrew a decanter of wine and a couple of glasses. He filled one, looked again at Sam and decided she needed something stronger. He replaced the decanter and removed another, filled with clear liquid.
“What is it?” Sam asked when he handed her a glass which was less than half full. Brin told her and she nodded before downing it in one, making Brin wince.
“You are supposed to sip it,” he said, trying not to laugh as she choked.
“I know,” she gasped. “Patrick tried to kill himself on this stuff when Ellen died. He was severely hung over the next morning.”
“I can imagine. Feeling better?”
“A little.” Her throat was still burning, but at least she was able to breathe properly once more.
“Good. Then maybe we should find our daughter and let her know she is staying here. It is always best to get the difficult tasks over and done with quickly instead of stringing them out.”
The conversation with Kat went surprisingly well. Neither Brin nor Sam mentioned the reason for their journey, or the danger they would both be in, and the young girl seemed quite happy with the explanation they gave as to why they wanted her to remain behind. Not only did she agree that she would soon get bored, but she also wanted to spend time with her two baby brothers; she was still at the age where babies were fascinating and viewed as new play things. During her short life, she had spent a lot of time with other adults and was not concerned about being separated from her mother, though she was still too young to really understand the concept of time or exactly how long it would be before she saw either of her parents again.
That evening, Sam was waiting beside Hawk’s coffin as the last rays of sunlight disappeared from the sky.
“You look serious,” the vampire said as soon as he saw her.
“Hi Hawk,” she greeted him. Her usual smile was missing, a fact which did not go unnoticed.
“What is wrong?” he asked, instinctively knowing she was there because she needed his advice. She told him all that had happened, well most of it anyway; there were a few details she would not be sharing with anyone. He sat quietly beside her as she spoke, remaining silent until she had finished.
“Well. What do you think?” she asked him. “Am I doing the right thing?”
“Only you can answer that,” he informed her. “But I will not say anything against what you are doing.” He then smiled. “And I am glad Brin will be coming with us. I have missed the elf.” Without saying anything more, he took to the skies in search of food.
Later that evening, everyone met in one of the reception rooms to discuss their route. When Queen Helen had written to Tor to give him the tragic news about Ban, she had also mentioned that River and Grimmel had departed a few weeks before. River wished to introduce the dwarf to her family so they had headed off towards Gitwerc, more commonly referred to as ‘dwarf territory’. River’s tribe lived in a small woodland next to the river Spriggan, on the border between Gitwerc and Emvale. This meant heading south west and traversing almost the entire length of Emvale.
“That is going to take a long time,” Patrick observed.
“I know,” Tor agreed, “but it cannot be helped.”
“What about Nosmas and Quartilla?” Ellen enquired. “How do we let them know where we are going?”
“I am not sure,” Tor replied. He had been expecting them to arrive at the elven city by now and was concerned by their delay.
“I will leave word with the Home Guard,” Brin promised. “Whichever direction they come from, they will be spotted as soon as they approach the forest. If they get here within the next few days they should easily be able to catch us up. I presume we will all take the long route out, along with the wagon.”
Tor nodded and was about to call it a night when Sam interrupted. “We need to get a message to Hurst,” she pointed out.
“That is in the wrong direction,” Seth said. “He will have to wait until we have found River and Grimmel.”
“Not necessarily,” Sam replied. “With your permission, I would like to call Salabine as soon as we are out of the trees. If I go the quick route instead of travelling with the wagon, I can be there and back before the rest of you are out of the forest.”
“It is a good suggestion,” Dal pointed out.
“You have my approval,” Tor said, smiling at Sam.
“I would like to go too,” Dean announced. Except for Sam, Brin and Hawk, nobody was surprised by this comment. They had yet to be informed that Dean and Sam were no longer an item, so they had all assumed that Dean would go with her. Hawk glanced at Brin, but his face was completely devoid of expression. “It would be good to visit Yallend again,” Dean explained. Sam and Hurst had gone to the dessert city in order to obtain a clue for the quest and Hurst had opted to remain behind. Brin had been staying there at the time and decided to return to civilisation with Sam when she left. As a ‘guide from another world’ for Brodin’s team, it was obvious that Dean had also gone there, but it had never occurred to anyone until he mentioned it.
Sam glanced at Brin, but she too could not read his face. “Okay,” she said, not knowing what else to say.
“Then I will see you in the morning,” Dean announced before retiring to his room for the night.
Nobody spoke for a few minutes, confused by Dean and Sam’s behaviour. Eventually Ria broke the silence. “What is going on?” she asked.
Brin walked up to Sam and placed his arms around her. Between them, they explained everything. When they finished talking, Tor groaned. “Why can nothing ever be simple?” he complained.
Patrick laughed. “This just gets better and better.” Ellen took him by the arm and dragged him from the room before someone hit him.
The next morning, Sam, Dean and Brin left early, taking their horses via the most direct route. It had been an emotional parting for Sam, who extracted a promise from Brianna that she would treat Kat as if she was her own and the elf, in return, made Sam promise to take care of Brin. Brin took Nisse aside to have a private word with him. “If I hear so much as a rumour that you have upset her in any way, I will hunt you down.” It was said in a friendly manner, but Nisse knew it was no idle threat.
“I will devote myself to making her happy,” he promised.
It was not a pleasant journey for any of them and they were all glad to finally leave the trees. As soon as she was out in the open, Sam called to Salabine, then all three sat down in the grass to await her arrival, each praying that she would not take long. The atmosphere was tense and finally Sam had had enough.
“This is ridiculous,” she snapped. “Under different circumstances you two would probably be friends. We may be travelling together for a very long time and if you two don’t sort yourselves out you are going to make it hell for everyone. I’m going for a walk.”
Brin and Dean watched her leave, both wanting to follow her but knowing she wanted to be alone. “She’s right you know,” Dean said, picking at some grass by his feet. He refused to raise his head as he spoke.
“I do not think we will ever be friends,” Brin replied. “But we do not hate each other. I will make the effort to be amiable if you will.”
“That’s e
asy for you to say,” Dean said bitterly. “You won after all.”
“Not as easy as you think. You have a long history with her and that is something I am going to have to learn to live with.”
Dean looked at the elf in surprise. “You’re jealous,” he accused and Brin freely admitted that he was right. “Thanks,” Dean said. “Somehow that makes me feel a little better.”
Further conversation was stopped by Sam’s excited cry. She had spotted Salabine in the distance and ran back to the men. Moments later the large dragon landed beside them, her burnt-orange skin shining in the sun. She had been visiting Gladrel, her mate, and the skelks who lived near him when she heard Sam’s call and passed on their greetings to her. Sam explained why they needed her help and the dragon was more than happy to oblige. Dean assisted Sam in climbing onto the dragon, then seated himself behind her.
“Are you not coming?” Sam asked as Brin took a step away.
“No,” he replied. “I think it best if I remain here.” He noticed the smile on Dean’s face and the fact he was holding Sam tightly. This may have been for safety during the flight, but he did not think so. Nevertheless, he remained silent. He trusted Sam and, despite the awkward situation they were in, he found he also trusted Dean. The man would not make any advances towards Sam; she had made her decision and he would respect that.
Sam did not argue and gave Salabine permission to leave. As she had already been there, the dragon did not need to fly to Yallend. Instead she rose into the air, pictured the destination in her mind and disappeared, reappearing over the lake next to which the city had been built. On their previous visit, Salabine had flown low over the water and tipped her passengers in, before diving under the cool water, so Sam was prepared to be thrown off. Dean, however, wasn’t and resurfaced coughing and spluttering and calling the dragon a number of unpleasant names.
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