by Andromeda
Philomena frowned but sighed; her mother was right…like always. She shouldn’t be holding a grudge against him…for now. And most importantly, she didn’t want to anger the gods or the Ancestors. She didn’t want to risk their wrath, and there was a reason she was paired with Darius. She could at least…try and make this work.
*******
The next day, Philomena’s sandals slapped against the tile as she went in search of Darius. Today, she wanted to try and see if he wished to go hawking, but she seemed to have the hardest time in locating him. He wasn’t in the chambers assigned to him, nor was he in the chambers that Amani had; the latter of which she found surprisingly joyful. Yet, she wouldn’t stop her mission to find him. She had just rounded the corner when she slammed into a body.
“Oh,” Dorian said in mock surprise. “Forgive me, my lady.”
He had never been this close to her before, and when the scent of her perfume hit him, he had to force himself from grabbing her and pressing her against a wall. He had to force himself to keep from shoving his hand up her dress. He had to force himself to keep himself from smashing his lips to hers. If he acted now, then his plan would crumble before his very eyes; he had to be slow.
“It is alright,” Philomena sighed. “Just…looking for someone…”
“Might I be of service, my lady?” Dorian offered.
Philomena looked at him slightly. She hadn’t ever really talked to the young man other than the occasional greeting. Yet, she didn’t find anything wrong with him. She didn’t know if he just needed a friend or if she wished to always be nice to others, so she couldn’t refuse him.
“Alright,” she said nodding. “Do you have an idea where he might be?”
Dorian pretended to think and then he snapped his fingers. “I saw him heading toward the library, my lady. Perhaps, he is there?”
“Thank you,” Philomena said with a smile. “You have been very helpful.”
Dorian watched her leave, his eyes fastened onto her plump rear that swayed under her gown. He inwardly groaned. His lust for her was growing stronger by the day; it grew stronger by the hour. The servant girls weren’t enough for him anymore; they weren’t the real thing, and he needed the real thing soon or else he would most likely lose his mind.
Instead, he turned away and walked in the opposite direction, only to bump into Matthias. Dorian frowned deeply; he didn’t like the male twin and knew that Matthias didn’t like him. They never truly got along; they could hardly be in the same room with each other; a bit of the same way that Darius and Philomena acted. However, Dorian hated that Matthias always seemed to look right through him; a thing that wouldn’t work if he was to continue with his plan.
“Can I…help you, my lord?” Dorian said tightly, offering a stiff bow.
“Dorian,” Matthias said back with equal tightness. “What are you doing here?”
“I am free to explore the palace as I wish,” Dorian said, putting his hands behind his back. “Your mother said that.”
Matthias frowned. “True, but stay away from my sister.”
“Your sister?” Dorian gasped in mock surprise. “What might you mean by that?”
“I have seen the way you look at her,” Matthias said through gritted teeth; he stepped closer. “I will say this one time, and one time only. Back away from my sister. Am I understood?”
“Crystal,” Dorian said through gritted teeth. He bowed to Matthias and then turned on his heel, storming away.
*******
Philomena found the library, and was surprised to see Darius there. The young man sat at a desk, seemingly thousands of scrolls before him, and he seemed to be reading them all. For a moment, she stood in the doorway and watched him, unsure how to approach him. But after a couple of seconds, she took a deep breath and cleared her throat.
Darius raised his head almost instantly; there was a strong pang in his heart, a stirring in his loins of desire. She looked beautiful today; the cream gown she was wearing showed off her shoulders and dipped down to give that ever so teasing glance of her breasts. How he would love to touch one, to taste one…
“Can I…help you?” he asked, his voice thick.
“I was…just wondering what…you were doing,” she said nervously. “I hadn’t seen you in a while and…”
“Isn’t that what you wanted, though?” Darius asked. “For us to be apart?”
Heat bloomed in her cheeks. “A bit…”
“And you know you still haven’t let me into your bed on your most ‘fertile days’,” he quoted from her, a smirk on his lips. “Or are you afraid you’d enjoy it? And want to come back for more than just once…?”
“There is nothing that you can do to me, that I haven’t felt better,” she snapped at him.
Darius’s temper flared, remembering that she was rumored to have a lover. A man named ‘Abeeku’, but he still hadn’t been able to locate who he was. “So I have heard the rumors…”
She crossed her arms. “Oh, so you have? Does that make you feel…jealous?”
Yes, he thought to himself. “No,” he said aloud. “You can let anyone you want between your thighs; it doesn’t matter at all to me.”
Philomena smirked and walked over. Darius had to force himself from starting, yet when she approached him, he moved slightly back. She bent over, her gown dipping slightly as she looked into his eyes.
“It bothers you…” she said smugly. “I can see it in your eyes.”
Darius grunted and pulled himself up to his fullest height. “It does not. You can take your pleasure, the same way I do with Amani…”
At the mention of the other woman, Philomena glared; her lips pulled back as she gritted her teeth. Darius smirked at her reaction; he could tell that she too was annoyed at the thought of another in his bed. Two could play at his game.
His hands slid up, cupping her waist and pulling her to him until she was straddling his lap. Philomena gasped in surprise, as she could clearly feel him through the thinness of their clothes, as it was the summer months.
“You act so tough…” he said, rocking his hips against her. “But you are still…a woman. You have the same desires of a woman; you have the same mentality as a woman. You might be queen on the outside…but inside…you want me in your bed…”
“No…I…do…not!” she groaned, trying to fight his power of seduction. “You are…nothing to me…”
Darius smirked. “Fine then. I will place a wager with you. Kiss me.”
“Excuse me?” she said.
“You heard me,” he said, still smirking. “Just kiss me… If there isn’t anything there, then we will feel nothing. But I wager you will feel something.”
“And I wager I will not,” she snapped. “Fine then.”
She closed her eyes tightly and puckered her lips, but Darius chuckled.
“No,” he said, shaking his head. “Not like that…”
She opened one eye, and before she could reach, his hand was at the back of her neck. Quickly, he brought her lips to his own in a deep, passionate kiss. Almost instantly, she felt it—a warm fluttering in her body that started in her toes, moved up to her thighs and then right into her brain. The wonderful sensation told her to surrender, to submit to his kisses…and she obeyed.
Slowly, she found herself responding and she moved her body a bit to get better seating on his lap. Her arms wrapped around his neck to pull him closer, and when her lips parted, he slid her tongue to meet her own. His hands played at her waist; while all his instincts were telling him to rip off her gown, he forced himself to be slow.
He did, however, move from her lips to her neck. Latching on, he kissed, licked and sucked all the right places. The soft moans were music to his ears, and he felt good in her arms. Her being in his lap felt so right; she fit perfectly. He wanted to pull her gown up, to have her, but again, he forced himself to take this slow. Yet, when the door creaked behind them, they quickly moved apart and raised their eyes to see who the person who ha
d intruded was.
Abeeku looked at him. He saw her hair tumbled down her back, her rumpled gown, how she was straddled across Darius. A knife-like pain stabbed him in his heart, and he glared at them both, but his gaze softened when it fell onto Philomena.
Shame washed over her like a flood, and she pulled away from Darius, reaching out for her love. “Abeeku…” she whispered.
Darius’s eyes widened in shock, and then fury flashed over his face. With a roar of rage, he charged blindly at the man, knocking him to the ground. He pulled his fist back and punched Abeeku as hard as he could in the cheek, raining blow after blow upon his face.
For a moment, Abeeku was startled, but he quickly snapped out of it and called upon his training. Wrapping his arms around Darius, he rolled them over, pulled his fist back and punched.
“Stop it!” Philomena yelled. “Both of you! Please stop!”
The two men ignored her; instead, their fighting got rougher at her words. And it wasn’t until several guards came, headed by Ajax and Zenobia, did they stop. Both men panted heavily, glaring at the other one; neither was unharmed. Abeeku had a bloody nose and several bruises all over his face. Darius had a large cut on his cheek, and a black eye.
“What was the meaning of this?” Zenobia demanded.
“He’s the one!” Darius growled. “He’s the one that’s been having an affair with my wife!”
“She’s more my wife than yours!” Abeeku taunted him. “Why don’t you ask what we did on your wedding night?”
Darius growled and lunged, only to be held back by a guard. “I’ll kill you!” he yelled. “Better sleep with one eye open!”
“I’ll do it, after I just got done from being between her thighs!” Abeeku said smugly.
“Abeeku, that is enough,” Zenobia said sharply; she turned to Darius. “You cannot protest, my young king. After all, you brought your mistress to this kingdom, did you not?”
Darius tried to find words, but couldn’t. “I…”
“And you expect fidelity from her,” Abeeku said, nodding to Philomena. “I have been there for her since the beginning of time. What have you done for her?”
Nothing… Darius thought to himself. Nothing at all…
He could feel anger rising within him again, with also sadness. He looked to Philomena, to Abeeku, and even to Zenobia, before he turned and walked away. He couldn’t stand their judgment; he couldn’t stand their looks. He needed to get away; he needed to get far away.
Chapter Sixteen
Zenobia fell back on the pillows, panting to catch her breath. At her side, Ajax did the same, sweat soaking his body.
“D…Damn, my lady,” he said with a grin. “If you are giving me a taste of what the king experienced…”
Zenobia frowned slightly. She had been ‘bedmates’ with Ajax for a while now, and they had rules; both spoken and unspoken. For starters, they were to keep this a secret, until she found a way to tell her children. Second, he wasn’t to ever mention Alexander when they were together; to do so would make old wounds open again. She couldn’t handle that again.
Ajax saw the look on her face and sighed. “Forgive me. I forget myself at times…”
“It’s OK,” Zenobia said quickly, sitting up. “It’s OK…”
Ajax looked at her and frowned. “I wish…you would talk to me. I mean…we are sharing a bed together…”
“Just because we are, doesn’t mean we have to share our feelings,” she said back sharply.
He knew he had hit a nerve. He also knew that she was eyeing a knife next to the bed dangerously. “Forgive me, my lady. I will leave.”
Zenobia turned and saw him getting up from the bed and she shook her head. “No…no, you are fine. I just hate to be viewed…as weak or valuable. The only man who made me feel that way…was Alexander. When I didn't feel like I wanted to tear my hair out.”
“Yes, Alex was a bit of a jackass at times…” Ajax chuckled.
Zenobia glanced at him. “You sound as if you knew him personally.”
Ajax shrugged. “Do you really think that General Srax was the only Thracian in Sparta? No. More Thracians came also during the Great Battle. Most left…but I stayed.”
“I realized that I do not know a lot about your past,” Zenobia remarked. “So, tell me.”
Ajax grinned. “Well, what exactly do you want to know, my lady?”
“First of all, why me?” Zenobia asked. “Why did you press so hard for me?”
He grinned. “Why not? You are beautiful, passionate, and strong. You know what you want and will take it. You’re a wonderful mother to your five children. You are all a man could want. King Alexander was a very, very lucky man.”
“I miss him every day,” she whispered, pulling her knees to her chin.
It wasn’t every day that she let her emotions be shown. Like she stated before, she hated showing any kind of weakness. However, with Ajax, she felt safe; with him, she could be herself, she could open up more. She could smile…something she had not done truthfully in the longest of times.
“He would want you to be happy,” he said, placing a tender hand on her back. “I know he would.”
A smile cracked her lips. “Yeah…he would.”
“I’m not trying to replace him,” Ajax swore. “But I would like you to…care for me…in some way.”
She smiled. “I already do…” she whispered, turning to him and pressing her lips to his.
*******
Matthias stood in front of a known map of the world, his eyes roaming over all the routes that had been charted so far. When he found an unmarked route, he would open his journal of his travels and make the corrections. Before long, there wasn’t an inch of the map that wasn’t marked in some way or another. Being an explorer had its perks, and he loved to be out in the world; yet, in the end, he always knew that he had to come home. He had to return to his family.
He never told anyone, but he always felt less worthy than Philomena. Of course, as the eldest son, his father gave him the most attention. He might be a warrior like his mother, but he was a restless spirit. He had always been moving; he could never be in one place for long. Having recently celebrated his 22nd birthday with his family, he knew that the time had come again for him to leave. The only problem was telling Adonia. He smiled as he thought of his wife.
Growing up, they might have acted as if they hated the other, always at each other’s throats, but in the end, he remembered that was what happened to his parents. They hated each other with a passion in the beginning, yet as time went by, they couldn’t be kept apart.
Adonia and his children were the loves of his life. With a son, Alexander, and a daughter named, Malaika, he was perfectly content with his life. But the restlessness was growing within him, he could feel it. However, he knew Adonia wouldn’t want to leave. A life of traveling was no place for children, and if anything happened to them, Matthias knew he would never forgive himself. No, they all had to stay in Sparta; however, he had to convince his wife.
“Matt?” a voice said behind him. “I thought I’d find you here.”
Matthias turned and saw her, a soft smile formed on his lips. “I’ve been at work,” he said, nodding to the map. “What else is new?”
Adonia smiled and walked over, kissing him softly. “I was wondering about something…”
“Yes?” he asked.
“Do you remember when we traveled to the country called China? Well, I remember they had this beautiful series of hairpins that I had my eye on. Do you think we might go back and buy them?” she asked.
Matthias took a deep breath; time to face his darkest fears. “I…I shall go back to get them,” he said slowly. “However, you and the children will be staying her.”
Adonia laughed. “Lovely joke. But, you know that is not possible, nor can you be serious.”
“I am very serious,” Matthias said, making sure to keep his face neutral. “And it is very possible. The type of exploration I am going on…the
re is no place for little ones, or for women. No, my love, I must go alone.”
“You can’t do that!” Adonia yelled, tears starting to blur her eyes. “You said…you said you’d never go anywhere without us!” she turned her head away. “Without me…”
He gently gripped her shoulders. “You know that I don’t want to do this. But trust me when I say that this quest…must be done alone.”
Adonia raised her head, her mouth opened to yell at him when the door was suddenly burst open. A frightened servant stood there, her eyes wild with fright.
“What is it?” Matthias demanded. “What is wrong?”
“T…The queen,” the servant stammer. “S…She has been poisoned!”
Matthias’s heart froze in his chest. “My mother?”
“No, my lord,” the servant said shaking her head. “T…The Queen Philomena.”
*******
Inside her chambers, Philomena was arguing with Abeeku. The young couple seemed to have done nothing but argue for the past couple of days. Ever since he found her in the arms of Darius, he seemed unquestionably angered and hurt. He could hardly look at her without seeing her in his arms.
“I have told you time and time again,” Philomena yelled. “Nothing happened! All he did was kiss me!”
“Your dress was up almost to your waist!” Abeeku said accusingly. “Your hair was loose and your eyes…” he remembered her desire-glazed eyes. “You are telling me that nothing happened…?”
“Yes!” she shouted. “Abeeku, you know me! I have never lied in my life!”
“Yet, I still found you in his arms,” he spat. “I found you in his lap!”
“HE. IS. MY. HUSBAND!” she yelled at him. “What else do you think would happen?”
“You said he was nothing to you!” he said.
“He is nothing to me!” she said back. “But the throne does need an heir…so I must…”
“So you must open your thighs to him,” he said bitterly. “You must allow him to taste your sweetness. You must allow him to fill you with his seed. You promised me that would be mine, and mine alone!”