by Sam Argent
“I knew there was a reason I keep fattening you up,” she said.
“Aren’t you of a marrying age now?” Harold asked softly.
“I’m old enough to marry but too young to care,” Sebastian joked, but Harold gripped his arm.
“You rarely let someone near enough to even decide if they could truly love you. Have you considered that maybe you’ve been wearing these cloaks for too long?” Harold touched the cloth, but unlike so many years ago when Sebastian first saw him, his fingers didn’t slide off the fabric. “Prince Turren is from two powerful wizard lines, and that’s a perfect match for the fey blood running in your veins.”
“Harold, just because the prince will live as long as me doesn’t mean I’m ready.”
“Can’t you at least try?” Harold pleaded, but Margaret gently removed his hand.
“It’s his decision on both counts, and maybe he does need more time.” She cupped the side of Sebastian’s face. “I think it’s a good idea that you’re going to Cern. James might have good advice for you.”
“You act as if I’m frightened of love,” Sebastian accused.
“I think you are, but I can’t blame you. But, have you thought about what it would mean if a person as afflicted as you found love?” Margaret asked.
Why is she bringing Ophelia into this? “I don’t think my situation affects her at all.” Sebastian said. “She’s always at home and in danger of being kidnapped if she ventures out without protection. How could she meet anyone?” The only person besides family she talks to is Lord Pasley when he checks the wards on our property. Sebastian blinked. That shitty bastard. He’s as sneaky as the damn prince. “Why wouldn’t Ophelia tell me?”
“The same as you. She won’t admit her feelings to herself because she’s afraid. I’m not trying to make you feel pressured, but if you end up happy, there’s a chance for her too.” Margaret stroked his horse’s nose.
“I think you waited to tell me this until it was too late for me to confirm a name in private,” Sebastian complained.
“I’m not denying it.”
“I grudgingly like you even if you’re conspiring against me with Harold.” Sebastian squeezed her hand and waved good-bye to her and Harold.
“MAYBE YOU should reconsider your mother’s summons!” Lieutenant Adams shouted above the rain soaking everyone except for Sebastian in his enchanted cloak.
“You have magic,” Sebastian said loftily.
“Weatherproofing spells cast directly on the body can interfere with sensing attacks. The safety of the package takes priority over our comfort,” Sergeant Bradley said as his head glistened with raindrops. He and the second female soldier in the group shielded them with wards throughout the entire trip, which spent most of their energy. Sebastian knew how hard it was to hold a group under spells, so he didn’t bother them. The sleep they had gotten at Harold’s must have given the man renewed strength to talk.
“How are you and Thimbly holding up?” Lieutenant Adams looked back at the two soldiers in the rear of the party.
“We’re doing better after eating those cinnamon buns, sir,” said the second woman with chin-length brown hair dripping water on freckled skin. “Your friend is talented, Sir Orwell. Usually foods enchanted to stay hot taste funny, but I would have thought they came straight from the oven.” They had taken a break under a stand of trees and divvied up the rest of the steaming-hot confections before the rain turned into a downpour.
“Margaret is a genius when it comes to mixing food and magic, but she’s also on Bruwen’s City Watch.” Sebastian touched the side of his robe where knives given to him by Margaret at Winter Solstice were hidden.
“Too bad I’m not dumb enough to compete with Lord Bast for her affections,” Lieutenant Adams said regretfully.
“I don’t see why you’re letting that stop you. Living as a frog for a while does wonders for the skin.”
“I’m not antagonizing a powerful wizard for your pleasure. I see the gate for Cern,” Adams said, watching the pedestrians and riders joining them on the road toward the busy city. The crowds were heading home for the night before the gates closed, and Sebastian received only a few curious stares as they entered the city.
The guards walked two by two, gathered into a cluster around Sebastian when the crowds grew larger. Cozy as a damn pea. “It’s down the first street on the right, and it’s the second inn on the left.”
“Are you going to another bookshop tomorrow?” Sergeant Hooper asked.
“Yes, and we’re staying here for two days.” Sebastian slowed his horse when the inn painted a subtle sky blue among its red and forest green cousins came into view. He turned his horse toward the stables, and the soldiers followed him.
They delivered their horses into the care of a stable girl, and the soldiers followed Sebastian to the inn’s front.
“How’s the food?” Vendrix asked, rubbing his stomach.
“It’s all right, but it won’t kill you,” Sebastian said. A blonde woman with an innkeeper’s pin opened the door, and Sebastian grinned at the stricken faces of the soldiers.
Hands on hips, the petite innkeeper stood on the front stoop with a dripping spoon. “Is that how you talk about my cooking when I’m not around?” Light blue eyes tried to look strict, but the crinkling around her lips gave her away. Ellie ran into Sebastian’s arms and hugged him soundly.
Sebastian stepped back after feeling a small bump. “Nephew or niece?”
“I don’t want to know, so I told Ophelia to stay quiet,” his marriage-sister said as she grabbed Sebastian’s hand and dragged him inside.
The soldiers followed closely as they walked through a hallway leading to an opening in the kitchen and the main dining room. Yellow roses decorated the wallpaper, giving it a light touch among the dark wooden tables and floor. Aromas from the kitchen made Sebastian’s stomach rumble. “When I said all right, I meant to say fantastic.”
“Yes, try mocking my food when its smells taunt you.” Ellie led them to a table and gestured for them to sit. “This is a bigger crowd than what I usually see you with, Bastian. James wanted to see you as soon as you walked in the door, but you’re wet and need hot food in your stomachs.” She sprinted off to the kitchens, leaving behind a confused group of soldiers in her wake.
“I thought you said that Ophelia was the only nice sister you had,” Lieutenant Adams said.
“I do only have one nice blood sister. Ellie’s my marriage-sister.”
“Wise words after I have to come down for you,” a deep voice boomed behind Sebastian’s chair.
Sebastian hadn’t seen his older brother sneak up behind him and finally noticed the alert positions of the soldiers. He stood and faced the muscular giant whose features were too severe to be called handsome. Gray eyes peered at him from beneath glasses. “Impending fatherhood suits you,” Sebastian said.
James hugged Sebastian with less pressure than Ellie but held him just as long. It was the longest embrace James had ever given Sebastian, and he wondered if it was a habit learned from his wife. “It does. What brings you here?” James grabbed a chair from another table and squeezed in between Sebastian and Vendrix.
“I ran into trouble at home. I’ll tell you the rest after we eat.” Sebastian sat back as Ellie and a serving boy arrived with trays of food and wine.
“And your friends?” James looked from one soldier to another.
“Also part of the trouble.”
“You’re the one who’s nothing but trouble,” Lieutenant Adams muttered as he eagerly reached for mashed potatoes and slices of ham.
Sebastian ignored him and filled his plate.
“You finish eating and meet me upstairs in the library. It’s empty this time of night.” James stood and returned his chair to its original place.
LIEUTENANT ADAMS stopped Sebastian before he entered the room. “Protocol. I need you to wait for me to search the room first.”
“Fine.” Sebastian waited as the lieutenan
t and Sergeant Hooper checked for assassins.
It wasn’t long before they walked out with amused expressions on their faces. “It’s safe,” Sergeant Hooper said. “But you won’t be happy.”
Frowning, Sebastian stepped past them and peered inside. James and Kevin were seated at a board game contemplating their next moves. I should have pretended Kevin was a stranger and let them beat him a little. “What a pleasant surprise.”
“I must have forgotten to mention that Kevin arrived a few hours before you did.” James didn’t bother looking up from the game.
Kevin smiled as James moved a game piece into danger. “Since you’re avoiding home and the castle, it made sense you were still headed in this direction. I also figured that even though you’re a rude bastard, you wouldn’t be crass enough to bypass your oldest brother.” Kevin snatched up a pawn. “I might play you instead of James because it’s like playing a child.”
Sebastian turned to the soldiers filling the doorway. “I’m sorry, but I want to speak privately with my brothers.” He shut the door in Lieutenant Adams’s face and locked it.
“Half an hour! I don’t like leaving you alone in a crowded building,” Lieutenant Adams yelled outside the door.
“And space if you don’t mind.” Sebastian waited until the footsteps disappeared and pulled his hood back. His brothers continued staring at their game, but Kevin’s eyes briefly strayed to his face.
“Have you decided to pursue a marriage yet?” Kevin asked while taking another of James’s pieces.
“Why the hell is everyone asking me that?”
“Because you need to do more with your life than buying books and caring for Ophelia. Your reputation will be ruined if you keep helping Father with his business, but you could get out of the house by finding a decent match.”
Sebastian glanced at the board. Kevin wasn’t paying attention and missed that the two sacrifices had put James in a better strategic position. “I have no desire to be murdered or sold into slavery, so I haven’t been looking for a husband.” Sebastian shuddered at the memory of Ophelia’s horrified face as she gazed into his future. He pulled a chair away from another game table, slid it behind James, and sat on it, using his cloak as a pillow. “I decided to put aside my gold until Ophelia can be properly looked after, and then I’ll open my own bookshop.”
“How long will that take? Why don’t you make Mother and Father care for her like they’re supposed to instead?” Kevin moved another piece and frowned after seeing the trap he had fallen into. “Sneaky bastard.”
James sighed. “I’m sorry, Sebastian. I can’t have Ophelia in an inn where there are so many people. She would be in danger, and she hates crowds.”
“She’s never blamed you, and it’s pointless to give up your livelihood when it’s something you’re good at.” When they weren’t talking about his love life, it was relaxing to sit among his brothers. At home, all it takes is a card game to turn us into beasts. “And you have a baby on the way. He or she is going to keep you busy as it is.”
“You’re going to stay at home and rot?” Kevin asked.
“Maybe not for long. Did either of you know that Ophelia is in love with someone?” Kevin’s and James’s heads snapped in Sebastian’s direction.
“Who is he and for how long?” James broke the shocked silence.
“I don’t know for both questions. Margaret told me. I don’t think it’s someone who’s a threat, or she would have taken care of the problem herself,” Sebastian said. Forgive me, Ophelia, but I need them off my back, and I didn’t tell them who I suspect.
James ran his hand through his hair. “You play hero and Ophelia is in a mysterious romance. Any more surprises?”
“I’ve barely convinced Kraven not to elope.”
“Arrgh!” Kevin swept his pieces off the board. “I’m done, and not because you pulled that scheme out of your ass, James. How the hell am I supposed to think when you drop this in my hands?”
James gathered the pieces together and put them in a wooden box. “I still call foul, liar.”
“I came here to ask for your help, James. And since you want to put your nose in my business too, Kevin, wouldn’t your time be best spent helping somebody who wants it?”
James crossed his arms but nodded for Sebastian to continue.
“He’s met a servant woman, and he wants to marry her. Unfortunately, he stupidly loaned Mother most of his money, and he doesn’t have much to offer a bride.”
“What’s she like?” Kevin asked.
“She seems nice and has a decent head on her shoulders.”
“Anything weird about her?” James asked.
Sebastian sighed. “There’s goblin in her bloodline, so her lifespan matches ours. Other than that, she’s perfectly normal.”
“Mother will sabotage it, and Father will figure out a way to offend her parents,” Kevin promised.
“I know.” Sebastian pitched his voice higher to mimic their mother. “You may marry a commoner, but Gods, not a boring person.”
“I’ll talk to the girl’s parents in secret, and Kevin and I will put up money for the wedding. Ellie’s a hopeless romantic like me, so she won’t need much persuasion to have the wedding here,” James offered.
“What do we do with you after we take care of them?” Kevin asked, refusing to drop the subject.
“Tell your friends about my bookshop when I start it.” Sebastian winked at his brothers.
“On another topic, why would you let Father run amok at the castle without any trustworthy sibling to hold his hand?” James asked.
“Harold can’t put up his stand at the festival this year, so I decided to help him. I want the experience and profits, and I’ll have neither if I’m always the one controlling Father,” Sebastian said.
“But he might have been manageable if you had waited at the castle.” James frowned at Sebastian. “And this business with the prince will only cause more rumors. I don’t like that you have to travel with guards now.”
“It’s just a precaution.” Sebastian stood up and tied his cloak in place. “I also need sleeping arrangements for the soldiers. They’re on the king’s coin, and they can afford any available rooms you have.”
“There are four open rooms upstairs on opposite ends. That’s the closest I can put the soldiers with you,” James said.
Sebastian shrugged while he put his hood on. “It doesn’t matter to me. I doubt I’m in danger of getting a hangnail.”
“I reserve the right to say ‘I told you so’ first,” Kevin said, standing at the same time as James. If it wasn’t for the difference in height, they could have passed as twins.
“Quit wishing me harm, Kevin. Mother and Father are already doing their share of that right now. I’m exhausted, so if you don’t mind, I’m going to bed.” Sebastian opened the door for his brothers, followed them out of the room, and rolled his eyes when the soldiers quickly joined them. “I feel like my taxes are disappearing into a hole of unnecessary spending.” He frowned when he spotted his bags dangling from Lieutenant Adams’s arms. “Why are you holding my things?”
“Because we’re going to the same room,” Adams said.
“I don’t need a roommate.”
“It’s for your safety. I know there haven’t been any attacks, but why tempt fate?”
“And there won’t be. I want to sleep, and I can’t do that if you’re hovering over me,” Sebastian growled.
“It’s my job to make sure nothing happens to you. Just get undressed and go to sleep like normal and you won’t even notice… oh.” Lieutenant Adams paused. “Do you take off your cloak when you’re alone?”
“Astute conclusion, Lieutenant. Now please leave me be or I’m going out a window while you sleep.”
“Fine, the room is all yours, but if you see anything amiss, give a shout,” Lieutenant Adams demanded.
“Agreed.”
Lieutenant Adams actually obeyed and followed Sebastian to his room without goin
g inside. Sebastian locked the door and flung off his cloak. Stretching out the journey’s kinks, He undressed and circled the room’s full, steaming tub. He sighed and gave the water a slap. Real privacy. No guards, no siblings, and all the hot water I can stand. Sebastian stepped into the tub, slowly submerging each body part until the water ended under his nostrils. Holding his breath, he dipped lower and water flowed over his head. Motionless in the water with his worries far away, Sebastian closed his eyes and listened to the water’s vibrations. When they died down, he swayed his arms to create more. He felt no urgency to take another breath. It’s not the extra years, but these small things that make being only part human enjoyable, he thought. For an hour, he didn’t break the surface, and only the door opening disturbed his soaking. I’ll stay under until whoever it is takes a hint and goes away.
But footsteps sounded closer than they should have for basic privacy, and Sebastian didn’t know who was in his room. As Sebastian had sensed the tiny movements in the tub, he concentrated on his feet, listening as each thrum in his toes accompanied the intruder’s steps. Closer. Closer. Sebastian sprang out of the water and tackled the intruder. Both men fell and a knife clanged to the floor. Sebastian snatched his cloak and a blade from the sleeve.
“Don’t,” the assassin whispered, his words muffled by a scarf tied beneath his eyes.
Sebastian looked up and the assassin’s crossbow pointed at his heart.
The assassin shook his head. “Just don’t.”
Sebastian stopped moving. “What am I supposed to do?”
“I don’t… they said you were ugly. You’re not….” The assassin gulped and tried to look at anything in the room but Sebastian, but his eyes were drawn back to him. “How can anyone be so beautiful?”
“These aren’t questions I can answer on the floor.”
“No, you stay!”
The crossbow shook, and Sebastian didn’t want to be accidentally killed by the fool.