His breath caught and his eyes squeezed tight for a moment. In the shadows, it was impossible to tell if there was moisture in them when they reopened.
"My parents were already dead when we returned. Irana had her hands on… She was stealing our oldest treasure. A treasure entire generations have sacrificed themselves to protect."
"She got away with it?"
"No."
His answer was swift and fierce, his grin manic and satisfied. "No, she died that day. The treasure is safe at home, guarded by people I trust."
Lia frowned, her forehead pulling tight. "I don't understand, if you stopped her, who are you looking for?"
"The sor— The man who sent her. Someone who's coveted what my family, and my people, have and will stop at nothing to get his hands on it. My people believe it ended with Irana's death. That I avenged my parents with her death.
"They're wrong. He's still out there, plotting and scheming. I vowed I would stop him."
Lia moved without thinking, kneeling in front of him, clasping his clenched fists between her hands.
"And you will not find peace until you avenge your parents. Until you've assured the safety of your family."
"No." His voice was hoarse and filled with sorrow. He leaned forward, letting his head rest against hers. "I feared I would never find peace again. For a little while, though, when we touch, I can forget. The moments are fleeting but enough."
Lia tilted her face, let her lips drift softly over his before she stood up. She tugged on the hands still clasped in hers and pulled him across the room toward the waiting bed.
*****
Later, much, much later, Wyn reached down and dragged the coverlet up over them both. Lia snuggled into his broad chest and sighed with pleasure when strong arms wrapped around her. Maybe he was right. Maybe she could have this. Have someone to lean on, when no one else was around. She could give him the same thing in return.
They'd have to work, though, to keep this a secret. The soft pang of regret faded into the darkness of sleep.
*****
The stars still sparkled in the dark sky when Caerwyn woke. If he had his choice, he'd curl closer and stay in Lia's bed until breakfast. Stake his claim. Make a declaration.
It wasn't up to him, though. Lia had her own set of troubles and responsibilities. Caer had to respect what she believed best for her and her valley.
So he forced himself to slide out of bed, stifling a groan when chill air met bare skin. Lia shifted restlessly when he moved but didn't wake. He tucked the blankets close around her and smoothed them carefully before kissing her hair one last time. Then he wrestled on his clothes and headed out into the hall.
Like he had on the trip to her room, Caerwyn kept his ears tuned to the night's sounds, kept his eyes scanning for the slightest movement. Most of the staff would be rising with the first hints of dawn, which gave him another hour at least. He wouldn't put it past Gui to have a spy or two lurking around in the dead of night, however.
Back in his room, he ignored his untouched bed. The idea of crawling into the cold blankets alone wasn't appealing in the least.
Instead, he had something he needed to do. He may have agreed not to poke too hard at Lia's secrets, but there was trouble in the valley. He refused to let anyone take another shot at his…at Lia.
Digging into his pack, he pulled out the small, dark innocuous-looking stone Maddyn had pressed into his palm before he'd left the Baron's stables to head for Lia's valley. Settling onto the floor, Caerwyn held the rock loosely in one hand. His breathing slowed, his mind empty and the flow of power, the lines of magic around him came into stark focus.
He gasped, almost losing his concentration. The lines of magic flourished thick and plentiful. Like they were on his islands. Nearly as plentiful as on the Isle of the Goddess. Another deep inhale and Caerwyn forced himself to settle. He tapped into the lines, channeled the zing of energy into his hand and the rock that rested there.
Eventually, the black rock grew brighter and brighter from the infusion of magic until the edges glowed red. When the stone vibrated around in his hand, he knew the matching stone Maddyn carried was alerting his brother that Caerwyn needed him.
When the rock stilled and faded to dull black, he got up, stretched, then dropped the rock into his bag, confident his brothers knew what to do. Now Caer had to figure out how to get the answers he needed without giving his own secrets away.
A couple of hours later, cleaned up and in fresh clothes, Caerwyn tried to dim his smile when he ambled toward the breakfast table. The cheerful grin that kept threatening to burst forth would get him odd looks after the events the day before.
Lia was already at the table and deep in conversation with her chatelaine. Her eyes flickered toward him when he walked in but she immediately turned back to her discussion. Wyn swallowed down his frustration. He'd known she wouldn't, couldn't, embrace him. He'd hoped for a smile, though. Maybe even a greeting.
Instead, they were back to the polite strangers and cold distance they'd started the day before with. At least it took care of the ridiculous urge to grin like a fool. Now battling a fierce frown, he grabbed a plate and helped himself to the array of foods the cook had laid out for the residents of the manor house.
He'd barely taken two bites when Gui walked in. The last to arrive, as usual, he stopped to pose in the doorway. His immaculate, well-tailored clothes looked brand new, his hair pulled back into a perfect queue that probably meant he'd spent hours in the mirror getting it exactly right. Caerwyn was almost certain a hint of rouge tinted the olive-toned skin. The pensive frown and sense of entitlement oozing off the bastard was enough to kill what was left of the Milesan's appetite.
"Good morning, everyone. I do hope some of you managed to get some sleep after yesterday's horrible events. Every time I closed my eyes, the possibilities of what could have happened ran rampant through my mind. I stayed up into the wee hours trying to figure out how to bring the miscreant to justice."
Caerwyn glanced at Lia from under the cover of his eyelashes, biting his cheek while he observed. Her only apparent reaction was a sharply raised eyebrow. Her eyes, however, had gone dark and the fingers wrapped around her fork had gone white from the grip she had on it. He was pretty sure Gui should consider himself lucky he wasn't within striking distant of its tines.
Of course, the lanky bastard seemed oblivious to Lia's ire and her tone remained calm, despite the provocation. "I believe I told you yesterday Keneally and I would take care of it. That your…help was neither wanted nor necessary."
The fop waved a slice of sweet bread around with an airy carelessness. "Yes, yes, I know. I assumed by this morning you'd have gotten over your emotional reaction and cooler heads would prevail. I should have realized it might take a little longer for the hysteria of the horrific event to fade."
The fork dropped out of her hand with a tinny ring and, while Caerwyn would be amused to see her reach for the bread knife in front of her, he figured he should do something to head off bloodshed at the breakfast table.
"I don't know about you, but since I took the arrow intended for Lia, I'm feeling a little over-emotional myself." Lia turned her glare on him and Gui's lips twitched upward in triumph. "But it won't stop me from coldly, logically hunting down the bastard and seeing he gets suitable justice. I'm sure Lia feels the same."
Gui choked on the hunk of beef he'd been chewing and glared over the chalice while he washed it down.
"Still, you'd have to agree, more heads working on a problem the faster it will be solved."
"More likely the quicker we'll trip over each other. Stay out of it, Gui." Lia settled back into her chair and resumed her breakfast, once again the calm Handmaiden of the valley, confident the final word had been spoken.
"Of course. I was only going to suggest Daen should be contacted."
This time, Caerwyn choked on his breakfast when he inhaled too fast around a bite of crumbly toast.
Gui was once a
gain in danger from the cutlery as Lia's hand tightened around the silver implement and she leaned towards her brother-in-law with a fierce scowl. "Why?"
"Because he is your fiancé. He should be informed of the threat to you." Smugness hardened his eyes and pulled his lips into a sneer. "He's used to dealing with the problems of a large kingdom. I'm sure he knows how to address this sort of unpleasantness."
The room went silent, eyes flicking between the seething Lia and the self-satisfied Gui.
Caerwyn wanted to step in, to put Gui in his place, but he couldn't. Lia was already facing one challenge, she wouldn't appreciate him stepping on her toes.
Still, he did not want Daen showing up in the valley. Daen's presence would lead to questions and explanations on both sides he didn't yet have any answers for.
His gut told him Lia wasn't a sorceress hell-bent on seducing and charming her way into power and wealth. Yet here he was bound to her and willing to do whatever he had to do to make her happy and protect her.
Chills slid down his spine when he considered that he'd all but given up on his search for the truth. Actually felt guilty for keeping secrets from her. When she hadn't told him a damn thing. She knew he had seen the strangeness. Felt the difference in her land. Hell, he was wrapped up in its magic at the moment. Yet she wouldn't even tell him the first thing about it.
Daen's presence wouldn't help any of that. He'd be demanding and taking over and that would fuel Lia's stubbornness like nothing else. Caer needed more time to ferret out the truth for himself.
He had no idea where this bond with Lia would lead. Or even where he wanted it to go. If it was real at all. He wanted those answers for himself, and he needed to get them before Daen became part of the picture again.
At the head of the table, Lia held Gui's eyes with burning fury until her brother-in-law looked away. Then she got to her feet with slow, purposeful grace. Her back stretched iron-straight and she tilted her chin to stare down at the interfering bastard.
"You. Will. Stay. Out. Of. This. Do you understand?"
Still not looking at her, Gui nodded, though his mouth curled in satisfaction. "However, I should tell you I've already sent a message off to him. Dyffen left about an hour ago. I'd imagine the Prince will be here in a few days."
*****
The silent room erupted in whispers around her and Lia pressed her lips tight. She very much wanted to give in to the explosion of curses dancing on her tongue. That would only prove her impulsive, overly emotional nature, though.
Instead, she continued to glare. The son of a bitch had done it on purpose. Her inadvertent bond with Wyn had stuck in his craw. Especially after she had rejected his offer.
He had to know this would make a huge mess. It could destroy the valley. It probably would destroy her. She risked a glance at Wyn, who looked as stunned as she felt by the revelation.
It was one thing to accidentally bond with a woman who was already betrothed. It was another thing entirely to have to face an angry, powerful prince whose bride-to-be you knew intimately. She wondered how long it would be until he fled into the night. If she would survive the crushing despair in the weeks until the next full moon broke the bond.
She looked back at the carefully studied slouch Gui had assumed in his chair. He knew he had won this round. There wasn't much she could do about it now. But she could have the last word.
Lia tightened her shoulders and tried her best to mimic her mother's glacial stare. "Thank you so much for informing us of your action. However, Gui, if you help any more, I will have you confined to the unused pig stable until Tanis turns eighteen."
She didn't wait for him to finish sputtering before turning to one of the grooms hovering in the doorway. "Please find Keneally and let him know Nel needs to speak to him in the library."
She turned in a swirl of skirts and left the breakfast room without a backward glance. Halfway done the hall, she realized Wyn was on her heels. He wasn't chasing, didn't even seem to be hurrying. But his longer legs caught up to her even with his casual saunter.
"Wyn. I can't." She stopped, pulled her shoulders back and did her best impression of actually feeling like she was in charge. Even if she couldn't see them, she knew many ears were listening. "I don't need your help. I'm sure Danny could use a hand in the garden."
His eyes narrowed, his lips thinned to a straight line but he kept his voice low when he leaned closer to speak.
"Perhaps we could have this conversation in your office. Behind closed doors."
"Wyn." She didn't know how to make him understand. Everything in her wanted to lean on him. Yet she couldn't. Because she couldn't show weakness. And because she didn't know how much longer he'd stick around for her to lean on.
He eased back, determination in his eyes but his voice was still soft and low. "Just five minutes, Lia. I think I deserve that much before I meet your fiancé."
She flinched at the stark way he stressed the final word but she didn't have time to soothe his ruffled feathers.
"Fine. Five minutes. Come on."
By the door, she smiled guiltily at the cold, disapproving scowl Nel focused on Wyn. "Knock as soon as Keneally gets here. Don't let anyone close."
Once the door shut firmly behind them, she turned on Wyn, talking before he had a chance. "Look, I know this isn't your problem. If you want to leave, I'll give you one of our horses and some traveling money. It's not enough… I can never repay you for saving Tanis."
He opened his mouth to speak, but Lia talked over him, not wanting to hear goodbyes or regrets or platitudes.
"The bond will be uncomfortable for a few weeks. Once the next full moon passes, it will break and you'll be free—"
Wyn stepped forward then, and Lia's words caught in her throat when he boxed her in between his broad chest and the desk at her back.
His face was unreadable when he looked down at her but she thought she saw something like disappointment flash before he shut it all down.
"Is that what you want, Lia? Do you want me to leave? One less complication in your valley?"
"Yes. No. I don't know." She shook her head, at a loss. Truthfully, she wanted him to stay. But he was a complication. In so many ways. "I didn't think you'd want to stay."
His voice softened, his head dipped so the words whispered against her ear. "Do you want me to stay?"
Her eyes fell closed and she let herself lean forward. Rested her forehead on his chest so she didn't have to look at him when she spoke.
"Yes. Goddess help me. It's foolish. Impulsive. Reckless. It's going to blow up in my face. I want you to stay."
"Good." His arms slid around her and his lips brushed against her hair. "Because I wasn't planning on going anywhere."
"It's not going to be safe, you know. If anyone slips and Daen finds out we have a moon-bond, he'll be furious. He's obsessed with me, you know."
"I heard." Wyn's voice was clipped and his arms tightened almost painfully for a second, then abruptly loosened. "We'll have to make sure he doesn't hear. Gui may have convinced a few you're not fit but none of them want to end up as part of Galwei either. They'll be careful."
Before she could suggest locking Gui in the pig stable, just in case, a loud, solid knock reverberated through her door. Keneally and Nel were waiting.
Wyn let go of her and stepped back and she smoothed the front of her dress before answering the door. He made to leave when her two closest advisors walked in, but she stopped him with a hand on his arm.
"Stay. I think we could use an outsider's view."
She caught Keneally and the chatelaine exchanging inscrutable glances from the corner of her eye. Neither of them said a word, though, when Wyn shut the door and leaned against it, ready for a council of war.
*****
Caerwyn worked side by side with Danny, ostensibly fixing one of the small gardening sheds. Mostly, though, his attention focused on straining to hear the sound of approaching hooves. Daen's arrival was expected at any moment an
d the frustrated anticipation hummed through him like a living thing.
In the two days since Gui had dropped his bombshell, the manor and the valley had become a hive of activity. Caer still wasn't sure what all was happening. Despite being part of the odd, stilted meeting with Lia, Nel, and Keneally, he knew more had been left unsaid in that little room than had been spoken.
The buzz of suspicion and nuance wove in and out of every word said while they'd worked together to figure out the best way to deal with Daen's imminent arrival.
When Keneally pointed out it would be better if Caer moved at least into the laborers' quarters, Lia had nodded sagely in agreement. The look she gave Caer, though, had reluctantly said, And you'll have to stay the night there, as well.
He'd answered with a simple, reserved, "Of course." Then he'd flashed a smirk behind the groundkeeper's back that said, We'll see.
Later Nel and Lia had a stilted and ultimately aborted conversation about the herbarium that had Lia avoiding his eyes and Nel glaring at him.
Now, the entire manor, the entire valley, waited on edge for Prince Daen to arrive and upset the status quo. Caerwyn still wasn't sure how Keneally knew the man would be arriving soon. Or that he traveled with only a handful of ceremonial guards. Caer didn't doubt the information for a second, though.
Right on time, the first faint hints of horseshoes on hard-packed dirt rang in the distance. The dusty group, moving in perfect formation, came into sight along the road a few minutes later. Though he knew Lia waited impatiently by the window in her office, she remained inside until the men had dismounted. Then she appeared, regal and unyielding, at the top step of the porch. Nel, glaring and disapproving, stood at her shoulder, much like the position Daen's Captain of the Guard took up behind his prince.
"Your highness, what an expected surprise." Lia’s cool voice belied the words, however, delivering more of a rebuke than a welcome.
By Vengeance Guided (The Lost Shrines Book 1) Page 10