Dakota's Discipline [Portraits of Submission 4] (Siren Publishing Sensations

by Tara Rose

  “So your worries are over,” she said.

  “Let us hope so,” said Bramwell. “There is still the matter of the curse. If wiping out Enfield will lift it, our worries are truly over. If it still goes on, we are no better off than we were.”

  “Does Dearth have any thoughts on that?”

  “Atheron did not ask them,” said Kelton. “Jarrett and Jaxon told me that he prefers not to tell them about the portraits and Reginald’s descendants unless forced to do so. They were more concerned about our standing with Enfield and had hoped we would give them our support for their plans.”

  “So everything still hinges on Keira’s arrival and what she tells your king.”

  Bramwell smiled at her. “He’s your king now as well.”

  The day Keira arrived, the snow had melted and they were enjoying a rare sunny day during the winter. King Atheron had commanded that everything be in place to hold a reception and dinner on the day the sorcerer arrived, so Dakota, Bramwell, and Kelton were awoken early in the morning by Penelope, Houston, and River, who informed them the reception was to be that afternoon, followed by dinner.

  All the descendants of King Reginald would be there, along with the women they’d chosen from the other world, plus all the Council members and several other members of the royal family and nobility who lived at the castle.

  There was no time during the day to do anything other than try on dresses that Penelope had brought to Dakota’s room during the past week. She’d known this day would come, but hadn’t chosen a dress because her princes kept her quite busy with other matters.

  Now she had to choose one, so she finally decided on chocolate-brown with cream-colored insets. The inset in the skirt featured tiny flowers set against a pale yellow background. She thought it went well with her coloring, and Penelope agreed.

  When the men saw her dressed and ready, her hair swept up and held in place with combs that matched the dress, and matching slippers as well, they both went slack-jawed. She couldn’t stop staring at the sight of them in full royal regalia, including gold-trimmed waistcoats and polished black boots. They were stunning, and more handsome than she’d ever seen them look.

  Kelton held out his arm. “Are you ready for this?”

  “As ready as I’ll ever be, Sire.”

  Dakota had already met Abigail, Jarrett, Colton, Brenna, Jaxon, Parker, Chelsea, Roland, Archer, and Denver, as well as Angela and Austin, and looked forward to spending time again with the three women from her world.

  She, Bramwell, and Kelton met the others in the ballroom, and Dakota stood in a circle with the women to talk while the men did the same with each other. Angela and Austin were with a servant for the evening, and Chelsea told them the babies were growing so quickly she could barely keep up.

  Brenna and Abigail both glowed, and Dakota found herself jealous of their pregnancies. Kelton and Bramwell hadn’t mentioned children again, and she didn’t want to be the one to bring it up. She’d only been here three weeks. She wanted them to reach that state in their own time, but she was so in love with both of them it was ridiculous. Every day, several times a day, the words were there, ready to slip out.

  “How are things going?” asked Chelsea, who looked spectacular in a royal-blue dress with pale cream trim.

  “With the men?”

  She rolled her eyes. “Yes, of course with the men.”

  “I’m sore in all the right places, and all I think about is sex.”

  The women laughed and nodded with knowing grins on their faces.

  “The twins are only six months old and all three keep asking me when I’m going to be pregnant again.”

  “Well,” said Brenna, “when are you?”

  They laughed again, and Abigail placed both hands over her abdomen. “This one isn’t due for four months and those two want to know how long I’ll have to wait to have another one. I told them two years, minimum, and they believed me until the midwife told them differently.”

  “I told them I wasn’t having any more as a joke,” said Brenna, “and they both looked so much like lost puppies that I almost cried.”

  “So you’re happy?” asked Dakota. “I mean, really happy…all three of you? Being here and having their children?”

  “Yes.” They spoke together, and one look at each of their faces told Dakota she had nothing to fear. These women were as blissful as any she’d known back home who had children with the man they loved. Some things were indeed the same in both worlds.

  “Do you three think your pregnancies have anything do with breaking this curse? Penelope told me there are all sorts of legends.”

  “I’ve heard that, too,” said Chelsea, “but Roland, Archer, and Denver didn’t know much about the legends. I’m hoping Keira will clear all that up tonight.”

  Trumpets blared, and Dakota walked over to join her princes, while Chelsea, Brenna, and Abigail each went to join theirs. Everyone faced the front of the room where a stage had been set up. King Atheron and Queen Marissa came out first, waving to everyone as cheers erupted around the room.

  Atheron stepped up to the microphone and asked everyone to welcome Keira, and then the applause was polite but quiet as the tall, dark-haired beauty stepped onto the stage. She didn’t look comfortable in front of a crowd, but when she began to speak, her intelligence and seriousness for this matter shone through her words and on her face.

  “Thank you for the gracious welcome, Your Majesties.” She bowed to both Atheron and Marissa, and then took the microphone out of its stand and paced the stage slowly as she continued. “I am descended from a long line of sorcerers and seers, and can trace my lineage back to before the curse was placed on your men. Our kingdom has experience and skill in dealing with these kinds of curses, and well as the type of magick infused into the portraits through the power of ash wood.”

  She eyed the descendants of Reginald in the room, identifiable this evening by the red ribbons they each wore on their left shoulders. “The same magick is in each of you not because of the paintings themselves, but because of the spell placed on the entire forest by the sorcerer who assisted King Reginald. Every ash tree in it contains the same magick. As long as the frames for the new portraits are made from an ash tree on your land, the spell is part of the portraits. The same spell passes to each of you in the same way the curse from Enfield passes to every woman in this land.”

  “How do we break it?” asked Atheron. “The curse from Enfield. How do we lift it?”

  “Enfield’s power has already been weakened because several women from the other world are with child or have already borne them.”

  An excited murmur passed through the crowd. The legends must be true!

  “However, at the same time, your own people strengthened the curse unknowingly each time they took a bride from Wythmail, and with each passing year that you allowed Enfield to gain power over you by deceit and betrayal from within your own walls.”

  No one spoke. Dakota didn’t even dare breathe. Was she talking about the fact that they had faked bloodlines, or did she refer to the Council members and their family members who had betrayed them?

  “That is why the curse lingers. Both because you ignored the signs of treachery within your own walls, and because you falsified your bloodlines.”

  She stopped and eyed the crowd again, letting that sink in. Dakota watched Atheron and Marissa, their heads bent together, speaking too low for anyone to hear.

  “Now your bloodlines are mixed, so the curse is very powerful. But King Reginald’s descendants hold magick that is not only just as powerful, but borne from a pure reason. Reginald did not set out to curse anyone or falsify his ancestry. He asked for power, but not to cause harm to another.”

  Excited chatter erupted, and Keira waited for it to die down before continuing. “The curse placed on you by Enfield was powerful, but evil. It was designed to wipe you out, and for that reason, it can be defeated.”

  She cut her gaze toward their king and bow
ed slightly. “May I speak freely, Majesty?”

  “Please do.”

  “Even though mixing your bloodlines and producing documents to try to trick Enfield into believing they were still pure has been your practice for centuries, this curse can be lifted. Although you ignored the threat inside your own walls and allowed the citizens of Enfield to infiltrate as high as your Council and castle guards, they can be banished from your kingdom forever.”

  More excited chatter broke out, and again she waited for it to die down before speaking. “As I said earlier, because Reginald’s descendants have now begun to bear children with the women from the other world, using the magick in the portraits and within yourselves for good, not trickery or evil, you have weakened the power of the curse considerably. All that remains left to do to break it forever is one thing.”

  She paused to eye the crowd, and a shiver ran down Dakota’s spine.

  “You must banish Enfield as kingdom and as a people. It is not enough to build a wall and rid your kingdom of the ones who have infiltrated it, or rid this castle of those who betrayed you. Enfield has enemies on all sides now. I have spoken with the delegates from Dearth and they are strong enough, and have more than enough numbers to kill every man, woman, and child beyond that wall if they wanted to.”

  Dakota grasped Kelton’s hand on her left and Bramwell’s on her right. Would it really come to that?

  “For now, they have assured me they will not do that unless my suggestion fails. I have persuaded them to allow me to work with their sorcerers and seers, as well as sorcerers and seers from other kingdoms who oppose Enfield and their wicked ways. Together, we will place a spell on their borders. You will have no further need of the wall, although tearing it down is at the discretion of your king.”

  “What will this spell do?” asked Marissa.

  “It will prevent their citizens from ever leaving their borders, and it will endure for all time. It will also prevent anyone from entering the kingdom. It will be as if it does not exist. They are self-sustaining, so will not die out, and they have the Great Lake to provide them with fish as well as water when the rains are not sufficient to meet their needs. Their trade with other kingdoms will cease. Their ability to spread evil and curse other kingdoms will be gone, and the curse on this kingdom, in addition to the ones they have placed on others, will also cease.”

  She eyed the crowd for a few moments, which had gone deathly silent as if everyone in the room was afraid to believe this could be true. “Your men will no longer need to take brides from Wythmail because your women will no longer be unable to conceive.”

  “What of King Reginald’s descendants and the portraits?” asked Marissa. “Can those women ever return to their world?”

  Keira frowned. “Your Majesty, I now realize that may not be possible after all. I am attempting to find a way that they can at least send word, even if they cannot physically return. I have since learned that the magick in the portraits was never meant to be a two-way portal. King Reginald wanted the women to stay here for the remainder of their lives. Because I can only imagine how distressing it is for those left behind, I will continue to try to find a way to send word back that the women are alive and well.”

  “Thank you.”

  Kelton squeezed Dakota’s hand and leaned close to whisper in her ear. “Are you all right hearing that?”

  “Yes, Sire.” She gazed into his beautiful eyes. “My place is here with you and Prince Bramwell. It is enough to know there is hope to send word.”

  The look he gave her was nothing short of love, and her heart skipped a beat. It was right on the tip of her tongue to say it, but this was hardly the time or place. She would wait until later, and then she would tell them. They had to know, and she needed to hear them say the words said back to her. She’d waited long enough.

  Chapter Fourteen

  Keira asked if anyone had questions, and most of the people in the crowd who asked them merely reiterated what Atheron and Marissa had already asked. When they were finished, the servants were directed to the buffet lines set up around the perimeter of the ballroom. Kelton and Bramwell led Dakota to a table where they sat with Abigail, Brenna, Chelsea and their princes to wait for their maids and valets to bring them food. Other servants went from table to table, bringing drinks to everyone.

  They talked about everything Keira had said, and Jarrett remarked how happy his father must be that it would not come to open war with Enfield after all.

  “How do you think Dearth will feel about that?” asked Roland. “I believe they were looking forward to the fight.”

  “Keira said they have assured her they will not invade Enfield,” said Archer.

  “If they still want to invade them, that’s their prerogative,” said Denver. “Our curse has nothing to do with that.”

  “They wanted to invade them because Enfield tried to curse them as well,” said Parker. “It is what we should have done three thousand years ago.”

  “The delegates from Dearth are in this room,” said Jaxon. “I’m sure after they heard what Keira had to say, they’ll hold true to their word and decide that invasion is no longer necessary. Enfield’s power will be neutralized for all eternity.”

  “The entire kingdom of Enfield has fewer citizens than the number of soldiers in Dearth’s army,” said Jarrett.

  “Didn’t Keira say no one will be able to enter Enfield?” asked Dakota. “They won’t be able to invade them if that’s true, right?”

  Kelton and Bramwell smiled at her.

  “What she says is true,” said Kelton. “If this spell works, there will be no need for any kingdom to worry over invading Enfield.”

  “What do you think will happen with those still hiding in the villages who betrayed us?” asked Abigail.

  “I would say they had better make it into Enfield before Keira casts the spell,” said Colton, “or they won’t be able to return at all.”

  “Do you think she’ll find a way for us to send word home?” asked Brenna, her voice small and quiet.

  Parker placed a hand on her back and Jaxon placed one on her shoulder. “Even if she cannot,” said Parker, “our sorcerers will keep trying to do that now that the suggestion it is possible has been made.”

  She gave him a look filled with so much gratitude and love that Dakota couldn’t stand it anymore. She should have told Kelton and Bramwell how she felt by now. Why had she waited? What was she afraid of? It was obvious how they felt toward her. They showed that every single day in their touch, their words, and the look in their eyes.

  Penelope, River, and Houston returned to the table with food for all three of them, and she made small talk with the others as she ate, but her mind wasn’t on anything except confessing to Bramwell and Kelton that she was in love with them. Nothing else tonight would give her peace, no matter what their reactions were.

  Keira went from table to table after she ate, sitting with each group for a few moments. Dakota really had no questions for her, but it would be rude to ask Bramwell and Kelton if they could leave before she got to their table.

  Keira had laid it all out for them, and unless she could figure out a way for her and the others to send word back, at the very least they were no worse off than before. Did the others at this table feel the same way?

  As she watched Chelsea, Brenna, and Abigail, she realized these three women were blissfully happy, and that was what she wanted, too. They had accepted this world as their home. Why couldn’t she do the same? She couldn’t imagine leaving Bramwell and Kelton. Not ever. And they couldn’t go back with her. What was stopping her from being as content as the other three women at this table?

  They’d eaten their fill and had talked about every subject imaginable. Penelope, River, and Houston had joined the other servants to have their dinner after Bramwell, Kelton, and Dakota told them they were fine and had everything they needed.

  Dakota wasn’t sure she’d ever get used to having someone wait on her hand and foot, b
ut the servants weren’t mistreated and it was all they knew, just as being princes of this land was all Bramwell and Kelton knew.

  Finally, Keira approached their table. The men stood, and then Kelton pulled out the chair they’d secured for her earlier, placing it between him and Dakota. She suspected he’d done that on purpose, and she loved him even more for taking her needs into consideration once more.

  Keira took the seat between Dakota and Kelton and glanced around the table at each of them in turn with a sharp gaze, as if she were looking into their hearts. Up close, she was stunning. Her caramel-colored skin and high cheekbones, plus the turquoise and silver jewelry she wore reminded Dakota of the Southwest.

  After Keira finished looking them over, she smiled warmly and then shocked Dakota by placing a hand on her arm. “You’re very troubled right now, unsure of something monumental in your life. How long has it been since you’ve crossed over?”

  Dakota imagined her anxiety showed on her face, so she wasn’t all that impressed with the assessment, but she couldn’t deny the odd tingle going up her arm at Keira’s touch. “Three weeks.”

  Keira gave Kelton and Bramwell each a long glance. “These are the princes who chose you.”

  Had someone told her that, or had she surmised it because Dakota had been sitting in between them when she’d approached their table? “Yes, they are.”

  Keira gave her a soft smile. “May I speak freely?”

  No. “Yes, of course. As long as Their Highnesses are all right with that.”

  “Absolutely,” said Kelton.

  “By all means,” said Bramwell.

  Dakota resisted the urge to kick them both under the table.

  Keira took her hand and Dakota’s eyes widened as she felt the power pass into her from this woman. Keira closed her eyes, and Dakota almost pulled her hand away, but curiosity got the better of her. When Keira opened her eyes again, Dakota didn’t want to hear what she had to say. This wasn’t a carnival act. She’d seen enough of them and knew the difference. This woman was the real deal.