A Kiss of Fire

by Jacquelyn Frank

  Sin,

  On the day of this letter, an attempt was made on my life. The guard Mordol was sent to kill me. The only reason I am not dead is because an agent of Saren came in at an opportune moment.

  I believe that assassin was sent by the only person who would have anything to gain by my death. Your brother. I do not have proof positive of this, only my instincts. I pray that you get this warning and heed it. I do not think you are safe. If he is willing to kill me to protect his inheritance, he is not above hastening that inheritance’s arrival.

  I am sorry to leave you like this. If I could have, I would have said goodbye to you. But we both know you never would have let me go willingly.

  In truth, it is not easy for me to leave. Know that. Know that, if it weren’t for the needs of my people, I would have stayed.

  Ariana

  Sin’s eyes were burning as he read these last lines. She would have stayed. Had it not been for her people, she would have stayed. Those words of the letter meant more to him, had greater impact on him, than the warning of his brother’s potential treachery. But to think he had endangered her life by bringing her there…oh, he had known there was the potential for danger. That was why he had had a persistent guard on her even when he had begun to trust she would not try to escape him. But she had escaped him. At the first opportunity. He had been right. Her people had meant more to her. He was torn between feeling betrayed by that fact and understanding it wholly. Rereading the letter, he walked to his study door and spoke softly to the guard standing there.

  “Bring Lindo to me,” he said.

  The guard nodded and hurried away to do his bidding.

  Lindo arrived a short while later, and by then he had read the letter over a dozen times. He handed the letter over to Lindo and the other man read it quickly. Lindo ignored the sentiment and aimed right for what he felt was important.

  “She levels a serious accusation at your brother. But can we trust the word of a Saren woman who was bent on escape? One who didn’t want to be here?”

  “She wanted to be here,” Sin said sharply. “She says as much.”

  “If she wanted to be here then she would have stayed,” Lindo said simply.

  “It is not so simple,” he said with a sigh. “We can trust her words. If she says an attempt was made on her life, I believe her.”

  “Are you…are you certain? This is your brother and heir we are talking about. She says herself she had no proof.”

  “But she is also right. There is only one person who would feel threatened by her enough to order her death. Vich knew she was mine. Knew we had become lovers. Hells, we didn’t exactly hide it. He knew I had every intention of making her my wife. It was only a matter of time before she would conceive a son…”

  He trailed off as he thought of all the things that might have been. If only they had been different people, this all would have been so much easier. Then again, if they had been in any way different, their passion would never have burned so brightly.

  “So what do we do now?”

  “Now we find out what my brother really thinks of me.”

  “You want me to read his thoughts?”

  “His entourage has two powerful Jadocs, one of whom rivals you. I do not know if you will be able to read him.”

  “I will if we can separate him from those Jadocs. But how will we do that? Your brother is cunning. If he is thinking murderous thoughts toward you, he will not allow himself to go unprotected for even a second. Not with me present in the room.”

  “I could order him separated from his Jadocs.”

  “Then he would know you suspect him and he will school his thoughts.”

  “I have an idea,” Sin said suddenly. “He may not expose himself to me and to you, but he will not be afraid of exposure to our mother, who has no majical ability.”

  “Will your mother play along? This is her son we are talking about.”

  Sin grimaced. “My mother knows the kind of man my brother is and, while she prefers not to take sides, in this she will take part. If only to prove Vich’s innocence.”

  “You will tell her why then?”

  “I will. She will have to bring him alone to a place where you can observe his thoughts, and she will have to ask him questions that will incite poisonous thoughts…if indeed he has any.”

  “Then she should ask him to walk about in the gardens. We can hide in the copse that hid Ariana’s rescuers so well. She can bring him to the point just before it. She should send him a note, rather than ask him to join her in person, so that no Jadoc can read her mind and put Vich on his guard against her,” Lindo said.

  “A good idea. Very well…let’s do it.”

  Raj Vich walked out into the frigid gardens with impatience. His mother’s note had been enigmatic and strange. She had asked him to come and meet her in the gardens alone. It was much too cold and miserable to be out in his opinion, so it was clear his mother wanted to meet clandestinely for a reason. What that reason was was beyond him.

  He saw her pacing before a stand of trees and he hurried up to her.

  “Well, what is it that has you calling me out here in this godforsaken place?” he demanded of her irritably.

  “A warning,” she said.

  Vich’s brow raised. “A warning?”

  “Your brother knows you sent Mordol to kill the Saren woman.”

  Vich felt his stomach drop. That was impossible! How would he know that? “I am certain you are mistaken,” he said cautiously. “I know nothing of which you speak.”

  “You did not send Mordol to kill the Saren woman?”

  “No Mother, of course not.”

  “Then you have no designs on your brother’s throne?”

  Designs? Of course he had designs. He had been the one to arrange that little meeting in the wilds between Sin and the bandits. They had been commanded to shoot first and give no opportunity for either to escape them. For all he had known, the Saren woman was already breeding his brother’s child. And with that would come the end of his inheritance. As long as Lindo, the Jadoc who was always in Sin’s pocket, was around, there was no way of getting close to him. His daily rides with the woman alone were the only opportunity to gain advantage and see them both killed. But they had failed him. The only thing in his favor had been that none of them had survived to be questioned. That and the fact that Sin was laid up with an injury that allowed Vich to exercise his rightful role as leader of his people. His brother was weak…allowing a woman to rule his head. He did not deserve his crown. He proved that with every action he took. The only thing he’d managed to do of any worth was to gain land for them. But he had settled for too little at too great a price. Had it been Vich in charge, he would have brought the Sarens to their knees and taken everything they had wanted. They would have gained the entire Triagle Territory…doubling their country’s size, and done it at little to no cost to the Kiltian people.

  The only way to fix the problem was to take his brother’s place as leader. Now that the Kiltians had occupied much of the new land, it would be impossible for the Sarens to retake the land and they would stop paying the yearly tithe. There was no way for them to enforce the tithe. They could not afford to go to war again, now could they? They had proven that by not bringing war to their doorstep over the capture of the Saren woman. Instead they had simply recaptured her for themselves at little to no cost for themselves.

  He was glad they had taken her back. It would have been better had she been killed. Knowing his brother, he would not rest until he had her back, but if his mind was preoccupied with getting the woman back, that would leave him exposed to other attempts on his life…which Vich would see were made. But each attempt risked exposure. Each attempt had to be carefully planned.

  He realized he was taking too long to answer his mother, so he hastened to say, “Of course not, Mother. I know my place.”

  “Do you? Because you often speak out against your brother. You try and undermine him at every
opportunity—“

  “Mother, I only try to point out the ways in which he can improve his reign. If I did not question him then who would? He would become a careless dictator with no one to keep him in check. I do what I do to make a better ruler of him.”

  “I have always thought this to be so. I am glad to hear you say it.”

  “Of course. You fret over nothing. If someone has made scurrilous accusations against me then I will meet them face to face and prove to my brother I mean him no ill will.”

  He would have to make certain his Jadoc were with him at all times. In fact, he very suddenly felt exposed. He backed away from his mother.

  “If you will excuse me, Mother, I will find my brother and confront him. I do not want him to think I have anything to hide.”

  “Your brother will no doubt find you first. And he will be glad to hear you mean him no harm.”

  “He can be assured of it.”

  Schooling his thoughts, Vich took his leave of his mother. He kept his thoughts perfectly controlled until he was back within reach of his Jadoc compatriots.

  Little did he know it was far too late already.

  A part of Sin was crushed by his brother’s betrayal. Sure, they had had their differences over time. Many differences. In fact, they had constantly disagreed on how things should be done. But Sin had always thought that that was his brother’s way of making him a better ruler. Much in the way he had claimed to their mother. It was one of the reasons why he had always allowed him free voice against him in public as well as in private. He had not wanted to be surrounded only by people who would agree with him on every point.

  In the end he had felt they were brothers. Family. There for one another when it was most needed. To think that his brother had taken his animosity so far as to make attempts on his life and on Ariana’s was unforgivable.

  Especially because of the danger to Ariana. The threat to himself was inconsequential to the danger Vich had put Ariana in.

  Ariana.

  He owed her a great debt. If not for her he would never have known to look to his brother for the source of the danger they had been in. Now, what to do next? He obviously had to remove the threat, but how? Imprison his brother? Kill him? His brother had a loyal following of subjects, those who disagreed with Sin as well on many topics. He could be excommunicating himself from them by taking such a drastic action. And what of Vich’s wives and children? Could he deprive them of their husband and father?

  He would not kill his brother. He would not do to him what his brother had planned to do to Sin. He would not sink to that level. He would imprison his brother until such time as he felt his thoughts were reformed. Until his goals became pure again. Several years without freedom should see it done. In the meantime, Sin would take a wife and create an heir.

  But for that he needed Ariana back.

  For no other woman would do.

  Just as he was about to arrest his brother, his brother disappeared. Somehow he had gotten wind of the coming arrest and had made his escape. But Sin’s trackers were hot on his heels. It was only a matter of time before they caught up with him. His brother was used to living a comfortable life. He would not do well in the rough cold country he would now call home. He would give up and come back and live imprisoned in luxury. It was only a matter of time.

  So that left one other thing to contend with.

  Ariana.

  He had to get her back. But he knew this time there would be no hope of taking her the way he had before. He had to come up with another way. But he couldn’t go after her in any way until he was healed and his brother was caught. He couldn’t leave his kingdom unattended, and with his brother no longer able to take over for him, that left the running of the country to his mother in his absence.

  He would go after her. He couldn’t bear a future without her. He loved her. He had loved her for so long. Hadn’t she seen that? Didn’t it mean anything to her that he would devote himself to her entirely? That he would do anything for her? The only thing he wouldn’t do was exactly what he was asking her to do. To give up her kingdom. It was an untenable situation. What was the solution? There had to be a way.

  He hoped he would find the answer by the time he was healed enough to go after her.

  Chapter Twenty-Four

  Ariana walked through the capitol building, impervious to the cold in temperature but unable to get warm all the same. There was something cold and bereft inside of her, as though a part of her was missing.

  She didn’t have to think hard as to why that was.

  She had been back home for a month and every day she wondered what he was doing. Had he healed? Was he missing her? Was he safe from his brother?

  Was he coming after her?

  They had ridden hard and long, the travel bleak and wearying on the way back. By the time they had arrived she was saddle-sore and bone weary. Mariah, who had never sat a horse, had fared little better.

  As they had ridden home Dendri had told her of her sister’s maneuvering, how she had made moves that might threaten the Saren people with civil war. How hungry for power she was.

  News of Ariana being alive and well had reached the Saren capitol in advance of her, but her sister had refused to believe the reports of a lone messenger. The message was almost two weeks old, she had said. For all she knew Ariana was dead since then at the hands of the barbarian raja.

  Ariana had arrived in Capitol City shortly after. She had not even taken a moment to herself, to regain her strength after her hard journey. She had called her sister to her in front of Mason and Jutsin.

  Gretha had been commanded to appear before the triumvirate without being told the reason why. When she arrived she saw Jutsin and Mason.

  “I assume you have called me here so precipitously because you have come to realize recovering my sister is impossible? That it is time for me to take my seat among you as triumvir?”

  “Triumvirate means three, Gretha. And we three are all here.”

  Ariana had made the remark as she had stepped out of the shadows. Gretha had gasped and her eyes went wide in shock. Then color flushed over her, fury building in her eyes. It took a great, monumental effort, but Gretha got herself under control enough to say woodenly, “Sister! How good it is to see you! And you are unscathed. To be honest I had not thought it possible you would survive being the guest of that barbarian.”

  “He is no more a barbarian than you are,” Ariana said icily.

  Gretha took it as an insult.

  “I am nothing like that beast! And look at you! You are thin and pale. You are certainly worse for wear since leaving here.” She said it as though leaving had been a conscious action for Ariana. “No doubt he ravaged you with his savage attentions. I am sorry to see you so abused, Sister.”

  “I am not abused. In fact, I was quite well taken care of during my stay in the Kiltian court. If I am thin it is from traveling the hard road back.” She had not had much appetite since leaving Sin…not that they had had the luxury of stopping to take decent meals. Not until they had gotten closer to Capitol City.

  “I am glad to hear that,” Gretha said, not sounding very glad at all.

  “Well, you see I am alive and well before you. You have no further claims to your inheritance. And let me say this,” she said carefully. “If I ever think that you are doing anything that would serve this country ill, I will disinherit you.”

  “You can’t do that!” Gretha exploded. “This is my right by blood and law!”

  “Laws can be changed. I am triumvir. I make the laws,” Ariana said, her voice cold and final. “And my blood tie to you grown thinner by the second. You couldn’t wait to declare me dead and buried, making not even the slightest effort to recover me.”

  “I knew Felone and Hittite were doing everything in their power to find you. Any efforts I made would have been superfluous. I was staying out of their way.”

  “Very far out of their way,” Ariana said bitterly. “But that doesn’t mat
ter now. Now that I have seen your true colors. I must consider carefully where I will leave my part of this triumvirate if indeed something should happen to me.”

  “Ariana you cannot take my inheritance from me! It is my right!”

  “As I said, I can do whatever I want,” Ariana said, her tone flat.

  “I will fight you on this!”

  “You will fail.”

  “We’ll see if anyone wants to follow you now that you have been that Kiltian savage's whore!”

  That brought Ariana’s temper up short. She gritted her teeth and stepped into her sister’s personal space.

  “You say that as if you have personal knowledge of what has transpired between Raja Sin and myself.”

  “She does,” Dendri Adiron said from the corner of the room he had been standing in. He was scruffy looking and just as weary from the journey as she was, but she had begged him to stay for her meeting with her sister before giving him leave to see his wife and child. And this was why. “She has had a report from the Kiltian court that you and Raja Sin were lovers. Voluntary lovers, rather than a victim of forced copulation. She knew you were alive and well before coming here. That you were, indeed, flourishing in the Kiltian court.”

  “And yet you came here intent on taking my place as my heir as if I were dead. Your power mongering knows no bounds Gretha. I have heard enough. I know what action to take.”

  “You can take no action! You have no other heirs. There is no one else!”

  “For now. But perhaps it is time I took a mate and had a child. A child that would be heir to all that I have.”

  “A mate.” Gretha scoffed. “Who will have you now that you’ve been sullied by that Kiltian beast?”

  Ariana did not dignify her remarks with a response. She turned her back on her sister and waved a hand of dismissal. Two guards came and escorted Gretha from the building.