I scrambled to my feet, mortification burning my skin.
Holy shit.
“Don’t touch me- ever again!” I had never felt so out of control in my life.
“As I said, you are affected. We shall keep our distance.” He gestured to the scrape on my hand. “I’ll escort you to the infirmary to have this treated.”
I walked next to him in silence, still unsettled by his ability to knock me senseless with only his touch. As we reached the interior of the castle, I stopped moving, turning to him. “Are there more… creatures… like you?”
“Yes,” he answered easily, waiting for me to continue into the castle.
“Is Will… a creature?”
He sighed deeply. “Will is an immortal. Define ‘creature.’”
Did I offend him?
“I’m sorry… I just meant…,”
“This way,” he gestured toward the atrium, and I looked down, following him.
I’ll ask Grandfather.
In the infirmary, Eric waited until Will arrived before bowing to me and leaving. I tried to smooth down my hair and sit up straighter as Will rushed to my side, gathering my hand in his.
“I’m really fine. I just overreacted because it wasn’t healing-…,”
“You were obstinate with Eric’s instruction?”
Rigidly, I pulled my hand away. “Is that what he told you?”
“Eva, if you wish to learn, you must pay attention to training.” He tenderly brushed my thigh, and I shifted away. “How is your leg?”
“It’s healing. And I don’t want to work with Eric anymore.”
He softened, pulling me against his chest as a nurse wheeled a silver tray covered with antiseptic and bandages toward me. “Because he reported your behavior to me?”
“No, because he’s a… mythical seal, and every time he touches me, I turn into some kind of… um...,”
My words barely left my lips before Will moved to his feet, snapping at the nurse. “Leave us.”
“Yes, your majesty.”
“Will! That was rude-…,”
“How and where did he touch you?”
“Just to measure my arms for the bow, and then he put his hand on my face. That was it.” I stood as well, lifting my eyes to his urgent gaze.
“I will instruct you going forward, and will speak to Eric.”
“Why didn’t you tell me that there were… other beings in this castle? That your father collected these beings to fight in the army?”
He lowered his face to my ear, whispering quickly against my skin.
“My father has kept these creatures detained in the dungeons; few in the kingdom know of their existence. Many of these beings are evil and unpredictable. He found that he couldn’t control them without magic. Eric and I became friends when I was kept imprisoned, and I trust him for reasons that I need not explain to you, Eva. However, given our new arrangement… I have no intention of allowing him to put his hands on you, in any way.”
I nodded quickly, reaching for him with my uninjured hand. Pressing my fingers against his cheek, I met his fevered gaze.
“Will, I don’t want him. I told you that.” He caught my wrist and pulled my hand away from his cheek. “And even with whatever magic he has… he doesn’t make me feel the way that you make me feel… when you just look at me.”
His blue eyes clouded over, and he exhaled slowly. “Nevertheless, Eric will keep his distance. Nurse,” he called, and the woman hurried back to my side, curtsying to us both. “Thank you for attending to the queen. Eva,” he turned to me. “You’ll meet Valerie in your room in twenty minutes.”
“Etiquette,” I remembered, saluting him playfully. “And thank you for my note this morning. I like notes.”
A tired smile forced his cheeks into attractive dimples that I’d never noticed until then, and he caught my saluting hand, rolling his eyes. “Then I shall write you one each morning, my queen.”
“That would be awesome, my lord.”
He laughed, nodding once before leaving me to the nurse.
Chapter Twelve
“Wait until you have finished chewing your food before taking a sip of your drink,” Valerie reminded me, smiling gently.
I pulled my hand away from the water, exhaling through my nose. “I know I have food in my mouth, but I can’t wait to ask you something.”
“Yes, your majesty.”
“How old are you?”
She lowered her eyes. “I shall be seventeen in two months.”
“So what do you do for fun around here?” I reached for the glass of water, finally swallowing the last of the gigantic bite of the salad I’d taken. “Do you have… parties?”
She adjusted her long braid, and I admired her perfectly arched eyebrows. Her dark, brown skin was flawless, and I doubted she wore any make-up at all. “Parties?”
“Music, dancing… you know, hang out. Parties.”
“There are celebrations held for various occasions.”
“Oh.” I dropped the knife and fork to my plate and sat back. The scrape on my hand was irritating beneath the white bandage.
“Place the utensils parallel on your plate. Like so,” she adjusted my fork and knife, turning my knife inward.
“Valerie, I’m finished. We still have a half an hour.”
“That is due to the speed at which you consume your food, your majesty.”
I turned to her sharply, and I almost giggled at the struggle on her lips. Grinning, I finally burst out laughing. “How did you get stuck with this job?” I asked, relaxing at her lighthearted smile.
“His majesty felt we would be fast friends, your majesty.”
“Call me Eva,” I offered, sliding my chair back.
Waiting for her to protest, I warmed as she nodded once. “Please call me Val, Eva.”
“Val. I love it. Let’s get out of here, before I do something incredibly rude.”
Laughing with relief, she shrugged her delicate shoulders. “Where shall we go?” Her eyes darted to the door. “His majesty will come soon to escort you to your grandfather, so we must be back here in time.”
I considered my options. Finally, I reached for her hand. “I want to see a bedroom, just down the hall. It’s locked, I think, but I can get in,” I hurried to the vanity in the bathroom, digging through a drawer for a long hair pin.
“Oh, no, Eva,” I watched her shake her head, nervously staring at the door. “Not your mother’s room.”
“Come on, just come with me. Please. You have to be curious. Who keeps a room locked up for almost two years? Or fourteen?” I hurried into the hallway, and Val trailed behind me, chewing her fingernail. The guards outside my door followed us, and I ignored them completely.
“His majesty sealed this room for reasons we may not speak of.”
“I know, but this was my mother’s room, and I have a right to see it.” I crouched next to the doorknob, investigating the strange style. Peering inside the keyhole, I saw a simple tension wrench. “Oh this is simple.”
“Your majesty,” one guard finally spoke, but I gave him a dismissive glance.
“It’s fine,” I silenced him with a wave of my hand, wondering if I’d someday have Will’s commanding power over people.
“We should go back-…,”
“There.” I heard the sound I was waiting for, and the heavy, wooden door moved easily as I turned the brass knob and pushed. “Come on!”
The room before me had a similar arrangement to the room I was given; bed against the right wall, door with a balcony straight ahead, table to my left, chest to my immediate right, and a vanity in the far, left corner. All the furniture was heavy and dark. The bathroom door was shut, and the intense, blood-red drapes were drawn closed. A high backed, burgundy velvet chair was placed next to the window, near the balcony.
“This bed is disturbing,” I narrowed my eyes at the black wood; the carvings were some type of abstract design, with horn-like shapes curving inward again and again.
I turned to Val; she stood in the open doorway, unwilling to move.
“Come on.”
She took a step in, glancing back at the guards for a moment. Once she was finally inside, I nodded to the guards before slamming the door in their faces.
“Look at the gowns,” Val breathed, gesturing to the armoire. “So beautiful.”
“They’re so long… and heavy,” I lifted the skirt of a dark green gown, shocked at the weight of the fabric. “And… dusty.”
“The balcony door is stuck,” she pulled at the door, finally giving up. “It’s been sealed.”
“What’s wrong with this wall?” I slid my hands over the stone near the bed, kneeling to the floor. “There are scratches in the wall… so many, they go all the way back behind the headboard.”
“Look at this,” Val called from the vanity, eyeing a hair clip in her hands. “It’s a flower, covered in jewels…,”
“I have one like this,” I reached for the diamond and emerald flower, a chill creeping over my shoulders and running down my back. “My mother gave me a clip exactly like this… when I was a child.”
“Beautiful.”
I closed my eyes, cringing at the snippets of the memory fighting through. A strange room, filled with… swords? Violet and Logan…
My mother?
“We should leave,” Val turned toward the bathroom door, and then back to me. “I am uncomfortable here.”
“Hold on,” I walked to the table near the door, eyeing the three books on the table. Biography of an Immortal King.
“Eva!”
“Shit.” I dropped the book from my hands, watching the door fly open and bang against the wall. Valerie bowed, her braid falling over her shoulders as she tried to shield her terrified eyes. “Hey, Will.”
“I cannot believe you.” He pointed to the hallway, and Valerie rushed ahead of me in a flash of gown and fear. I sauntered to Will, depositing my hands to my hips.
“Excuse me? There’s nothing in here but a few gowns and furniture. This was my mother’s room. I had a right to see it.”
“You disobeyed my orders, Eva. Again. Already, you’ve riled Eric, disregarded his instruction and harmed yourself, and now you’ve broken into this locked room and defied my explicit instructions.”
“Thank you for the recap, but I have to get to moving on to magic lessons, so-…,”
The scream, unmistakably my mother’s voice, tore through the room so quickly that I jolted and fell to my knees. Shuddering, I covered my ears and turned to Will. He hurried to me, nearly lifting me into his arms and pushing me into the hallway.
He slammed the door and pointed to the knob, glaring at the guards. “Seal it. No one goes in.”
“What was that? That was my mom’s voice!”
“I told you-…,”
“You told me that there were no ghosts- they were a figure of speech- that-…,”
“That room is cursed. I thought you’d have a difficult time sleeping one room away if you knew that.”
“Damn right I’m not sleeping there! Will, what happened to her? I need to see her!”
“We’re going there. This weekend.” He held his arms open, and I moved to him slowly, pressing my forehead against his chest.
What did she go through? How she must have suffered… for me?
“I feel sick.”
“I will come with you to see your grandfather.”
“Wait,” I backed against the stone wall, sliding down to lower my face to my knees. “I’ve never heard her scream like that.”
His calming voice was closer; he knelt next to me. “What happened to your mother… is not your fault.”
My chest caved inward; tears, a foreign consequence of an unrecognized emotion, fought to escape with a sob that I couldn’t believe came from my own throat. I pressed my knees into my eyes, trying to suppress the unwelcome emotion.
After a losing battle, I gasped, pinching the bridge of my nose with all of my strength.
“Crying is not weakness, Eva,” his voice, now at my side, was barely audible over the screaming pain in my sinuses.
“I don’t cry.”
I let him wrap his arm around me, but remained motionless. “Perhaps we’ll travel back this evening.”
Lifting my face to his, I felt hope replace the crushing despair that weighted on my chest. “Will, if we could do that… it would mean everything to me.”
“Yes, love,” he pressed a kiss to my forehead, lingering longer than I expected. I imagined how ridiculous we must look, the king and queen of the kingdom, sitting in the hallway on the floor. Guards blocked the end of the hall, allowing us our privacy. “Let us see Asher, and then that is enough for today.”
“How much time has passed there?” I whispered the question that had been in the forefront of my mind for the past three days. I couldn’t bring myself to focus on the time I was missing with my family.
“A little over three weeks.”
“Oh… maybe Logan and Violet will be there,” I started to stand, but he caught my hand in his.
“I know that your family means very much to you. If we travel once a week, and stay for only a day, will that be better for you?”
I turned to him, fully realizing the gravity of his offer. He would leave his kingdom for days at a time, allowing the sun to burn full-force while I was at home, hanging out with my parents.
This compassionate, loving man is my husband?
Using all of my strength, I shook my head once, wrapping my arms around him. “I can’t let you do that. I understand… the consequences here.”
When he said nothing, I pulled away, searching for his expression. The sunlight streaming through the hall windows caught his eyes, and I lost myself in the endless shades of heavenly blue.
He brushed my hair away from my cheeks, catching his lips in mine before I could think. The sunshine darkened, the hall disappeared, and Will became my only anchor in the sudden torrent of heart-racing waves consuming me. His breath, so hot against my teeth, caught on an involuntary exhale. He stilled, as if asking for permission, the cinnamon taste of his tongue cooling my rapid breaths.
I pressed my lips impatiently to his, testing his limits, silently begging him to continue with each shaking breath.
Sliding his fingers into my hair, his plunging kiss left me somersaulting into incoherent thoughts. Fire, the most searing exhilaration imaginable, overturned in my stomach and forced me to lean into his arms. I tilted my face and gripped his head, giving him full access to my mouth.
His tongue thrust over and over in a wildly electrifying rhythm, paralyzing me, burning me until I finally moaned, my own tongue searching for his.
He responded to my fervor, holding my face captive beneath his strong, stroking hands.
Weak… I can’t think… The heat drowned my senses, leaving me gasping for air.
“Your majesty!”
A roar erupted from each unlit candelabra in the hallway, fire leaping to the nearby curtains in the hall. Light bulbs sizzled and snapped above our head.
“Eva,” Will burst to his feet, gripping my wrist. “Run,” he broke for the stairwell while guards pulled fire extinguishers from the end of the hall.
“What’s happening!?”
“Down the stairs,” he ordered, and I stumbled over the hem of my gown. He caught me, nearly making it to the bottom of the stairway before Eric appeared.
“Every candelabra in the castle, Will,” he gestured to the great hall. Everywhere, guards worked at dousing the fires, using a combination of water and fire extinguishers. All efforts were futile; the flames only returned as soon as they were drenched.
On my feet, I ran for the exit. Suddenly, Eric was pulling me out of Will’s grasp, gripping my shoulders.
Confusion jumbled my thoughts, and then the same euphoric feeling of Eric’s touch captured my senses, stealing my breath. The shouting around me died down, and all I could feel were Eric’s hands on my neck.
“Release her, Eric.” Will’s threatening voice.
“It is her magic, Will,” he replied, finally setting me free. I gasped, falling against Will weakly. “Something caused her to inadvertently cast this combustion spell. It is over now.”
I turned, taking in the damage around me. Smoke, billowing and wet, ruined beautiful drapery and tapestries; black char stained each wall beneath the candelabras, and the tabletops were scorched beyond repair.
“My God,” he turned toward me, and I shook my head, blinking back tears.
“I couldn’t have done this!”
“It is best we see your grandfather immediately,” he responded, turning back to Eric. “Thank you.”
“Of course.” Eric bowed curtly, casting a knowing glance my way before turning to a group of soldiers near the hall.
“I couldn’t have done this,” I repeated, covering my mouth in disgust.
“Unpredictable magic, in this land, is ruled by emotion. It is evident… that you were pleased with my kiss.”
Realizing what he was implying, I widened my eyes. “This happened… because I kissed you?”
“What were your thoughts during our kiss?”
“I couldn’t think, Will… I could only feel.”
He smirked at that, sliding his hand behind my back and tugging me to his waist. “Excellent answer, wife.”
“But I want to kiss you again… without setting the castle on fire!”
“Which is why we will see Asher now,” he nipped at the tip of my nose with his lips before hugging me to him. “Do not worry about the damage. All repairable.” He stepped back and I watched him do a double-take, his eyebrows knitting.
“What’s wrong?”
“Your eyes… are golden brown.” He caught my chin gently, lifting my face to the sunlight. “They are no longer green.”
I turned toward a humid mirror. My eyes, once exactly the same color as my mother’s, now glowed a familiar amber.
“They change… when I use magic for music… but it never lasts this long…,”
“Hush.” He gently led me toward the doors. “Asher, and then to your family.”
Distracted immediately by thoughts of finally seeing my parents and Christopher, I conceded, following him to my grandfather’s quarters.
Rule (Roam Series, Book Five) Page 11