by A. F. Dery
“It’s possible magic isn’t all bad,” Grace allowed, but he could tell the words were strained.
He would have been surprised if she wasn’t thinking of Rupert.
“We’re almost there,” she added. “I can see buildings. It doesn’t look like anything has been burnt.”
“Do you see people?” he asked in a low voice.
“Not yet…no wait, I do!” He could hear her excitement, though he couldn’t quite share it.
Soon he felt the ground under his feet change to some kind of crushed rock. It crunched underfoot as they walked, and he began to hear the murmur of voices, the far off barking of a dog, the sound of something on wheels being pulled across the rock.
“Still nothing burnt, and lots of people,” Grace murmured. “It must be market day. All the farmers come out if they can, if only to have a drink. Let’s stand over here and watch a while.”
She sounded nervous.
Hadrian said nothing, feeling tense. He was deeply concerned that if they viewed Grace as a traitor, these people she was understandably pleased to see would shortly be turning into an angry mob baying for her death.
“Grace?” he heard a deep male voice call tentatively. “Is that you?”
A moment later Grace’s hand was pulled out of his. He felt a frisson of anxiety and grasped his magic, but whoever had approached them didn’t have enough magic for him to make out. No one in the vicinity did.
He was truly blind. He felt unexpectedly helpless.
“Father,” he heard Grace say, her voice breaking. It sounded muffled, and he hoped they were embracing and not that her father was trying to smother her to death on sight or something.
“Grace?” Hadrian asked worriedly.
“Th-this is my father,” Grace said. She sounded like she was crying. “Oh, you’re alive! I came here expecting…well, not that.”
“Grace, why didn’t you come back? Did you think we wouldn’t help you?” the man asked, sounding concerned. “We thought you were dead, that you had frozen out there.”
“I got lost in the storm,” she said. “I tried to come back, but I couldn’t find my way. Hadrian saved me.”
“This man?” her father asked, surprised. “A mage was in those woods?”
“It’s a long story,” Grace said. Hadrian heard her draw a deep breath. “But Father…I came back intending to make things right, if I can. I ran because I panicked. I never meant for anyone to get hurt, or…or to die. I know I owe something for what I did, and I mean to pay it.”
“Oh Grace,” her father said. “We were all…shocked. That’s the only word for it. We were shocked to hear you ran. No one runs. No one fights. But when you did…well, I wasn’t there, you know that. I was tending the sheep. But I heard when they came back. The other girls…well, when the warlord sent his men after you, they turned on them. There were only six men in all. Some of the girls did get hurt, but none of them died. Well, the warlord and his men weren’t so lucky. There were too many of us, and not enough of them.”
“What?” Grace’s voice came out like a squeak.
“We burned the bodies and their belongings, and set the horses free. Other men came later, when the snow let up, but they couldn’t find them anywhere and no one could believe anything could happen to them in a place like Haevor. The snow had covered all their tracks so it didn’t even look like they’d ever made it here. It seems they think something must have happened to them on their way. They gave up looking pretty quickly. Our lord’s rival is now staking a claim on us, but asking for wool rather than women.” The man let out a dry laugh. “It’s never a good thing to run, Grace, but…I can’t say we were really hurt by it. Good came out of it anyhow. And you’re something like a heroine to the village girls now. No one ever thought to do anything but go along with the tax, until you didn’t. I guess they realized they didn’t want to be next, so why should they?”
Hadrian felt the relief flood him so suddenly he was afraid his legs would go out from under him. She’s fine, she’s safe, we were scared for nothing. He wanted to thank the gods with newfound faith. Someone divine had to have been looking out for her. It could have all so easily gone so very badly.
Grace, however, was silent. Hadrian reached out a hand and found her arm not far from him. His hand on her seemed to startle her back into speech. “Well…good…I mean…I’m relieved…I thought for sure…I was so scared, Father, that they would burn the village down because of what I did. I thought…I thought I would be considered guilty of treason for not going with him.”
“If it had turned out differently, well, you might have been,” her father said somberly. “But…we were wrong to just go along with his demands for so many years, Grace. We see that now. We were acting no smarter than the sheep. It’s not going to happen again, not in Haevor, and no one thinks of you as a traitor. We all thought you were dead though-”
“That’s fine,” Grace interrupted. “I would rather you all keep thinking that, actually. If…if there’s nothing more for me to do here, then Hadrian and I, well…”
“I want to marry your daughter,” Hadrian put in smoothly. “But we’ll live nearer to my people. She didn’t want to accept until she knew if she would be free to marry. Your daughter is an honorable woman, sir.”
“Well, we don’t really have need of her here anymore, she should have been married off years ago,” the man told him gruffly. “I don’t have no dowry for her. But if she wants you, you’re welcome to her.”
Hadrian fought back a frown. He seemed to be letting Grace go very easily. “I understand if you want to talk with me awhile first,” he said slowly. “You barely know me-”
“Odds are, after spending the winter with her and being a mage to boot, you already know her more than well enough,” the man said flatly.
Now Hadrian did frown. Is he implying…? “I’ve been respectful of your daughter’s virtue, sir, if that is your concern. I don’t take what isn’t mine.”
“Her virtue isn’t my concern, that’s what I’m saying. If you want her, then take her. I’m glad she’s not dead, but we have no use for her. I have four other daughters to look after, son.”
Hadrian shook his head in disbelief, but Grace gently pulled her arm free and put her hand in his.
“You heard him. We can make it to the next village over before dusk if we keep walking, then decide where to go from there.” She paused. “Will you…will you tell Mother, at least? That I made it, and I’m happy?”
“Of course,” her father said. “Good luck to you, Grace.”
She thanked him, then they retraced their steps somewhat to walk around, rather than through, the village of Haevor.
Hadrian’s disbelief was turning into anger as they walked. “I can’t believe a man would just hand over his daughter to a stranger,” he grumbled. “And it wasn’t even the first time! He would have just let that warlord have you!”
“He has plenty of daughters,” Grace said dryly. “You heard him. I don’t understand why you’re getting so upset over this. I told you I didn’t matter.”
“I don’t believe that. You clearly mattered to the other girls. They slew a warlord on your behalf, you know.”
“I know, but I can hardly believe it.” After a moment she giggled. “I feel like I could fly away right now if the wind blew. I feel a hundred pounds lighter.”
He smiled in spite of himself. “I can imagine. Do I take this to mean that you’ll keep your word? You’ve done what you came to do, after all. There’s nothing to be ‘paid’ for.”
She stopped at once and he felt her hands touch the side of his face.
“Of course I will,” she said, all laughter gone from her voice. “You know I love you. Are you sure that’s still what you want?”
He took his future wife into his arms in answer, and neither of them felt the cold anymore.
About the Author
A. F. Dery has loved the fantasy romance genre for many years. A voracious reader, when
she had trouble finding the kind of stories she was craving- non-explicit but emotionally engaging romances, in interesting fantasy settings and featuring adult main characters with adult problems and responsibilities- she decided to write her own. She lives in the U.S. and enjoys reading, writing, music, and spending quality time with her family.
Her work includes Fellowship of the Box Bearer, a humorous fantasy novelette, and the Broken Mirrors Duology, a fantasy romance series set in the same world as Winter’s Fallen which includes Broken Mirrors and Broken Lords.
Visit her website at http://afdery.wordpress.com to subscribe to her newsletter and hear about new releases first!