His plans for a trip to Greenfalls took an unexpected turn when he returned to the Warrell mansion to pack some belongings for an overnight stay. He was confident that the palace would not be prepared for him to depart quickly from Stoke, and as a result he wouldn’t find enough daylight time to make the round trip between the two cities, especially if he conversed and explained to Alsman and Eiren all the circumstances of the visit.
He hadn’t anticipated that Coriae would ask to travel to Greenfalls with him.
“I would love to experience this marvelous way you fly across the world,” she gushed. “Amelia told us about how you carried her. And she said it strained you terribly. You’ll have me ready to protect you and fight if you’re too strained from your journey,” she spoke practically.
“I’ve learned how to move in a way that’s easier on me,” Theus explained. “It was easy to carry Eiren from Limber to Greenfalls.”
“So you’ve carried Amelia, and you’ve carried this Eiren, but you don’t want to carry me with you?” Coriae asked in a tone that sounded hurt.
“I didn’t say I didn’t want to take you with me,” he pointed out.
“You go back to the palace and retrieve this letter you’re going to carry, then come back here. I’ll have fresh clothes packed for both of us,” Coriae directed him. “Shall I pack for one night there or two?”
Theus conceded the trip to Coriae, planned it to be a single night in Greenfalls, then walked back to the palace and returned to the administrative offices. The proposed letter was not ready, he was told by the head of the scribes, and he heard arguments going on behind the nearby door as the contents of the letter were debated.
“I’ll go to the armory to practice,” Theus told the doorman. “I’ll be back later to pick up the letter.”
After an hour’s strenuous work in the palace armory, he returned, lathered in perspiration, and sore from his first work out since being injured. He picked up an envelope, and was ushered into a small parlor where Holco joined him.
“You look sweaty, Theus,” the king said with amusement. “I wish I had time to go to the armory and get in some honest practice.
“I hope your friends in Greenfalls are interested in resolving this problem. I would be willing to appoint this priest friend of yours to be the permanent governor if that will help bring us all back to good terms,” he spoke in a low voice.
“I’ll be back tomorrow, and let you know what they say. They’re reasonable people,” Theus said encouragingly.
“Is Coriae going with you?” Holco asked with a grin.
“Yes. How did you know?” Theus asked in surprise.
“She has a maid who apparently gossips quite a bit at the market, and the servants here at the palace believe that the two of you will soon be betrothed, based on all that they hear goes on in that mansion,” the king gave a playful slap to Theus’s shoulder.
“Will you go back to Limber as well?” Holco asked in a more serious tone.
“Probably not on this trip. I need to hurry to Greenfalls and back as quickly as possible so that I can go on to Southsand. Why do you ask?” Theus queried.
“I was wondering if you were going to see your sister. If you did happen to, I was going to ask you to say hello to her on my behalf,” the king replied. “I suppose now that I sit on the throne, my freedom to go on adventures and visits to places like Limber will be limited,” he sighed.
Theus considered the report of the gossip as he walked back to the Warrell mansion. Were he and Coriae moving towards a true relationship too quickly, he wondered? The beautiful noblewoman was treating him as kindly and considerately as he could ask anyone to act. But she had the benefit of knowing him and having lived through the establishment of their relationship before, while he had none of the memories and experiences she called upon. It seemed unfair, and perhaps suspicious, perhaps a trap, though that was an uncharitable description, he thought.
Coriae was coming out of the scandalous end of her engagement to Klermie, which had followed upon the end of her undeclared engagement to Theus. Maybe she felt she needed to carry a relationship to a quick conclusion; could she be worried that her reputation was damaged. He wondered that too.
No, he decided, she was too entirely desirable to doubt that she would be courted by eligible suitors. Her grace and personality, in addition to her Warrell name and her beauty, certainly gave her every opportunity to receive attention from men.
His mind was swirling with consideration of those questions when he returned to the Warrell home that he had adopted as his own.
“Where have you been?” Coriae asked as soon as he returned. “Good gods! You have to go bathe again before we can leave; you can’t arrive as an ambassador to Greenfalls smelling like that!” she chastised him. “Go upstairs and clean up. I’ve got our luggage here ready and waiting,” she stated.
Still brooding over his thoughts from the palace gossip, Theus went upstairs and cleaned, then changed. Minutes later, each of them held a large duffle, and stepped out the back of the house into the sunlight that shone into the stableyard.
“Here we go,” Theus told Coriae. He motioned for her to stand in front of him, and they bundled the two bags in between them as they wrapped their arms around each other. Theus oriented himself to face east, looked into Coriae’s shining, expectant eyes, and engaged his magic, pulling in the sunlight to allow him to make the first long step of the day with ease, while carrying his passenger with him. He pressed his foot forward into the gap between her feet, as her eyes widened in surprise, and then they vanished from the city of Stoke.
Chapter 16
“Oh great gods Theus! Did we just do that?” Coriae gasped in astonishment as the pair stood in a fallow farm field to the east of Stoke. Theus ignored the question at first, as he mentally examined himself, and found that he was pleased with the results of the journey. He felt good – only the soreness he had suffered from the practice at the armory was notable.
He didn’t say anything, but looked into Coriae’s wondering eyes, then grasped the energy of the sunlight around them, invoked the magical spell, and pressed his leg forward once again as if to step towards the east.
“Theus! I wasn’t ready for that!” Coriae scolded him a moment later, surrounded by a different landscape.
“There’s two days of travel complete so far,” he told her. “Here comes the next one,” he warned, and they made the next smooth journey through the ether to land near the outskirts of the city of Greenfalls.
“We’ll walk in the rest of the way and go to the palace,” Theus advised, as he released his hold on his companion.
“You can’t just place us directly inside the palace grounds?” Coriae asked in mock surprise.
“I can if we walk there,” Theus replied with a grin.
They carried their bags on their shoulders, and trudged into the city with the other traffic that passed through the gate in the early evening. The city seemed calm and the walk to the gates of the governor’s palace was uneventful.
“Hold my hand,” Theus commanded Coriae when they approached the guarded gates.
“That would be more endearing if you just slipped your hand into mine instead of making it a chore,” she retorted.
“It’s so we can turn invisible and enter the palace,” Theus explained. The pair clasped their hands together, and walked through the gates. Theus continued to hold Coriae’s hand, even after he ceased providing invisibility for them.
They entered the palace, where Theus was recognized, and Eiren was hastily summoned to meet them in a parlor.
“Theus, welcome back to Greenfalls!” she spoke effusively as she hugged her friend, then stood before Coriae, waiting to be introduced.
“This,” Theus belatedly realized he was supposed to provide the introduction, “is the Lady Coriae of the House of Warrell in Great Forks,” he told Eiren.
“And this,” he turned to Coriae, “is Eiren, my friend from the days we traveled in a ca
ravan together, and now the person who runs the city and the lands around Greenfalls.”
The two women curtseyed to one another.
“You are Forgon’s sister?” Eiren asked.
“I am,” Coriae agreed.
“Forgon was here in Greenfalls when we rescued Eiren and Holco from Eudie and Glock,” Theus explained.
“Forgon talked about you, while we were waiting for Theus to heal after the battle,” Eiren added.
“You two are a couple, again?” she asked pointedly.
Neither answered immediately, looking at one another as they each waited for the other to offer some explanation.
“We are reacquainting with each other,” Coriae tried to sum up the complex relationship a moment after the pause became awkward.
“Well, what brings two reacquainting acquaintances to Greenfalls?” Eiren asked. “We’re delighted to have you visit, whatever the reason is!” she spoke more warmly.
Theus began to explain the long, complex story that had brought the visitors.
“Wait,” Eiren commanded after listening to the convoluted explanation for two minutes. “Let me go have some food and drink delivered – pardon my poor manners. And let me have Alsman come to hear this all for himself,” she ducked out of the door, leaving the guests in the parlor alone.
“Is that good or bad?” Coriae asked in a whisper. “Is she upset about something? Is that why she left?”
“No,” Theus said slowly, “I think she left for the reasons she said; she’s going to fetch Alsman to hear our story, and she’s going to have some food and drinks sent in. And I’m glad – I’m hungry all the sudden.”
A moment later a servant pushed in a cart that held two sets of trays, one with small cups of juices, and the other with delicacies.
“Eat them slowly,” Coriae cautioned, as Theus reached for several of the small snacks at once. “We’re in a palace and we have to be reserved.”
He took only a pair of the sweet snacks, then sat quietly until Eiren escorted Alsman into the room.
“Theus, it’s a wonderful pleasure to see you again,” he said warmly. “And if I’m not mistaken, this is the lovely Lady Coriae of the house of Warrell, back in our city. I presume you two traveled together?”
“We did, my lord,” Coriae gave a gently curtsey, “and such travel it is when one is with Theus!”
“That’s quite an experience, isn’t it?” Eiren asked in agreement.
“I carried Eiren from Limber to Greenfalls the same way,” Theus informed Coriae.
“Well, be seated, please, and tell me your message. Eiren said you had something to say, and I’m sure it will be more pleasant than listening to the merchants in the city complain about how poor the markets are without fresh inventory to sell,” Alsman sighed.
“They could sell more if they’d ship it along the river road,” Eiren pointed out.
“They don’t like to pay the tolls that are imposed by shipping through the cities and towns along the river,” Alsman replied. “But we’re not here to talk about merchants and trade. Everyone be seated, and tell us why you came.”
“My lord, we came to talk about merchants and trade,” Coriae offered with a coquettish grin as soon as she sat down. “Tell him Theus,” she urged.
Theus responded by explaining about the change on the throne of Stoke, and Holco’s desire to restore the relationship between the two cities.
“Holco? Holco who was kept confined as a prisoner in the same tent I was?” Eiren asked in astonishment.
“The very same,” Theus confirmed, as he momentarily remembered the terrible night of sneaking through the besieging Stoke army camp while setting Eiren and Holco free.
“He asked me to deliver this letter to the two of you,” Theus pulled the royal parchment out of his travel bag and turned it over to the rulers of Greenfalls.
Alsman opened the letter as Eiren came around to stand behind the priest, reading it over his shoulder as he perused it.
After several moments, Alsman began to laugh. “So he’s got the same problem with his merchants!” the ruler of Greenfalls chuckled, and then read on.
“It seems like we should be able to fix this relatively easily,” he said when both he and Eiren had finished reading. He looked up at her and she nodded her head.
“I’ll be glad to appoint a negotiator to draw up a treaty to end the hostilities along the lines your king suggests. Do you want to carry the message back tonight?” Alsman asked.
“I’d actually prefer to wait until tomorrow,” Theus said. “May we impose on your hospitality for the evening?”
“Of course!” Eiren spoke up. “We have a small banquet, and we’d be honored to have you as guests, and we have plenty of space; it’s a palace, you know,” she laughed.
“I’ll have a servant take your bags up to the guest rooms. We’re about to go to dinner in a few minutes, if you’d like to go directly with us,” Alsman said.
“I must look dreadful. I should straighten up,” Coriae protested.
“You look lovely, my dear. That’s why I recognized you immediately,” Alsman contradicted her. “And to think, in a way, I introduced the two of you, and now here you are together all this time later!”
Theus and Coriae looked at one another in confusion momentarily, uncertain how to describe their relationship.
“We’re still learning about each other, really,” Coriae tried to gracefully offer a correction.
“Really, I’m trying to learn about her; she knows all about me,” Theus tried to clarify Coriae’s statement.
“At any rate, we’ll gladly accompany you to dinner,” Coriae laid the matter to rest, and the foursome walked through the palace to the hall where the banquet was being held. Two settings were quickly added at a table in the front of the room, so that Theus and Coriae could be seated with Greenfalls residents who remembered Theus’s participation in events during the fight against the old governor.
“Your friends in Limber are emptying out the markets here in Greenfalls, with all the goods they purchase from us,” one woman explained to Theus. “And we’re having trouble receiving all that we want from other markets,” she unknowingly confirmed Greenfalls’s need for the trading treaty that Holco had proposed.
“Do you hear anything about what is happening in Limber?” Theus asked with interest.
“The caravans that come to buy goods report that more people are moving to the city,” the woman said.
“We even have a few people leaving Greenfalls to go there,” a man at the table interjected.
Theus thought about his sister and mother, Vanline, and the Southsand soldiers who were all in the city, learning to lead new lives.
“I hope I’ll be back there someday soon,” he said wistfully.
“I’d love for you to take me there someday and show the city to me,” Coriae squeezed his hand beneath the table.
“Let’s hope we can do that together,” he agreed, smiling at her.
Alsman introduced them to the banquet attendees from his seat at the head table when he made comments to the guests, and after the dinner, a servant met them.
“I’m to lead you to your rooms and invite you to breakfast with the leader and his companion,” the servant informed the pair of visitors. They found themselves in side-by-side rooms, and lingered in the hall, talking, after the servant departed.
“What did Forgon tell Eiren about me, do you know?” Coriae looked at Theus with guarded eyes.
“I don’t know,” he replied. “What do you think he would have said?”
She paused, looked at him, then turned and stepped away. She spoke with her back to Theus, in a low voice that he strained to hear.
“If he really knew my heart, he would have said that I was in love with you when you left Great Forks.”
She turned around, her face darkened with emotion. “And he could say the same thing about now, Theus.” She looked at him with a steadfast gaze.
He knew she was
displaying her bravery by confessing her love in so unguarded a manner. He knew he was growing infatuated with her, as he learned about her again. But he wasn’t ready to say he loved her. It was too soon, and there were too many things he didn’t know – he didn’t know how they would fight one another, when the time for disagreement came, nor did he know what ways they would overcome such disagreements. He didn’t know if she would grow tired of him; he wasn’t really interesting, other than knowing white magic. She might find him boring in another few weeks of companionship.
But she had said that she loved him. And the words were intoxicating.
“I’ve only known you a few days,” he said. There was a guardedness that shaded her eyes as he spoke – he could see it. She had hoped he’d say he loved her too.
“It’s too soon, Coriae, just too soon for me. You seem to be – I believe you are – everything I would ever want in a life mate. Will you wait for me? Can you give me some time to know you better?” he pleaded.
“I shouldn’t have done that,” she said. Her eyes grew moist, and Theus saw a tear start to roll down her left cheek, before she turned away.
“I’m sorry,” he told her. He felt terrible, all the moreso because he knew that he had loved her in the past, and he could easily imagine loving her again in the future. He placed a comforting hand on her shoulder, but she shrugged it away, and stepped over to her door without looking at him.
“The last thing in the world I wanted to do was hurt the woman who I may propose to someday,” he desperately told her, hoping to find a way to give her hope and ease her hurt. “Can I make this up to you?”
She paused in her movement to open the door, and stood still. “There is one thing you could do for me now,” she said.
She turned, and he saw that the tear had been wiped away. There was a warm smile on her face, an acknowledgement of his effort. “You can let me take you to the palace armory and bruise the snot out of your face right now,” her smile turned into a wicked grin.
Tangled Engagements (The Memory Stones Series Book 4) Page 19