Heart of Fire
Page 26
Ertemis stood and dressed in the white linen shirt. He ran his fingers over the embroidery. “I have never owned anything white. Not the most practical color for a man of my profession.” He planted his hands on his hips. “How do I look?”
“Like a prince.” Her eyes focused on the vee of bare chest visible where the neck of the tunic lay open. His ears picked up her quickening pulse. “I cannot imagine a more handsome man. Pity you have to hide yourself until we get to the king’s chambers. I could stand to look at you a bit more.”
“Be careful what you wish for.” He winked at her before cloaking himself. “Lead the way.”
“That is most disconcerting.” She frowned at the disembodied voice, squinting as if it might help her see him. “Stay close when we go through the chamber doors. The guards won’t know to hold the doors open long enough for two.”
He pressed himself against her from behind, wrapping his arms around her waist and pulling her snug against him. “Is this close enough?”
“Oh! You are so poorly behaved. It is entirely unfair to use your enchantment that way.” For all her words, she stayed tucked against him.
“Poorly behaved? Unfair? And yet you don’t struggle to get away.” He nuzzled her neck with his lips, finding the spot that made her sigh.
She giggled and he pulled away. “That’s not the response I expected.”
“I just thought how odd I must look, being ravished by some invisible lover.”
“I have not yet begun to ravish you.” He bent his head to whisper in her ear. “Although, I am entirely ready to fulfill my position as lover, invisible or otherwise.”
She wobbled, as though her knees had given way. “We should go now, before we do not go at all.
Chapter Nineteen
Jessalyne held her breath the first few times they passed someone in the hall, but she soon relaxed. As long as he stayed in the shadows, Ertemis was truly invisible to the eyes of those around them. He stayed behind her and moved so quietly, that if not for his hand against the small of her back or occasionally lower, she wouldn’t have known he was there.
The king’s guard greeted her as she approached. “Fair lady, how does the day find you?”
“Well, Reginald, and you?”
“Fine, fine.” He opened the door and swung it back for her.
She hesitated, feeling Ertemis’s hand leave her back. She paused to give him time. “How is your lady wife? Did she find the salve I sent her useful on that burn?”
“It healed without a scar. We’re both much obliged to you.”
Patting his arm, she smiled. “Tell her I asked for her.”
“I will, miss.”
With that, she went inside. Reginald shut the door behind her.
“Ertemis!” she whispered.
“Here.” His hand returned to thee small of her back and she reached behind, covering his hand with hers for a moment.
Laythan opened the sitting room doors. “Jessalyne! I thought I heard the doors. Oh, child...” He reached to embrace her. Ertemis’s hand left her back.
“I have not seen the king in such fine form in many years. You did a wonderful thing. He’s waiting for you in the library.”
Laythan reached for the second set of latches, and she caught his arm. “Sir Laythan, wait. I need to talk to you first.”
“What is it?”
“What have you told the king about his son?”
“Nothing. I thought it best if it came from you.”
“Ertemis is here.”
Laythan’s eyes widened. “He’s in Shaldar City?”
“Yes, and he’s here.”
“In the castle?”
“In the room.”
His eyes narrowed as he glanced around the foyer. “I’m not a young man but my eyesight is still sharp. I believe if the Black Death were here, I would know.”
Jessalyne wondered if Laythan could hear the low growl Ertemis gave in response. “Trust me, he’s here and he doesn’t care for that name. Would you like to meet him?”
Laythan crossed his arms. “Indeed.”
Jessalyne looked behind her. “Ertemis?”
The light in the room seemed to shift and the air shimmered as Ertemis emerged from the shadows against one wall.
Laythan clutched his chest. The color drained from his face. “Saints and sinners! I meant no disrespect.”
Ertemis nodded. “So long as I don’t hear that name again, it’s forgotten.”
“Ertemis, this is Sir Laythan. He’s your father’s man and a good friend to me as well.”
“Anything you have done for Jessalyne is greatly appreciated.”
Still wary, Laythan smiled weakly. “She’s been a welcome addition to life here at Castle Ryght.” He hesitated and then spoke again, not quite making eye contact with the dark elf before him. “I knew your mother.”
His face softening a bit, Ertemis stared at Laythan. “You knew her?”
“Aye. Shaylana was the light of the king’s life.”
“Hmmph.”
Laythan pursed his lips. “You may not believe that but it’s true. He loved her very much. I believe he still does.”
“If he loved her so much why did he do so little for her when she found out about me?”
“Perhaps this is a conversation better had with your father.”
Ertemis crossed his arms. “Very well.”
Jessalyne moved between the two men, facing Ertemis. “Let me speak to the king with Sir Laythan first. I fear seeing you without being properly prepared might shock him.”
“Whatever you think best. I’ll wait here.”
“Thank you.” She reached up to kiss his cheek and whisper in his ear. “I love you.”
His lips curved up in a smile that she knew was for her alone.
“I won’t be long.”
Nodding, he stepped back into the shadows and vanished.
She turned to face Laythan. “Shall we?”
He opened the library doors and stepped aside to let her pass, then shut them with a wary glance into the foyer. “The king is in the map room.”
As Laythan led her through the library, Jessalyne realized the king’s chambers comprised almost an entire wing of the castle.
The king closed the book he was reading as they entered the room. Laythan bowed before him and Jessalyne followed with a deep curtsy. “Your highness, Jessalyne is here.”
“So I see.” He rose to greet her, a wide smile on his face. “Greetings, child.”
He looked like a different man. His cheeks were flush with color and his eyes had a new sparkle. “You look well, your highness.”
“Because of you.” He clasped her hands in his. “I owe you my life, Jessalyne. I’m in your debt. Whatever you need, whatever you desire, you shall have it.”
She smiled softly. “Then perhaps today will be easier than expected.”
He looked at her quizzically.
“May we sit?”
“Of course, of course.” He pulled another chair close to his and waited until she sat before joining her.
“I don’t quite know where to start so I’m just going to begin and hope for the best.” She ran her hand along the chair’s leather arm. “When you were ill, you called me Shaylana.”
Emotion flickered across his face. “She was a very special woman.”
Jessalyne smiled. “I know who she is.”
“You know her?”
“I don’t know her, but I know her son and that’s what I want to talk to you about. Shaylana’s child, your son, is very much alive.”
“The child is alive? A son? It cannot be.” He sat back. “Shaylana sent a message not long after she disappeared that the child had been dealt with. I knew enough of elven customs to know what that meant.”
She laid her hand on his arm. “I promise you, he’s alive.”
His eyes locked onto the ring glinting from her finger.
“Where did you get that?” Emotion edged his words.
>
“From your son. His mother wanted him to give to me.”
King Maelthorn stared at the gold band. “I gave that to her on the night of the Hunter’s Moon. She was so beautiful in the warm golden light. I thought my heart would break from the sight of her. I promised as soon as the treaty was signed, we would wed. She was gone a month later.”
He looked up, eyes liquid. “Where is he? Where is my son?”
“He’s here.” She stood, happiness filling her. “I’ll get him.”
The king jumped up, almost knocking his chair over. “Yes, please, immediately.”
She ran back to the foyer and burst through the door. “Ertemis, come now, your father wants to meet you.”
He reappeared and she grabbed his hand, pulling him into the library.
Ertemis dug in his heels. “Jessalyne, I’m a grown man. I prefer to walk like one, not be dragged in like a child.”
“I’m sorry, it’s just that your father wants to see you so badly.”
Ertemis straightened the hem of his new tunic. “Lead on.”
She could barely contain herself as she walked back into the map room. When Ertemis entered behind her, she was torn between watching his face or the king’s.
Neither one said a word. Ertemis’s face was unreadable. He might as well have been carved of granite for all the emotion he showed. The king’s chest heaved at the sight of his son. His mouth came open as if to speak but nothing came out.
Jessalyne felt the need to break the strained silence. “King Maelthorn, meet your son, Ertemis Elta-naya.”
King Maelthorn’s face froze. “No one calls my son a bastard.”
Ertemis narrowed his eyes. “You understand elven?”
“Well enough to know what elta-naya means.” The king faced Ertemis without fear.
“Then my name should come as no surprise to you.” Ertemis’s voice ground down to a low growl. “It’s what I am. Bastard born halfling, mixed breed, muddled blood. The product of an unwed mother.”
Jessalyne cringed. She had hoped for a more peaceful meeting. “Stop it!” she hissed.
Ertemis glared at her, his face full of uncertainty. “He needs to know what my life has been because of what he denied my mother.”
“He can imagine, I’m sure. But he didn’t even know you existed.”
Ertemis’s face steeled. All trace of emotion disappeared again.
“What Jessalyne says is true. I never denied your mother,” King Maelthorn countered. “The last I heard from Shaylana was a brief message sent by a courier who had no recollection who’d given him the message or where he’d come from., but he’d been paid in elven gold. Your mother erased herself from his memory.” He sank into his chair. “At times I wished she’d done the same to me.”
He shook his head at the memories. “The message came around the time she would have delivered. It was all of six words but I understood perfectly. ‘The child has been dealt with.’”
“She told you—” Ertemis paused. “You thought I had been killed at birth?”
King Maelthorn nodded, his eyes focused on the distance past. Sir Laythan stepped forward and put his hand on the king’s shoulder. “Your father suffered greatly. I’m sure it cannot compare to the life you’ve led, but you must understand, he too has suffered.”
“Before your mother came here, he had already lost a wife and child. Shaylana seemed liked a new beginning. The alliance with the elves was eminent. It was an unparalleled time in the history of Shaldar.”
Ertemis spoke softly, “I didn’t know. She never told me that part of it.”
The king looked up. “Perhaps we might start over. I am an old man and very aware of what little time I may have left. I am not willing to waste that time. You must have questions. I know I do.” The corners of his mouth turned up in a slight smile. “I want to get to know my son.”
Ertemis swallowed hard. He moved slowly across the room and sat in the chair next to King Maelthorn. “I do have questions.”
Jessalyne covered her smile with her hands. The sight of Ertemis and King Maelthorn sitting side by side pleased her to no end. She caught Sir Laythan’s gaze and he motioned toward the door. Nodding, she slipped out of the room behind him.
“We should give them time alone. I’m sure there’s much they would like to discuss in private.”
“I agree.” She couldn’t stop smiling. “It’s wonderful, isn’t it? I’m so happy for both of them.”
“Aye. I never would have thought to see such a day. The king is like a man reborn. His health restored and now this…” His face darkened. “He still doesn’t know about Sryka. Just that someone was poisoning him. She must be dealt with.”
Her smile turned into a scowl. “Indeed. I would prefer not to have to see her again. I had to spend this morning with her as usual, pretending I knew nothing of what she’d done to his majesty.”
Laythan nodded. “Once the king finds out what she’s been about, he will deal with her. He may seem a kind old soul but he has a fierce temper, especially when it comes to disloyalty.”
“So that’s where Ertemis gets it.” Jessalyne twisted a bit of hair around her finger.
“Why don’t we sit in the parlor for a bit and I’ll send one of the squires to fetch some lunch?”
They entered the parlor and Laythan tugged the bell pull. Jessalyne sat near the window overlooking the gardens and the swan pond. She smoothed out the folds in her skirt. Laythan took a chair near her and tried to make conversation, but she couldn’t focus. Her mind kept wandering to what Ertemis and his father were discussing. The sun slipped lower and still they talked. She stared out the window, watching the swans glide across the purple-glazed surface of the pond.
The doors into the parlor swung open to the sounds of animated conversation. Jessalyne and Laythan turned in unison to see Ertemis and King Maelthorn enter, engaged in passionate discourse.
“I agree you have nothing to worry about from Myssia. It’s the Akuza that pose the most threat.”
King Maelthorn clapped Ertemis on the back. “We have nothing to worry about, you mean.”
Ertemis shook his head. “That will take some getting used to.”
He turned to face Jessalyne and she greeted him with a smile. He winked back, obviously in good spirits.
The king beamed. He kept his hand on Ertemis’s shoulder as he spoke. “Jessalyne, I promised you a boon earlier and I mean to honor that. However, when I tell you my plans I believe you’ll have little left to ask for.”
He glanced at Ertemis, a determined cast settling over his face as he continued. “Laythan, call my scribe. I have a proclamation to write and Ertemis needs a message sent to his squire. Also, send a royal emissary to the Legion to establish a reasonable price for my son’s bond. He is now a free man.”
Ertemis lifted his chin proudly, but kept his eyes on his father.
“Tonight before I sit down to dinner in the great hall, I will proclaim Ertemis as my heir and crown prince to the throne of Shaldar.”
The king nodded toward Jessalyne. “In two weeks time, a coronation and royal wedding will take place. As you are still the Blessed Bride, my dear, it falls to you marry my first born.” He smiled broadly. “I hope that will not be too much to ask?”
Jessalyne flew off the window seat. “Of course, I will marry him, your highness.” She laughed out loud. “In truth, I was going to marry him regardless of what happened today.” Her smile faded. “What about Prince Erebus?”
“Please, call me Raythus. We are family now.” Raythus looked exceptionally calm for a ruler about to create chaos in his kingdom. “Prince Erebus may be a foppish peacock of a man but he understands protocol. I am ashamed to admit it, but I have known since he was very young he would never be fit to rule. Why do you think I put off blessing a bride for so long? Soon enough he will have all the time he wants for visits to his tailor and chasing skirts.”
Ertemis spoke, perhaps seeing Jessalyne’s disbelief on her face. “
Raythus, I doubt Erebus will give up the throne so easily. Or Jessalyne, for that matter.”
Raythus punched his fist against his palm. “I’m his father and his king. He has no choice but to abide by my ruling. I need a man with a spine of steel and the heart of a warrior to take my place. Too many of Shaldar’s neighbors eye us like some plump stonefruit, ripe for the picking.”
Laythan stood, clearing his throat. “Your highness, there is something more you need to know.”
“Yes?”
“Jessalyne and I have knowledge that Sryka was the one poisoning you.”
“What?” The volume of Raythus’s voice threatened to shatter the parlor windows. “How dare she break her oath. But how can it be? Her magic should be useless against me.”
“It should be, but she found a way around the oath. The tonic she sent you was laced with pixie dust, an ingredient that could save your life in small doses or kill you in large ones.”
Jessalyne stepped in. “She’s harvesting the dust from the stolen wings of my friend, Fynna. She used a separation spell to take her wings away as a punishment.”
“Call my guards.” Raythus clenched his hands in anger. “Then send for Erebus and my scribe,” he growled. “I have work to do.”
Jessalyne and Ertemis waited in the parlor for Raythus to call them back into the library. Her fingers dawdled with the pendant around her neck.
“I was surprised to see you still wearing that.” He smiled at her in a way she was not yet used to.
“I thought many times about taking it off but I couldn’t.” She rolled the pearl back and forth between her fingers. “I’ve been told this is a very costly piece. What made you buy such a thing for me when we barely knew each other?”
His mouth was partially hidden by his hand on his chin, but she still saw the corners of his smile. He motioned for her from his overstuffed chair. “Come here.”
“I’m right next to you.”
“Come here or I’ll come get you.”
Jessalyne stuck her tongue out. “Hah.”
He raised one eyebrow as he uncoiled from the chair and swept her up off the window seat, reseating himself with her on his lap before she could scarcely blink. He nuzzled her neck, making her forget what she’d been saying. Reluctantly, she pushed him away. “You haven’t answered my question.”