Dark Court: The Summons

by Camille Oster

  "I'm not actually," Ashra said. "I actually have no interest in you, or taking your place."

  Amethyst pfft. The woman obviously thought Ashra had done this to usurp her position.

  "I have no interest in threatening you."

  "You couldn't if you tried."

  "But if this becomes known, they… " Ashra said, indicating to the people in the hall, "they will make certain conclusions about your relevance here—no matter what I do. They will naturally conclude that the House of Lorcan had the heir it needs, and your position is no longer viable. They're actually already saying that, and that was well before a potential heir was even a possibility. I never have to say a single word."

  Amethyst looked around the hall. Her confidence wasn't as foolproof now. It was them that she feared, their opinion.

  "Oh, but if something happens to me, like it did my husband—"

  "You have no proof whatsoever," Amethyst snapped. "Your husband drank poison of his own accord, trying to escape the revolting marriage you had somehow tricked him into."

  "—a personal letter will be sent to every single person in this court. They will have to decide what proof is needed."

  Uncertainty stole into her eyes again. If there was one thing Amethyst understood, it was public opinion and the power it had. To Amethyst, it was power. Speculation about Ashra's pregnancy now was a danger to her. It would destroy her if this all came out.

  "I think we are all motivated to keep everything the way it is," Ashra said, hoping Lorcan didn't step in right that moment to ignite everything, trusting he was too calculating and pragmatic to do anything rash. "Because we don't want this situation to become untenable for anyone, requiring any of us to take bold steps to protect themselves and their families." It was a clear warning to Lorcan and she hoped he understood the entirety of it. He narrowed his eyes slightly, but said nothing.

  Releasing the breath she'd been holding, she walked away. The message had been delivered to both of them. Her head and feet ached, but she felt hope—hope that she had managed to find a new equilibrium. At the least, she hoped she'd bought herself some space. She felt faint, but happy with what she'd achieved that evening.

  Wierstoke nodded at her as she approached and she braved a smile. It wasn't exactly right that he was the pin that held it all together, but he was an important part of this convoluted web that kept her safe. She was the pin, the cornerstone that kept an archway from collapsing. Everyone was wrapped up nicely, too tied to move.

  Chapter 34:

  * * *

  Pale, vane sunlight bathed the garden, making the dewdrops sparkle. The air was cold and the wind had its usual chill. Ashra tucked her shawl tighter around her shoulders. The tension from the previous night was slowly receding from her body, but wasn't entirely gone yet.

  Walking slowly, Ashra breathed the clean air and enjoyed the stillness, this space of nature where she could imagine herself away from this awful place. It only provided moments of escape, but they were moments she treasured. Memories of Tabain and herself in the garden returned and her heart ached for him.

  It might actually be time to return to her estate for a while. With recent developments, she could conceivably be secure enough to go. A whole month perhaps. Even with everything she'd achieved, she wasn't sure she could afford to stay away longer.

  A crack sounded behind and she whipped around, seeing Lorcan approaching. He looked out of place in this garden, or perhaps that was because he was so very far outside of what this garden represented to her.

  As before, he walked down the other side of the long, rectangular pond. His entrance to the garden naturally left him on the other side, and it was unnecessary to take the time to walk around.

  "Quite a coup, Lady Greve," he said as he stopped in front of her on the other side of the pond. "You are to be congratulated. You have tied us up very nicely. Wierstoke protects you from me, and I even protect you from my murderous wife. Even Amethyst, in certain ways, protects you from the court in general. You have roped us all into protecting you."

  Ashra couldn't deny it. Effectively, she had twisted this landscape into serving her purpose.

  "Was the child part of the game?" he asked. Ashra's eyes widened, astounded he could even think so. "Because if it is, you are playing a much longer game than I have even given you credit for."

  "Are you asking if I seduced you for the purpose of becoming pregnant? You obviously don't know me at all. It was not," she stated. "In fact, nothing I did was as calculated as you make out."

  "Then you just naturally manipulate everything to suit yourself."

  "Maybe things simply fell into place," she said, knowing it sounded too ridiculous even to her own ears. "I had to watch out for me and mine, that's all."

  "No, apparently, I watch your back for you. Some would even say that is genius. You've tied my hands, even as I need that child. You have used my own needs against me, used them to establish a cordon of protection around you—in conjunction with my actual enemy."

  "Are you referring to Wierstoke or your wife?"

  Roisen smiled. They were at a standstill and they both knew it.

  "I need that child," he finally said.

  "You're saying you want what is most precious to me in the whole world, the person I would burn everything in this world to protect." It might sound like an outrageous proposition, but she could see in his eyes that he didn't doubt her. "I would trust you with my heart before I trust you with my child."

  Lorcan's eyes studied her as if he was trying to decide how to proceed. She'd be very disappointed with him if he professed he could seduce her. Well, he was probably right, but that didn't budge the wall around her heart. It hadn't in the past.

  "We could join forces and work together. Your son keeping the Greve estate and this one having the Lorcan."

  "It will never be in your nature to not seek the Greve estate. You will tell me what I want to hear as long as you have to, but you will never feel any true loyalty to Tabain."

  He huffed with frustration. "You’re speaking of a toddler."

  "A toddler who is the future of the Greve estate. I can't let you in. You will destroy him. That's your nature. And it is my nature to guard against you."

  "Maybe you should have a little more faith in me."

  "I can't afford to have faith in you. Besides, Raufasger would never allow an alliance between us—even disregarding whatever attachment he feels for Amethyst. One I don't understand. Why does he protect her?"

  "Her mother, before she died, used to be his lover—probably the only woman he ever cared about."

  "Amethyst is his daughter?"

  "No, but he feels some residual loyalty to her."

  Ashra snorted and closed her eyes. "The real reason you married Amethyst."

  He didn't deny it. It only confirmed that he'd told her the things he wanted her to know, rather than the truth. She'd been a game to him all along, and still was. Somehow, he'd become tangled unexpectedly by his own machinations and now found himself bound. That had to burn.

  "I am never going to be stupid enough to trust you. In a way, I wish it wasn't so, but I actually know you too well to think differently."

  "Why do you wish it wasn't so?"

  "Don't start," she said sharply. "For some reason, I care enough about you to not wish you any harm, but I will never trust you and I will never act against what's best for my children for you. And I will think worse of you if you so much as try to make me."

  "You're doing it again, trying to tie me up, insisting I am acting against you if I act for my own interests. You've put me in a position where you punish me for doing what is best for my family. How is that fair, Lady Greve?"

  "Yeah, well, fair is not something that is important to either of us."

  Silence reigned for a while.

  "I think your time here with us has changed you, Lady Greve."

  "My objectives haven't changed from the moment I showed up." Neither had her morals or th
e things that were important to her. In fact, she couldn't quite put her finger on what had changed. All her actions had been defensive. Alright, most of her actions. Taking Lorcan's land had been vengeance. "I am leaving for a while, returning to my estate."

  "As much as I hate to say it, because I am ultimately saying this in your interests and not my own, but it is probably a good idea. Amethyst will have no reach there."

  Ashra couldn't help feeling sorry for him, even for the position she had placed him in. There was a part of her that would wade across this pond if he wanted, needed and could accept her love, but that wasn't him. Yes, he was curious about it, in some hidden place even ached for it, but he was too much a predator to change. Maybe the part she would never forgive him for was that he had turned her into a predator, too.

  "I'm going to go now," she said, looking down the length of the pond. "I wish you well."

  "Not well enough to win."

  "No."

  She started walking away.

  "I won't stop trying," he called.

  "I would be dumbfounded if you did."

  Throwing a glance at Lorcan, she saw he wanted to argue, perhaps claim that he was changing in some way, but couldn't bring himself to proclaim it. If there was one thing she wouldn't tolerate from him, it was lying. He would lose whatever access he had to her if he did, and he knew it.

  End of Book 1 - Ashra’s story continues in book 2, Dark Court: umbrage

  Other books by Camille Oster

  Dark Court: umbrage – Ashra’s reprieve doesn’t last as long as she wishes and she must return to court to face Amethyst’s inevitable vengeance and Lorcan’s plans to secure his heir. How long she’ll manage to bind them and their ambitions remains to be seen. But if there is one thing to expect at Raufasger’s court, it is that nothing every runs smoothly and unexpected developments can shift the balance of power at any moment. Too many players who want to bring change, to shake up any power balances to see what they can gain while others fall.

  Expected Release June 2017

  Unrequited - Not everyone deserves love. For some, love comes unwillingly and refuses to stay, leaving devastation in its wake. The Chartrices own the demonic Parisian underworld and they rule with an iron grip, destroying everything that stands in their way. Brothers Castran and Tarquin, and father Adaeus, are ruthless and supremely equipped to force their will, stamping out any dissent with cold efficiency. Some see them as villains, but their rule keeps order.

  But there are some things strength cannot overcome, especially the unbidden emotions that promise more than a life of single-minded determination and isolation. A glimpse of something more, something soft, can undo the coldest of hearts. Still, a villain is a villain, and the fates are cruel.

  Three interlinking stories trace the effects of the most insidious of enemies, love, on a family that allows no weakness.

  https://www.amazon.com/Unrequited-Camille-Oster-ebook/dp/B01ANE6C8G/ref=sr_1_9?ie=UTF8&qid=1484366199&sr=8-9&keywords=camille+oster

  Sequence Effect - Gwennie Elders doesn't regret for a moment the debt she took on to extend her grandmother's life, but when running into trouble with repayments she had to resort to drastic actions to save her family's business and apartment. It would only be a year of her life and she'd be unconscious throughout--to awaken debt-free and able to resume her life as a baker on the city's ground level, hemmed in by the towers where the wealthy and privileged lived. But there are no easy and options, and although she emerges from her servitude debt-free, her family's business and her means of support fleeted away while she was asleep, forcing her to seek a means to support herself in the coming war.

  http://www.amazon.com/Sequence-Effect-Camille-Oster-ebook/dp/B00JPBBZM2/ref=la_B00ALPYJHE_1_8?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1405738569&sr=1-8

  Contacting the Author

  Website: www.camilleoster.com

  Twitter: @camille_oster

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  Email – Camille.osternz@gmail.com