In a gesture to Johan, Elian put up his hand. “Don’t thrash her down again.” It was obvious the woman in front of him was not born to the slave caste and carried no slave brand or inking. “Where did you get her Johan?”
Nelina, seething in her loathing, answered before Johan could. “He bought me a mere few hours ago, my uncle should have never sold me. I’m a free citizen from the lower kingdom of Pinza!”
“Is that true?” Elian looked at Johan in disbelief. “Tell me you have papers on the woman?”
“I do,” Johan opened the sack he had brought with him taking out the scroll from Tiberius and handed it to Elian. “See?”
Elian read the scroll, “Nelina, is it?” It declared her Uncle to have full guardianship of her until marriage or unless otherwise designated by him.
She softened her tone. “It is, Milord.”
“In reading this, your Uncle followed the law when he sold you and you are by law a member of the slave caste.” Elian relaxed and rolled up the scroll. “I’m not going to lay a hand on you, and neither is Johan we’re all going to wait for the Magus instead.”
Lucas’s apprehension was not unwarranted as he got closer to the private chamber of the Magus with Adar stepping out in front of him. The Magus’s assassin and personal protector, was rumored to have killed men for stepping too close to the Magus. “Ah, yes, Adar, I bring word from Captain Elian. Johan is here with one of his wares and the Magus is needed to inspect her, it will be worth his time he said.”
Adar nodded going back into the chamber where Ru’ark was and shortly returned with him thereafter.
“Lord Magus, this way if you will,” Lucas led the two down the long hallway back out to the garden atrium where the others were waiting for him.
Johan greeted Ru’ark first. “G’Day Lord Magus, I think I’ve found you your prize.” He yanked Nelina forward causing her to stumble. “Your man there Elian, said her eyes were akin to some emerald stones he’d seen.”
Nelina’s wide-eyed doe like stare was frozen on Ru’ark. ‘This is the Magus?’ She thought. He appeared no older than twenty-five years. His piercing, expressive, blue eyes demanded her full attention. His robes were a shade of midnight blue with silver threading that hung loose on his well defined body.
“Indeed, they are.” Ru’ark’s gaze raked over the rest of her from head to toe. Although she was unkempt and needed a bath, she was more than easy on the eyes.
“It’s time to show your new Master that the golden hair on top of your head is the same between your legs,” Johan was apologetic to Ru’ark. “She refused to let Elian or I touch her.”
“Please Milord Magus, spare me this humiliation, I beg your mercy.” Nelina pleaded in desperation to him. “I swear to you by the God of All, that my hair is and has always been the color you see before you.”
“No, we’ll take her at her word.” Ru’ark stepped forward, taking a hold of her bound wrists. Briefly, his eyes closed as he ran his thumbs along the ropes, causing them to unwind and fall away from her.
“Thank you,” she was filled with gratitude while looking down at her sore chaffed wrists with their rope burns and light streaks of blood.
With his forefinger and thumb, he lifted up her delicate chin where not a single ounce of defiance shone in her vibrant green eyes. “I’m sure I’ll see all of you soon enough, right?”
“Yes,” She answered the handsome Magus with such haste that she blushed in embarrassment looking down at the floor.
“Good,” His thumb brushed across her bottom lip.
“Then, she’s what you want Lord Magus?” Johan was antsy to sell Nelina.
“Without question she is,” Ru’ark faced the slaver with a pleased expression. “You out did yourself, what do you want for her?”
Having garnered the Magus’s interest, the trader bartered his newest ware. “She’s not average with those eyes, as you are already aware of my Lord Magus. I would need at least twenty gold crowns.”
“Twenty gold crowns!” Nelina was appalled and raised her voice in dismay. “He’s trying to rob you! He paid one gold crown and thirty silvers for me!”
The three men stared at Nelina in genuine surprise.
Sweat formed on Johan’s brow in nervousness as he kept his mouth shut.
With a chuckle, Elian taunted her. “Wait, was that loyalty to your new Master, our Magus that I just heard?” His lips curved upward into a sly grin. “I think it was.”
‘Was it?’ Mortified, the thought crashed in her mind like a wave, rendering her helpless to speak while burning her cheeks scarlet red. Speechless, the room fell into a perfect quiet state.
Elian broke the uncomfortable silence for Nelina, but not in the way she would have liked. “Have I said something to bring such a pretty blush to your face?”
“I-” She was lost and cornered with no footing in the conversation.
Ru’ark left her no time to react when his mouth laid claim to hers.
A gentle, soft moan of pleasure escaped from Nelina when his tongue mingled with hers. For a brief moment she forgot everyone else in the room.
He maneuvered her over to the nearest bench with a warm smile. “You my Sweetling, will behave for me, until I’ve finished buying you.” He guided her to sit down.
“I- yes,” demurely she sat with her hands folded in her lap with her cheeks still flushed.
Elian, staring at Nelina, did not hide his smile of amusement at her reaction to the Magus.
Ru’ark returned to the waiting flesh peddler. “Where were we? Twenty gold crowns?”
“Ah, um, yes, Magus, that was the price I named, but I can go lower.” Johan was cautious in remaining too steadfast with his original request.
From the pocket of his dark blue robe Ru’ark withdrew five gold trade bars. “Your payment for the woman and the rest is for your time in acquiring her for me.”
Johan chuckled inwardly, she would not be a toy for the Captain. No, she was a pet for the Lord Magus. It was a large payment, and with it he could move into the merchant’s district and be able to leave slave trading altogether. “Lord Magus, the stories of your generosity are not without merit, and I thank you for buying the vixen. I seek only to provide the best to a customer such as yourself.”
“Indeed, you’ve gone above and beyond,” Ru’ark held his hand out. “I’d like to have the key to her collar if you will.”
“Here,” Johan beaming ear to ear with his good fortune handed him the small silver key.
With the key in now in hand, Ru’ark went over to the bench where Nelina was sitting and sat down next to her.
Nelina made sure her back was exposed so he could access the latch of her collar to unlock it.
Using one hand, he moved her tangled hair out of his way whispering, “I don’t need anything as crude as a collar do I?”
“No, Milord Magus,” she sat motionless at hearing the click of the collar and feeling its weight come off her neck.
She shut her eyes for a moment with her fingers absently going to her bare neck.
Ru’ark gave the collar and key back to Johan. “I’ll leave it to Elian to finish to the necessary legal papers of ownership.” He looked over to Nelina. “We’re leaving.”
Dutifully, Nelina rose up from the bench and walked over to him and followed him out of the Atrium. She should have been minding her surroundings, but she could not shake off being stunned by the recent events of the day.
After going down three other hallways, Ru’ark stopped at a chamber door at the end of the long hall they were in. “You’ll be staying here, the other slaves will be along with a bath and appropriate garments for you to wear.”
“Thank you for your kindness, Lord Magus.” Once inside the bed-chamber, Nelina examined her new surroundings. The room was breathtaking, with its varying colors of blue throughout the chambers from the walls to the bedding, and was accented with bright tapestries and ornate furniture. A large wooden bed with four carved posts, held the ap
pearance of belonging to one of the royal family members of Danthamore. The shining, polished wood tables with their dark red-brown hues and smooth finishes were complimented by the cushioned blue chairs.
Several large windows opened up to the fresh sea air, and while looking out she could see Danthamore’s harbor and docks below. She watched as the ships bobbed in the lazy waters, while the dockworkers scurried around like ants loading and unloading cargo. The sound of the door opening behind her caught her attention. A procession of servants entered the chamber which interrupted her quiet exploration as they poured large amounts of steaming, hot water into an oversized washtub. By the time, they finished and left, the bath looked warm and inviting. The table next to it had cloth strips, waxes with burners, pastes, sharp flint blades for scraping, pumice stones and perfumed oils. The Magus’s promised words rang in the back of her mind that he would see all of her.
Nelina indulged in the different aromas of rose, lilac, and lavender, along with the other flower essences. Rose and lavender were the ones she added to her bath. She climbed into the tub submerging herself up the base of her neck where the slaver’s collar had been. The insinuation of seeing her undressed, the kiss, the sitting her on the bench, it had all led up to the removal of the collar. Her answer of ‘no’ that he had no need of a crude collar, was her own acceptance and agreement to his, and its silent snap when Johan’s came off.
Another of Ru’ark’s slaves brought in garments and a comb for her hair leaving them on the bed.
After a little while longer, she scrubbed herself clean before the water grew too cold, and then rinsed off with the water pitcher. Grabbing the drying cloth, she made her way over to the bed. It looked as inviting as the bath did with its comfortable pillows and linens. Lying at the foot of the bed was an ensemble of malachite jewelry that matched a similar colored dress which appeared to be near her size. Picking up the silk chemise, she slipped it on over her head. Then, gathering up everything else, but the comb, she set it down on the nearby table. Instead, the bed was beckoning to her and she promptly climbed in it and combed out the tangled parts of her hair leaving it full and clean. While her intentions to wear the dress and have the evening meal were good ones, the exhaustion of the day was too much and she fell into a quiet, deep slumber.
Upon the slaves informing Ru’ark that Nelina was asleep, he had ordered them to leave her be. He ate his evening meal alone in the solar chamber and then delved into one of his maps on the region of the Salt Marshes, past the Kingdom of Flintire but before the Ruby Isles. When he retired, he went into Nelina’s chamber and disrobed joining her in the bed.
Nelina half asleep shifted in the bed with long stretches to lean against him while on her side.
His arms slipped around her sleeping form. The once tangled hair now allowed for him to run his fingers through it and her skin was soft and smooth against his own body. He fell asleep peacefully inhaling her scent with his face buried in her hair. Tomorrow, everything would begin.
The morning light attempted to force itself into Nelina’s eyes. Her old bed in Pinza could not compare to the smooth sheets and the softness of the bed she was lying in at the moment. ‘The Magus,’ she sat up with a start and stared at the other side of the bed thinking to herself. ‘He was here with me last night.’ Her attention was pulled away by the squawk of a visiting sea bird on the ledge of one of rows of windows from the open short balcony.
“About time you’ve woken up, you better not keep the Master waiting,” Gwendolyn’s voice was sharp, “I do have other things to do in my day, so if you don’t mind.”
Nelina stepped out of the bed.
“You may call me Gwendolyn,” She deposited a pale blue gown in Nelina’s arms. “You will dress in this for the Magus.”
Ugly did not describe Nelina’s feeling towards the dress. “What about the green one? I’m fonder of it than the blue.”
“It would serve you good to remember that I know the Magus’s tastes better than you.” Gwendolyn hoped the Magus would tire of this woman sooner rather than later.
“Perhaps so,” Nelina let the awful garment she was holding fall to the floor. “But, I’m wearing the other dress, and should the Magus not like it on me he can remove it at his leisure.”
Gwendolyn gritted her teeth and swept the dress up off the floor. It was true, she had picked an unflattering gown on purpose. Why the Magus felt he needed this woman when she did whatever he wanted made no sense to her. Losing her place in his household to this woman was an intolerable humiliation. “You can get ready yourself,” she stormed out of the chamber leaving Nelina alone.
Nelina sat on the bed starting to cry, but stopped herself. She could not let him see her all teary-eyed when he was expecting her to be presentable. If she still wanted to cry she would have to save it until she was alone. Due to waking up late and her spat with Gwendolyn, she had to get moving. Using a comb, she removed the tangles from her hair after last night’s sleep, but there was no time to do anything special with it. Luckily, the dress she put on was as she thought, form fitting in the right places with the right shade of green to bring out her eyes. Trying to find her way around to meet the Magus would be challenging. To her surprise when she opened her door, she found the young guard Lucas outside. “Good Morrow,”
Lucas drummed his fingers on the hilt of his sword. “About time, I thought I might have to drag you to the Magus.” He had watched Gwendolyn who was always so nice to him, leave in tears.
“If you would be so kind-” she stepped to the side to allow Lucas to lead.
“If I would be so kind, like you were to Gwen you mean?” He stepped forward, “Follow me slave.”
‘People already hate you,’ she thought. On their way to the solar, she noticed how the different hallways led to gardens and were interconnected to the main palace garden. Flowers and trees bearing fruit she had never seen filled the air with a sweet citrus flowery scent.
When they reached the door of the solar she tried to mend things. “I apologize if I offended-”
“Shut up you stupid bawd, and don’t you dare speak a word to the Magus about any of it, hear me?” Lucas opened the door with his arm outstretched in presentation. “Lord Magus, Nelina is here as you have requested.”
Nelina walked in to find a large spread of food and Ru’ark waiting for her. He wore the same midnight blue robes, but they were more open at his neck for Nelina to see the cut of his muscles beneath. “Good Morrow, Lord Magus,” with a light bow she inclined her head to him.
“Come, join me,” he motioned to the chair for her to sit in.
“Thank you,” she sat down across from him. “I appreciate being invited to share the morning meal with you.”
Lucas closed the door, praying he had been sufficient in scaring her to not talk about anything to the Magus.
The different platters on the table consisted of fruits and bread followed by meat, boiled eggs, and cheeses arranged in a decorative manner on the platter. While Nelina did not recognize a couple of the fruits, the apples and blackberries were a welcomed sight.
She helped herself to an egg, a few pieces of meat and some cheese. With a hungry appetite, she scarfed it all down. While lifting her plate to take a second helping, she found Ru’ark’s intense blue eyes staring at her. “Forgive me, Lord Magus, have I displeased you?”
“Quite the contrary, everything about you pleases me.” His gaze raked over her in full appreciation. The dress the slaves had found accentuated her body in ways that complimented her with elegance. “By all means take more food.”
“Thank you Lord Magus,” she helped herself to another plateful of fruits and meat.
“Why did your Uncle sell you and not marry you off?” His smoldering stare lingered on each one of her curves.
She swallowed down her bite of food not looking up. “My Uncle spent my dowry, Milord Magus.”
“Ru’ark, when we are in private you may call me by my given name.” He was intrigued by her. �
�How much was your dowry?”
“A royal trade bar,” she folded her hands in her lap. “My parents died several years ago, and as you know, women in the ten Kingdoms cannot inherit on their own.”
“Indeed, what else did this Uncle of yours inherit?” He leaned over helping himself to a slice of buttered bread.
“In Pinza, where I am from, my family owned a timber business and my Uncle wasted no time in destroying it and blaming me for its failure.” She stared down at her hands in her lap. “I should not be a slave,” Raising her eyes upward, she continued telling him of her demise. “My Uncle is a terrible drunk who gambles. He’s wronged me and blackened my honor by selling me and stripping me of being a Lady.”
With his tea, he washed down his bite of bread. “Your family’s misfortune is a regrettable one by the sound of it.”
In mistaking his tone for compassion, she fell to her knees in front of him with her head bowed. “Milord Magus, please, grant me my freedom.”
He had waited for far too many years working to achieve his goals, which were here and at last, ripe for the taking. “I’ve spent over four times your original dowry, and I will have all the rights you would give to a husband.”
With a look of shock on her face, she nodded in obedience to him. She could not believe she had just done that. On that thought alone, her eyes shot back down to the floor with her pulse racing.
He lifted her face upward. “You are quite fetching, I’m your first Master, yes?” He smiled when he felt her chin push his hand downward trying to look at the floor again, but he did not let her.
“You are, Magus.” Nelina swallowed back the hard lump in her throat.
“Good,” Ru’ark closed his eyes while his offhand projected downward below his waist, where he let a thin, black, thread like wisps slip out from his fingertips. The tendrils slithered out along the floor over to the heavy wooden doors and caused them to slam shut. He stood up from the table and took her hand drawing her upward to him, leaving barely an inch between them. His eyes danced before he closed them again. The other thin wisps spiraled up the table legs and similar to the doors slamming shut, the table was swept clean for her. He picked her up by her waist and sat her on the edge of the table with her legs spread slightly apart. “There we go,” He ran his hands along her thighs, pushing away the thin silks of her gown while kissing her neck. “Let’s discuss things the way you and I should Sweetling.” He had been looking forward to this with her after kissing her in the atrium.
The Magus (A Chronicle of Rebirth Book 1) Page 2