Anna glanced around, uncertain, but the man seemed to understand her hesitation. “You are Aaron’s new sister-in-law. Anna, is it?” She looked back at him in surprise. “I know Aaron well,” he said.
He placed his hand at the small of her back, and he brought his head close to hers again. “Please don’t refuse me,” he coaxed. “I promise to be on my best behavior.” He smiled at her again. “And we should not go against the wishes of the princess. She wants her guests to dance with her, so let us dance.”
Anna felt her resistance fading, but she still glanced in the direction where she had last seen Max. He was making his way towards her with an angry scowl, and that made up her mind. She turned to the dark stranger with a smile and held up her hand for him to take in his. He smiled back and led her into the line of dancers that was forming on the floor. The music struck up, and she was moving, following the simple steps demonstrated by the royal couple.
“I think Max is in trouble,” the man said, and Anna looked across to see Aaron bearing down on Max, his brows drawn together in anger.
“Why?” Anna asked, turning back to her dance partner.
“Oh, I don’t know. Perhaps Aaron would prefer not to see us together.” He glanced down at her, and Anna felt a sudden shiver of trepidation.
“Why?” she whispered. The man smiled sardonically, his gaze holding hers.
“I’m sorry, I forgot to introduce myself. My name is Jack Drake.” His hand tightened around Anna’s as she tried to pull away from his grasp. “Now, now, my dear, no need to make a scene.” Anna looked back at Max, her eyes meeting his as he stared at her. His glance flicked over to Jack, before landing on her once more. Aaron was standing next to him, his hand heavy on Max’s shoulder. Neither man spoke as they watched the pair dancing.
As soon as the music was over, Anna jerked her hand away as though she had been stung, and turning on her heel, walked away from Jack without another word. Max was by her side in a moment, his voice low and angry.
“How could you, Anna?”
“I didn’t know,” she said, turning an angry glare at him.
“Surely it is obvious,” he said, glancing back at the man swathed in black. Anna stared at Max in silence before turning her back to him and marching across the room. She listened for the sound of his footsteps behind her, but heard only the sound of the mingling throng.
Chapter 33
Keira stood in a corner of the hall, watching Anna as she danced with Jack. She could see Aaron and Max watching them, too, their expressions furious. Jack would be enjoying this moment, she thought, knowing Aaron would not do anything with so many people around. She wondered how Jack had managed to gain entry into the ball, before remembering Blanche telling the ladies a few nights before that Mary Pritchard was sleeping with the Black Knight. Mary probably thought she knew the secret Jack, not realizing that Jack’s secrets were multi-layered.
Keira returned her attention to Anna and Jack. From the way Anna was woodenly moving through the steps of the dance, it was clear that Anna had discovered who Jack really was.
It was soon over, and Anna fled the floor. Keira watched as Anna exchanged a few words with Max before heading towards a table with a jug of wine.
Pushing her way through the crowds, Keira headed to her sister. Anna was trembling as she turned towards Keira.
“I didn’t know,” she said, her voice pleading for understanding.
“I know,” Keira said. “It’s all right. Aaron and Max are angry with Jack, not you.”
“It wasn’t just him Max was angry with,” Anna said bitterly.
“He was concerned about you.”
“Why would he be concerned about me? He doesn’t even like me.”
“You know that’s not true.” Anna glared at Keira for a moment, her gaze challenging, but a moment later her shoulders slumped, the fight suddenly gone.
“I know,” she said.
Keira and Anna both looked back to where Max was once again standing with Aaron. Aaron was stiff with tension, his hand on Max’s shoulder. Another man approached them, and they talked together in earnest for a few moments, until the other man nodded and turned away. Aaron was still talking to Max when a woman approached them, and Keira watched with interest as she stopped before the two men. Her figure was presented in profile, and from where Keira stood, she could see the woman was a beauty, despite the fact that she was not in the first bloom of youth. The long, dark hair around her face had been braided and wound into a coil at the top of her head, then covered with a net that sparkled with jewels, while the rest of her hair hung loose down her back, twined with dark green ribbons that matched her gown. Long eyelashes fluttered over her cheeks, her nose was small and straight, and her neck was long and graceful. She placed a hand on Aaron’s arm and when she smiled up at him, Keira could see a row of straight, white teeth between full, rosy lips. When Aaron looked down at the woman with a warm smile, Keira felt the breath catch in her throat.
“Who’s that with Aaron?” Anna asked.
“I don’t know,” Keira replied.
“Well, he must know her,” Anna said.
“Hmm, so it would appear,” Keira said. The woman’s hand was still on Aaron’s arm, and Keira watched as he placed his hand over it, holding her close. Aaron bent down and said something in the woman’s ear, and she pulled back with a smile, glancing around the room. Keira turned away and stepped around Anna, hiding herself from Aaron and the woman as her heart pounded furiously. She could only guess the identity of the woman, but none of the possibilities pleased her.
“I need some fresh air,” she said over her shoulder to Anna, heading towards an open door that led to a balcony overlooking the gardens, not waiting to see if Anna followed. She glanced back once as she reached the door, and saw Aaron laugh at something the woman said, his face lit with genuine pleasure. She bit her lip as she turned away, and stepped out into the cool night air. The gardens below were laid out in a symmetrical pattern, lit with hundreds of glowing lanterns. There were stairs leading down, and she headed over to these.
“Where are you going?” Anna asked, following close behind.
“Let’s take a walk through the gardens,” Keira said. “They look so beautiful.”
“Is this about that woman?” Anna asked. “Because you know Aaron loves you.” Keira was silent as she descended the stairs. “Just ask him who it was,” Anna said as she stepped onto the grass. Keira turned to look at her sister.
“Please, Anna, I really don’t wish to discuss this with you.” In the faint light she saw Anna flush slightly.
“Of course,” Anna said.
It was quiet in the gardens, the sounds from the hall becoming a distant murmur as they walked. There was no-one else around, and Anna glanced around nervously.
“Shouldn’t we be getting back? Aaron and Max may be wondering where we are.”
“Aaron and Max know exactly where to find us if they choose,” Keira retorted. She looked at Anna, noting her confusion with a sigh.
“They can track us by our scent as easily as I can see you,” she explained.
“Oh. Of course.”
They walked a little further, meandering along paths that wound through the gardens, until Keira came to a stop. She turned around to face the palace. They had walked further than she realized, and suddenly the building seemed a long way off.
“Let’s go back,” she said. They had just taken a few steps when two men, their chests bare, stepped out in front of them, blocking their path. Keira knew at once that they were dragons, and a sliver of fear wound through her.
“Um, please let us pass,” she said, but the two men just stared at her in silence, their arms crossed against their chests, their feet planted firmly on the ground a few feet ahead of them. She glanced around, wondering how they could make their escape, when she heard a laugh.
“Aren’t you happy to see me, cousin?” Jack said, stepping in front of the two men. “I must admit I have been eag
erly anticipating this reunion. You and me, all alone.” He glanced at Anna. “Well, not quite alone, I suppose.”
“Jack,” Keira said angrily. “What is the meaning of this?”
Jack looked at her with a smile that was both charming and sinister.
“You and I have unfinished business,” he said. He took a step towards her, then laughed when she stepped backwards, dragging Anna with her.
“There is no escape, Keira,” he said. Keira drew in a deep breath and opened her mouth to scream, but before she could make a sound, Jack was behind her, his hand covering her open mouth.
“I look forward to meeting Aaron in a fight,” he whispered in her ear, “but it will be at the time of my choosing.” With a snap Keira closed her mouth behind his hand, clamping her teeth against his skin. He snatched his hand away, and Keira drew in a breath to scream, but before she could make a sound he slammed his hand against her mouth again. His fingers wrapped around her cheeks, holding tight as he brought his mouth to her ear. “I can be pleasant or unpleasant,” he growled. “Do something like that again and I will be very unpleasant.”
He glanced again at Anna, trembling beside her sister. “I’ve already had the pleasure of meeting your sister,” he said to Keira, “and I’m sure I will find her willing to give me a few moments’ pleasure, with just the slightest persuasion.” Keira darted a quick glance around the gardens, but apart from Jack’s two henchmen, there was no-one else to be seen.
“It seems that Aaron is too caught up with his mistress to notice your absence,” Jack said. He watched as Keira’s eyes widened. “Ah, you don’t know, do you? That woman he was with is Elise, the Duchess of Southbury. His affair with her lasted close to three years, until she finally broke it off. They say he was devastated.” Keira closed her eyes as the image of the woman standing next to Aaron rose in her mind.
“I don’t believe it,” Anna said. Keira glanced at Anna in surprise as she continued. “Anyone can see that Aaron loves Keira. I don’t know why he isn’t coming, but it is not because he has a mistress.”
“Brave words,” Jack said. “Time will reveal the truth.” He turned to the two men. “Take them,” he said.
In a flash of light the two men transformed into their dragon forms – one dark brown, the other tan. A slight shimmer in the air was Keira’s only warning, and she cried out to Anna to cover her eyes, breathing a sigh of relief when Anna dropped her face into her hands. Relief was short-lived, however, as the dragons caught the two women in their talons and swung them into the air. Keira thought about trying to shout for Aaron again, but the veiled threat against Anna had her holding her tongue. The glittering lights of the palace quickly faded into darkness as the dragons rose higher and higher, the whoosh of their wings sweeping through the air the only sound.
The darkness pushed in on all sides as the dragon flew through the silent night. Keira peered into the inky blackness, wondering where Anna and the other dragon were, but she could see nothing beyond a few feet. She had struggled at first, trying to break free of the dragon’s grip, but even as she made the attempt, she knew her efforts were in vain. All she had accomplished was a tighter grip that chafed against her skin. The dragon was gripping her around the waist, her legs and arms dangling free, their weight dragging against her stomach. Her back ached from being bent over, her eyes stung from the wind around her face, and nausea made her stomach heave. Her head felt detached from her body but still managed to pound relentlessly. She had thought, at first, that Aaron would be close on their tail, but as the hours dragged by, she felt that hope fading. For all she knew, Jack was right and he hadn’t even noticed her disappearance. The bitter thought rose unbidden and she pushed it away.
A few hours into the flight the air changed, becoming colder, damper and salty. And still the dragon flew on and on. Keira felt the darkness overtaking her, and for a while she lost consciousness, but when she awoke, she could see the light of dawn pushing away the darkness. The dragon was starting to lose altitude, and through the gray light she could see a pile of rock protruding from the ocean’s surface. Waves pounded against the high cliffs that presented an obstacle to the current of the water, while birds flew around the shore, screaming at one another as they dove between the cliffs. A building rose from the rock, austere and formidable, and Keira realized that this was to be her prison.
Chapter 34
Keira was thrown into a small stone cell beneath the fortress. It lacked all manner of furnishings, but she was beyond noticing as she lay on the cold floor, vomiting over and over, the effect of being carried around by her stomach for hours on end. She passed out after that, waking to the feel of coarse hands pulling her roughly into a corner, while a bucket of water was sloshed over the floor. The water was a poor substitute for a scrubbing brush and soap, but it cleared away some of the muck, washing it into the drain that ran along the outside wall. The heavy wooden door banged shut, and Keira passed out again, only rousing to consciousness when a bowl was pushed through a slot in the door.
The days passed slowly. Twice a day someone pushed a bowl of gruel through the door, sometimes retrieving the bowl later on, sometimes not. Once Keira called after her jailor, asking for news of Anna, but she was ignored.
Staring up at the ceiling, Keira counted the cracks yet again. She knew that there were eighty-three, just as she knew that one hundred and fifty-seven stones had been used to construct her cell, and that nine bars covered the open window and forty-three flagstones were in the floor. She counted them continually, only stopping to pull herself up to the window, set just above ground outside, and hanging onto the bars, peer through at the never-ending ocean, until she dropped back to the floor, her energy spent.
A blast of wind blew through the uncovered window, and she shivered. She had no clothes apart from the gown she had worn to the ball, and she was given no other covering. The gown was stained and ripped, and she knew she probably stank of dirt and vomit. Her hair lay in a tangled mess on her shoulders, and she pushed it away with a shaking hand. She sat in the corner below the window, hoping to find a little warmth between the walls, but the effort was futile. She wasn’t sure what Jack intended to do with her, but at this rate she would either freeze to death or go insane.
On the first day of her incarceration, Keira had been determined to find a way from her cell. She had examined every stone, traced every crack and shaken every bar, but despite increasingly desperate searches, it was soon clear that without the power and strength of a dragon she was securely imprisoned. Her only hope lay in Aaron coming to rescue her in some spectacular fashion. But thinking about Aaron brought with it other, unwanted thoughts. The memory of him with that other woman just kept creeping into her mind. Jack had called her Elise, the woman Aaron had not wanted to talk about. And the longer Keira lay in her cold, empty cell, the more insidious her thoughts became. For she could not forget the shared smiles, the easy touch and the laughter between them. Jealousy snaked through her, that green-eyed monster, and she shoved it away with determination. Whatever Aaron had shared with Elise was over, of that she was sure.
But at night, as she lay shivering in the cold, unwanted memories lodged in her mind. He had called his love for her a poison. A weakness. Would he deny her now? The days dragged by, hour after endless hour, and the chill of the stone room seemed to seep into her bones and into her heart. Why had Aaron not come? And as her mind wandered through a landscape that wavered between reality and fantasy, part of her wondered if what she had shared with Aaron had just been an illusion.
The sound of boots scraping against the stone floor of the passage had Keira lifting her head. Supper had been pushed through her door a few hours before, and usually the only time anyone ventured into these passages was when someone was bringing her food. The footsteps stopped outside her cell, and she heard the jangling of keys before one of them pushed into the lock from the other side. A moment later the door swung open, and Keira blinked as the light of a torch met her eyes. Th
e man holding the torch was unfamiliar to her, but he motioned with his head.
“Come,” he said, his voice rough.
Keira slowly pushed herself to her feet, her cold, aching limbs protesting at the effort. She stumbled slightly as she stepped from the wall, and it took a moment to regain her equilibrium. The man was watching her, not unkindly, but made no move to help her. Slowly she made her way to the door, following him when he turned and marched down the passage. She could not keep up, but he waited for her at the end of the passage before turning the corner and leading her up a flight of stairs.
He led her down another passage, the light from his torch wavering against the dark stone walls, before pushing open a door and gesturing for her to enter. Keira walked through the door and paused at the threshold, taking in the scene before her.
The room was large, with windows that overlooked the ocean crashing hundreds of feet below. A stone fireplace was set between the two windows, a huge fire blazing in the grate, drawing Keira’s eyes as she looked at it longingly. A round table was in the center of the room, high-backed chairs pulled around it. Jack was sitting in one of the chairs, while in another sat Max, his long legs stretched out before him and a glass of wine in his hand. He met her startled gaze steadily, but with a frown between his brows. Her gaze moved over to Jack, who was watching her intently.
“Ah,” Jack said. “Keira dear, how lovely to see you again.” He smiled as Keira returned his gaze through narrowed eyes. “You are probably wondering why you are here. And Max, too, of course. Well, I’m delighted to inform you that Max has seen the benefits of following my claim of Mastership.” Keira’s eyes widened in shock as she glanced back at Max. He was still watching her steadily, his eyes holding hers.
“With conditions,” Max said, finally turning to look at Jack.
“Ah yes, those conditions,” he said. “They concern the girl, don’t they?”
“That’s correct.” Max nodded. “Anna.”
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