“There is time for us to speak of that. Today is for celebration.”
“As you say, my King, but I heard Haggard and his fierce warriors are on their way here. Surely that does not bode well.”
“If Haggard wanted war, he would have started it by now,” Talon assured him.
“Then what does he want?”
“We will find out soon enough,” Talon said, his glance drifting to Gelhard talking to Minn and the smile he wore when he first approached her now turning to a frown.
“My woman is not with me. Is there any willing ones available while I am here?” Dalmeny asked, looking around the feasting hall with a curious eye.
“Wrath,” Talon called out and Wrath turned from talking with Egot and approached. “See that Dalmeny finds a willing woman.”
Talon walked away, hearing Dalmeny tell Wrath about the woman he enjoyed the last time he was here.
“Dark hair and a body a man could enjoy. Her name escapes me, but then—Simca—that was her name.”
Minn gave a respectful nod to the King when he stopped in front of her and Gelhard. Minn was a true warrior as vicious as a man and besting many a one. She was tall, her body solid, though with curves that left no doubt she was a woman. She had sharp, attractive features and her long, dark hair was braided on one side of her head.
“I am glad to be here for this special celebration,” Minn said, “and proud that an Alpin, one of my tribesmen, will be queen.”
“I am pleased you are here, Minn, and we shall talk later, but right now I need to speak with Gelhard,” Talon said, dismissing her.
“My King,” Minn said with another nod and walked away to join Wrath and Dalmeny.
“Minn has told me—”
“I will not hear it,” Talon ordered, his voice low, though harsh. “Nothing will interfere with this celebration or prevent it. Hemera will be my wife and nothing—nothing—will change that. So celebrate along with us or take your leave.”
Gelhard held his tongue, though he would have preferred not to. “I am honored to celebrate this joyous occasion, my King,”
The doors to the hall opened and Hemera entered and all eyes turned on her.
Talon’s heart lurched in his chest upon seeing his wife. Never had he known a more beautiful woman, not only in features but her nature as well. She might be different, but she was so much more than people thought her to be and he was lucky to have her as his wife.
He stretched his hand out to her and she smiled and hurried over to him to take tight hold.
He leaned down and whispered, “There is nothing to worry about. We are already wed.”
Her smile grew. “And glad I am for that.”
Talon turned to Gelhard. “Let us see this done so we may celebrate.”
Gelhard led the King and Hemera to the long table at the far end of the feasting hall and gave everyone time to assemble around the tables and along the walls eager to witness the ceremony. Verity went to Wrath with tears in her eyes, happy, though worried for her sister and Anin walked over to Paine, slipping into his protective embrace. Many took hold of vessels, ready to raise them in honor of the King and his new queen.
Talon and Hemera stood behind Gelhard, their hands still joined tightly together.
Gelhard stepped forward. “This day will live long in Pict minds and hearts, for today King Talon takes a queen. Let it be known that King Talon has chosen this woman Hemera to be his queen and Hemera agrees to serve the King well. The King and Hemera will now exchange vows that will seal their union and claim Hemera Queen of the Picts.” Gelhard stepped aside.
Hemera could not stop the slight tremble that ran through her and she was relieved when Talon took both her hands and held them firm in his. He eased her to take a step forward and turn so they were facing each other and he spoke in a loud commanding voice.
“Hemera, you have my heart. It belongs to you and always will. As King of the Picts, I proclaim you my—”
The door burst open and several of the King’s warriors entered and behind them followed Haggard, the Northmen and Chieftain of the Southern Region. He was a tall, bulky man, though solid, and his flaming red hair matched his long beard that had two braids starting at each side of his mouth trailing down his chin to join with a single, longer braid.
He pushed past the King’s warriors and with a gruff voice demanded, “What goes on here?”
Talon took a hasty step forward, his nostrils flaring along with his temper. “I warn you once, Haggard, make another demand and your warriors will be taking your body home.”
Haggard gave a barely noticeable nod.
“Since you are here, you are welcome to join in the celebration and witness my wedding.”
Haggard’s red bushy brows looked as if they joined together over his eyes, his scowl ran so deep. “Who is this woman who will be Pict queen?”
Talon reached out to Hemera and she took his hand and stepped forward. “Hemera of the Alpin Tribe.”
Haggard’s face burst red with anger and he sputtered as he spoke. “You will not marry Hemera.”
“You have no say here, Haggard, so hold your tongue or lose it,” Talon threatened and felt Hemera’s hand begin to tremble. He stepped closer to her and eased her against his side.
“This wedding will not be and you will take your hands off my daughter!”
Gasps flooded the feasting hall and whispers soon followed.
“Silence!” Talon ordered with a curt shout and the room stilled instantly.
“Come here to me, Hemera,” Haggard ordered.
“No,” Hemera said quickly. “I am finally home on my mother’s land and here is where I will stay.”
“I am your father and you will obey me,” Haggard demanded.
“Hemera obeys only me,” Talon said and thought better of his words since Hemera rarely obeyed him.
“I will not give permission for my daughter to wed you,” Haggard said, sputtering his words again, his anger so strong.
Breaths were held, eyes turned wide, and all waited for the King to speak, for without a father’s permission a woman could not wed.
Talon’s arm went around Hemera. “You are too late. Hemera and I exchanged vows last night and sealed our union.”
More gasps and rushed whispers rippled through the feasting hall.
“You lie!” Haggard shouted.
“Tilden!” Talon called out and the warrior stepped forward to stand beside Haggard. “Tell everyone.”
Tilden raised his voice for all to hear. “I witnessed the King and Hemera exchange wedding vows last night and stood guard outside the door to Hemera’s dwelling afterwards. The King did not leave until the sun peeked on the horizon.”
“It does not matter, the union can be broken,” Haggard argued.
Tilden shook his head. “It cannot. The King claimed Hemera his queen from the moment he spoke his vow until forever and Hemera spoke the same words as well. No one can undo what has been done. They are joined until death.”
Haggard’s hand went to the hilt of his sword at his waist and Tilden rushed to step in front of the King while his other personal guards stepped forward, along with Wrath and Paine. Haggard wisely moved his hand off the handle of his sword.
“We will talk,” Talon said and turned to Hemera. “You will wait with your sister.”
“No,” she said softly. “I go with you.”
Talon kept his voice low. “This is—”
“About me and I will be part of it.”
“Hemera is a true Northmen, she speaks her mind to her husband,” Haggard said with a boisterous laugh that shook his thick body.
Talon turned to Haggard. “You admit then that Hemera is my wife.”
Haggard stopped laughing, his eyes flaring in anger once again.
Hemera would not embarrass her husband—the King—in front of Haggard and the people. “I will wait with Verity while you speak with my father.” She brought her lips near his ear, though it looked to all
that she kissed his cheek, and whispered, “I tried to tell you.”
Talon pressed his cheek to hers and whispered, “You are mine and always will be and nothing else matters.” He kissed her cheek and turned to Tilden. “Do not let her out of your sight.”
“As you say, my King,” Tilden said and remained close to her side as she walked past her father.
“You will be coming home with me,” Haggard said as Hemera passed him.
Hemera smiled. “I am home.”
Talon walked over to Haggard, his face showing none of the rage that swirled inside him. “You will not speak to my wife without my permission. Follow me.”
Wrath and Paine fell in behind Haggard and the King’s personal guards trailed behind them. When Wrath and Paine went to follow the two men into the High Council Chambers, Haggard objected.
“Do you fear being alone with me, Talon?” Haggard challenged.
Wrath spoke. “Our King fears nothing, but you will give me your weapons if you wish to speak to the King alone.”
Haggard looked to Talon.
“Wrath is commander of my personal guards, I would obey him since his strength and impatience is well known,” Talon warned.
Haggard grumbled as he handed over his sword and two daggers and the door finally closed on the two.
Talon did not take a sit. He looked directly at Haggard and said, “Tell me how Hemera came to be your daughter.” He was surprised when Haggard’s face softened.
“I found with Bera, Hemera’s mother, what I never thought I would ever find. You Picts call it tuahna, something she said to me often.” Haggard sat as if the memories had grown him weak.
Talon took his sit at the head of the table and poured them each a drink from the large vessel.
Haggard cupped his hands around the vessel Talon handed him, though he did not drink from it. “I met Bera on trading day when the Northmen sailed to the Pict land far north from here to trade their wares with your people. If you think Hemera is beautiful, you should have seen her mum. I could not stop staring at her and being a young warrior I could not stop thinking of mating with her.”
“You took her against her will?” Talon snapped.
Haggard shook his head. “No, it was not a thought. I knew upon seeing her that I did not want that between us. I went and spoke with her. She was fluid in our language from trading with us. I remember that first day well. I found excuse after excuse to speak with her until finally she asked if I would like to sit and share drink and food with her. I thought my heart would burst while my stomach churned.” He laughed. “Never had I felt such for any woman.”
“I understand.”
Haggard looked at Talon. “You care for my daughter?”
“I would give my life for your daughter.”
Haggard drew back in shock. “You are King. You cannot do that.”
“Aye, I am King and I can do what I please and it pleases me to shield my wife from harm.”
“That is foolish,” Haggard said, shaking his head. “You have no heir to take the throne.”
“There will be one soon enough and more will follow. Picts will always rule this land.”
“You sound sure of this and yet your two previous,” —Haggard glared at him—“my daughter already carries your child?”
“She does,” Talon confirmed, “though it has not been announced yet.”
“That changes things.”
“I thought it would. And if you are the wise ruler I believe you are, then you will see that this can benefit both our people. But before we discuss that, tell me what happened that Hemera wound up with you and was treated like a slave.”
“Hemera was no slave.” Haggard grew silent for a moment. “Bera and I lost our hearts to each other, but my father refused to accept it when I asked for permission to wed her. After that I was prevented from seeing her. I sent a message to her through a friend, but she was not at market nor did she ever return there. It was not until much later that I learned Bera had given birth to a daughter and that she herself was dead. I discovered that a close friend of hers claimed the lass as her own.”
“So Hemera and Verity are not sisters?” Talon asked.
“They are not and yet they are, for Hemera fought like a wild beast to keep Verity safe.” Haggard took a swallow and wiped his mouth on his sleeve. “The warriors I sent were unsure of which lass was my daughter, though if the fools had any sense they would have known the one with hair flaming as red as mine was my daughter. Unsure, they took both.”
“So you raided a Pict village to get your daughter?”
“There was no raid. I negotiated with the village for Hemera. Unfortunately due to my warriors’ lack of wise judgement, they took both lassies and that caused Verity’s mum to scream in protest. She tried to tell my warriors it was Hemera, but they did not listen and from what I was told there was a bit of a scuffle.”
A scuffle to the Northmen meant a good fight and Talon began to realize that Hemera had believed the Northmen had raided the village and that would explain why Minn knew of no raid on the Alpin Tribe. His curiosity had him asking, “Why did you not return Verity? Why keep her as a slave?”
“It took me a short time to realize that my daughter was much like me. She would not easily obey, but she did when I threatened harm to Verity. I hoped with time, Hemera would come to see that I cared for her and while I believe, or want to believe, she has, it is nothing compared to the bond she has with Verity. And I could not take that away from Hemera.” Sadness filled his eyes. “When my people began to call her dim-witted, I knew better. Her mum was the same way, appearing slow-minded when actually her wisdom surpassed the wisest of men.”
“I have come to learn the same myself.”
Haggard nodded. “I am glad to hear that. I miss my daughter and the challenging talks we shared, though I was not surprised when she fled. I expected one day that she would do just that... return home.”
“Where she belongs, and do you know how badly your son Ulric treated her?” Talon asked, trying to keep hold of his temper that simmered within him.
“They did not get along. Ulric did not like that he had a sister who was part Pict. I did my best to keep them apart.”
“He beat her unmercifully, the multitude of scars on her back evidence of it, then he left her in the woods, no doubt to die, but she lived,” Talon said his tone filled with venom.
Haggard stared at him, his mouth agape.
“You did not know.”
Haggard shook his head, words failing him.
“Ulric deserves to die for what he did to Hemera.”
“He is my son—”
“And Hemera is your daughter born of the woman you claim to have cared for like no other,” Talon challenged.
“My son is my heir and I must protect him. I will agree and praise this union between you and Hemera, if you give me your word that you will not harm or kill my son. We can also discuss a more favorable trade agreement now that we are family.”
Talon did not hesitate to agree to his terms, knowing he would find a way to see that Ulric got what he deserved.
The two talked and Haggard shared many memories of his daughter with Talon.
“I gave Hemera two weapons to help protect her, courage and strength. I explained they were her shield and her sword and that she should always keep them close,” Haggard said.
“I can assure you that she does,” Talon said with pride.
“I think my daughter may do well with you,” Haggard, said raising his vessel.
Talon raised his as well. “She will. You have my word.”
They drank, toasting their agreement.
They walked to the door, but before Talon opened it, Haggard stopped abruptly.
“Something else you need to say?” Talon questioned.
A smile surfaced on Haggard’s face. “You do not know who Hemera is, do you?”
“She is your daughter,” Talon said, the corners of his eyes wrinkling as he t
ried to make sense of what Haggard implied.
Haggard laughed. “She is that and more, but I will let you discover for yourself.” He opened the door and shouted as he entered the feasting hall. “We celebrate the union of my daughter Hemera and King Talon.”
Chapter 32
It was not until after vows were exchanged, toasts made, and songs sung in praise of the King and his new queen that Hemera finally got a somewhat private moment with Talon at the head table. Food and drink flowed in abundance along with robust laughter and merriment, affording them time to speak.
Hemera turned to her husband. Husband. It was still difficult for her to grasp, to believe it was real. That Talon and she were joined as one. Her heart fluttered at the thought, but her insides churned as she spoke to him. “Upon my arrival here, I feared to tell you of my father. I feared you would return me to him.”
Talon went to speak and she placed a finger tenderly to his lips.
“Please, I must say this,” she begged softly, and he nodded.
She dropped her hand away and Talon caught it in his, entwining his fingers with hers and pressing their locked hands against his chest.
“I had thought after I made certain Verity was safe and protected here that I would take my leave, for I feared my father might come for me. But this place creeped into my heart and the longer I remained here, the less I wanted to leave. When you kissed me, it changed everything. I never meant to keep my secret from you, but then I never meant to feel as deeply as I do for you and never did I think,” —she touched her brow to his—“tuahna, my husband tuahna.”
Talon eased his brow off hers and ran a gentle finger down her cheek. “It does not matter, wife. There was nothing you could have said or that anyone could have done to stop me from making you mine now and forever. We were destined for each other.”
Hemera smiled, her fears vanquished, her heart full, and hope for a blessed future restored.
“You cannot keep her all to yourself,” Egot said, stepping around the table to sit next to Hemera.
“You old fool, leave the young ones alone,” his wife Ethra scolded as she approached the table.
The King & His Queen (Pict King Series Book 3) Page 28