“If it isn’t too much to ask,” Ivan said as he neared, “would you mind wearing these while in town?” Extending his hand, Ivan presented Jarod with a pair of glasses with tinted lenses. “I mean no offense, but those eyes of yours could possibly cause a stir.”
“No offense taken.” Taking the glasses from his hand, Jarod slid them on and took a look around while Maya watched on. Several feet away, Jaron and the others watched as well.
“They are designed to protect the blacksmith’s eyes from the blazing light of the fire.” Ivan continued. “Though they may be a bit dark, at the very least they should give you greater liberty to move amongst others.”
“I like it.” Maya joined in. “And this way you don’t have to walk around with a hood pulled down over your head all the time.”
“I didn’t know such things existed.” Jarod paused, nodding his head toward the blacksmith. “How much do I owe you?”
“Owe? For this trinket?” Ivan scoffed, waving his hand dismissively. “You and your people helped save nearly a hundred workers back at that mine, it is we who owe you, not the other way around.”
“Then my thanks.” Jarod offered, extending his hand.
Grasping his hand tightly, Ivan bowed his head. “The pleasure is all mine.” With nothing more to be said, Ivan turned back toward the stables leaving Jarod and Maya alone once again.
“Shall we?”
Glancing first from his extended hand, back up to Jarod, Maya could not suppress the giddy grin that spread across her face as she nodded enthusiastically. Taking his hand, she allowed herself to be led through the gates into the bustling crowd. Anxious about how they would be received amongst the people, she tucked herself close to Jarod’s massive form. As usual though, Jarod paid little mind to the melee surrounding him and continued to lead her further into the mix.
After several minutes in the hub of activity with no other reaction to their presence than a couple of gawking stares from kids, mainly at Jarod of course, Maya began to finally relax. Much to her surprise, many of the vendors actually beckoned them over to their stands. Chatting with them as if they were old friends, Maya perused their eclectic collection of goods before bidding them farewell and moving on to the next stand. Continuing the pattern, Maya bounced from stand to stand, meeting people from races she had only ever heard about in stories and others she never knew existed.
Giddy as a school girl Maya continued to dart through the market talking with any and every new face willing to speak with her. And it wasn’t long before she could even recognize many of the races without having to ask. Of course, some like the Elves and Fairies were easier thanks to their distinctive features, but others like the Elementals, Jumpers, and Seers were only distinguishable by the type of clothing they preferred to wear. She even saw a few male Shifters and realized very quickly why Jericho had assumed Jaron and the others could be passed off as one of them.
Never in her life had Maya had so much fun, but she also knew her time was limited. Never wanting to forget what she was certain was going to be a once in a lifetime trip, Maya began searching the area around her for something she could buy as a souvenir. But after about the fourth stand containing nothing but housewares, Maya sighed. Rising up on her tip-toes, she tried to spot at least one booth that didn’t contain draperies or cooking utensils. However, thanks to her stature and the mass of people surrounding her, her view was limited at best.
Frustrated she stared up at Jarod who had done nothing but follow her around silently. “Can you see a stand nearby that sells something besides pots and pans?”
Glancing down at her, one of his eyebrows peaked out over the edge of his dark glasses. “Why? Are you not interested in cooking for me when we get back to camp?”
“What? No, it’s not that.” Suddenly concerned he thought she was not interested in preparing meals for him, she quickly tried to explain her reasoning. “I-I like cooking. I mean I did run an inn with my mom and helped her with all the cooking. It’s just that these kinds of things I can buy at home. I was hoping to find something here we didn’t have access to back in Vanteria, you know...” Pausing Maya stared out amongst the crowd, then frowned. “Wait a minute… you don’t even eat!”
Hearing his low chuckle, Maya looked up at his crooked grin and smacked him in the arm. “That wasn’t nice.” Feigning anger, she turned her back to him and crossed her arms across her chest. “Especially since I was finally getting to have some fun.”
“Perhaps not.” Jarod continued to chuckle as he leaned down and kissed the top of her head. Running his hand down the length of her hair, he whispered into her ear. “I guess I will just have to make it up to you later.”
With a sharp intake of breath, she spun around and came face to face with Jarod’s mischievous grin. Feeling the blush spread across her cheeks, Maya quickly looked away.
Not one to let her dismiss him so easily, Jarod grasped her chin and forced her to face him. Closing the gap, he kissed her gently on the lips. “It gives me great pleasure to see you so happy. This…” Pulling away, his face took on a solemn expression as he stared out at all the people. “This is the type of life you deserve.”
“No.” Reaching up, Maya pulled him back down to her and pressed her forehead against his. “This is the life we deserve.”
Lost in each other’s embrace, the two of them were taken by surprise when a young boy suddenly began to pull on the back of Maya’s shirt. “Pretty lady. Hey, pretty lady!”
Upset by the interruption, Maya furrowed her brow and turned to face the intruder. “Are you talking to me?”
“Well I am not talking to him.” The boy laughed hitching a thumb in Jarod’s direction. He then paused, watching as Jarod rose to stand at his full height. With a loud gulp, the boy continued, “Oh wow. Um yeah. I uh, just thought you might be interested in checking out some of the things at my uncle’s booth.”
“Does he sell pots and pans?” Jarod deadpanned.
Confused the boy looked from him back to Maya, “You want pots and pans?”
“No.” Maya snapped, elbowing Jarod in the gut.
“Oh good.” Grabbing her by the hand, the boy dragged Maya through the crowd of people as Jarod followed leisurely a few feet behind. “My uncle doesn’t sell anything like that.”
Pushing and weaving his way through the dense crowd the boy finally came to a stop in front of a booth. “No, he certainly does not.” Maya gaped staring at the exquisite dresses and jewelry spread out before her. “But he may be out of my price range.”
“Don’t be ridiculous.” A man called as he dramatically popped out from behind a curtain. Moving with a little more flair than a man probably should, Maya rolled her eyes as he pranced to the front of the booth. However, the instant he raised his gaze to meet with hers, Maya’s mouth dropped open. He was absolutely gorgeous. With a lithe build, spiky auburn hair, and flawless skin, had he not been standing directly in front of her Maya would have thought she was dreaming. Seeing her reaction, the man smiled as he rounded the end of the booth. Immediately dropping into a low bow, he took her hand into his own, and placed a chaste kiss on the top of it. “Everything is negotiable,” he purred, locking his glittering aquamarine eyes with hers, “especially for a lady as beautiful as you.” Grinning widely, he rose to stand, still tightly grasping her hand. “Tell me my dear, what does your heart desire?”
Mesmerized by not only his looks, but the melodic sound of his voice, Maya hesitated. “My heart?” Looking over the table full of beautiful things, Maya furrowed her brow unable to think through the fog that had wrapped itself around her mind. “I-I don’t know.”
The man’s grin grew wider. “Of course you don’t, because none of this rubbish is worthy of gracing the body of a woman of such exquisite beauty. How about I take you into the back and show you what I keep tucked away for a siren such as yourself.” Smoothly gliding his free hand down the outside of her arm, he then pressed it into the small of her back and began to nudge he
r toward the inside of the booth. Feeling as if she was floating on a cloud without a care in the world, Maya happily allowed herself to be led away.
However, they only made it a few steps before her escort suddenly disappeared from her side with a loud shriek. At the loss of his presence, Maya’s head slowly began to clear and upon hearing a bit of commotion behind her, she turned to see Jarod holding a very terrified looking vendor in his grasp. Still not completely back at herself, she stared blankly at the sight.
“Maya!” Jarod’s angry voice broke through the fog. “Can you hear me? Are you alright?”
“I-I’m not sure. But I think so.” Blinking rapidly, Maya shook her head. “What happened?”
Behind her the young boy doubled over in laughter. “I told you not to double cross me ‘Uncle.’ ” He laughed making air quotes. “Consider this payback for skimming off my share on the last job.”
“Why you ungrateful little…”
Squirming in Jarod’s grasp, the man tried, unsuccessfully, to get at the young boy who darted away cackling.
“What did you do to her?” Jarod growled, pulling his attention back to him. “Or should I ask what were you going to do to her?”
“Whoa there big man, you got me all wrong!” With a nervous laugh the man raised his hands. “I was only going to show her my merchandise, I swear.”
“Were you now?” Lifting the man off the ground until his feet dangled limply in the air, Jarod pushed his glasses up to the top of his head. Upon seeing his eyes, the man went as pale as a sheet. “So you won’t mind telling me what race you are then.”
“Ummm… m-my race?”
“Did I stutter?”
Little by little the crowd around them began to grind to a halt as people stopped to watch what was happening. Growing concerned that he might lose control in the midst of such a large crowd of innocent people, Maya rushed to his side and gently grasped his forearm. “I’m fine Jarod, let’s go.” She coaxed allowing some of her energy to spill over into him. And much to her surprise Jarod didn’t try to stop her. “I’m just glad you were here with me.”
“And what if I hadn’t been?” Jarod growled, pulling the man in closer. “How many women have you done this sort of thing to?”
“Please don’t hurt me!” Screeching like a girl, the man wrapped his arms around his head eliciting a bit of laughter from the growing crowd.
“For two people trying to stay inconspicuous, the pair of you sure are attracting a good bit of attention,” Ivan’s burly voice rose from amongst the crowd. Making his way to the front with Jaron and the other’s closely behind him, Ivan took in Jarod and the whimpering man in his grasp.
“I’m so sorry.” Maya apologized, tugging on Jarod’s arm in an attempt to get him to drop his captive. “He thinks he was trying to use some sort of magic on me…”
“I don’t think, I know.” Jarod growled. “It was as if she didn’t even know who or where she was for a moment.”
Wrinkles creased his lowered brow as Ivan regarded the trembling man. “Well you are probably right since Linus here is a Nymph.”
“Wait… what?” Maya gaped, releasing Jarod’s arm.
Folding his arms across his chest Ivan continued. “Yes, this asshole here has been banished in at least seven countries, that I know of, for using his very powerful gift to seduce women into doing his bidding. And the sad part is no one could ever arrest him for what he was doing because all of the women did what he asked willingly.” Hearing a low growl come from Jarod, Ivan paused and allowed a crooked smirk to turn up the corner of his mouth. “But it appears you may have messed with the wrong girl this time Linus, for as you can clearly see, my Vanterian friend here is quite attached to that young lady there.”
“V-Vanterian?!” Gaping up at Jarod, Linus looked as if he was going to puke. “Oh. My. Stars. I-I-I swear I wasn’t going to try anything Ivan! Please, I don’t want to die, just let me go and I swear you will never see me again!”
“I am afraid that is not an option.” With a wave of his hand, three armed guards suddenly appeared from the crowd. “You see, I received a message several weeks ago from one of the northern Wander tribes asking me to keep a look out for a flashy gentleman who, strangely enough, meets your description. They claim they welcomed this stranger into their camp and their homes and he repaid their kindness by disappearing in the middle of the night with two of their teenage girls.” Glowering at the pathetic man Ivan continued. “As I am sure you can imagine, Lady Zae and her people are very interested in finding this man so as they can get answers as to what happened to their girls.”
Cautiously the guards crept closer to Jarod and stopped, waiting for him to release his captive. Jarod however showed no signs of doing that. Knowing his brother was battling his dark desires, Jaron cleared his throat. “Jarod, this is not our land and his fate is not yours to decide.”
Upon hearing his words Linus whimpered loudly as Ivan looked questioningly back at Jaron. Finally, after several intense moments, Jarod reluctantly released his hold and allowed Linus to hit the ground with a hard thud. Immediately the Elemental guards descended upon the dazed man. Pulling him to his feet, they spun him around and began to shackle his arms behind his back.
“Wait, no! Keep me here… in your prison.” Linus protested as they continued to secure the bonds. “Whatever you do, don’t turn me over to the Wanderers… t-they’re savages.”
Ignoring his pleas, Ivan addressed his guards. “Take him to a holding cell.” He commanded flatly, pausing as a look of hope passed over Linus’s face. “In the meantime, send a messenger to Lady Zae and let her know we found her man. Tell her she is welcome to come get him whenever she is ready.”
“What no! You can’t do this to me!” Linus shouted, struggling against the guards as they latched on to his upper arms. “She’s going to kill me, please…”
Together with the others, Maya watched as the guards dragged the still struggling man away. “What do you think happened to the girls?” She asked, once they had disappeared from sight.
“Nothing good.” Ivan sighed. “My best guess is he sold them to slave traders at one of the unprotected borders.”
“You should have let me kill him.” Jarod growled, pulling the shades down over his eyes.
“As satisfying as I am sure that would have been, it would have denied Lady Zae and her people the opportunity to find out for sure what happened to their girls.” Turning toward the castle, Ivan began to lead the group up the narrow road. “Besides, my returning him to them, further strengthens my alliance with the northern border tribe.”
“So the arrangement you have with Jericho, you have with all the tribes?” Jaron asked.
“Not all, but most. We find it a mutually beneficial and necessary arrangement, given the size of Lanoria and the fact that we are bordered by a different country on all sides.”
Turning a corner, Ivan continued to lead the group to the north. The further away from the main gate they went, the roads began to grow wider and the crowd thinned.
“So how much trouble is Jericho in for helping us?” Maya couldn’t help but ask as the group passed through what appeared to be a housing community.
“That will be up to Mallok to decide.” Ivan answered, without turning around. “However, if it was up to me he would be banished for his violation of our agreement.”
“But he also helped save those people at the mine.”
“And I am sure Mallok will be lenient given that fact. However, it does not change the fact he not only didn’t report your presence, but led you deep into our borders and endangered the lives of my people.”
“Hey hold up a minute…” Rico snapped. “We didn’t come here looking for trouble. Hell, if you hadn’t hired him to abduct our queen then we wouldn’t even be here.”
“Yes, there is that.” Ignoring the displeased glares of the Full-bloods behind him, Ivan continued on at a leisurely pace. “I can assure you my council was not sought prior to t
hat decision being made, for if it had I would have highly advised against it.”
“Yeah, why is that?” Zach challenged.
“Because I have watched the two of them together for decades and as much as I would like to say what happened surprised me, it did not. The two of them had what I would call a volatile relationship. And there toward the end, they fought constantly.” Ivan released a ragged breath. “This trial is only Mallok’s desperate attempt to understand what the rest of the kingdom saw coming for years.”
Silence descended over the group of them as they considered Ivan’s words. Deciding it was best they dropped the subject, they instead turned their attention to the loveliness of their surroundings. Weaving their way through street after street of housing areas and markets, Maya marveled at how beautiful and vibrant everything was in comparison to Vanteria. Even the gardens and parks, full of towering topiaries and vibrant flowers, made the ones they had back home look pitiful in comparison.
By the time the group finally reached the gates outside the castle, the sun had reached its peak in the sky. Using their ability to manipulate metal, the guards outside the gate pulled open the colossal structures to reveal yet another massive courtyard beyond. Much like the gardens they had passed through in town, the castle’s courtyard was beautifully designed and meticulously cared for, which served only to highlight the sheer magnificence of the castle itself. All about the open expanse, servants and soldiers casually strolled to and fro chatting amongst themselves as they leisurely went about their duties
“Definitely not the Tower.” Maya mumbled, recalling the fear and oppression that weighed down the spirits of everyone living within those walls.
Forsaken (The Shadow Chronicles Book 3) Page 34