by Randi Darren
He hadn’t seen Nannie, Riley, or Eleanor since he’d gotten back from the capital. The three of them seemed to be waiting for him specifically.
“Master,” Riley said, getting to her feet. She quickly rushed over to him, the clapper on her tag tinkling with every step.
Dressed in her “Brit maid” uniform, as he’d come to think of it, she was alluring as ever. Her overwhelming bust looked like it was going to split her blouse.
Her red hair bounced with her, hanging at her shoulders, and her green eyes saw only him.
“Master.” Riley pressed her face into his chest. She hugged him with all the force she could muster. “I missed you. I love you.”
Smiling, Alex kissed the top of Riley’s head.
“Hello. I missed and love you too, One.” Alex said kissed her quickly. Lifting his head, he then looked to Nannie.
He knew the big murderess was the same as Riley, she just had an impossible time of showing it.
Her blond hair was growing out, and only the tips were black now. Her leather armor was tight around her, crushing her impressive chest down.
When he met her warm blue eyes, though, he saw right through her.
She wanted to bounce over to him the same way Riley had. To hug and hold him.
“Come here, Five. I’m going to hug you and kiss you, and you’re going to accept it,” Alex kept his left arm tight around Riley and gestured with his right hand.
Nannie stood up looking annoyed, but she did as he’d instructed. She looked down at him as she came over, a small smile slowly forming.
Reaching up, he pulled Nannie’s head down to his own and kissed her. Several seconds passed like that before he released her and wrapped his right arm around her, pulling her in close.
He’d been gone far longer than he’d originally intended. The king had kept him waiting for over three weeks.
What was supposed to be one week had taken three and a half.
He’d missed them all.
“Alright. One of you needs to surrender your spot for Six; she’s getting a hug and a kiss too,” Alex said.
“Uhm, I’ll just… move over under Five. Six can have my spot, but I’m not letting go,” Riley said.
Shuffling to one side, Riley literally wedged herself up under Nannie without letting go.
Nannie only laughed at that, her acidic and violent personality having melted considerably over the last four months.
Looking to Eleanor, his knight, Alex lifted his left arm and waited. Her short brown hair had been allowed to hang free, and it framed her face perfectly. Her dark blue eyes watched him with a fair amount of embarrassment. She hated displays of affection more than Nannie did.
More so because she was still pretending on some level to not care for him.
“Master, I—”
“Six, I love you,” Alex said simply, waiting.
Looking down and to the side, Eleanor sighed.
“I know,” she said. Getting to her feet, she came over to him. “And… I love you, too. But must you make us all show it like this?”
“Yep, because the sooner you all realize you’re all equals, in the same exact spot, and the same, the easier it is for all of us,” Alex said. Getting a hold of Eleanor’s shoulder, he pulled her in quickly and kissed her. Though feeling a bit impish for her delay, he pushed his tongue into her mouth and kissed her much more aggressively.
Eleanor fought him for a split second, then let herself be pulled to his side.
Breaking the kiss, Alex pulled on all three women, trying to crush them with his arms.
“It’s so good to hold all of you,” he said.
“Not into that, Alex,” Nannie grumbled.
“I’m only yours,” Riley said immediately.
“Maybe… maybe with Seven?” Eleanor said after a few seconds, surprising them all.
Laughing, Alex released them and took a step back.
“Consider me happy to see all three of you, but you were lying in wait for me. What’s up?” Alex asked.
“I think… I think there’s a problem, Master,” Riley said.
“Okay, and?” Alex said.
“We think there’s a spy,” Nannie said, shaking her head. “And that a Numbered is involved.”
What? I don’t even… that’s not possible.
“Explain it to me, be direct, and tell me who,” Alex said.
“It’s… strange,” Eleanor said. “One explained it to me, and I added some information I had, and well… it’s Three.”
Valeria!? What?
“I found a note she deliberately left out. She put it down in front of me and left,” Riley said. “It was yesterday. After… after lunch.”
“She did the same with me while we were alone before we left for the capital,” Eleanor said. “I thought she was just being strange or misplacing them, so I kept putting them back in her room.”
I don’t even understand.
“Wait. You’re saying she’s a spy for someone else… but she… was deliberately making you aware of it?” Alex asked.
“I guess that’s what we’re saying,” Eleanor said.
“I think she’s under an oath,” Nannie said, nodding her head sharply. “Three isn’t a rat, but something is wrong with her. She’s probably trying to act within the confines of what she’s sworn to.”
She was under an oath previously.
To someone before me. But I thought my deals superseded others’?
They can. But not always. There are certain gods and goddesses I can’t override. They’re very few.
Fuck!
Alright. That means Valeria is still stuck under the original oath that bound her, to a degree.
That was to the Ridges though. Wasn’t it?
“Okay, so, when I first took Three, she was under oath to another noble family,” Alex said. “I thought I’d ferreted out who it was, but it seems like perhaps they left her with far more instructions than I figured.
“Maybe even instructions to shift blame if she was caught.”
“Oh, that’d make sense,” Eleanor said with a nod. “Before I was released from my contract, I was made to swear a number of things in a similar fashion. There are many rules and stipulations involved. It’s likely she could be caught in the same way?”
“Who was she sworn to, Master?” Riley asked.
“The Ridge family,” Alex said, frowning.
“Oh? But they’re dead,” Nannie said. “You set up that elaborate thing for her to kill them. I was there. I remember it.”
“I-I didn’t see it. I missed it,” Alex said, feeling sick. He’d overlooked the problem right there. He’d never even considered it. “Valeria killed the Elder Ridge and his son. Herself.”
“If… if she was sworn to them, wouldn’t that make it impossible for her to kill them?” Riley asked.
“Yeah… it would,” Alex said with a sigh. “I didn’t even think about it.”
“I didn’t either,” Nannie grumbled, shaking her head. “It just… it just slipped my mind. I never even considered it.”
“Yeah… so… that means she’s still under compulsion, but… from who? What’d the letter say that she left you?” Alex asked Riley.
“To keep reporting information back. Troop count, finances, what you’re doing. It’s mostly just information gathering,” Riley said.
Alex nodded, realizing that he did indeed have a leak. He’d wondered about it several times in the past, when information he hadn’t wanted out somehow made its way to the public.
Now he knew how it was happening, and he was technically responsible. He’d never considered that Valeria was still suffering under an oath.
He’d make sure that all oaths regarding his future projects would start with declaring any existing oaths.
“Alright. Then we’re all agreed this is Valeria trying to somehow warn us of what she’s doing,” Alex said. “Right?”
He got three nods back.
“Did you ever read any
of the letters, Six?” Alex turned to Eleanor.
“No. I thought she was just being… weird. All of us Numbered seem to have quirks, and I thought that was just hers.” Eleanor sighed. “I’m sorry.”
“No. It’s alright. The simple fact, though, is she tried to warn us, apparently more than once. Did it say when she was supposed to write back?” Alex asked.
“Tomorrow,” Riley said.
“Great,” Alex said. “Then I know what to do.”
Sighing, he looked at Nannie and Eleanor. “I need you to put Three in Four’s old room.”
***
“Hi,” Alex said as he walked into the room.
Valeria was seated at a table, looking nervous though also happy, if that was possible.
“Hello, Alex,” she said. She’d been disallowed anything to write with, but everything else had been given to her. She lacked for nothing.
“I made a mistake, didn’t I?” he asked.
Valeria blinked, then slowly nodded.
“Yeah. Figured. But I think we’ve got it figured out.” Alex walked over to the table.
Lifting her chin, Valeria took in a shaky breath and nodded her head again.
“This is partially why you didn’t deserve love, isn’t it?” Alex asked, not identifying anything.
Breath catching audibly, Valeria nodded again, and her eyes started to water up.
“It’s alright. We’ve got it fixed now, and it’s just a matter of solving it. Everyone knows it’s not your fault,” Alex said as he sat down next to her.
“Really?” Valeria asked, brushing at her eyes with her fingers.
“Really,” Alex said. Reaching out, he put an arm around her shoulders and brought her in close to him. “I don’t need to fear for my life, right?”
Valeria shook her head. “No.”
“Great. We’ll need to keep you here until after the vassals feast, I imagine. I have a guess, but I’ll not say anything for now,” Alex said.
Valeria nodded as her fingers curled into his clothes.
“Alright. Let’s get in the bed. Seems like I should remind you that you deserve love,” Alex said, stroking her back.
Again, Valeria nodded.
Chapter 4
Standing at the entry to Brit’s fort, Alex waited patiently.
Beside him were Anna and Mary. Amelia and Alexander were in the nursery with a nursemaid and Carla.
Eleanor and Nannie were only two steps behind Alex.
Rebekah, Sylvia, and Riley were all keeping Valeria company during her incarceration. They’d formed a little group and seemed to be working on their tasks together.
Carla had become little more than fluff whenever the babies were involved and often offered to watch over them.
Alex began to worry that Carla really did want children, and he didn’t know how to feel about that.
If he wasn’t careful, or he didn’t set boundaries soon, he’d be drowning in children. And that didn’t really sound like a good idea to him.
“I’m so glad Regina is coming back,” Anna said, squeezing Alex’s hand. “I missed her. Didn’t you, Mary?”
Mary squeezed Alex’s hand gently, turning her head to look across Alex at Anna.
Her light-brown hair had been slowly becoming more blond lately, and it was set about her face in her normal fashion. Her green eyes had held a vast warmth and joy about life in the last year. She’d gone from depressed and clearly unhappy to someone who seemed unable to be brought down.
“I did miss her. Although, Anna, maybe… maybe you should wait till we’re not in public to welcome her home,” Mary said.
Alex had to nod his head. Anna wasn’t shy about kissing Mary or Regina with others around.
“Oh. Do you think so?” Anna asked.
“I do,” Mary said. “Think of it as a way to show respect for Regina. You know she won’t say no to you, but you should at least make it private, right?”
“No. I’m not going to wait,” Anna said. “I want to kiss her, so I will.”
Mary squeezed Alex’s hand roughly, as if begging him for help.
“Darling?” Alex said softly.
“Yes, honey bear?” Anna asked.
“Wait for a private moment, my love, then kiss her,” Alex said.
“Okay!” Anna said happily. She never disagreed with him if he told her to do something.
Mary’s grip relaxed in Alex’s hand. Her fingers began to gently caress his, though.
Poor Mary. She knows she’s beyond saving, and she doesn’t seem to care. But she’ll do what she can.
“I think I want Quinn,” Anna said suddenly.
“What?” Alex asked.
“I want her as a wife. She was cute and she sends me nice letters,” Anna said.
“I thought you wanted Alanna,” Alex muttered as Regina’s coach rolled up to them.
“Oh. Yes. I want both,” Anna said.
Letting go of his wife’s hands, Alex stepped up to the coach door and opened it.
Regina was right there, already moving to step down.
She was wearing rather comfortable clothes that still flattered her figure. Her brown hair was pulled back in a very simple braid, and her brown eyes latched on to him and stayed there.
“Hello husband,” Regina said with a bright smile.
“Wife.” Alex smiled back at her. He wasn’t quite sure where she fit in as far as his feelings went, but he’d definitely moved over to the “fond of her” side of things. Offering his hand up to her, he waited.
“Thank you,” she said, taking his hand and stepping down from the coach. “I’m not sure how you handled this so well and with so much grace, Anna my love. I feel like a monster already and it’s only barely showing.”
Anna beamed from ear to ear at Regina’s words. Moving in quickly, she wrapped her arm into Regina’s and began leading her to the fort. Mary immediately took up Regina’s other arm, and the three women began walking away.
“Huh,” Nannie muttered. “Still amazing that she listens to you. She doesn’t listen to anyone. Not even her pa.”
“Mistress loves Master more than her own life,” Eleanor said.
“Yeh… definitely that,” Nannie said.
As Alex followed the three women who’d honestly forced themselves on him in one way or another, he hoped his vassals would show up today as well.
He didn’t like leaving Valeria locked up as she was.
It made him dislike the situation a great deal.
It only took five minutes for the four of them to get into Alex’s bedroom. Nannie and Eleanor decided to stand watch outside the door.
Closing the door, Alex looked up to find Anna holding Regina’s face in both hands.
Moving in quickly, she kissed Regina. Far more heavily than he’d been expecting.
Only letting the duchess go after what felt like ten seconds, Anna then gave her another, much shorter kiss.
“Welcome home, my wife,” Anna said. “Will you service our husband tonight?”
Regina looked captivated, lost, and excited.
“Yes, Mistress Anna,” Regina murmured.
“Oh, good. He could use a break. I’ve had him knocking out contracts with my Numbered almost every free moment of his day,” Anna said. Then she kissed Regina one more time. “Go kiss our wife, Regina. I’m going to go talk to our husband. You two make yourselves comfortable on the couch till I bring him over for you.”
“Yes, Mistress,” Regina said. Turning around, Mary and Regina went to the couch and sat down. Then they started to kiss one another in the same way Anna had.
Not really knowing how to respond to all of this, Alex was once again left only with the vague impression that Anna was scary. Scary, slightly insane, and hell-bent on his happiness.
“Mm, I’m glad she’s home. I might not let her leave for a while,” Anna said, walking up to Alex’s side. “She should be here to take care of you with me and Mary.”
“She is our duchess, Anna,�
�� Alex said. “She has responsibilities she can’t avoid. Don’t hold her captive if she truly has to go.”
“Okay, honey bear, anything for you,” Anna said, smiling up at him. “You’re not upset, are you?”
“What, about that? No. Was just a bit of a shock,” Alex said.
“No, about having to sleep with so many of my Numbered. They need their contracts validated and… well… you might have to go to war soon,” Anna said. “I need you to finish up with as many of them as you can.”
Alex couldn’t deny he wasn’t really thrilled with the idea of spending hours out of every day sleeping his way through his own dungeon.
The vast overwhelming majority of Anna’s deals were fairly brutal. These women had given up their fates, which usually included swift death, to be at Alex and Anna’s disposal.
“It’s… a little tiring. That’s all, really,” Alex said.
Anna nodded at that, and then she kissed him.
“I love you, honey bear. You’re a good man. Let’s go chitchat with our wives,” Anna said. “Then we—”
There was a sharp knock on the door.
“Master, Quinn just arrived. She’s asked to speak with you,” Nannie said. “She requested it be alone.”
That’s not good, is it?
“Alright. Send her to the detached study; I’ll go there right now,” Alex said. Leaning in, he kissed Anna quickly.
“Let me know what’s going on when you can?” Anna asked.
“Of course. You’re my partner in all things. Bound at the soul, right?” Alex asked.
Anna grinned at him, bouncing in place a bit. “We are! Forever! Our lives are permanently fixed to one another! For all time! I’m a lucky woman. Bound together until we go to the afterlife. And we’ll be together there, too.”
After patting the bubbly, crazy woman whom he loved on the shoulder, Alex left the room quickly.
Eleanor was gone, and only Nannie remained.
“She say anything?” Alex asked when he entered the hall.
“Nothin’,” Nannie said. “She was happy to see me though. Which is weird.”
“Not really. You helped her when she needed it,” Alex said, walking quickly.
“Guess so,” Nannie muttered. “Hey… you… busy tonight?”