Fostering Faust 3

by Randi Darren

  A bright light appeared in the middle of the city.

  “I commend you all to seek refuge from those who put you into this war,” Alex said, shaking his head. “I wish you all good luck in your lives, and I hope you remember this moment. Hold your leaders responsible for doing this to you.”

  Turning his horse, Alex began riding back the way his force had come from. Behind him, the special accelerant his unlisted regiment had prepared started to go up.

  Then there was a muffled detonation.

  Glancing over his shoulder, Alex watched as the entire city began to go up in flames.

  “Grand,” Alex muttered, looking ahead again. “General Tael?”

  “Sire,” said the man, coming up next to Alex.

  “Get us on track for the next closest city,” Alex said. “We’ll need to hit as many as we can, as fast as we can. Before they can even think of responding.”

  “The next closest is a half day’s ride, then there are three within an hour of each other,” Tael said. “If we take into account traveling back to Fis’Er… we should be able to hit another eight cities before their main force even knows what we’re doing.”

  “Perfect. Tael, bring me up that little lord we found in the fort,” Alex said.

  “Sire,” Tael said, moving off to give an order.

  “Well, there it is,” Alex said with a dark laugh. “We’ll march on, taking horses, gold, and anyone we find in the fort. Then head back to Quinn. Maybe she’ll give me a medal.”

  “I’ll give you a medal,” Nannie muttered.

  “And I’ll give you both one,” Eleanor happily added.

  Alex only laughed at that, since it was probably more annoying to Nannie than it was him. When he looked over, he found Nannie bright red, her mouth pressed into a tight line.

  She was so adamantly against ever being with a woman that he felt bad for her. Somehow or another, Alex had ended up with several women in his employ who could do either.

  Carla, Valeria, Eleanor—which was a surprise—and Rebekah.

  Actually… Valeria might not be into women, just being used. Hm. I’ll have to ask her.

  First… let’s talk to our new friend, find out who they are, and see if we can’t learn some new information.

  Chapter 8

  Alex pulled off his riding gloves, tucked them into his belt, and started up the stairs to the fort.

  They’d arrived late in the morning, but they’d gotten back safely. Judging by the sun, it was perhaps only an hour or two before lunch.

  “I’m gonna take a nap,” Nannie grumbled.

  “I will as well,” Eleanor said, shaking her head with a suppressed yawn.

  “Who’s gonna guard him then, huh?” Nannie asked.

  “Ah… yes. Two isn’t here,” Eleanor said with a sigh. “Master… can you do me a favor?”

  Alex grinned, looking over at Eleanor.

  “I mean, I’d love to, but Five keeps saying no. No matter how good you two would look, one atop the other,” Alex said.

  Nannie just huffed at that. Eleanor and Alex had been taking turns at bothering her about a three way.

  Eleanor grinned tiredly at him and shook her head.

  “Promise me you won’t leave the fort today? If you could promise me that, I could take a nap and so could Five. Please? For me?” Eleanor asked.

  Alex had actually gotten some sleep in a lull. They’d stumbled across a wealth of horses and had to spend extra time getting them all ready.

  She never asks for much.

  “Sure,” Alex said, then stepped in to quickly kiss Eleanor. Then he patted her forearm, speaking softly for her ears alone. “Sleep well, Six. I promise to stay in the fort, but only because I worry for your health. You’re extremely important to me. Extremely important.”

  Eleanor’s smile grew wider, and she nodded.

  “Come, Five. We’re relieved for the time being,” Eleanor said as she marched off to a side entrance of the fort.

  Nannie looked confused and just a bit worried as Eleanor led her off. She looked back at Alex twice, as if unsure about him being alright without her.

  Waving at the big brute, Alex smiled and then ducked inside past the door guards.

  Straight into the waiting arms of Riley.

  Hugging him as tight as she could probably manage, Riley pressed her face into his neck.

  “Welcome back, my love,” Riley murmured against his skin. “I have your bed ready, a nice lunch, and some tea. I already got a hold of Quinn and Katherine as well. They’re waiting for you in your study.”

  Riley gave him a final extra squeeze and leaned back from him, smiling up at him. “Would you like to eat first, take a nap, or eat with them?”

  Reaching up, she tentatively drew a finger along his lips.

  “Or maybe let me take you to bed and give you something to ease your stress?” Riley asked.

  “You’re getting lessons from Seven,” Alex said with a grin.

  “A few.” Riley smiled up at him. “She did spend almost every day locked in a room with you.”

  And studied me inside and out, apparently.

  “Next time I’ll say yes. Right now, though, I do need to talk to Quinn,” Alex said. “Which means lunch with her.”

  “Okay,” Riley said with a smile. She turned her head to several maids he hadn’t noticed off to one side. “Lunch with the queen, four places. I’ll serve. Go.”

  The maids jumped to attention and scurried off.

  “I have a mass of captives coming in. Can you handle them too, One?” Alex asked.

  “Of course. I’ll have Four assist me once you’re done with her,” Riley said. “For now, I’ll get them settled. Nobility?”

  “Yeah,” Alex said.

  “Mmhmm,” Riley said. “I’ll take care of it.”

  “Thanks,” Alex said, then turned and went off toward his study. Quinn had given it to him last time, and apparently it had remained his while he’d been away.

  Walking in, he found Quinn and Katherine engaged in quiet conversation. Around them several maids were preparing a lunch and tea service.

  Off to one side at the same table, Sylvia sat with her hands in her lap. The perfect noblewoman, waiting for someone else.

  She was also the first person to notice him walking into the room. The smile she gave him was warm and for him alone, her beauty growing with such a simple expression.

  He’d had a lot of fun with Sylvia lately. She enjoyed their game, and even more so she enjoyed being punished for breaking the rules. Though it seemed nothing compared with winning to her.

  “Welcome home, Alex,” Sylvia purred.

  Katherine and Quinn both froze, their heads turning in his direction.

  Both women stood up and curtsied at him.

  Must be the maids. They’re matching their public image to what they believe it to be. My vassals. Baronesses.

  And Sylvia is… a Numbered. She is what she is. A single minor step below a wife.

  “Ladies,” Alex said evenly. He walked over and took up the setting between Quinn and Sylvia.

  Amusingly to him, Sylvia was on his right.

  The Numbered favor the Numbered, and the Numberless are the Numberless.

  “I’ve been receiving quite a few chests escorted by Brit soldiers in the last two days,” Quinn said. “Filled to the brim with gold, jewelry, and other things. So full that if you open one, you have to spend the time putting its contents back in. I take it your attack was victorious?”

  “And then some.” Alex leaned back in his chair, letting out a slow breath. “My damn hips are sore. You’d think I’d be used to it by now.”

  “My condolences to Six and Five. You don’t have to be so rough with us, you know. We’re all more than willing,” Sylvia said, giving him a wide and slow smile.

  Alex shook his head with a grin. He wouldn’t respond to her bait, though. He’d managed to keep her punishments private so far, and that was his plan.

  “We
sacked and burned fourteen cities,” Alex said, turning back to Quinn.

  Quinn opened her mouth and then closed it again, her head moving slightly. Then she took in a shuddering breath. “You… you razed fourteen cities.”

  “Yes. Originally we were aiming for around eight, but no one was responding,” Alex said as Riley showed up at his side. She began to load his plate up with his lunch. Glancing up at the redhead, Alex gave her a smile and touched her hip gently. “Thank you, One.”

  “Of course, Alex,” she murmured softly. With precise movements, his plate was filled, and it looked pretty even. She then made his tea the way he liked it without a word.

  Moving to the others, she prepared their tea but did nothing for their food.

  “Alex,” Quinn said, pressing a hand to her forehead. “I don’t think that was a good idea. When others hear of the massacre, they’ll just raise up more soldiers.”

  “Massacre? No, no. Quinn, my lovely little queen, my pretty toy, I killed less than twenty civilians. And those were all foolish ones who attacked my soldiers.” Alex lifted up a small, crackerlike biscuit and took a bite. It was one of his favorites. Riley seemed to always have a cook on hand that could make it for him. “We rounded everyone up, took them out of the city, looted it, and then burned it. Fourteen times. I also took every noble family captive that was home. You have a very large number of prisoners coming.”

  “They’ll all be safely secured in the dungeons,” Riley said with a smile, coming to stand beside Sylvia. She pulled a folded piece of paper from a pocket and laid it down in front of Sylvia. Then she leaned down and started whispering in the other woman’s ear.

  “Good work, One,” Alex said, then turned back to Quinn. “There you have it. Oh, and I took every single horse I could find. Now you should have more horses than you know what to do with. You can consider them a marriage present from me to you, Queen Quinn, Baroness of Xer, and wife.”

  Quinn let out a stilted laugh, then shook her head. “Okay. Okay… I understand. This is what you meant by hitting their weak points and avoiding their strength.”

  “Right. Now they’ll have to move a considerable number of their soldiers to protect cities,” Alex said. “And if I think for even a second I can sack another, I will. Soon enough they’ll have no choice but to move from offense to defense.”

  “Pity,” Katherine said. “You truly think they’ll move to defend them? It’d be rather convenient if they didn’t.”

  “Honestly, it’s rather convenient that they will. I’ll know where they are and, after a single scouting report, I’ll know their numbers,” Alex said, picking up another biscuit. “Then I merely take enough of a force to grind them into the dirt with a numerical advantage. Move to attack the city, draw them out, flank, and overwhelm.”

  “I can probably take two or three cities with that tactic before they wise up,” Alex said. “After that, cities will be too much of a hassle. But if I do it right, their numbers will be severely impacted having to cover so much.”

  “Alex,” Sylvia said, getting his attention. “I had some people recreate the same strategies you employed previously. Poisoning and fouling every possible water source. I don’t think it will be as effective given the weather, but I felt it worth doing.”

  “Good. Thanks, Four. What else did you do?” Alex asked with a grin. He knew Sylvia. She loved her rewards, and she went to extremes to get them.

  Grinning back at him, she shrugged. “Some things… we’ll find out later if they pan out. Though if you must know, I put out contracts on the lives of their generals, bought up all the potable water, sold misinformation, and put a bounty on enemy officers that could be collected by anyone with proof of the rank.

  “I also sent one of Coffin’s groups into the supply lane they’re using. Their orders were just to… have fun.”

  Alex choked on the biscuit he was eating and lifted up his teacup to take a sip.

  Coffin had been working for Valeria to recruit women just like her. Apparently, she’d been a priestess for a god who did not do their worshipers any favors. The god tended to drive them crazy.

  Valeria and Coffin had worked out that in swearing to Alex on Leah, it snapped off their previous god’s oath.

  There were several squads rolling up to Coffin made of priests and priestesses who wanted nothing more than to “be his knife.”

  It was a mantra he’d often heard in dark spaces and quiet moments in his castle. He’d gotten used to it quickly and felt rather safe for it.

  “I’m his knife,” grumbled a voice. It sounded like it was in the ceiling itself.

  “Yes you are, Coffin. You need anything?” Alex asked, not bothering to look up.

  Several seconds passed in silence. “No. I’m okay, Alex. I’m your knife. Your knife. Your knife will follow. She promised me. Mistress said it was okay.”

  “Did she? Alright,” Alex said after a moment, figuring out what she meant. He shrugged. He had no reason to say no. He didn’t mind Coffin trailing him life to life. She was extremely useful. Not to mention that she was quiet and left him alone. She didn’t want anything more than that, either.

  Katherine and Quinn were staring at him with wide eyes.

  “It’s just Coffin. She’s my knife,” Alex said, which was followed by a high-pitched giggle from somewhere. Coffin apparently thought that was funny.

  Sylvia and Riley looked somewhat perturbed. They shared a look that was full of confusion.

  “What do we do next?” Katherine asked. “And can you explain it to me? I want to learn. As much as I can.”

  Alex nodded as he chewed down the last biscuit. He regretted that it was the last, but he knew he did need to eat the rest of the items on his plate.

  Riley had seemingly taken on the role of nutritionist for him. No matter how many times he asked for something, she just ignored him and served what she willed for him.

  The only time he’d brought it up to Anna, she’d chastised him for questioning Riley’s dedication.

  “Honestly, it’s just wait and see,” Alex said. “If they move to engage us directly, we’ll fall back slowly to one of a few battlefields I think would be an advantage. Which one we take depends on how fast they come at us.

  “If they do nothing, I go take a few more cities.

  “If perhaps they decide to reinforce all their cities as I mentioned earlier, I’ll go hit those.

  “Beyond that, it’s largely a matter of figuring out what they want. We know their stated goal. Depose Quinn and take Xer to make it a true ‘plains land’ rather than an Imperial puppet.”

  “To be fair, I was a puppet,” Quinn said.

  “Were you? Did I impose anything on you? Did I tell you to do anything? Or did I give you a codex of laws and trade regulations and ask you to move to them in the next decade?” Alex said with some annoyance. “Because I’m pretty sure I did everything I could to grant you autonomy.”

  Quinn grimaced and reached out, laying her hand atop his.

  “I’m sorry, Alex. That came out wrong. You’re right. You did me no wrong. But I’m still just a concubine and forced vassal,” Quinn said. “I have a right to dislike my position.”

  Thinking on that, Alex realized she wasn’t wrong. He was treating her more like a Numbered, but she wasn’t. She’d been brought under his thumb with a vengeance.

  “That’s fair. We’ll talk about that after lunch.” Alex gestured at their plates. “Eat. We’ll not get such an easy meal in the future. I think we’ll be eating on the run soon enough.”

  ***

  Riley slowly closed the doors to the study, leaving Alex and Quinn alone together.

  “I really am sorry, Alex,” Quinn said immediately. “I could have—”

  “Quinn,” Alex said, interrupting her.

  “Yes?” asked the queen, looking somewhat disturbed.

  “Do you hate me?” Alex asked.

  Quinn blinked twice, her lips pressing together hard.

  “No. I
don’t,” she said finally. “I don’t. I resent you a bit… but… not much. Your price felt horribly steep when I signed myself away, but so far you’ve done nothing too terrible to me.

  “Even the sex is actually rather fun. Though I really didn’t care for the carriage much.”

  “Sorry, sorry. No more tight spaces. You just… looked really good and it kinda lit my fire. The idea of mounting the queen of the Xer right then and there in front of my Numbered,” Alex said with a grin, being completely honest.

  Quinn quirked a brow at that, then laughed softly, putting her elbow down on the table and watching him. “Consider me flattered. I didn’t like it enough to do it again, though. Okay?”

  “Got it. Never again in front of others, no more tight spaces, unless you give permission,” Alex said. Then he decided to take a risk. Anna had told him she wanted Quinn. To make that happen, he’d have to give her the ability to become more than a “Numberless” in the eyes of his people. “And while we’re at it… I free you from all your oaths to me. Even vassalage.”

  The crack of the oath breaking was loud in his ears.

  Staring at him, Quinn didn’t move. She didn’t speak.

  As far as he could tell, she wasn’t even breathing.

  “What do you want?” Quinn asked, nothing about her outward appearance having changed.

  “Beg your pardon?” Alex asked.

  “What do you want, Alex?” Quinn repeated. “You went through all the trouble to take me and make me yours. You took my virginity, likely put a child in me, and made me Queen.

  “You brought all your soldiers south, because I asked you to. I watched your soldiers setting exactly half of the gold aside and then taking it down to my own treasury.

  “You’ve put a lot of time and effort into me with my education and your expectations. Then you just free me out of nowhere.”

  Quinn tilted her head to the side ever so slightly. “So what is it you want that you couldn’t just take? It certainly isn’t just having me in your bed. You’ve got beauties aplenty around you, so it isn’t my charms.”