Ties of Magic (Curse of the Crown Book 2)

by Caitlin Taylor

  Jeffrey scowled and jerked his hand again, hard enough to free himself.

  "Tell me about Aidan," Akoni coaxed gently.

  "Would you shut up, for the sake of the goddess!" Jeffrey snapped.

  "No, Jeffrey, I won't. Because I see you fighting everyone around you, keeping people away. You've built enormous fortifications around yourself to stop you getting hurt. But you're not living, you're not getting to enjoy any of the good either."

  "How I live my life is hardly your concern." Jeffrey's scowl deepened.

  "Well, it is now. You're my partner. Your happiness is important to me."

  "I didn't agree to that. I told you I don't like it."

  "Tough luck. You'll adapt, you're good at that." Akoni grinned at Jeffrey, seeing the challenge it'd be to get him out of his self-enforced shell. He'd fight for him regardless of how long it took, no doubt in his mind that in the end, Jeffrey would be worth it.

  Jeffrey glared at him but didn't speak again.

  Chapter 14

  Well past nightfall, they reached their destination, the house of Akoni's friend, Lord Argyros. Their approach had been noted, and five men with flaming torches stood outside the main entrance, ready to fight if needed. They must have seen the crownsguard uniforms, though, and hadn't drawn their weapons, yet.

  Akoni raised his arms in a gesture of peace. He recognised one of the men as Argyros's head servant and raked his brain for the man's name. "I apologise for the unannounced late-night visit. I mean no harm. Sasha, I'd ask your master's hospitality in a time of need."

  "Your Majesty?" Sasha asked and let out a breath that could only be relief.

  "I look a bit different than on other visits. Will your master receive me anyway, do you think?" Akoni kept his voice friendly. There was always a risk of a change in allegiance.

  "Of course, Your Majesty, we'll provide anything you need. Lord Ignacio informed us you'd probably be coming."

  "Thank you, Sasha," Akoni said as he dismounted, unexpected relief sweeping through him.

  Ignacio had escaped the city. A wave of guilt followed that he'd never even considered him until now, too hung up on both Paul and Jeffrey.

  "My partner needs a physician urgently. We also need food and water." And he'd need to speak with Nace, as soon as he could. "If Lord Ignacio is still awake, have someone let him know of my arrival, if you would."

  "Bojan, get the physician and have some food prepared. Franc, tell his lordship of our guests' arrival."

  Two of the men bowed and left. A third took the reins of their horses.

  "I'll take you to a guest room, Your Majesty."

  Akoni nodded in gratitude and went to Jeffrey, looking up at him. Jeffrey was clutching his injured side with one hand, half stooped over, his face drawn and eyes lidded. When Akoni touched his thigh, Jeffrey groaned and swung a leg over the saddle, half falling. Akoni caught him in his arms.

  "Don't! I'm fine," Jeffrey snapped, trying to push away.

  "Of course, you are," Akoni replied and hid a smile. "Come on then."

  One arm wrapped around Jeffrey's waist, he steadied him as they followed Sasha into the house. There were no lights other than Sasha's torch, since Argyros had never had the funds to install electric lightning. And with everyone else fast asleep in their beds, candles had long been blown out.

  They walked along a number of corridors, then Sasha stopped at a door and opened it. Akoni led Jeffrey inside, pleased to see a large, well-furnished bedroom. While Akoni helped Jeffrey to the bed, Sasha used his torch to light the fire in the hearth. It wasn't a cold night, but the warmth was welcome.

  Akoni removed Jeffrey's sword belt and undid the straps of his armour but couldn't take it off as long as Jeffrey was lying down. The blond had closed his eyes, his face contorted in pain.

  "Sasha, could you help me."

  Together they worked, Akoni lifting Jeffrey and Sasha removing the armour. Jeffrey's grunts of pain at being moved tore at Akoni.

  "Your Majesty, unless there's anything you need of me, I would go tell my lord of your arrival."

  Akoni nodded. "Go." He made quick work of Jeffrey's greaves and bracers, leaving him in his tunic only. He finished removing his own armour when a servant girl brought glasses and water pitchers. Two of them, Akoni noted gratefully. They'd come across a single stream during their journey where they'd watered the horses, washed off the worst grime, and drank their fill. But they didn't have waterskins to carry any with them.

  "Where's the physician?" he asked, impatient for help.

  "He's on the way, Your Majesty," the servant answered. "He was asleep. It'll only take a few moments for him to get here. Food is also on the way. Can I get you anything else? Do you want me to draw a bath?"

  "Not right now, thank you."

  She bowed and left the room.

  Akoni filled two glasses and sat on the edge of the bed. He helped Jeffrey sit up and drink, pleased when he finished it. He tried to coax him into drinking another one, but Jeffrey waved him away. Akoni relented and instead drank his own fill, draining two glasses in quick succession.

  A knock on the door.

  "Yes!" Akoni called, hoping it'd be the physician. Instead, he stared at Ignacio.

  "Ako... I'm so glad to see you well."

  "Nace," Akoni whispered and wrapped his friend in a tight hug.

  "I've been worrying for hours where you were. You should have been here ages ago."

  "Jeffrey's injured; we couldn't ride faster. It was bad enough on him as it was. I'm worried for him. But I'm glad to see you. How did you get away? And what happened?"

  "There's much to tell. Let's begin with Jeffrey."

  Akoni groaned and ran a hand through his hair in agitation. "I'm waiting for the physician, who's taking forever."

  Another knock on the door, and this time it was the man Akoni had been waiting for. He introduced himself as Gazis, shooed them aside, and set to work.

  Ignacio led Akoni to the armchairs by the fireplace and pushed him into it. Akoni sank down heavily, leaning back into the cushions.

  "Tell me what happened, Nace."

  "Ryan and I were watching from one of the towers. Pretty much around the time you started engaging the rebels outside the city, a commotion broke out inside. People running through the streets, a mob with torches and makeshift weapons. The mob got bigger as they walked--it was a setup, all of it. They entered the palace practically unopposed, because there was no one left. They set fire to it. Ryan and I didn't linger. He knew side corridors I'd never even seen and got us out safely. I borrowed your car to get us here. We kept an eye out for you and Jeffrey but didn't see you, obviously. We couldn't really search for you since the car can't go off the roads. I took a gamble that you'd come here as it's the closest place you could be certain of a warm welcome."

  "Your instincts serve you well. You've no idea how relieved I am to see you, Nace. What about anyone else?"

  "We'd already evacuated most people. I...the rebels weren't kind. I saw men in crownsguard and palaceguard armour whom I didn't recognise. They may have raided an armoury, I'm not sure. They were doing horrible things. There wasn't much I could have done."

  "But you and Ryan are safe, that's good news. You don't know anything about Paul or the troops?"

  Ignacio shook his head. "We avoided the fighting, so I didn't see how the battle ended."

  Akoni leaned forward, burying his head in his hands.

  Ignacio touched Akoni's knee. "We'll work this out. We've dealt with so much already, we can handle this, too. You'll find a way, I know you will."

  Akoni gave a weak smile, then turned to look at the bed were Jeffrey lay unmoving. Gazis seemed to be finishing and came over.

  "Your Majesty, let me take a look at you now."

  "I'm fine. Tell me how Jeffrey is."

  "Only after I've checked you over."

  "I do not work well with physicians. Tell me how he is," Akoni said, his voice hard.

  "Your Majest
y, with all respect, when it comes to patients, I decide."

  "Ako, let him check you over. For me?"

  Gritting his teeth, Akoni scowled but gave a tight nod. Gazis worked quickly and with efficiency. He patched up what scratches he found but discovered only a single cut that needed stitches and nothing requiring extensive care.

  When he was done, he spoke. "Your friend is not doing so well. He has multiple wounds and lost a lot of blood. I've treated his injuries as best I can. The hard riding was not helpful in his condition. He will need much rest now, which I suspect he won't like. You must make sure he rests, though."

  "How long?"

  "As many days as possible. A week or more would be ideal. If he moves the stitches may come loose, he would lose more blood. He also needs to eat and get plenty of fluids. He doesn't look like pain will be an issue, but I can give him something for that if he needs it. Rest and fluid are the two important factors to his recovery."

  "Thank you, Gazis."

  "I'll come back in the morning to check on him. You should also get rest, Your Majesty." Gazis departed.

  "He's right, you know. It's been a long day. You should go and sleep. I'll talk to Argyros."

  "Thank you, Nace."

  They embraced again, and Ignacio left. Once he'd taken off the rest of his gear, including his sandals, Akoni got into bed beside Jeffrey. He moved close and laid a careful hand on Jeffrey's chest, avoiding any bandages. They both still had their blood-soaked tunics on, and neither of them were clean, but it didn't matter. They were alive and together. With a smile on his lips, Akoni closed his eyes, hoping for a peaceful night.

  Akoni came into a gradual awareness, his limbs stretching in lazy ways. He blinked a few times. A warm body lay in the bed beside him, and a smile broke out on his lips. He snuggled closer. Inhaling deeply, he smelled spice and freedom, though it was mingled with dried blood and herbal remedies. There'd been no dreams, no fire or other accidents. Since Jeffrey's return, they'd been sleeping in the same bed, and his nights had never been so restful.

  Jeffrey's eyes remained closed, his breathing even and slow. Propping himself up on an elbow, Akoni studied him. They'd had so little time together, and never like this. The slightest crease wrinkled Jeffrey's forehead, but he looked more relaxed than Akoni had seen him, his usually cold and hard soldier's persona stripped away now.

  A strong impulse swept through Akoni. He wanted to reach out and trace his fingers over Jeffrey's jawline, his lips, to explore every inch of skin but felt too afraid to act, worried he'd wake Jeffrey. So he explored with his eyes. The faint hint of stubble on Jeffrey's cheeks, a dirty kind of blond like every part of him. Pale lashes, so long and beautiful, lids hiding expressive eyes.

  Moaning slightly, Jeffrey stirred, stretched, then groaned in pain. A few blinks, and sea-green eyes fixed on Akoni.

  "Good morning, handsome," Akoni whispered, his lips pulled into a grin.

  "Hmm, you're a noisy thinker."

  Akoni laughed and leaned in, nuzzling Jeffrey's neck. He nibbled on the skin, placing kisses as he went. Poking his tongue out, he licked the skin behind Jeffrey's ear and earned a little sigh. He did it again.

  "Stop that," Jeffrey said, trying to swat him away.

  "You like it." Akoni continued his teasing ministrations.

  "I'm covered in battle filth. So are you, by the way. We stink. Could have had a bath last night."

  With a shrug, Akoni turned away and got out of bed. He went into the bathroom, turning on taps to run them a bath, grateful that at least Argyros's place was built with the same aqueducts and underfloor pipes as any house of a noble or anyone of any standing. He spared a moment for the servants who would be manually firing a stove somewhere to keep the water heated. When he returned to the bedroom, he took off his tunic and small clothes before reaching for Jeffrey and gently pulling him out of bed. He helped him out of his own clothes and led him into the bathroom.

  "Didn't realise you could run your own bath. Don't you have servants do everything for you?"

  "I'm much less of a snob than you seem to think. The servants at the palace are well trained and eager to please, however." While talking, Akoni unwound Jeffrey's bandages and set them aside, then he pushed Jeffrey into the tub. "Also, I don't have a tub in my rooms as you may have noticed."

  "No." Jeffrey rolled his eyes. "You have the privilege of a thermal bath for your private use any time you wish it."

  "I didn't build the palace, you know. Nor did I select my apartments." Akoni squeezed into the tub behind Jeffrey and wrapped his arms around him.

  Jeffrey sneered. "Don't tell me you'd have chosen something less fancy if you could have."

  "And why should I? It's there, why not use it? Would it be better sitting empty and unused?" Akoni stopped and sighed. "Can we please stop arguing over stupid things? I have flaws, yes, plenty of them. I try to do the best I can. I just..." He kissed the top of Jeffrey's shoulder. "I don't want to be arguing with you."

  "I'm not used to this. I don't know how..." Jeffrey's fingers traced the top of Akoni's thighs, lying skin to skin with his own. "I'm not much of a talker. I say things I don't mean or things people misunderstand."

  "Tell me something that'll help me understand."

  "Like what?"

  "I don't know, something about you."

  "Shouldn't you be dealing with the empire rather than being here?"

  "You tell me to have a bath and then give out when I do. I can't win with you, can I?"

  Jeffrey shrugged, his lips twitching. "Told you, not good at talking."

  "The best thing I can do for the realm right now is working on us. If I leave you, the moment you're out of sight, half my energy will go into worrying whether you'll still be there when I get back or whether you'll have disappeared again. Not productive. So tell me something that reassures me."

  Jeffrey stayed quiet for some time, then, in a whisper, he said, "The goddess won't let me leave."

  Akoni hugged Jeffrey a little tighter, nuzzling his neck again. "You'll have to explain that to me."

  "When I went to Ibirea, I spent the first few nights at a temple lodge, where I had a lot of dreams. It appears the goddess was not pleased with me."

  "She didn't like that you left, but you didn't come back either..."

  "I made a deal with her."

  "If she could get you back to me, you'd stay?"

  "Something like that."

  "And so here you are. That helps. A little at least."

  "Good, now stop doing that. I haven't the energy to finish."

  "What?" Akoni asked, nibbling Jeffrey's earlobe.

  "That," Jeffrey murmured and swatted Akoni's head.

  "Sensitive spot. I must remember that." Taking pity, Akoni stopped working Jeffrey's neck, though the tanned skin tasted delicious. There'd be time for that when Jeffrey was recovered. For now, he needed rest.

  Getting them out of the tub, Akoni spent considerable time drying Jeffrey and himself. While they were so engaged, a servant came to bring breakfast, leaving it on a table in the bedroom.

  "They took my armour," Jeffrey said when they came back into the room.

  "And changed the bed cover. We were covered in battle filth as you put it. They'll clean it and bring it back later."

  "Bring it back, huh?" Jeffrey said and held up one of two sets of clothes waiting on the bed. Trousers, shirt, and robe in fine materials and with rich patterns. Clothes for nobles.

  "I did introduce you as my partner. To them, you're my equal. You'll have to get used to it. Please, don't start protesting again." Akoni wrapped his arms around Jeffrey and kissed his shoulder.

  Jeffrey huffed but didn't say anything. Instead, he extracted himself out of Akoni's arms and sat at the table to eat. Akoni joined him.

  "What are you going to do now?" Jeffrey asked.

  "Eat, then tug you back into bed and make you promise to stay there. I suspect you're not good with resting during recovery. Are you?"

&nb
sp; "Depends on what you're doing to keep me there." Jeffrey smirked and winked.

  Akoni smirked back. "If you want to be tied up, I can definitely facilitate."

  "I was thinking more about company." Jeffrey's forehead creased.

  "Hmm, tempting, but I do need to do something for my empire."

  "I remember us stopping here that time you went on your little holiday. You're close with Argyros, yes? Can we stay, though?"

  "He'd never refuse me, but I don't want to put that on him. He doesn't have many guards to keep the place safe either. We'll need to leave as soon as you're able."

  "You needn't wait for me. I'm fine. But go where?"

  "You're not fine, Jeffrey. You lost a lot of blood on the ride here. Several times I thought you'd fall out of the saddle you were swaying so badly."

  "I've had worse." Jeffrey shrugged and busied himself with the food.

  "Not the point. You will rest. If I have to tie you to the bed to make you stay there, have no doubt I will."

  "What is it with men wanting to tie me up?" Jeffrey grumbled. "I asked where you wanted to go next, though. You haven't answered."

  Akoni noted Jeffrey's complaint and filed it away to bring up another day. He'd find out about Jeffrey's past yet. For now, he said, "My mother went to stay with her nephew in Pyros. I'm thinking of following."

  "Valentin Artiz."

  "Yes. Do you know him?"

  "He's kind of a neighbour, so yeah, I knew him once." Jeffrey had a distant look in his eyes.

  "Not in a good way it seems."

  "That's not it. I... He'll recognise me."

  "Jeffrey, eventually you'll have to embrace the life of a noble. I told you I'm not giving you up. You can't hide forever behind your soldier's uniform. Though, I won't mind if you keep wearing it, at least sometimes." Akoni winked at Jeffrey, glad when he smiled. "As my consort, you'll outrank pretty much everyone else, regardless of who you are or were before."

  "You know, I'm not sure I like the term consort."

  "Boyfriend? Partner? Husband? Take your pick."

  "You haven't proposed."

  "Do you want me to?" Akoni grinned, his head cocked to the side.