By Vengeance Guided (The Lost Shrines Book 1) (6 page)

Lia glanced over her shoulder, the smile lighting up, becoming indulgent and exasperated.

"She's perfect. As if there was no fuss at all yesterday." A little louder, she added, "Though she's supposed to be eating her breakfast, not feeding it to the pets."

A childish giggle floated down the stairs then the curls ducked back into the house and out of sight.

"Thank you, again, for saving her. It was brave of you."

"I'm just glad I was close enough to get to her. It's nothing that anyone else wouldn't have done."

She reached out, placing a soft hand on his shoulder and squeezing. "Perhaps, but I'm still grateful."

He ducked his head, unexpectedly uncomfortable with the deception that brought him to Lia and her home. "And I am grateful for the offer of a job."

Pulling his determination around him like a mask, Caer reminded himself he had a finite amount of time to find the answers he searched for. And, if Daen was right, Lia had a few tricks of her own.

Flashing his charmed smile once again, he asked, "Speaking of, how can I be of service today?"

Keneally had been watching the interplay with narrowed eyes and palpable disapproval. Now he stepped forward, putting himself between Caer and Lia.

"There's a fence along the south pasture that needs mending."

He turned and whistled, catching the attention of a young man who couldn't be very far out of adolescence. The boy, who'd been loading supplies into a wheelbarrow, loped over.

"Danny, Wyn will be helping you with the fence today."

Keneally gestured him toward the lad with a nod.

Caer nodded a greeting then turned back to Lia but Keneally moved down a step, half blocking her from view. Nel shifted closer, placing a hand on the Handmaiden's shoulder. "We have a great deal of work to do in the herbarium."

The words felt heavy with significance and the soft smile dropped from Lia's mouth, her eyes shuttered unexpectedly. Secrets sizzled in the air and Caerwyn's hunting instincts sparked to life.

"Of course," Lia said through gritted teeth. "It was nice talking to you again, Wyn. I'm sure I'll see you often, while you're working here."

"I hope so."

Caer bowed again and, as he rose, his eyes strayed toward the small building he'd taken note of when he'd gazed down on the manor. Keneally once more placed himself between Caer and his object of interest, though. With practiced ease and firm no-nonsense moves, the older man shifted him toward Danny and the wheelbarrow.

It was apparent Caer wouldn't be getting any closer to Lia or to the answers he sought as long as the estate manager was around. He'd have to find a way around the man.

*****

Liadan stood in the vegetable garden, pretending to check the progress of the plants. Her gaze kept wandering over to the east pasture, however. The pasture where Wyn worked with Danny now, shifting and stacking rocks to shore up the fencing.

He'd been working since dawn and, by the time she'd caught sight of him, his shirt was long gone. She'd been around hard-working men all of her life. The valley was full of farmers and workmen and animal handlers. They were all fit, in their own way, and often shirtless, but never had any captured her attention the way Wyn had.

The chest was broad and strong, arms flexed and bulged with every move, his stomach lean and rippled with pure muscle that dipped and curved with intriguing lines and hollows.

He'd been working around the manor for nearly two weeks and not even Keneally could find fault with his effort or his skill. Yet her manager and Nel had worked diligently to keep her as far away from him as possible.

Her fascination with him was obvious to her two closest friends. Ill-considered, inappropriate and impossible, she couldn't help stealing a glimpse of Wyn every chance she got. And, whenever she managed to see him, he was looking right back at her.

Each time, her heart fluttered and her pulse pounded. They'd even occasionally shared a few words together, here and there, before Nel or Keneally found something urgent for one or both of them to do. Usually on opposite sides of the manor.

Those few stolen moments were something she looked forward to though. Something she searched out against even her own better judgment.

Wyn never failed to make her laugh. Whenever he could, he would reach out for her. A feather-light brush of fingers on her arm. Brushing her hair from her face. A warm, unnecessary, steadying hand at the small of her back. Only twenty-five years of strength and tenaciousness kept her from leaning into the touch and purring like a satisfied cat.

Which was why she was grateful to Nel and Keneally. As much as their interference irritated her in those moments, they were saving her from herself and her inappropriate infatuation.

If she had met Wyn a year ago, she'd have jumped in feet first and damn the consequences. Life was meant for living and hard lessons were a part of that.

Now, though, there were others she had to think of. Several hundred others. Even if it weren't for the betrothal mess she found herself in, Lia couldn't afford to get tangled up with a transient stranger. Tanis and the valley had to come before her own impulsive choices.

Marta had fallen for and married an outsider. Look how that had turned out. She'd made horrible decisions based on her emotions rather than what was best for their land, leaving the people of the valley divided. Those who believed the old traditions were no longer valid against those who still believed in Liadan's family and the power of tradition. Even if they weren't so sure about Lia.

The worst of the mistakes Marta made in her love-blind haze, as far as Lia was concerned, was the betrothal agreement. With a single stroke of a pen, she had set in motion events that could bring Hara Dale and the three surrounding kingdoms to the brink of war.

Of course, if Lia did not look outside for a mate, that left only the men of the valley. Someone who still believed in the traditions and the gifts of her family. Someone like her father. Easily cowed by her position. A marriage that was little more than a business arrangement. Or a breeding transaction.

Lia shuddered at the thought. No, if she managed to wiggle out of the mess with Daen, marriage and relationships were something she'd have to live without. At least until Tanis turned eighteen and took her rightful place, setting Lia free.

For now, Lia had to avoid romantic entanglements. Her eyes, however, slipped back to a long, lean torso and smooth, strong muscles.

Didn't mean she couldn't look, though.

"Enjoying the view?"

The cold, silky voice in her ear made Lia jump and start forward a little.

A deep, fortifying breath and a roll of her shoulders steadied her before she turned to face Gui and his sneer.

"Why, yes. I love this time of year. When the plants are flowering and everything is so green and alive."

His lips pulled back, but no teeth showed through the thin, condescending smile. His eyes flickered to the pasture, only a few yards away, then tightened and bore into her intensely.

"You're not fooling anyone," he said, in a low, angry whisper. "You're embarrassing yourself and your family with this ridiculousness."

She followed his gaze to Wyn, whose attention remained on the rocks he and Danny were shifting into position. Her chin lifted, and she pulled her face into the cool mask that had recently become second nature.

"I don't know what you are talking about but I will not put up with that tone."

"Of course not." His voice dropped further, taking on an edge she hadn't heard from him before. "The Handmaiden is above listening to anyone. But you're not really the lady, are you? You're nothing more than a placeholder until Tanis grows up. Some in the valley already see it. It's only a matter of time until the rest realize you aren't what they want you to be."

Normally, Gui relied on his charm to get his point across but today he seemed to be trying to intimidate her. Instead of flinching from the harsh honesty she smiled sunnily.

"Thank the Goddess for that. The entire valley knows I'm not the best lady. As you've been pointing out almost since the day of Marta's funeral. I don't want to be. I just want to keep things together so I can hand over a healthy, happy valley to Tanis in fifteen years."

He scowled at her lighthearted response and grabbed her arm. "This is no joke. More and more of the valley are coming to me with concerns about you."

She knew he meant he'd been whispering poison in the ears of a few malcontents, starting with ones who have had judgments passed against them. Or ones who disagreed with her agricultural edicts. Still, it was enough to make Lia's life difficult.

"More and more are losing faith and trust in you." He pulled her closer, and she turned away from his hot breath when he whispered into her ear. "But they trust me. Together, we can reunite this fractured valley."

"Gui, you're insane."

Lia tried to step away, but his thin hand was deceptively strong and held her in place.

"You are losing control of everything, Lia. You need my help to put it back together."

"You really have no idea how this valley works. What the people need." She shook her head at his arrogance.

"No, it's you who do not understand. They will not accept an outsider."

Lia clenched her jaw and tried hard not to look toward Wyn. Instead, she ground out through her teeth, "
You
are an outsider."

His amused smile took her by surprise. "Perhaps I once was. But I was chosen by the true lady of the valley. I am the father of the next one. I'm not an itinerant stranger with no prospects." Again his voice dropped into that soothing, coaxing tone. "You know me, Lia. You don't know him. Let me help you, love."

Lia growled under her breath. She'd been trying to avoid this scene for weeks but the idiot couldn't take a hint.

"Let go of me, Gui," Lia kept her voice calm and even, despite the urge to scream and throw a tantrum. It may have been a little louder than she intended, however.

"Lia, love, I just think you should consider it. Logically."

She almost growled again. She really hated it when he implied she was irrational and impulsive. Shifting until her leg lined up between his, she took a deep breath. Before she could lift it with swift surprise, however, Gui was wrenched violently away.

Lia blinked, startled to find the bare shoulder of Wyn placed deliberately between her and Gui. He had one hand bunched into the fabric of her brother-in-law's silk shirt. The other was curled into a ready fist at his side.

"What do you think you are doing?" Gui snarled.

"The Lady asked you to let her go. I thought I'd help."

"This has nothing to do with you, outsider."

"Didn't say it did. But I don't like men who manhandle women."

"Oh, for the love—"

The two louts posturing over her had pretty much forgotten she was even present.

"I don't need help. From either of you. I am the Handmaiden of this valley. I am capable of taking care of myself. And my people. From any and all threats. I have no qualms about taking whatever steps are necessary to do it. To put it in small words you can both understand: Stay. Out. Of. My. Way."

Gui jerked free of Wyn's hold but transferred his glare to her.

"I know you think you have this under control, but you're mistaken. Whatever you and your witch are trying to cook up in the herbarium, it's not going to be a panacea to fix everything wrong with this valley."

Lia felt the blood drain from her face. He couldn't know what she and Nel were doing. They'd been too careful. But he suspected something, and that was bad enough.

Gui, watching her closely, smiled cruelly when he saw he'd hit a nerve. He leaned forward, the knowing smirk at odds with his softly spoken words. "You need someone worldly and politically sophisticated to get you out of this mess."

He turned and stomped off with a melodramatic exit.

Wyn glared after him. The tight, clenched expression smoothing out into self-satisfaction as Gui disappeared from sight. Then he turned to her, questions forming in his eyes.

Questions she was unable to give him answers to, even if she longed to have someone to confide in. Someone who wouldn't remind her she had a duty now. Deciding to curtail his curiosity with an offensive, Lia set her hands on her hips and narrowed her gaze. "Don't you have some work to do?"

She knew she wasn't being fair, but she didn't have to glance around to know several people had witnessed that little scene. Danny, a gardener, one of the cook's assistants, and a stable boy were all within hearing range. In an hour, the story, blown well out of proportion, would be all over the valley.

Gui was an idiot, but he was right that some of her people lacked faith in her. If they thought she needed a man to fight her battles, she might lose even more ground. With so much going wrong, she couldn't afford any sign of weakness.

He arched a dark brow and his face shifted into a neutral expression.

"Yes, ma'am. Sorry to interfere."

Without another word, Wyn sauntered back to where Danny stood, openly staring.