Authors: Mackenzie Morgan
Torrey’s frown deepened. “As in eleven days?”
Warren nodded. “Glendymere wants me to start working with Landis the following Monday. Myron thought if we went on Thursday it would give us time to settle in first.”
Torrey nodded. “I guess so.” Then she looked at Kevin. “You’re still willing to bring me back every once in a while to pick up supplies and visit people, aren’t you?”
“As often as you want.”
“Then I don’t think it’ll be a problem to be ready by then. Anything I forget, I can come back and get.”
Kevin nodded.
Torrey started to get back up, but Kevin said, “Wait a minute.” Then he looked at Warren. “I didn’t want to say anything at Glendymere’s, but Laryn and Steve are planning to go out to Rainbow Valley that week. Would you mind if they’re there when you get there? They were planning to stay through the weekend, maybe through the middle of the next week. I hate to tell them they can’t go, but those caves are going to be your home for the next few months and I don’t want to impose.”
“Of course not,” Torrey said. “In fact, that’s wonderful. Laryn’s lived there before, right? Back when Badec was training?”
Kevin nodded. “But not in the caves. She and Badec lived with the giants while he trained, but she and Steve spent a couple of weeks in the caves while I was dealing with Gwendolyn.”
Torrey smiled. “So she’ll know her way around and be able to show me where things are.” Then the smile faded and a slight frown took its place. “But will we be intruding on them? They haven’t been married very long. Would they rather we wait until they’re gone before we move in?”
Kevin shook his head. “I’m sure it’ll be fine.”
“All the same, I’ll feel better if you check with them. If they’d prefer, we can go later.”
“I know they won’t mind, but I’ll talk to them and if we need to change the date, I’ll let you know.”
Torrey nodded and got up. She walked over to one of her cabinets, took out some paper and a pen, and started writing. “I’ll make a cake, and maybe a couple of pies, and some sweet buns of course, and maybe a hearty stew for dinner. You can carry it all through the energy field, can’t you?” she asked as she turned back around and looked at Kevin.
“Sure, no problem. Make anything you want and we’ll see that it gets there.” Kevin grinned as Torrey turned back to her lists. When he glanced over at Warren, he saw a big smile on the man’s face.
“Well, I’m sure you’ve both got a lot to do,” Kevin said as he stood up. Then he looked at Warren. “You need to have a long talk with Colin and Ryan. I’ll check back with you later this week to see how it went. And now, I need to get back to my guests.”
~ ~ ~ ~
When Kevin got back to the main office, Chris, Rhianna, Duane, and Darrell were seated around the conference table talking and laughing.
“Duane was telling us about some of his adventures over the past year,” Darrell said by way of explanation.
“Or misadventures,” Chris added with a grin.
“And those were just the ones I was willing to tell you,” Duane said, laughing.
“What have you been doing?” Kevin asked.
“Mostly training recruits,” Duane explained. “You wouldn’t believe half the stuff that happens.”
Darrell shook his head. “And you thought we were bad.”
Chris saw Isak frown, so he explained. “Duane was hired to train us to defend ourselves before we started traveling to Milhaven.”
“But you had Myron with you,” Isak said. “You didn’t need to know how to fight.”
“We didn’t want anyone to figure out who he was before we got here,” Darrell said, “so he couldn’t do any magic, which meant we had to defend ourselves with swords and knives.”
“That’s right,” Kevin added as he sat down beside Rhianna. “I carried a sword too, not that it would have done me a lot of good. Just ask Duane.”
Duane laughed. “We tried, but I was scared to death he was going to get hurt before he got the hang of it.”
“That thought crossed my mind, too,” Kevin said with a chuckle. “Fortunately though, I had people with me who were a lot better with weapons than I was.”
Duane stood up and put his hand on Darrell’s shoulder. “If you want to work out before dinner, we better get going.”
Darrell motioned towards the door. “After you.”
After Darrell and Duane left, Kevin asked Rhianna if Chris had shown her around the castle.
Rhianna shook her head. “But I know the basic layout from when I was here before.”
“Then why don’t I take you on the grand tour and introduce you to the staff?”
“That sounds nice,” Rhianna said as they both stood up. “Chris? Are you coming with us?”
Chris shook his head. “I’ve got a stack of messages on my desk that need attention. I’ll meet you in the dining room for dinner.”
Kevin spent the next half hour escorting Rhianna around the main floor of the castle. He introduced her to Kort, a few of the other guards, and Cryslyn. When they reached the dining room, he said, “I’d introduce you to Miranda and her staff, but with dinner in half an hour, they’re pretty busy right now. Let’s head outside and I’ll show you the gardens.”
“Fine with me,” Rhianna said as Kevin led her out the door onto the patio.
“You haven’t met Nikki yet, but that can wait until after dinner.”
“Your dog,” Rhianna said.
Kevin nodded. “Xantha’s minding her right now.”
“Xantha?”
Kevin smiled. “I took Nikki up to Crinsor Run and introduced her to Xantha. They really hit it off. It would be easy for me to get jealous. Whenever Xantha’s around, I don’t exist.”
“He does have a way with animals. The horses follow him around whenever he’s at home, especially the mares.”
Kevin laughed. “I can believe that. He’s a beautiful animal, and they probably think he’s a horse.”
By then they had reached the gardens, so Kevin led Rhianna to the center and motioned to one of the benches. After they sat down, he quietly said, “We need to talk, but not here, and not tonight.”
“All right. When?”
“Do you know when Duane’s planning to leave?”
Rhianna shook her head. “But Darrell asked him if he had time to hang around for a couple of days and work with the guards a bit.”
“What did Duane say?”
“He said sure, but I don’t know how long that’ll be.”
“At least he won’t be leaving tomorrow morning so he won’t be looking for you. Let’s plan to slip away right after breakfast if nothing comes up.”
“I’m sorry about all of this.”
Kevin shook his head. “Not your fault, but let’s wait until we’re somewhere else to talk about it. Now, shall we head back and find out how much longer it is before dinner? For some reason, I’m starving tonight.”
After dinner, they went out to the stable to collect Nikki. Xantha was standing inside eating some hay and Nikki was passed out in her crate.
“She tried to stay awake until you got here, but she couldn’t,”
Xantha said as he continued to eat.
Kevin knelt down at the door to the crate and reached in to rub her ears. Nikki was stretched out on her back, paws up in the air. She opened one eye, looked up at him, yawned, and went right back to sleep. Kevin laughed as he stood back up. “Guess she’s had it for today.”
Rhianna smiled. “She’s adorable.”
“Hear that Nikki? Someone’s paying you a compliment. Want to come say hello?”
Nikki opened her eyes again and slowly rolled over on her stomach, raised her head, and yawned again. After a moment, she stood up and walked over to Rhianna. Then she plopped down beside her.
Rhianna knelt down and stroked Nikki’s head and neck. “You’re lovely, but you know that, don’t you? You’ve got all these men wrapped around your paw, and you love it. Wouldn’t have it any other way.”
Rhianna stood back up. “I don’t think she’s interested in going for a walk this evening. She’s too tired.” The twinkle in Rhianna’s eyes belied her words.
Nikki understood the word “walk”. She perked right up and ran over to the door with her tail wagging so hard it was shaking her whole body. Then she looked back at Kevin as if to say, “Hurry up! Let’s go!”
Kevin laughed. “I think Nikki disagrees. Coming Xantha?”
“No, you go ahead. I spotted some new grass out on the river bank earlier. I’m going out there to see if it’s as tasty as it looked.”
“All right. I’ll see you later,” Kevin said as he and Rhianna followed Nikki down the road.
~ ~ ~ ~
Later that evening, after Rhianna and Duane had gone up to their rooms, Kevin and Chris took Nikki upstairs. Once they were in Kevin’s room with the door shut, Kevin said, “I’m going to find Xantha. Can you keep an eye on Nikki?”
“Sure,” Chris said. “But don’t be surprised if we’re both asleep when you get back. I think she’s as tired as I am.”
Kevin stepped out on the balcony and floated straight up until he cleared the banister. Then he drifted across the yard towards the river bank. He wasn’t sure where Xantha was, but since the pegasus was always in his head, Xantha would know where to meet him.
Kevin lowered himself to the ground and started walking along the river. He hadn’t gone fifty feet when he heard the gentle flap of Xantha’s wings. A moment later, the pegasus landed beside him.
“Do you want to fly tonight?”
“Maybe later,”
Kevin said mentally.
“We need to talk first.”
“All right. What’s up?”
“That’s what I want to know. What’s with this plan of yours?”
Xantha snorted. “
It’s a simple way to handle a messy problem.”
“Is that all it is?”
“What else would it be?”
“You meddling in my life?”
Xantha shook his head. “
I didn’t tell you to bring the girls here and put them in an assassin’s sights. And I’m not the one who let Rolan think Landis is with the elves. You did that when you let them be seen together.”
“I’ll admit I messed up there, but are you going to tell me you didn’t have any ulterior motives for suggesting I pretend to be courting her?”
“Can I help it if you’re in love with the woman?”
“I’m not in love with Rhianna.”
“You are, too.”
“No, I’m not. But you think if you throw us together I’ll end up falling in love with her.”
“You don’t need to fall in love with her. You’re already there. You just need to admit it. And you need a wife.”
Kevin rolled his eyes.
“In your opinion. I think I’m doing fine without one, but if I ever do want to get married, it’ll be up to me to find the woman I want to marry, not you.”
“Fine, but it’ll be better if you marry someone you’re in love with, and keep in mind I know what you’re feeling. When I say you’re in love with someone, you are.”
Kevin shook his head.
“Have you considered the danger you’re putting her in?”
“She’s a warrior elf. She can take care of herself, but I found Corin this afternoon and asked him to keep an eye on her while she’s here. Not many people can get past a war unicorn.”
Kevin nodded.
“Thanks.”
“Between her skills, your magic, and Corin, she should be fine.”
“But she’ll still be a target. And not just because of Rolan. If we pull this off and manage to convince people there’s something going on between us, the other sorcerers on the council are going to get involved. They’re not going to be happy with the idea of the Master Sorcerer being involved with an elf, especially since the House of Nordin already has elven blood in it.”
“Then it’s up to you to convince them they have nothing to worry about.”
“So I should let them know this whole thing is a ploy?”
“Of course not. You need to make them realize elven blood is not a threat to them.”
“That will take some doing.”
“Then you need to figure out how to do it.”
Kevin grunted but didn’t say anything.
“I’m serious. If it doesn’t come up now, it’ll come up when you announce your wedding.”
“I give up,”
Kevin said.
“Might as well. You know I’m right. I always am.”
Xantha pawed the ground and snorted.
“Now, would you like to go for a ride? You seem a bit tense. It might help you relax before you head back inside.”
“Oh, why not?”
Kevin swung up on Xantha’s back, and a moment later, Xantha took off across the sky.
Chapter 11
Franco Steps Up
As soon as Alastar walked into his office Monday morning, Franco asked for the key to Terah.
“Why? Where are you going?” Alastar asked as he reached for the chain he wore around his neck that had the key on it.
“Here.” Franco pointed to a desolate area near the border with Glyndal.
“Why?”
“You need to get ready to defend yourself in a duel.”
Alastar frowned. “Do you know something I don’t?”
Franco shook his head. “But you never know when you’ll get challenged. You need to be ready.”
“What do you have in mind?”
“I thought we’d work on some drills.”
“What kind of drills?”
“Well, from what you’ve said, dueling is mainly energy bolts flying back and forth, and the one who loses is the one who drops his shield at the wrong time, right?” When Alastar nodded, Franco continued. “But you can’t stand there with your shields up all the time because you can’t throw bolts with your shields in place.”
Alastar nodded again.
“So I thought we’d practice putting the shield up, dropping it, tossing an energy bolt, and putting the shield back up.”
“Toss a bolt at what?”
“I don’t know yet. That’s why I need the key. I want to go look around and find a spot where you’ll have plenty of targets. We can’t hurt anything out there, it’s just a bunch of rocks. It’s been deserted since before the great magic war from what I’ve heard. ”
“All right.” Alastar handed Franco the key. “How long will you be gone?”