her, his eyes wary, his face clean and
shaven. He did not smile but he
wasn’t scowling either.
The smile vanished. If only he knew.
***
Vulcan surveyed Jaisyn from her
crown of golden curls to the leather
boots upon her feet. She wore a
glossy dark blue riding habit, and in
her hand she held a small black cap
that would grace her head. His wife
was going riding.
“Where are you going?” he asked
easily, staring down at her and
awaiting the outburst he was sure
would follow.
“If you must know—” she began.
“And I must—”
“I thought the day perfect for a tour
of the countryside.”
Vulcan nodded and looked skyward.
It was a good day for a ride. There
were no dark clouds looming in the
sky and the morning rays of the sun
were shining over the meadows and
fields that surrounded the castle.
“Who will be accompanying you?”
“The guards you’ve appointed to
watch my every move,” Jaisyn
snipped out, letting him know in no
uncertain tones what she thought of
that.
His lips hinted at a smile and Jaisyn
immediately went on guard. Her
husband hardly smiled and when he
did, it usually didn’t bode well for her.
“I will join your riding party,” he
announced, his voice firm. He would
not be argued with. As Jaisyn glared
at him, the squire took that moment to
emerge with her stallion. Orion was
not as bulky as his sire but he was
fast. He was a glossy honey shade,
and had a sunny disposition most of
the time.
Vulcan turned to the squire and told
him to prepare Shadowfax for a
morning ride. Nodding, he left Orion
with Jaisyn and went to fetch his
king’s horse.
Orion flicked his tail happily as he
looked down at Jaisyn. She stroked
his mane, her eyes still locked on
Vulcan.
“Since you are determined to
accompany me this morning, where
do you suggest we go?” she asked
slowly. A vivid blush touched her
cheeks and she turned away from him
and pretended to give her full attention
to Orion.
***
Vulcan did not miss Jaisyn’s blush.
He didn’t have time to enquire after it
because the squire reappeared with a
prancing Shadowfax. The squire
seemed relieved when Vulcan took
the
reins,
and
bowed
before
scampering back into the stables.
Vulcan laid a firm hand against
Shadowfax’s neck, looking directly
into the stallion’s eyes. He rubbed
down his neck a few times before
Shadowfax calmed. Vulcan turned
back to Jaisyn. She was staring at him
once more, her hand against her
stallion’s neck.
“Would you like me to lift you—”
he began only to have Jaisyn toss him
a haughty glare before placing one leg
into the stirrup and vaulting onto the
stallion’s back. Vulcan might have
smiled at the skill involved had she not
nudged her stallion into a walk. She
left him standing next to Shadowfax
as she made her way over to the
guard of men who waited by the
entrance of the castle.
Mounting Shadowfax easily, Vulcan
caught up with her. He reached over
and grabbed her reins before they
were with the guards.
“Remember yourself, wife,” he told
her coldly, releasing her reins only
after she’d looked away from him
with a decided sneer.
“Come,” he intoned and allowed
Shadowfax to lead the way to the
guards.
***
Jaisyn barely felt the chill in the air
as she pushed Orion into a gallop,
leaning her body further over the
horse and enjoying the wind as it
whipped against her face. The
pounding of hooves around her served
as a reminder that she was not alone,
that her husband was beside her, that
a group of warriors, all hand-selected
and fiercely loyal to Vulcan, flanked
her. They plunged from the clearing
and into a field that was obviously
cared for by its owner. The guards in
front of her slowed their horses and
Jaisyn followed suit, turning to her
husband. They had been riding for at
least an hour and she itched to ask
where they were. One look at her
husband’s face and she decided she
would ask him later.
As the horses came to a canter, she
straightened her back and looked
around. The field was clear except for
the occasional sprouting of white and
yellow flowers. The horses eventually
came to a path surrounded by tall
trees. The guards veered onto it and
Jaisyn followed suit, wondering where
they were heading. They continued
along the path for many minutes
before Jaisyn had a clear vision of a
stone castle looming before them. It
was not as large as Morden Castle but
it was still grand. Unlike Morden
Castle, with its dark stones, this castle
was made of red brick and seemed
more beautiful than safe.
Unable to hold her curiosity at bay
any longer, Jaisyn asked, “Whose
castle are we nearing?”
Vulcan’s grey gaze touched her.
“Mine.”
Jaisyn nodded. “And where are
we?”
“Seacrest,” he replied easily, and
Jaisyn looked around again. They
continued through the pathway of high
trees and when they were but mere
yards from the castle, Jaisyn heard it.
The crashing of waves.
“Is there a river nearby?”
“No, the castle was built before the
Black Sea. You cannot see the Black
Sea seated as you are now. I will take
you behind the castle after we dine.”
Jaisyn turned and looked about once
more, but this time her eyes caught
movement along the trees. As quickly
as she saw it, it was there no longer.
She turned to Vulcan with wide eyes,
wondering if someone had been
following them all along.
“Vulcan,”
she
called
softly,
forgetting that she did not call him by
his name outside of the bedroom.
He looked surprised to hear his
name from her lips, and his eyes
softened.
“I think we are being followed,” she
said lowly, only to have him throw
back his head and laugh. Unused to
the sound of Vulcan’s laughter, a few
of the guards were already sliding
their swords from their sheaths,
thinking that their lord was alerting
them to some danger at hand, when
they recognized it for what it was. He
was laughing… with his queen.
Although they passed looks amongst
each other, a few members of the
guard eventually smiled, wondering
what it was the queen had said to send
their usually stoic king into bouts of
hilarity.
“It is not a funny thing, being
followed, my lord!” Jaisyn hissed out
angrily. Had he lost his mind? Strange
men were following them and Vulcan
was laughing.
“Jaisyn,” Vulcan began, shaking his
head at his queen, a large grin
lingering on his face. “We were
followed since we left the clearing and
ventured down this path.”
Eyes widening, Jaisyn surveyed the
trees and the foliage behind them once
more. She could make out no one.
“My sentries are very good at what
they do. They will escort us to the
gates before returning to their posts
along the pathway,” he explained,
ending on a chuckle. His eyes took in
her stiff countenance and he smiled.
Jaisyn allowed her husband to lift
her from Orion once they were in the
courtyard. She did not thank him. She
was still irate that he’d laughed at her
when she’d shown concern for his life
and the life of his men. He, however,
could not seem to stop smiling at her.
His smile was actually infectious and
if he hadn’t outright laughed at her
when she’d announced that they were
being followed, Jaisyn might have
been inclined to return it.
He did not release her immediately,
but kept his hands splayed across her
waist for a few seconds longer than
need be. Jaisyn lifted her eyes to his,
prepared to demand that he unhand
her, when she noticed that humor
wasn’t the only thing burning in his
eyes. She looked away immediately,
and he eventually released her waist,
only to take her arm.
“Welcome to Seacrest Castle, wife,”
he announced, leading her toward
what appeared to be the entrance into
the Great Hall.
Jaisyn looked around as she walked
next to him, noticing that save for the
guards and soldiers who patrolled the
castle, it seemed to be empty. As they
passed the occasional servant, he
bowed to them before scurrying along
to his duties.
“Who lives here?” Jaisyn asked,
curious to know if anyone did.
Vulcan passed her a glance without
breaking stride. “My mother once
lived here. Now, it is unoccupied.”
They stepped inside and were
immediately greeted by the castle
steward. Bowing low, the short man
stated quickly, “Your Majesties, we
were unaware that you were coming.”
Vulcan nodded. “We were unaware
that we coming as well, Alfred. Have
the cook prepare a larger batch of
whatever it is he intended to serve
today. My warriors also need to be
fed.”
“Yes,
liege,”
Alfred
said
immediately. “Will Your Majesties be
needing anything else?”
“No, Alfred,” Vulcan replied, and
immediately began tugging Jaisyn in
the direction of the stone staircase.
They passed numerous doors, each
with different intricate patterns carved
into the wood, and Jaisyn wondered
what lay behind each.
“It is beautiful,” she found herself
saying aloud, as they made their way
up the staircase.
***
Vulcan
nodded
in
agreement.
Seacrest Castle was no warrior
holding. It had not been built to fend
off attacks, but rather for the pleasure
of the one residing within. The
windows were larger, permitting the
occupants a view of the sea that raged
behind the castle. Although Vulcan
did not remember much of his mother,
as she had died when he was just a
boy, he had been told by many of her
ladies that she’d loved this castle. In
fact, as a gift to his new queen, King
Frederick
had
had
Seacrest
refurbished and fitted with new
furniture and expensive trinkets from
various kingdoms. It appeared that
although he was a cold-hearted
bastard, Frederick had made an
attempt to shower his first queen with
gifts, possibly to make up for his
inability to love her. Still, his mother
had died. Though the cough had taken
her life, rumor had it her husband’s
coldness had suffocated whatever light
she’d had.
***
As they stepped onto the highest
floor, Jaisyn immediately noticed this
hallway was much brighter than the
rest. She looked to the rectangular-
shaped windows and wished she
could stop and look down. From what
she could see and hear, the Black Sea
was out there.
Vulcan finally stopped before one of
the rooms on the floor and pushed the
door open. Jaisyn stepped in first,
barely taking in the lavish contents,
the large bed and limestone fireplace,
and headed over to the window at the
back and peered out. She looked
down and a smile touched her lips.
The room had a wonderful view of the
vast sea that stretched out behind
them. She heard Vulcan approach her
and asked, “What is beyond the sea?”
He stepped beside her and gazed
down as well. “The sea flows for