hand covered her lips and a sharp
blade pressed to her neck.
“Listen, carefully, Jaisyn.” It was
Dax’s voice. “You are to tell my
brother and my father that you were
unhappy with Vulcan of Morden.
That he forced the marriage. That it
was not blessed by your High
Priestess. That your father had no
agreement with the man. You will
agree with everything I say and you
will say nothing to contradict me. Do
you understand?”
Jaisyn remained impassive. She
would do no such thing. His hand
tightened around her mouth and the
knife moved lower, slowly passing her
breasts, to rest menacingly on her
belly.
“Do you understand, now?” he
repeated cruelly, slapping the flattened
edge against her skin. The sting made
her flinch. She nodded immediately.
He released her mouth and placed a
soft kiss on her lips. She blanched and
fought the urge to wipe him from her
body.
“Good,” was all he said before he
left her tent for his own.
***
arrival, Azarius of Sulan had treated
her with respect. He’d insisted she be
gowned appropriately in clothing
befitting a queen and had asked for
her companionship at his table for
every meal. Jarel and Dax usually
joined them, and Jaisyn, although she
replied to questions, was very aloof.
She could feel the intense stares of
both Jarel and Dax pinning her at all
times.
It was at one such meal—lunch—
that Jaisyn felt the worst betrayal of
all. She had been thinking to excuse
herself to the room in which she
currently stayed, when the doors to
the hall were pushed open and first
Kegan, then Tarbin and Malcolm, all
smiling, walked in, along with a
significant, but in no way large, group
of Mitherian soldiers.
Kegan did not surprise her in the
least. She’d overheard conversations
between Azarius, Dax, and Jarel, as
they spoke of the legitimacy Kegan’s
claim to her throne. She had longed to
shout that Kegan would never hold
Lytheria so long as she lived. Even if
Vulcan were to fall in battle, which
she was certain that he would not, her
child, if male, would be heir to the
Lytherian throne. And if female,
Varian would take the throne. But she
remembered Dax’s warning, and kept
her silence.
But what was Tarbin doing in
Sulan? And why was Malcolm here as
well? She knew the answer but
refused to believe it. They wouldn’t.
They would not join forces against her
and side with a sniveling bastard such
as Kegan. Her eyes were full of
emotion as she surveyed Malcolm. He
was as close to her as a brother. Why
would he agree to stand with Kegan
against her husband… against her?
Kegan’s smile was mocking as he
bowed deeply to her first and spoke in
a voice infused with fake affection.
“Cousin. It is good to see you.”
When she refused even to give him
an answer, he turned with flourish and
addressed the rest of the men. Tarbin,
bowing, offered her a genuine smile
and was deeply surprised when Jaisyn
closed her eyes and turned her gaze
from him. Perplexed, he greeted the
other men gathered. Malcolm was
last, and although he did not smile as
Tarbin had, he bowed and obviously
expected she would acknowledge
him. Jaisyn did no such thing. She
turned her head to the side.
They had betrayed her. Her chair
screeched loudly as she pushed
herself up.
Six pairs of male eyes turned to her.
Some looked on with concern, others
were more threatening.
“Please excuse me, King Azarius,
my lords,” she began bitingly, glaring
at both Tarbin and Malcolm as she did
so. “I find I have lost my appetite.”
She did not wait to be excused.
Instead, she turned and strode from
the table. Her mind reeled. If Tarbin
was in league with Kegan, she could
not go to Mitherie. She would have to
find a way back to Lytheria. She
would have to outwit her guards and
an entire army, but she would find a
way. For the sake of her babe, she
had to.
***
Malcolm watched her leave and
quickly surveyed the men around him.
Dax did not look concerned, merely
irritated, while Kegan seethed. On
their journey, Kegan told them that
Jaisyn was under the protection of the
Sulanese king, after she’d fled
Vulcan. Although Malcolm had been
surprised that Jaisyn had fled her
husband, he couldn’t help the thought
that came immediately to his mind:
she was now available. And that had
distracted from a crucial fact, that
Jaisyn would not
flee
from anyone.
Seeing her storm from the table
corrected his memory and after a
moment, he begged leave and went
after her. He caught a glimpse of her
full skirts as she quickly ascended the
stairs. A soldier followed her at a
discreet distance, taking up position
before her chamber door once she’d
entered.
Malcolm
approached
cautiously.
The soldier, a Sulanese man,
immediately reached for his weapon.
Malcolm held up his hands.
“I am a Mitherie soldier. I seek to
speak with the queen.”
The sentry shook his head in denial.
Malcolm’s eyes narrowed on the
solider. “Why am I not to see the
queen?”
“The queen is not receiving visitors,”
he replied calmly.
Malcolm felt himself grow angry.
“On whose orders?” he demanded,
knowing Jaisyn could not have given
that order. She hadn’t spoken to the
soldier as she’d brushed past him.
The guard faltered for a fraction of a
second before standing tall once more.
“The King of Sulan so orders it.”
“The Sulanese king would not—”
Malcolm stopped himself. “So be it. I
will bring the king himself!”
As if sensing the man before him
was of such importance to do just
that,
the
soldier
coughed
and
grumbled. “Five minutes!”
Malcolm passed him a scathing
glance. The man moved to the left,
and Malcolm pushed the door in and
entered the sunny bed chambers.
Forgetting propriety, he closed the
door firmly behind him.
***
Unseen by all, a servant watched
Malcolm enter the queen’s chambers,
before scampering down to the lower
floor and heading past the soldiers and
into the city. He had new information
about the exiled queen, and he licked
his lips in greed as he thought about
how much coin this information would
fetch.
***
“Have you come to threaten me into
silence once more? I can assure you it
is not necessary. You may leave.”
Jaisyn did not have to turn around to
know that Dax had entered the room.
No one else was allowed to visit her in
her quarters. He’d made sure of that
by appointing one of his men to guard
her door.
“Jaisyn, you must tell me the
meaning of this!”
As the surprise of Malcolm’s voice
touched her ears, she jumped up from
the cushions upon which she was
sitting and looked at him with wide
eyes.
He approached her and gently took
her by the shoulders. His eyes were
warm, curious. “Are you being held
against your will? For we were told
that you left Morden of your own will.
That you saw Vulcan as a tyrant and
thought your marriage null.”
Jaisyn’s eyes narrowed as she
stared at him. Malcolm’s gaze
searched hers.
It was true. Malcolm had not
betrayed her after all. He’d thought he
was riding to her aid. She looked to
the door, knowing they did not have
much time.
“Malcolm,”
she
said
urgently,
staring into the face of her most
trusted friend. “Dax threatened to kill
Isolde if I did not leave with him. He
has been threatening me ever since to
make me keep my silence. You must
find my sister and free her. He told
me she was being held in Morden, but
it was a lie to get me to agree to leave
with him. She is somewhere else,
most likely at one of Kegan’s seats—
Neren, or Rothmere…”
Malcolm blinked down at her.
“Are you sure she’s being held
captive?” Malcolm asked as his brows
knitted in confusion.
Jaisyn nodded immediately. “Dax
presented me with proof: a lock of her
hair and our mother’s chain.”
Malcolm nodded. “We have to get
you out here,” he told her, his eyes on
the high windows in her chambers.
“No!” she shook her head furiously.
“They will not harm me. You must
find Isolde. Please. Find my sister
first.”
There was a rude knock at the door
and Malcolm glared at it. Jaisyn’s
hand touched his face, bringing his
attention back to her.
“Isolde. You must find Isolde.”
***
“Tank ye, sir. Yer right generous
wit the likes of auld Egan,” the gleeful
servant whispered happily, clutching
the gold coin to his bosom and bowing
as he backed his scrawny body out of
the small room.
The man absorbed the information
he had just received from the greedy
little beggar. He could be lying. But
regardless of how it would affect his
king, this news must be disclosed. The
man headed into the courtyard of the
inn, where he’d recently rented this
small room, and jumped atop his
horse. Within moments, the man,
dressed in the garments of a Sulanese
tradesman, was heading from the city.
***
After sharing his newly acquired
information with an enraged Tarbin,
the two men, along with their
Mitherian escort, left Sulan under the
pretense they were heading to
Mitherie for more soldiers. As soon as
they crossed the border, they rode
east. They were passing through a
particularly thick foliage of trees, a
path that would surely lead them into
the Lytherian countryside, when a
voice came, loud and cold.
“And what ‘ave we here? Lost
soldiers
so
near
the
Lytherian
countryside?”
Malcolm and Tarbin had watched in
mounting dread as one by one, soldier
after soldier had stepped from the
trees until their entire entourage was
surrounded. Malcolm’s dread lasted
all of ten seconds, until the man who
spoke stepped forward, the large
smirk on his face quickly replaced by
a smile, followed swiftly by a frown.
“Malcolm?” the Lytherian soldier
asked in surprise.
Jumping from his horse, Malcolm
walked over to the lieutenant and
clasped him in a hug.
“Fallon, ’tis good to see you,” he
told the man earnestly. Fallon had
been one of his closet friends when all
had been well in Lytheria. The man
clapped him on the back, and
demanded an explanation for his
months missing. Then, as if suddenly
remembering
something,
Fallon
stepped away from Malcolm and said
stonily, “I have to escort you to the
king, Malcolm Sudbury. ’Tis said you
are forsworn.”
A murmur went up among the
soldiers gathered and Tarbin passed
Malcolm a look of confusion. He did
not know of all the circumstances
surrounding Malcolm’s arrival in
Mitherie. Now he had to trust his
friend would tell him in due course.
Malcolm turned for his horse and
swung easily into his saddle. He
motioned for Fallon to lead the way.
“What is this I hear—of you being
forsworn?” Tarbin asked softly.
Unsure of how to reply, Malcolm