Fantasyland 02 The Golden Dynasty (42 page)

But soon, very soon, in fact, I was all
dressed and ready to go in my golden finery and as soon as I
painted my husband, we would be out of our cham and on our way to
Lahn facing Dortak in the challenge.

I knew one thing, Lahn would beat him.

I knew something else, as much as I hated
Dortak and as little as it said about me, I cared nothing about the
fact his life would soon end but I still didn’t look forward to
watching my husband cut his head off.

And I knew one last thing, Dortak would not
hesitate to cheat and I didn’t want Lahn to get hurt when he
did.

And I
so
didn’t want that that I knew I didn’t want it not because I
simply didn’t want another man, an abuser and a cheater, to harm a
man who would fight with honor. And I knew I didn’t want it not
because Lahn had kept me fed and sheltered and showered in jewels
and kickass clothes.

I didn’t want it because I cared about my
husband and this feeling ran deep.

And because of this I was terrified out of
my mind.

* * * * *

The last seven days had been good, very
good,
too
good.

I had kept up my wanderings with Bain and
Zahnin but now Zahnin was chatting. We didn’t have deep
conversations where he bared his soul but he talked. He didn’t ask
for advice or share how things were going in his cham but he did
more than grunt unintelligibly at observations I made, he corrected
my Korwahk and he often waded in to try to explain when I was
speaking with my people on the (rarer and rarer occasion) I was
messing it up.

Daily, however, I went to his cham to
attend Sabine. At my request, Diandra and Claudine had sought and
found the other girl not of Korwahk who was hunted with us. She was
Fleuridian too, her name was Anastasie and although her warrior had
been gentler with her, without the assistance I had or Sabine was
getting, she was still lost in a culture she didn’t understand and
more than a little alarmed by it (she had not, for instance, been
sheltered from the selection
or
the
celebration after). With Narinda, Diandra and Claudine gave all of
us lessons in Korwahk and often Nahka would come by, sometimes
bringing her friends, and lessons would descend into girlie time
with Diandra and Claudine translating. With this, it didn’t take
long for laughter to ring from Sabine’s tent.

And this laughter was ringing once when the
flaps slapped back and Zahnin entered.

Sabine did not scurry away but her eyes did
snap to him. She held her body tense but not tight nor terrified,
just guarded.

I counted this as progress.

He took in the scene then his eyes went to
his bride and he asked, “All is well, wife?”

Claudine interpreted and after a moment’s
hesitation, she nodded.

Then Zahnin tipped his chin up to her,
walked forward and executed a smooth move right in front of all her
new girlfriends.

He ran the backs of his fingers gently
across her cheek even as she visibly failed to fight back a slight
wince.

He wisely ignored this and whispered, “This
pleases me.”

Then, without another word or glance at
anyone, he turned and walked out.

Nice.
Very
nice.

Sabine stared at the tent flaps in
open-mouthed shock.

Diandra, Claudine, Nahka and even Narinda
and I shared knowing and amused glances.

In our time with her, Sabine did not share
how things were going and we didn’t ask. But Zahnin’s move made me
hold hope that even if he wasn’t raised with kindness, he was the
kind of man who was born with it.

I had heard and processed Lahn’s warnings
but still, I couldn’t help it.

I was hopeful.

* * * * *

It became clear to me the night of the day
of the rainbow that Lahn had settled his horde and therefore he
came home much earlier. This meant more lovemaking. It also meant
more chats, some of them heartfelt (for instance, when I told him
stories of my father, his men, horseback riding lessons and the
like), some of them informative (Lahn explaining things about
Korwahk, how he spent his days, how I spent mine, me telling him
how I learned how to play guitar (though, mention of another man in
my life was not looked on favorably so I made a mental note not to
do that again)), some of the chats were amusing and I realized my
husband had a dry wit.

I also realized that he found me hilarious
in a resigned way that, even if resigned, he felt it was appealing.
He thought I was quite mad, I knew, with half the shit I did and
said, the way my heart guided me, the easy way my temper flared,
but he found it attractive and he didn’t hide it.

I liked that.

He even once came home in time to take
dinner with me in the cham and as he did, I realized I’d never seen
him eat. I also realized he ate a lot. He was a big guy and he had
a big appetite. With the way he ate, how he kept that six pack was
anyone’s guess. But I liked that he enjoyed his food and he did not
hide it.

He was also gentle with me in many ways
and took time and patiently began to assist Diandra in her
teachings about the Korwahk and The Horde. He was king, he could do
as he pleased and expect to do it without being questioned and his
people had lived their way of life for eons but I liked that he
took the time to explain things to me.

Truth be told, I was beginning to like
everything about Lahn.

And, stupid me, I did absolutely nothing to
stop it.

* * * * *

I often spent time with Diandra, Nahka and
Narinda but I did not broach the subject of my magic and my
possible goddess status with any of them and they didn’t with me
either.

I didn’t know why they didn’t but I didn’t
because I was stupid.

And I didn’t because I wanted Zahnin to win
his wife and Sabine, who was very sweet, to settle and find
contentment and even happiness after what she’d endured. I wanted
her to have what Mahyah never found. I wanted that a lot. And I
wanted to do what I couldn’t do for Mahyah, and that was to help
her have it.

And I also didn’t because I liked wandering
the Daxshee, talking to my people, gabbing with Bain, exchanging
comments with Zahnin, learning Korwahk, getting to recognize faces
and beginning to share in the lives of my people, knowing who was
sick, who was pregnant, whose son was to go before my husband in
the next selection and the like.

And I also didn’t because I liked my nights
with Lahn, our chats, our lovemaking. And I liked our mornings, his
baths, sometimes my baths with him, the soft talks we’d have as he
sat cross legged in front of me while I sat on the pile of hides
and braided or bunched his hair and… um, our lovemaking (that was
good enough to repeat).

Diandra was right and so was I. After Lahn
hit me, he listened to what I said to him and inadvertently I had
taught him a lesson at the same time he realized he had a battle on
his hands and set about winning it. He had changed, sharing with me
his time, his wit, his sweetness and his patience as well as his
body and in so doing, he succeeded.

And he was enjoying his spoils for he knew
from one look at me in the parade that I was what he’d been waiting
for for years (he told me this during one of
his
heartfelt chats). And he now had it and he was not
only content, he was openly happy.

And I liked that he was but further, that it
was me that was giving it to him.

Therefore, I wasn’t broaching the topic of
magic because I was actually
enjoying
being with the Korwahk, with my husband, with my
friends.

This didn’t mean I wouldn’t kill for a
burrito or a cell phone where I could call Diandra or Narinda
rather than traipsing all the way to their chams with one of my
guards in hopes they were home when I wanted company, but as the
days went on, these longings faded, my memories of home faded and
Korwahk became my reality.

When I allowed myself to think of it, I told
myself I would, and soon, find out what was happening and then make
a decision about what I would do next.

But, for now, I would give myself this.

Because I liked it.

See? Stupid.

I totally should have sorted that all out
before Lahn faced Dortak in the contest for the Dax and maybe got
himself injured, something I would have to watch or, God forbid,
the gods of this world wept because the earth was falling from the
sky and Dortak took my husband’s beautiful head, then he turned to
me.

See?

Totally.

Stupid
.

* * * * *

I set the pot on the table and turned to
Lahn. Not looking in his eyes, I started at the indentation of his
collarbone and drew a heavy line down his chest, starting to paint
the design I hadn’t realized until then I had memorized.

“Uh…” I mumbled in order to take my mind off
the day’s events and take Lahn’s off the fact that I hadn’t quite
controlled the trembling of my hand, “you only wear black. What do
the other colors warriors bear signify?”

I didn’t look at him when I asked my
question but I knew he’d tilted his head down to look at me as he
answered.

“
White is an unseasoned warrior, new to the
kill. Red indicates those who go on campaign. Blue, those who go to
war or patrol Korwahk. All colors, those who are seasoned, who have
gone on raids and handled themselves well in war and therefore have
proven themselves. They can choose to raid or war or both. Green, a
color you may not have seen, are warriors who now spend their time
training. Those wearing only black are my lieutenants, warriors who
have my ear, who lead troops on assignment or who belong to The
Horde that travels with the Daxshee, in other words, they have also
proven themselves in battle; they are our finest warriors and
therefore hold a high rank.”

“Mm hmm,” I mumbled, listening but not
listening then, twisting, I grabbed the pot, gouged out more paint
and turned back to him, lifting my hand to start on the arcs.

I didn’t touch his skin. This was because
his fingers wrapped around wrist.

Then he said softly in English, “Give me
your golden eyes, Circe.”

I bit my lip then lifted my eyes to his. I
knew I was not hiding anything when his went soft and his hand
tightened around my wrist.

“He will not best me,” he whispered, again
in English.

“Right,” I whispered back but that one word
trembled.

His brows rose slightly. “You do not have
faith in your king?”

I shook my head once. “No, I do.” Then I was
still whispering, my voice continuing to tremble, when I said, “He
cheats.”

“I know this,” Lahn replied and when I made
no response, his other hand came up and curled around the back of
my neck, holding me warmly there. “Because I know this, do you not
think I have planned for it?”

Um… actually, no. That thought hadn’t
occurred to me.

“Uh,” I started then admitted, “No. I
didn’t. I’ve been too busy freaking out.”

Whereas when amongst the Korwahk, I almost
always spoke Korwahk, when Lahn was in our tent, he demanded we
converse in English. He caught on quickly proving maybe, he
actually
was
a god or at
least he was super clever. Further, this aided in softening my
heart because I liked that he wanted to learn my language and share
that with me.

So now he asked, “Freaking out? You use this
expression in many different ways.”

“Well, this time, I mean worried, upset and
a lot of both,” I explained and his eyes roamed my face.

Then his hand at my neck pulled me in and up
as he bent so his lips could touch mine.

He moved away an inch before he whispered,
“He will not best me, Circe.”

I pressed my lips together, his eyes flared,
I quickly released them and whispered back, “Okay, Lahn.”

His hand gave me a squeeze and he
repeated, “He will not best me.” Then he went on with another
squeeze but this time, his hand held tight. “This is my vow to you.
I face this contest to defend my title as the Dax but I also face
this challenge knowing that if he were to take my head, I would die
and spend my time in the other realm knowing he would handle you
and he would do it worse than he did his bride. I would not allow
that to happen and I am not about to fall and
let
it happen. I am your husband, I will keep you safe
and I will do it by keeping my feet on this earth, breathing the
air and being there to
make
you safe. Do you understand this?”

Okay. Okay.

Shit. Okay.

There it was. I
really
liked my husband.

And after his declaration, the only thing I
could do was whisper, “Yes.”

“Okay?” he asked on another squeeze of my
neck.

“Yes, Lahn, I’m okay.”

“Okay,” he returned then let my neck go and
moved slightly back, ordering, “Make it heavy, my queen. In less
than two hours, I want there to be enough on me to cover your naked
body in my black.”

That
got an all over skin tingle.

“Uh… okay,” I breathed, that word not
trembling at all and he grinned.

“Okay,” he replied and he let my wrist
go.

I dipped my head and commenced painting my
husband’s fantastic chest, arms, back and face in killer, kickass
streaks of black.

* * * * *

Lahn and I walked together through the
Daxshee to the clearing with the platform where Mahyah had
(essentially) taken her own life.