Tempered Hearts (Hearts of Valentia Book 1) (18 page)

“Any birds this evening?” He changed the subject with a wave.

Vennic shrugged and passed him a small, rolled parchment. “One, but not much in the way of updates. We’ve not been gone a full day yet.”

He skimmed the missive from Ingram. No news from the Prasta. Rebuilding supplies still difficult to acquire. Restless refugees. There was an item or two regarding troop movements, but no significant gains or losses there. He tossed the parchment into the fire and tried to relax.

But even with Vennic’s jokes and the easy conversation with the soldiers, Darius was withdrawn and distracted. Thoughts of Arden kept him preoccupied.

An hour gone, and he had enough. He stood and stretched, met with a few overt digs at seeing to his new wife, and returned to his shared tent. A moment of nostalgia overtook him as he reached for the flap, remembering the last instance he’d done so. At the time, he and Naya had completely abandoned any attempts to hide their relationship. Even with a war upon them, they couldn’t have been happier. Their last night in the field after the victory at Orinda Valley, rain drenched everything for miles. They’d fallen asleep to the sound of water drumming on the oil cloth above them.

He banished the memory from his mind, taking a quick peek inside the tent before he went barging in. A single candle burned in a lamp atop Arden’s trunk, casting long, deep shadows across the interior. Arden was little more than a small hill buried under the blankets of the pallet, and the slow rise and fall of her shoulders indicated she was already asleep.

A brief moment of longing crept up on him, the memory of their kiss that morning stirring a twinge of desire. He wanted Arden to be happy, but every time he looked at her felt like a betrayal towards Naya. Even though they parted ways, she still held his heart.

Sighing, he stripped off his cloak and boots, and tossed his bracers and light leather armor into a pile near his pack. When he was down to his tunic and breeches, the cold got the better of him, and he slid under the covers as gently as he could. The pallet wasn’t nearly as large as their bed at the castle, and there was no avoiding some contact with her even at the far edges. Resigned to it, he curled up behind her, relishing the surprising warmth she radiated. She let out a quiet mumble under her breath, but didn’t stir as he draped his arm around her.

Her hair smelled of lavender, and he inhaled deeply, relaxing more with every breath.

He couldn’t say how fast he fell asleep, but it felt like mere moments passed before he woke. His body tensed, disoriented by the feel of a soft head of hair tucked under his chin, a woman nestled snugly against his chest.

Naya? No. Too short and not nearly enough hardened muscles.

Arden.

She’d turned in her sleep, a leg draped over one of his, her thigh pressing against him in a spot that promised to prove uncomfortable if she moved even a millimeter more. His thoughts lingered on the prospect of seeking a little relief, but remembering her difficulty walking, he immediately brushed it aside.

When he started to move away, she squeaked a little and grasped his shirt tightly.

“Wait,” she whispered. “Please don’t go yet.”

He frowned, already hearing morning birds in the trees and the early sounds of breakfast being prepared. “It’s time to get up, asahana. We can’t linger all day.”

He felt her swallow hard. “I know. It’s just…”

He brushed the hair from her face to see her more clearly. “Hmm?”

“I thought I’d be fine, that the riding wouldn’t bother me at all, and I didn’t want to be a burden, but…”

It was an enormous struggle, but he managed not to laugh. “If you ask nicely, I may have something to help with that.”

She scowled. “Is this punishment for winning the argument last night?”

Darius chuckled and kissed the top of her head. “No. I just like it when you say please.”

His amusement immediately stopped when she adjusted her leg, brushing his pants to an instant reaction. Arden propped herself up and looked down at him, wide eyes searching his. “Do you?”

Those bewilderingly blue orbs of hers scattered his thoughts. “What?”

The left corner of her mouth tilted up in the very slightest, her cheeks flushing a pale pink. “Like it when I say please?”

Captivated by her gaze, he was only drawn away for a moment when her teeth caught her lower lip.

“Mmm,” he murmured as she inched closer. With only a breath left between them, he stopped her with a finger against her mouth. “What are you doing, asahana?”

The confidence in her eyes faltered, but she didn’t look away. “Asking nicely.”

He set his palm against her cheek before kissing her forehead. “Any nicer, and you might severely regret it when you can’t walk for a week.”

She slumped against his chest with a sigh. “I suppose there is that to consider.”

Darius smoothed her hair, torn between physical need and the ache in his heart. “Give it time. There’s no need to rush things.”

“We’re married,” she grumbled into the blankets. “I think it’s hardly considered rushing at this point.”

“When we get there, you’ll thank me, Arden. I won’t cause you unnecessary pain.”

Her entire body went rigid as she moved her leg back down his body, resting it atop her other leg. It dawned on him the minx purposely positioned herself that way, likely gritting through the pain in her attempt to seduce him. Kissing her hair one last time, he extracted his arm from under her and himself from bed with a chuckle at the realization. The girl was far too clever for her own good.

Fetching the salve Vennic gave him, he adjusted himself to hide any unsightly results of her attempts before returning to her. After he sat down, he held it in his palm, considering it.

Arden, flat on her back, crossed her arms and looked up at him. “So, we stare at a little jar and it magically fixes me?”

Given the teasing he’d endured that morning, perhaps it was only fair to return the favor. With a grin, he shifted to the other end of the pallet and folded the blankets over, up to her knees. She sat bolt upright, gaping at him as he considered the bare legs sticking out of her nightgown.

“What are you doing?”

Darius unscrewed the lid and set it aside, not betraying his amusement for a second. “You want to feel better, don’t you?”

“Yes, but what—”

He scooped a tiny bit of salve out of the pot, the spicy sweet scent permeating the air as he rubbed it into a melty oil. “Then let me work, asahana.”

He winked at her and grabbed a foot, kneading the liquefied salve into her skin. Massaging one foot, followed by the next, it didn’t take long before she laid back on the pillow, eyes closed as little sighs of relief escaped her. Next, her calves, his touch eliciting soft whimpers as he massaged each tender muscle, the herbal medicines penetrating her skin to relieve the worst of her aches. His fingers crept over her knees, her breath hitching as he explored her thighs beneath the blankets. A mixture of pain, relief, and pleasure washed over her expression as his hands pressed into her flesh, attentively working at the sorest places. She trembled the first time he brushed against the fabric of her smallclothes, her breath held in uncertain expectation.

Dare he take it so far?

Her flushed face, the heat of her desire… he wanted her to understand what it could be for both of them when proper care was given and returned. She deserved to know the touch of someone who wanted to never hurt her.

Intent on her face, Darius set his hands to work with gentle pressure, the salve soothing her pain, his touch igniting her passion. Her whimpers turned to moans, her hips rising to meet his motions. Arden’s knuckles went white as she gripped the blankets, and he worried she might draw blood as fiercely as she bit her lip. He briefly recalled the stick Vennic left in the tent, wondering if maybe he shouldn’t have kept it after all, as she might’ve actually needed it to bite down on.

Close, he pressed a little harder, focusing on her most sensitive spot as she quivered and jerked. Arden’s lips parted, ready to release a cry. To save her the embarrassment in camp later, he covered her mouth with his, swallowing her delight with extreme satisfaction as she arched up into him. Her arms encircled his neck, the intensity of her kiss making him question his own sanity at pushing her away earlier.

Not since Naya had a woman come apart in his arms that way.

She stilled in his embrace, panting against his mouth. “Stars above, what magic was that?”

He grinned, incredibly proud of himself. “Think you’ll be well enough to walk then?”

She giggled. “Walk? A molded pudding would be less wobbly than me at the moment.”

Laughing, he ran his hand down her inner thigh as he removed it from under the covers. “I was asking if the pain was better, but I’ll take your answer to mean yes.”

With a sigh, she rested her forehead against his. “Much better, I think. Thank you.”

Happy she was sated, he kissed her cheek and pulled away. “Then we better get moving. They’ll be pulling up stakes, and if you want breakfast before we go, we need to grab it soon.”

Darius left her to recover while he dressed for the day, then set out the moment she was on her feet.

There’d be no mistaking the smile she’d wear the rest of the day.

Chapter 18

Arden

There were so many amazing sights to see once they reached their first destination that Arden hardly had time to think of much else for over a week. The pits of Corvath the Unyielding were enormous, bottomless maws of darkness inside an abandoned mine, and she made Darius point out where Yarrold met his demise, even though she didn’t totally believe it. They continued northeast, gathering impromptu crowds in any village or town they passed through, everyone curious to see the new king and his bride.

There was one place that gave her pause and shifted her perceptions. In every town they saw plenty of humans, but rarely elves, even though she knew there were settlements nearby, or some plying their trades in the markets. She thought it curious, but wasn’t overly mindful of it until they stopped in a place called Nevahtu, a hilly village a few miles southeast of the Untari mountain range. Their party was invited to lunch at the magistrate’s house, which turned into an afternoon of drinks and pipe tobacco. While she would’ve liked to sit in on the conversation, the smell of burning tobacco made her ill in confined spaces. With the men all distracted, Arden snuck away to see if there was some place she might read for a bit while it was still daylight. She got turned around inside the estate and ended up outside in a courtyard instead, hopelessly lost.

As she pondered her predicament, she caught the sound of giggles beyond a clump of bushes and went to peek around for someone to ask for help.

Two small elven boys stared at her from their spot between plants and the wall surrounding the gardens, their eyes wide at being discovered. She smiled to set them at ease and put her elvish to good use.

“Hello, eradis. May I ask you a question?”

Their jaws dropped open, the taller of the two recovering first.
“You know our language, Ta’Sidah?”

Ta’Sidah? They considered her a queen among them?
“Fairly well, yes. Are you playing a game back here? Hiding from someone?”

He gulped.
“Please don’t tell the osahveth. We’re supposed to keep out of sight, and if we’re caught…”

She recoiled in horror. Osahveth was an unsavory term for a master by his slaves, not elves under employ, never mind children.
“Osahveth? Who do you call that? And keep out of sight from whom?”

“The man who owns this house wishes us to stay away from Ta’Sidah and Ta’Sidam,”
the younger one squeaked and hid behind the other.

“What? Whatever for?”

“Osahveth says we are unsightly and should not go into the streets while you are here,”
the elder explained.
“We’re supposed to stay in the diasetam with the rest.”

“The magister ordered you all to—”
Her blood boiled, disgusted rage threatening to overtake her rational mind. She took a deep breath and crouched down to their level.
“Will you wait here for me? I’d like to see where it is you live, but I can’t go without telling Ta’Sidam where I’ll be. Is that all right? I promise you’ll not get into any trouble for it.”

The boys glanced at each other nervously, but nodded their agreement. Arden gave them her best smile, turned, and marched back into the house, her mind already formulating the words she’d have for the magister.

The two guards outside the study door must’ve read the look on her face, as they immediately stepped aside. She threw open the door with a mighty bang and strode straight for the magister. The men all stood in stunned surprise, but none as shocked as the magister when she asked her first question.

“Did you or did you not order every elf to remain in the diasetam for the duration of our visit?”

His black eyes blinked at her under his bushy brown hair and beard. “Your Highness?”

“Answer my question immediately.”

“I… I…” He sputtered a bit, his chest puffing out defensively. “There’s been trouble in town of late, and I wanted to ensure your safety from—”

“So you think banishing the entire elvish population here is the solution?” Her hands balled into fists. She’d never been so angry she wanted to hit another person before, but she was having trouble containing her temper.

Arden jerked when a hand settled on her shoulder. “Calm down, asahana. Let’s see what’s going on first.”

Darius leveled his gaze at the red-faced magister. “You say you’ve been having trouble lately?”

The magister’s eye twitched. “Those damned pointy-eared cretins have invaded every inch of the town. Businesses and all, even trying to buy homes! They have the diasetam. I won’t make further concessions to—”

Before she knew what happened, Darius reared back and flattened the man’s nose, sending him reeling backwards over a footstool. The magister scrambled and scuttled to his feet, but the blow left him staggering. Darius stepped forward again, his stance dangerous, but Vennic grabbed hold of his arm, stopping him cold.

“You can do something about this that doesn’t require fists, Your Majesty.” Vennic’s soothing tone took the wind out of her sails immediately, and she marveled at how well-controlled the elf was given the words the magister spewed moments before.

His presence had the same effect on Darius, and he straightened to his full height, every inch of him in command. “Magister Hurem, you are hereby immediately and irrevocably stripped of your position and title. Which house holds dominion over this area?”

The magister spat and held his tongue.

She shook herself to clear her mind. “Nevahtu falls under Blacklan’s banner.”

“Seamus Blacklan?”

Her shoulders drooped and she shook her head. “Duchess Catalan. Seamus fell at Orinda. She’s regent until her son comes of age.”

Darius’s face softened. “I fought with Seamus before Orinda. He was a good man. I didn’t know he was one we lost.”

While two soldiers hauled the outraged magister out of the room, she remembered the boys in the yard.

“I’ve someone waiting to show me to the diasetam, kendala. Maybe we should go see the extent of things here before we interfere any further.”

Darius

The discovery of the horrific conditions in the elven diasetam of Nevahtu put a severe damper on their journey. Vermin roamed the streets, and waste and refuse drained away down gutters that once had roads between them, but were little more than walkways after heavy rains flooded the area. Disease ran rampant, food supplies were spoiled, and the single source of water was a foul-smelling well at the center of the five-mile section of town belonging to the elves.

Arden shone like the sun through it all, smiling and speaking with everyone they met, listening intently as they told her about their children, their jobs, their crumbling homes, the tribes they originated from… She astounded Darius. She remembered every name and face, and he’d never seen her look so determined. The two young boys who guided them there, Rigal and Evasi, marched on either side of her, proud to have been the ones to speak with her first, and became the unofficial ambassadors to the diasetam. Arden’s first order of business was inviting every able-bodied elf to help clean out the food from the ex-magister’s home, organizing an entire team to head up the distribution. When the boys’ parents invited the royals to stay with them for the night, Darius couldn’t have said no to Arden’s wide, pleading eyes if he’d been made of stone.

His first order of business the next day involved birds being sent to Duchess Blacklan in Norwall and Ingram back at Castle Dulaine, informing them of his removal of Magister Hurem and subsequent replacement of an elven-backed candidate by the name of Erron Minval, a generous businessman with good sense and a kind heart. The Duchess was none too pleased at the news, but thanked him for the intervention on her behalf. Arden ensured him Catalan was a decent woman whose servants had nothing but good things to say about her, and as she was far better versed in such politics, Darius took her word for it.

He also sent a letter to Ehlren that they’d been delayed and would arrive three days later than originally planned. The stop in Nevahtu affected the whole itinerary and resulted in having to cut out one of the stops of their tour. Arden didn’t mind in the slightest. She said that making a difference in people’s lives was far better than a little sightseeing.

Because of what they discovered in Nevahtu, Darius resolved to set up his own personal inquiry regarding other diasetams in Valentia. Manpower and resources were still spread thin with the haegaroi clean up and reconstruction going on, but he sent a bird to Madame LeVallier to compile a list of trusted agents who could investigate the matter on his behalf. He kept that from Arden, however, with the intention of telling her as a gift for a special occasion. It would be particularly nice if he would have some progress to show for it as well when he finally told her, but that was something to consider later.

Their last night there, Arden sat at the vanity in the room they took at the magister’s estate. He laid in bed, nearly half asleep, watching her brush out her long dark hair in slow, even strokes.

“You look vexed, asahana,” he said, noting the expression in her reflection. “Something the matter?”

She set the brush down, frowning at it. “Just something I overheard Errol grumbling about today. It worries me.”

He yawned and motioned for her to come to bed. “What worries you?”

She shuffled across the room, hanging her robe over the back of a chair. “He was complaining about how impossible it was to get certain materials to help build up the diasetam. Quality steel and stones for the buildings, I think. Does that feel at all odd to you?”

Darius stretched out across the bed as she climbed under the covers. “Materials are in short supply everywhere. It’s all the rebuilding kingdom-wide, I suppose.”

“I guess that could be,” she murmured, but she didn’t look convinced. “I just feel like with people returning from the war, production would be up again with more people going back to work. Especially with the high demand, there’s more than enough paying jobs to go around. I know we lost a lot of men, but certainly not so many that supply lines would slow to a near halt. Don’t you think?”

The more he considered it, the more sound her reasoning became. The dwarves, their main suppliers of raw materials, had withdrawn from the war shortly after Orinda Valley. It was incredibly strange to see such shortages, even with the higher demand. Pieces clicked together in his head one by one: the problems in Maer, Vennic’s nails for the horseshoes, and the troubles in Nevahtu as well.

“Your family owns mines that produce iron, don’t they?”

Arden laid down beside him, watching his face. “Iron for steel production, a granite quarry, and a small gold mine on the western edge of the country. Why?”

“Have your parents mentioned any slowdowns with them?”

“No, but I mostly stopped asking about them after a visit when I was eleven. It’s a very sensitive subject to my mother.”

“Why is that?”

She rolled her eyes. “Oh, you know, too curious for my own good. I went exploring, and they lost me for a few hours. Never mind that I located a very nice ore deposit in a tunnel they’d given up on. No, they couldn’t let their only heir fall down a mine shaft. Because clearly I’m very stupid and cannot read warning signs.”

He chuckled. “I promise to let you explore any mine you like so long as I’m with you. You know, to read those signs for you.”

She started to laugh, but it turned into a yawn. “Sorry. It’s getting very late. It’s been a long few days.”

“It has.”

Silence crept in, leaving them staring at each other by lamplight. Her eyes always drew him in, but when the light was low, her dark lashes seemed longer and fuller, their slow, tired blink hypnotizing. Her shy smile warmed his heart, but before he could say anything more, she turned away and doused the oil lamp beside the bed, settling in with her back to him.

Darius remained as he was, watching her chest rise and fall, easing into her rhythm of sleep. He could’ve stopped her, could’ve woken her, kissed her and told her maybe it was time to move on.

But he didn’t. Instead, he laid on his back and stared up at the ceiling, returning to the problems in getting supplies. Were the dwarves cutting back on trades? Maybe their stop at Ogtern would provide some answers.

Arden

She honestly couldn’t say how long she stood there gaping.

“Are you sure it’s safe?”

Darius set a hand on her back and pointed to a cave at the end of the path winding up the side of the red rock cliff. “That’s the passage we’ll take to get to the mountain road. It’s wide enough for the wagon, but only just. I’ve been through it many times, so don’t worry. Plus, the view of the monuments is spectacular from there.”

Her tongue felt thick as she swallowed the lump in her throat. She couldn’t help it. The cliff was at least a mile straight into the air with nothing but scrubby, stabby plants and pointed rocks below it. The massive likeness of a dwarf yar carved into the entire height of the cliff did nothing to set her at ease, either. He didn’t look cross, so much as though he were warning them of their impending doom should they go any further.

Her feet inched away of their own accord, and she backed into Darius with a startled yelp.

He chuckled and took her hand, turning her away from the path to look out on the arid plains they passed through to get there. “Remember how I told you about seeing the old fortress from a distance?” She nodded, and he pointed east. “Look there.”

She gasped, thoroughly amazed. The old dwarven outpost, little more than a crumbling tomb up close, was easily identifiable from far away. “A dragon.” She marveled at it. “Those messy piles of rocks and jutting boulders are exactly what I imagine a dragon would look like from here.”

“Dragons are much scarier up close, for what it’s worth.” He nudged her with a shoulder, winking.

Arden rolled her eyes. “You’ve seen a dragon?”

“Four of them, actually, if you count the undead one at Orinda.”

No matter how hard she tried, she simply couldn’t see him as a killer. His small assault on the ex-magister in Nevahtu certainly displayed his strength, but killing dragons?