Tested by the Night
An Excerpt from Tamed by the Fire
Tested by the Night
by
Maxine Mansfield
The Academy
Book Five
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales, is entirely coincidental.
Tested by the Night
COPYRIGHT © 2015 by Maxine Mansfield
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission of the author or The Wild Rose Press, Inc. except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles or reviews.
Contact Information: [email protected]
Cover Art by
Diana Carlile
The Wild Rose Press, Inc.
PO Box 708
Adams Basin, NY 14410-0708
Visit us at www.thewilderroses.com
Publishing History
First Scarlet Rose Edition, 2015
Print ISBN 978-1-5092-0404-5
Digital ISBN 978-1-5092-0405-2
Published in the United States of America
Dedication
As always, to David Kuropkat who's wonderful imagination lends itself so well to questing. And to all the Leeky's Ladies, my Facebook street team, for cheering me on every step of the way. You guys rock. And of course to the very talented ladies of The Alaska Chapter of Romance Writers. You guys keep me sane, and I wouldn't know what to do without you.
PRAISE FOR AUTHOR
Maxine Mansfield
AND HER BOOKS
“The Academy, Volume One has to be one of the best series I've read…Everything from dragons to gnomes to hot steamy sex held my attention from the first page…The characters are all amazing…I laughed a lot, and out loud. I look forward to reading more from Maxine Mansfield. A definite must add to your tbr list. Highly recommended!”
~Denise Gardner
TOUCHED BY THE MAGIC
“Maxine Mansfield's
TOUCHED BY THE MAGIC
is a book that will be unlike anything you've ever read! It's a wonderful love story between two very magic-filled beings, Half-Elf Briar Tumbleweed and Paladin Uthiel Stoutheart. If it sounds like a fairy tale, well it is. But, trust me, it isn't your normal Disney fare—by a long shot.”
~Lizbeth Selvig, Contemporary Author Avon Impulse
“This was quite an entertaining read full of comedy, adventure and some steaming hot loving. The plot, characters and creatures were so wonderfully thought out.”
~Anna, Book-Lovin-Mommas
Touched by the Magic.
Tempted by the Storm.
Taken by the Passion…
A new love is born
Tamed by the Fire.
Tested by the Night.
Tried by the Desire…
A true love burns bright
Potion of Extraordinary Knowledge
One drop of a mother’s tears, two drops of woe, three drops of laughter, stirred four times in a row. Five drops of sunlight, six drops of dew, seven drops of moonbeams, in eight different hues. Nine drops of whirlwinds, ten drops of fire, and eleven drops of summer rain, all kissed with desire. Mixed all together, with magic, love, and lore, and a potion you will soon behold, of a knowledge that will soar.
Chapter One
Talon cringed. “You want me to do what?”
Why him? What on Albrath could Zander be thinking, asking his first lieutenant and very best friend to take on such a grievous, unpleasant task? He’d rather be plunged straight into the pits of fire in the Valley of Torment, before contemplating what was being asked of him. Not to mention, VoT itself would probably be a more welcoming place than where his comrade wanted him to go. Especially if King Adan got wind of his true intentions.
“
You heard me. Who else would I ask? This assignment is too important to entrust to anyone but you, my friend. That is, if you’re willing?”
Though Zander Hammerstrike’s lips turned up in a smile his eyes held no hint of humor. As a matter of fact, the ex-prince, now baron, and future co-leader of the Paladin’s of Albrath had never looked more deadly, more serious.
“Like I said, I need you to go to my father’s castle in Alaria and present yourself to my sister, Mia. Escort her to the Academy and be to her what you’ve always been to me. Be her friend, her bodyguard, and her self-defense instructor for this upcoming semester. It’s not as if I don’t have need of you myself, but I’m no longer the heir to the throne of Alaria, she is.
“I’d do this task myself, but with the death of Baron Fistslammer, I have no choice but travel to Halla with Kitrina and see the castle and its people put to rights, you know this.”
Zander rubbed the back of his neck.
“I need you and your special skills my friend, and I’m calling due that long ago promise you made me.”
Talon shook his head. “Now? The bloody promise now? Really? Ask anything else of me, Zander. I beg of you. You can’t be serious. You of all people know you cannot trust me in this. Remember who I am? I’m Talon Starkweather, barbarian warrior, and well-known womanizer. You can’t expect me to…to…spend time alone with your little sister and not…well, you know. Seriously?”
He poked himself in the chest. “You can’t mean it. Not with my reputation. You know me all too well, Zander. I’m no governess. I’m a governess’s worst nightmare. I drink way too much. I crack open heads and flay torsos for sport. I split gullets and disembowel scoundrels on a whim. VoT, I’ve even been known to tup about any willing female who comes within a hundred yards of me, and I don’t even hesitate to flirt with the old, ugly ones. It’s a
hard
job, I admit. But, someone’s gotta do it.
“I’d make a really bad ladies maid.
“Send Laycee to her. I have no doubt she’d be a fine companion. Didn’t you tell me once she was governess to your aunts when they were young?”
Zander’s eyes gleamed with that same stubborn glare Talon had witnessed more times than he’d like to remember. “It has to be you. You’re my best friend, and I trust no other with this sensitive matter. Laycee can’t prepare Mia for what lies ahead. Laycee can’t teach her how to defend not just her body but also her heart and her soul. And Laycee won’t be able to talk sense into my little sister like you can.
“Mia has gotten this…this crazy notion in her head, and she won’t let it go. I almost think she’s trying to punish me for abdicating. Just go to her and do what she asks, within reason of course. But at the same time, do the job I’m tasking you with, and do it without Mia finding out what’s really going on if at all possible.”
Talon shook his head. “What exactly are you tasking me with, Zander?”
The ex-heir sighed. “Though I’ve made the choice to never become king of the barbarians myself, I do worry about what is to become of Mia in the future. And I care very much about who she will choose to marry when the time comes, and so should you. If by chance she fails at this crazy scheme of hers, and I’m certain she will, God Draka only knows who may end up sitting upon my father’s throne. See her through this quest until she does fail, and see to it she doesn’t fall for the first fresh-faced barbarian who winks at her.”
Though he wanted to, Talon didn’t argue with his friend’s logic.
“One semester, right?”
Zander nodded. “That’s all it should take.”
He could play ladies maid and personal bodyguard to a spoiled little princess for one semester, couldn’t he? After all, how hard could it be? He’d collect the little lass, escort her back to the Academy, give her pointers on self-defense, protect her pretty little ass, keep the power-hungry knaves at bay, and do whatever menial tasks she asked of him. It was just one semester.
He was curious though. “Umm, Zander, just what kind of crazy quest idea has your little sister gotten into her head?”
Zander coughed. “Mia’s determined to attempt Queen Adrina’s Challenge, and she must be curtailed before she gets herself killed. It’s imperative she be kept safe, Talon, even from herself if need be. Don’t let her go through with it if at any time you think she’ll come to harm. VoT, personally sabotage her if it comes to that. For her own good, of course. Put to use those irresistible talents you have when it comes to women. Trick her if you must, even lie to her if you have no other choice, and while you’re at it, gently push her in the direction of a ‘
suitable
’ barbarian male who’d be able to rule in her stead. A barbarian of honor, a barbarian of duty, a barbarian above reproach. It really is in her best interest.
“I wouldn’t be able to go on living if Mia were hurt, or worse, because I shifted what was once my responsibility onto her young, vulnerable shoulders.”
Zander took a deep breath. “My little sister is a headstrong, stubborn young woman, and I love her with all my heart. But she’s no Queen Adrina. If you must make her life so difficult and miserable she gladly chooses a man over this crazy challenge, so be it. I’ll not stand idly by and see her harmed, because of my decision to abdicate.”
Talon shook his head once more. “I don’t know, Zander. This plan of yours sounds like a really bad idea if you ask me. I know women. And if little Mia Hammerstrike ever finds out we set out with the intention to interfere with her efforts, may God Draka have mercy on the both of us. But I do owe you a debt I can never truly repay and I did make you a promise, so I’ll do my best to see this done.”
****
Princess Amelia Zoe Cassidy Hammerstrike paced the length of her dull, drab castle chamber like a caged animal. She wrung her hands. What in the VoT had possessed her, to think she could go through with this? It was practically the middle of the night, and he was late, anyway.
The three moons of Albrath, each in a different phase, shown through her floor-to-ceiling windows, casting lazy shadows across the room, as if they were trying to compete with the dozen or so candles she’d lit.
Where in the VoT was the man she’d sent for? And what could possibly be taking him so long to get here? He needed to arrive soon, he really did. He needed to reach her room, enter her door, and do what he’d been hired to do before she completely lost her mind and her nerve.
Taking a deep calming breath, Mia sat on the edge of her bed and stared at the four gray, paint-free walls of the bedchamber that had been her one true sanctuary for the last twenty-one years.
How could her brother, Zander, and his wife, Kitrina, have done this to her? How could they have laid this responsibility at her feet without a second thought as to whether she wanted to someday become Queen of the Barbarians?
Granted, they were desperately in love, and they really hadn’t had much choice after the Dragon Heart Opal chose Zander as Kitrina’s mate. But still, it wasn’t fair. They might as well have painted a target on her back with a note attached saying fresh meat, come and get it.
Mia stomped her foot. She’d been good with being the spare to the heir. Not once in her entire upbringing had she ever envied her bother his title or rightful place. And just how had her dear brother rewarded her loyalty? He’d abdicated his throne and married her very human and totally unbarbarian best friend, that’s what he’d done. And as if that wasn’t bad enough, he’d left her in a mess she wasn’t sure she could get out of.
Chewing her fingernails until they were not much more than stubs, she watched grains of sand slip, quicker than she would’ve liked through the hourglass. Where on Albrath was that dratted man?
She needed something to take the edge off the anxiety she’d been experiencing since she’d made known her decision. Zander had all but deserted her, her father wouldn’t even speak with her about it, and her mother…well, her mother broke out into a sobbing fit every time she walked into the room.