The Mercenary's Marriage (8 page)

“Very good idea, but…” The king dropped off
into thoughtful silence. All the rest respectfully broke off their
voices. After a moment, the king said, “Darius, how is your wife
doing?”

Startled at the apparent jump of topics,
Darius blinked and the other men looked at the king in confusion.
“Fine, Sire.” Darius shrugged. “It will take time, but she will
heal. Why?”

“I want her to ride in our midst tomorrow as
we approach the gates. The presence of a woman among us will make
us less threatening.”

“Perfect,” Trenar agreed. Even as the others
were agreeing to the plan, Darius rose and stepped forward.

“Sire,” he said. The king turned his
attention back to Darius now standing conspicuously in the center
of their circle.

“Yes.”

“I request that Brice not be included in the
approach tomorrow.” Darius looked straight into his king’s eyes,
ignoring the other men in the room. “She was injured in the ambush
because I had split responsibilities and had to choose between her
and you, my king. I cannot have that happen again. Because of my
lax performance, you and she almost died.” Silence fell.

With trepidation, Darius watched the king
think. He could be dismissed on the spot for unwillingness to
perform his duties. On top of that, he was almost accepting blame
for the King’s close brush with death. The king could order him to
go with the plan against his will. The many possible outcomes of
his impulsive move rolled through Darius’ thoughts as the king also
pondered. None of the results were positive.

“What alternative would you suggest?” King
Jenran finally asked.

Darius lowered his head to hide his surprise.
“I was planning on sending her into the city ahead of us with Kurt,
but if Trenar could spare a man, she could have a different
companion.” He regarded the king again. “Whoever went could also
assess the situation and return to camp with the more information.
Brice’s presence would make the man appear more harmless and
overlookable on the trip through the gates.”

Trenar stepped forward. “I will take her,
sire.”

The king’s dark eyes moved to the head of his
intelligence. “Do you really think it will work?”

“My man has not tried to enter the gates
because he would be known by the watch on duty, on the other hand.”
He jerked his chin toward Darius. “I could get in with the help of
his wife. A peasant and his wife entering the city to visit
relatives would be beneath any scrutiny.”

Slowly the king nodded and it was settled.
The rest of the meeting was brief and Darius wished it over. He was
worried about Brice. She had been very pale and slow to respond
when he had left her. It could have been the tonic the healer had
given her, but….

“You are not falling asleep on us, are you?”
Regan commented in a tone that made Darius wonder what he had
missed. The meeting was obviously over and the group was breaking
up. The King was speaking in lowered tones with Larer. The others
were about to go to their separate tents.

“Leave him be,” Ewian said, coming up to
Darius’ other side. “We are all tired and want to be home in our
own beds.”

“If all goes well, tomorrow night we will
be.” Trenar pointed out. Then easing onto his feet, he announced he
was heading for his tent.

After they had taken their leave of the King,
Ewian followed Darius out into the night. “When they get into the
city, have Trenar leave Brice with my wife.” Ewian suggested the
moment the two of them had walked beyond the hearing of the others.
“Karyn will keep her safe and you will know where to find her when
everything is finished.”

“Thank you.” Darius slowed his pace. “I must
check on Brice. She was not doing very well when I left.” He turned
and offered his hand.

He could not see Ewian’s face in the
darkness, but his voice sounded understanding. Taking the offered
hand, Ewian said, “We will talk tomorrow.”

At about three in the morning, it began to
pour rain over the camp. Dawn was just a lightening of the gray
that could be seen through the steady rain. Darius peered through
the tent flap at the drab morning breaking. Then he heard a sound
from behind him.

Brice awoke to the steady sound of water
dripping into a puddle and the drumming of rain on the oil canvas
roof. The temperature of the evening before had dropped
drastically. Shivering, she pulled the blanket closer to her chin.
That one motion brought on a chorus of pain so loud Brice’s breath
caught in her chest.

She must have made a noise, for suddenly
Darius was looming over her. “Brice, are you all right?” His face
was in the shadow, but she could still feel the dark gray gaze
fixed on her face.

Not sure she could manage to speak, she
carefully nodded. The world swam, her stomach clenched, and an
acidic burn bit the back of her throat. Almost as if he knew that
she was not telling him the whole story, Darius moved. The sound of
him rummaging came from the far corner of the tent. Brice decided
it was too risky for her to follow his actions with her head.
Instead she closed her eyes and wished she was dead. Just as the
partial oblivion of pain laced sleep started to creep upon her,
Darius was back.

“Sit up.”

He has to be jesting.
The thought of
movement made the throbbing in her head crescendo.

“Brice.” His voice was lower and if she was
not so preoccupied, Brice would have been concerned about his
temper. “You need to take this. Kurt ordered me to give it to you
as soon as you woke.” A large hand gripped her shoulder and Brice
instinctively recoiled. “No.” Darius’ other hand prevented her from
moving farther. Picking her up like she was a child, he sat on the
edge of the bed and cradled her against him. Brice suddenly found
her eyes open and watching him trying to open a small vial
one-handed. Before she had completely registered the meaning of his
words, he was pressing the cold container to her lips.

“Open, little bird,” he said. His breath
brushed her cheek. “It will help, I promise.” Reluctantly she
parted her lips. Bitter liquid filled her mouth and then a large
warm hand massaged her throat. The moment she swallowed, the rim of
a wider container was pressed to her lips. Obediently, she opened
her mouth without prompting. Cool water flowed across her tongue
carrying away some of the bitter residue.

“More?” Darius asked after she had swallowed
the first mouthful.

“Yes.” The thin edge returned to her lips.
This time it washed away the traces.

“More?” He asked again.

Weakly, Brice tried to shake her head.

“I understand.” Darius immediately stopped
her attempts by catching her head beneath his chin. Setting down
the container, he put her back in the bed. The now familiar fog was
clouding her senses, but she was aware enough to make note of his
return to bed. He tucked the covers around them both before
settling against her back. She was not sure, but he might have
whispered, “Goodnight, little one.”

The rain had stopped, but the air was heavy
with the threat of more. Darius felt the moisture that had been
collecting on his skin and clothes despite the cold. Surveying the
edge of the clearing, he wiped his forehead with the back of his
glove. He despised this weather. Wishing it would just rain and get
it done, he spotted movement among the trees. After another moment,
Brice began to come into view.

Darius cringed inwardly as he watched Brice’s
slow progress back up the path from the woods. Being the only woman
in camp, she had the eastern side of the encampment to herself as
long as she gave the sentry ample notice. As much as it bothered
him, Darius found he also admired her spunk. She insisted on
walking, unaided, on her own two feet. She fetched her own
breakfast and returned the dishes on her own. She did not complain
or even wince unless she thought no one was looking. Only last
night, vulnerable and exhausted, had he seen the true extent of her
trial.

She reached a fallen log on the edge of camp
and sank onto it gratefully. Darius had yet to tell her the plans
made the night before. She would probably be happy to leave him
behind. He, on the other hand, was growing attached to his little
brown bird and was not sure he wanted to have her out of his sight.
Breathing deeply, he began his approach. She looked up almost
immediately.

“Hello.” A wobbly smile flitted across her
lips but did not reach her eyes before it disappeared.

“How are you doing?” Darius was not sure he
would get an honest answer, but it was worth a try.

She shrugged. “Kurt said it is going to be
really hard for a few days. My ribs alone will be tender for a very
long time.”

Nodding, Darius glanced at the ground and
crossed his arms in front of him. “There has been a change in plans
since yesterday.” Looking down at her, Darius met green eyes.
Immediately they dropped their gaze to the ground at his feet. “I
want you out of danger and the king needs to know what will be
greeting us on the other side of the city walls, so we decided that
you and a scout are going to enter the city this morning. He will
be leaving you inside and returning with news tonight.” He could
see she was fidgeting with her skirt. “Ewian’s wife will give you a
bed until I can join you.”

She said something that he did not catch.
Squatting so that their heads were level, he asked, “What did you
say?”

“How long will it be before you return?”

“If all is well, it might be only a day.”

“And if not…” he felt her gaze again on his
face.

“I honestly don’t know,” he reluctantly
admitted. This time, when he met her eyes, she kept them on his
face. “Karyn will supply you with anything you will need and
Timothy should be arriving in a few days. I promise I will send
news as soon as I can, all right?” The concern in her eyes was
encouraging, but she still shied away from his hand when he reached
up to stroke her cheek.

Silence fell and Darius found himself wishing
he knew what she was thinking.

“When do we leave?” Her voice trembled.

“Immediately.” Pushing up to full height, he
offered her his hand. “Trenar is bringing the horses. I am going
with you as far as possible. We want to cut the walking distance as
much as we safely can.” She accepted his assistance and carefully
rose. Drawing her toward the horses, he said, “Come, let me
introduce you to Trenar.”

A large drop of water landed on Brice’s
eyelid. She jumped and instantaneously the arm around her waist
tightened. The horse plodded on undisturbed. He was getting used to
her sudden movements. Ahead of her, past the bobbing head of the
horse, she could see Trenar on the back of a second horse. A stray
drop must have also hit him for he was carefully lifting the hood
of his dark brown cloak. Three more splashes of water and Brice
began to think about doing the same. Darius beat her to it.

“Can you still see?” he asked as the fabric
enclosed the back of her head and dipped into her line of
vision.

“Yes, thank you,” she answered.

The silence broken, Darius seemed encouraged
to fill it. “I think you will like Karyn. She is strong and feisty.
A lot like you.” Brice was so surprised that Darius thought she was
strong she almost missed his next few words. “She will welcome your
company. Spending all her time with little ones makes her hunger
for adult companionship.”

“Ewian has children?” Brice tried, but could
not manage to picture the large barbaric warrior with one child,
let alone more.

“Yes, three.” There was a smile in his voice.
Then, he changed the subject. “You can tell Karyn anything you
want, she can be trusted, but do not tell anyone else
anything.”

Solemnly Brice nodded.

“The deep forest ends soon and I am going to
have to leave you and Trenar.” Brice felt panic tighten her throat.
As much as she was not completely sure she trusted Darius, he was
the only constant thing in her life right now. The arm around her
middle was gradually tightening. “Do what he tells you, all
right?”

He is worried,
she suddenly
realized.

Again, she nodded. Laying her hand over the
arm around her, Brice tried to understand the strange new sensation
that overwhelmed her fear. He was concerned and it comforted
her.

Almost on cue, Trenar drew back on the reins
and came to a stop. Darius followed suit. Dismounting in one clean
movement, Trenar turned and caught the bridle of their mount.
Darius descended first and turned to help her down. Without being
asked, she reached out for his shoulders. He lifted her down as he
normally did, but did not immediately release her. Instead, he
pulled her closer. Surprised, Brice raised her head to protest but
found the words died before they reached her tongue.

Darius caught her lips with his.
What does
he think he is doing?
The thought was brief and fleeting
because before she knew it she was standing breathless and alone.
Vaguely she heard Darius’ voice addressing Trenar close by.

“Tell Karyn that I will send Timothy as soon
as I can,” he told Trenar. As she turned toward them and the horse
stepped sideways, Brice glimpsed the end of a brief handshake.
Walking back toward her, he gathered the horses’ reins as he came.
Stopping again before her, he smiled down at her. His eyes were
dark beneath the shadow of his hood. “Goodbye, little bird.” Then
bowing his head, he strode off into the brush.

“We should start.” Trenar suggested. Numbly
Brice watched him pull his hood down so that only his thick beard
showed. “Tuck in your hair and slump your shoulders,” he ordered
before starting toward the thinning trees.