Warrior (79 page)

he’d told her settled into her brain.

His mother was dead. His mother had

tried to kill her sister.
His mother
.

Without giving it a second thought,

she moved into him and wrapped her

arms about his waist. He stiffened but

made no move to push her away. “I

am sorry, Varian.”

***

So am I,
he thought bitterly to

himself, staring down at the soft

tendrils of hair that had escaped from

the ribbon. He lifted his hand and

gently brushed at the stray auburn

strands. He felt her body shake

slightly, and pulled away to look into

her eyes. Her face was wet with tears

and that almost undid him.

“Don’t cry, Isolde. Your sister is

well.” His impenetrable exterior fell

for some moments as he watched her

struggle to compose herself. He even

used both hands to leverage her.

“I’m not crying for Jaisyn,” she

managed through her small little

gasps. “I’m crying for you.” She

pushed close once more, burying her

face against the dark cloth covering

his skin. “I can’t imagine how you are

feeling. And you always try to look so

unaffected, Varian, but you can let me

in. I—”

A rapid knock sounded at the door,

and Isolde sniffled and pulled back.

She might have hopped feet away had

his hands not been around her waist.

She hadn’t even felt them there.

“Yes?” His eyes never left hers.

The door opened and a young squire

rushed in, only to stop in his tracks

when he saw Isolde in Varian’s arms.

Isolde turned a shade of pink and tried

to push away. His grip only tightened.

“Yes, Haden?”

“The coach is ready, my lord. The

men were wondering if you need help

bringing her down.”

“Good. I believe I will need some

extra hands.”

Haden bowed. “Yes, of course, my

lord.” He beat a hasty retreat.

Varian continued to stare at Isolde’s

blush. Even with what had happened

in the last hours, he still felt pleasure

pulse through him as he watched her

color prettily.

With the squire gone, she leaned

into him once more.

Minutes passed without words

before Isolde lifted her head. “Where

are you going?”

“To the Mountains,” he replied

evenly.

Isolde nodded. “When will you

return?”

Varian did not know the answer to

that question. He was going to bury

his mother, return his cousin to her

father and see that she was punished

appropriately, and then…everything

went blank.

“I do not know.”

***

Feeling her heart skip precious

beats, Isolde drew a deep breath.

“Who will be in charge of Lytheria?

You are needed—”

“Hector and Urian are more than

capable of overseeing Lytheria.”

She pushed away from him and this

time, he opened his arms and watched

as she moved away. Finally, she

turned and asked, “And what of me?”

He didn’t answer.

“What of me, Varian? Shall I wait

for you for indefinitely? How long?

Weeks, months? Years?” Isolde felt a

little pang of guilt as she questioned

him, but something about Varian’s

aloofness frightened her. It was as if

he were parting ways with the life

he’d led before his mother’s death.

Varian thought of that question and

after long, silent moments, answered.

“I won’t hold you to anything,

Isolde.”

She was still as her gaze searched

his. Where was the man who’d told

her he would never leave her? Where

was the man who’d introduced her to

the pleasure that could be had

between two people in love? He stood

still, emotionless, staring at her. As if

suddenly understanding, she nodded

and approached him.

“You don’t intend to return to

Lytheria.” She looked behind him to

the gauze-wrapped body on the bed.

Her gaze lingered there before she

returned it to his. “You don’t intend to

return to me.”

***

Varian didn’t speak. What could he

say? He didn’t have anything planned

but what he’d thought was necessary.

He was going to bury his mother,

return his cousin, and the rest he

intended to figure out while he was in

the Mountains. Her perceptive gaze

disconcerted him but he remained

impassive.

A knock sounded at the door and he

called on the person to enter. Two of

the warriors under his command filed

into the room.

“Goodbye, Prince Varian.” She

executed a stiff, formal curtsy.

“Princess,” he returned calmly,

pressing his shoulders and head

forward in a slight bow.

With that, Isolde spun on her heels

and walked briskly to the door. He did

not move until she was out of sight.

***

Shifting her body slightly, Jaisyn

blinked and allowed her bleary gaze

to search the room. She was lying on

her back and as her head felt heavy.

Peach colored curtains hung around

the bed.

Where am I
?

She

swallowed

slowly

and

attempted to sit up. Finding she was

too weak to do that, she tried to think

back to how she’d come to be in a

bed. It all came back to her in fast

rushes of images. As she remembered

Lydia relating her plan to murder her,

her baby and Vulcan, a ragged

scream tore from her throat.

***

Vulcan had drifted to sleep for the

first time since he’d returned to his

castle two days ago. Earlier in the

afternoon, the healer returned to her

village, leaving with Magda the herbs

that were to be administered to Jaisyn

if she showed signs of pain. A midwife

had also come, and Vulcan had

watched as she prodded at Jaisyn’s

distended belly, nodding all the while.

He’d also watched his wife’s face

for any signs of pain, but the most

she’d done when the midwife had

been there was shift slightly. When

the woman left, she told Vulcan that

Jaisyn seemed about six months

along, and that she would return in a

few weeks to check on both the queen

and unborn child. After that, Magda

and Asha had used warm cloths to

bathe Jaisyn while Vulcan took an

hour to bludgeon his unsuspecting

warriors as they partnered him in

training. He’d cleansed himself in the

stables, as his warriors did, before

heading back to the chambers where

his wife slept peacefully. Within

moments of crawling into the bed next

to her, he drifted off.

He came awake as soon as the

scream left her mouth. Shaking his

head and blinking rapidly, he sat up

and looked at her. Golden eyes

blinked up at him, then her eyes

moved frantically from his, and she

opened her mouth to scream again.

“Jaisyn.”

His

hands

gently

restrained her against the bed and she

began to struggle furiously. That

brought a smile to Vulcan’s lips

because he knew her strength was

returning. “You are safe. No one will

harm you.”

“No, you don’t understand.” She

shook her head frantically. “It’s

Lydia. Lydia tried to kill me.”

Vulcan opened his mouth to

reassure her but she rushed on.

“I couldn’t remember because she

drugged me. She tried to poison—”

Nodding, he leaned down and kissed

her forehead. “Ssh, all will be right. I

know everything. Anhur told me.”

She calmed visibly, relaxing against

the bed as her breathing regulated.

“What happened? Where is she?”

Her voice was bitter and angry.

Vulcan’s teeth snapped together and

he barely resisted the urge to grind

them. “The tip of her dirk was

poisoned. She’s dead.”

Jaisyn’s eyes widened for a fraction

of a second before she sighed in relief.

“My baby?” she asked. Hope

looked out at him from her eyes but

he could see the underlying fear. She

was afraid for their unborn child.

He smiled and brushed away a

golden curl that had fallen across her

forehead and cheekbone. “Is fine.

You are both fine.” Releasing her, he

braced himself against the bed, staring

down at her. She was alive and well.

His wife. The only person who held

his heart.

“How are you feeling?”

Her lids drifted shut before she

blinked them open once more.

“Tired…and hungry.” She groaned

softly before continuing. “How long

have I been asleep?”

“Two days.”

A gasp left her lips and she opened

her eyes instantly. “Two days? Why?”

Vulcan did not like what he was

going to have to tell her. He disliked

that Lydia had come so close to taking

her from him.

“You swallowed some of the

poison.” When her face went from

curious to horrified, he continued

quickly. “It is out of your system now.

Anhur and the healer took good care

of you.”

***

Jaisyn nodded slowly, allowing that

piece of information to float in her

mind. Lydia could have won. She

could have died, and with her,

Vulcan’s baby. But she had not

succeeded. Lydia was out of their

lives forever.

Shaking thoughts of that woman

from her head, Jaisyn stretched,

unlocking tense muscles. It felt good.

Lifting her hand above the warm

covers, she rubbed her belly. Vulcan

had told her that she was fine. She

tried to focus on her belly, tried to feel

anything odd. As if knowing she were

awake, the baby moved slightly. It

was but a shift in position, or a

demand for food. He was fine. She

was starving. It was then she

remembered that her husband had

ridden to Montak.
Bael
. Innocent

Bael.

“What of the King of Montak?” Her

eyes searched his frantically as she

sent up a prayer that her husband had

not killed an innocent man.

A small frown touched Vulcan’s lips

and he seemed none too happy as he

considered his reply. “He is alive…for

now.”

She released a deep breath and

closed her eyes briefly. Seconds later

they flew open again. “And Varian?

How is…Varian?”

Vulcan’s eyes clouded with sadness.

“Varian has left for the Mountains.”

“Does he know everything? About

Lydia?”

Jaisyn could not imagine how

Varian would feel if he did. He was

unwaveringly loyal to his brother, and

would kill anyone who threatened

Vulcan’s life or position as king, yet

his own mother had been the worst of

Vulcan’s enemies.

“I don’t think so. Anhur will tell him

if he wishes to know.”

Jaisyn nodded and continued to

stare at him. Before she could say

anything else, he began to speak. “I

am sorry. I should have trusted you.

But I was jealous and angry. I did not

want to believe it, but you—you didn’t

remember, and Bael fled.” He paused

and took a breath. “I have never

needed anyone with the intensity that

I need you, Jaisyn, and I’ve never

loved anyone as I do you. You taught

me what it means to feel a woman’s

love when I’d never felt it before. I

have misjudged you gravely and I will

understand and accept it if you do not

forgive me.” He looked away briefly.

“I told you once, when you were

trying to keep me from marrying

Mathilda, that I would allow her to

return to Lytheria after she conceived.

If that is your wish, as soon as you’ve

regained your strength, you may travel

to Lytheria with your ladies.”

Jaisyn felt her heart pounding and

focused her eyes on the weave of the

sheet that covered her. Vulcan cleared

his throat. She met his eyes.

“I intend to alter the laws to make it

such that an able queen may rule with