A Warrior's Legacy (34 page)

I smiled at the change in her. The life and
responsibilities of a queen had changed her in only six months. The
underground tough as nails warrioress I had married couldn’t have
cared less about being in time for a family breakfast. I needed to
work on keeping her well grounded in her new position as queen and
remain the old Raya that I had first fallen in love with.

I sauntered over towards her and she watched
my approach suspiciously. I could only tell that by her facial
expression, because her glorious eyes were hidden from me. I’d made
her a prettier and more balanced mask for her eyes than the initial
war mask I had made for her.

Her favorite color was green, which is what
her new glass lenses were. She could now see the world tinted in
her favorite color, but the glasses gave her glowing eyes the
appearance of a cat. I loved the night when the glasses came off
and I got to look into her eyes and watch the sparks of living
color radiate out of them. Coming abreast of her I grasped the
front of her sheet covering and started pulling her back
inside.

“Zevin there is no time!” She bit out
indignantly as she grudgingly followed after me for fear of losing
the sheet.

“Then I suppose that we will just have to be
fashionably late. I’ll only be a half hour or so anyway. Besides
are you defying my authority as king to do as I please?” I finished
imperially not really meaning it.

A smile peeked at the corners of her mouth
as the door to the balcony closed behind her. “No Sire. You know I
only live to serve and please you.” She said in a sultry tone
meaning every word of it and let the sheet fall to the cold
floor.

And just like that the tables were turned
and she was in control, but it didn’t matter because I had gotten
what I had wanted to, the sultry eyed midnight campfire seductress,
who had first stolen my heart while eating an apple across from me
over a dead fire was back.

Roric smiled, as he saw from a distance, his
son leave the balcony of his tower with his exotic wife in tow. Had
he really been like that as a young man?

He shook his head at the obvious answer to
that and if that hadn’t been enough the cool voice that interrupted
his thoughts was.

“You’re still like that! You haven’t changed
any old man.”

He turned to see Krista leaning against a
pillar studying him. She could truly read his mind.

His eyes sparkling he frankly eyed her up
and down, “I’m not so old.”

Her lips creased into an open smile of
challenge, “Then prove it!”

Those words had him turning and her
scuttling for safety inside. But it was all a game that they had
played many times enjoyably.

Later as she lay against him he contemplated
how late they were going to be for breakfast. Krista was ticking
one finger up and then down onto his chest and then back up
again.

“What are you doing?” He asked amused.

Her eyes crinkled into a smile as she said,
“Counting my grandchildren. Zarsha has three with another one on
the way. Sansa has two. Larc has five. And now our twins are adding
two more. That makes thirteen altogether so far, but who knows
maybe they’ll be some twins.”

Roric shook his head. Women thought
differently plain and simple, but what couldn’t be denied was how
blessed they had been.

Krista suddenly pensive asked, “Do you think
Talaric has any children?”

Roric’s arm closed securely around his wife
and he held her a little tighter to him, “I don’t know honey. I
don’t know.”

A bit of a dark cloud hovered over his good
mood of earlier. He wasn’t getting any younger. It was time for his
firstborn son to return. Past time actually, but that was his
timetable and not that of the Creators.

Patience, he had to have patience and above
all pray, always pray and hope. Hope that one day his son would
return to him. He only hoped that day would be soon as there was so
much he wanted to teach and experience with the son that he had
failed with the most as a parent.

“Not your fault honey.” Krista whispered
against his chest.

Seriously how did she do that!

“I know your deepest darkest secrets.” She
intoned in a creepy voice and he swatted her playfully on the
bottom and she laughed looking up at him.

Then more seriously she pulled herself up to
look him directly in the eye.

“Since Talaric hasn’t returned on his own,
perhaps it’s time to consider going and bringing him back
yourself.”

Roric shook his head no, he had considered
that many times, but the answer was still no.

“Unless I receive an irrefutable sign from
the Creator to go I can’t risk jeopardizing our people for a
private desire on my part that my son be by my side once more.”

She studied him for a moment and then said,
“I love you!”

“I love you too, but if we don’t get moving
soon we’ll be the laughing stock of our children.”

Roric and Krista stepped into the private
dining area only to see that it was already full and everyone
already seated. The faces of all those gathered had knowing looks
of smirky accusation as to what the both of them had been up to.
Krista’s face was rosy as she took her seat and began to
meticulously unfold her napkin in her lap not looking up.

Roric scowled right back at the accusing
glances directed at them, “Alright you bunch of sanctimonious
hypocrites! Some of you are still breathing hard from running all
the way to get here or perhaps it’s from whatever you were doing
this fine morning before coming here. As for myself I’m good and
proud to admit that I haven’t lost the ability or the desire to be
distracted by the love of my life. I’ve fathered half of my
children gathered here and I wish that I had fathered the other
half that I claim as my children. Despite whatever your parentage
may be I’m glad to see that you’re all following in my footsteps as
best as your able to. I’m a passionate man and my hope for all my
children has always been that you would get to experience the
oneness of a relationship with a wife or husband that I have
enjoyed with my own dear wife. That all being said let’s stop the
look of starvation I see on the faces of my pregnant
daughter-in-law’s and dig in after we’ve asked the blessing.”

Krista reached up and patted Roric’s hand in
approval of his declaration. Reactions were mixed around the table.
Zalisha looked shocked and had a blush to prove it, while Gavin
looked extremely uncomfortable.

Raya had an open faced smirk as she turned
to me and said matter-of-factly, “Now I see where you get it
from!”

Which caused me to blush slightly, but I
couldn’t help but smile in answer to her statement. After all it
was a compliment of sorts.

Larc openly laughed while Evette just smiled
and shook her head repeatedly from side to side. Sansa and her man
were matching shades of red, while Zarsha and Captain Jansa both
nodded in open agreement with father.

Ellanara held her hands to her temples
looking greatly pained and looked at her father with a blush
staining her cheeks, “Do you have to talk about things like that
father? Really?”

Roric centered his knowing gaze on her,
“Your time is coming young lady just you wait! You’ll be as late as
the rest of us mark my words.”

Ellanara blushed further and stared down at
her plate her face crimson. Soon the mood refocused on more tame
pursuits and a good time was had by all.

A few things about me
I live in the country. It’s the best place to be
I’m

thinking. I share my life with my beautiful
wife, Beth,

my three children and one cat named
Herman.

When I’m not lost in a daydream the most
likely

place you’ll find me at is flower
gardening

or at the movie theatre. I use to think I
was strong, but

now I freely admit that I’m weak. My new
reality is

okay because Jesus Christ has me
covered.

It’s better that way trust me!