Authors: Marie Medina
Desire and Duty
E
VERNIGHT PUBLISHING ®
Copyright©
2016 Marie Medina
ISBN: 978-1-77233-953-6
Cover Artist: Sour Cherry Designs
Editor:
Karyn
White
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RIGHTS RESERVED
WARNING: The unauthorized reproduction or distribution of this
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No part of
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This is a work of fiction. All names, characters, and places are
fictitious. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, organizations, or
persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.
DEDICATION
To all the readers who’ve asked for MF stories set in
Valladora
. More to come soon!
DESIRE AND DUTY
Valladora
Tales, 1
Marie Medina
Copyright
© 2016
Chapter One
Valladora
3155,
The
Year of Suns
Gwynn sat by Vane’s bedside with an
open book in her hand. She kept turning pages pointedly, but she wasn’t reading
a word. She was trying not to strangle the vampire in the bed beside her. She’d
been walking down the hall when Vane’s mother had come careening around a
corner and nearly sent them both tumbling. She’d sent Gwynn to sit with Vane
without explaining what was going on. Gwynn had hiked up her skirts and bolted
to the chamber, knowing something had to be wrong if Lady Evane was dashing
around as if her skirts were on fire.
And then she’d learned the truth.
Vane had been hiding a key fact that could help save his life, and she’d had to
dig her nails into her palms to keep from strangling him when he told her. Vane
had the Dissolution, the only disease a vampire could get, and the illness
almost always proved fatal unless the vampire could drink from its fated mate.
Vane had insisted on being stubborn when his family began making plans to find
his mate. Vane and Arion, apparently, had fallen out with each other twenty
years ago, and Arion had left. Gwynn hadn’t been born at the time, so she’d
only pieced the story together through what others had told her over the last
few days. But according to everyone, it had been tragic and heartbreaking on
both sides, and Vane had never tried to seek his mate out and reconcile with
him.
She shifted in her seat, glaring
over at Vane. If he wanted to be that way, it was his business for the most
part, but it was a completely different thing when it could kill him. He’d
hidden the fact that Arion was a lycan, knowing full well that telling his
family that vital detail would make it so much easier to track the man down.
Unless Arion returned and gave his blood to Vane, the vampire would probably
die. Only a small percent of vampires recovered from the Dissolution on their
own.
Vane sighed and met her glare with
a pleading glance. “Just smother me. We’ll all be happier. You’re so angry the
castle might spontaneously combust any moment.”
“Glad you’re feeling well enough to
make jokes,” Gwynn said sharply before tossing the book onto the bed. “What
bloody right do you have to hinder others from helping you? If you’d just told
everyone right away that Arion was a lycan, they could’ve written to Sigmund.
You’ve cost
them
days, and we don’t even know how many
fucking days you have.”
Vane swallowed and fidgeted with
his blankets a little. “I can’t do anything but apologize. I know you don’t
want to hear excuses—”
“You’ve got that right!” she said,
cutting him off. She sat back in the chair and crossed her arms to keep her
hands still. She wanted to give him a good shake.
After taking a couple of deep
breaths, he said, “But I truly would rather die than see him again. It’ll hurt
too much. Why can’t I make anyone understand that? I was in love with him, but
he never loved me. I ruined things just as he was warming to me. He’s built a
life for himself, and I don’t want to intrude on that.” He sighed. “You know
the story? Everyone’s been whispering the last couple of days, I know.”
“Aye, I’ve got the gist of it. A
girl was raped, and she accused him. You locked him up, and then it turned out
it was actually one of the bandits he’d saved you from. He was hurt and left.”
The stories she’d heard had contained more details, but angry as she was, she
didn’t want to cause Vane more pain.
Vane’s eyes glazed over a bit.
“Yes. He was so angry and hurt. I broke his heart, too, in a different way. He
said he could never love someone who had so little faith in him. He said if I
truly loved him I would leave him in peace and never try to find him. I made a
promise, and I’m angry you’ve all made me break it.”
He didn’t look very angry, and she
almost wished for a show of temper, as she knew his seemingly calm demeanor
only proved how weak he was. “Well, you can be as angry as you like. We don’t
care. You really expect me to believe Arion will refuse to come? He could hate
you to this day for all I know, but I can’t imagine anyone just letting another
person die for spite. Or pride. Or other such nonsense.”
Vane’s voice cracked a bit as he
said, “But if he comes and saves me, watching him leave a second time will just
break my heart all over again. I won’t want to live.”
“Quit feeling sorry for yourself.”
Gwynn stood up and climbed onto the bed, folding her legs under her so she
could sit right next to Vane in the middle of the large bed. “Think of your
parents. And Ash and Byron. The rest of your family. Me and everyone else in
your dominion.”
Vane stared down at his hands and
didn’t say anything.
Grunting in frustration, Gwynn
leaned over him and got right in his face. “Look me in the eye and tell me you
won’t feel bad about me crying my eyes out at your funeral. You tell me that,
and I’ll pack my bags right now.”
Vane did look her in the eye, but
he didn’t say anything. Some tears glistened there, and then he turned his head
away. Gwynn lay down beside him and put one arm around him. “See? Can’t say it,
can you? You’re just hurt and acting out like a child.”
“That is not what I’m doing. My
pain’s real.”
Gwynn sighed. “I know it is, but
you have so many people who love you. If you get hurt again, they’ll all be
here for you. And so will
I
.”
Vane shifted in her embrace.
“Gwynn, I’m not sure this is appropriate. Someone might come in.”
Gwynn laughed. “If anyone thinks I
want to fuck you, they’re crazy.”
“Thanks. That’s cheered me up,”
Vane said, his tone flat.
Gwynn sat up and put her hands on
her hips. “You’re in no state to be amorous. Plus, you’re like an older brother
or something. And there’s the fact you aren’t the type to seduce the help.”
“I know. I just thought Orman might
come up or something.” He cleared his throat. “I wouldn’t want to make him
jealous or give him the wrong impression.”
Gwynn hesitated. Why was everyone
carrying on about that all of a sudden? Had Orman said something to Vane or one
of his brothers? Even Ash’s mate had said something about it. Orman liked her
because she wasn’t lazy. She got things done, and she did them right the first
time. What steward wouldn’t favor a servant like her? She got the job done and
didn’t let anyone or anything intimidate her. “He’d know better than anyone
that I’m not interested in you. And why is everyone insisting that he’s got
some kind of thing for me?”
“Because he is interested in you.
Very.”
“And he’s said this outright?”
Vane shook his head. “No, but it’s
pretty obvious.”
“And I’m just stupid? Is that what
you’re saying?”
“No one’s saying anything like
that, but it happens all the time. One person usually takes an interest first,
and then the other person notices. Or the first person acts on it. Eventually.
Since, as you just said, everyone is insisting it’s true, why are you so
skeptical?”
Because
it’s crazy!
She ignored the voice in her head and gave a more rational
reply. “Because I think you’re all making assumptions and seeing something that
isn’t there.”
“Or you aren’t attracted to him and
don’t want it to be true.”
“You’re fishing.”
“I’m what?”
“Trying to get me to say whether I
think he’s attractive or not.” She got off the bed. “I never figured you for a
matchmaker. I’m disappointed.”
Vane narrowed his eyes. “Why? If
all of you are allowed to poke your noses into my business, why can’t I say
what I think? Orman likes you. He’s too serious and works too much. Makes him a
great steward, sure, but he’s unhappy.” Vane lay back, sighing and looking more
drained now. “He smiles around you. His sense of humor comes out more. He’s just
plain happier when you’re in the room.”
“He appreciates my work ethic,
and—”
The door opened, and Gwynn shut her
mouth as she turned to see Orman rushing into the room. He looked angry as he
strode toward them with purpose.
****
Orman came to a halt by the bed and
took a deep breath to collect his thoughts. He’d had some choice words for the
lord, but he didn’t want to let them fly in front of Gwynn. He folded his hands
in front of him and tried to speak calmly. “I’ve spent days writing to people,
and you knew all along whom I should be writing to. I’d like an explanation.”
Gwynn took up a book that had been
lying haphazardly on the bed, and she carried it over to the bookshelf. She
glanced back at them as she slid it into place. “I can wait outside, if you’d
like some privacy.”
Orman never wanted to ask Gwynn to
leave any room he was in, but he planned on getting some answers out of Vane.
“I may be a while.” He reached into his pocket. “But if you could take these
letters to my study. Open the one with the blue seal and see what it says. It
should be about the linens you said we needed to replace. See what the merchant
says, and then we can make a decision later.”
She took the letters from him, her
fingers brushing his as she did so. She seemed to be watching him very
carefully. “All right. I hope he quotes a better price than the last one.” She
glanced at the letters and then eyed him once more before nodding to Vane. “You
behave. You’ve done enough damage already.” She turned on her heels and left
without looking back.
Orman looked at Vane. “Perhaps I
should’ve left you with her. She’d probably get more answers than I would.”
“I can’t do anything more than say
I’m sorry. You’ve all found out the truth anyway, so why keep talking about
it?”
Orman sat in the chair by Vane’s
bedside. They’d only discovered that Vane’s mate was a lycan because the
vampire talked in his sleep, and it infuriated Orman that Vane had hidden such
information. “Because you could die. Are you in shock or what? How do you not
see how serious this is?”
“How do all of you not see how
serious my pain is? Why aren’t any of you respecting my wishes?”
“Your wish is to die without trying
to get better. I know I’ve never met your mate, but what man would let another
die because of a fight that happened twenty years ago?”
“That’s just it. He’ll come. And
then he’ll leave again.” Vane closed his eyes. “I don’t want to keep talking
about it.”
Orman bit his tongue and eventually
said the most diplomatic thing he could think of. “You’ll thank us when this is
over. You’ll see.”
Vane opened his eyes. “Don’t you
have your own love life to straighten out?”
“Don’t change the subject.”
“I could say the same to you. I
feel we’ve closed the last subject. On to a new one.” Vane turned to his side
and propped on one elbow. “Now answer my question.”
Orman stood and took up a bottle of
blood from the table. While the blood wasn’t Vane’s mate’s and wouldn’t heal
him, it would at least give Vane some strength. “Drink. You can’t even sit up.”
Vane sat up but took the bottle
anyway. “I can sit up. I simply chose not to. Stop evading me.”
“I don’t have a love life at all,”
Orman said as he flopped back into the chair. He folded his hands in his lap.
“There’s nothing to straighten out.”
“Nothing to straighten out? Hmmm,
if you say so.” Vane uncorked the bottle and drank about a third of it. A bit
of color returned to his face, and he leaned back. “Gwynn was studying you very
carefully just now. I thought perhaps she was finally returning your feelings.”
“I don’t think a girl like Gwynn
will ever return my—” He stopped and looked up at the grinning vampire,
realizing he’d been tricked. “I’m too old for her.”
Vane laughed. “You’re talking to a
vampire. Age doesn’t mean a damned thing.” He recorked the bottle and nestled
it down amid some pillows. Crossing his arms, he said, “She’s nineteen. And you’re
thirty-two. I don’t see the problem.”
“I’m thirty-one, actually.”
Vane smiled. “Even better.”
Sobering, he said, “Tell me what the problem is. The worst she can do is reject
you.”
“Not to be rude, but you’re one to
talk, my lord. Look what being rejected has done to you.”
Vane’s eyes went wide. “You’re
forgetting who the lord of this land is, I think. That was more than a bit
rude, so you’re going to have to be punished for that.”
Orman waited as Vane narrowed his
eyes and then stared out the window.
“Hmmm,” Vane said. “I think I know
just the thing. Oh yes, just the thing.” A chuckle bubbled up as he looked back
at Orman.
Orman didn’t know what to do as
Vane stared at him with an odd look in his eyes, a slight smile curving his
lips. Some vampires suffered mental breakdowns during the Dissolution. What
would they do if Vane began to go mad? At least his mother was here and could
remove him from power if necessary, but it would have a devastating effect on
everyone in the dominion. Vane was loved almost universally. Orman felt his
chest tighten as he thought about how hard it would be to have to fight against
Vane or lock him up.
Vane linked his hands behind his
head and leaned back on the headboard, wiggling a bit to ease himself back on
the pillows. “I command you to have dinner with Gwynn tonight. You’re both
exhausted and need a break. Some time for yourselves.”
Orman exhaled the breath he’d been
holding. “By the gods, you scared me.”
