Out of the Mountain (40 page)

“Just that one small thing,” I droned nervously.

***

Silas, or whatever was controlling him, was waiting on the field when we arrived. I fell into line and awaited instructions like a good girl. He looked us all over, and the longer I looked at him, the more I could see the shadow that was surrounding him, the glamour of normal fell away, and it was as if I could see nothing but the Shade that lay within. Fear filled me as I tried to blink away the sight.

“Do not show your fear.”
I heard Rowan in my mind.

“Can you see it?”

“I can sense it, but I cannot see it.”

“I can see it, plain as day.”
I pushed the image from my mind into his, and I saw him stiffen.

“That is disturbing.”

“Tell me about it.”

“Princess, would you like to sit this out since your mind seems to be otherwise occupied?” Silas barked, and I flinched. I forced myself to meet eyes with the Shade and smile.

“I’m sorry, sir. Just thinking about the coronation,” I lied, and he shook his head in disgust.

“Pair up, then. Let’s see what you have learned thus far,” he said, and we broke off into pairs. I was with Briony, and we shared a nervous look.

“Do not show how skilled you are,”
Rowan suggested, and I agreed that was probably the best thing. I nodded to Briony, and she rushed me. I allowed her to knock me to the ground, and she quickly worked to hide the shock on her face. I held her gaze, and she glanced at Silas, who was clearly watching us and helped me to my feet before continuing. She understood and pulled her punches as I stumbled and fumbled through. It was almost more work than actually sparring.

I noticed it like a weight lifting when Silas stopped watching us, satisfied at my uselessness. He began turning his attention to the others, who were doing much better than I and clearly deserved the guard status they had been given. After a while he wanted to see weapon work. I used only the larger dagger and slowly and stiffly made it through movements that I had long ago mastered. It was an odd sensation to use it incorrectly.

Everyone had caught on to what I was doing and made no comment on my sudden loss of ability. To any bystander it would appear that this was normal for me. I almost felt embarrassed. Silas left Rowan in charge after break, and we all breathed a sigh of relief. Rowan led us through a few drills before finally giving up the charade and letting us talk freely. A concession, since we were all whispering to one another anyway.

“Where do you think he went?” Jonah asked.

“Probably to report that our princess was harmless to everyone but herself.” Briony laughed, and I groaned.

“Rowan told me to,” I complained.

“You may have overdone it a bit, but the overall effect was essential to your cover as the innocent princess-in-waiting.” He pulled me under his arm, planting a kiss on my head, and I grumbled at him even as I wrapped my arms around his waist.

I suppressed a laugh when I noticed that everyone was gaping at the display of affection Rowan was clearly showing toward me.

“We are together.” It was a statement, but I felt the pride and happiness fill him at his words.

“Obviously,” I joked, and he winked at me. Winked! I stared at the dimple on his cheek, dumbfounded.

“OK, this is going to take a little time to get used to,” Briony confessed, and the others nodded in silent agreement.

“He’s really not as scary as you guys think he is,” I joked, but it looked as if they disagreed. None of them really knew Rowan. I was sure they had never had a conversation with him beyond training.

“Yes I am,” he disagreed, and I bumped my elbow into his hard stomach.

“Ow,” I complained jokingly, but he dropped a quick kiss to my elbow anyway. I smiled sheepishly at him. His lips on my skin sending a shock to my system that never seemed to dull.

“OK, this is going to take a lot of time to get used to,” Briony corrected as she shook her head in disbelief.

“He’s really just a big softie. Well, on the inside. As you can see, his outside is pretty solid.” I waggled my eyebrows at her, and she laughed, breaking the odd silence that had fallen.

“Stop bragging about how hard Rowan is, Vivi! Everyone will have interesting dreams tonight, I’m sure,” I heard Malachi say, and I kicked a foot out at him, hitting him squarely in the shin.

“Ouch!” he complained, and I grinned.

“You only landed that because I didn’t get much rest last night with that picture you painted me.” He sneered.

“I didn’t paint you any picture,” I said, confused, and Rowan growled.

“Don’t be so literal, Vivienne! I was referring to when you leaned over my lap to kiss another woman, all the while inviting me only to spectate.”

“That’s your own problem.” I snorted, and Malachi pouted, pushing his lower lip out and faking a sniffle. His eyes shone with humor, and I had to admit that even with all his ridiculous behavior, he was handsome. If he would ever straighten up his act, he would make some lucky girl a very good boyfriend.

“We could have a reenactment, throw in an extra player . . .” Malachi joked, and I rolled my eyes.

“She is mine,” Rowan growled from over my shoulder, and I stiffened at the menace in his voice. Malachi took a step back, surprise lighting his features.

“I’m only joking. No harm done, right, Vivi?” He tried to keep the mood light, but I could feel the animosity dripping off Rowan in waves.

“Sure thing, babe,” I replied defiantly, but I felt Rowan’s uneasy emotions slip through at my words. Anxiety filled him, followed by vulnerability, wariness, suspicion, and hurt. It was confusing. Surely he knew there was nothing between us.

“I wanted to be clear. I am aware that some are confused by it,” he rumbled, and I turned to him with a small smile. He returned it, but it didn’t reach his eyes. He knew I had felt what he had been feeling. It wasn’t so easy when the shoe was on the other foot.

Tamora, Tasmin, Adelaide, and Willa walked on the field then, drawing our attention in the stiff movements of their bodies. Something was clearly wrong.

“What has happened?” Rowan barked, still tense from the earlier exchange.

“We’ve all been pulled from guard duty the night of the coronation. It is meant as a ‘treat’ to us for putting up with the fumbling, bumbling princess,” Tasmin grumbled.

“He really said that?” I wondered aloud.

“In so many words, yes.” Adelaide barely concealed her grin. I didn’t care what she thought of me.

“Also, he really has pulled the novices back down to rank. He said he couldn’t allow them to advance in such a short amount of time,” Tamora complained.

“That completely sucks!” Griffin protested, and I had to agree.

“Don’t worry. It’s only until after the ball. We will fix it,” I told him, hoping it was true.

“If we survive, that is,” Tasmin said unhappily.

“If you don’t want to take part in the fight, then hide until it’s over. No one will force you to join in.”

“I will fulfill my oath to protect this city. My dislike of you won’t stop me from it.” Tasmin glared, and I shrugged.

“Sounds good to me.”

“So what are we supposed to do now? I highly doubt we will be allowed into the ball,” Malachi asked.

“I’ll try to see if I can get invites from Mauve at dinner,” I offered, and he nodded his head.

“That’s better than my plan of bribing the kitchen staff.” He winked, and I stuck my tongue out at him in a juvenile display. He had fake-cheated on me with the kitchen staff after all.

“All right, everyone else lay low until dinner,” Rowan suggested, taking my hand in his and swiftly guiding me to the city’s outer gates.

***

When we reached the cover of forest, he shifted, and I followed suit. His lion darted through the trees, and my tigress followed happily. It only took us a few minutes to reach the clearing with the water fall where we shared our first kiss. I shifted back and conjured my bathing suit, quickly diving into the water. I heard a splash as I came up and looked to see Rowan coming up for air. I smiled at him as I treaded water.

“You joined me this time.”

“I have decided to allow you to have a little fun.” He winked, splashing me before swimming under the water fall. I watched as he lifted himself up onto the rock, muscles in his chest and back rippling with the movement. He scaled the rocks easily and stood atop the water fall.

“Come on!” He yelled happily, and I hurried to follow him. It took me a bit more effort to climb to the top, but when I reached it, he pulled me to my feet. The drop wasn’t far, maybe fifteen feet, but I felt my stomach lurch a little in fear.

“Are you afraid of heights?’

“What? No,” I replied, but I wasn’t sure. I had never jumped off anything this high before . . . maybe I was afraid.

“I’ve done it many times. There is nothing that will harm you. You just have to take the leap.”

“My head knows that; my gut has other ideas.”

“I’ll go first. Then you can follow when you are more comfortable.” He smiled, but I clutched his hand.

“Can we go together?”

“Even better.” He smiled, pulling me to the edge. Happiness radiated from him, his honey-colored eyes glistening in the sunlight. My heart skipped a beat as I looked down and over the edge. I squeezed his hand tighter.

“Whenever you are ready, count us down, and I will jump on three.” He smiled, and I felt him encouraging me. I watched the water spill over into the deep pool below us. It really wasn’t that far . . . Oh, who was I kidding? Yes, it was. OK, I was just going to have to do it.

“One, two, three!” I shouted, thrusting myself forward and over the edge. I held Rowan’s hand tightly in mine and felt weightless for a moment before gravity pulled me down and into the water with a splash. I released his hand to swim to the surface and came up sputtering.

Rowan was wiping water out of his eyes. A smile lit up his face, his dimple on full display.

“OK, that was fun,” I admitted, smiling ruefully at him, heart still pounding as the adrenaline rushed through me.

“I thought you might think so. Now let me show off a bit.” He chuckled lightheartedly as he swam to climb up the waterfall again. This was a side of him that I could get used to.

I swam closer to shore so I could stand in the water and watch him. His body effortlessly making the climb and stretching high on the rock. I decided I could watch him forever. He waved at me from the edge, and I cheered him on as he took a few steps back and ran to the edge before jumping. I stepped forward with a gasp as I watched him launch himself high into the air and tuck his body into twists and flips precisely before he straightened into a dive and hit the water, barely leaving a ripple in the surface. My mouth fell open.

He came up for air a few feet in front of me, and I clapped. How had he learned to do something like that?

“Very impressive.”

“Just something I learned when I was younger. I never thought I would use the skill, but it seems impressing you was well worth it,” he joked, meeting me in the shallower water. It was up to my chest, but it fell near the bottom of his rib cage.

“When you were younger? You act as if you’re ancient,” I joked, mimicking him, but his eyes darkened. A slew of emotions flew from him, and I couldn’t grab onto any of them.

“I was only joking,” I said, but he smiled, brushing it off.

“I actually brought you out here so I could share part of the story of Ambrosine with you. There is a lot to tell, and I feel it is something you will need to get accustomed to. Now that we are blood mates, you should know all there is to know about me,” he said as he led me to the bank and wrapped me in a fluffy robe. The sun was hot and high in the sky, so I took it off and conjured a blanket to lie on instead. He smiled and lay down next to me, turning onto his side, propping his head up on his hand, and splaying the other on my stomach.

“Hurry and tell me your story before I get too distracted,” I half joked, feeling the heat of his hand through the suit.

“Ambrosine is queen of a land both close and far from here. She is cunning and conniving . . . ruthless, powerful, and terrible wrapped up in a package that appears everything but.” Anger seeped from him in waves. I turned onto my side, mimicking his stance. He adjusted his hand onto my hip, allowing his thumb to move in slow circles there as his mind wandered into his distant memories. I fought to stay concentrated on his words, and not the tingle that was radiating from his touch.

“She is whom Farran bargained to hide the amulet of the Shuni king with, and also whom he so cleverly tricked into giving him everlasting youth. Her powers are great, but she is bound heavily by words, and Farran was lucky that she was delighted instead of offended by his audacity. You must always be mindful when trading words with her . . . if she likes you, she may just try to keep you.” His anger spiked into rage, and I laid a hand on his jaw to try and comfort whatever was stirring inside of him. He turned his head to the side and kissed my palm lightly before continuing.

“Ambrosine is queen of the Fae,” he said, and my eyes widened.

“You’re joking, right? Fae as in fairy? Little flying people who play tricks and collect children’s teeth?” I tried to think of the bits of folklore I knew of fairies from the children in Velia.

“They mostly keep to their own realm but often like to meddle in the lives of humans when they feel bored.”

“You’re serious?” I asked, sitting up quickly.

“I imagine you have heard very little of the Fae, and what you have heard is most likely stories told to scare children. The Fae are a magical people, at one with the earth. They draw their magic from the nature they surround themselves with. They are beautiful and full of mischief, and although they do not age, they can most certainly be killed with enough effort. Their long lives have made them hollow and cruel, warping their sense of right and wrong.

“It is said the Fae spring into being from trees and streams every few decades, but no one really knows for certain. They cannot have children of their own, so they steal children and keep them as one would a pet . . . training and teaching them as they see fit. They have competitions and contests to show off their beauty, talents, strength, and intelligence.” He growled, and I gasped. That was horrible.