Queen of Jastain (10 page)

“Thank you. In the morning, then.”
She frowned and dropped her gaze as he strolled out the door.

A candle burned on the table and a long-sleeved nightshirt waited for her on the bed. Abby put on the soft shirt and sank into the feather mattress. Wrapping her body around the long cylinder pillow like a lover, she fell fast asleep.

INTIMACY, n. A relation into which fools are providentially drawn for their mutual destruction.

– Ambrose Bierce

A banging on her door echoed through the room and woke Abby from sleep. She sat up and stretched, trying to clear the cobwebs. “Yes.” Her sleep-weary voice broke.

The sun spilled light into the space. Avant strode into the middle of the room, carrying an armful of clothing and a leather pack of goods. His face was drawn in tight lines, and the rigidity of his stance screamed
foul mood
.
“It is time to get dressed. We have a lot to do today.”

Helean bustled in behind him, setting a bowl and pitcher of water on Abby's dresser. The woman shot a furtive glance to Avant and left. Abby couldn't blame her. She wanted to climb back under the covers and hide. Yawning, she tried to focus her eyes to meet his gaze.
“What’s up, Lord of the Ringlets?”

He frowned at her humor.
“We have much to do in a short time, and today I will attempt the Implanting.”
He unceremoniously dumped the items on the end of her bed.
“You have half an hour to get ready.”
Then
he pivoted and marched out of the room.

Abby sighed and rolled her eyes at Sir Grumpy. Welcome to the
Freelands
.

She climbed out of bed and washed her face with the tepid water before putting on the new clothes, which fit as if they’d been tailored for her. The forest green skirt flowed almost to the floor. Complimented with an ecru muslin top underneath, the dark brown corset laced in the front and emphasized the soft curves of her body. The colors accentuated her blonde hair, and the corset was comfortable enough, better than the Victoria Secret bra she'd worn for three days.

After propping the small hand-held mirror up on the dresser, she brushed her hair behind her ears, tying it back in a half-ponytail. Her dad had always loved it when she wore her hair like that. A wave of grief swept over her.

God, she missed him. She could use a few of his bright inventions in this place.
Hell, heated water would be an improvement.

Stepping lightly into the soft leather ballerina slippers, she could've been a character in a fairytale.

She descended the stairs and found Avant in the kitchen waiting with breakfast. He turned to speak but stopped short. His appreciative gaze slid like silk across her skin, and made her breath quicken. Still feeling putout with him, she just stared.

His self-satisfied smile churned her stomach.
“So the clothes fit?”

“Apparently.”
She broke his smug gaze and marched to the table.

“Sit. Let's eat.”
He pulled out a straight-backed chair at the small table where a bowl of oatmeal and a piece of fruit waited. They ate in silence.

What was up with him? Just because she was at his mercy with nowhere else to go, didn’t give him the right to be rude. And she wasn’t a little doll that he could dress up and sit on a shelf either. Though, she had to admit he'd done a good job getting her sizes right, and the colors weren’t completely unfortunate either. He glanced over, his eyes sparkling. She stared back brazenly. Let him hear.

When they finished, Avant stood.
“I think we will be more comfortable in the parlor for what we have to do.”

He waited for her at the door, allowing her to walk to the small library where they'd spoken last night.

Large square windows faced the southern fields. The beveled panes filtered the light and sent rainbows across the floor in the morning sun. An intricately carved mahogany mantel adorned the white and gray marble fireplace. Above it hung the most beautiful oil canvas in the house. An ornately gilded frame encased the substantial painting that depicted the very falls she and Avant had visited the day before. They sat on the sofa. Large brocade pillows lined the back of the crimson couch. Abby placed one in her lap as she shrank back into the corner, trying not to bite her fingernails.

He took a deep breath and forced it out.
“Abigail, I must explain something before we do this. There are things in my past few people are aware of, and if those…things ever became known, it could be a danger to us.”
The worry in his eyes and the stress lines on his face softened her heart.

“You can trust me.”
Even though she was still irritated with him, she smiled and squeezed his hand. He'd done a lot for her. How could she refuse him and those blue eyes anything?

He smiled wanly.
“Thank you. It is a hard thing to discuss my past, and I am sorry if I have been unkind this morning. This next step is urgent and must be done or all our hope to defeat the Dark will be lost.”

What could be so bad and why the hurry? The king’s men didn’t seem like nice guys, but based on the military barracks they’d passed, Avant’s forces could defend the Freelands.

“Aesdil’s father was my uncle. He took care of me and my mother after my father died. It wasn’t until years later that I learned the truth about him killing my father. When Aesdil was crowned king, rumors abounded and the kingdom was divided. Whispers of betrayal splintered the peace between the lands of the south and east. Wars broke out.”
Avant stood and paced in front of her as he relived the story.

He wandered to the window and fingered the fringed drapes, absorbed in the telling.
“Having never needed a peace keeping force, the City of Light was threatened by the attacks. Fortunately, the attackers were less knowledgeable than I was about warfare. I was the only one in the kingdom with any training, and much of that I’d learned on my own in the Hall of Records. My tutor, Galwyn, taught some military strategy but combat skills were unknown to us at that time. Aesdil was my closest friend, my cousin. He appointed me commander of his newly formed army. Sometime after my appointment, the king conspired with a few of my men to have me killed during an uprising in the southern plains. Once the enemy attacked, the forward most troops pulled back and left me for dead. It wasn’t until after miraculously surviving the incident that I discovered his treachery. That was twenty years ago.”

Twenty years ago? How old was Avant?

“Forty-eight,”
he answered her.

She gaped at him. God, he barely looked late twenties, but she'd already guessed he was older than he appeared.

“
Without the proper king our condition will continue to deteriorate, and the hearts of men have become so base that they kill each other rather than wait for the elements of nature to destroy them. The Crown of Light must be restored and Aesdil defeated.”

She came to the question his story begged.
“If the king was like a brother and you were the only one who could fight, what made him want to kill you? Why would he do that?”

His eyes filled with the pain of heartbreak.
“Because he coveted my wife.”

A lump formed in her throat.
“Your what?”

“My wife, Sentieve.”
Avant said the words with such reverence there was little doubt as to his feelings.

He was married to a woman he clearly still loved.
Well, that sucks.

“After I was left for dead, the king took my widow, Sentieve, as his own wife.”
A flash of anger crossed his face
. “Aesdil thought he could command the army I’d trained, and, without me to challenge him, he thought he could stand. But his plan failed. I am still here to oppose him, and I intend to claim my kingdom and reclaim my wife.”

Her heart plummeted. She knew a guy like Avant was probably taken, but she'd hoped. Maybe. Leave it to her to end up in the middle of some other chick's fairytale.

“
I am certain Sentieve was manipulated. I knew Aesdil held feelings for her, but never believed he would harm me. She loved me. I am certain he played on her fear and grief. She was expecting a child at the time of my death. He deceived her into a marriage he founded on murder.”

His fisted hands shook with bridled anger. Waves of loathing rolled off him causing the hair on her arms to rise.

Something about that story with his wife didn’t add up, but Abby let it go for the moment.

“So, you have a child?” Who was twenty years old.

“The child died less than a year after it was born.”
He fired a gaze to her. The rage reflected in his eyes caused a shiver to run down her back. What he must have gone through. Abby couldn’t imagine…yes, she could. Lyndsea and Chad had screwed her over to be with each other. The wound stung, and Avant’s hurt had to be even worse. Twenty years?
“Couldn’t you get her back before now?”

“I've been seeking nothing else, trying to find a way. But the Light has required my silence and inaction. As of yet, the king is unaware I am still alive.”

Her heart broke for him. She couldn't fathom the faith it must have taken for him to sit idly by for twenty years. Again, the story didn't quite add up. Avant didn't strike her as the wait-and-see type. What was he not telling her? She eyed him speculatively.

She’d never endured anything like this guy had. An overwhelming tenderness swept over her.
“You've been waiting all these years for the Chosen One to come help get her back?”

He stiffened his spine and sat next to her on the sofa.
“Yes….and now that you've come, I can finally avenge myself.”

This was heavy stuff. The pain he'd suffered: the loss of his life, his love, and his baby, without anyone to comfort him must have been awful. She would've turned into a raving mad monster from the heartbreak. She took his hand and squeezed tightly. “
Avant, I don’t think I’m the One you’re looking for, but I’ll help you in any way I can. What do I need to do?”

Hope leapt in his eyes, quenching the rage or, at least, burying it.
“We must find the Crown, reset the jewels, and restore it to the proper ruler. It is my hope we can infiltrate the castle and help Sentieve get out. Then we will march against Aesdil and his armies. With my Implanting and yours, he cannot stand against us and the Crown.”
Avant lifted his chin.
“Now you know the whole story. Aesdil’s armies are great, but he still thinks he fights against an untrained enemy. If he were to find out I’m still alive, that I am Lord Ventium, an attack would be imminent. Secrecy gives us an advantage we require.”
He resolutely placed his hands on his knees.
“Are you ready to receive my Implanting?”

She smiled half-heartedly.
“I guess so. Do you have any idea what I can expect from this Implanting?”

“Yes, I have an idea.”
He didn’t meet her gaze, and a slight flush swept over his face.

He was blushing? What the crap was that about? Dread tightened around her throat.
“Are you going to tell me?”
Maybe she didn’t want to know.

He’d just revealed the most intimate secret he had, but
that
hadn’t embarrassed him. Her stomach clenched. Never a good sign.

“You will most likely receive all of my feelings, my thoughts and my memories…”
He gazed into her face, blue eyes searching for an answer to the question he hadn't asked.

Heat flushed her cheeks and her stomach flip-flopped.
Oh hell.

“I do not relish the idea of baring my soul, but it is a necessary step in gaining the upper hand against my enemy. I imagine, for you, it will be like living inside me and through me…and there are things there I wouldn’t wish on anyone, especially you.”
He blew out a long, whistling breath.

“W—what do you mean…your feelings…and thoughts?”
Awkwardness flooded her brain, and her thoughts stumbled. The urge to run like hell tingled in her legs.

She needed a drink. Glancing around the room for a means of escape, she searched for anything that could help.

All the things she'd done in the privacy of her life ran through her mind. A chill swept over her and she shivered. No way would she ever reveal those to anybody…for any reason.

She would have memories of his sexual fantasies? And what he did with them? Eww… Every hateful thought would be revealed. Ouch.… Every time he picked his nose. Eww again.

“My God!” The words came out in a gasp, and the corset cinched her lungs closed.

“There is no way to separate my experiences from my thoughts and feelings of those experiences. You will have them written upon your memory like the words of a book. I am fairly certain you will have first-hand knowledge of my mind and heart. It is an unfortunate result of the process and one I deeply regret…but it is not to be helped.”

Was he trying to convince her or himself?
“Avant, I don’t want to…please… let’s not do this. I can learn the language…. We can find another way.”

“No! This is how it must be. Do not tempt me. It is the only way. Time is of great importance. The Light has spoken; now we must act.”
He seemed on the brink of violence, and she didn’t dare push him further. Standing, he paced to the window.

Shit.
Her stomach churned. She would never hurt him, or use the information against him. But it’s not like she wanted to know all of his business, either.

He took a deep breath then turned to face her.
“I think you can expect more of the same energy you experience when we communicate. Let's try.”

She couldn't look at him.

He lifted her chin and stared into her eyes.

With his straight back and set jaw, he looked so stoic. She couldn’t imagine wanting something so much that she’d be willing to do this to get it.