Warrior (34 page)

did not look in his direction during the

meal.

Supper had been over for hours and

Vulcan was in his chambers, a

tankard of ale in his hand. He could

hear the movements from his wife’s

rooms as her ladies and maids walked

around and conversed. He waited until

there was an audible snap followed by

silence, before downing the ale and

heading for the connecting door.

Stepping through, he approached the

bed and easily parted the drapes that

fell from the canopies. Jaisyn was

lying on her side, her eyes closed. The

furs that covered her rose and fell

evenly. He awoke her as he had

countless times, with kisses that

usually heated her blood and drove

her to the brink of madness.

Instead, she lay still, limp, even as

she came awake on a sigh. Her eyes

remained closed, her eyelids holding

the creases of stubborn resistance.

Except for the rapid beating of her

heart, and the uneven rise and fall of

her chest as she took unsteady

breaths, she did not move. He pushed

the covers from her body and

continued

with

his

demanding

caresses, daring her to pretend she did

not enjoy his attentions.

Vulcan pushed his body from hers

and saw her eyes flutter open briefly

before she closed them once more.

He easily discarded his breeches

before pushing her bed gown up,

pulling her to a sitting position, and

tugging it over her head. Her eyes did

not open. Gently lowering her to the

bed, Vulcan covered his body with

hers, sucking and licking at the

delicate collarbone, soft breasts, the

flat stomach.

When he parted her thighs, she

whimpered, which caused him to lift

his head briefly, wondering if she’d

finally given up the pretense that she

was unaffected. She had not. Instead,

her arm was thrown over her eyes.

Vulcan lowered his head to her,

taking her pleasure bud between his

lips gently before sucking on it. She

squirmed under him but did not utter a

sound. He moved his tongue lower,

savoring the addictive taste of her as it

hit his tongue in a torrent of waves.

Her body began to shake, a violent

tremor that would have unlatched him

had he not wrapped strong arms

around her sleek thighs. A loud and

torturous cry escaped her lips and he

gave her one last lick before kissing

his way up her body.

“You are beautiful, wife,” he

murmured against the smooth and

fragrant valley of her breasts.

A cry, stopping almost as quickly as

it began, escaped her lips and he lifted

his head and looked at her face. What

he saw made him freeze. Her arm still

covered her eyes but tears glistened

along her cheeks. Had he hurt her?

He immediately pushed his body from

hers and gently moved her hand

away. Her eyes were still closed but

her lashes were wet and clumped

together.

“Jaisyn,” his voice was unsure as he

was. What he’d just done had been

done to her countless times since

she’d become his wife. Why was she

crying?

“Are you hurt?”

She shook her head and attempted

to roll onto her stomach to hide her

face from him.

He would not let her. Vulcan pulled

her against him, willing her to open

her eyes. When she did, he wished

that she hadn’t. Vulcan hated seeing

women cry. But to see Jaisyn’s tear-

stained face, to see the water that

surrounded the usually flashing gold of

her eyes, tore at his heart.

“What is it, Jaisyn? Are you in

pain?” He felt something snake along

his skin and moments passed before

he recognized it for what it was. It

was something that Vulcan of Morden

did not feel often: fear. “Tell me the

problem, Jaisyn. Are you ill? What

would have me do?”

They stared at each other for what

seemed like eternity: Jaisyn in tears,

Vulcan’s heart beating faster as he

thought of all of the illnesses that had

been affecting his people of late. Did

she have the cough? Or was it the

stomach illness some of his own

warriors had succumbed to?

“Leave me… just leave… please,”

she managed to murmur as she

avoided his eyes. Tightening his arms

around her, he scrutinized her face.

She did not seem to be in physical

pain. He eventually released his hold,

allowing her to roll away. Vulcan

continued to gaze at the outline of her

back before he pushed himself from

her bed and strode from the room.

***

It had been a week since Vulcan

visited her bed. Six nights. And during

that time, they’d barely said anything

to

each

other

except

formal

pleasantries. Vulcan seemed colder

than before and she remained distant.

The only person who seemed perkier

than usual was Lady Savoy, whose

name she’d found out only because

she wished to know who was seated

at her table.

Supper had consisted of Lady Savoy

laughing and talking with Vulcan, who

replied to on occasion but did not

deter her advances. As Jaisyn thought

back to their last night together, she

clenched her jaw and closed her eyes.

She’d known her husband would

come to her that night and had been

determined to lie still, unresponsive to

his touch. He’d made her respond,

even with the thoughts that he was

responsible

for

Stephen’s

death

running through her mind. It was then

that she’d recognized something: she

was falling in love with her husband.

She did not like him. In fact, she

found him most arrogant, cold, and

chauvinistic, but in spite of that, the

thought of Vulcan made her feel

warm, safe, protected and, at times

when he held her after they’d loved

each other, cherished.

But her husband did not love her

and she could not love him. Trapped

as she had been in his arms, feeling

the tremors of ecstasy leave her body,

confused as to and frustrated about

her feelings where he was concerned,

she had been unable to stop her tears.

She let out a sigh and focused on the

men training below her in the

courtyard.

Since her arrival at the castle, she’d

noticed the training was set to a very

specific schedule. The squires usually

practiced first, a handful of warriors

spread out amongst them to gauge

their mistakes and teach them

technique. They usually took up all of

an hour. Then came the regular

soldiers, those who were not as skilled

with the sword, a step above the

squires but not fit to defeat any

warrior in battle. A larger handful of

warriors

trained

amongst

them,

teaching them more intensely than

they had the squires. They trained for

an hour and a half, sometimes two

hours. Next came the soldiers who

were skilled with various weapons,

swords, hammers, daggers, whips,

flails, and others. Although they all

met at the same time, they practiced

separately, with the people who were

skilled in particular weapons grouped

together. At times, for sport, a soldier

skilled in the sword would challenge

one skilled with the hammer, and so

on.

She liked to be in her room when

that happened and was usually alerted

by the loud cheering in the courtyard.

She watched, feeling her blood rush

as she pictured herself down there.

Her need to wield her sword had

become so great that watching the

soldier’s practice had become a

necessity for Jaisyn within the last

week.

Finally, after the soldiers skilled with

one weapon, came the warriors,

battle-hardened men skilled in two

weapons or more, who practiced as if

they were intent on murdering each

other. She tried to watch them all but

her eyes were usually glued to her

husband. She recognized him by his

shield, which sported the crest of his

house, and the dark chain mail he

wore. She’d also come to know him

by his movements: raw power coupled

with brutal grace. The warriors were

currently practicing and she winced as

Vulcan’s sword landed with a loud

crash against the shield of another

warrior. She was surprised the warrior

was still standing after such a blow,

but was elated to see that not only

was he standing, but he reacted

quickly, pushing Vulcan back before

he was forced into defense mode once

more as her husband pressed forward.

An idea came to her mind and

Jaisyn spun quickly, looking about her

room. Anne and Jane were as they

usually were, reading and knitting,

respectively. Magda and Asha were

not in the room and she imagined that

they were probably shopping within

the city walls. Her idea would have to

wait until tomorrow, when she could

talk to her maids. She looked back to

Anne and Jane. They would need a

distraction. Perhaps she would send

them off to the city with a few of her

guards, and tell them to choose

whichever trinkets they liked. Yes.

She would send them off and her plan

would be set into motion. The first

smile she had worn in a week settled

upon her face. Anne looked up in time

to see it and beamed back at her

queen, perhaps happy that for the first

time in days, she seemed at ease.

Chapter 10

Jaisyn watched as the small party

containing the ladies Jane and Anne

headed from the castle gates, before

walking briskly back to her chambers.

She’d sent them on a shopping

excursion, at her expense. She

enjoyed the company of her two

ladies and would have done as she

had for them on any other occasion,

but today there was more behind it

As soon as she was in her room, her

eyes searched out Magda and Asha.

Magda was by the window, Asha by

the fireplace. Both of them looked

grim.

“Is everything ready?” The question

was directed to Magda, who had done

what she was about to do for Jaisyn

on numerous occasions. Still, they

were in a different kingdom, under a

different ruler, and she’d recognized

and accepted that the rules of Morden

were vastly different from those of

Lytheria. And even so, she could not

defy her queen.

“Yes, everything is ready, my

queen,” Madga replied with a little

frown.

Jaisyn walked over to her looking

glass and held both of her hands out.

Magda passed a glance to Asha and

she immediately walked over to her

liege and went to work. Later, Jaisyn

sat in a chair before that very looking

glass as Magda began to work on her

hair. After they were both finished,

Jaisyn smiled into the looking glass,

sent up a quick prayer to Lyria, and

headed from the room.

***

This day was unlike the days that

had passed before. Vulcan, along with

his most trusted generals, Tarkon

included, was to supervise all of the

groups that trained today. Two

Morden soldiers from Montak had

ridden through the night to relate the

news that a rebellion had started in a

Montak village and Morden soldiers

were being targeted. That news only

infuriated Vulcan more. His queen

was already driving him to the edge by

refusing to acknowledge his presence,

and now there was another rebellion

in Montak? He was left with one

option. He would gather the best of