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Chapter Twenty-One - Gladiators
Last Updated:
2022-08-03 15:23:23
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The Conqueror's Royal Slave Chapter Twenty-Two - Carl
The woman they sent to his quarters was unusual in that her face was wet with tears. Carl came close to hammering on the by now locked door and insisting on a replacement, but he was intrigued. No other female had ever presented as reluctant, and especially not after a victory. She must be new.“Sit,” he ordered, simply, as he unwound the bindings around his trousers.Some fighters preferred leather as it made a statement; he let his prowess do the talking.“Where?” she asked.He looked up in surprise. It was a strange question given that there was little other than a bed in the small room. Carl patted the opposite side to where he was perched and she moved forward reluctantly. She reminded him of a deer prepared to bolt at any moment.“What’s your name?”“My real one, or the one they told me to use?”His head snapped up, concentration suspended for the time being.“Whichever you prefer to disclose.”“Ginny,” she said, perching herself on the mattress. She held herself stiffly, as if
Last Updated : 2022-08-03The Conqueror's Royal Slave Chapter Twenty-Three - Worries
He told himself it was only a fallback position. In reality, Xander saw no way back to Ormond unless he waged war. Curse Ephron for not warning him about the old witch. The heir apparent had been so wrong about Eithne, too. If he had one regret, it was that he hadn’t treated her like the lady she clearly had been raised to be. Though not by Clara, obviously. Even if he had considered cutting his losses and moving on, there was the Princess to think about. He couldn’t just leave her there. This whole gladiator idea meant that people were bound to be exploited. He sought out Drago, so often the voice of reason, and found him rocking his newborn son to sleep. There had been an initial panic because of his premature arrival but all was well now. “Have you come up with a plan yet, Commander?” “I’m still working on it, Will,” he said, through gritted teeth. “It’s a tricky one. Still, at least we have two men on the inside.” “They’d better not harm a single hair on her head.” A smile p
Last Updated : 2022-08-04The Conqueror's Royal Slave Chapter Twenty-Four - Missions
The practice sessions were endless. All the maidens were required to attend, some even wearing a favour bestowed by their gladiator. Eithne fumed and it wasn’t because she had missed out on that, being branded a harlot by her own mother. That was a jousting tradition, though her own knight was long gone.Because Clara was absent, probably receiving yet another massage in the royal chambers, she made it her business to speak to each of the girls. It wouldn’t harm to let them know the latest and hopefully receive their take on each combatant.Not wanting to single out the other high-born ones, and since she knew and trusted Flavius – Jocasta’s words of caution causing her to doubt suddenly – Eithne started with Hermione. If Marcus were to emerge victorious, they needed a plan in case he reneged on his vow.The miller’s daughter was plump and rather nervous, twisting her hands endlessly until she reached out to stop her.“I’m on your side. Truly,” she said. “How was he when you had that
Last Updated : 2022-08-05The Conqueror's Royal Slave Chapter Twenty-Five - Cassie
The young Princess was a born storyteller – not a liar, though, he was convinced of that – recounting details of her early life as if they had happened to someone else. If he were in the market, Xander reflected, she might have made a good queen. Where was another matter – that accent! – yet it was becoming easier to decipher as time went on.*It was the day of her first appearance in the royal court and King Rupert’s youngest daughter was nervous, excited and hiding a secret from everyone except her personal maid. Even so she sat patiently enough and upright on the carved wooden chair, staring at her reflected image in the mirror atop her dressing table, while Beatrice combed her long dark locks. The brocade gown was stiff and laced tightly at the back. It bore the faint aroma of the chest it had been stored in for so long, dense wood and something indefinable, like old perfume except more bitter.Had it really once belonged to her lady mother, the Queen?Cassie resisted the very re
Last Updated : 2022-08-05The Conqueror's Royal Slave Chapter Twenty-Six - Contests
The sun was high in the sky when they began the entertainment in front of the royal court. In some ways Eithne was glad the girls weren’t permitted to watch, though news filtered through after each one-to-one battle. Marcus was yet to fight, and it was heartening to hear that Flavius had bested his opponent, Hadrian. Not that she had anything against the veritable giant. It spared Ava further indignity and no doubt she would regard it as a blessing. Unless she were still smarting about what Finn had done. It seemed to Eithne she’d had feelings for him. Had he done right by her? Only time would tell. And if he came looking for her in the future, would that be such a bad thing? She felt she was helping her subjects – some of them, anyway, given that Isabel hailed from the north and Ava from across the water – and tried to take pride in that. Brutus was up next, she understood, facing Nero. From what she had been told there was only one winner unless the latter threw the contest to spa
Last Updated : 2022-08-06The Conqueror's Royal Slave Chapter Twenty-Seven - Cassie
Pandemonium reigned. If only there had been a king by that name. He certainly couldn’t have done a worse job than her father. Common sense told Cassie that tyrants only prospered as long as they had the upper hand and now his power was being called into question by all.Four long years had passed since that horrible day in the royal court and she was on her own, Isabel having finally left the kingdom not for the south but for the one closest to their lands. She’d heard it was a love match. Imagine that, her strait-laced sister becoming romantically involved with a usurper prince. Messages were sporadic yet they filled Cassie with hope.And maybe she would see Adam again one day.He’d bested Sir Purcell in that tourney and then escaped. She supposed he would be a man now, approaching his majority of twenty-one.Please don’t hate me.It was a daily litany, a superstition she dare not ignore since Will had seemingly deserted her.Fortunately, no-one had yet sought her hand in matrimony.
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The door was capable of being bolted as well as locked with a key. Had it once doubled as a dungeon? The gladiator made it clear to Hermione and Eithne that he was in charge, setting them the task of securing it. They’d been made to wait while he used the bathhouse. The female attendant was obviously to his liking given the moans which didn’t all come from her. She giggled as she passed them, putting a finger to her lips, and Eithne saw more than she would have liked of the woman’s ample chest which was just about spilling over her tight bodice. Feeling insulted yet relieved, she hugged the miller’s daughter. “We’ll come through this,” she said, casting her mind back to earlier and the strange behaviour of Flavius. When he saw them in the passage he started to grin and even winked. She couldn’t begin to understand why. Marcus emerged a short while later looking refreshed and un-gladiator like in his Ormondian shirt and puffed breeches. Who did he think he was, Clara’s new favourit
Last Updated : 2022-08-06The Conqueror's Royal Slave Chapter Twenty-Nine - Indignities
“He subjected the Queen to that?”Drago was incensed, Xander less so.“If it were Clara …”He left the rest of it unsaid.“What are you waiting for?” Earl Adam queried, one booted foot carelessly sullying the fabric of a named nobleman’s carved seat. “Strip her.”Cassie shuddered, turning her face away. She expected a lust-crazed mob to surround her stepmother at any moment. Maybe she could find an excuse to visit the buttery.She became aware that the room had gone quiet, except for the Queen’s terrified pleas. “I beg you … no. For the love of – ”“Why so reluctant? She’s only flesh and blood, like us.” He gave a deep sigh. “Must I do everything myself?”“Leave her be.”Cassie could not believe she had dared to speak up on behalf of a woman who had merely tolerated her existence.Earl Adam stalked over to her, invading her personal space as if he had the right. He tilted her chin.“Know your place, slave,” he hissed, eliciting several gasps from the other women present. His eyes held
Last Updated : 2022-08-07
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The Conqueror's Royal Slave Chapter Eighty-Five - Peekaboo
One Year LaterHe had been looking forward to this moment for a while, this private time alone with his new family. Drago had sent word via various couriers who had since gone on to do other, possibly more worthy, things.If he had a sense of shame it was in having left them, after all, to pursue his long held dreams. Had it been worth the possible cost? Did she have another in her bed?The evidence was there in front of his eyes. He could scarcely take it in.This lad was very young and without beard. That would come in time.He watched, fascinated, as they rolled together and she tickled his sides making him laugh. It was an infectious sound, soon echoed by the other person present: a girl.Xander knew the imposter had once stood here watching him and Eithne. This act was far different but maybe no less unworthy. He should have announced his presence straight away.Having heard she was back in her old bedchamber he had been curious as to the reason why. Well, now he knew.She was we
The Conqueror's Royal Slave Chapter Eighty-Four - A Royal Wedding
On the day itself, Eithne was sick several times. If only she could hide behind a veil. But there was nothing else for it, however pasty she looked, this was the happiest day in her young life.She hadn’t anticipated she would be staying in Ormond when she wed and, mere months ago, it had seemed as if this day would never come. Slavery had taught her that some people had cruel natures and some did not. Eithne was only grateful it had been Xander who turned up that day, otherwise Clara might well have made the rest of her short life a living hell.Lysette had been found eventually by a dogged Hengest and was now detained at King Ephron’s pleasure. His sister sighed. She hoped he would become immune to her obvious charms and not be tempted to release her from the dungeon anytime soon.He kept saying no harm had been done, but it might well have been.There had been no compromise and she was suffering the kind of endless ceremony she had dreaded. Illness was one way of gaining respite, a
The Conqueror's Royal Slave Chapter Eighty-Three - New Beginnings
Eithne could hide nothing from Xander, nor did she want to, and especially not when it came to her condition. He was delighted and swept her off her feet, though with caution, adding after several kisses that they really ought to conclude their arrangement.Procrastination shouldn’t become a habit.She puzzled for a time until she translated that to mean wed sooner rather than later. Illegitimacy remained unspoken between them. While he had so often flaunted his, she knew it rankled more than he let on.They were still arguing about what form it should take and where. Ephron had disclosed that Genevieve was seeking an alliance for purposes of trade and defence. It seemed she had approached Louis, but he wasn’t interested in Beeveland, just its Queen. And marriage was definitely off the table as far as she was concerned.Eithne knew that didn’t mean there was hope for her brother. Or any man, including Halfdan who was probably unaware how she felt.But Xander’s sister was due for a st
The Conqueror's Royal Slave Chapter Eighty-Two - Unworthy
Xander said nothing to anyone, though he was beginning to feel he couldn’t hold a candle to the two remaining women in his life. Genevieve had taken over the reins from Henri with aplomb and was ruling magnificently, while Eithne had been through so much and was still prepared to sacrifice herself for him of all people when he knew how much she loved the realm of Ormond.Still, perhaps the castle wasn’t the best place for her to reside any more. If need be, he would tear it down and rebuild it with his own hands just to prove how much he cared about her. But he wasn’t the ruler, not even the self-styled conqueror these days, just a man with wanderlust in his head and a selfless princess in his heart.There was something he could do for her, at least until King Ephron was settled with a worthy consort, and that was to postpone his plans to leave. It didn’t mean never and, with time, his priorities might change. Children did not need an absent father, at any age.That night, in her bedc
The Conqueror's Royal Slave Chapter Eighty-One - Beeveland
The pastures were endless here and probably more fertile. Eithne bit her lip. She hoped she was with child, though it was too soon to tell.Each province had its own dialect so that her correct Frankish wasn’t always enough for her to make herself understood. But she seemed to charm all she met. Was that because Princess Genevieve was by her side, waving to the people from the litter? It was quite obvious Xander wasn’t so popular.He probably didn’t care, but she did. If they were going to rule here, they had to command respect from their subjects.“What happened?” she asked him that night as they lay beside each other in bed.She was still his betrothed as the priest had been stricken with something and it had seemed churlish to postpone their trip.“You mean, how did they get rid of me before? I walked,” he said.Her forehead puckered.“I don’t understand.”“The people kept on and on asking me about Genevieve until I couldn’t take it any more.”“So you deposed yourself? If such a th
The Conqueror's Royal Slave Chapter Eighty - Repercussions
The lightning strike had done all the damage, and now Prince Connor Mac Neill lay dying in tremendous pain, one of his legs crushed beneath a fall of rocks. Despite what he had done, turning on them like that, Eithne saw to his comfort, staying with him until the end.Finn was devastated and Ava was nestled in his arms, sobbing openly. That was what death did, it made you remember the good times. In most cases.Though she tried her best, she could not find it in her to mourn her mother, the despised lover and the fake brother.It was an act of God. She would see to it they had a decent burial and that was all.King Ephron seemed to be recovering, as if disaster was making a man of him whereas the ability to do as he pleased had not. Genevieve may have had something to do with that. If he was enamoured that was his affair. Eithne knew Xander’s sister would never consent to be his.They were for Beeveland soon and she was looking forward to seeing the country of his birth. The conqueror
The Conqueror's Royal Slave Chapter Seventy-Nine - Divided Loyalties
There was a new hazard to be overcome once they were close to the fresh air. Xander pulled Eithne back just as she was on the point of exposing herself to the men surrounding the small boat.That gave him an idea. He knew she wouldn’t like it.“I’m afraid I’m going to have to ask you how much you love the realm,” he said, in a low voice which sounded mock serious even to his own ears.“I don’t understand.”“Trust me, you will. Well?”“It is my solemn duty to do anything to help the kingdom of Ormond.”“Thank the good Lord, I was hoping you would say that. You didn’t swear?”“Unlike the royal heir, it was enough that I made a promise to my father, the late King.”“I see. Now, I want you to do exactly as I say. Strip!”Her eyes widened.“Here? Now? But I thought – ”“As I suspected. A most disloyal subject,” he said. “Must I do everything myself, including undressing you?”“You failed before,” she pointed out, her violet eyes stormy.“This is a needs must situation,” he said, spinning h
The Conqueror's Royal Slave Chapter Seventy-Eight - Commitment
It wasn’t the most romantic of proposals yet it set her heart aflutter. Eithne gulped.“I will need to change my gown,” she said.“Princess, I didn’t mean now.”“Oh. Forget it then,” she snapped, and had to ask herself why.“I have no intention of doing so. In fact, letting you out of my sight is not an option either.” Xander took her hand. “Come with me to Beeveland,” he coaxed.“Now? Why?”“Not now. Once the affairs of Ormond are sorted.”“I fear that will never happen. Still, it would be good to get away and probably best for Genevieve if we do.”“What do you mean?”“Nothing,” she said, hastily.That crush on one of the Danes, blurted out impulsively after an excess of good local mead, needed nipping in the bud in her opinion. Halfdan was leaving anyway. She hadn’t meant to let the cat out of the bag, but Xander was nothing if not persistent in his questioning.“Genevieve has no sense of propriety,” he fumed.That was rich coming from him, a self-styled conqueror and enslaver. Eith
The Conqueror's Royal Slave Chapter Seventy-Seven - Duped
Xander hadn’t sued for peace so much as cheated in its name. He would do the same again, twice over, if it meant avoiding war. His betrothed had been taken aback by his tactics but he couldn’t afford to let her in on it; her surprise would go a long way to convincing this new enemy whose ego was legendary.Maybe some flowers would mollify her. He had treated her like a pawn and she was still sulking.Encountering his sister in the corridor he enlisted her help.Genevieve’s eyes danced with amusement.“Just be yourself. Spend some time with her. It’s all a girl ever wants. Gifts only make us think you want to atone.”But I do, he thought. For the way it all began.The Danes were preparing to depart, while Finn was now in charge of his brother’s forces.“Stay awhile,” he’d encouraged both the group of Norsemen and those loyal to a different Mac Neill.“Tell him,” Ava urged, nudging Connor’s brother.She was seldom far from his side these days.“We’d like to settle here permanently,” he
