Barefoot in a gray, lifeless forest, Rosemary glanced over her shoulder and bent her finger to the man in black that followed. “Come with me.”
While she whimpered and struggled beneath her bedsheets, the Darke Queen’s pretty pink lips pulled down into a pouty frown, and her voice mumbled low enough not to disturb the faithful Sir Eason keeping guard outside the door. “No. Where did you go? Come back.”
When the horses passed the Sentry’s post, Rosemary’s eyes snapped open, and she gasped. “Daniel.”
Pressing her elbows into the mattress, she sat up and threw her legs over the side of the bed as she fumbled for her slippers. Once she pushed her feet into them, she rushed past Eason and ran as fast as her shaking legs would carry her down the hall.
When Daniel stepped down from his saddle, his wobbly body shivered, and he pressed his hands into his knees as he bent ove
"Did you actually believe that there was any secret that I wouldn't know about? I can see through your mind young witch." The Emperor had found out about Daniel's treachery and was about to make him pay.He suspected Daniel was conflicted about his orders, so he had him followed. When it was reported back to the Emperor that Daniel had taken his mother to a secret location, he sent men to abduct her as Daniel was sent on another mission.
"Why did you bring me here? How did you know where I’d be?" The new smell of crisp autumn air blew through the open windows while Daniel walked beside Nicholas as he looked over the murals and statues that lined the halls of the main building. This clean, untainted world of new scents and colors was overload to Daniel's senses. Everywhere he turned, it was like a new beginning.An amused smirk curled up on the old warlock's mouth as he held out his hand to usher Daniel down another hall where the family
"This is a bastard sword. It's long enough to keep your enemy at distance and short enough to be worked with ease in battle. This blade is to be your shadow now. It is part of you like your arm or your leg."Presenting the newly forged steel to Daniel, Agamori unsheathed the sword and showed him the spell inscribed on the broad side. "This is elven steel. There is no better metal for a sword, I assure you. It is blessed with the spell of glory and through this enchantment, you will conquer all that stand against you. Father does not give a gift like this haphazardly, Daniel, this is a rare gift and I hope that you appreciate what
"I'm so very sorry, please forgive my rudeness, sir." The young red-haired woman accidentally brushed against Haldir in the pub that evening as she tried to navigate her way through the drunk and noisy crowd without being too much of a bother.The handsome blonde Norwegian with a bushy beard looked up from his conversation and glanced over his shoulder. She was a beautiful girl with an aura of purity and kindness, definitely not an Earth born witch and certainly didn't belong in a place like this. "Not a problem child. Be careful walking home, it's a bad moon tonight."
"Just ahead through the clearing." The quick hoof steps against the forest floor beat out a rhythm like a drummer going to war as Nicholas and his sons closed in on the gentle king's lands.
"I'm coming." Rosemary looked herself over in the mirror and then walked to her door. Everyday she hoped it would be Daniel to knock at her door, but then again, it filled her with anxiety and fear.Nicholas stood cross armed before her when she answered the door. "You've been home nearly a month, my dear. Don't you think it's time for you to rejoin the world?"Standing aside to let h
"I thought they were going to kill you. I don't think I've ever been so scared of anything." As Nicholas rode off, Daniel turned his forehead back to Rosemary's leg and balled her hand up in his against his lips.Unwrapping her finger from his big hand, Rosemary pointed it into his chin, and he glanced up at her finally. "I'm fine thanks to you Daniel. That was amazing. I had no idea you could do those things."
The Raven cawed and sliced through the crisp Autumn breeze as it flowed into the city from the sea.Agamori shielded his eyes from the sun and looked up as the bid flew overhead and made for the Great Hall. “Looks like we may have a new job to do.”The importance of the message could be known from the bird that carried it, so whatever the content, it must be great to have a bird of such intelligence tasked with delivering it. But all Daniel could think of was the day it arrived for Rosemary. The guilt of it never far from his heart.
Barefoot in a gray, lifeless forest, Rosemary glanced over her shoulder and bent her finger to the man in black that followed. “Come with me.”While she whimpered and struggled beneath her bedsheets, the Darke Queen’s pretty pink lips pulled down into a pouty frown, and her voice mumbled low enough not to disturb the faithful Sir Eason keeping guard outside the door. “No. Where did you go? Come back.”When the horses passed the Sentry’s post, Rosemary’s eyes snapped open, and she gasped. “Daniel.”Pressing her elbows into the mattress, she sat up and threw her legs over the side of the bed as she fumbled for her slippers. Once she pushed her feet into them, she rushed past Eason and ran as fast as her shaking legs would carry her down the hall.When Daniel stepped down from his saddle, his wobbly body shivered, and he pressed his hands into his knees as he bent ove
With not even a sword on his hip, Daniel stalked to the stables, took the saddle horn in his hand, and then mounted his horse in a single motion. His heels dug deep into the animal’s sides, and it carried the King away with a jolt that startled the other horses.His Riders gave chase to Daniel, who was nearly a furlong from the gates already. The Darke King rode fast and bound over streams and downed trees that blocked his path. Like a torch in a windstorm, flecks of charred pieces of Daniel’s fear and devastation blew off him and blanketed everyone who followed.Every scorching bit that slapped Haldir’s face was a hint of the Hell about to rain down on the unsuspecting rapist hiding in the encampment they were barrelling towards.In all the years that he’d been traveling back and forth between the worlds, Haldir never encountered a Firebreather, and the anticipation of seeing one in all its glory made his whole body numb.
The evening chill chased away all the lovely warmth of the Spring day, and Haldir took a sharp breath of bitterness into his nose as he rested against the castle wall beside the front door’s guards.When the horse hooves’ click-clacks met the path below the castle, he pushed his foot into the stone fortress and catapulted himself down the stairs.Little puffs of white steam huffed from his mouth as he jogged down the road, and every time his foot hit the ground, it was another kick to his pride. He promised Rosemary on her infirmary bed that he’d get the man who hurt her and letting him slip through his fingers yet again was just another insult to his manhood.He dodged the riders leaving the stables to hurry to dinner and found Daniel and Agamori still tending to their horses. “Your Majesty, a word, please.”Daniel yanked off his cloak with a pull of his neck, and his eyes shot to Haldir. “What is it?” The racing
Haldir’s freckled fingers bent rapidly as he motioned for the next patient. “Come on over, child.”The young blonde-haired man was hardly a man at all, and Haldir gave him a quick smile. “What seems to be the problem?”He shrugged his shoulders and leaned into Haldir’s ear. The Viking huffed through his nose and nodded, then pointed his thumb over his shoulder to the Dining Hall. “Go ahead. The soups quite good today.”As the next patient stepped forward, Haldir lifted his chin. “My, that’s quite a bruise.” While he did a quick assessment on the woman before him, the tingly hand of Fate pulled his eyes right to a small group of men standing together in the triage line. The foggy sensation that he’d met them before poked at him, and he shook it off before he narrowed his eyes to them and tried to place their faces.It wasn’t like Haldir to forget anything and the little voice in
“Haldir! Can you come here for a moment?” Rosemary cupped her shaking hands over her mouth and stepped back from the mirror.She hiccupped out a sound into her hands that was half a sob and half a laugh, and when Haldir peeked around the corner of her bedroom door, he wasn’t sure which it was until he saw the silver and orange colors melting into her skin. “Is everything alright?”Her eyes checked over her reflection one more time before her blank expression met his eyes, and she nodded. “Yes, everything’s fine.” She rubbed her fingertips over her forehead and rushed past him. “Please stay with Sigrid until I return.”He tipped his head to her and smiled. “Of course.”While Sigrid bounced and tossed toys across her bed, Haldir pulled the rocking chair closer and wiggled his finger between the slats as he pressed his forehead against them. “By the looks of it, I think you’r
The hiss of his hot breath and beastly grunts against her ear was enough to push Rosemary over the edge again. She slid back and forth against the rug and moaned into his hand with each thrust. Every slap of his hips against her ass made her whole body tremble, and she whimpered for more through his fingers. “Please!”The Season made her the most potent force in his world, and even Daniel wasn’t immune to the enchantment, not that he wanted to be. His mind was constantly in motion, and having his rightful family surrounding him again was the single focus of his life. Every spare moment they found in private, they spent wrapped up together like this.When he filled her once again, he backed away and wrapped his arm around her waist, then pulled her up with him and kissed her neck. “Until later.”He playfully smacked her bottom, and she grabbed it in her hand.”Ow!” With her teeth d
“Riders approaching!” The clacks of the horse's hooves beat on the ground as they approached the town's gates below the castle. The Sentry held out the lamp to light the path for Daniel and his men when they reached the cobblestone road and bowed his head. “Good evening, Your Majesty, Lord Commander.”Agamori returned his nod, but Daniel’s eyes lifted to the window of his bedroom just in time to see the lights dim. “Dammit!” He rubbed at the pain in his chest, knowing it would be another night spent alone in the library for him.“She’s a tenderhearted woman, Daniel.” When he glanced over his shoulder, he met Agamori’s eyes. The Lord Commander wrapped the reins around his fist as he nudged the horse forward to catch up to Daniel. “In that meadow and when we took this land, those things were necessary. She understood that. What you did to your guest, that’s not something she will ever be comfor
The noon sun was high in the sky, drying the last of the evidence of the stormy night and Rosemary’s tears. A cool breeze that was still a bit too chilly blew through the opening between the buildings, so she leaned over and fastened Sigrid’s sweater. “There you go, my love. That’s better.” The stray footsteps could be heard kicking up the stones that lined the courtyard, but she felt Daniel in her bones and didn’t need to turn around to understand that none of them belonged to him.If the dark shadow with the bushy beard and the clean scent of lavender mixed with bergamot hadn’t given him away, then the husky Norweigian drawl left no doubt who stood behind her. “Good afternoon, Your Majesty.” With her hand cupped over her eyes to shield them from the sun, she glanced up from w
The racing beats of her heart echoed in Daniel’s brain, and he could even feel her fingernails digging into her palms. Rosemary tried to control the rage building inside her, but the King could sense the anger barreling toward him before he ever heard the pounding of her feet against the stone floor outside the throne room.He sighed before he looked to Agmori and motioned toward the door with his head. “You should leave now. Apparently, someone has spilled the news of last night to your sister, and she’s on her way to discuss it with me.”A sympathetic smirk rose on the old warlock’s lips as he tipped his head and backed away with his hands up. “Good luck.”While Rosemary ran past him, Agamori bowed his head then pulled the doors closed behind him. She gasped and panted through her teary eyes and shaking head. “What did you do? Please tell me it isn’t true!”His shoulder shrugged just a li