Halcyon Rising (11 page)

Her mission to evaluate Old Halcyon had been eclipsed by the more important goal of making sure she and Trevelan both got home with all their secrets intact. Much as it pained her to admit, Sebastian seemed her only hope of accomplishing that.

Wearied by all the useless speculation and worry, she returned to the top floor and burrowed beneath the warm blankets to wait for Sebastian’s return.

Much later, she finally heard the massive tower door creak open. Hurried footsteps sounded in the stairwell, and then Sebastian strode into his bedchamber, looking as hale and handsome as ever.

Relief washed through her, and she leapt from the bed, throwing herself into his arms and hugging him tightly. “Oh, Sebastian. I was so worried about you.”

He tensed for a moment, as though unsure how to handle her exuberance. Then he sighed and wrapped his arms around her, crushing her against his strong chest. “Everything has been sorted,” he murmured, his lips very close to her ear. “I have spoken to my brother, and he has agreed to let you and your friend leave.”

“How did you do that?” She pulled back and stared at him in amazement. “I thought he meant to kill us both as spies.”

“I lied,” Sebastian admitted grimly. “I told him Trevelan was mute, which was why he had not spoken. I also claimed the two of you were on a pilgrimage to the great standing stones when you became lost on our land.”

She bit her lip, knowing how much it must have cost him to lie to his brother on her behalf. “Thank you. I do not have the words to express my appreciation for all you’ve done.”

He shrugged and stepped away. “I could not stand by and do nothing. If either of you had been harmed, I would have been forever haunted.”

She feared too many ghosts haunted him already.

“Well, you took a big risk on my behalf, and I am grateful.”

“I wish I could tell you it was going to be that easy,” he told her grimly. “Part of our bargain was that I bring you to dinner tonight. Simon wants to ask you some questions.”

She bit her lip, a sharp pang of fear shooting through her. “All right. But you’ll have to tell me what I should say.”

He gave her a long, searching look. “Would you like to go see your friend? He has been given a room in the tower above the dungeon. He needs his rest, but I think he needs to see that you are all right. I do not think he trusts me.”

“That would be wonderful.” Rhoswen’s heart swelled with relief. “I would like to see him.”

She started toward the door, but Sebastian caught her arm. “Perhaps you should change. I doubt the people of Hawkesmere would understand if you were to parade across the bailey in your nightclothes, enchanting as they might be.”

Flushing, she folded her arms across her chest. In truth, she hadn’t given any thought to her state of dress. “Of course. Can you tell me where you put the rest of my things?”

He strode to one of his trunks and pulled out the azure velvet gown with the white lawn chemise that had been in her pack. Halcyon’s seamstress had carefully crafted the garment for her based on her descriptions of the latest Surface fashions she'd provided after her last trip.

“Will this do?” she asked as he handed her the bundle of clothing. She hoped it was suitable, since so far she’d been completely underdressed for every occasion.

“The fabric is finer than anything I have ever seen. I doubt the Queen has garments of such quality. But if we make this a quick visit and no one gets a close look at you…” He trailed off, reaching out to run his fingertips down a long, tangled strand of her hair. “Perhaps it would be best if you simply wore the robe again. Nothing about you makes any sense, Rhoswen. You’re bound to cause a stir, no matter what you wear.”

“I’m sorry,” she murmured, chagrined. “I did my best to make sure I’d fit in with your people.”

“You are simply too beautiful. ‘Tis not your fault. And Hawkesmere has been long without a mistress. You will have to wear it tonight, I suppose, but for now I would like to keep you as inconspicuous as possible.”

“I’ll wear whatever you think best,” she assured him in a meek tone that was totally out of character. His comment about her beauty had touched her, but had also made it very clear to her how completely out of her element she was. For all her spying on those who inhabited the Surface, there was much she still did not know.

He stared at her for a moment longer, then removed the heavy robe and lowered it carefully over her shoulders. He tucked her hair behind her ears, then pulled up the cowl, effectively shielding her from prying eyes.

As she followed Sebastian out of the tower and across the bailey back toward the dungeon, she remembered that first painful trek. Her feet felt much better today, but she still limped awkwardly, and every muscle in her body ached. She kept her head down, peering around the edges of the cowl, but no one seemed to pay them much attention.

Sebastian led her up a set of steps where a warren of small sleeping chambers, none larger than her closet at home, bisected a long hallway. He paused before a door at the end of the hall where an unsmiling guard stepped aside to let them pass.

“He looks terrible,” Sebastian warned. “Brace yourself.”

Then he swung the door open and motioned for her to go inside. She took a deep breath and entered.

Trevelan lay upon a clean pallet in the corner, covered with several blankets, his beautiful face beaten to a bloody pulp. A lovely, red-haired woman stood beside him, coaxing him to drink a tisane of some sort.

“Hello, Miranda,” Sebastian murmured in greeting. “Do you mind if we speak to your patient alone for a moment?”

Miranda glanced over at Sebastian, her green gaze sweeping his lean form with obvious appreciation. “Certainly. I am done for the moment, in any event. I will check on him again this evening.”

A sudden stab of what could only be jealousy swept through Rhoswen, stunning her with its ferocity. She’d never thought to experience such a trite emotion but couldn’t deny that the thought of Sebastian in another woman’s arms bothered her.

As Miranda left the room, she cast a curious glance in Rhoswen’s direction. Still annoyed, Rhoswen kept her face hidden beneath the cowl, unwilling to assuage her interest. She waited until the woman’s footsteps faded down the hall, then rushed to Trevelan’s side.

“Oh, Trevelan,” she cried, kneeling beside his pallet. “Are you all right?”

Trevelan opened his swollen eyes and peered up at her. “I’ve been better,” he rasped, forcing a wry smile. “But I’m alive.”

Relieved by Trevelan’s tone, she motioned Sebastian forward. “If Sebastian wouldn’t have helped me, we’d both be dead.” She needed Trevelan to realize not all of the Surface people were barbarians. She wanted him to acknowledge his debt to the man who’d risked so much for their sake.

Instead, he made a pained, noncommittal sound and closed his eyes again. “I want to speak to you alone. Can you make him leave?”

Sebastian met her embarrassed gaze with a grim shrug and stepped back into the hall, closing the door behind him.

“How could you be so rude?” she asked Trevelan in a harsh whisper. “That man saved your life.”

“How can you be so foolish?” Trevelan snapped in return. “I can’t believe you trust him. This is probably all a ruse, a trick to make me confess to the crimes they believe I’ve committed. Neither of us will leave here alive, Rhoswen. Can’t you see that? Please tell me you haven’t given yourself to him.”

“Of course not.” Furious heat burned her cheeks. “I delved his mind. I trust him implicitly. He is a good man. You’d recognize it yourself if you could let go of your hatred and prejudice for even a moment.”

“What did you tell him?” Trevelan demanded. “When I think of all I suffered in that dungeon to keep you safe…only to find you’d been telling him everything he wanted to know in return for his empty promises of help—”

“I didn’t tell him anything,” she claimed, though guilt assaulted her. She mentally assured herself nothing she’d spoken to Sebastian about could be used against Halcyon.

“He’ll betray us,” Trevelan said, his voice weary and disgusted. “It’s just a matter of time.”

“You don’t know what you’re talking about.” Anger and disappointment streaked through her. “You’re tired and weak. You need to rest.”

He stared at her with stony defiance, refusing to say anything more.

“Get some sleep,” she reiterated, pushing to her feet. “He’s promised we can leave in a few days, and you need to regain your strength.”

A strange expression flickered in his pale eyes, but he quickly banked it. “If he’s truly going to let us leave, then you must convince him to do it within the next day or two. We have to get out of here as soon as possible.”

“Don’t be ridiculous. You can’t even walk.” Flushed and embarrassed by Trevelan’s boorish behavior, she slipped back into the hall without giving him a chance to reply.

“I’m sorry,” she told Sebastian after she shut Trevelan’s door. “The way he treated you was unacceptable.”

“Well, I cannot say that I blame him, given the circumstances.” Sebastian didn’t seem bothered by Trevelan’s foul temper, and her respect for him grew yet another notch. As she followed him back the way they’d come, she pondered the twist of fate that had made her take Sebastian’s side over Trevelan’s.

She hated to imagine what she'd do if she was forced to choose between the two of them. Somehow the lines that used to be so clear had gotten all muddied with unwanted emotion.

Back in the tower, she felt safer. No one would bother them in Sebastian’s sanctuary.

While in his mind, she’d gleaned that ever since he’d returned from war and taken up residence in Titania's Tower, his people had looked upon him with fear and suspicion. Resigned to their inability to accept him, he’d gone out of his way to feed their fear, using the knowledge he’d gleaned in the East to create a variety of simple tricks and illusions. They thought him a sorcerer, perhaps even a warlock, and he relished their silly misconceptions.

Given what she knew about the society he lived in, his defiant flaunting of the rules disturbed her. In fact, she felt a sudden frisson of fear when she considered what sort of mischief he might cause after she left.

As the door slid shut on its simple hidden mechanism, and they mounted the stairs toward the third floor, she turned and gave him a pensive frown. “I want you to promise me something.”

They entered his chamber, and he knelt before the fireplace to stoke the fire. “I have already promised you far more than I should.” His warning tone alerted her that he had reached the limits of his patience.

She took a deep breath. “I couldn’t understand much of what I saw while I was in your mind, but I did see how you provoke the villagers, trying to convince them you have supernatural powers. I want you to promise me you’ll stop. In the years to come I want to imagine you safe in your tower, working with your herbs and potions, not dying at the hands of an angry mob.”

For a long moment he continued to fuss with the flames, his expression hidden in the shadows. Then he sighed and sank back on his heels, meeting her gaze. “During the last few years I have not had much to live for. Perhaps deep down I hoped they would eventually find me too dangerous.”

She caught her breath. She’d glimpsed how deeply he’d suffered, yet she still couldn’t imagine ever feeling such a blatant disregard for her own life. The urge to comfort him was strong, but she didn’t know what she could say to make a difference.

When she left, he’d still be alone.

He’d done so much for her, saved her from torture, rape, perhaps even death. He’d even allowed her to keep most of Halcyon’s secrets. How could she ever pay him back?

She came to a sudden risky, but exciting, decision. Soon she would be gone, back to her own world and her own life. But Sebastian would remain behind, locked in his self-imposed exile.

All she had was a few days, but somehow she must show him life was a beautiful thing and well worth living.

“You promised me another soak in the pool, and I’d like to bathe before we go down to dinner,” she reminded him. “Would that still be possible?”

He held her gaze for a long moment, and the sexual tension raging between them left her dizzy and flushed. She’d never felt this way before — never known such heat was possible between two people. Her plan of seduction was not for purely unselfish reasons. She wanted this for herself, as well.

She wanted to know what it was like to lose herself utterly in a man’s arms.

Rhoswen held Sebastian’s gaze until he broke eye contact. Did he understand what she truly wanted? Clearing his throat, he began to gather her supplies. “Of course you can soak in the pool again.” He slung her pack over one shoulder then lit a torch in the fire. “Would you like me to carry you?”

“I’m perfectly capable of walking down the stairs,” she assured him. “My feet feel much better, thanks to your salve.”

Obviously a bit deflated by her independence, he allowed her to precede him down the long, curving staircase. He seemed to like taking care of her, feeling needed after having been alone so long.

When they reached the cavern far below the tower, he motioned toward the pool. “Take as long as you like. I will remain on the far side of the cave with my back turned until you are done.”

“Thank you, Sebastian.” Disappointed by his willpower, she slid out of her nightclothes and undergarments as he strode away. Naked, she stepped into the water, submersing herself beneath the comforting, steamy depths.

When she surfaced, she found Sebastian had remained true to his word. He stood on the far side of the cave, giving her his back, though visible tension tightened his shoulders.