Lord of the Sky (The Young Ancients: Timon) (41 page)

Tim snorted, not able to stop himself. It wasn't a happy sound, a sad and sarcastic thing all at once.

"People can get by on their own. They don't need a shepherd to watch over them. They
aren't
sheep."

"Perhaps they aren't. The last time we let them rule themselves it didn't go very well. Perhaps they deserve another chance? For now, I'm counting on you."

Timon stood up himself, feeling tired now and old, with guilt coming at him every time he stopped to think about anything that he'd ever done for too long. Maybe he'd learn to deal with it all. It didn't seem very likely at the moment, but if the Count was being honest, other people had it much worse than he did. How they lived with themselves he didn't know. Probably by being better than he was.

"Fine. I need the codes and documents on the Assassins Guild. I was going to steal them from you, but you can just hand them over instead. It will make it less dramatic for them, but save people some headaches. Your spy network too. You've been grooming Trice for that her entire life, haven't you? Trying to make the King think that it was all his idea like that. Clever, if a bit overdone. We aren't really ready to take over, but we'll need to become familiar with the operations and let the people involved know that we exist, so it won't be a shock to them later." Timon smiled and waited for a denial or perhaps a rebuke, but his grandfather just turned and walked away, speaking over his shoulder as he did.

"I'll have the information sent over. You have a new place I hear? Perhaps you'd have Bonita and I over for dinner, after you and Patricia finish your vacation, I mean?" It was pretty clear where the noble tradition of inviting oneself over came from.

"Sure. I'm pretty terrible at the whole vacation thing. Poor Trice. She deserves a real husband, not to be saddled with a child that can't do half of what she needs."

"Our whole family is horrible when it comes to relaxing. It's a valuable skill that I never really mastered myself. Denno, now he knows how to let things go and take it easy. You should take lessons from him on the topic. As to Trice... You may not be what she deserves, but you're exactly what she needs, or at least you can be." With that he walked away, not saying anything else.

Timon felt a bit better then, for some reason. It wasn't exactly perfect, since he probably needed to be the adult and apologize to his brother, even if he was in the wrong. There was also the matter of telling Trice that he wasn't going to abandon her every time he got angry or upset.

That had to come first, he decided, and made his way out to his craft, then got back to his home, half expecting her to be gone. He wasn't that surprised when he couldn't find her at first. She wasn't in her room or in the front of the house. A sad feeling ran through him, thinking that she'd decided that it would be better if she left. Off to live with Tor or something. Maybe her parents.

It was the smell of burning that got his attention then, as he descended the grand staircase, the billowing white cloud leading him toward the kitchen. The sound of coughing got him to run a bit, but she already had the blackened lumps off the stove top, her face looking sad until she saw him. Then she coughed again and pointed with a single and very accusing finger.

"Those cookies did
not
turn out well at all. I just left for a second. So much for impressing you with my wifely skills, huh? I was going to use them as a bribe, so that you wouldn't force Uncle Richard to annul the marriage. Is that done already?" She didn't seem weepy about it, but looked away, not making eye contact.

"We're still married and staying that way. We hardly talked about that at all. I was just having a moment. I guess it's going to happen for a while, but I'll try not to be a jerk about it, if I can. Count Lairdgren came and told me to stop being a little wimp and to start trying to be a real person again. I don't think we're getting out of this, so... I can show you how to make cookies? I know some tricks." He looked at what she had and smiled, since the lumps looked absolutely horrible. "For instance, did you know that they're baked
in
the oven, like a cake, not made on top of the stove, like a pancake?"

Trice smiled and then covered her mouth to cough again.

"Sure. I was just trying something new. I'm good that way."

She probably was. Smiling was still hard and he felt raw and emotional, but he could pretend to be there with her and make at least as much of an effort as she was.

"I love you." The words just popped out, but he realized, after a fashion, that he meant them. "I just want you to know that I wasn't trying to get out of the marriage because I don't like you or anything. I just want what's best for you. That probably isn't me."

She seemed happier then and after too long turned to look at him, and then moved in and held him for a long time.

Timon started to chuckle, which got her to make a bit of a face and then shake her head slowly.

"So I can't just move past the 'I love you' part of things without it being all awkward? I didn't think so. I really do like you. More than I thought I would. I think we can make this work, if you want to try?"

"Sure, let's do it."

That got him held tighter then, "about time, do you want to do that here or should we move to the bedroom?"

He laughed at her, and rolled his eyes.

"Neither, not yet. I did manage to get a bit of a present for you. While I was out. I mean, it isn't flowers or anything nice like that, but you might like it, in abstract."

"Oh? Is it my own spy network? Or did you get the Assassins Guild?"

For half a second he wondered if she had a listening device on him, but then got that she was trying to be playful, since he'd turned her down for sex.

"Both, actually." He realized that she might not believe him so he shrugged. "Seriously. I asked, and the Count is sending over some information about both for us. We won't have to take over immediately, but he isn't fighting us on it, or making it hard. I think he's ready for someone else to do the work for him, to tell the truth."

"Really? That's..." She moved in and kissed him on the lips, a real, fully adult thing that took his breath away. He started to panic, but pulled back from that, carefully not letting Nora invade his mind. "Oh, um, sorry, I didn't mean-"

He kissed her back, repeating what she'd just done. It wasn't perfect, but it was a start. When he finished she let a smile curl on her lips.

"So, cookies. Then maybe we can do some other things?"

Timon had to look away, feeling a bit of a blush crawling up his face, warming his cheeks.

"I think... maybe we can try?"

They worked in silence for a while, neither one of them wanting to break the mood or make things too hard for the other. The place was still filled with smoke, but that didn't matter.

What did was that, for the first time since he'd been tortured, he felt like he had a small chance to begin healing. The wounds were gone from his body, and the ones in his mind would be around for a while, maybe forever. But possibly not.

With that bit of hope in mind, he stood next to his wife and showed her more than just how to make cookies. Timon showed her that they weren't alone, not if they had each other.

It was a place to begin, wasn't it?

Looking over into her big blue eyes, he nodded slightly and got back to work.

It would take time, but they had that. It would be enough.

It had to be.

Because if it didn't work, he didn't know what else to do. Life had to go on, and it would, if they made it.

Smiling he focused on the task in front of him and decided to just try and take things as they came, it might not be enough, but it was a place to start.

Other Books

By

P.S. Power

Young Ancients:

(Tor)

The Builder

Knight Esquire

Knight of the Realm

Ambassador

Counselor

Slave Line

Ancient Kings

(Timon)

The Dark Half of the Sun

Lord of the Sky

(Tiera)

A Simple Darkness

The Infected:

Proxy

Gabriel

Cast Iron

Proxy: Reunions

Cellophane

Dead End:

A Very Good Man

A Very Good Neighbor

A Very Good Thing

A Very Dark Place

Gwen Farris:

Abominations

Monsters

Strangers and Lies

Keeley Thomson:

Demon Girl

Keelzebub

Mistress of Souls

Demon Trap

Related works
:

Christmas of the Vampire

Other Places:

Shortcuts

The Lament:

Without Rhythm

Stand Alone Novels:

Crayons

An Unrelenting Terror