The Shrinemaiden (The Maidens) (9 page)

She was even more shocked to realize that it was the Sarcopian king himself. Richly dressed in robes of green and gold the night before, he was clad more simply, in gray breeches and a shirt trimmed in dark turquoise. King Garrant was a handsome man, with his light eyes and thick yellow hair that fell down his face in golden waves, nestling against the nape of his neck. He had high cheekbones and a finely shaped nose, and a sensual mouth now curved into an amused smile as he watched her bent over among the plants. He carried a riding crop in one hand, and looked to have been out riding.

“My lord!” With a start, Adelai rose to her feet and curtsied low, trying to hide her sudden fear. All the gossip about the king and what he had done, came rushing back to her memory. If both King Belair and the captain told the truth, then this man standing before her was one of the cruelest and most merciless leaders in the kingdoms. “Your Majesty,” She murmured, “I am sorry to have been exploring, I was - “

“Your name is Adelai, isn’t it?” He had a quiet way of talking, almost genial in its tone, but that amiability and his smile somehow didn’t quite reach his eyes, which continued to scrutinize her. “The beautiful shrinemaiden the king of Atalantea paid so much for.”

Adelai swallowed. King Belair said that King Garrant would be interested in her because he was. “Yes, your Majesty.”

“I can understand why you attract his attention. You are a beautiful young thing, aren’t you?” He circled her like a lion would its prey, and Adelai remained perfectly still. He drew closer, allowed his fingers to graze her cheek. His hands continued downward, however, a thumb tracing down the contours of her jaw, sliding down the side of her neck until it settled against her collarbone, where cloth and skin met. “Beautiful enough for a king, no doubt.” He added softly, watching her heaving chest.

He was toying with her, Adelai knew as much, and she also knew that she could do very little about it. “He seemed to think so,” she said boldly, trying to mask her fear with brave words. She saw his eyes widen slightly, and he laughed.

“I like my shrinemaidens with a little fire in them. It would appear that Belair and I have more than a few things in common.” She could feel his breath along her neck, his hands growing bolder. He cupped her breasts in his hands, and Adelai’s breathing grew uneven as he pressed his chest against her back. She felt his warmth even through her gown, could feel something hard and insistent pressing against the small of her back. “How did you like your accommodations, Adelai?”

“You have a beautiful palace.” Adelai whispered, choking back a soft cry. As frightened as she was of him, she could not help her body’s response toward his ministrations, though she hated it. He squeezed her breasts harder, fingers coaxing her nipples into hardness.

“I have always been curious as to Belair’s choice of women.” He murmured against her ear. One hand continued to knead her left breast and the other disappeared from her view. “His wife is beautiful, but seems something of a cold fish. I would have thought he would prefer a woman of wilder passions.” Adelai could feel the back of her skirts being lifted.

His hands touched the back of her thighs, and she gasped when he found her shift. “Were you very wet when he entered you, Adelai? When he took your sweet cunt for the first time?” He nudged the thin cloth to one side, and laughed again when he felt her wetness pooling in her sex. “Were you this wet for him as you are for me now, Adelai?” A finger slid into her without warning, forcing its way into her welcoming, traitorous hole. Adelai was ashamed to find herself moaning.

He had pressed her body forward so that she was leaning her full weight against a large stone statue, bracing herself while he forced a knee in between her legs. She could hear him unfastening his breeches behind her. He added a second finger, and then began to fuck her with them in long, hard strokes, his breathing harsh. And then three fingers; stretching her, curling inside to seek out the sweet spot she knew could make her spend quickly. She was still so tender from the night before, and the pleasure was exquisite. What should I do, Adelai thought, dazed, even as she arched into his hand. She knew that the Sarcopian king was using her to get a message across to King Belair, and knew she must put a stop to this soon.

Adelai remembered her schooling well. She moaned, a little louder than she normally would, her hips gyrating around his hand, and the king took this as a sign. The fingers withdrew from her, and she whimpered, feeling the loss.

“Quite a good start to your career. Being fucked by two kings in the space of a day.” She could feel the thick head of his cock settle against the opening of her sex, felt the tip begin to enter her, and knew it was time to move.

With more effort and willpower than she would have wanted, she tore herself away from his grasp, pushing him away. She gathered her skirts and retreated rapidly till there were several feet between her and the Sarcopian king. The surprise on King Garrant’s face was obvious. Adelai could see his cock, large and purple, a little wider than the Captain’s though not quite as long. He had been unprepared by her sudden movement, and lust and frustration was all over his face to see.

And, for a brief flicker: fury. It was only for a brief second before he managed to school his expression, but it contorted that handsome face into a beast’s; teeth pulled back in an angry snarl, those pale eyes suddenly alight with emotion for the first time. Adelai finally understood what the king and the captain had meant when they called him dangerous, and could now understand why the captain, who should have been his most loyal confidante, had decided to defect to the enemy side.

She pretended not to see that look on his face, made her voice as light and as teasing as she could possibly make it. For the first time she was thankful for the high priestess, for being an exacting schoolmistress.
Keep your true emotions hidden. Never show anyone what you are truly thinking of, and if you must, be insipid. There is no better person to fool than those who think they are smarter than you.
It had been one of the main precepts she taught to her students, and Adelai had learned to hide her emotions and exchange them for a frivolous demeanor.

“Your Majesty,” she said breathily, “I would be lying if I did not admit that I find you attractive, and your methods… not without their merit.” Her voice dipped coyly. “But I am afraid the high priestess would take a stick to my back had she known I had offered my services without any financial obligation in the bargain, no matter how… persuasive, or royal, the client might be.”

King Garrant had taken back full control of his emotions, and he had fastened his breeches again. The sardonic smile on his face was back, though cold eyes watched her. “So you are saying,” he said, with a slow twitch of his lips, “that you are refusing a quick dalliance with me because I had not offered a contract with you?”

“Would you fault me for looking out for myself? Oh, my hair!” Adelai began fussing at her dress, trying to pat her hair back in place, arching her back and displaying the full breasts he had only a few minutes ago been concentrated on, back at him. “She was very adamant about what we are supposed to accept. Even with a king of your power and influence, a free tumble is still a free tumble.” She smiled invitingly back at him, her eyes admiring his body even as she prayed fervently he would not take her up on the offer she was about to make. “If your Majesty would be willing to negotiate, perhaps I could be convinced?”

The king laughed. He moved, taking the several steps necessary to stand before her again. He captured her chin with one hand, forcing her to look back at him. “Your innocent-like beauty belies your cunning, my dear.” Adelai hid her growing fear with a thin, puzzled smile. It did not surprise her to know that he had seen through her guise. “I see that there is more to you than first appears. I had looked forward to a quick fuck with you, but it seems that you are someone to be savored, like good wine. Good. I hate simpering.” His thumb traced her lower lip, her mouth parting open from the pressure. He bent his head, and she thought he might kiss her. But he stopped, his face only an inch away.

“King Belair chose wisely.” The Sarcopian king said softly, and the smile on his face was no longer that of amusement.

“Your Majesty?” It was one of the courtiers hovering uncertainly to one side, nervous eyes darting between her and the king. “General Kazer has arrived.”

Adelai wanted to kiss the man, for interrupting at such an opportune moment.

The king stepped back, still smiling. “Someday, I shall find out for myself. I hope to see you very soon, Adelai.”

Adelai watched the king of Sarcopia walk away. It was only after he had disappeared completely from view did she sink down onto the ground, her legs barely able to keep her standing. He had known. He had been playing with her all along. The chance to get for free what the King of Atalantea had gotten for an outstanding three million marks… she was beginning to understand just why he was feared. Had she succumbed to his desires right then and there, he would have no longer given her any thought, and the mission King Belair had entrusted to her all for naught. He would have spread that about, that he had sampled the king’s shrinemaiden without any gold changing hands, and her reputation would have been severely tainted.

But she hadn’t, and now it seemed that his interest in her was peaking instead of waning. A part of her was relieved that she had not endangered her duties for several minutes of pleasure, but still another part of her was almost disappointed. It was the coward’s way out, she knew, but she was that close to never having needed to fulfill her duties as a spy in the first place.

The high priestess’ eyes narrowed when Adelai told her of what had transpired in the gardens that afternoon, though she was not surprised. “We expected him to make a move,” she admitted, “though I did not expect him to act this quickly. Verily, he is as shrewd as Belair believes. It was good that you managed to keep your head about, or he would have destroyed in one hour what we had been seeking to circumvent for months now.” The tone in her voice implied that she held Adelai’s willpower into question, but to her credit Adelai took the mild rebuke meekly enough, acknowledging that the woman had a point.

“Still, everything worked to our advantage, in the end. He will be most inquisitive now that his attention has been encouraged. This will not be the last ploy he shall have in motion, girl, and you best see to it that you are aware of others he will concoct next time.” Much to Adelai’s surprise, the woman placed a thin, bony arm around her shoulders. The trembling in her body had long since subsided, though her unease remained.

“I was once like you, a long time ago,” she said softly. “Smart for her age, curious and bold in her ways and her words. I enjoyed several contracts and established connections with many of the prominent kings of my day, least of which was Belair’s own father.” She sighed, and her voice changed. “We found much pleasure in each other’s company, and not always for the things you might think. But despite all the influence I could command then, when I could have my pick of any one king or noble of my choosing, I found that I had very little power to control my own life, to do what my heart desires. It was only after I succeeded to high priestess of Inne-Anneah that I was able to enjoy freedom, and I have found since then that I would have given up the riches I had collected and the power I had earned over the years for a day’s worth of freedom as a young girl. I am reminded of them again every time I look at you. Perhaps soon enough, you will be luckier than I had.”

The shrinemaidens’ belongings were packed and stored away, and Adelai and her sisters soon settled themselves in carriages that were less ornate than the ones the guests owned. It would take several hours for them to reach the borders of Atalantea, and a few more before arriving at the Temple of Inne-Anneah, and it would be evening by then. The long journey home gave Adelai a lot of time to mull things over, even as her sisters gossiped and laughed among themselves.

She had never been one to take control of her own destiny. She had always known since a very young age that she had very little choice in what she was to do. Shrinemaidens may seem to have little care in the world, immersing themselves only in their pleasures and those of their clients, but she knew that this falsehood was what encouraged their prestige. Shrinemaidens had just as little choice about their upbringing as the common slave, though their cages were more gilded, their lifestyles more opulent. Many were happy with their way of life, and while Adelai herself had led a life of comfort till then, she had always wondered if there could be something more, a life she could live for herself for once, and not for others.

And yet the high priestess had mentioned a choice. Ambiguous as it was, it gave her much to hope for, that she need not have to live the shrinemaiden’s life, to be able to take control of her life in the bloom of youth rather than wait for the cruelty of time, as the high priestess was forced to do. Wrapped in her cloak, Adelai closed her eyes. Thoughts of the captain swirled in her mind again, as they often did during weaker moments, as the carriage clattered along the cobblestones, crossing the first few miles of the journey leading them back to Atalantea.

CHAPTER SEVEN

Training Begins

It had been three days since arriving back at the temple of Inne-Anneah, three days since she had returned to the rooms she occupied and loved, overlooking the small garden where she tended her own simple flowers and herbs. It had been three days since every one of her other sisters had been called to the high priestess’ office, presumably to be assigned their training, while Adelai paced her rooms alone, fretted, and worried. Not even caring for her beloved prize roses, yellow golden blooms tinged along the corners with apple-red hues, could cure her of her nerves.

Why hadn’t the high priestess summoned her? She knew that her mission was of great importance, and could not understand the delay. Three days spent not knowing what was to happen would try even the most patient of saints. Knowing the high priestess well enough though, Adelai played her game and waited, though she thought she might go mad as the days passed.