TheRedKing (11 page)

He touched her chin. “I don’t want to leave, Delia. Not when
we’ve just started getting to know each other, but I’ll be honest. The war will
be starting sooner than later.”

“I know.” She held his gaze and forced a smile. If he could face
everything with courage, then she could do no less. “But you’re not going today,
so let’s go to the stable.”

He smiled and again took her hand as they strolled across
the courtyard.

The castle had three stables—one for the royal coach and
riding horses, another for the horses of the general army and a third for the
steeds of the elite guards. Areus’s horse was stabled in the third. In Lortia,
the king trained with and fought alongside his men. His horse was a war
stallion.

In the stable, they passed several guards whom Areus greeted
by name.

When they reached his horse’s stall, Areus approached and
called, “Cosmo.”

The horse swung his big head over the door. Tall with a
gleaming red coat and a black mane and tail, he was bred for strength, stamina
and swiftness. His duty was to carry Areus, who was usually dressed in heavy
chainmail, into battle, often traveling and fighting for months on end.

Areus stroked the horse’s nose. Delia gazed at the man and
the beast, thinking what a perfect pair they were, both strong, handsome and
courageous. Both warriors.

“You can touch him, you know,” Areus said. “He’s usually
quite calm. That’s why he’s so perfect in battle. He’s steady and doesn’t spook
easily.”

Delia patted Cosmo’s nose. The horse grunted and dipped his
head lower so she could rub between his eyes.

“He likes you,” Areus said. “He’s always been a good judge
of character.”

Areus left her stroking Cosmo while he retrieved brushes.

Delia backed away as he opened the gate, stepped into the
stall and started brushing the stallion.

“May I?” she asked, holding out her hand.

He gave her one of the brushes and together they groomed the
horse.

“Cosmo is an interesting name,” she said. “It’s familiar for
some reason.”

“My mother’s name was Cosma.”

They fell silent for a few moments, the only sound was the
scraping of their brushes against Cosmo’s coat.

Finally Delia said, “It must have been so hard for you to
lose your mother. You were just a boy.”

His gaze remained focused on the horse’s coat. “It’s long past.”

She studied him carefully. Of course he wouldn’t want to
discuss a painful part of his past. It probably had to do with showing weakness
again. In many ways Lortia was much like Zaltana. People here prized strength,
especially in men. Perhaps because she had been reared among the sisters, but
she didn’t consider feeling pain, love or compassion weak. She sensed that deep
inside Areus didn’t either, but no doubt he was right to hide it. As king, he needed
to keep the respect and confidence of his people. As his wife she needed to
support him in any way necessary.

“Would you like to eat dinner in my chamber tonight?” he
asked. “Privately.”

She smiled. “Very much.”

“Good. I’ll be there as soon as my meeting ends.”

“I’ll be waiting.”

He took the brushes and returned them to their place. Then
they said goodbye to Cosmo and left the stable. They walked to the great hall
together where they parted ways.

Delia looked forward to tonight.

* * * * *

“Sir, one of our spies in the south has just arrived with
word of Hypatios’s army moving north.” Etor stepped into Areus’s meeting hall.
The spacious room contained a long wooden table and a collection of maps of the
Western Continent as well as other parts of the world.

Areus and his advisors had been assembled for nearly half an
hour.

Etor was late—uncharacteristic of him, especially since he
and Areus had spoken about the meeting that afternoon in the courtyard. Now the
reason for his tardiness was apparent. He had been with the spy.

“The man will be up directly to speak to you. He needs a
moment to collect himself as he has traveled hard to get here quickly.”

“So it’s true. Hippolytos has sent for his demon son,”
Leandro said.

“It surprises me he hasn’t sent him long before now,” Philip
added.

This news about Hypatios on the move wasn’t unexpected. Despite
his concern about the fighting to come, Areus couldn’t help feeling a bit
relieved as well. Waiting and wondering wasn’t good. It made a man uneasy and
allowed his mind to run away with him. He would much rather be in the thick of
the fight. The sooner it started, the sooner it would end.

A short time later, the spy arrived. The man looked as
exhausted as Etor had said, but he made his report with a calm efficiency that
Areus admired.

Weeks ago the spy had learned that King Hippolytos had
ordered Hypatios to move his army north. He was to take control of General
Zenon’s army to launch an attack on the remaining northern kingdoms, starting
with Lortia.

Despite the spy traveling at a breakneck pace, changing
horses often to reach the coast, then buying passage on the fastest ship he
could find heading north, Hypatios would probably reach the border of Lortia
within two months.

Time was short to make plans. Areus needed to meet with
Urion and the other kings as soon as possible and convince them to join him. He
hoped Rain would return quickly with reinforcements from the Ruby Order. Lortia
had a strong army, but they would be severely outnumbered and needed all the
help they could get.

Tonight’s meeting would be longer than he’d planned. There
was too much to be done in too little time. He summoned a servant to tell Delia
that he would not be joining her for dinner.

As much as he had looked forward to dining with her tonight,
he would have to cancel.

He had hoped to have more time with her before leaving for
battle. With Delia, he could forget the stress of his duties, even briefly. He
would miss her greatly, but knowing she awaited him would make his homecoming
more joyous. Despite the odds stacked against him, he would be victorious over Zaltana.
Everyone he cared about depended on it—his people, his friends and his wife. He
would not fail them.

* * * * *

When Delia got word that Areus wouldn’t be joining her for
dinner after all, she couldn’t help her disappointment. Still she understood
that his duty came first. With the threat of Zaltana hanging over their heads,
he no doubt had much to discuss and prepare.

She took her meal in the great hall. Afterward, she sat by
the fire and chatted with Alexa and Seth who had surprisingly left his
infirmary to eat with everyone else. While they talked in front of the hearth, Seth
paid particular attention to Echo. He spoke to her in a kinder tone than usual
and even asked her to join him for a walk in the courtyard.

Echo looked to Delia who dismissed her, telling her to enjoy
the evening.

That night, when Echo came to help her undress for bed, the
maid wore a strange, happy smile.

“Did you have a nice time with Seth?” Delia asked.

“When he’s not scowling, he’s actually quite pleasant,” she
said.

“He does seem to have his moments.”

“I don’t think he’s accustomed to talking to people outside
of the infirmary. He seems so confident there, almost frightening, but when he’s
not talking about medicines and healing, he’s almost…well, unsure of himself.”

This surprised Delia, but perhaps it shouldn’t have. Seth
had been dumfounded when she’d pointed out that Echo had an interest in him.

“I think because he’s so gruff most people don’t want to get
to know him,” Echo continued.

“It certainly doesn’t help him gain friends.”

“It didn’t stop you from befriending him.”

“Nor you.”

Echo smiled. “The sisters taught us to be patient with people.”

“True.”

“But thank you for losing patience with Seth today. He told
me you scolded him for what he said to me and he also said he deserved it.”

“Did he?”

“Yes. He said he was sorry.”

Delia grinned. “And I’m guessing you’ve forgiven him.”

“You know me. I don’t like to hold a grudge.”

Echo placed Delia’s dress in the trunk at the foot of the
bed.

“Is there anything you need, my lady?” asked the maid.

“No. Go to sleep, Echo. I’ll see you in the morning.”

Echo nodded and left Delia alone. Wrapped in her robe, she
meandered to the window and gazed out. The courtyard was empty, except for a
few guards on duty.

Areus wasn’t in his chamber. Tonight he and his men
assembled in another chamber more commonly used for political meetings and
planning strategy. From her window, Delia could see the light still burning in
that chamber and she couldn’t help feeling that something was terribly wrong
and that her time with Areus would be short.

Soon he would go to battle and she prayed that he would
return.

She stood, staring at the distant chamber until her bare
feet grew cold on the stone floor. Shivering, she turned from the window and
stoked the fire that had burned low in the hearth. Then she climbed into bed,
wishing Areus was with her.

Just when her eyelids started to droop, someone tapped on the
door.

“Yes?” she called.

“Delia, it’s Areus.”

She rose, not bothering to put on her robe, hurried to the
door and opened it.

Areus stood, wearing his boots and breeches. He had
discarded his tunic and wore only a billowy white shirt, the ties open in
front. His curly hair was in disarray, as if he’d been raking his hands through
it. There were shadows beneath his eyes and his expression was
uncharacteristically strained.

“Did I wake you?” he asked.

“No. I wasn’t asleep. Come in.” She stepped back and he
entered the chamber, closing the door behind him.

“Would you like something to drink?”

He shook his head and pulled her into a snug embrace. She held
him tightly, caressing his back.

“Is something wrong?” she asked.

“I’m just tired.” He released her and strode to the window.

She approached slowly and touched his arm.

Not glancing at her, he said, “I wanted to see you.”

She smiled faintly. “Then you should look at me.”

He turned to her, smiled slightly and cupped her face. He
bent and brushed her mouth with a tender kiss.

Areus gently tugged her in front of him and wrapped his arms
around her from behind. He kissed her ear and nuzzled her neck, then pointed
out the window.

“It’s so quiet out there. So peaceful,” he said.

“The courtyard is beautiful in the moonlight,” she replied
softly. “I love the full moon.”

“When you look at a night like this, it’s hard to believe
there’s any real danger in the world. That somewhere there’s a battle raging.”

“Or that one might someday be right here.” She glanced at
him over her shoulder. “Something’s happened. I know it.”

“I’ll be going soon, Delia. A messenger leaves at first
light to arrange a meeting for me, your father and the kings of Fernhill and
Drakesglenn.”

“To talk about Zaltana?”

“To discuss uniting our armies against Zaltana, yes. It’s
our best chance to drive Hippolytos back for good.”

“They’ll have to listen to you. My father knows you’re the
only one who can protect us. He’ll have no choice but to support you. Our
marriage sealed the alliance between Lortia and Prem.”

“True, but I don’t think your father planned to join in a war,
even though I don’t know how he expected to avoid it.”

“As long as Zaltana exists, there’s no way to avoid war with
them. Hippolytos is as much a monster as Mar Maska himself.”

Mar Maska, a legendary king of Zaltana, was said to have
conquered almost half the world. According to myth, he was a warrior king with
mystical powers—a wizard.

“He’s just a man,” Areus stated. “And a man can be defeated.”

“What about his son? It’s said that Hypatios has strange powers,
that he communicates with beasts.”

“I’ve also heard he bleeds and if so, he can die.”

“Areus—”

He tightened his hold on her and kissed her hair. “You needn’t
concern yourself with this. Not now.”

“You’ve had a long day and should rest.”

He sighed. “Sleep will elude me tonight, but I don’t want to
disturb you. I’ll go to my chamber.”

She turned and placed her palms against his chest. Gazing up
at him, she said, “Please don’t. Come to bed.”

Delia took his hand and guided him toward the bed. While she
climbed in, he pulled off his shirt. He removed his boots, breeches and socks,
then slipped beneath the covers.

Tugging her into his arms, he sighed and said, “I missed you
tonight.”

“I missed you too.” She cuddled even closer to him and
kissed his warm, hard chest.

Areus turned and pressed her onto her back, looming above
her, he gazed into her eyes and said, “I want you, Delia.”

Somehow, she knew what he really meant was
I need you
.

Weaving her fingers through his hair, she said, “I’m yours.”

He covered her mouth in a deep, passionate kiss.

Closing her eyes, she surrendered completely to his kiss.
Their tongues mated, caressing each other. Delia ran her hands over his strong
shoulders and down his supple spine. Her fingertips trailed over his scars. Her
bliss was momentarily shattered when she thought of future scars his body would
bear, should he survive the coming battles.

He would survive. She couldn’t think otherwise and risk him
seeing how concerned she was, how afraid of losing him. She wouldn’t allow him
to ride into battle thinking that she didn’t have faith in him as a leader.

Yet even the strongest leader wasn’t immortal. Though she
hadn’t known her husband long, she had already developed strong feelings for
him—so powerful that she was starting to worry about not conceiving an heir
within the year.