Page 9

Chapter 9

Marius

M arius raised a hand and one of the Brass Lantern’s barkeeps came running.

“Sir, how can I help?”

“Will you have one of your trusted fellows to take this message to the Leatherworker at the end of Rumbling Lane?” He handed over a note he’d written about Tahlia and her needs with regard to new riding leathers. He’d promised a king’s sum for a quick job overnight. It wouldn’t be more than the male had managed before for Marius.

Finishing the ale he’d ordered after Tahlia’s exit, Marius gathered his materials and set off for the commander’s chambers. Tahlia’s fierce defense of her actions in the arena rang through his head despite his best efforts to stop thinking about her.

The commander’s palatial chambers spread across the very top floor of the Mist Knight’s castle. A platform operated by staff who worked an elaborate pulley system deposited Marius at the door rather quickly. A servant let him in and Marius awaited the commander and Ophelia for an evening drink they had arranged earlier. The foyer of the lodgings was set with crystalline floors in a mosaic pattern, and the windows looked over the cliffs to distant peaks ringed in fog and ripe valleys illuminated by the moon and stars. The commander’s chambers brought truth to what the newcomers called the Mist Knights’ castle—the castle in the sky.

But even all the beauty couldn’t calm his nerves.

Tonight, he would ask for Ophelia’s hand in marriage.

It begins now, Bellona. I will make you proud. Your sacrifice will not be wasted.

His chest ached still for his long-dead sister. He would forget the loss for a day or so, and then, just when he least expected it, the grief hit him like a trebuchet’s stone.

“Ah, Marius, so good to see you.” Commander Gaius walked into the room. He had slicked his blue-green hair—the same shade as his daughter’s—away from his face and his gaze was as cool as it ever was. This male was always very in control of his feelings and he never let anyone see more than he wanted them to see.

Marius stood from the pillowed stool he’d been provided and bowed curtly. “Commander Gaius. I hope this evening finds you well.”

“Ophelia says you have something to ask me. She will be here shortly. Her new valet required a bit of a talk.”

Marius honestly didn’t want to know why Ophelia had yet another new valet.

“Yes, should we wait for her?”

“Of course.” Gaius called for crystal wine and had Marius join him in sitting by the snapping fire at the far end of the room.

The wine was exquisite, just like the commander’s clothing and chambers. All was in its proper place and in the best condition. Gaius did everything the way Marius endeavored to do. If Marius played his cards right, he would be just like Gaius someday. Marius’s father, Aloysius, had been a good male, but not the type one looks up to. He’d been messy and forgetful. And he’d made one terrible mistake after another. In low moments, Marius believed Aloysius had brought death upon himself and upon Marius’s mother as well. If he’d been paying more attention to detail, Aloysius and Marius’s mother wouldn’t have been visiting a fever-stricken town.

Gaius sipped his wine from a rare Murrina cup. The carver’s resin applied to the purple, green, and pink fluorite was known to give the contents a unique flavor. “How did your interviews go?”

Stomach tightening with nerves, Marius drank most of the wine from the Murrina cup Gaius had given him. “Good. I only sent one away. An older male who didn’t have the experience necessary.”

Nodding, Gaius motioned for the servant to pour more wine for Marius. “How many competitors do we have this year?”

“Eleven.”

“Have any bets on who will win the position?”

“Not yet. I’ve only seen those I interviewed.”

“You didn’t eat with the others?”

Mealtimes with his fellow knights provided not just food, but information on the goings-on. “No, I was early to the Brass Lantern and ate there.”

Ophelia strode into the room wearing a heavily embroidered dress and her golden laurels. “I hope I didn’t keep you waiting long.”

Her gaze found Marius’s and she raised an eyebrow and parted her lips. She was a handsome woman and many suitors had knocked on her chamber door over the last two years, but thus far, she had only paid attention to Marius. He was proud of that fact, but he wished his body stirred when she came near. Surely, at some point he would find her physically attractive.

He stood and kissed her cheek. She smelled of the thyme honey lotion she used daily. Gaius handed her a cup of wine from the servant’s tray. She sipped and joined them by the fire.

“What have you two been discussing? The interviews, I’d guess?”

“Yes,” her father answered. “We only lost one in the process.”

“Odd that we only had twelve attempt to compete. Everyone is scared of our High Captain.” She nudged Marius with an elbow. “Don’t you ever stop being your vicious self, darling.”

Gaius eyed Marius. “I don’t think we need to worry about that. Marius is as predictable as the sunset.”

“Unless he is in the air.” Ophelia’s eyes went hazy, her attraction to Marius obvious.

Marius realized he was frowning. He worked his features into a less severe countenance. “I think it’s the weather more than anything. Those late snows kept some from travel.” It was springtime in the mountains now, but the realm was large and travel wasn’t easy for everyone even when they were only a mountain or two away.

“He’s too humble, our High Captain is,” Gaius said, raising his cup to Ophelia.

She raised hers too.

Marius grumbled and finished his wine. He’d grown up on watered crystal wine, so it didn’t hit him like it did newcomers. He’d forgotten to warn the interviewees about that particular danger… He would need to send messages out tonight before anyone ended up completely hammered from the special drink.

“So, Marius.” Gaius leaned forward and rested his elbows on his knees. The edges of his eyes showed his years. “You had something to ask me?”

His stomach twisted. Would Gaius say yes or have him thrown out?

“I have come to ask for Ophelia’s hand in marriage.”

Gaius smiled warmly. Ah, he’d already known. Of course he had. The male knew everything that happened or was even about to happen on the mountain.

Standing, Gaius raised his cup. “I give my blessing to what will become the most powerful couple in any realm!”

Ophelia kissed Marius fully on the lips, and he pulled away, not wishing to display so much affection in front of her father. A scowl shadowed her face for a second, but soon she was smiling again.

“Thank you, Father. I agree. We are going to rule this mountain.”

Her eyes glittered like a snake’s and Marius’s stomach knotted. Was he making a mistake? Surely not. He mentally shook off the worry and raised his cup, toasting to Gaius’s good health and Ophelia’s prowess in the sky.

Gaius excused himself to talk to a servant, leaving Ophelia with Marius.

What would Ophelia have done in Tahlia’s place when the youngling ran free? Ophelia smoothed her gold-threaded dress and sat beside Marius. No, she wouldn’t have risked her life for the dragons. Unless glory would have come from the action. But that was wise; that was basically what he’d told Tahlia—that her actions had been foolish. Why could he not stop wondering and thinking about her?

“What’s wrong, darling?” Ophelia touched his shoulder as a servant approached Gaius and asked about instructions for tomorrow’s event.

“Nothing. Thank you. I’m simply tired. I might go soon. Would that disappoint you?”

“I’d rather you stay for a while. We should burn a dragon lavender to commemorate our engagement.”

Something about talking to Ophelia now felt hollow when compared to his tension-filled interview with Tahlia. He studied Ophelia’s face and the look she wore when glancing over at her father. Who was she really? He had never asked her many personal questions about courage and why she rode dragons. How could he wed someone simply based on their blood?

“Yes. Let’s do that,” he said finally.

He walked with her to the small garden that grew outside the balcony doors. The moonlight scattered over the dragon lavender’s dark purple blooms and patterned leaves. The lines in the leaves resembled dragon scales. Together, they plucked a leaf and a bloom each and started back inside.

Marius stopped Ophelia with a hand to her arm. “Can I ask you something as your intended, not as your High Captain?”

“Anything.”

“Why do you ride?”

“It was my destiny to ride dragons. Could I have been anything else with a father like mine?”

He lifted his eyebrows and watched Gaius through the uneven glass of the balcony window. “Probably not. But really, what do you love about it?”

Ophelia’s lips bunched and she looked out over the cliffs. “I can’t say I love it any more than other exciting pastimes like dancing, gambling, or even dazzling my intended with seduction.” She faced him and ran a hand down his torso, then along the inner side of his thigh. Her lips found the crook of his neck and she kissed him there. The scent of her lotion made his head pound.

She drew back and eyed him warily. “Don’t you like me touching you?”

“I do. Of course I do.”

She crossed her arms. “You’ll have to do better than that to persuade me to spend all my years in your bed.”

He forced a chuckle, his stomach turning. Why didn’t his body respond to her? She was beautiful. Strong. Smart. He wanted her. Leaning close, he swept his hands up to her face and cradled her jaw. The lavender wedged between his fingers touched her ear.

“How is this?” He set his mouth to hers and slowly licked her upper lip.

She moaned and pressed against him. “Let’s go to my chamber.”

“Your father is here. I’d rather wait until…a better time.” He stepped back, wishing his heart had been beating as quickly as Ophelia’s.

Her lips became a flat line, but she nodded. “I understand. I was just carried away.” A rare smile softened her face.

Was he being silly? They were adults. They were engaged. But it felt wrong to be so emotional in front of the commander even if he did approve of their relationship.

They went back inside and joined Gaius. At the commander’s crystal altar, Marius and Ophelia placed their dragon lavender into the rose-hued bowl and Gaius lit the offerings. As the sweet and smoky scent laced the air, Marius started to speak the ritual words, but Gaius beat him to it.

“Bless these two in their coming union and in the joining of two great minds and hearts. May their lives be long and fruitful, filled with the rage of dragons and the defeat of their enemies.”

Marius and Ophelia knelt for a moment, then stood up again. They set their fists to their right temple each, a sign of understanding and the final step in this small ritual.

After another glass of wine by the fire, a heated discussion arose about the competitors.

“The Bloodworkers have four samples with significantly high amounts of Mistgold,” Gaius said. “We should pull from that small group instead of keeping it open to lesser bloods.”

Ophelia stared at the fire and ran her finger over the edge of her cup. “I agree.”

“But why not test all those who passed the first steps?” Marius asked. “The ones with the best blood might be terrible on dragonback.”

Gaius brushed some lavender ash from his sleeve. “But their training is noted, and with that much Mist Fae blood, they wouldn’t have been able to lie.”

Marius moved his cup from hand to hand and back again. Why had he even said that to Gaius? All the best dragon riders had extremely high levels of Mistgold in their veins.

“True,” Marius said. “Do you want to change the tournament process now? For tomorrow?” It was too fast, but if Gaius demanded the change… That would be chaotic at best and terms for a small revolt if things went south.

“No, not for this one. But next time, I think you should see to that.”

“Me?”

“Once you are wed to Ophelia and your life is settled, I’m going to step down and suggest you as my replacement.”

Marius gripped the cup so hard that his forefinger knuckle popped. This was what he’d always wanted. So why was his head pounding and his stomach twisting? Perhaps he was afraid of failure.

“Thank you very much, Commander. I’m flattered.”

“It’s not flattery. You lead better than I ever did and you’re an ace in the air. I want only the best for you,” he said, turning to face Ophelia, “and this male is the best.”

Ophelia tilted her head and regarded her father. “Are you certain you’re ready to step down?”

“I’m ready as soon as you are.”

As soon as Marius and Ophelia were ready to wed, he meant. This was good. So good. Wasn’t it? They would marry very soon and Marius would become commander.

Marius stood. “I’m afraid I have a headache. I need some rest. We can set a date for the wedding after the tournament. Does that work for you?”

He examined his future wife’s features, wishing she had truly answered his earlier question about dragon riding.

“I say we wed exactly one week from today.”

“So soon?” Marius’s palms grew damp. “Why rush? We can plan a proper feast and gathering if we have more time.”

Gaius rubbed his chin and glanced from Ophelia to Marius. “No reason to wait for a party you wouldn’t even wish to attend, Marius.”

It was true. Marius was not the festival type. He much preferred a book and an early bedtime—so much the better for early morning riding and training.

“No,” the commander continued, “the wedding will be held in one week. Prepare as you see fit and I will call in my steward to handle the larger details.”

“All right.” Marius bowed to each of them and left quickly.

He would be married this time next week. Shaking his head, he rapped the outer door to call up the moving platform. The pulley squeaked quietly and soon Marius was back in his room, lying on his bed and wondering at the untamable storm inside his heart.