Page 15 of Oaths & Vengeance (Realm of Zadrya #1)

Aella

I stepped out of the portal into the late afternoon sun at Tradain.

It was equal parts a large village and a military training camp.

Everyone who lived here was either in the Therressian Army, a family member of a soldier, or working to support them.

The entire place was designed to be clean and uniform, without embellishments aside from our hippogriff crest, painted in golden yellow, on the walls of several buildings.

As the story went, my family had used the half-eagle, half-horse for transportation thousands of years ago on the fae homeworld, but they weren’t allowed to take them when they fled to Paxia.

The housing—all similar forest green two and three-bedroom homes—and the rows of barracks formed a circle around the training grounds. We had areas designated for archery, magic practice, sword and knife exercises, duels, and mounted combat drills.

One could find the stables, armory, and blacksmiths on the north end.

On the opposite, one could visit uniform and clothing shops, tailors, and food and spice stalls.

It only took five minutes to figure out the layout on one’s first stay, despite the population being over ten thousand.

That didn’t include those only here for six-week reserve training most male and female fae received at eighteen years old.

My uncle enacted that requirement when he became Lord of Therress as part of his mission to ensure the safety of his people.

Of course, the active troops still did most of the defending since they trained full-time.

I found my friend, Sariyah, in the uniform shop. Her back faced me as she stood before an officer’s uniform, sparks of magic flying from her hands as she coated the tunic and pants with protection enchantments. That was her specialty.

Those with enough coin could hire her to ensure arrows found it more difficult to penetrate the cloth or render their uniforms more impervious to offensive spells.

Technically, she could make the clothing entirely invulnerable to damage, but that took a week, and she massively drained herself to do it, so she charged enough that it discouraged everyone except the richest high fae.

It also didn’t necessarily protect the wearer’s exposed skin.

Nothing was foolproof aside from avoiding battles altogether.

“Be with you in a minute,” she said, not looking back.

Her rich brown hair was in a loose braid down her back, reaching her waist. One could make out her generous curves through her simple blue muslin dress.

She exercised and trained frequently since her father was an officer and insisted on it, but she also enjoyed cooking and food.

Sariyah was the most in-shape woman I knew while maintaining an enviable figure.

She could take the obstacle course in the nearby woods like a champion.

While she received considerable male attention, she rarely returned it, preferring to be picky about where to spend her time.

I’d known her for as long as I could remember since my father had also been stationed here until he died in battle.

When I moved away, we began taking turns visiting each other.

I stood quietly waiting. There wasn’t much to see since the front of the shop was small, with only a counter, and the space behind that had a rack for hanging uniforms. The back of the shop was considerably larger.

Usually, several workers were sewing new uniforms and repairing old ones in that room.

Sariyah didn’t need much space for enchantments and enjoyed working with customers, so she often stayed up front.

Finally, she finished and turned around. “Oh, Aella! I wasn’t expecting you.”

“It was a last-minute decision,” I said, spreading my arms as she raced around the counter to hug me. “But I was overdue for a visit anyway.”

Sariyah pulled away and studied me. “Your uncle did something to upset you again, didn’t he?”

She could always read me well .

“He’s trying to marry me off soon,” I admitted. While I wanted to tell my friend about Darrow, I wasn’t ready to talk about it, even if he hadn’t told me to keep it a secret. It was safest to stick with speaking about my other marriage prospect.

Her brows knitted. “Who?”

“Baron Elgord.”

Sariyah bent over and pretended to wretch. “Lord Morgunn can’t be serious. That elf gives me the hives every time he visits here, and I swear I’ve never seen anyone with worse breath. I thought about making him a mouthwash enchantment free of charge since it would be a public service.”

“You should absolutely do that,” I said, already relaxing in my friend’s company. She had a way of lightening the mood no matter how dire the topic was, and I needed that more than ever.

She rubbed my arm. “Is he really set on the betrothal?”

I nodded. “He plans to petition King Worden when he returns from his village inspections in five days.”

“Right, but surely His Majesty will have sense and refuse to approve it.”

If I went along with Darrow, that was exactly what would happen. “I already prayed to the nameless ones about it and feel my prayers will be answered. The trouble is if the king does deny the petition, my uncle will blame me for it.”

“Better that than being tied to Elgord for the rest of your days.”

“True,” I agreed.

We continued to chat, pausing only when customers came inside until I was reasonably certain training had ended for the day.

I gave her a hug and hurried across the village to a familiar captain’s home.

Since he was an officer, he had small, private quarters near the barracks.

It wasn’t much since he wasn’t married, but he had a living area, small kitchen, bathing chambers, and a back nook with a comfortable bed.

I’d spent many nights here and planned to do the same on this visit.

I knocked on the door, and Camden answered a minute later.

His muscular form filled the doorway, already missing his shirt since he must have been planning a bath.

He was about four inches taller than me with rugged good looks, short blond hair, and lightly tanned skin.

His pointed ears were easy to see and sharper than most.

We were a little over twenty years apart in age, so he hadn’t drawn my attention until about four years ago.

He’d volunteered to help me with my sword work when I was visiting Tradain to refresh my fighting skills, and by that night, I was in his bed.

I didn’t feel deep emotions for him, but he fulfilled my needs enough I didn’t want anyone else.

“Need help?” I asked with a smile.

He grinned and took my hand, pulling me inside.

The next thing I knew, I was in his arms with his mouth pressed into mine.

It was hot and passionate, as always. I couldn’t help but compare it to Darrow, though, finding the sparks weren’t nearly as bright with the captain.

At least Camden was safe. He’d never make demands of me that could put me in danger, and sex was pretty much all he wanted from me.

He pulled away. “I was hoping you’d visit soon.”

In fact, it had been two weeks since I last came here, and I usually made it to see him more often than that. “Something came up with my uncle.” I ran my hand down his bare chest, enjoying the feel of him. “I’ll tell you about it later, but first, I want to help you with your bath.”

He pulled me close. “Only if you join me.”

“So demanding,” I said, laughing.

His brown eyes turned heated. “That’s what happens when you wait too long to visit.”

“So you missed me?” I asked, cocking my head.

He began unlacing the front of my dress, pulling it from me with practiced ease. I stepped out of it, and he removed my shift next. There was nothing underneath that. I let him look his fill, feeling myself grow wet at his lustful gaze.

He pulled me close and nuzzled my neck. “Anytime I’m not buried inside you, I miss you.”

Camden always knew the right words to say. I didn’t let myself think about my impending marriage or anything that could take away from the present moment. This was my brief escape from all my troubles. “Then what are you waiting for?”

He scooped me up, and we were in his warm bath moments later.