Page 19 of Oath of Betrayal
‘You want to talk?’ I continued, ‘Fine, we can talk. But this time I’ll do the talking, and you’ll listen,’ I said, standing up, though my regal pose was spoiled as I swayed from too much wine. I’d been sitting for too long on an uncomfortable bench, and my muscles protested. My legs wobbled, and Ormond grabbed my waist, pulling me close with effortless ease.
‘You’re doing it again. Why did you help me earlier and … how …’ I said before a hiccup forced me to stop.
‘You looked … startled earlier, and I didn’t want you to suffer. I admit your power had a bite to it, but I’m no stranger to pain. As for the rest, I promise to listen.’
‘You haven’t so far. You just keep giving me orders,’ was my retort, and he sighed.
‘Is that how you see it? I’m not trying to intimidate you, but I’m a military man who’s used to plain speaking. Would you prefer that I insult your intelligence by muddying the waters and whispering sweet nothings in your ear? I could do that if it would make you happy or more compliant, but we both know it would just make you angry,’ he said, still holding me close.
‘What …?’ I flinched when he bent to my ear. His breath caressed my skin, warming it against the chilly evening breeze. ‘I can be very persuasive when I choose to be, so tell me if I’m wrong. Do you want me to be … persuasive? Or can we continue with reasoned discussion?’ he went on, pulling me even closer and inhaling deeply.
‘I saw the way you looked at me in the fields, Annika. I’m not immune to this, so if you want me to seduce you, I can. There is no means I wouldn’t use to bring you to the fortress. You will join me tomorrow, but I will let you decide whether you’ll come willingly as my guest or under the geas as my ward. I don’t want to order you around. The way you treated Vahin … the way you talked to me … I’d prefer your cooperation, Ani, so I ask, as humbly as I can: please, will you talk to me?’
Geas? Did he say he had my geas?
He continued speaking, but all I could think of was the geas. Gods, how I hated that word. My body was trembling in his grasp, and for once, I was grateful, as I suspected I would have collapsed if not for his support.
If he had my geas, he knew exactly who I was. The only way he could have gotten it was by appealing to the royal mage. I looked up to find that his dark green eyes expressed nothing but concern.
‘Annika?’ He placed a hand on my cheek. His simple gesture centred me enough to break through the initial panic. He was still holding me, but as I pulled away, Orm reluctantly let me go. If he genuinely knew the words of my geas, I was trapped, and we both knew it.
‘Do you really have it?’ I asked quietly, and he nodded. ‘Fine, my lord, you win. Let’s talk. I will meet you at the floodplains. There’s an old lightning-struck tree nearby. Just wait for me—’ I stopped when he raised his hand.
‘We will go together. I’m sorry, but I can’t let you burn your house again. It took a lot of effort to find you after your firstdisappearance,’ he said. When I bristled, Orm gently tucked a stray strand of hair behind my ear as the wind blew it across my face.
‘I’m not your enemy. I am, however, the commander who protects these lands, and you are a conduit mage swornto defend the kingdom. I wish we’d met under different circumstances, but the fates rarely give us favourable choices,’ he said. I saw regret flashing in his eyes before he exhaled slowly. ‘Let’s go, my lady. It is time we had that talk.’
Icouldn’t believe how much meeting Annika complicated my plans. The task was simple: come to Zalesie, find the mage, and use the geas to make her come to the fortress for whatever Alaric needed her to do.
Since learning Ani was the mage that had caused the avalanche ten years ago, the same person that Vahin rescued right after the incident, I’d been unscrupulous in ensuring she would have no choice in following my orders. However, Ani was nothing like I’d expected.
I couldn’t shake the impression that I’d just sparred and lost, despite holding all the cards. She’d done it so skilfully I wasn’t even disturbed by my loss. And her appearance … The uniform she wore made her look dangerous and professional while accentuating her femininity and softening the righteous indignation she wielded like a sword.
She was also very drunk, glaring at me each time she stumbled, almost as if blaming me for the uneven cobblestonesunder her feet. ‘Slow down, there’s no rush,’ I said, once again grabbing her arm to prevent her from falling.
My sigh as I wrapped her hand around my forearm earned me another murderous glare before I saw a flash of surprise in Ani’s eyes, but something felt off. It was almost as if it wasn’t me she was seeing until, with a quick shake of her head, my companion recovered her senses.
‘Fine, we can slow down, so you can let me go.’
‘No,’ I answered, realising as I spoke that I enjoyed having her beside me. I expected my companion to protest again, but whatever she’d wanted to say died in a huff as she stumbled, gripping my arm tighter with a quiet grumble.
The woman was a contradiction, reasonable yet volatile. I’d almost burst into laughter, realising her unassuming allure was what had made me change the plans I’d meticulously implemented over the last three months—and all she had done was caress my dragon.
The search for the elusive mage from the lake had been challenging. We knew next to nothing. Just a physical description and that she was a conduit. So it had been a relief when Alaric came up with the idea of checking the royal records for living conduit mages, only to find one matching the description whosedeath, albeit recorded, was flagged for an unknown reason. By coincidence, it was the rookie who caused the Lost Ridge incident.
‘How did you find me?’ she asked as we walked, and I smirked. I couldn’t tell her that I had followed her trail like a bloodhound. That I had sent my men to all towns within walking distance of the lake to bring me the names of the resident mages. Still, I felt I owed her some explanation.
‘Your name, and the fact that Alaric—my fortress mage whom you met at the lake—sensed you were a conduit. There are few conduits in the royal register, and no high-class mage decidesto live in the borderlands. Yet here in Zalesie was Ani Jaksa, who miraculously appeared just under ten years ago. It also helped that her surname was the human version ofJah’aksai… the name of the fae healer who was recorded as one of a dead conduit’s Anchors.’
She looked at me sharply before her shoulders slumped. ‘And I thought I hid so well. So … the strangers that kept coming to the town …’
‘Were my men. You have a talent for disappearing. I knew I couldn’t leave you alone despite your connection to this place. You are a weapon, Annika. A weapon I desperately need.’
I couldn’t take any chances, so I had posted men to monitor Annika Diavellar. Some of them tried to approach her with my invitation. Unfortunately, every time she saw a stranger, Annika wouldn’t even give them the time to speak. They’d returned to the fortress with gaps in their memory, so I’d come here expecting to find an arrogant mage lording her status over the local population. Only to find a foul-mouthed but caring and respected member of the community.
Interestingly, I’d also discovered that she was also the reason we never received requests for soldiers or an increased dragon presence here. Ani was culling the monster population around the town like they were pests, and knowing how well she knew these mountains, I wanted to ensure she stayed where she was until Maiden’s Day.
‘How did you get my geas and … order for the mages to take part in the Maiden’s Day circus?’ she asked, still slurring her words.
