Page 10 of Lord of the Castle
"It is unnecessary that you leave your current posting to join us,” Lord Cedric’s low voice rumbled. “We can manage, as we have every year."
"I want this ended once and for all," the woman demanded. "It is not fair that you have to stay and fight, year in and year out. I will send a wave of magic and command the spirits to sleep."
"They are too strong. Last year—”
"Last year, I was new to the wildwood,” the woman interrupted. “I understand it now.”
"You still believe that magic alone will not defeat this," Lord Cedric growled. "It was not because of the Dark Queen that these spirits rose… You know the goddesses cursed this land."
I heard a tremor of emotion in Lord Cedric's tone, and a horror twisted in my gut. So there were monsters in the forest, put there by the goddess? And who was Lord Cedric speaking to? Even though I knew I should not be spying, I couldn’t help myself. Hardly daring to breathe, I peeked around the doorframe.
The hall was wide and empty with great windows on either side, covered in heavy drapes. Through one, I could see the dark foliage of the forest, and the leaves moved back and forth, thick and green. Daylight streamed in casting a ghostly white glow around the room. Bathed in the halo, Lord Cedric stood with his back to the entrance. His staff leaned against what looked like an altar and his hands rested on it, leaning his weight on it. He head was bowed, staring down at an object, and my breath caught.
I'd heard of the wild people who used unseemly methods to talk to the living and dead. Usually water conveyed their messages, and they could use magic to speak with someone who was not there. Those were tales I did not believe in, until now, watching Lord Cedric stand over a basin of water. Mist poured out of it but I thought I could make out a reflection in the water. The woman he spoke to? A shiver went down my spine. I began to wonder if he was who he said he was, and if I should have killed him after all.
His voice dropped, and I could no longer hear them speak, but thoughts whirled around my mind. This was why I'd been asked to assassinate Lord Cedric, because he was in cahoots with evil.
Fingers shaking, I backed away and stumbled over a vase by the door. It fell with a crash, sending shards and dust through the air. I repressed my panicked screamed as I spun around.
But Lord Cedric turned at the disturbance, brushing his unruly hair back. When his purple eyes bored into mine and I saw nothing but fury written there.
Chapter Seven
My instinct to flee faded,and although I did not have my blade, I faced him.
He moved much faster than I expected a lame man to move and he towered above me, anger etched across his face. His scar glistened even in the low light.
“An assassin and a spy,” he spat.
I swallowed my fear, balled my hands into fists and lifted my chin. Heat rose inside of me, and I knew my eyes flashed as I responded. “I am no assassin, you know this and yet you use those words against me. It was you who invited me to explore the castle. Did you hope I’d find you up here playing with dark magic? So you’d have a reason to get rid of me just like the others?”
“Do not speak of magic and darkness to me,” he growled. “You know nothing of it!”
“And I know nothing about it because you won’t tell me,” I retorted.
“You think you deserve to know what happens here because you have come from a greater kingdom. You’ve stood in the King’s court and seen greatness from far lands and thus think yourself far above the quaint, old ways of this land, with its beliefs and superstitions! You don’t believe in the power of magic, nor spirits, nor the goddesses, and you know nothing about the enchanted wildwood. Yet you come here with your assumptions, just like the rest of them, assuming you can use the blade tomake everything right when it is far, far more complicated.”
When he finished, his face was only inches from me, his breath heavy with frustration. A lump came to my throat, and I swallowed hard as my fingers loosened. He was right. I’d burst into Whispering Vine with my own assumptions, but I didn’t know the place, the village, the people, at all.
“Then show me,” I whispered. “Let me help you. At least I can have some satisfaction before I leave.”
His eyes widened and he took a deep breath, glancing away from me to gather his wits. “You surprise me, Mariel,” he said gruffly, hints of anger still threading through his voice. “Never has the kingdom sent a shield-maiden before. What did they do to make you believe you could succeed here?”
I stepped back. “Don’t patronize me. I am a shield-maiden. I fight. It doesn’t mean that I am weak, and I don’t need you looking down on me because I am a woman. Yes, I came here with assumptions, but you have been playing tricks on me since I walked in the door. You knew I was sent to spy and assassinate you, so why the tests and the traps?”
He shifted, his eyes going back to the hall where he’d performed dark magic. “There is no trust in the kingdom. There is a reason I am exiled, a reason why one guard is sent every year to kill me. It is an unending game with the kingdom: who will conquer who?”
“If they really wanted you dead, why don’t they send an army? And what have you done that is so wrong?” It was brave of me to ask but I wasn’t sure I wanted to know the answer.
Lord Cedric took my hand. Instead of pulling away, I let him. His was warm, almost comforting. I both desired and dreaded the contact, for it was not often that any had touched me with a friendly gesture, even hugs often turned into wrestling matches as warriors pitted their strength against each other. But this, the touch of his fingers against mine, made my pulse quicken. Suddenly it was hard to breathe. But why pull back when I had nothing to lose?
Uncertainty gave me pause. It would be easier to leave if I hated the man but the sensations stirring in my breast were not those of hate at all. I glanced down the dim hall where motes of dust danced in the gloomy lighting.I had to consider the possibility that staying could be more dangerous than leaving, but despite the dark magic and the talk of spirits, I was curious. What must it be like to be Lord Cedric, lord of a frightening castle with nothing but servants and his garden full of roses?In truth, this was a mystery I burned to unravel, to understand the lord of the castle once and for all.
His pupils darkened as they studied me.
I inhaled, the scent of smoke and sage filling my nostrils. My cheeks burned as alarm bells chimed in my head. I should run, escape this madness, but my feet would not willingly move.
His head angled above mine. “Your very presence has thrown me off kilter. I refuse to fight you nor threaten you. But I am not sure you should know the secrets of Whispering Vine.”
