Page 3 of Bride of the King
The golden man studied me, taking in my disheveled hair, still damp even though the wind had done it’s best to dry my waves. My yellow dress was bleached by sunlight, my face still smudged by mud as were my legs and feet. I put my hands behind my back and dropped my head, staring at the ground while tears of embarrassment pricked my eyes. I wanted to hide, but before I could run away, the man spoke.
“This is her?”
“As agreed,” my step-mother responded stiffly.
Agreed? My eyes flew to my step-mother who stood apart, not looking at me.
The golden man tilted his head, and one of his men produced a sack which jingled. Coin? He handed it to my step-mother who took it, weighing it in both hands, eyes gleaming with greed. “The price is fair,” she said, then turned back to the carriage.
Shock froze my movements, and it took a moment for me to realize what had happened. She’d just sold me? To the golden man? Eyes wide, I faced her, and my lips trembled as I spit the words. “How could you?”
Lifting her chin, she stared, not at my eyes, but at my body. “You are a burden on the family no more.” She lifted the bag of coins. “Your debt is fulfilled.”
Tears burned my eyes. My shoulders slumped as I watched the driver shut the carriage and swing up on top. With a crack of the whip, he started the horses. I flinched, as though I’d been struck myself while dread filled my heart. She’d sold me to the outlaws, those heartless wanderers who spoke to spirits and communed with nature. I’d gone from one life of slavery to the next, except I didn’t know these people, or what they would ask of me. I barely recognized the wretched cry of distress that tore from my lips and I spun, searching the trees for a place to hide. Sold! Like an animal! I could almost hear the mocking laugher of the river goddess, and it struck me like a blow to the face. One of my wishes had come true in the most devastating way.
“Lady Nesrin,” the golden man towered above me, his presence making me feel insignificant. I barely registered that he called me a lady. “I am Zander, King of the Rovers,” he explained. “Come, you must prepare. Our wedding ceremony will take place before sunset.”
His strong fingers slid around my wrist, and I noticed his face did not twist in disgust as mud crumbled off my arm. But I couldn’t stop staring at me. Did he just say wedding ceremony? It was worse, must worse than I could have imagined. Not only had I been sold to the Rovers, but I was expected to marry their king. Nothing made sense. I tugged my hand out of his grasp as spots danced before my eyes. Lightheadedness made me stumble. I took a step, wavered in place, then fainted.
3
The splashof water brought me back. I hoped I’d only fallen asleep in the river, and the old crone, the mean river goddess, and being sold to the king were only a dream. I opened my eyes, and the fluttering of a yellow tent made my heart clench. This was no dream. I looked down as a squeak of dismay left my lips. Someone had taken my clothes and left me in a washtub. It was not unlike the ones at my father’s house, a wide tub, just long enough for one to sit upright and wash. My brown hair trailed in the water, barely long enough to hide my breasts. I lifted my hands to cover my nipples and glanced around. I smelled herbs, a blend of rose and mint, and then the tent flapped open. A woman bustled in carrying a bucket and smiled when she saw I was awake. Her white hair was pulled back in a bun, she wasn’t much taller than myself with a smooth face and sharp, black eyes.
“I thought you’d come around.” She lifted the bucket with surprising strength, and warm water flooded the tub. “A hot bath is good for the soul.”
“Who are you?” I asked, my voice still trembling with uncertainty and fear.
“Oh posh.” She waved a hand and, unasked, reached for a brush. “I’m Naomi. The king asked me to help prepare you for the ceremony, as a personal favor.”
A groan left my lips as I remembered.
Naomi’s eyes narrowed. “He’s a good man. Any woman would be lucky to marry him,” she snapped. “He had his choice of women but he was forced to choose you.”
“Forced?” I raised an eyebrow. He didn’t look like a man who was ever forced, but still, it did not sit well with me that I’d been sold to pay off debts. What was in it for the king? Usually it was the woman’s family who paid her dowry for a marriage.
Naomi pressed her lips together and shook her head, although I noticed the hint of fear in her eyes. “Sit up so I can scrub you,” she said.
“I can clean myself,” I offered as the heat flushed my cheeks.
Naomi hummed. “You took a mud bath earlier, as if you wished to prepare, did you truly not know?”
I shook my head. “If my step-mother had told me, I’d have run away,” I admitted.
“Don’t try that here,” Naomi cautioned as she rubbed soap into my hair. “The trackers will bring you back within days. Besides, it’s not safe out there.”
Out there. I assumed she meant how close we were to the wildwood.
I toyed with escape for I did not desire to marry a man I did not know, or care about. He was pleasant to look at, at least, but it meant nothing. He could have a cruel, careless heart, and I was but a virgin. No man had laid hands on me, not even to kiss me. To have my wedding night forced upon me, with no time to prepare my mind or body, made terror rise in me. Would an opportunity to escape present itself? And even if it did, where would I go?
Naomi gave a sharp hiss as I sat up, and I realized she could see the bruise covering my shoulder. “Who did this to you?” She said, her fingers touching the bruise with such gentleness it did not hurt.
“I fell,” I protested, the lie slipping from my lips so quickly I did not have time to think.
She scrubbed my back, applying slight pressure to the bruised areas. When she spoke again, there was a venom in her voice that both surprised and frightened me. “No one touches you like this, no one lifts a finger to you. Never again,” she all but growled.
I opened my mouth, but her words made me close it again.
“Don’t protest. I’ve seen bruises like these before, lie all you want, but I know where they really come from. No wonder that evil woman was so quick to get rid of you.”
