Page 131 of Kingdom of Chains

Blackmane searched her eyes, then looked back at the others. ‘Who will be in command?’

‘Me, of course,’ Tatum replied.

Blackmane pretended to hand the uniform back to Hadewaye, and they all laughed. Isabel had trouble looking away from her husband on those rare occasions. His laughter felt as good as her own.

‘Shall I get some food cooking?’ Ita called from the front door.

Isabel looked back at her. ‘Yes. Coming.’ She turned to Blackmane and pushed up onto her toes to kiss him. ‘I will leave you to get the horses settled.’

‘We won’t be long.’

She walked off towards the house, her feet and heart light.

‘He looks happy,’ Ita said when Isabel reached the front door.

Isabel looked back at the four of them. Their banter carried on the breeze. ‘He really does.’

She glanced up at the sky where Margery was circling overhead, spying on the new arrivals, then headed inside.

The next morning, Blackmane changed into his uniform and paused at the mirrored glass on his way out of their bedroom. The sight warmed him. It was not the uniform he had missed but everything it represented. Putting it on felt a lot like home.

The smell of fried eggs and fresh bread had him heading for the kitchen, which was alive with conversation and laughter. Everyone was squashed around one table, listening to Tatum tell the story about the time Alveye woke up with a piglet in his bed with no recollection of how it got there.

‘The most likely answer is one of these three men put it there,’ Ita said as she set a plate of eggs in front of the defender.

Alveye waved his fork in Tatum’s direction. ‘That’s exactly what I said.’

Blackmane looked around for Isabel, then realised she was not among them.

‘She is out back,’ Gwenore said, reading his concerned expression.

He nodded and went outside, finding her racing along the tree line at the back of the property, Margery dashing on either side of her. According to Ita, that was how Isabel had taught her to fly when they were young. Given that golden eagles could glide up to 120 miles per hour, it was not much of a race, but Isabel ran her heart out anyway.

While tempted to call her in for breakfast, the sight of her running free without a wall in sight kept Blackmane silent. Hewandered down to the woodpile and leaned against it, watching her run until she could no longer breathe.

‘You win.’ Isabel laughed, raising her arm so the eagle could land. She spotted Blackmane then, and a smile spread across her face. He watched her as she made her way over to him, soaking up the light coming from her.

‘Good morning,’ she said, kissing him.

He caught her around the waist, pulling her close for a second kiss, then tapped Margery’s beak affectionately. ‘You’re up early.’

She stepped back and drew a big breath. ‘I was too worked up to sleep.’

His eyes narrowed. ‘About what?’

‘I learned some rather big news last night, but I did not wish to distract from your reunion, which was so heart-warming to witness.’

Blackmane straightened. ‘What news is that?’

‘When Margery did not come home for dinner last night, we got worried and went looking for her. We ended up about a mile north of here.’ She looked around. ‘No, it must have been west, because I remember the sun was setting in front of us.’ She paused again, bringing a finger to her mouth as she thought. ‘No, sorry, it was south. The sun was definitely setting to my right. It was cloudy, as you probably remember, but the sun was still breaking through.’

He rubbed his forehead. ‘I love you, more than anything, but could you please get to the news part of the story?’

‘Yes, yes, sorry. It was definitely south.’ She kissed Margery on the beak before continuing. ‘So I am calling for her, over and over.’

His hand fell away. ‘You’re killing me.’

‘And finally, she calls to me from up high in this tree.’ She was almost combusting with excitement at this point. ‘I see therearetwoeagles up there.’ She paused. ‘And they are sitting in anest.’

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