Black Hellebore (Wraith Kings)

Prologue

PROLOGUE

Spring during the events of THE IPPOS KING

O n a rainy day, as the Kai city of Saggara sank into sleep and left the daylight world to the younger races, Brishen Khaskem lit two candles in his dark bedroom for the benefit of his wife and held up a small, velvet bag. “For you, my beauty.”

Ildiko sighed and let the bag drop into her outstretched hand. “You are too generous with me. What inspired this latest offering?” He was always giving her small tokens of affection, private things that had meaning only between them, exchanged in the solitude of their bedchamber when the hours became solely theirs instead of belonging to the fortress, the court, and the queen regnant.

He traced a delicate line down her slender arm with one black nail, leaving nary a scratch behind. “You. Always you.”

A delicious tingle followed in the wake of his caress, the anticipation of finding their bed together where she might curl around his body and share all of her own great affection for him.

She slowly opened the small satchel, upending its contents into her palm. A chain spooled out first, then something small and pale. Light from the candles washed over a flower carved in exquisite detail from moonstone. The petals folded back in gentle arches, ending in blunt points. Cascading shades of white, yellow, and fading sunset washed over them, and at the flower’s center a starburst of light green and tiny yellow points filled the space. Darker green leaves surrounded the petals, and below those, an oddly tangled bird’s nest of black roots in strong contrast to the light flower and vibrant green leaves.

Ildiko recognized it instantly. A perfect miniature replica of her favorite flower in Saggara’s gardens, one not nearly as showy as those that bloomed through the warmer months, but far more resilient. It defied the snow and the cold when most everything lay dead or dormant, and unfolded in the hard depths of winter. Those black roots gave power and life to the pale blossoms that shivered in the wind and reminded her of their great fortitude and beauty when all else seemed bleak.

“Oh, Brishen,” she said on a long breath, holding the necklace up for a better look in the light. “It’s beyond lovely. How do you always know the perfect thing to give me?”

He shrugged. “Because I know my wife, nearly as well as she knows me. It was easy to explain to the jeweler what I wanted.” He motioned with a finger. “Turn around. I’ll put it on you.”

She did as he said, closing her eyes when he lifted her hair, kissed her nape, and clasped the chain together so that the flower lay just above her cleavage. Brishen nodded his approval when she turned to face him and asked “How does it look?”

“Almost as stunning as its wearer.” He leaned forward and kissed her lips. “Pretty hag.”

Ildiko threaded her fingers through his hair. “Ever the charmer, my dead eel.”

Brishen gave her a mock frown. “Just truthful. I see why this flower is your favorite. There’s much about it to admire.” He slid one finger under the strap of her shift, dragging it down her shoulder until it lay against her upper arm. The shift itself slid down to the curve of her breasts. “Come to bed,” he said in a voice gone deeper and more guttural. “I’ve played gardener to flowers for a time. Now I want to play lustful husband to Ildiko Khaskem.”

Ildiko chuckled, wasting no time draping herself in Brishen’s waiting arms. She’d once taught him to kiss the way humans did – an embrace of tongue and lips despite the danger of sharp Kai teeth. A kiss he indulged her with every chance he got, and one that always bound him to her by the best magic of both human and Kai.

They stumbled to the bed and fell across it in a tangle of limbs and caressing hands, half mumbled words of desire, and the soft moans exchanged between lovers. Ildiko embraced her husband, feeling the press of the exquisite flower between her breasts and his chest, praying she might always live up to the comparison.