Chapter Thirty-Three
THIRTY-THREE
ASPETH
1 Day Before the Conquest Moon
“All the requests were denied,” Gwenna whispers to me over breakfast the next day.
Immediately my appetite curdles. “Already? But that’s so fast!”
“Magpie has a bit of a reputation around town.” She shrugs. “It was a long shot anyhow. I talked to Lark and she said that her aunt has connections. She knows someone who can make her a false pass and someone who can take us down the drop for the right price.”
I stir my porridge, eyeing my husband from afar. He sits at the far end of the table from me, talking to the nestmaid, who’s taking notes for food supplies for the week. We’re on the cusp of the Conquest Moon and apparently it affects Taurians in all ways, including hunger. He needs additional foodstuffs, some of which will be prepared in advance and deposited into our room so we don’t have to leave the bed during the moon time, a fact that makes me blush so hard my face feels scalding. Everyone is going to be extremely aware of what we’ll be doing in that time frame.
It’s no different from an arranged marriage, I remind myself, in which your husband would be keeping you in bed trying to get you with an heir as quickly as possible. Everyone knows you’re having sex then, too.
“We’re getting the counterfeit pass tonight,” Gwenna murmurs, holding a mug of tea up near her mouth and cupping her hands around it to hide her face. “You’re going to have to keep Hawk busy after dinner so he doesn’t ask questions.”
Oh. I nod, mind racing, as I try to figure out how one distracts a surly Taurian who’s already distracted by sex. The obvious answer is right there, but I also don’t want to rouse his suspicions. The last time I reached out to touch Hawk on my own, he called me a spy. I need him to instigate things. “I’ll see what I can do.”
I ponder this all day as we go through weapons drills, and we switch up our positions. Lark takes over shield-bashing everything, and truly, she’s far more enthusiastic about it than I ever was. Gwenna takes over navigation, and that leaves me with either being the healer or the gearmaster.
“I kind of like being the healer,” Mereden tells me shyly. “And I know a lot about tending to wounds thanks to my time at the convent.”
“Then you should stay the healer,” I agree, because I don’t know anything about wounds. Gearmaster is a fairly simple position—I manage the supplies and ensure we don’t run out…which isn’t something you can practice at the dorm. I work with a shortened quarterstaff instead and try not to think about all the other things we could be doing. We’re supposed to be learning more about artifacts and Old Prell itself. Magpie suggested we head to the guild’s library earlier today, since it should be deserted (as everyone in training is currently in the tunnels except us).
Hawk said no.
Said he was in too bad of a mood to be around the rest of the guild. He’s definitely been on the surly side of things, I think, as I glance over at him working with Kipp. The slitherskin bounces along the walls and flings himself off Lark’s shield as the two of them counter Hawk’s heavy, insistent blows with a club.
His temperament has gotten worse, as twice now, the guild has sent messengers today. Most of the Taurians are gone from the city, which means that the retrieval and assistance missions are all falling to him. He turns them away, too, but I can see his scowl growing deeper with every person who arrives at the door.
By the time we’re done with lessons for the day, he’s in an absolutely foul mood and the guild has sent a third messenger, only to be turned away. The others pile into the kitchen for snacks—and to escape his wrath—and I remain behind as he tidies up the training room. Gwenna told me to stick to his side today and I intend to do so.
I approach him delicately. “You know I don’t mind if you want to help out with the guild—”
“I said I would spend time with you,” he all but snarls.
I recoil.
Immediate remorse flashes over his face. He runs a hand down his muzzle, sighing heavily. “I’m sorry, Aspeth. It’s not you. It’s just…today. The guild. Magpie.” He gestures at our surroundings.
“And the Conquest Moon?”
“Like a fist around my cock at all times,” he admits. “And just as impossible to ignore.” He runs both hands down his long face. “I’m going to be a beast to live with until this passes.”
I want to make a joke about how as a woman, I know all about being cranky during certain times of the month. That I can relate to his foul temper being out of his control. But somehow, I don’t think comparing my menstruation cycle to this will help cheer him any, touchy as he is. If he were a woman, I’d offer him sweets. But Taurians are fussy eaters and I don’t even know if he likes sweets. Even so, feeding his mood isn’t a bad idea.
“You know what you need?” I tell him, moving to his side and sliding my hands around his arm. “A nice, hearty meal out and away from everything.”
That makes a smile quirk his hard mouth. “Are you offering to buy me dinner, Aspeth?”
“No, because I don’t have two pennies to rub together.” I grimace. “I spent all of my coin getting here. But it would be nice to go out for a bit, just the two of us. Get to catch our breath and not have five other people breathing down our necks.”
It’s the right thing to say. He pulls me close and nuzzles at my neck, sending shivers up my spine. “Change into regular clothes, hmm? I’ll wash up and meet you at the front of the dorm in a few. I need to speak with Magpie.”
I’m sure that’s not going to help his mood, given that Magpie abandoned us early in the day because she had a “headache.” I’m not sure if it’s alcohol related or secret-plan related, but either way, it’s bound to set Hawk off even more. But I nod and give him a saucy wink, watching as he leaves the room.
It feels wrong to lie to him, but once again, I’m back to not having a choice. I need the other half of that ring, and I absolutely can’t let it fall into Barnabus’s hands. I need to get my father some way to protect our people, and soon, because all the teams scouring the tunnels are bound to find something to help Barnabus wage war on my family’s hold.
The moment he’s gone, I race to Gwenna’s quarters and knock on the door. She opens it a crack and then, after seeing it’s me, lets me inside. The others are in there, except for Magpie. “I can’t stay,” I pant, because stairs are not part of our workout regimen. I rub the stays on my corset as my lungs heave against the confinement. “Taking Hawk out for supper at a tavern somewhere to keep him out of your hair.”
“Good,” Lark says. “We’re meeting with Aunt Magpie and one of her friends later tonight to get the counterfeit pass. After that, we just have to wait until Hawk heads out again.”
“I don’t know if he’s going to,” I say. “He’s intent on sticking close to me due to the moon tomorrow.” Which is both flattering and frustrating.
“Aunt Magpie will figure it out.” Lark is fully confident. “Just keep him occupied tonight while we work on this part of the plan.”
I nod and then hesitate. “You guys won’t go down without me, will you?”
“Never,” Gwenna reassures me. “You’re part of our Five.”
I trust her. The one who has issues trusting is Hawk…and unfortunately, I’m going to give him even more of a reason not to trust me. I hate that, but I’m low on choices. I could ask him to help us, too. To ask him to break guild rules and help us steal from the guild right under their noses…but then I think about his hand and how he already owes the guild far too much as it is. I won’t bring him down with me.
I know what he means when he says he struggles with caring too much.
I meet my husband at the door to the dorms a short time later, wearing a heavy dress of olive green with embroidered attached sleeves and a matching chemise that peeks out from artful gaps in all the fashionable spots. I always feel pretty in this dress, especially with a matching cloak over it, but I suspect it’s ruined by my spectacles, which magnify my eyes and make me look owlish. Hawk looks pleased at the sight of me, though, and I twirl for his approval. “What do you think?”
“Luscious.”
I’m both mortified and aroused. “You’re not supposed to call me that.”
“It’s true. My mouth waters looking at you, because I know how juicy you are under all those skirts.”
I move forward, pressing my fingers to his mouth to silence him, and all the while my breathing speeds up and need slides through my veins like liquid. “Hush. We’re going out tonight to distract you, not rushing back to our quarters.”
Much as I’d like to. I’m envisioning stripping him naked and rubbing his cock all over my face again, just because I liked the feel of his heated skin against mine, and how powerful and sexy it made me feel to touch him and give him pleasure, and how much it turned me on to do so.
But Gwenna, Lark, and the others need us out of their hair if they’re going to pull this off, and the moment Hawk hears someone leave the dormitory, he’ll be wondering what’s going on.
So I run a hand down my husband’s front. He’s wearing the guild jerkin, fastened shut all the way to his throat, and his trousers are in guild colors as well. He’s not wearing his sash denoting his rank, but that’s the only difference I’m seeing. “I thought we were changing out of guild clothes for the day?”
“I realized that I didn’t have anything else,” he murmurs, leaning in and rubbing his muzzle against the side of my neck. “And that anyone who sees a Taurian in Vastwarren is going to know I work for the guild anyhow. Gods, you smell amazing.”
His hand steals to the front of my bodice, skimming over one of my nipples through the fabric, and I bite back a moan. Luckily for me, my stomach growls in that moment, and that brings Hawk’s amorousness to a halt.
“Hungry?”
“I could eat,” I admit. I could also turn around and head back to our rooms and let him lick me all over, but the eating is part of the plan, and I need to focus on that.
Hawk pulls my cloak from the nearby hook and places it over my shoulders. “Come, then. I know a place. We’ll have a nice meal, pretend the guild doesn’t exist for a night, and then return later.” His muzzle dips against my throat again, and he whispers, “And I’ll undress you like I’m unwrapping a present.”
By Lady Asteria, when they say Taurians grow amorous with the moon’s advent, they mean it. We’ve barely decided upon dinner and I’m already flushed with heat and my pulse is throbbing between my thighs. Hawk isn’t much of a conversationalist as we head out into Vastwarren, and I’m grateful for that. It allows me to compose myself as we walk, but when we near the King’s Onion, I give him a sharp look.
“Not there,” he reassures me. “It’s just along the way. I promise I’m not starting anything, Aspeth. Tonight is just about dinner and spending time together.”
I slide my hand into the crook of his arm again and nod.
True to his word, we stop at a tavern one street over. It’s nearly deserted, with an elderly Taurian and his younger human wife behind the bar. The main tavern room is practically empty save for a few slitherskins near the fire, piled together with their houses stacked nearby. The barkeep recognizes Hawk and makes him a huge bowl of lentil and vegetable soup with a half loaf of crusty bread, my portions only slightly smaller. He puts the tray down at our table and then leans over, his gaze on Hawk.
“I know it’s a difficult time to be Taurian right now, son, but this is a nice establishment. If you feel the need to take the edge off, head to the alley. Understand?”
I should be mortified. Instead, it strikes me as funny, and I press my fingers to my lips, doing my best not to giggle.
Hawk eyes me balefully as my shoulders shake. “You laugh,” he murmurs as the tavern owner saunters away, “but some can’t help themselves. It’s hard to serve a family a meal when there’s a bull rutting into his hand at the next table over.”
That only makes me giggle harder. “I’m sorry,” I wheeze. “I know it’s not funny. It’s just…what if there are a lot of you who have the same need at the same time? Do you all go to the alley together?”
“If we do, we don’t make eye contact,” he drawls, eyeing me. “And thank you for that. My cock has sufficiently shriveled enough that I can eat in peace.”
I have to wipe the tears of laughter from my eyes. “I’m so sorry. I’m just picturing you staring at one another and angrily jerking off because your soup is getting cold and a stranger is standing too close.”
“Can’t be much of a stranger if I’ve got my cock in hand.” But he smiles at me as he says it. “Hope the food is all right with you. The old Taurian’s from my home village and his food reminds me of my mother’s.”
Oh. Hawk doesn’t talk much of his home life, or his family. I’d love to hear more. “This is lovely. It’s nice just to get away from the guild life, even if it’s just for a few hours.” I take a small bite of the food and try not to wince. It tastes like, well, grass. I swallow and take another bite, because if this is what Hawk likes, I want to appreciate it as well. “I’ve never had this sort of flavor before. You eat this back where you came from?”
He’s taking huge bites of the vegetable-laden soup, clearly loving it. “The village I grew up in was nothing but Taurians. My parents were farmers, so aye, we had a lot of dinners like this.”
I take a bite of the crusty bread instead, because something tells me he’s going to want to eat my share of soup, too. “Do you miss your family?”
Hawk shrugs. “They could write. They don’t. I’m not part of their life anymore. So no, I don’t miss them.”
I ponder this as I take another bite of bread. “My mother died when I was very young and the only family I had was my father and my grandmother. My grandmother is a society sort and loves nothing more than a party. We’ve never seen eye to eye. She actually hates my spectacles and I was told not to wear them around her.”
He huffs with annoyance. “So she’d rather you be blind than unfashionable? She’s an idiot.”
When he puts it that way, it does sound exceedingly stupid. “My father has been largely absent. I think he entertained the thought of another wife for a while, but nothing ever came to fruition, and he seemed content to have me be his heir and fool around with his mistress instead. We’ve never been close. I think I see him perhaps twice a year, despite the fact that we live in the same hold. Or rather, we did .” I shrug. “So when you say you’re not close to your family, I understand.”
Hawk finishes his soup and I nudge mine toward him. He immediately takes it with a grateful smile and trades me the bread. “It’s not that I’m lonely. The guild keeps me busy. I’m close to the other Taurians who work here in the city. I have Magpie.”
“Mmm.” I can’t say much positive about Magpie. She’s too erratic and absent.
“Once, she was a great mentor,” he says, as if reading my sour thoughts. “I know she struggles now, but a decade ago she was clever and daring and no one could match her success rate. She seemed to know instinctively where to dig, and we’d come up with treasures more often than not.”
“Did she use a dowsing rod then, too?” I tease.
“A dowsing rod?” His brow furrows. “Of course not. Those are fairy tales. A prank played on fledglings to keep them occupied.”
“Just curious. I’ve heard, um, that some use them.”
“Foolery.” Hawk sounds cranky at the thought. “The best thing you can do is show your students the best places to dig, not to rely on sticks and magic. You look for places that would have lots of artifacts—old warehouses, or libraries. You look for merchant shops that specialized in the arts. And if you’re really lucky, you’ll stumble upon a wizard’s shop. But just using a stick?” He makes a face. “That’s a setup to fail.”
He’s not wrong. I just can’t help but wonder if Magpie truly wanted us to fail or if she was lazy. There’s no way she could have known about Gwenna’s bloodline if even Gwenna had no idea. And we don’t know that the dowsing rod actually led us to the ring. It could have been a fluke. Gwenna could have had shaky hands. Something.
“So may I ask you what your name was before you joined the guild? Who were you before you were Hawk? And what made you pick that name?”
He eyes me. “What, you think you can slide your soup over to me and suddenly I’ll answer every question you ever had?”
I flutter my lashes at him, even though I probably look ridiculous through my spectacles. “Yes?”
The hard edges of his smile turn up just a little. “Maybe we order another round of soup and I can keep talking.”
Grinning, I take another huge bite of bread, which truly is delicious for all that it’s dry. I guess butter would be weird to minotaurs. “I think that sounds delightful.”