Chapter Sixteen
Aphrodite’s Feast
Now, things were a little different.
A few days after Jareth’s injury, he and the rest of his men, and Desdra, were back at Aphrodite’s Feast. Orion and Aidric managed to put Jareth to bed in one of the many chambers, but it was a chamber that Desdra could quickly get to because she seemed to be doing the majority of the nursing when it came to Jareth’s shoulder.
Orion simply supervised.
It was so strange the way things had suddenly taken a turn once Orion settled down and competently tended Jareth’s injury.
The buzz among the Six was that Orion was like a different man.
He was no longer the arrogant buffoon, but a competent physic.
Adric and Britt and Dirk had made more of an effort after that to speak with him or show him courtesy.
In the days spent at Portbury Castle, they had shared several meals together and included Orion in the conversation more than they ever had.
And he had participated.
Even Stefan, with his bad hearing, had made more of an effort, and out of all of them, he was the one who had the most contentious relationship with Orion. But even he knew what the man had done for Jareth. He, too, saw something more beyond the conceited fool he’d been butting heads with.
Since the travel time from Portbury Castle to Bristol was just a few hours, they’d waited until the fog had mostly lifted before heading back.
Jareth was feeling stronger, though he couldn’t use his left arm, so he rode in the center of the group all the way back to the city.
He hated that they were treating him differently, as if he was a weakling, but even he knew that he wouldn’t be much good if they got into a skirmish.
The outlaws that had attacked them had been killed, though there was no guarantee there weren’t more of them out there.
Once they came within range of Bristol, they were relatively safe.
Jareth never thought he could consider any town other than London home, but he felt comforted when the outskirts of Bristol came into view.
It felt like home because Desdra lived there, because Aphrodite’s Feast belonged to him, and a whole host of other reasons.
It was the first time since being notified of his inheritance that he felt like this was his destiny.
Perhaps he really was home.
For the first time in his life.
There was more camaraderie when Orion and Aidric put him to bed in one of the chambers used by the muses.
It was very well appointed, as it was meant to impress paying clients, and once he settled in, Desdra went about having the servants bring him food and drink.
His appetite was good and he seemed to be healing well, even if he was very sore from the procedure Orion had put him through.
But he was on the mend and that was all that mattered.
“Well?” Orion said as Desdra fussed over the pillows in the bed. “Is there anything else you need?”
There were too many pillows behind him, but Jareth wasn’t going to say anything, not when Desdra was trying so hard to make him comfortable. “Probably not,” he said. “But I do want to know when you intend to take these bandages off.”
Orion cocked an eyebrow. “You’ve had them on for three days,” he pointed out. “Unless you are a miraculous healer, they will probably be on just a little longer than three days.”
He said it sarcastically, which, in the past, would have irritated Jareth. But this time, he could see a glimmer of humor in Orion’s eyes and he surrendered to the man’s skill. In fact, they ended up grinning at one another.
There was a new understanding there.
“Very well,” Jareth said begrudgingly. “But just know that I am not happy about this.”
“I know,” Orion said. “But behave yourself or I’ll leave them on longer than necessary just to teach you a lesson.”
“What lesson is that?”
“Never argue with your physic.”
Jareth chuckled, distracted because Desdra was trying to put another pillow behind him. With Jareth in danger of being swallowed by too many pillows and a woman determined to make him comfortable, Orion slipped out of the chamber.
There was someone he wanted to see.
In fact, he’d been away from her longer than he would have liked.
Taking the mural stairs down to the reception chamber, which was where the stairs to the wing meant for clients was located, Orion went in search of a certain elegant woman who was consuming his thoughts both day and night.
He thought it rather odd, because he’d known beautiful women before.
Plenty of them. But he’d never known one to keep his attention as Anosia did.
In fact, he was wrestling with overwhelming jealousy because he knew very well what her job was.
He knew she was here to entertain men with her singing and dancing.
But, God, he hated that she had to.
There were a few chambers on the entry level of The Feast used for entertaining.
Along with the reception hall, and the feasting room, there was also a type of solar because it contained tables, chairs, and valuable books.
It even had live flower bushes planted in pots, watered by the many servants that kept Aphrodite’s Feast. There were stairs in this chamber that led underground, to vaults that had once been part of the Roman temple from centuries past. It was here that the gambling games were held, run by a man named Eros who also, strangely enough, managed the grounds of Aphrodite’s Feast to make sure everything was in working order.
Orion knew that the gambling had been halted in the wake of Lord Chester’s death, so the vaults underneath were cold and dark these days.
Men came daily to an entrance off the solar, the gambling entrance, to see if the games had resumed, but one of The Guardians always sent them away disappointed.
It was into this empty solar that Orion found his way as he hunted for Anosia, and he was about to head into the vaults simply to see if she might be down there, but he was precluded from that part of his investigation when he spied a dark, well-coiffed head sitting in the garden just beyond the gambling entrance.
It was a beautiful outdoor space, with flowers and a yew tree, and he quickly made his way over to the doorway.
But Anosia wasn’t alone.
Two young girls were with her.
As Orion watched, the young girls, possibly around ten or twelve years of age, were plucking fruit from a small quince tree.
They both had dark hair, and resembled each other, but mostly, they resembled Anosia.
Orion suspected their identities. Never one to shrink back when he wanted something, he stepped into the garden and cleared his throat softly.
“My lady?” he said politely. “It seems that you have pleasant company today.”
Anosia had been watching her girls, and his voice startled her. But she stood up, smiling at him as he came out into the garden.
“My lord,” she greeted him pleasantly. “How was Portbury?”
Orion shook his head. “Eventful,” he said. “We were set upon by outlaws as we approached the castle and Jareth took an arrow to the shoulder. We have brought him back to rest.”
Anosia grew quite serious. “How terrible,” she said sincerely. “Is the injury severe?”
“Not too severe,” Orion said. “It has been three days and he’s yet to develop a fever, which is a good sign. I would say that if he remains without fever for another day or two, he should be completely fine.”
Anosia nodded, greatly concerned. “That would be a blessing,” she said. “You seem to know something of healing?”
Orion nodded back. “I have been trained in the healing arts,” he said. “My mother was a healer. It must be in my blood.”
Anosia smiled, but she was prevented from replying when the two young girls ran up to her, their hands full of yellow fruit.
“Mama!” the younger one cried. “May we take this home and cook it? We can put it in a pie!”
Anosia smiled. “Of course you may,” she said. Realizing that she should probably make introductions, she put her arms around the girls and faced Orion. “My lord, these are my daughters, Anora and Emrys. Girls, this is Sir Orion Payton-Forrester. He is a knight for the king.”
“A knight?” the oldest girl, Anora, piped up. She looked at Orion with big, curious eyes. “My father was a knight. He fought for Simon de Montfort.”
That didn’t come as a surprise to Orion. In fact, he’d suspected it might be something like that, since Anosia was so guarded with him. But he smiled at the young lady.
“Is that so?” he said. “I am sure he was a fine knight.”
“Anora, enough,” Anosia whispered sternly. “Go with Louise now. She will take you home and you can cook your fruit.”
It was then that Orion noticed an older woman standing over by the garden gate with a Guardian standing next to her. The girls ran to the old woman, who was escorted out by the Guardian. When they were gone, Anosia turned to Orion.
“Anora will chatter until you wish you did not have ears,” she said, smiling weakly. “She does not realize that sometimes, she says too much.”
Orion nodded faintly, but his gaze upon her was intense. “So your husband perished at Lewes fighting for de Montfort,” he said. “I am sorry, my lady. I mean that.”
Anosia averted her gaze, unable to look him in the eye. “That is in the past,” she said. “He made his choices and they cost him in the end.”
“The same could be said about all of us,” Orion said. “I have made my choices, as have you. But you are fortunate enough that a place like The Feast existed.”
Anosia nodded firmly. “So many war widows did not have this opportunity,” she said. “But some did and they are here, working in the kitchens or as servants. Lord Chester did not turn a woman in need away, but he was always particular about the women he allowed as muses.”