Chapter 7
Chapter Seven
The Forest Beyond Caerith
The King’s Bedchamber
Three days passed before Dravic found himself once again seeking the quiet beyond Caerith’s walls.
The land remained covered in snow. Though what sun managed to shine had warmed the earth enough that patches of brown grass and dark soil appeared beneath the thinning white blanket.
But winter had only begun. More snow was sure to follow.
Adira walked beside him, her cloak wrapped securely around her as she stepped carefully over the uneven ground.
Six warriors followed at a respectful distance, close enough to protect them but far enough to allow the king the privacy he expected. Dravic had ordered them to remain alert, knowing danger did not always announce itself.
He found himself watching Adira more than their surroundings.
She moved differently outside the castle walls. More freely. Her eyes traveled over everything: the trees, the sky, the small signs of life hidden beneath the snow. She noticed things most would overlook.
He had first thought her silence would make her vulnerable. Instead, he was beginning to understand that it had made her a keen observer. She saw what others missed.
Adira stopped, bringing Dravic to a halt. He saw that she spotted something a short distance ahead and hurried to examine whatever caught her interest. From what he could see it was a small patch of green breaking through the snow.
The cold had touched her cheeks, leaving them a soft shade of pink against her pale skin. Strands of her hair had escaped the hood of her cloak, curling softly around her face. A generous smile lit her face as she took pleasure in examining the small sprout.
She no longer looked like the frightened woman who had first arrived at Caerith, but he saw in her eyes and the way her body trembled at times that he still frightened her on occasion.
The new garments she wore; the warm wool skirt and linen blouse, the finely made cloak lined with fur, the boots and gloves crafted for the winter weather made her look different.
He had ordered them because she needed proper clothing for the cold, yet seeing her dressed in them now, he realized they suited her.
He quickly looked away, his thoughts turning to Tavish’s warning.
She should not be sleeping in your bedchamber.
The words had not been spoken again, but he knew the rumors had not disappeared. A castle thrived on whispers, and there would always be those eager to believe the worst.
But why did he still have her there in his bedchamber?
That was the question that unsettled him. There had been a reason at first, then that reason had passed. Yet he had never ordered a change. He had simply allowed things to remain as they were. And he did not know why.
Dravic was not a man who acted without purpose. Every decision he made affected Scotara, and every order given had a reason behind it.
Yet this… this had no answer.
A king who could not find an answer to his own actions was a king not paying close enough attention.
A small flutter of silver wings caught his attention. He did not need to look up to see what it was. He knew. It was something he had failed to pay attention to as he should have. A fairy at court. His grandfather would be outraged.
He glanced up with a scowl to see Fiora hovering near a snow-covered branch, her expression unusually serious.
“Something is disturbing the forest,” she warned before he could speak.
Dravic glanced around him. The trees stood silent. The snow remained untouched and his warriors kept watch nearby. He looked back at her, unconvinced.
Fiora’s gaze went toward Adira. “She is with you.”
Dravic looked toward Adira, still bent over, busy brushing more snow aside. Whatever had caught her attention held her completely. She studied the ground with the same quiet focus she gave everything, as though the smallest detail mattered.
Fiora’s eyes narrowed. “Would you take that chance?”
Dravic did not wait, he took hurried steps toward Adira.
The warriors nearby remained alert, though none appeared to sense danger. The forest had returned to its stillness, and for a moment Dravic wondered if Fiora had allowed her imagination to run ahead of reason.
He reached Adira and touched her shoulder gently.
She looked up, her eyes meeting his.
For a moment, he found himself caught by the trust in her expression. She did not question why he had interrupted her. She simply waited.
Dravic pointed toward the castle, letting her know it was time to return.
Adira glanced in the direction he indicated, then nodded and went to stand.
He reached down and took her arm to help her up, bringing her to stand directly in front of him. So close that he saw the faint dusting of snow on her cloak that had fallen from the tree branches overhead and the warmth that still colored her cheeks from the cold air.
“Arrow!” Fiora’s cry tore through the forest.
Dravic reacted before thought could form. His arm hooked around Adira’s waist, pulling her hard against him as he turned. He twisted his body, taking her with him as they fell into the snow.
His only thought was of her. He covered her with his body, shielding her completely as the sound of movement echoed through the trees.
The warriors reacted instantly.
“FIND HIM!” Dravic roared.
The command thundered through the forest.
His men scattered, searching the trees and the surrounding ground, but Dravic did not move. Not until he knew that no harm lingered.
The forest erupted into movement around them, but Adira did not understand what was happening. One moment she was standing in front of the king and the next his arm had wrapped around her, pulling her away with such force that she had barely felt her feet leave the ground.
Then she was beneath him and she could do nothing but stare at him.
His face was close to hers, his expression unlike any she had seen before. Fierce, almost feral like an animal in the forest ready to tear their foe apart. And his heart beat so rapidly she could feel it against her chest.
Instinct had her slipping her hand between their chests to rest against his, and then something strange happened. The world around her seemed to fade away and she could feel him, not just the weight of him and not just the warmth of him.
It was something deeper. Somewhat similar to when he had accidentally touched her breast, but a bit different, stronger. Concern? Protection?
Dravic felt the change in her, saw it in her eyes, and his brow narrowed in question. “What is it?”
She did not respond. How could she when she did not understand it herself? She pressed her hand harder against his chest, searching, trying to understand what she felt. What he felt… for her?
The strength of her touch caught him off guard. It raced through him, swirled around him and caught him up in something he could not quite explain. And as such, he found himself unable to move away.
Then a warrior’s voice called out, “My king!”
The moment shattered like fragile glass, scattering in pieces.
Dravic blinked, as though returning to himself. Slowly, reluctantly, he pushed away from the snow and rose. He reached down and helped Adira to her feet, his hand remaining around hers, a heartbeat longer than necessary before he let go of her.
Two of his men emerged from the trees, dragging a man between them. The prisoner stumbled but refused to lower his head, his expression filled with hatred rather than fear. They shoved him to his knees before the king.
Dravic kept Adira at his side as he approached. “Explain yourself. Now!”
The man remained silent.
“You fired upon me,” Dravic said.
The man still did not respond.
Dravic studied him carefully. “Who sent you?”
The prisoner’s mouth remained firmly closed.
Dravic had dealt with men like this before. Men who believed silence made them strong. They were wrong. It only delayed the inevitable.
He looked toward one of his warriors, the silent command needing no words.
The warrior stepped forward and struck the prisoner with such force, his head snapped to the side. Still, he remained silent.
Another strike followed and then another.
The man’s face was bloodied, his lip split, blood trailing down his chin, yet he refused to answer.
“Who sent you?” Dravic demanded.
The prisoner spat blood into the snow.
A sign of defiance that sparked anger in Dravic and with a scowl, he looked toward his warrior again.
The man stepped forward.
Before the blow could land, Dravic felt a touch… Adira.
She had stepped behind him and rested her brow against his back. She was upset. He could almost feel her concern drifting off her and around him. Or had he gotten to know her that well?
He felt it even stronger when her hand gripped his upper arm with a strength that surprised him.
He should have thought better than questioning the prisoner in front of her. It had not gone well when he confronted Eunice, and no one had struck her. Yet it had upset Adira enough for her to blatantly offer the woman solace. At least this time, she had not openly shown her concern.
“Take him to the castle,” Dravic ordered. “Put him in the dungeon. I will question him later.”
The two warriors bowed, then seized the prisoner and dragged him away.
Dravic took Adira’s hand and, without a word, began the walk back toward Caerith.
The castle was quiet except for the strange sound of the wind that managed to slip through the stones. Sometimes it sounded like groans, other times a wailing woman, and less often like a soft whisper.
Tonight, leaving the dungeon after learning nothing from the prisoner, the wind sounded like a frustrated groan, exactly as he felt… frustrated.
“You fear what could easily help you.”
Dravic shook his head, hearing Fiora’s admonishing tone.
“One day, I am going to banish you,” he said, taking the steps to his bedchamber.
“Yeah, tell me how that worked out for your grandfather,” Fiora challenged, her golden glow making it easier for him to see his way along the curving stone staircase.
“It brought the kingdom peace,” he argued.
“It locked away the very thing that could help protect Scotara and keep it safe.”
“As if fairies could help protect Scotara,” he said with an unamusing laugh.
“Do you need reminding of who helped protect you in the forest today?” Fiora challenged, flying nearby, though keeping out of his reach, not trusting him to swat at her. “Or who knows how easy the information can be obtained from the prisoner without leaving him bloody and senseless.”
Dravic stopped when he reached the hallway that led to his bedchamber. “You believe a fairy wiser than a king?”
Fiora went to answer, then clamped her small mouth shut but only for a moment. “I am not going to argue that point with you. What I am going to tell you is that you cannot trust anything that prisoner says to you, for eventually he will lie so the beatings will stop.”
“But, of course, you know how to get him to talk.”
Fiora shook her head. “I cannot make him talk, but a Wise woman can see his past and know who sent him and why he is here.”
Dravic muttered beneath his breath.
“Didn’t think of that, did you, oh, wise king?”
Dravic groaned. “Now I understand why my grandfather banished fairies.”
Fiora grinned. “Because they speak the truth?”
Dravic shook his head again.
“Send for either Bria or Wynn and get truthful answers and learn even more than the prisoner would reveal to you.”
Dravic grumbled.
Fiora chuckled. “Annoyed you didn’t think of it, aren’t you?”
“I have had enough of you for one day,” Dravic snapped, annoyed that the fairy was right.
“The feeling is mutual. I am going to go get myself a drink or two,” Fiora said, pleased with herself.
“Be careful, Fiora, or you will pass out one day from drink where you will easily be found, and you will wake to find yourself captured in a cage.”
Fiora laughed again and that annoyed Dravic even more.
“Even if you did, Adira would set me free, regardless of your orders.” She flew off, her laughter trailing behind her.
Her words only fortified what he was thinking about how he had allowed himself to succumb to Adira’s concerns, though she could not utter a word.
Dravic stopped at his bedchamber door and shook his head. He simply could not allow her concerns to interfere with his commands. He was king and his word was law.
He entered his bedchamber ready to tell her to go to her bedchamber for the night but stopped when he saw her sitting by the hearth looking his way. He felt a twist to his gut. Did it bother him that she would not be there with him, that he would be alone?
He nearly shook his head again but stopped himself. Being alone never bothered him. He actually preferred it. So, why had he kept Adira sleeping in his bedchamber?
Dravic went to her. He would prove, if only to himself, that he did not need her in his bedchamber.
He took hold of her arm and brought her to her feet, then he walked her out the door and down the hall to her bedchamber. He opened the door and gave her a little shove inside. He pointed to the room, ordering her to stay and closed the door.
He returned to his room, slipped off his garments and got into bed. It had been a busy day and he was tired. He turned on his side, but sleep would not come.
He turned on his other side and seeing Adira’s bed empty, he turned on his back and stared at the dark green canopy draped over his bed.
It felt like hours that he lay there until finally…
He threw the covers off himself, slipped on his brocade robe, and went to Adira’s room. He did not knock; she would not hear him. He simply threw open the door and found her standing where he left her. Had she stayed there all this time or had less time passed than he thought?
It did not matter. He took hold of her arm and walked her back to his bedchamber and deposited her on her narrow bed. Then he went to his bed, discarded his robe, and slipped beneath the covers. He turned on his side facing Adira.
She lay on her side, facing him, and smiled softly.
His only thought was she was glad to be there in her bed, in his room.
He had set out to prove something to himself and he did prove it, but not the way he expected.
He needed Adira.
Why?
He did not know, but the question lingered.
Whatever could he want with a woman who could not speak or hear?