A Soul For Chaos (The Soulbearer Trilogy) (19 page)

“Are you going to keep fighting me, Trouble?”

“Until I draw my last breath.”

He gave her a wry smile. “I suppose I shouldn’t expect anything less from you.”

“Could it be that you two are flirting?”

Arden jerked away, her breath hiccupping and her cheeks burning. “Why did you have to ruin the moment, Loku?”

“Because Kell was coming.”

Two heartbeats later, she heard him call out her name. “There you are. Thank the Lady Moon you’re alright. I was worried about you after that little show in the throne room.” He threw his arms around her and kissed her forehead.

“If anyone’s to blame for the little show, it’s Trouble.” Dev backed away, his face unreadable.

She was still trying to figure out what just happened with Dev moments before, still trying to catch her breath from it all, to do little more than just linger in Kell’s embrace.

“Arden?” He placed his hands on her cheeks and studied her.

“She cast the first spell. I was merely defending myself.”

Kell cast a glance at Dev. “Is that true?”

Here comes the moment of truth. She watched Dev to see if he knew about the Empress’s attack. When he lowered his eyes, she had her answer. She freed herself from Kell and closed the space between her and her so-called Protector. “So you knew what was going on, and you have the gall to reprimand me?”

“You need to learn how to behave in front of a ruler.”

“I can’t believe you’re giving me that as an excuse. And I suppose you would’ve just stood by while she knocked me to the ground and racked my mind for all the information she deemed useful.”

Her mind reeled as she paced in a circle. How could Dev betray her like that? Maybe Loku was right. Maybe the only person she could trust was him. She definitely couldn’t trust the two men standing before her.

“Sometimes it’s better to go along peacefully instead of making waves,” he said, his word tight and clipped. “I have a reason for acting the way I did.”

Kell pulled her back into his arms. “You’re more a slave to the Empress than anything else, right?”

Dev lunged toward Kell, his hands balled into fists. “I know where my priorities lie, and don’t you dare question them again.”

“Obviously, they lie more with the Empress than the woman you’re sworn to protect.”

Arden’s head pounded. She wanted to tell them to stop arguing, but Kell was saying the same things that were running through her mind. If it came down to it, Dev would betray her for the Empress. No wonder he kept telling her his duty prevented him from having a relationship with her. He needed to make sure he had a clear conscience if his Empress ordered him to behead her.

“Sir Devarius, is that you?” a male voice called from inside the palace.

They all turned to see the Lord Chamberlain approaching them.

Dev’s jaw tightened, and he shoved both her and Kell in the opposite direction. “Get her out of here, Kell, and keep her safe until I take care of this.”

Kell squeezed her hand. “I’ll be glad to.”

They moved into the dark shadows of the garden, away from Dev and the Lord Chamberlain. Curiosity twitched her movements, making her cast several glances over her shoulder to find out why Dev didn’t want her there. Did he think the Lord Chamberlain was delivering her execution order from the Empress? Or maybe just an order to shackle her as soon as they returned to her quarters.

“Where are you staying?” Kell asked, pulling her back to the present.

Her heart rose into her throat. Like hell she was going to put herself in a position where she’d be chained in mithral, unable to use her magic. “I have a better idea. Why don’t we go back to your room?”

Kell’s eyes lit up, and his smile widened. “That sounds like a very good idea to me. This way.”

Her stomach tied in knots. When she suggested they go back to his room, she didn’t mean to his bed. But if she told him that, she’d end up back in the room with the chains.

He lead her around the main building of the palace complex and in through a side door. From there, it was only a few feet to the door of his chambers.

Arden walked in and had to keep her anger at a simmer. Her quarters looked like a prison compared to the opulence of Kell’s rooms. Complex mosaics adorned the wall, the tiles made of jewels and precious metals. Plump cushions made of lush fabrics covered the furniture. A cheery fire warmed the room, and a bowl overflowing with fresh fruit sat on the table next to a crystal decanter of ruby-colored wine. “It’s nice to be visiting royalty here, eh?”

Kell closed the door behind them. “You mean your room isn’t this nice?”

“Hardly.” She cast a ward around the room. Let Dev worry for a bit when he came to her quarters and found her missing. She was staying here.

Kell came behind her and circled her waist, pressing his cheek against her temple. “I didn’t have a chance to tell you how beautiful you looked tonight.”

“I still can’t believe the women here consider this decent clothing.”

“I rather like it on you.” He rocked her from side to side in his arms, palms warm against the spot of skin surrounding her navel.

She leaned back against him and felt the evidence of how much he liked her half-naked appearance pressing against the small of her back. She gave a rueful laugh. “I think you’d prefer it if I wore nothing at all.”

He buried his face along her neck, leaving a trail of kisses from her shoulder up to her ear. “The idea has merit. Perhaps I should help you out of that silly little bodice.”

After all the teasing and tension between her and Dev earlier, she welcomed Kell’s blatant desire. It would be so easy to give into him and let the strain of the evening fade away as he made love to her. But something held her back. She wasn’t sure if it was her confusion over her feelings for Dev or the lingering sting of Kell’s rejection that cautioned her, but she knew she couldn’t lead Kell on. She pried his hands off her waist. “We should stop before things get out of hand.”

The skin above Kell’s nose was wrinkled, and the corners of his mouth tilted down when she turned to face him. “You still haven’t forgiven me, have you?”

“No, I told you that I forgave you, but I…” She struggled to find words for her feelings. “I need to know that you’re comfortable with all of me, including Loku.”

The look of panic that crossed his face confirmed her suspicions. It was simple enough when it was just the two of them together, but when she reminded him of the chaos god living inside her, his mood changed.

“Go on and have romp with him,” Loku said. “I won’t mind in the least.”

Just knowing that he’d be watching them like some dirty old man was enough to quell any feelings of desire she had left. “I think you need more time to consider what you want—both from me and from the woman you eventually will marry.”

“Aren’t they the same thing?” He ran his finger along her jaw, a tender gesture that tugged at her heart. “You do believe me when I tell you I love you, right?”

Her eyes stung. “I think you believe that you love me, but I’m not sure your feelings would stand up if tested.”

He snapped his hand back, his chin quivering before he locked his jaw tight. “Then I suppose I still have something more to prove to you.”

“Kell, please don’t be insulted. I’m just a simple girl, and I only know how to speak my mind as simply as possible. I was never taught the polite way to say something like your Ranellian ladies were.”

“Your bluntness is one of the many things I love about you.”

She smiled in spite of herself and shook her head. There would be no arguing with him. At least, not tonight. She only hoped that he’d develop a better vision of the truth while she was gone. “Ah, Kell, you never give up, do you?”

“Not when it comes to you.” He lowered his head and kissed her, starting gently at first and then deepening the kiss to where they were both left breathless with their hands knotted in each other’s clothes. “Come to bed with me. I promise I’ll behave—unless you tell me not to.”

Her conflicted heart pounded in her ears. When he kissed her like that, it was so hard to say no. Everything about him—the scent of bay leaf that always clung to his clothes, the warm glow in his eyes, the sound of his voice hoarse with desire, the way his hands cradled her like she was the most precious object on earth—called to that inner part in her that longed for something safe and familiar.

A place to call home. 

Would it be so bad to indulge in one more night in his arms?

She didn’t fight him when he gathered her in his arms. She didn’t protest when he carried her to his room. And she didn’t stop him when he joined her in his bed and cradled her body.

Tomorrow, she would leave for the Mage’s Conclave, where she’d be required to stay until she learned to control Loku, a strange place where she’d be alone and at the mercy of the Mage Primus. And in her absence, Kell would realize she wasn’t the right woman for him and go home, leaving her behind.

But tonight, she would cling to a distant dream before she had to give Kell up for good.

***

Dev watched Kell and Arden disappear into the gardens and released the breath he’d been holding. He didn’t like the idea of sending her off with the prince, but it was better than Caz di Miloria getting his claws into her.

The Lord Chamberlain came up to him, his icy blue eyes coolly assessing Dev and seeming to find him wanting. “Where is the Soulbearer?”

He shifted to block Caz’s view of Arden. “I sent her back to her quarters as the Empress ordered.”

“Take me there. I wish to have a closer look at her.”

Dev’s gut tightened. “Why?”

“Do you dare question me?” The Lord Chamberlain’s composed façade crumbled to reveal a sneer. “I don’t care who your father is—I still speak and act on behalf of the Empress, and you should treat my orders as you would hers.”

Instead of cowering back, Dev grinned and took a step toward Caz. “I know very well who my father is, and I know how often the Empress defers to his judgment, not yours. You may be uncle to the Empress, but you do not sit on the throne.”

“And you need to learn your place.” The way the anger flashed across his face painfully reminded Dev of Arden, further confirming his suspicions that her father was a member of the Milorian family. “If I had my way, you would have been executed for your crime, not made protector of the Soulbearer.”

Dev swallowed hard, not wanting to remember the day when his fate changed. “Thankfully, you were outvoted by the Mage’s Council.”

“I’ve had enough of this.” Caz shoved past him. “I demand to see the Soulbearer
now
.”

Dev cut him off. “And again, as her protector, I need to ask why.”

“I need to look at her.”

“You had a pretty good glimpse of her in the throne room.”

“What are you trying to hide?”

“What are you trying to find?” Dev knew better than to reach for his sword. One shout from the Lord Chamberlain, and he’d be killed without question. But that didn’t stop him from releasing the blade concealed up his sleeve. He’d promised he’d protect Arden, and that meant keeping her safe from the likes of Caz.

The Lord Chamberlain straightened and cast a condescending look toward Dev. “For a Ranellian, she bears a remarkable appearance to the Empress. Don’t you agree?”

His stomach tightened another notch. “Perhaps the light was playing tricks on your eyes.”

Caz tried to get past him, but Dev stood his ground, his hands placed squarely on the Lord Chamberlain’s chest.

Caz knocked him away. “No Ranellian looks like her.”

“Are you certain? After all, it’s been quite a few years since you visited that kingdom.”

“She has Milorian blood, and I intend to get to the bottom of this.”

Dev mentally counted to ten before he went with his gut and slit Caz’s throat. If he learned the truth, one of two things would happen. The Milorian clan would either claim Arden as one of their own and make her a cog in their political machine. Or they would want to remove the blemish off their illustrious bloodline.

The Lord Chamberlain straightened his tunic. “I will speak to the Empress on this matter.”

A threat, if he ever heard one. And based on the Empress’s reaction in the throne room, one they would act on. Arden had already challenged the Empress’s power. Now she might be considered a potential challenger to the throne.

Dev waited until Caz entered the main palace before dashing toward Arden’s quarters. When he got there, only Cinder greeted him.

Damn that girl!

Dozens of scenarios raced through his mind. The Lord Chamberlain could have been distracting him while the palace guards took her. She could have run away. The charm could have failed, and the person trying to kill her had found her.

But one more likely scenario played out before him—one that made his chest tighten. She could have crawled back into Kell’s bed.

Cinder licked his hand, bringing him back to the evidence before him. There was no sign of a forced entry. No blood on the walls or floor. Nothing was a dismal as he first imagined.

Cinder whined and scratched at the door. If anyone could find her in the palace complex, it would be the devoted fire wolf.

“I always knew you liked her better than me,” Dev said before he opened the door and followed Cinder out onto the palace grounds.

Chapter 18

A loud series of knocks pulled Arden from where she slept in Kell’s arms. Outside the window, a band of turquoise shimmered along the horizon, signaling the approaching dawn.

“Trouble, open the door,” Dev shouted from the hall.

She groaned and rolled out of the bed. Her dress had turned it into a mass of wrinkles, but she was thankful Kell respected her wishes and kept it on. If he had persisted in trying to seduce her, she might have given in and woken up feeling more guilty than she already did. It was bad enough she’d slept beside him last night, tempting her with the idea they might reconcile their differences one day.

A yawn split her mouth as she lowered the ward and opened the door. “Can’t a girl get any sleep around here?”