Taurus (8 page)

Taurus focused on the road, scanning the way home from side to side. He signaled his men with a gesture of his arm. They adjusted the speed of their horses to keep him and Kallie ahead by twenty cubits at all times. More than two-thirds of the way to the city, Taurus glanced at her. As a skilled rider, she had no trouble keeping up, but her constant twisting in her saddle to look back annoyed him. At first he thought she checked the men, but the more she repeated the move, the more suspicious Taurus became. He cut across her path, forcing her horse to come to a halt. The look of smug triumph on her face told him something was dreadfully wrong.

The men approached with trepidation as he grabbed Kallie’s arm and yanked her over to his mount. She did not protest. The knowledge dawned on him as she waited and watched.

“Four of you return to the mountain. Go up the track to the first lookout and find an arrow on the ground made of stones. Destroy it! Leave no clue as to what was there. Understood?” Taurus yelled at the man chosen to head up the task. The man nodded in response.

“Go then!” Taurus raged. He watched as the men galloped away at top speed.

Kallie spoke calmly. “It’s too late.”

“Why?” Taurus asked, contorting with anger. “What in damnation does the rock formation mean? Tell me the truth!”

“I must communicate or Atticus will rescue me, and I am not ready to leave.” Kallie scanned his face, her gaze lingering on his lips. “My brother must concede my betrothal is over, and that I no longer play a part in his schemes, before I move on to Greece.”

“You seriously believe you can walk in and out of Panua as you please?”

Kallie nodded. “I can and I will, Governor. It is easier than you think.”

He shook his head. “Do not believe for one heartbeat you can leave without my consent.”

“Caius will send a message soon,” she mused. “Ben Alim will report to Rome, and Caius will adjust his plans. You have given me a small win over the emperor, but you have been well rewarded.”

He struggled with anger at her, but also had the satisfaction that Caius Gregorian was inconvenienced. “You assume I will agree to your exile, but unfortunately you may not see Greece for a long time.”

They rode in silence the rest of the way to the fortress. Taurus delivered her in person to Kristokus. His eyes flashed a warning—no surprises.

“Be sure she is ready at sunset. We are expected at the Villa Verragius tonight.” Taurus left without another word.

****

Kallie settled into her suite to rest before the evening’s event. She called to the steward as he reached the door, ready to exit. “They say the men in Greece are handsome and proud.” She looked him straight in the eye.

“Indeed, Lady.” Kristokus answered stiffly, averting his eyes.

“I need a wise woman or a physician. I have a headache and need their service,” she complained. “Can you arrange it?”

“As you wish.” He bowed and left the room.

Kallie undressed and meandered into the adjacent room, where a body servant waited with scented oils to bathe her and comb out her hair. Kallie rested on a cool slab, draped with the finest linens, while the girl pressed strong fingers into her tired muscles. After the girl clipped and buffed Kallie’s fingernails and toenails to a shine, rich linens were draped over her clean, smooth body. Afterward, Kallie slid into bed to nap until the time came for her evening with the governor. She lay wondering who Verragius was, and why Taurus was taking her when everyone here hated her presence, until an old woman entered the room and stood by the door. Kallie beckoned her to come closer. “You are the wise woman?”

She shuffled forward. “Yes,” the woman croaked.

Kallie took in her appearance. Wrinkled and gray-haired, with few teeth left, she smelled of odious herbs and powders. This woman could help.

“I have no money for you, wise woman, but there are those who will pay well for your work today.”

“Who, my dear?” the crone rasped.

“Lady Lidia or Lady Virga will offer you much more than I ever could.” Kallie had the woman’s interest, judging by the way she licked her lips when coins were mentioned.

“I need powders that prevent a woman from…you know…having a child.”

The woman nodded sagely. “They cost much for a noblewoman. The herbs must be of good quality, not the poor homegrown nonsense the local wenches use.”

Kallie smiled. “Lady Lidia will not want a Gregorian to bear the governor’s child. She will owe you a great debt and will pay well.” An unbidden thought that Lidia might take the opportunity to poison her popped into her head. “The governor will be upset if he loses his Roman prize, so choose the powder well and use the best.”

The old woman inclined her head. She held out her hand. The mottled skin and veins stood out against papery skin. “It will be as you wish, Mistress.”

“Quickly,” she urged, as the woman retreated out the door. Kallie rolled over in the bed, pressed against the soft pillow, and slid into a deep sleep.

****

Lidia and Barca faced Taurus in his office. He simmered with annoyance, but they were incidental to his thoughts. While they argued over Kallie and the notion she should not attend the Verragius party, Taurus took a moment to rethink the day. The girl had used an opportunity to communicate with the giant. She was resourceful and clever, and she impressed him, even though he hated to admit such a thing was possible. He recalled the muscles in her arms and legs as she climbed the tree, and her sinuous body as it moved gracefully through the forest. She had completely duped him while playing with rocks and recalling stories of her childhood.

Taurus’ jaw clenched at his incredible stupidity. She’d distracted his concentration and he had fallen for her female charms, her ploy to render him incapable of interfering with a message intended for Atticus.

Atticus! Taurus seethed with hatred at the name. He needn’t bother telling Lidia or Barca the details only to have them rail further against the girl. Taurus had had enough of their opinions.

“Are you even listening to our advice?” Lidia carped.

He forced a congenial smile and placed a light kiss on her forehead.

“She will join us, and that’s the end of it. General Verragius will be disappointed if we forget the latest sensation in all of Panua.”

Lidia protested. “Get rid of her before she casts her spell over you. Shame her first, then throw her in the dungeons to rot.”

“You forget she is the sister of Rome. As long as I hold her in my grip, the emperor must negotiate with Panua. I fully intend to exploit our advantage.”

Barca remained exceptionally quiet, and Taurus attempted to heal the rift between them. They usually shared everything, including women, but Taurus did not intend to apply that rule to Kallie. She remained his exclusive property for as long as she pleased him.

He backslapped his friend. “Bring a woman tonight as your guest. How about the little redhead, Rufia? The one who makes eyes at you when she thinks no one notices.” He rarely gave advice on women or social engagements, especially when Lidia was in the room.

Barca eyed him carefully. “I will arrange it and meet you at the villa.” He left after a polite nod.

Lidia stayed silent for a moment as she weighed her words. He grew strong-willed, and she lost ground every day. In his youth she had ruled with a firm hand, but her hold on him slipped as he matured.

“Verragius’ daughter will be her best tonight. Give her your attention while in her father’s house,” Lidia cajoled.

“What is her name?” Taurus asked, deliberately obtuse. Only one woman’s name sprang readily to his lips.

“Flavia!” Lidia snapped, visibly grappling with fury. “I know she is forgettable, and I understand your lack of interest, but marry and get a son on her and make Panua’s future secure.”

Taurus remained at his desk, sipping watered wine, long after Lidia left. The general’s daughter forgotten, his mind wandered through the memory of his afternoon with Kallie. He recalled her flawless face, her dark, wavy hair, stormy, gray eyes suffused with light, and a small dimple on each cheek when she smiled. Taurus remained lost in thought until he noticed a movement out of the corner of his eye and gave the signal to approach.

Kristokus accompanied an old crone.

“What did she want of you?” Taurus wasted no time in niceties.

The crone’s lip curled in a lewd smile. “The same as all women engaged in licentious behavior,” she tittered.

Taurus shot her a look of disdain. “I am in no mood for games. Speak plainly, woman.”

“To avoid a child from your rutting,” the woman said crudely.

“And did you promise her success with your potions, beldame?”

“I can do it,” she replied, “for a price. And it’s a high price for the best quality.”

“Hmm,” Taurus muttered. “Attend to the lady’s need, and I will take care of the cost.” He lifted a pouch of coins from his desk. “The finest herbs and powders for the lady…but not to inhibit a child. I want to encourage a child to grow between us.” Taurus tossed the small bag at the woman. “No mistakes, beldame. Your life and wealth rest on her success at giving me a son to grow strong and healthy. I will challenge Rome for its highest office.”

Taurus sat back and raised his feet onto his desk. The old woman left in a hurry to begin the task. “Why are you still here?” Taurus asked his hovering steward.

“Master, the lady from Rome recited a strange thing today.”

Taurus sat upright and gave his full attention. In all his years with him, Kristokus had never once come with a problem or concern.

“What did she say?”

Kristokus repeated the phrase.
“They say the men in Greece are handsome and proud.”

Taurus shook his head. “Is there a significance?”

The steward nodded. “It is a test. If I am not loyal to Panua and if I am a spy placed within your fortress, then I would respond. Another message may pass between us to confirm I am the true spy.”

Taurus had heard of such tales. Lidia was a master spy. At one time she’d had spies in the bed of the old emperor. She knew Gregorian’s business before he knew it.

He ran a hand through his hair. “Do you know the proper reply, Kristokus?”

“Only the spy planted within our midst would know.”

Taurus paced the room. A spy in the fortress, placed among the highest of the high.
Damn!
He had enough to worry over—the impending choice of a wife, the possibility of aggression from the emperor, and, most of all, the presence of Atticus roaming freely in his land, communicating with his captive. “Thank you, Kristokus. Keep your eyes and ears alert for the slightest hint of a spy accessing Lady Gregorian.”

****

Taurus glanced outside. The sun dominated the horizon. The time had come to go to the Villa Verragius and socialize with a girl who could become his wife. He despised such trifling events with their small talk and women flitting about like butterflies. Lidia would watch him like a hawk, dissecting every word and action, inferring the wrong conclusion. This evening she hoped to push him further into marriage negotiations and see Panua’s heirs come swiftly as she neared sixty-five annals. Taurus owed Lidia much, but where did her ambitions end and his truly begin?

He groaned at the thought of marriage. Taurus had the power to sentence a woman to death if she dallied with another man. Panuan law called only for a woman’s fidelity, and Rome had a similar law. Most men opted for discretion when married to a nobleman’s daughter and indulging in an affair, but Taurus planned to take Kallie to the home of Verragius to flaunt her as his mistress, as a defiant snub against Lidia as well as to set the tone for his prospective wife, to make it understood his marriage would be only to appease his grandmother’s burning desire to keep the name “Paulus Paulinus” alive for the ages. If they deemed it an insult, their complaints would fall on deaf ears. A Supreme Commander of Panua had every right to conquer, in and out of the bedroom.

A smile lifted the corners of his mouth. He had never housed a woman in his private quarters before. None had interested him as much as the woman who waited there now. A searing pulse of desire ran through his body at the mere thought of touching her soft skin and kissing her sensuous mouth.

****

Kallie had gone to great lengths to look her best for this evening. Taurus itched to display her as a plaything in front of his little court in Panua. She wore a red dress shot with golden thread that shimmered in the lamplight. She had artfully braided her hair in a long twist and laid the dark, glossy length over one shoulder. Bracelets of gold accented her smooth, sun-kissed arms, from wrist to elbow. A gold chain dangled between her round breasts with a large, clear gemstone winking a rainbow of color in the firelight. Bronzed powder and a tiny application of dark tincture on her features enhanced her beauty tenfold.

Taurus entered the room without preamble, dripping wet from the pool, his half-naked body streaming with rivulets of water that accented his muscles and tanned skin. The drying sheet around his waist dropped to the floor and Kallie failed to concentrate her eyes on his upper half.

He smirked as he moved to her side, causing a squeal as his wet body pressed against hers, undoing hours of preparation. “I’ll be careful,” he muttered, as his lips touched her cheek.

“You can’t do this now,” she begged. “It will take too long to rearrange myself.”

Her dress loosened easily at his touch. “You give me no choice when you look the way you do.” He chuckled at her dismay.

She threw her arms around his neck in resignation. If his guests were kept waiting or if she arrived disheveled, it would be his fault. “Fine, but they will know we have tangled together as soon as they see me,” Kallie whispered.

“You belong to me. I possess you when it pleases me.” Taurus pressed her mouth apart with his kisses until she gasped for breath.

“You are a wild animal at heart, Governor. You will be as bored as me at this evening’s party. Let’s run away together!” She giggled.

“Where would we run?” Taurus smiled at her game.