The Jewel of Kamara (The Delthenon Chronicles) (18 page)

Hallam
leaned back in his chair. “There is no need to convince me brother. I am on
your side here. I saw what she was like even before she spoke. She has the
small mind of her people and will not marry Nic. I will make sure of that,”
Hallam vowed and left his brother to stew over his own thoughts.

And
Hallam would take care of it. The brothers had agreed she would make a bad
queen, and Hallam was adamant that he would not let a Kalaowin near the throne.
He knew the lengths he would have to go to make that happen, and he just hoped
Wimarc had the stomach for it.

“Have
you heard a word I’ve said?”

Hallam
was awoken from his thoughts, and he turned his handsome face to the lady
seated beside him.

“Forgive
me, my lady. I think I’m still weary from my travels,” he apologized. “But you
have my undivided attention now,” he whispered in her ear and kissed her smooth
hand.

“Now
as I was saying, my brother is quite adept with his magic...” Adina continued
talking, oblivious to her dinner partner’s obvious lack of attention.

Hallam
had decided that Lady Adina of
Nural
would make a
fine choice for his first conquest to celebrate his return to court. Though
when he had chosen her he had no idea how much she liked to talk. He put a
smile on his face and continued to think of the reason he had returned to
Kamara.

—

Tempani’s
hand rested on Nic’s arm as they strolled through the streets of Fenella. She
groaned when the wrap covering her hair came loose in the wind. Dahlia, seeing
her friend’s annoyance, rushed forward and helped her fix it.

“You’re
really pushing to be a lady in waiting, aren’t you?” Nic laughed.

“If
Tempani wants me there when she’s queen all she has to do is ask,” Dahlia said
and gave her friend a wink. “But you have to convince her to marry you first.”

Nic
patted Tempani’s hand and gave her a warm smile. “I’m working on it.”

Tempani
gulped and stared at her feet as they walked.

The
young group of nobles made a regal picture as they walked through the city.
Tempani, Nic and Teddy leading the way with Xanthir and
Famette
trailing them and Madoc, Chae and Dahlia bringing up the rear. It had been
Teddy’s idea that they all venture out together. Show the commoners that the
young couple was serious about one another. He had even suggested she shower
the young children with hugs and kisses. That had been met with an eye roll
from her.

The
city was busy. People were scrambling to sell their goods to the merchant
wagons that had rolled in two days prior and were due to leave that afternoon.
She wondered if Leandra’s designs were popular with the merchants. She was
wearing one of them today. A soft pink cotton dress with long sleeves. She had paired
the dress with her favorite pair of brown boots despite Zadi’s protests that
they were too worn. She didn’t care. They were comfortable. And if she was
going to be paraded around the city then she was going to be comfortable doing
it.

They
turned down the alley and passed the Grand Moat Tavern. Tempani’s eyes flicked
to the inn across the street and met the eyes of the thief. She was leaning
against the door, chatting to a fellow Lady of the Night. She straightened up
as the young group moved closer and let rip a short, sharp whistle.

Her
friend turned to the group and grinned. “Royals,” she said loudly. “My favorite
type of customer.”

The
thief let out a throaty laugh. “You can have them. I’ll take the tall one,” her
raspy voice was directed at Madoc. “He’s handsome.”

An
older lady came up behind the girls and placed a hand on the thief’s shoulder.
“Inside,” she barked. “He doesn’t like to be kept waiting.”

Tempani
could have sworn she saw a look of fear flash across the girl’s face before the
smirk returned. “Can we at least play with the little one first? He looks like
he could do with some experience.”

“Inside,”
the woman roared as the two girls laughed.

Tempani
glared at their backs, hating her for making fun of Teddy. She reached across
to pat his arm, but he pulled away from her.

“I’m
hungry,” he said. “Let’s eat.”

“Teddy,”
she called out as he stalked off.

“Leave
him,” Nic said gently and squeezed her hand. “He’ll be fine.”

Tempani
watched her friend walk off and wondered if that was the case. She had noticed
lately that Teddy wasn’t himself. He seemed sad. Perhaps she had not been
spending as much time with him now that she was involved with Nic. She hadn’t
meant to neglect him and instantly felt terrible for doing so.

“The
library is rather underwhelming,” Nic said when they returned to the palace and
he took her on a tour of the private rooms. “When I’m king I hope to fill it to
bursting point with books. My father isn’t much for reading but luckily I had a
good role model in Lord Darby. His passion for books is infectious.”

Tempani
frowned when she entered. Underwhelming was right. Her father’s study housed
more books than this. “I don’t understand when those who are fortunate enough
to read take it for granted. Don’t they love getting lost in tales of heroism?
Or reading the downfall of a despised character? The joy one gets from
finishing a book is a feeling I love.”

Nic
grinned as he came up behind her and wrapped his arms around her waist, kissing
the top of her head. “Your passion is one of the things I love.”

As
always, at the mention of love, her palms became sweaty as a rush of nerves
raced through her body. She wondered if she would ever feel differently. Would
she ever feel joy at that word instead of panic? She wanted to love him. She
possibly did love him. But she wasn’t sure. And she couldn’t say the word to
him until she was sure. It wasn’t fair.

“When
we are married, I will let you fill this library with any book you want. You
can read to your heart’s content. Perhaps Ellsje will follow suit. She can’t
wait to have you be her sister.”

He
turned every conversation to marriage. Was it not enough for now that they were
just courting? She had told him she wanted to take things slowly. Give the
kingdom, and herself, time to adjust to their union.

She
turned around in his arms, meeting his blue eyes with hers, and she felt the
panic ease. The one thing she was certain of was that he would always be there
for her.

“I’m
doing it again, aren’t I?” He shrugged. “Sorry, I guess I get carried away when
I think of our future.”

She
reached up and brushed her lips against his. “You need to spend more time in
the present. Just enjoy being with me.”

“That
I can manage,” he whispered as he tightened his arms around her and kissed her.

Her
heart raced as she allowed herself to get lost in his kiss. Her desire for him
was another thing she was certain of. His touch thrilled her in a way she had
never known to be possible. Her skin burned from his touch, and she wanted
nothing more than to be closer to him.

Her
body molded against his, and he moaned against her lips as his hand pressed
against the back of her neck.

They
were startled apart by a cough. Her heart, already beating quickly, felt like
it would burst from her chest.

“Nicolass,
your father has requested a word,” Hallam drawled. “Don’t worry, I’ll keep Lady
Tempani company,” he said when Nic hesitated.

“I
won’t be long,” he promised before rushing out the door.

Tempani’s
cheeks burned as she brought a hand to her hair to ensure it was tucked under
her wrap. She kept her eyes focused on the shelves in front of her.

“Good
thing I interrupted when I did.” His voice was gentle. Kind, even. But there
was something in his expression that was cold. Menacing. “We wouldn’t want
things to go any further, would we?”

“Luckily
we have people like you keeping an eye on things.”

“Very
lucky indeed. Imagine if I hadn’t intervened. Falling pregnant without a
husband by your side would be unfortunate indeed. People would think you had
done it on purpose. Trapped my nephew into a union.”

“He
didn’t look trapped to me,” she snapped.

“My
nephews are blind where you are concerned. But I see you. Make no mistake, my
lady, you will not sit beside him on the throne. I will not allow it.”

“I
don’t appreciate being threatened, Prince Hallam.”

“Think
of it more as a warning,” he said. “A Kalaowin will not be queen.”

“Well,
make no mistake,” she said as she walked up to him. “You will not come between
us.”

He
laughed at her. “And what will you do? Seduction will only get you so far, and
once my nephew turns his back on you, any standing you had here will be gone.”

“Tempani.”
Teddy’s voice was tense as he walked in. “Nic asked me to escort you home. It
seems he’ll be longer than expected.”

Hallam
laughed and grabbed her hand, bringing it to his lips. “Always a pleasure, Lady
Tempani,” he said before sweeping from the room but not before rubbing Teddy’s
hair on his way out.

“I
hate that man.”

“I
saw him come in here and thought you might need rescuing.”

“You
thought right.” She squeezed his arm. “He doesn’t want me to marry Nic.”

“Come
with me,” he said as he walked towards a different door. “I want to show you
something.”

She
followed him through the door and across the ballroom. She had never seen it
empty before. It wasn’t as grand without the people and decorations. There was
a door tucked away in the corner that she had never noticed before.

“Not
many people get to see this room.” He ushered her through and closed the door
quietly behind them.

The
room was dark but with a flick of his hand, he lit the candles and cast the
room with an eerie glow.

“Show
off,” she muttered.

“It
runs in the family,” he whispered. “Take a look around.”

She
moved slowly, her eyes falling on swords, bows, tomahawks, headdresses,
diamonds and gold.

“We
like to display our conquests,” he said bitterly. “All of this was taken from
the Kalaowins.”

Paintings
of creatures she’d only heard of hung on the walls. Wyverns, unicorns,
minotaurs
. Alongside them was a portrait of King Raleigh,
mighty in stature, holding Kalaowins away with his sword as they were tied up.

She
winced when she realized she was biting her bottom lip. She shuddered as she
turned away.

“Reminders
of what is bad in this kingdom. This is what you’re up against.”

She
shook her head. “Nic won’t keep this room when he’s king. He wouldn’t do that.”

“And
your father probably didn’t think my father would either,” he said. “From all
accounts my father was a good man when he was younger but power has a way of
changing people. If Nic continues to surround himself with people like my
uncle, then he will go this way too.”

“You
said yourself, your brother is a good man,” she said. “He wants to marry me and
I’m part Kalaowin.”

He
rubbed her arm. “I just want you to be careful. If my family thinks there’s a
threat, they will eliminate it.”

Was
he seriously worried that something would happen to her? Her father was close
friends with the king, her mother had been the queen’s best friend, she was
friends with Lord Darby and Teddy. And then there was Nic. Nothing would happen
to her. But she had to admit this room was unsettling. If she were even to
consider marrying Nic, things would have to change around here. The attitude
towards her people would be top of the list.

“Come
on,” he said as he blew out the candles. “Nic will be looking for you.”

“Teddy?”
She reached out and took his hand. “I know you worry about the influence power
may have on you but you needn’t. You don’t have a cruel bone in your body. You
really put us all to shame.”

“I
have seen the downside of power. I know the darkness it can create in someone,
and I don’t want that life.”

She
squeezed his hand. “And you won’t.”

—

Colbert
was restless as he lay in bed. This was the third night in a row that he had
not been able to shut off his mind and sleep.

“Go
and have some warm milk. It will help you sleep,” Leandra murmured.

“Yes
dear,” he whispered and crept out of their room. And this was the third night
in a row that Leandra had booted him out of their bed. He couldn’t blame her
though. Pregnancy tended to make women more tired than usual, and she refused
to allow Colbert to keep her up as well.

He
sat with a thud on the chair and buried his head in his hands. He had been
worried about Tempani since that day she used her Power. He had been hoping she
would come to him and ask for help. He waited each day, but she had yet to
appear. Colbert had thought that maybe he should seek her out, but he was advised
against it. He had been assured that she was indeed asking questions about what
had happened. Whether she believed any of it was anyone’s guess.