Page 27 of The Dragon Queen
His eyes glazed over for a moment, like a memory crept up on him from nowhere. “Vivian lived a very modest life before me. The idea of being in a castle where you’re never truly alone didn’t appeal to her. She wanted to cook, make a home, be a mother to our children rather than letting them be raised by a maid. It was her one condition when I asked her to marry me.”
“So, when you became king, you would have continued to live outside the castle?”
He nodded. “If that’s what she wanted. I thought she might change her mind as the years progressed, but we were barely married for a year when…when it all happened.” He looked away, like he shut off the memory before it could fully form in his mind.
He said he never wanted to speak of Vivian ever again, but he shared bits of their story voluntarily sometimes. It was nice to know more about his life, even if it involved another woman. “Thank you for sharing.”
He stared down at the map for a moment longer before he folded it up and handed it to me. “Keep this shit out of sight.”
I slipped it inside my bra underneath my shirt.
He looked at me for a long moment, knowing this was the last chance we would get to speak in private. I didn’t know how long I would be within the castle, but it could be days…or weeks. Someone could discover my treason and behead me before Talon could reach me. “Please be safe.”
“I will.”
“You don’t know how hard this is for me.” His eyes dropped to the ground.
But I did know. Because outside the castle walls was where his wife had been burned alive. Where every member of his family had been burned to ash. “I’ve survived the fall of my kingdom.”
He looked at me again.
“I survived the Arid Sands. I survived the Battle of Riviana. I will survive this too.”
After a long stare, he gave a slight nod.
I moved into him and rested my face on his chest, feeling the hardness of his muscles rather than the cold touch of his armor. I squeezed him as I smelled him, as I treasured him, the man who had become my home and my family.
His thick arms circled me and squeezed me hard into his chest, his powerful embrace wrapping around me completely to enclose me in the most comfortable cage. His chin rested on my head as he held me there, his grip so tight it seemed like he had no intention of ever letting me go.
I could stay like that forever…but I couldn’t. I was the one to step away first.
He let me go, but begrudgingly. Sorrow and discomfort were potent in his dark eyes, like it took all his strength to let me walk this dangerous path alone. He turned into the crack in the hard stone of the cliff and began to sidestep inside, disappearing into the darkness of the enclosed rock.
I waited a moment before I followed, putting space between us in case it was needed.
When we reached the opposite end, it was dark, so dark I could barely make out his movements. But I saw him press his ear to the back of the shelf and listen to hear if anyone else was in the storeroom. At dawn, I imagined it was empty because who could need wine and cheese at this hour, but I didn’t know what other things were stored inside.
He stood there for minutes to be overly cautious. When no sound was heard, he gently pushed the base of the shelf and slid it across the stone floor, making an opening big enough for both of us to pass through. Light blanketed the crevasse in the rock and lit up the rest of my path.
I joined him and stepped into the storage room, the place full of wine bottles on shelves against the wall, pinwheels of cheese on wooden shelves so they could continue to age. There werealso grains, oats, and wheat. Beans stored in wooden barrels and bottles of olive oil.
Talon pushed the shelf back before he examined the storage room, like he was well acquainted with the place. “It hasn’t changed at all.”
“Why were you in the storage room?”
He moved to one of the shelves that held the assortment of wine bottles. He examined one that was covered with dust as he read the label. “Silas and I used to help ourselves to the wine and scotch.” He looked at the other bottles before he stepped away. “Most of these were my father’s. I’m surprised Barron didn’t destroy them all. I guess his appreciation for good wine is stronger than his hatred.” He stepped away and approached the door. “The linen closet is across the hall.” He pressed his ear to the door and listened. “I think the staff is in the kitchen preparing breakfast. We should be able to grab a uniform.” He cracked the door and looked into the hallway, and when the coast was clear, he crossed to the other door and stepped inside. It had shelves full of bedsheets and duvet covers and extra pillows, all the stuff needed to keep all the chambers in the castle pristine.
Talon seemed to know where everything was even though he’d been royalty while he lived on the grounds.
“I understand why you know where the booze is, but why do you know about this stuff?”
He opened drawers and searched different shelves, looking for extra uniforms the maids wore in the castle. His back was to me as he searched. “I’m sure you can figure that one out on your own.” He finally found the clothing, a black dress with a whiteapron sewn directly into the material. He turned back to me with the dress in his hands. “It’s the last one, so it’ll have to work.”
“I’ll get dressed.”
He moved to the door and locked it.
I shed the clothes I wore and put on the dress before I handed him my old things so he could return them to my pack.