CHAPTER 42

The next morning was sunny and unusually warm, and despite Tianna’s determination to spend the morning moping around her rooms alone, she found herself desperate to get outside. A throwback from being raised on the ranch, no doubt. She had dismissed Chelsey after breakfast and didn’t bother calling on her again. As her new wardrobe had been delivered, Tril had explained the purpose of each dress, and there seemed to be dresses for every occasion. She found the wine-red walking dress and managed to get herself dressed without too much trouble. A simple braid, bound at the nape of her neck, was good enough for her hair. Eveera was much simpler to get ready, though she was starting to require true dresses instead of the long shirts that had been use in her younger infancy. They were simple creations and came with what amounted to pants underneath. That and a warm blanket would be more than enough to keep the girl warm for their stroll.

When she entered the guard room and announced that she needed a stroll before she burst from her own skin, Sargrach nodded and waved four of her guard over.

“N...nnn...nice day for it. The gardens are m...mmm...maintained through the winter here. Most of the paths are stone and clear of m...mmm...mud. Kirkuth will show you the way.”

She smiled and thanked him and then they were out of the rooms and winding their way through the palace. She was beginning to recognize some of the corridors closer to her own apartments; they were organized in systems, different sections of the palace were decorated in different colors and patterns. It would take a good long while to learn it, but it explained how the Daemon that lived here managed to find their way around.

The gardens were west of the palace proper and Sargrach had been right, they were perfectly maintained. Even in the early spring, when the snow had all but melted away and the branches were still bare, there was a beauty about the place. It had been designed by someone with a love of art and a keen sense of how to use space to its maximum effect. She wasn’t sure how far the gardens stretched, but after walking for almost an hour, it felt like they went on for miles, though she knew that couldn’t be true.

Her arms began to ache from carrying the baby, and Eveera was starting to fuss a little, pulling against her hold when Tianna decided to head back. She had retraced about a quarter of her journey when a familiar figure appeared around a bend in the path ahead.

Tianna stiffened. She hadn’t decided what, if anything, she wanted to do about the production of Torgux and Xor’annan the night of the star gazing party. She did know that she had spent the entire night and most of the morning contemplating Ar’miel’s words; the question of if she had someone who would seek her well-being above all else. And the answer had been that neither Torgux nor Xor’annan had her ultimate well-being in mind. She didn’t quite know the rules of this new world, but she was inclined to believe that she didn’t need to marry at all. Once this business with whatever enemy Eveera had was finished and she had learned enough about her position to ensure she wasn’t going to make any catastrophic mistakes, she decided she would go to Caulherd. She could happily live on her own in some mansion in the country. The thought had buoyed her spirits, and having a goal that she had some control over had lifted them even more. She had planned on seeking the council of the Dowager that very afternoon at tea. The older woman had seemed amicable, surely she would help to tutor Tianna in the ways of managing a title and holding on her own, since no one else seemed inclined to do so.

“Hellcat,” Xor’annan greeted when he was close enough. “I thought to attend you this morning in your apartments only to find that you had flown from the palace.”

“Hadrian,” Tianna performed the deep nod required when greeting one of his station but kept walking. She wanted to be the one to set the tone, no more getting caught up in whatever his plots were. She had thought long and hard about things while she lay awake last night and had decided on cool informality.

Xor’annan’s eyes narrowed, but he did not comment.

“You received an invitation to Mizare’s hunt,” he stated instead, turning smoothly to come alongside her.

“Along with a few balls and several afternoon teas, yes.”

“And you have accepted?”

“I haven’t decided quite what to do,” she admitted. “I don’t care if the court thinks I am cowardly, I am not here to impress anyone, and it sounds dangerous.”

“You should accept,” he told her.

She raised an eyebrow at him. Best interest she reminded herself.

“It is dangerous,” he was busy scanning the paths of the garden, eyes flitting warily as if danger lurked around each bend in the path, so he did not see her stiffen and frown. “It is a perfect opportunity for the enemy to act. You will be away from the palace and its protections and in a group that is notoriously less fond of our human counterparts. If one of that set isn’t the betrayer, then whoever it is will likely know about the hunt and strike anyway.”

“And do you expect me to survive this?” she wondered. So long as it drew out the enemy would he even care?

He gave her a look of genuine shock. Well, to her point of view anyway, his lips tightened a bit and there was a definite lift of his brows; anyone else might see him unaffected, pleasantly uncaring even.

“We will outfit you with a few weapons, and I will be sure to join the venture. I will also have a contingent of my men follow in secret.”

“If you were invited, why don’t you just go? You said they are after your family, doesn’t that include you?”

“I wasn’t invited,” he glanced at her from the side of his eye, still scanning the garden paths, “I have refused too many times, and made my opinion of the practice well known.”

“So you will just show up, like you did to the star gazing party? What if they refuse to let you come? Then I will be alone. Even if they don’t refuse, won’t they be suspicious?”

Xor’annan snorted.

“I am Hadrian, if I wish to go on the hunt, they will welcome me with open arms. And considering the events of the other night at the party, none will be too surprised to find that I follow you on this event.”

Something dark stabbed into her emotions. So that had been his plan. Show interest so that it wasn’t suspicious that he showed up to the events that she partook in. A fury like she hadn’t known began to simmer beneath the surface.

“I still do not understand why you just don’t attend without me.”

He was silent for a moment.

“You asked if the betrayer would target me. I have been targeted for most of my life, since the murder of my parents twenty years ago. They have found me most difficult to kill. They will not try again unless they are certain that they have an advantage. I am hoping that when you accept the invitation, they set up their plan and, by the time I join the hunt, it will be too late to change it.”

Tianna thought about what he said. Twenty years he had been hunted; his family had been hunted. Twenty years he had spent sheltering Trill and watching the shadows. She didn’t want it, but a surge of compassion rose anyway, suffocating the anger he had riled in her.

“But don’t they just hire mercenaries? What good does killing more hired men do?”

He eyed her.

“Everyone makes mistakes, Hellcat. Eventually, our enemy will make one, as well. Until now, their identity has remained a secret from those that they have hired, but every time they act they risk that information being found.”

“You don’t plan to kill them, you plan to torture them.” It was the only course of action that fit with what he was saying, and she still had random memories of the man she had watched Xor’annan kill. She understood its necessity now, especially after Ostrodan came after her and Eveera, but it didn’t stop her mind from thrusting vivid details at her.

“Why do you think we littered the forest by the manse with traps? Torture serves a dual purpose. Men who wish to get paid for their evil deeds are often not afraid of death in the line of work...being slowly cut apart, however, is not something worth being paid for. The enemy has found it difficult to find men willing to do their bidding since I began the practice. It has allowed at least some reprieve.”

Again, compassion reared its head, along with a little guilt for being so angry with him. If she were in his place and had the means to finally end those hunting her and those she loved, would she not do whatever it took? Would she not do the same for Eveera?

“Alright,” she conceded. “I will accept the invitation. But I have conditions.”

The corner of his mouth twitched.

“And what are those?”

“I want to be aware of the measures taken to protect me. All of them.”

“Done,” he nodded.

“And there will be no repeat of the other night. The next time you want to use me like that, you can ask first, or, better yet, find someone else.”

Xor’annan did look at her then. All of his intensity focused on her, and for some reason she couldn’t figure out, he did not look happy.

“Is that what you think?” he growled, menacingly enough that her guardsmen, who had politely stepped back out of hearing range, closed in a little.

“Am I supposed to think something else? Look, it doesn’t matter. I get why you put on that little show, but I didn’t like it, and I just don’t think it’s necessary anymore. Either way, it is one of my conditions.” she waved her free hand dismissively and then shifted Eveera to the other arm. Jeez the girl was getting heavy.

“I think you did like it, very much if the way your body melted to mine was any indication.”

Heat crawled up her neck, her embarrassment at her own behavior trying to push to the forefront before she could catch herself. Why should she feel ridiculous? She had a reaction, a very normal reaction, to a handsome man kissing the life out of her. If Torgux had tried the same thing, she would have reacted to him, too.

Yeah...lying to herself was not working.

“I was just playing along. If you can’t tell the difference, that’s none of my business,” she tried lying to Xor’annan instead.

“You are a terrible liar,” he told her, but he chuckled as he said it. “But I can see that I need to change tactics. Well played, Hellcat, I look forward to the challenge.”