The King & His Queen (Pict King Series Book 3) Page 24

  Verity smiled, patted his cheek, and said, “So are you, but I handle you well and you have never bitten me.” Her voice turned to a whisper. “Well, maybe in play.”

  Wrath glared at her and she hurried away from him and slipped inside the dwelling, the snarls stopping instantly. He heard Paine laugh and he turned, ready to take his anger out on his friend and stopped. The worried look on the King’s face had Wrath sending Paine a nod, then gave a nod toward the King.

  Paine understood his silent signal and both men went to the King.

  “Is something wrong, Talon?” Wrath asked as a friend.

  “Get me Gelhard,” Talon ordered.

  Wrath went off to do as ordered without question.

  “We can stand here silent or you can tell me what troubles you,” Paine said.

  “Hemera will be my queen,” Talon said as if he commanded it and was stunned by the rush of joy that shivered his flesh as it ran through him. He may have claimed that Hemera belonged to him but a union would seal that claim forever.

  “You cannot mean that. I have yet to learn enough about Hemera to ascertain she is fit to be your queen,” Gelhard said, rushing toward the King. “I was on my way here for my daily talk with Hemera when Wrath informed me you wished to see me. She is not forthcoming about herself and I fear she hides something. You must wait, my King. Give me more time to make certain this would be a good union for you.”

  “I am certain it will be a perfect union,” Talon said, declaring it so. “Make plans for the ceremony. We wed at the start of the new moon cycle.”

  Gelhard shook his head. “You cannot be serious. That is not enough time to send word and have chieftains attend and they will want to attend.”

  “Gelhard is right,” Paine said. “Tribes will rejoice over the news and chieftains will want to take part in the celebration. It will give them hope for the future and weaken your enemy’s claim to the throne, especially if Hemera gets with child right away.”

  Gelhard’s head took to nodding with every word Paine spoke and continued as he spoke. “It would secure your rule.”

  “No rule is secure,” Talon argued. “There will always be men and women who seek power and wish to rule.”

  “A strong monarch with a good heart, wise ways, and with roots buried deep in this soil will make sure Pict blood forever rules this land.”

  The men turned and looked at Anin.

  Paine went to his wife, his arm going around her protectively and she settled comfortably against him as she always did.

  “That is exactly what the people want to be sure of,” Gelhard said with a firm nod of his head. “The people must know without a doubt that Hemera is truly a Pict and that her blood is of this land.”

  “You doubt she is a Pict?” Wrath asked.

  “I doubt her story that she and her sister were abducted in a raid on the Alpin Tribe. I can find no source who can confirm such a raid existed. Minn disputed Hemera’s claim of a raid when they had spoken. She never heard of a Northmen raid on the Alpin Tribe.”

  “Are you saying that Verity and Hemera are not Picts?” Wrath asked ready to argue with Gelhard.

  “I am saying we do not know enough to know either way,” Gelhard said.

  “I know enough!”

  All turned to see Verity approach them, her eyes lit with anger. “My memory does not fault me of that time. I remember well, being grabbed by what seemed like a giant to me and tucked under his arm and carted away to be dumped in a boat that rocked so badly my stomach would not stop emptying even when there was no more to empty. I remember my sister throwing herself on top of me and taking the blow when the giant brought his hand down to hit me because I would not stop crying. When the giant pulled Hemera off me, she kicked, punched, clawed, and spit at him and when his hand slapped her so hard in the face that she fell from his grasp, she crawled over to me and covered me with her body once again. She told me she would keep me safe and not to worry that we would return home one day, she would make sure of it, and she did.”

  Wrath had gone to his wife as soon as she began talking, his arm circling her and growing tighter around her as he felt her legs go weak.

  “There is much about our time with the Northmen that Hemera will not even discuss with me and it pains my heart to know what she must have suffered to keep me safe. She is more courageous than any of you and more Pict than any of you.”

  Verity let her tears trickle down her cheeks, though she kept her chin and pride high. “I need to get something for my sister since she is fighting to save a life while you bicker out here about her worth.”

  Wrath’s arm tightened around her as she went to step away from him, knowing her resolve was strong, but her legs still trembled. “I will go with you and help.”

  “Go, all of you,” Talon said and waved his hand, dismissing them as he walked toward the dwelling.

  “My King,” Gelhard called out.

  Talon stopped and turned such a murderous scowl on Gelhard that he took several hasty steps back.

  “Not a word, Gelhard. Go!” Talon ordered and turned to the sound of snarls and barks. He shoved the door open and was met by a wolf braced for attack.

  “Bog!” Paine called out ready to step forward not only to protect the King, but Bog as well.

  Anin shook her head. “Let them settle it.”

  Paine saw that the King felt the same, since he raised his hand for Paine to be silent.

  “Move, Bog, now!” Talon ordered.

  The wolf’s growl lessened but he did not move.

  “The King comes to help, Bog, let him pass,” Hemera said and the wolf slowly moved away from the door to take a protective stance next to Hemera and his pup, never once taking his eyes off Talon. “Do not come too close to me,” she warned Talon when he entered and closed the door.

  “Will the pup live?” Talon asked and Bog’s eyes went to Hemera as if he understood and he was anxious to hear her answer.

  “It is too soon to tell. He was born weak and often a weak pup is pushed aside and left to die, but instead Bog chose to seek help for him. There is little I can do but to keep him warm, feed him, and hope it is enough to grow him strong.”

  “As you do with our child that grows inside you?” Talon asked, wanting to hear her confirm what she had silently relayed to him.

  Hemera smiled and the tiny pup stirred against her chest and she wondered if it was because he felt her heart thump with joy. “Aye, our child nestles safely inside me and will be born when the ground goes dormant and cold settles over the land.”

  Talon had waited far too long to hear that and he never thought he would be glad that he never heard those words from his two previous wives, but he was relieved that he had never gotten either of them with child. He was overjoyed that a woman of such strength, kindness, and bravery would bear him a child, though most importantly a woman he had lost his heart to.

  “I want so badly to take you in my arms right now,” he said, taking a step toward her and stopped when Bog’s head turned sharply in his direction. “I am more pleased than you will ever know and proud that you will be my queen.” He had not expected her smile to fade or for her to drift off in thought at his announcement and it took all his will to remain silent and wait for her to speak.

  The pup stirred against her again and she adjusted him in her hand to lie more comfortably against her breast. She had managed to get some milk into him, but he would need more and at more frequent intervals. She had sent Verity to find a thinner, hollow reed so that she could drip the milk more slowly into the pup’s mouth and see better how much he actually took.

  She sighed and Bog lifted his head off her knee to stare at her. Her sigh was not for the pup, but what she must say to Talon. She reached out and reassured the wolf with a gentle rub. “Your pup does well so far.” Then she gathered her courage and looked at Talon.

  He had never known her to struggle to speak and he wondered what caused the struggle he saw in her now.


  Before either of them could speak, Bog’s ears shot up and he rushed to the door, crying.

  Talon opened the door and the wolf rushed out and stood just outside the door, his head up and his eyes and ears alert. Talon stepped out to stand behind him and that was when he heard the lone cry of another wolf.

  Bog looked to Paine who had not followed Talon’s command to leave and ran to him.

  “Take warriors with you and do what is necessary to keep his family safe,” Talon ordered and Bog turned and stared at the King for a moment, then took off, Paine hurrying along with him.

  Talon returned to the dwelling and made his edict clear. “You will be my queen.”

  “There are things you do not know about me,” she said, sounding as if she was ready to confess something.

  “I will have the truth. Were you born of a Pict mother?”

  “I was,” she said without the slightest hesitation. “But—”

  “Nothing else matters,” he said, preventing her from saying anything more and not caring what else she had to say. “As long as you are a true Pict, born of a Pict mother then your blood is strong in this land and you are worthy to be my queen.”

  “My blood does run strong in this land,” she assured him.

  “Then nothing keeps us from wedding. You will be my queen.” He went to her and leaned over her, slipping his hand beneath her chin to raise it as his lips came down softly on hers.

  Chapter 27

  “I advise you again to postpone this union,” Gelhard urged the King, following him into the High Council Chambers. “Let me find out more about her before you do this, before it is too late.”

  “I know all I need to know about Hemera,” Talon said, walking over to examine the small facsimiles of buildings he and Paine had designed in preparation of constructing them on a larger scale. He looked over the replica of the feasting house and his quarters on the second level. He would need to expand it with the bairn on the way and with hopes of future sons and daughters.

  “Hemera has changed things here,” Gelhard complained.

  Talon turned to face his grumbling High Counselor. “Perhaps change was needed.”

  “Not change that disrupts,” Gelhard argued. “She changed how Ebit tends the planting fields and—”

  “Ebit confirmed that the fields are doing better than he expected and that in one field the sprouts look ready to break through. He is pleased with Hemera’s advice and talks often with her.”

  Gelhard’s brow pinched in annoyance. “Due to Hemera’s interference, Bower has altered his bow making—”

  “With improved results,” Talon said. “My archers tell me that the bows are easier to handle and much sturdier.”

  Gelhard refused to give up the fight. “The cookhouse—”

  “Has never produced such tasty food or its workers been so pleased,” Talon said. “Hemera has been good for the stronghold.”

  Gelhard threw his hands up, though not in surrender. “She had that wolf’s pack brought into the stronghold.”

  “That was my doing,” Talon snapped sharply. “They keep to the area of Hemera’s dwelling and will leave once their pup is well, and he improves more each day. He is finally able to feed from his mum, though he still needs to grow in strength.”

  He thought how much time and effort Hemera had given to the pup and was stung with jealousy. He had not seen her as much as he had hoped to since she had taken the pup in several sunrises ago. He had missed her in his sleeping pallet. She had remained in her dwelling since she had to wake several times throughout the night to feed the pup. He had finally gotten so annoyed that he had gone to her dwelling to sleep with her there, though that was not what he had had in mind. Unfortunately, it was what wound up happening. Hemera was so exhausted from having to feed the pup in several short intervals that she fell asleep in the middle of him kissing her.

  Verity had tried to relieve her sister, but Bog and the female wolf would not allow it. They trusted no one but Hemera.

  Talon wondered why. After all, Paine and Bog were like family. Why did Bog not trust Paine to help?

  Gelhard went to protest again and Talon held up his hand. “Enough. It is done. The wedding will take place soon with a celebration to follow when it grows warmer.”

  “Why hold the celebration later? Gelhard asked.

  “So all can see, my enemies included, Hemera round with my child.”

  “You cannot be sure tha—” Gelhard’s eyes rounded like full moons when he realized what Talon was saying. “Hemera already carries your child?”

  Talon beamed with pride. “She does and that is why nothing else matters. She will give me a son. She is sure of it and so am I. There will be an heir to the Pict throne when the cold settles in.”

  Gelhard smiled broadly. “This is joyous news, my King. I will see to planning a ceremony immediately and I will send out news across the land that you are wed and that the Queen is with child, and will let all know a huge celebration will be forthcoming.”

  “Hemera was born of a Pict mother. She belongs here as much as we do. That is all that is needed for her to be queen.”

  Gelhard hesitated before asking, “What if she gives you a daughter?”

  Talon grinned. “Then my daughter will rule the Picts.”

  Gelhard nodded slowly. “I believe she would, my King. Now I must go, there is much to plan.” He stopped abruptly. “I almost forgot. I received word that Dalmeny has yet to return from his hunt for the Northmen in his area. Also, would you like me to send word to your uncle Egot about your wedding so that he may attend?”

  “No, I think it would be best to keep it quiet until after it is official and Hemera is queen.”

  Gelhard’s face pinched in thought. “That is true. Once it is learned that she is with child, your enemies may try to harm her.” His eyes turned wide. “That is why you do not want anyone beyond the stronghold to know that you wed yet and why you have more warriors watching her.”

  “I will take no chance of harm coming to her and my child,” Talon said.

  “I understand and I will send no word out until after the ceremony,” Gelhard said. “And forgive me, my King, for doubting your wisdom.”

  “It is your task to doubt me and to question me. It makes me wiser.”

  Gelhard raised his chin with pride. “I am honored to serve you, my King.”

  Talon was about to request that Gelhard have Paine sent to him when a frantic knock sounded at the door.

  Gelhard opened it and a warrior all but fell into the room.

  He was breathing heavy and looked to have been traveling for a good period of time.

  “Help him to sit, Gelhard,” Talon ordered but the warrior waved Gelhard away.

  “News,” the warrior breathed the word heavily.

  “Your message serves no purpose if you cannot speak it. Calm yourself, then tell me the news,” Talon said.

  The warrior nodded and took a few deep breaths before he was finally able to be understood. “Haggard, Northmen and Chieftain of the Southern Region has landed on Pict soil and wishes to meet with you. He is only a few days away.”

  Hemera glanced down at her lap, the tiny wolf pup curled in a ball sound asleep. She turned and looked at the other three pups born to Bog and his lady, busy feeding from their mum in the lean-to that once was Bog’s. It served the family well until the time came for them to return to the forest. Bog kept guard much like the warrior that watched over Hemera. Between the two, she doubted anyone could get to her.

  The sun had not lasted long today and a strong chill filled the air. She sat at the round tree trunk that Paine had fashioned into a table with two smaller tree trunks serving as benches. It was a good place to sit and think and to gain some wisdom from the old tree. It had so many age lines, Hemera marveled over how much the old tree must have seen in its time.

  The pup shivered when a gust of wind suddenly whipped around them and Hemera tucked her cloak over him, forming a tent to keep the
pup safe and warm.

  She ran her hand across the table top and the multitude of age lines. She missed connecting with the trees and the knowledge they had to share. She recalled the fright that had gripped her when Ulric had first left her in the woods that day. Her fear had worsened when she began to hear the whispers. Things had changed greatly since then. She was now grateful for having been left there and given the chance to speak with the trees and the animals. It had felt as if she had finally returned home.

  Bog walked over to her and stuck his snout under her cloak. She eased the cloak back so that he could check on his pup. Satisfied, he pushed her cloak with his nose and Hemera once again covered his pup. Bog sat beside her and stared up at her.

  Hemera patted his head and rubbed behind his ears. “All goes well, though I cannot say the same for me.”

  Bog continued to stare, as if waiting for her to continue.

  “The only time I have truly felt free in my life was when I was very young. My mum would take me into the woods and sometimes my grandmum would join us. I would have the most wonderful time. I have far too few of those memories or has it been so long that the memories have been lost to me?” She sighed softly. “Now I am to be queen and I do not know if I want to be.” She shook her head. “I favor solitude, yet I miss Talon when he is not with me.” She rubbed Bog again. “Change comes, Bog, whether we want it or not.”

  Bog licked her hand.

  “I am grateful you lent me your ear, my friend.” She went to rub him again when he suddenly backed away and hurried around the table, growling.

  Anin soon appeared and Bog ceased his snarling, went to her, got a generous rub and a kiss, then took a protective stance in front of his family.

  Anin approached. “I do not disturb you, do I?”

  “It matters not if you did, it is good to see you and looking so well and round,” Hemera said with a soft laugh.

  Anin laughed herself as she caressed her bulging stomach. “If I did not know I was having a daughter, I would swear I carry a son as big as his da.”