A Sinless Betrayal - Cherie Benjamin (paper ebook reader .TXT) 📗

to see Abigor approaching me. The pup yaps at him before cowering away as his huge body sits beside me in the grass. "I want to thank you for the information you delivered us today. It will help us in ways I never imagined possible."

I smile at him and nod my head. His long hair blows in the breeze, the feathers and beads kissing his skin. He is truly a beautiful sight. My hair is braided, and the crystal headdress I wear is breathtaking. Scar settles in my lap and snuggles his head into the crook of my arm.

I look out at the hills and the trees, staring straight into the Forest of Thieves. Another gust of wind comes along and blows some of the leaves from the trees. I find myself shivering. The summer days have quickly passed and we are already halfway into the autumn season. He notices me shivering and sheds his animal fur cloak and puts it around my shoulders.

The fur instantly warms me and I sigh. I move my body closer to his and rest my head on his shoulders. "Thank you." I whisper. Another gust of chilly wind blows and I find myself shivering and huddling against Abigor even more. "Are you not cold?"

He shakes his head. "I run a hot body temperature. It's in my genes." It's true, at least. As I'm huddling close to him, I'm warming up with each passing second. Suddenly, Scar's head perks up and he darts off of my lap.

"Scar!" I cry out, making a move to run after him. Abigor stops me and I watch as the wolf pup goes running up the hill in pursuit of something I can't see. "He's running away," I tell Abigor.

Abigor sighs and looks down at me. "He's coming back. He will always come back. Have patience with him." Moments later, Scar returns, just as Abigor had said. But what he carries in his mouth interests me more.

As the pup nears me, I see the lifeless hare lying in his jaws. "He caught a hare," I whisper. Scar drops the dead animal at my feet. I cringe. Abigor takes it and pats the wolf on his head. "I'll give this to the cooks tonight. You can eat it in your stew."

I make a face. "I'm not so sure I want to."

He laughs and gets up. "Come on. I may not be cold, but the wind is really picking up now. That cloak will only do you good for so long." I pick up Scar in my arms and follow him inside Castle Rock.

Another gust of wind blows through the trees and nearly snatches the fur cloak right off of my back. I turn and look back towards the trees. They whisper of things unbeknownst to man, and it makes me uneasy. I chew my chapped lips before turning back around.

Winter is coming. War is coming.
Truth

Since autumn has finally come, the daylight hours are shorter and night is longer and colder. The sky is almost completely dark when the cooks have the dinner finished. Abigor, staying true to his word, put the special rabbit meat in his soup and in mine. I've never tasted a better stew.

The servants have lit the giant hearth at the end of the table, closest to Abigor's seat, in order to keep the great stone castle warm. The people sitting at the table talk rather quietly today. Perhaps it is because they are tired; the lighting almost lulls me to sleep, when in truth it could only be maybe six or seven o' clock outside.

I gave Abigor his cloak back and dressed more appropriate for the heating conditions in the castle. Some of the maids had come in and replaced the clothes more suited for summer with the ones more suited for the autumn and winter months. The clothes are mostly animal skins and soft furs instead of beautifully coloured and festive silks.

I lift the spoon to my lips again and slurp down the stew as the fire warms my chilled skin. Michelle sits next to me, keeping her head down as she eats her loaf of bread. Her belly protrudes more and more, almost hitting the edge of the table. I touch the side of her arm, causing her to jump slightly before looking up at me. That warm smile I used to know so well comes flooding back onto her face.

"How are you?" I whisper to her over the soft chatter of the men and women at the table. "I feel like we've not spoken to each other in some time."

She shrugs her shoulders before reaching out for her wine glass. "I've been feeling all right except for the occasional fits of sickness and retching in the morn."

I play with the vegetables in my stew by prodding them with the tip of my metal spoon. My curls fall out of my bun and into my eyes when I lean forwards, slouching my shoulders. "Tristan…what does he say of the child?" I question her. "Is he still rather nonchalant, or does he…?"

Michelle looks up at me through the curtain of satin chocolate hair and smiles tenderly at me. "He is no longer nonchalant. He seems…excited about this. Elizabella, you see…he says he finds no use for me anymore as a harem girl."

My face pales as I swallow a bit of carrot. Oh no. This was exactly what I didn't want to happen. He is going to throw her away and just take the child! I take a deep breath before replying. "I see…then what use does he have for you?"

She takes a sip of her wine, leaning back in her chair. "He says he finds no use for me anymore as a harem girl because he really prefers having a wife. Someone who will provide him with…love and loyalty and children. Elizabella, he's asked me if I'd be his wife."

I look at Drinks Of Waterfall from across the table, chatting with Three Horses, Abigor and Grey Hawk. I'm rather relieved that he is not throwing her away, and a mysteriously large weight has been seemingly lifted from my delicate shoulders. He slams his fist down on the table, demanding for a taste of the rabbit stew that sits near Abigor as they are the leftovers from what I could not eat. "He asked you?"

Michelle giggles a little. "Well, not asked, really. It was more like demanding I'd be his wife, but I was more than happy to say yes. He is the love of my life. I've never felt like this before." She takes a bite out of her bread. "It's rather rare to have a man marry his harem girl, but Tristan's decided that I'm clean because I was a virgin when he first mounted me. It's rare, but not completely nonexistent."

I pick up my spoon and begin eating again. Looking at Abigor from where I sit, I can feel something odd electrocute my heart with powerful volts. He smiles, the slight dimples in his cheeks becoming more prominent with the wider his grin gets. Those white teeth, the deep, handsome dimple in his chin, and his hearty masculine laughter all make me want to melt where I sit.

I wonder why he has not asked for my hand after making love to me, taking my virginity, and proving his undeniable love for me in many different ways. Am I truly wife material to him, or am I just a loyal companion he takes pride in dressing up and fucking? I admit to myself that I'm not ready to find the truth in that question just yet.

The dim firelight in the room barely lights the table as the night falls darker and darker yet. I lean back in my seat and pull the wolf fur coat tighter around my arms. The deerskin dress that I wear is somewhat warm, but it could be warmer yet.

I hold my wine in my hand and take a sip. Michelle leans back with me. Drinks of Waterfall is a kind man though his appearance puts one off. He catches sight of his soon-to-be wife and smiles warmly at her. Abigor pushes his bowl away from him as he finishes his stew. I too am no longer hungry. I look at him expectantly, but he only stays in his seat.

"I have to discuss some things with the men before I retire to the chambers," he says to me. I'm a little shocked but I know that the war is most important right now. "You may roam the halls for a little, but stay out of trouble. I won't be able to rescue you this time."

When he winks at me, I know he means well. I smile brightly back at him before brushing some crumbs off of my skirt and standing up. Just as I am about to request that Michelle come with me, Drinks of Waterfall orders her to stay with him. I sigh, scratch the idea, and wander off into the chilly hallways.

There are many places in this castle that I've never ventured through. I decide I will leave the dark, and cold base level to the morning times and explore the upstairs, where our chambers are.

I climb the flight of stairs that lead to our corridor, passing the harem room to the right. Evalyn is working away at her plants and mixing things in little pots, Cassandra is asleep, Athenodora is trying to knit herself a new blanket, and Ivona is reading a book. Evalyn catches sight of me and gives me a little wave before turning back to her concoction.

I wander further down the hallway, into the deep dark corridors. I do not know what becomes of things there, and I'm not willing to find out. The wind screams as it whips around the castle walls, causing some of the floorboards to creak. My feet, which are only protected by a thin layer of deerskin, feel like blocks of ice.

Torches line the stonewalls, illuminating the ground before me, but doing very little to keep warmth. I feel like I should be afraid, but I'm surprisingly very calm. I clutch at my arms and pull the fur cloak tighter. At the end of the hallway, I see two great doors. They are dusty and they look like they have not been touched in millennia.

Curiosity gets the better of me and I stalk forward to turn the golden knobs of the door. They give way and the door pushes open with a terrifyingly loud creak. But what the two doors hide is so much more amazing.

It is a library. Books line the walls, and a great swirling staircase leads up to the second floor of it. Two large windows let the moonlight in as the torches do not lead on into the library. I shut one door behind me, leaving the other open in case the doors were to lock behind me.

The place is huge and mysterious. My people had called the barbarians an unintelligent race with no interest whatsoever in edification; an unclean, uneducated species. But judging by the books and paintings hung on the walls, these people do not live up to the stereotypes from Bellechester.

My fingers scrape across the spines of the books,