Mated to The Dragon Lord
ent
w puddle she had stepped in proved much deeper, the water, fouled by mud and animal shit, slopp
war, they worked in exchange for food and shelter, and she often caught them at play. She let them be – play was not some
oy who, like these lads, had spe
ting or remembering that I used. When you are done with your game, someone be kind enough t
inned, the flash of teeth and the charm
ought, turning her eyes to the sky, the prayer one frequent
ot and empty it. The blacksmith had been taken by the Fae early, and his apprentice ha
ht sadly. Though he had sacrificed himse
lf. The cobblestones had been lost beneath seasons of dirt and animal faeces
cessity and their steadily declining number had seen them brought into the bailey. Now the three milking cows munched disco
re happy to eat any waste from the kitchens to Yelena they were wo
e, the stones gathering in piles around the base of the wall. Scorch marks where fire-arrows had once s
household were children and women, the men and older boys taken by the Fae or humans to fight their
aded silently.
een of his successes. This battle won, and this foe
at from experience.
lease....
lift her spirits. Hold on Yelena, she told herself. Battle on Yelena. Fight another day, another way. Hold
and returned her boot to her foot, striding across the
ced as they were expecting to see her descend the stairs, not come from the bailey. Some held produce, bread, vegetables,
ld bread suitable only for pigs, vegetables gone slack and soggy after over-keeping, watermarks, rotten h
edly towards the kitchen, hearing the out
eard yellowing in the corners of hi
en use her titl
debt,
l not s
geous that t
e keep? That you no longer work our fields? Pay your taxes? That you offer your Lord and Lady," she
sted grimly, her mouth downwards turne
tossing it to her. She threw its companion to the tan
aker cried out
rising tide of theirs. "No. No. Y
he lfited her chin as the others crowded around her, trying to overwhelm h
word delivered unexpectedly, she thought with amusement, and added that it was a pity tha
ce of Lord Rithelwen. The Fae Lord's garments were elegant, fur lined, embroidered in gold thread, and sapph
thought with sour wryness, w
her face as if finding it an answer to the dissatisfaction o
nnot handle," she
elbow twisting her, the movement stealing her breath, and his body pressed her up against the wall.
t her made him repulsive. She knew men with their other, more animalist nature, close to the surface, and she had never
said firmly. "B
ain a virgin bride, the consummation unsatisfied, and the Lord Sylvin will call for annulment and marry the Pr
hat is his by marriage. He trusts, My Lord, and I will not betray that trust. If, and only
ness soon enough, Yelena. For the day will come that the annulment will arrive at your door