From Darkness Won - Jill Williamson [64]
“You twist words, sir. Most of those men wanted my dowry, not my heart.”
“My mother was like you,” the man said. “So beautiful she couldn’t see it. Women don’t understand how beauty is more than a pretty face and figure. Men like those things, of course, but most prefer a woman with spirit, who stands for something and is willing to fight for it.
“Katine was like that, you see. Hated her husband’s magic, his gods. Tried to fight him, which only made him control her more. Yet her spirit drew the attention of the king. He told her to leave her husband, promised to keep her safe. But her husband was stronger. He killed the king, and eventually, Katine too. She didn’t know her place. Pushed things too far. As have you.”
Vrell could not breathe. Was this man saying he knew who killed King Axel? But the name Katine made her think of Lady Katine, a distant relative who lived far before King Axel’s time.
The man glided toward her as if floating, though his steps scraped over the dirt floor. He stopped an arm’s length away. In the distant torchlight, she could just see the outline of his face beneath the black hood. A face she recognized.
Macoun Hadar. The man who had been her master in Mahanaim, who had taught her to bloodvoice, then tried to trade her to Esek for Achan. How in all Er’Rets did he do this magic? He had never been strong enough.
“My master hoped to take Achan Cham under his wing, mold him into a powerful sorcerer. Yet the stray turned him down. When I killed my master, I had no desire to give that boy a second chance. For I received a better offer. And now the stray must die, for he alone stands in my way.”
Vrell trembled, unhinged by the evil in this man’s very presence. How had he become so powerful?
“Esek still wants you, girl, though I’m not convinced I want him in Carm. Perhaps I shall wed you to Sir Jabari instead? Put him over Carm Duchy.”
“You cannot wed me to anyone,” Vrell said.
“Oh, but I can. Carm is a necessary duchy to control. And you are the key to that.”
So everyone thought. But Gypsum was the true heir to Carm. Yet Vrell could not publicly announce that, at least not until Achan assumed control of Er’Rets. For she could not allow this wicked man to go after Gypsum. Her breath caught as she wondered if he had been the one who had tried to abduct Gypsum days ago.
Macoun lunged forward and gripped Vrell’s neck with his wrinkled, coarse fingers. His breath smelled like rotten eggs. She kicked him, but her leg passed through his body. Solid hands but vaporous legs? Was he a black knight now too?
Vrell closed her mind. Pain stabbed the base of her skull and swelled until it engulfed her entire head. She screamed, slapped his arms and head but found no purchase. Tears streamed down her cheeks. She ground her teeth, sucking short breaths, but her shields crumbled under the pain.
Macoun’s voice boomed in her mind. You are still quite strong. You could be useful for more than what you will inherit. Now, tell me what you know of the prince’s plans.
Vrell focused on squirrels and herbs and the waves in the sea, but her mind betrayed her. Jax said Achan was leaving today. Mother was training Achan’s mind. Vrell saw herself sitting at Achan’s bedside, singing to his unconscious form.
Ah, he’s hurt, is he? the old man said.
“No!” Vrell focused on Kopay in the Sitna stables. Of Gren’s baby. Would it be a boy or a girl? Would Bran marry Gren? Be a father to the child? Or would Harnu?
The old man’s oily chuckle brought her gaze to his shadowed face. Clever girl. But what of the prince? What of the