Romane & Erzählungen
Reign's Retribution - 2 - The Bond of Seven

Chapter 2 - continued

Three hours later he loathed himself for having come. The only people worse than ladies in perfectly marriageable age were their mothers. Anything getting the knights' attention seemed a worthwhile task. When a girl of hardly fourteen years pretended to faint in front of Reign his resolve snapped.

“If any woman faints or falls or stumbles or...or whatever, I swear to God, I am going to let her fall down! I have had it!”

Gruffly he set the suddenly conscious girl on her feet and turned, “Torment!” he barked, “Get the squire to bring me some ale!”

“There’s no way to live through this night without”, he added under his breath.

Grudgingly the other knight turned around in search of their squire.

 

 

Chapter 3

Just then Azalea entered the hall from the top of the staircase. Being the king’s niece and heiress to a substantial fortune, she was one of the most sought after maidens in the kingdom. Not that she believed any of her suitors to be interested in her beyond her wealth.

Her gaze sweeping the hall, she could already feel the heat rising up from the crowd and her heartbeat quickened. When she spied her aunt headed right for her, she tried to even her breathing, there could be no escape. Head on she would meet her she vowed and picked up her dress to descend the stairs.

“Lea, my child! Why, you look...healthy!” she was greeted with a kiss on the cheek and a once-over.

Alzalea listened to her relatives' insult with a relaxed, practised smile. She tuned the high pitched voice out, considered the pros and cons of feathered hats and had just decided to let her maid loosen her laces, because by God, she could hardly breath in this heat, when she was roughly forced back to attention.

“...therefore it must be obvious, that we have no other option but to fulfil your fathers will.”

“Excuse me, you were saying?” Azaleas felt her heart beat in her throat.

“You are turning three and twenty within this month and are still unwed. I would never dream of taking your inheritance from you but I feel I have no choice, I am responsible for the tenants," she shook her head in a condescending manner, "I will not make a fuss of it, not to worry. If you'll excuse me now, my dear, I have to see about my daughter.”

Azalea stared. She wanted to run, run from the crowded scene, run to her uncle and demand she be shown the original document. Never had she seen it, never cared for the shard of paper that proved her orphan. Her carelessness would now result in her greedy aunt claiming everything her father had tried to keep from her. Azalea was so angry with herself she balled her hands into tight fists to try and stop their shaking. How could she!

She began to hyperventilate. Damn the corset, already the lack of oxygen in her lungs made her head spin. Her vision got blurry as she gasped for breath and suddenly all she could make out was a black wall in front of her. Trying to steady herself, she reached for that wall, only to have it move out of her grasp. Out of balance and strength her knees buckling under her feet, she could feel herself falling and her consciousness slipping. The last thought that went through her mind was that she was going to undignify herself with a sprawl in the centre of the crowd. Exactly what she needed.

 

 

 

Reign cursed. Loud. Yet another woman had launched herself at him, and true to his vow, he had stepped right out of her way. That woman however now lay on the cold stone floor and didn’t move.

“Damn you!” he growled as he sank down on one knee.

“Come on, lady, don’t be hurt”, carefully he reached to pick Azalea up, as he heard a woman behind him sigh. Afraid of another accident, he twisted around to catch the lady, who was elegantly sinking to the floor.

 

Azalea considered staying where she was as she came to, but taking a shallow breath, she pushed herself up. When she looked to her right, she glimpsed a man dressed all in black, holding her beautiful cousin.

Slowly he turned around and looked her straight in the eye. Azalea’s jaw went slack. Never in her life had she seen anything the like. His face was manly, there was no better word for it, grey eyes looked fierce and watchful as they pierced right into her. Chiselled lips that were made to give orders and to claim a woman’s mouth curved through his face. The sharp angle of his jaw produced a raw, earthy masculinity that let her mouth grow dry. For a heartbeat all Azalea could think of was what it would feel like to be held in his strong arms and to be pressed against his hard body. Immediately she dismissed the thought and chastised herself for having it. She shook her head. Her faint spell had obviously meddled with her brains. But he was certainly handsome, young and strong, dressed all in black. She gasped.

He had been that black wall she had tried to lean on. He had been that wall that had vanished into nothing. Heat rushed into her face as she realised what he had done. There he stood, immobile, staring at her. Holding a beautiful woman. Even through her rising anger Azalea had to admit that they looked smashing together. Male and female perfection.

 

Holding Elizabeth with one strong arm, Reign looked at the woman who had but moments ago lain on the floor. She stared at him, her lips slightly parted, her face flushed. Even as her expression changed into a mask of resentment he could swear he had never seen anything as lovely.

Then she spoke and blood turned to ice within his veins, “Milord, but I’m impressed! What do I owe you?”

“Owe me?” he sputtered dumbly.

Azalea's voice was thick with sarcasm “Why, of course. You saved my cousin. God knows what could have happened, had you not reacted fast enough!”

Reign wrinkled his forehead, “Milady, I am truthfully sorry. I thought y-“

“A true warrior! Who else could have realized the imminent danger…! You must be a knight!”

Reign didn’t know what to say. That little something of a woman accused him of being dishonourable!

“I never thought you would fall, milady”, he spoke gravely, “I am a knight, yes, a knight ever at your service. Believe me when I say your pain aches me tenfold.”

“Alas, it must be my mistake then. Next time I'll try to be more obvious than just to sway and reach out for a hold”

She pulled two gold coins from her purse, “As for your service, these should do.”

Azalea stretched out her hand that held the coins but Reign gave no inclination of taking them.

“Milady!”

“You are right, three coins are more the like – since you can feel my pain tenfold”

Her voice cutting through him like shards of glass, she pulled out another one. Reign still didn’t reach for them, he felt confused and angry. Angry with her but even more so with himself.

 

Azalea knew she was behaving like a petulant child but she couldn't help herself. By all means, it felt good to get some steam off her chest. Breathing in as deeply as she managed, she dropped the coins and turned for what she thought was a good exit.

But the knight would have none of that. Working his jaw, he pushed Elizabeth into Torments arms and grabbed Azalea's arm.

She stopped dead in her tracks, her heart hammering.

“Lady!” the knight growled lethally. His handsome face distorted into a threatening mask he spun her around to face him again, never relinquishing his hold. His eyes stared at her hotly and she could swear she felt it like a touch while his firm grip on her bare skin was electrifying. What was he doing to her, she shook herself.

“Yes, milord?” her voice spilled all innocently from her lips. She cleared her throat. “Would you let go of me,” she took a breath, “please?”

She still felt dizzy with need of air and her fall had done its share to worsen her condition. Already her knees were growing weak again. She needed to find a place to sit down, and she needed to do so quickly.

“I wish I could undo my action, milady. I behaved like a cad.”

Craning her head to look him in the face, Azalea could see his sincerity but she just arched an eyebrow.

“My arm is getting sore from your grip.”

 

Looking up at him with anguished brown eyes, the woman did something to Reign he couldn't explain. It was probably just shame, he thought as he dropped his hand. But he instantly missed the feel of her skin beneath his own. God, she had been heaven to touch, her skin feeling warm and smooth like a satin pillow. For a fleeting second he considered reaching for her again and was aghast what the thought alone did to his body. His anger at her mixed with shame for his action, or lack thereof, but what surprised him, was the sudden jolt of desire, that swept through him. It had definitely been too long since he'd last been layed!

 

When Reign did as she asked, it was all Azalea could do to stay on her feet, but she did it. She would not disgrace herself yet another ounce more by needing help with a task as simple as walking.

“May I be of assistance?”

“I am quite fine, thank you.”

It was easy to gather that she could hardly breathe and still she refused his help. True, he had purposefully let her collapse on the floor, but that was no reason to be unreasonable, was it? And why had her eyes looked so haunted, so shell-shocked? From the fall? He didn't think so. He needed to make her smile, if only for a second to make sure she would be fine, then he could go back about his business.

Chivalry always worked.

“It would make me feel better, if you let me”, he smiled.

Azalea didn’t know what to say, smiling the delectable specimen in front of her looked devilishly charming, too charming in fact. Despite her efforts not to react to him, one corner of her mouth quirked up, but she still knew him for what he was.

“But it would make me feel worse”, she smiled sweetly.

Reign could have gone to his knees, god but that woman was gorgeous! And vexing. He wondered what her lips would taste like. When an image of her lying beneath him shot through his mind, he almost groaned out loud. It had definitely been too long!

He answered grinning winningly at her, showing off all his cockiness, “Let me lead you to your table. It’s seldom the case that I face rejection and I fear I don’t heed well on it.”

“Then perhaps, milord, you should go out more often…”, Azalea turned and broke out of his ominous spell. If she walked carefully and kept a steady pace it would be no problem to reach a table.

The task however proved to be more difficult than expected. After no more than five paces the last bits of breath left her. Struggling forward Azalea managed to make another eight steps without breathing. Then she stopped.

Chapter 4

From where she had left him, Reign watched the woman make her way across the room. Even though she was walking less than elegantly, the gentle sway of her hips made his mouth water. He felt an inexplicable pull toward her, why on earth had he not asked her for her name? Well, it was probably better this way.

He was about to turn around, when he noticed that she was getting slower and slower. And finally stop. Reign recognised what was going to happen at the same time he knew there was nothing he could do about it. Damn that woman and her dislike of the wake!

 

 

 

...to be continued.