Total pages in book: 117
Estimated words: 109722 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 549(@200wpm)___ 439(@250wpm)___ 366(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 109722 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 549(@200wpm)___ 439(@250wpm)___ 366(@300wpm)
Oria smiled softly. “Mine too.”
“Those women meant nothing to me, Oria,” he said, needing her to understand. “It was a need born of frustration and endless battle. I felt nothing for any of the women, except…”
Oria waited, knowing guilt had him confessing to her and though it sometimes pained her to think he had known other women intimately, it also helped to know that it had been out of need and no more, except… she continued to wait.
“There was one woman, a bit older than me, who sought me out. She liked that I wasn’t rough with her or hurt her. She taught me some things and she listened when I talked about you. She asked me how I could be sure you’d be waiting for me. I told her that we loved each other since we’d been young and nothing would ever change that. We knew we’d be together always. She would ask me to tell her stories about us and I always obliged her. She said the stories made her happy to know that a love like ours existed.”
“What was her name?” Oria asked in an odd way grateful to her for bringing a bit of comfort to the hellish life he had been forced to live.
“Avena,” Royden said.
“You had feelings for her?” Oria asked, hearing a sadness in his voice he didn’t try to hide.
“I was grateful to her for letting me talk about you. It helped ease the pain of missing you.”
“It must be a terribly hard life for her.”
“Not anymore. She died. One of the warriors, in a drunken fury, beat her to death.”
Oria didn’t believe her husband a savage, but there were those times she saw a rage in his eyes that frightened her. She saw it now.
“I wasn’t in camp at the time. When I returned and found out what happened—I killed him.”
“No one stopped you.”
“They tried. Avena didn’t deserve that, but I made sure he got what he deserved.” He shook his head. “You didn’t need to know that.”
“I do need to hear it,” she said. “And you need to tell me if we’re both to heal.”
“I could stay like this the rest of the day with you, lying here talking while the rain beats against the keep, warm and snug in each other’s arms, just the two of us.”
Oria hurried out of bed, grabbing her garments.
“I guess you don’t like the idea,” he said a bit startled by her reaction.
“I love it,” she said as she slipped her shift on. “But we can’t survive the rest of the day here without food.” Her stomach grumbled to prove it. “I’m going to fetch us food and tell Bethany we’re not to be disturbed.” She rushed to the door.
“Good Lord, but I love you, wife,” he called out, a broad smile filling his face.
“Or course you do.” She laughed softly like a gentle breeze whispering in the trees. “I will be only a moment. Don’t dare get out of that bed.”
“As you command, wife,” he said with a nod.
Oria hurried off, eager to return and have her husband all to herself.
And she did.
Chapter 24
Royden stood on the keep steps looking over the village with pride. The last two weeks had seen much improvements. The most successful improvement had been with the people. Smiles were widespread as was laughter. Children played carefree again and women gathered in gossip. He was glad his brother and sister would come home and see that the clan flourished.
He made a habit of walking through the village, making himself available to the people, listening to their problems or concerns so that he could settle any issues before they turned difficult. When he had spoken of it to his da, he thought it a wise choice of Royden to do so. That it would avoid escalation of problems. It had amazed and also baffled Royden that his da hadn’t minded relinquishing the status of chieftain to Royden. That was until he had seen how happy and content his da was with Wren.
Royden was pleased for his da and pleased that he still had his da around to go to for advice. Rarely did a chieftain relinquish his position. Death usually took it from him or he lost it in battle. Royden was relieved that neither was the result for his da.
Soon he was talking with various people and settling small issues, which pleased him since it meant things were going well. Until Penn approached him.
“A word with you, sir?” Penn asked and looked around, “in private.”
Royden obliged him, walking off away from the village a bit where they could still be seen but not heard.
“What is it, Penn?” Royden asked. While the young man had continued to be an asset to the clan, Royden still didn’t completely trust him. Penn feared the man who he had once battled for and who left him here so he would have eyes on the clan. And though he claimed allegiance to the clan, Royden couldn’t be sure what Penn would do if confronted with a choice of who to fight against.