“You know, you’re right,” Seea said, surprising him into stopping with his arms about to go around her as she looked up at him. “I was punished for going off on my own, but what about you? You rode after me when you shouldn’t have, which could have cost you your life. So in what way are we going to punish you for that foolishness?”

  “Me?” Derand echoed with a disbelieving laugh. “My dear girl, I’m the one who does the punishing, not the one on the receiving end. And my riding after you wasn’t foolishness. I would have been the world’s biggest fool if I’d let you get away.”

  “So? Among all those men you command there wasn’t even one who could have followed my trail in your place?” Seea said, again making Derand stop as he was about to put his arms around her. “I know I probably could have bested most of your people in single combat, but two or three of them together should have been safe. And able to bring me back without you risking your life. So where in all that was the requirement that you come after me yourself?”

  “I had to tell you that I love you,” Derand reminded her, relieved that he’d thought of the point. For some reason the girl was making him feel cornered and outnumbered? “What good would it have done for my men to say the words? You wouldn’t have believed them and no one could have blamed you for not believing.”

  “What would have kept you from saying the words once I’d been brought back?” the fiendish woman countered immediately, as though expecting the point. “You would have been rested and already starting to heal, instead of being half dead and ready to fall over. If what you had to say was true, theatrics wouldn’t have been necessary. Truth doesn’t need theatrics to make itself known? “

  “Stop right there!” Derand ordered, his hands going to her arms instead of gently around her body. “It isn’t theatrics when you’re desperate to speak to the woman you love, desperate to make her believe you. I do love you, so you can’t start doubting me again.”

  “All right, I’ll put doubt aside for the moment,” she said, her gaze coming back up to his. “You came after me because you were desperate to tell the truth, not a convincing story. Well, I was just as desperate when I rode away from you, desperate to get away from a man who might want to stay married to me because of gratitude, guilt, and pity. But I was still punished for riding away because the effort put my life at risk. If my desperation did nothing to save me, why should yours save you from punishment?”

  Derand parted his lips to answer her question, but for a moment nothing in the way of words came out.

  The woman really was trying to back him into a corner, and that was something he couldn’t allow.

  “You seem to forget that I was punished,” Derand finally offered, sliding his hands around to Seea’s back.

  “I was forced to spend three days asleep, and it’s taken almost another three to get back to my previous state of health and strength. During all that time I couldn’t touch my wife or show her how much I love her, and that, my girl, is a punishment worse than the one you got.”

  And then Derand lowered his lips to hers, cutting off whatever she would have said in rebuttal to his statement. And she had been about to say something, but surprise kept her from continuing with the effort. At first she responded with all the passion he’d come to expect from her, stirring him with desire as her arms went around his body. But when he tightened his hold on her, expecting her to do the same, she pulled back from the kiss instead.

  “Not so tight, or you’ll hurt yourself,” she scolded in an almost-breathless way. “Do you want to have to go back to bed - alone?”

  “I can see that telling you I’m all right won’t do the job,” Derand answered with a sigh, reluctantly releasing her. “Let’s have dinner and then I’ll show you what kind of shape I’m in.”

  Seea was back to not quite looking at him, but she let herself be seated at the table set for two. Derand did his best to jolly her out of the worry during their meal, but he could see that visions of him lying unconscious were probably undoing all his efforts. Well, once he had her in bed that would change.

  Derand made sure that Seea drank her share of the wine, and once the meal was done he deftly guided her into his bedchamber. It didn’t take long to get her out of her clothes, and once he was just as bare he joined her in the bed. He took her in his arms and kissed her with all the passion rising inside him, but her response was more reluctant than uninhibited. She seemed to want him as much as he wanted her, but it looked like worry about his condition kept her from really letting go.

  Eventually Derand brought her to a high-enough heat for them to make love, but the complete abandon he’d been looking forward to never appeared. The time was only just adequate, and once he left Seea to lie on his own side of the bed she stirred just a little.

  “That wasn’t too good,” she murmured as she turned to snuggle under the covers, the slurred words apparently spoken to herself. “Serves him right, but it isn’t fair that I have to be punished right along with him.”

  And then she seemed to be instantly asleep, probably because of all the wine he’d gotten her to drink.

  For a moment Derand didn’t understand what she’d been talking about, but then the answer came almost with a burst of blinding light. Seea had been talking to herself, the wine making her speak the words instead of just thinking them. And those words said she was in the process of deliberately holding herself back during lovemaking, adding to the punishment he’d told her he was suffering under!

  It looks like she didn’t believe me, and decided to make an excuse reality, Derand thought, suddenly angry enough to growl under his breath. She probably wouldn’t have done something like this if she hadn’t been put in what amounts to sole charge of this city, with no one able to countermand her decisions and actions, but that’s a reason for what she did, not an excuse. I have to make her regret playing games with me, but not right now. Once we leave the city, though?

  That thought let Derand relax, and he fell asleep making the necessary plans.

  Chapter 4

  The next morning Derand awoke to find Seea gone. She’d left without waking him and she’d probably claim she did it out of concern, but Derand knew better. His wife was determined to see him punished for risking his life, but he’d told the truth in everything. Not having her beside him for so long was a punishment, but not the same kind he meant to give to her. What she got would remind her who was really in charge.

  Derand was just finishing breakfast when a new arrival was shown into his apartment. The new arrival was Skallin, one of Derand’s older brothers who Derand had sent for just before the taking of the city.

  Derand got to his feet to greet his brother with a buffet to the shoulder and a hug.

  “Derand, boy, you’re looking fitter than I expected,” Skallin said after the hug, inspecting Derand with narrowed eyes. “One of your men said that Waysten had turned his torturers loose on you before your men broke in.”

  “It’s true, and the time was far from pleasant, but they didn’t get to do much damage,” Derand reassured this older brother of his that he’d always been so close to. “The wounds are healing nicely, which means I’m ready to head back to Arvin, but I can’t leave until I finish straightening out this city and kingdom. Did you bring your fighters along with you, brother?”

  “Your message said I had to,” Skallin pointed out as he moved to Derand’s breakfast table and reached to the tea pitcher. “I never knew why you had me recruit all those fighters when I had no interest in going after a throne the way you did, but I still brought them with me.”

  “Good, because you’ll need them,” Derand said, ringing for a servant before joining Skallin at the table.

  “You may not want to take someone else’s throne by force, but you always said that if a throne became available you would be willing to accept the job. Well, now a throne has become available, so the job is yours. You’ll have something to eat, and then I’ll show you around the palace that will be yours. You’re the best choice for taking the throne here, brother, because I know you’re strong enough to hold onto it.”

  “But what about Waysten and his father King Limond?” Skallin asked from the chair he’d taken after pouring himself some tea. Skallin looked a good deal like Derand and was just as big, but Skallin’s hair and eyes were just a bit lighter brown than Derand’s and he wasn’t quite as imposing.

  “Waysten planned to take over every kingdom in reach after defeating me with treachery, and Limond knew all about it,” Derand said after sitting again near his own cup of tea. “Before I leave I mean to see the two of them executed, but you have a decision to make in that regard.”

  Derand stopped the explanation in the middle when the servant he’d rung for entered the apartment, then he quickly ordered breakfast for his guest. Once the servant was gone again, Derand returned his attention to a waiting Skallin.

  “Limond’s daughter Tellita wasn’t a party to the planning, but she can’t be described as innocent,” Derand continued. “She spent her own time turning free men into slaves, and she wasn’t gentle about it. She’s in a cell near her father and brother now, and I want you to take a look at her. If you think you can stand having her as your wife I’ll arrange the marriage, but otherwise she’ll have to be executed with Waysten and Limond.”

  “Having her as my wife would legitimize my taking the throne, and I hate the idea of a woman being put to death,” Skallin said after taking a long drink of the tea he’d poured. “Still and all, a king has to be practical and consider all sides of his decisions before he puts them into effect. I met Tellita again about two years ago when Limond brought her to Father’s palace for a visit, and she was even worse as an adult than she’d been as a child. As a girl she was badly spoiled, but as a woman she was vicious and uncaring about anyone but herself. Any children she produced could well be ruined by the same taint, and even if they weren’t I could never trust the woman near them or let her be unsupervised near anyone else.

  No, Derand, I won’t take her as my queen.”

  “I think you’re wise, but I still had to ask,” Derand said, feeling a good deal of relief. “If you’re going to be in charge around here, the decision had to be yours. I’m going to set the executions for this afternoon, and tomorrow you’ll be crowned king. After that your fighters can take the place of mine, and I can leave for home.”

  “Considering what was done to you I don’t blame you for wanting to get out of here, but you can’t leave quite that fast,” Skallin said with a wry smile. “I have to be told what you’ve done with the city after taking over, what new policies have been initiated and what old policies have been thrown out. Even above that I need to know who I’ll have to watch my back with, otherwise I’ll spend all my time looking over my shoulder instead of ruling the way a king is supposed to.”

  “For that information you’ll have to speak to my wife,” Derand said, watching for Skallin’s reaction -

  which ought to be fun. “Elissia has been in charge while I was recovering from the wounds, so she’ll be able to bring you up to date.”

  “Your wife,” Skallin echoed with a frown, then his expression cleared. “Oh, yes, now I remember, that skinny girl child of King Ostrin’s. I heard you were going to claim her, but how did the two of you end up here? And how in the name of sanity could you let a girl be put in charge of a kingdom?”

  “She’s a woman now, and I wasn’t exactly in a position to argue even if I’d wanted to,” Derand said with a laugh for Skallin’s obvious outrage. “But I wouldn’t have wanted to, and here’s why.”

  Derand told his brother the story of how he and Seea had ended up in Ramsond, leaving out only purely personal details. The servant returned with Skallin’s breakfast not long after Derand started the tale, so Skallin listened while he ate. And almost choked when Derand mentioned the way Seea had reached her brother before he and his men were able to act.

  “She outmaneuvered you?” Skallin demanded once he could speak again. “You, the master strategist?”

  “She’s at least as good as I am, maybe even better,” Derand said with all the pride he felt. “Which is a lucky thing, because only her quick and clever efforts kept me from losing parts of my anatomy that are best left unmentioned. She got Listan and herself into the palace and in a position to protect me until my fighters took this place, and while I was unconscious she told Listan all the right things to do to protect our backs here. Her only fault is that she tends to do things her own way instead of mine even if her way is wrong, but I plan to help her get over that once I get her home.”

  “You always did prefer your women on the wild side,” Skallin said with a shake of his head. “My own taste runs to the homebody sort with a good sense of humor, and one of the first things I do will be to invite my neighboring kings and any marriageable daughters they may have to come visit. I’ll make it clear that I’m not promising to marry one of their daughters, but I’m more than willing to take a look.

  And I’m ready now for that tour you promised me. I’ve already turned over the billeting of my fighters to your man Listan.”

  “Then the first thing we’ll do is find out where he put them,” Derand said as he stood. “You’ll want some of your fighters with you at all times until things settle down, and maybe even for a short while after that.

  You won’t be in the same position I am, but it can’t hurt for you to use some of the same precautions.

  After that I’ll introduce you to my wife and let her fill you in.”

  Skallin finished the tea in his cup and then got to his feet to follow Derand out of the apartment. The first thing they did was find Listan, and then Derand sent for some of Skallin’s fighters. Once Skallin had a proper escort, Derand showed him to the king’s apartments which had been cleaned up in preparation for the new king’s arrival. While Skallin and his fighters were looking around, Derand took Listan to one side.

  “I want you to find out if my wife has been supplied with any gowns,” Derand said softly to his friend and advisor. “If she hasn’t, make sure you have someone collect a few for all occasions. She’ll need a gown for the coronation tomorrow, and I don’t want her in pants for the trip home. When Gardal left for home yesterday, I asked him to speak to his father about getting the servants to pack up all of Seea’s possessions. I’ve already been gone from Arvin for too long, so we won’t be stopping at King Ostrin’s palace on our way home.”

  “You know, it’s possible she wasn’t given any gowns to wear,” Listan said, surprise having raised his eyebrows. “She’s been wearing different trousers and tunics every day so those girls must have gotten a good supply of the clothing, but they may have thought that she didn’t want any gowns. I’ll have a talk with them to correct the oversight.”

  Derand nodded his approval, and then it was time to continue with Skallin’s tour. The new king was shown the highlights of the palace and how to get from one area to another, and then Derand took Skallin to talk to Seea. She didn’t really remember Derand’s older brother but she was fairly pleasant when introduced to him. Derand had the feeling that something was disturbing Seea, but it wasn’t the time to ask. He’d have to remember to do it later?

  The rest of the day went by almost in a blur, what with all the preparations that had to be made for leaving. Skallin’s fighters had to take over patrolling the city while his own fighters gathered their belongings, and then his own fighters had to leave in assigned groups. It wasn’t practical to have five hundred men traveling together, but the various groups had to be close enough to one another in case of trouble.

  After grabbing a quick lunch, Derand made one more effort to search Waysten’s apartment for any clue as to which of the kings of Arvin had been conspiring with the wayward prince. Derand had reached the point of checking the walls for secret recesses when Listan appeared to end the effort.

  “It’s almost sundown, my king,” Listan said rather quietly. “King Limond, Prince Waysten, and Princess Tellita have been prepared for the execution, and the representatives chosen from the city are beginning to arrive.”

  “Then I’d better find Skallin,” Derand said after forcing himself to give up the search. “If he and I show up late, the city people might think we’re reluctant to do what’s necessary. Or that he’s reluctant, which won’t be good for him as king. Let’s go.”

  Derand found Skallin in the room Seea had been using, poring over the notes she’d made and taking up where she’d left off. Skallin looked up, and then he smiled.

  “Say, little brother, I really have to hand it to you,” Skallin said as he leaned back in the chair. “That wife of yours is special, and I can’t believe the amount of work she did. Or the high quality of that work. If I follow the plans she laid out I ought to have little or no trouble here.”

  “I’m glad to hear that,” Derand answered, but couldn’t find a matching smile. “Right now we have less pleasant work to take care of, so we’d better get to it.”

  “The executions,” Skallin said at once, losing his own smile as he stood. “If you’d like to forget about attending I think my own presence will be enough.”

  “No, we both have to be there,” Derand answered with a headshake. “The witnesses from the city have to understand that I’m firmly behind you with these executions, just as I’ll be firmly behind you if there’s any trouble you find you can’t handle alone. That understanding ought to stop most trouble before it starts.”

  Skallin nodded his own understanding, and they left the room together. A back courtyard of the palace had been chosen as the place for the executions, mostly because other executions had been held there. A chopping block had been set on a low wooden platform, and when Derand led Skallin outside they could see that the executioner was already standing beside the block.