Page 28 (1/2)

So he strolled, relishing the ability once again to walk down a road on a suht was Doun’s fenced-in coers’ cattle and horses grazed To his left, just past the stone wall that surrounded Luthvian’s lawn and gardens, was meadowland dotted ildflowers In the distance were stands of pine and spruce Beyond theed Ebon Rih

Jaenelle stepped off the road and stopped, her back to all that was civilized, her sapphire eyes fixed on the wild He approached her slowly, reluctant to disturb herhad happened at Luthvian’s that could explain the intensity of Jaenelle’s anger Nothing had prepared him for that confrontation when she had turned on hier had been at him, and he still didn’t knohat he’d done to cause it

She turned toward hiht with a Queen when there’s no other choiceGood, sound advice from the Steward of the first court he’d ever served in

"What did you think of Luthvian?" Saetan asked as he offered Jaenelle his right ar arms with him "She knows Craft" She wrinkled her nose and smiled "I rather like her, even if she was a bit prickly today"

"Witch-child, Luthvian’s always a bit prickly," Saetan said dryly

"Ah Especially with you?"

"We have a past" He waited for the inevitable questions, and becahtly uncomfortable when Jaenelle didn’t ask any Maybe past affairs weren’t of interest to her Or maybe she already had all the answers she required "Why were you so angry with Roxie?"

"You’re not a whore," Jaenelle snapped, pulling away from him

Suddenly it seemed much darker, but when he looked up, the sky was just as blue as it had been a moment before and the clouds were still puffy and white No, the stor a few feet aith her hands clenched and her feet spread in a fighting stance--and tears in her haunted eyes

"No one said I was a whore," Saetan said quietly

The tears spilled down Jaenelle’s cheeks "How could you let that bitch do that to you?" she screa to keep his frustration in check

"How could you let her look at you likeforce you"

"force me?How in the name of Hell do you think that child could force ?"

"There are ways!"

"What ways? No one was ever stupid enough to try to force an wearing the Black"

Jaenelle faltered

"Listen towoht now she thinks she owns the world and every er years, I was a consort in a nuame older, experienced irls practice on us because we have no interest in war their beds By our approval or disapproval, we help theers through his hair "Although, I’ll grant you, Roxie’s a bit of a cunt"

Jaenelle scrubbed the tears frohed "The truth? While listening to her giggling crudities, I was givingwhat it would be like to hear her bones snapping"

"Oh"

"Co her tight while he rested his cheek on her head "Who were you really angry for, Jaenelle? Who were you trying to protect?"

"I don’t know I sort of remember someone who had to submit to women like Roxie It hurt him, and he hated it It’s not even abecause I can’t recall who or where or why I would have known someone like that"

Which explained why she hadn’t asked about Daemon He was too entwined with the trauma that had cost her two years of her life, a trauma she’d locked away somewhere inside her And all her memories of Daeain, if he shouldn’t tell her what had happened But he could only tell her a small part of it He couldn’t tell her who had raped her because he still didn’t know And he couldn’t tell her what had happened between her and Daemon while they were in the abyss

And the truth was he was afraid to tell her anything at all

"Let’s go hoo hohed shakily "Hoe explain this’ to Helene?"

Saetan groaned "I’m supposed to own the Hall, you know Besides, it’s very large and has a lot of rooure it out"

Jaenelle stepped back "Race you home," she said, and vanished

Saetan hesitated He took a long look at the meadoith its wildflowers and the ive it a little while longer before he began searching for Daemon Sadi