“Good. But I am glad my Ghleanna is traveling with you. You need her protection.” “It’s too blatant,” Bram admitted, knowing Ailean would understand. “I was trying to keep this quiet. Trying to make it seem. . of no consequence. But with a good number of your brood escorting me around the Southlands, it’s obvious this alliance will change things.” “It was already obvious to those who’d give a centaur shit anyway. Trust me, Bram. You’re better off with my girl watching out for you. She’s a solid choice by Bercelak. And her and Addolgar together? A mighty force. Let them protect you. At this point, there can be no subtle.” Bram relaxed back in his wood chair. “I guess you’re right.” “Don’t worry, son. What you’re doing is right. That’s all you need to know.” “Thank you, Ailean.”
“Any time. And feel free to visit more. Perhaps when this is all over.” Ailean handed the parchment to Bram and stood. “I’ve missed you. So has Shalin.” Bram stood and lifted his gaze up to see the giant blue dragon in human form. “I’ve missed you both as well. And when this is all done, I might take you up on that visit.” “Good. And you can bring Ghleanna with you.” Bram slammed the war room door shut before Ailean could walk through it. “Don’t start this again.” “And don’t you be a fool. You going to let her get away?” “She doesn’t even notice me, Ailean. She forgets I exist on this planet.” “And you forget everyone exists on this planet. When you’re working. That’s how it is with my girl. When Ghleanna works, she forgets everything but her troops and who her enemy is. Honestly, Bram, the pair of you were made for each other.” “I’m not the problem.”
“If you don’t go after what you want, lad, you definitely are the problem.” Frustrated — and knowing Ailean was right — Bram yanked the door open. “Can we just go please?” “You were the one who stopped me.”
As promised, the stay was short and within the hour, Ghleanna was hugging her mum good-bye.
“You’re crying again, Mum.”
“Because I’ll miss you.” She pulled away from Ghleanna and reached up so she could hug Addolgar. “I’ll miss all of you.” “Mum, all we gotta do is babysit this one.” Addolgar said as he pointed at Bram. “Easy job.” Bram sighed. “Yes. I do adore being equated to a human child.” After saying good-bye to her sons, Shalin returned to Ghleanna. They gazed at each other for a long moment.
“I love you, Mum.”
“And I you, my daughter.” They hugged again and then Ghleanna quickly turned away before she started to blubber like her mother. But she came face to chest with her father.
“And do I get nothing?” His voice lowered a bit. “Will I be paying for my past forever with you, my Ghleanna?” Ghleanna looked up at her father. Gods, she adored that face. But still. . “You do make it so very hard to be your daughter.” “But worth it, yes?”
“Some days, Da. . I really don’t know.” She walked around him and tried to ignore the hurt she heard in his voice when he whispered, “Good-bye, little one.” Ghleanna walked through the gates that surrounded her family home and toward the clearing where they could take off.
“You all right?” Bram asked her, his long stride matching hers.
“Aye.”
“You know, your father—”
“I don’t want to talk about it.” “—he adores you like the suns.” Ghleanna stopped abruptly, spun to face him. “Did my mother tell you that?” “No. He did.”
“When? Today?”
“Once, years ago when I’d stopped by to discuss some strategy with a difficult Duke who’d decided dragons needed to be hunted by his army—” “Why didn’t you just kill the Duke and his army?” “Which was why I spoke to your father, but that’s neither here nor there. Anyway, you walked in, slammed a blood-covered axe on the table and said, ‘Thanks for the axe, Da. Worked like a charm.’ Then you walked back out and he sighed and said with great pride, ‘I adore that girl like the suns.’ Then we went back to our conversation — with that blood-covered axe sitting there the entire time.” Bram gazed off. “I tried not to take it as an unspoken threat.” Ghleanna shook her head a little. “Is that really true?” “I lie when I have to, Ghleanna. Like when I tell people our queen is utterly sane or that ‘No. Of course Bercelak would never kill your offspring while you slept.’ But on something like this? That is not something I’d lie about.” “You don’t understand. I am judged by my father’s past deeds because, as usual, he didn’t think past his cock. I am Ailean the Slag’s daughter, after all, which to many means I’m no more than a slag myself.” “You are judged by your father’s past because you allow yourself to be. Because you allow yourself to feel shame for the life he decided to live. How is that Ailean’s fault? Perhaps you should accept him as he is — the way he’s accepted you.” “Know so much about my family, do you, royal?” “Well. . I did live with your parents for a year while I studied alchemy under your mother.” Ghleanna frowned. “You did? When was that. . well, don’t walk off mad! It was an innocent question!”
Chapter 5
They flew the rest of the day and late into the night until they reached the outskirts of the city of Baynham. Instead of sleeping outside, though, they all decided to go into town, get some warm food and soft beds.
But it had been someone’s brilliant idea for them all to stay in the pub for the night and share a single room with several beds. There was just one problem — the Cadwaladr males’ ability to snore in a way that suggested very loud temple construction.
It wasn’t even that Bram was a light sleeper. He wasn’t. Far from it, having slept through all manner of things during the time he traveled the length and breadth of the Southlands for several years. But four Cadwaladr males in one room? That was too much even for him.
They didn’t even snore in unison, but instead created a wall of sound that surrounded him so that Bram could never hope to find sleep anytime soon. After many hours of trying, he finally gave up, pulled on his boots, and slipped out of the room. Once he closed the door behind him, he let out a deep sigh of relief that the thick wood at least blocked a bit of the noise those dragons could make.
“Making a run for it?”
Ghleanna sat on the stairs that led to the next floor of rooms. She had one of her axes in her lap and was sharpening the blade.
“No offense to you, Ghleanna, but that noise—”
“I know. I know. Why did you think I offered to take first watch? Hew’s the worst of the lot, though, with Addolgar a close second.”
He motioned to the steps. “Mind if I join you or are you still mad at me for what I said earlier?”
Ghleanna hadn’t spoken to him since they’d left her father’s lands, and Bram knew he should have stayed out of it — but he couldn’t. Her rage at her father was unwarranted and for some reason none of her kin would tell her so.
In answer to Bram’s question, however, Ghleanna simply moved over a bit and placed her axe on the landing behind her.
Bram sat down beside her, and asked, “Too close?” “Not so’s I mind.”
Bram nodded and stared straight ahead. “Any trouble so far tonight?” he asked when the silence began to choke him to death.