"Yes, an envoy. Axel couldn't leave Tamrovia at the moment."
"Sacha, what the hell is wrong with you?" Galen asked.
His roughness jarred Sacha from his abstraction. "They're dead. They're both dead."
"Who?"
"My father and my brother. They were both drowned. Their boat overturned on the river Zandor, and they were swept away by the rapids before anyone could reach them. It happened two days after I left Tamrovia. Axel is acting regent." He lifted his head to look at them. "Regent for me in my absence. I'm now the king of Tamrovia." He suddenly started to laugh. "Dear God, isn't that ridiculous? Me!"
"You're sure?" Galen asked.
"Count Mazlek assures me both the court and the populace are eagerly awaiting my arrival in Belajo." He smiled bitterly. "It's the first time anyone has ever showed any eagerness to see me at court." He paused. "I suppose I should feel sorry they're dead, shouldn't I?" He shrugged. "I refuse to be a hypocrite. I had neither respect nor liking for either of them in life, and I will not grieve for them in death."
"What now?" Tess asked.
Sacha looked at her blankly. "I suppose I have to return to Tamrovia at once." He stood up and moved toward the door. "I'll have to order my valises packed." He didn't look at her as he opened the door. "I'll also order your maid to pack your trunks, Tess. I'll meet you in the courtyard in four hours."
She stiffened. "Mine?"
His expression was stern as he glanced back over his shoulder. "Well, as king of Tamrovia, it's my duty to assure your marriage to Tamrovian aristocracy."
Her eyes widened. "Sacha!"
His light eyes were as icy as his tone as he said, "I'm sorry, but the deaths in the royal family dictate the family line must be strengthened. This marriage will be dissolved, and within the year we'll have you wed to a nobleman of the realm."
"What!" Tess felt Galen's arm slide protectively around her waist.
"Well, we can't have a Tamrovian royal princess married to a barbarian sheikh like—" Sacha broke off, dissolving in laughter. "Dear heaven, your face, imp!" He collapsed back against the door, his entire body shaking with laughter. "You believed me!"
"Wretch." She smiled grudgingly. "You caught me off guard for a moment."
"I thought I mimicked my father exceptionally well." Sacha shuddered. "What a ghastly thought." He grinned slyly. "And I almost had Galen reaching for his dagger to stab the wicked villain and keep you by his side."
"I was not amused," Galen admitted, his arm tightening about Tess's waist. "Your first act as monarch would have plunged Tamrovia into a war."
Sacha's eyes widened in shock. "Merde, I forgot I must start thinking about those boring kinds of repercussions. What a depressing thought." He uneasily shifted his shoulders as he turned toward the door. "I don't believe I'm going to like this business. I'm not at all suited for majesty."
Four hours later Tess stood on the steps with Galen and watched Sacha mount his stallion in the courtyard below.
"I'll miss him," she murmured huskily.
"He's not gone forever," Galen said.
But they both knew Sacha's road was taking a new curve that was leading him away from them. In spite of Sacha's apprehensions she thought she could already see signs of new power and authority in his bearing as he turned to Count Mazlek and gestured impatiently for him to mount. "He's going to change."
"So are we all." Galen gently brushed his lips on her temple. "Life would be very dull if we stayed the same. You wouldn't like that either, my love." He released her and nudged her forward. "Now, go and tell him farewell."
She started down the steps. "Aren't you coming?"
"I went to his chamber earlier to say good-bye. I have no liking for prolonged farewells."
Sacha smiled down at Tess as she crossed the courtyard toward him. "Don't look so forlorn, imp. Zalandan isn't a world away from Belajo, and I'll remember the way back."
"Did you tell Viane good-bye?"
"Yes." His smile faded. "As well as I could with Kalim hovering in the background. She was very… courteous." He sighed. "It made me feel melancholy."
"Nonsense. "
His eyes widened. "I thought you'd have more sympathy for my suit."
"At first, I thought you should have Viane merely because you wanted her." Tess met his gaze. "But now I realize she wouldn't do for you at all. You and I are a great deal alike, Sacha. You wanted her only because she represented a safety and sanctuary neither of us have ever had. She would have driven you mad in three months. She's much better off with Kalim. He told me once he'd give his life for her."
He frowned. "I'm not without valor."
"Valor has nothing to do with it." She gestured impatiently. "That's why she's wrong for you. You'd enjoy risking your life for her, but what then? You'd go away and search for a new challenge to face. Tell me, why are you leaving Sedikhan so meekly after six years?"
"It could be because no one has offered me a throne before," he suggested dryly.
She shook her head.
"No?" He lifted his brows. "Then I'm sure you're going to tell me."
"You have no desire to be a king. You're leaving because, though the struggle here will continue, the unrest and danger is gone now that we have unity. Don't you see? You don't need a sanctuary. You need an adventure, a great adventure. Viane wasn't your great adventure, Sacha."
His expression softened as he looked down into her earnest face. "And is Galen your great adventure, imp?"
"Oh yes," she said softly.
"No following in Marco Polo's footsteps?"
"Perhaps someday." She grinned. "But you can be sure I'll take Galen with me. Kadines are much too well-accepted in Sedikhan for my liking." She reached up and affectionately squeezed his hand resting on the reins before stepping back. "Go with God, Sacha, and return when you can."
"I will." He smiled down at her. "And come to Belajo in a year or two, and you may see a few changes at court." He turned his horse and rode forward to join Count Mazlek and his escort. "I've always thought it needed a bit of livening."
She chuckled as she watched him ride out of the courtyard, his hair blazing in the sunlight, his bearing indomitable yet insouciant. She had a sudden mental picture of him lolling on the Tamrovian throne, bejeweled crown slightly askew on his curly red head, his blue eyes shining with deviltry.
"Lord help them," she murmured.
"Tess?" Galen called.
She turned to see Galen waiting on the steps, his dark hair lifting in the breeze, his expression a little impatient but very loving. Galen was a complicated man, one she might never know completely, one who would change and grow with every passing day. She could hardly wait to see what interesting challenge he would offer her next.
She smiled. "Coming."
She started across the courtyard toward her own great adventure.
REVISION HISTORY
v1
-a good html release
v2
-mainly punctuation mistakes corrected
-released in standard HTML format, EDG style