“You are of value, a rare precious commodity.” Henry smiled again.
“I’m married.” I held out my hand showing him the stamp on my finger, the tattoo that tied Joshua and myself together for eternity.
He looked at my finger strangely, “I don’t know what this means.” He pushed my hand away. “Marriage by Cabal is not marriage at all Olivia. You should know that.” He eyed me skeptically.
“Agreed,” I answered curtly. “But Joshua is my husband and he is the one I’m trying to rescue.”
Henry laughed. “You’re rescuing your husband from Craynor? Dear child, you’ll be dead by nightfall. Please let me send two men of mine with you. If not for protection then to ease my own mind.”
I didn’t know what to say to that. If I told him no, he’d wonder why not. “I couldn’t trouble you. I’ll be fine,” I insisted. “I took out six outlaws yesterday. What’s one more man?”
Henry studied my face curiously. “Six men? That’s a tale if I’ve ever heard one.”
“It’s not.” I wished I hadn’t confessed as much, but I felt compelled to talk to him, to trust him. I couldn’t explain it. There was something about him, hypnotizing and mystifying.
“Then let me accompany you,” Henry offered, showing me his hand. “I will make sure you find your way safely to Haven and in return all you will owe me is a kiss.”
“A kiss?” I didn’t like the offer. There was something unsettling in it. “No deal.” I shook my head and Henry smiled.
“Are you sure, Olivia? It’s just one simple kiss, and believe me without the map you’ll never find your way to Haven. Assuming that’s where Craynor is keeping Joshua.”
I paused my eyes narrowing. “Tell me what you know.”
Henry held up his hands. “Nothing I haven’t already said.” He sat down on the sofa beside me and I felt my insides recoil. I stood up. He was cute, and if I hadn’t been in love with Joshua I would have felt a definite attraction to the dark brown locks and hazel eyes. He was muscular, taller than me by half a foot and charming. I was married, though, and all other men were off-limits. Besides I didn’t care about anyone but Joshua.
“You’re just playing games with me.” I was fed up and headed for the door. “If you don’t know anything, you could have just said so.”
“Fine, fine.” Henry sighed. “Let’s go.”
“What?” I reached for the handle of the door. “You’re not coming with me.”
“I am, Olivia,” Henry insisted. “You need my protection. You said it yourself there are outlaws running amuck and maybe you were lucky, running them over or something.” He laughed. “But luck won’t save you.”
“You have no idea,” I muttered beneath my breath. “Get the map. I’ll meet you by the gates. But I won’t kiss you,” I retorted as I headed out of his chambers and past the guards for the main entrance. How I would explain this to Gavin and Rane?
CHAPTER 6
“I see you made a friend.” Gavin’s voice echoed as I stopped the car and saw Gavin and Rane looking flustered. He seemed less than pleased to see a new face joining us.
“Gavin, Rane, this is Henry. He’s offered his services to take us to Haven. He’s also offered us some food,” I remarked, pointing towards the bag of fruit in the backseat along with bottles of water.
“You brought the Grand Duke Henry of Spade,” Gavin remarked with a laugh. “Really, Olivia? You go all out when you need help.” He shook his head and I couldn’t understand what I did wrong.
I gave him a quizzical look, but he didn’t answer me. “Get in.” I motioned towards the truck with the window rolled down. Rane and Gavin climbed into the backseat before I took off towards the direction of Haven.
“So what’s the price of this expedition?” Gavin asked Henry. “I know you didn’t just do this out of the kindness of your heart.”
“On the contraire,” Henry laughed. “I asked for her hand in marriage. I am searching for my queen.”
Rane’s jaw dropped. “What?” she exclaimed. “You couldn’t have!”
“He’s joking. He asked for a kiss,” I clarified. “And I said no,” I reminded everyone, including Henry. “I’m already married.”
“Olivia, a kiss is like asking for a hand in marriage, it’s a proposal in Spade.” Gavin’s eyes locked on me from the back of the truck.
“Well, I’m not marrying you,” I glared at Henry. “I’m already taken.” I shoved my left arm across my body, pushing my hand into his face. The tattoo showed on my finger. “I can’t believe you! See this. Taken!” I reminded him.
“Relax,” Henry said. “I’m not in the habit of stealing wives from their husbands. Truly, all I asked for was a kiss. Although Gavin is right, I am looking for a wife.”
We drove southwest, the car silent for hours as I hoped Joshua remained alive. He hadn’t spoken to me since the previous day. I didn’t know what that meant. Was he still alive? Were we too far away to connect with one another telepathically? It was the one secret I still hadn’t shared with Gavin and Rane. Now that Henry had tagged along on the journey, my abilities had once again become a secret.
We had finished our morning breakfast, courtesy of the Grand Duke Henry of Spade. It was a mouthful. I was just glad he let me call him Henry. I had a feeling that was unheard of in Spade. I glanced at Henry, unsure if now was the time to bring it up or not. They’d killed, Margo. I couldn’t ignore it. My stomach lurched at the memory of her funeral. Finding the courage I asked, “Are you in charge of the guards?”
Henry studied me for a moment, but gave me an honest answer, “I’m in charge of all of Spade. Why do you ask?” He was gentle and warm in his speech. I couldn’t understand how they’d shot at Margo without reason or cause.
“Your men killed a friend of mine.” I glared at him, long and hard, momentarily taking my eyes off the road. It wasn’t much of a road considering what the world had turned to in recent years.
“Olivia!” I heard Gavin’s voice and glanced ahead, doing my best to avoid the rubble as I hit the brakes, slamming the truck to a stop. The seatbelt restrained me from hitting the steering wheel or being thrown through the windshield. The city was in ruins.
Henry sighed. “I’ve killed a lot of men in my days. Nothing I’m proud of. There is a high cost of war and a higher cost to protect those you care about. Those who look up to you. Your citizens,” he reminded me coolly.
“You killed a friend of mine: Margo.” I didn’t suspect he remembered her or her name. “She came to Spade last February. She and another friend of mine came to make an alliance with a town in the far western region of Cabal. You shot and killed her before she could say anything, tell you who she was.”
Henry didn’t answer for a long moment. Was he trying to remember Margo or just unsure how to respond? Finally he spoke, “I don’t remember that day, but we had a traitor from Torv pretending to be one of our soldiers. He had protected our borders a little too violently. Something I still don’t fully understand, unless he was concerned his cover might have been blown. Eventually he had to be put down.”
“Put down?” Rane quipped. “He wasn’t an animal.”
Henry spoke gravely, “You didn’t know him. Most of our men are to be trusted, but occasionally things don’t go as planned. It doesn’t excuse any of what happened and I am sorry for your loss,” Henry told me. “But I can assure you, we are not like Cabal. We are not evil or the outlaws you imagine us to be. We’ve survived this war and the government for decades. I’ve done all I can to protect my people and those who enter the gates from the government. I don’t claim to know what’s best for the world outside of my city walls. I can only claim to want to try, to want to understand and find peace among men.”