Castle Town 4 by Anya Merchant

Author:Anya Merchant [Merchant, Anya]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: adventure, Fantasy, Fiction, Romance, steamy, TV; Movie & Game Tie-In
Amazon: B0BQCRVPPM
Published: 2023-02-16T00:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER 22

Avina calmly explained what’d happened at the oasis to a confused Captain Lauric and a grief-stricken Mav… despite only having guessed, herself. Ani hadn’t said a word in the time since. The oasis’s spring had taken on a faint pink hue from the blood she’d scrubbed off her hands.

“I can’t believe he’d do such a thing!” cried Mav. “I… I thought he was a good man. A blustering bastard at times, but… not a man who’d try to do a thing like that.”

“You said he had your rapier at the start?” asked Lauric.

“That’s right,” said Avina. “He… set it down as he tried to approach me, and I managed to get around him to pick it back up.”

It sounded plausible enough, if one set aside specific details and assumed Grin was a complete idiot. Avina was just as baffled as they were. She’d checked herself over again and confirmed once more that it didn’t seem like she’d been raped or even marked in any way.

Petra, she thought. We have so much to discuss. Never have I wanted so badly to simply sit down and speak with you. Talk freely, as we once did.

Oddly enough, Petra’s defense of her while occupying her body had done a great deal to restore Avina’s trust in her esper. She reminded herself that Petra would have been just as keen on not being defiled — it might not have been her native body, but it would have still been her experience.

It was more that she could so easily imagine Petra’s reaction leading to her dispatching an arrogant rapist who assumed she’d simply stay quiet and spread her legs, avoiding conflict like perhaps other timid women had for him in the past. Petra likely slew Grin without a second thought, no hesitation and no regret.

The regret was Avina’s to bear, each time she looked into Mav’s face and experienced that realization that Grin had been a man who’d somehow earned her handmaiden’s love. She knew it was ridiculous and had to cut her thoughts off from veering in the direction of self-blame. She shouldn’t have been naked in the spring. She shouldn’t have been so amused about teasing Ani when she’d first seen him peeking and instead acted like a proper, chaste underqueen.

Ani’s dark silence certainly wasn’t helping her conscience. He had responded to a few of Captain Lauric’s questions about whether they were still on the right path once they’d found the glass road again, though only with nods or shakes of his head.

Two guards had been lost in the dust maiden attack, not counting Grin, along with a number of pack animals. Avina sensed Lauric would have preferred that they turn back, but she was committed. She needed to see the journey through if only out of stubbornness and a desire to make the loss worth it.

They traveled on through the hottest part of the day. The relief of the entire traveling party was palpable when a settlement emerged in the distant horizon and Ani confirmed it was Matragoria with one of his quiet nods.

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