Vanished by Gail Roughton

Author:Gail Roughton
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: romance, magic, knights, devils triangle
Publisher: BWL Publishing Inc.

Chapter Seventeen

I went out on my rounds with Dal that morning as usual. He stopped dead when he saw me and stared. Searching for words, I assumed.

“I like it. It makes you look younger.”

This kid was going to be a killer with women, for certain sure. “Younger?”

“Yeah. It frames your face better. I like it Tess, I really do.”

I sighed. “Glad somebody does.”

“Abba’s seen it, huh?”

“Oh, yeah.”

“He’ll get used to it,” Dal assured me. Somehow I didn’t think so.

I excused myself from his company again that afternoon though, and told him I didn’t feel like riding. He surveyed me shrewdly.

“Is my little brother in the works, Tess?”

Sometimes I forgot just how astute this young prince was.

“No, Dal. I guess the last few weeks just caught up with me, that’s all.”

The hour of lammas approached, and I called for Saraya and told her I’d like a tray in my room. I knew the entire Rata had stared after me in my wake all morning, and I knew they probably surmised their King wasn’t happy. I probably ought to go down lest they think I’d been consigned to the dungeons. If the Rata had dungeons. Then I thought, “fuck it”. I was going to wallow in self-pity until it was time for Dalph to come to bed. And then I’d go to bed and pretend to sleep. If he even came in tonight. As he’d observed, it was a big Rata.

I put on my robe and picked at my lammas tray, and then I passed a profitable half-hour staring out the window and seeing nothing. I was caught off guard when the door opened and Dalph walked in, already bathed and in his robe, smelling and looking wonderful.

Trapped. He’d never believe I was really ready to go to bed this early. There being nothing else to do, I remained in my seat.

He walked over and stood in front of me. Then he swore softly under his breath and reached over and picked me up. He sat back down in the chair and settled me in his lap.

“Tess,” he said gently. “What is it? I thought, in those first days, the first weeks—it might be possible—you seemed to enjoy my company—I thought we were building something, you and I. But this last week, you’ve changed, you’ve built an even bigger bridge between us and I don’t know why or what I’ve done. I watch you and Dal as you roam around the Rata, for all the world like you’re ten years old, too, I see you ruffle his hair, and I—it’s a terrible thing for a man to be jealous of his own ten-year-old son. But I know I can’t change anything if you won’t tell me what’s wrong. I don’t know if I can change anything, I honestly don’t know what else to do. I’m already doing everything I can think of.”

I slid deeper into misery. The tears gathered again, and I mustn’t cry, I never cried.

“So tell me, let me try,” he finished, putting the frosting on the cake.

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