The Omaja Stone Page 23

  He nodded. Jiandra drank the rest of her tea down and rose to leave.

  TWENTY-NINE

  Jiandra rode Tiber into the woods to the hidden waterfall, anxious to see Zehu. She wanted to seek his advice and aid in the battle against Nandala, and hoped that he would appear even though she didn’t have the Omaja stone.

  She arrived at the site of the waterfall and dismounted. To her dismay, the pool was dry and the waterfall gone. She rushed to kneel there in the dried leaves and soft, mossy earth, and looked up at the rock wall.

  “Zehu, it’s me,” she called out to the stone surface. “I don’t have the Omaja, but I need to speak with you.”

  She waited anxiously for a response. Nothing.

  “Zehu, I—I’m sorry I had to give up the stone to save Rafe. If you can hear me, I desperately need your help. Villeleia needs you. Without the Omaja, I don’t know if I can still be the ‘mighty warrior’ for Villeleia that you once named me. But if there is any way that you can still use me to help defend Villeleia, please lend me your strength and protection.”

  She hoped that he was listening, even if she couldn’t see him or hear him speak back.

  “Please help Solange’s wounds heal. My brother loves her; we all love her. Villeleia needs its brave young queen now more than ever. Help me and the twins defeat Gerynwid once and for all. And Lord Zehu, forgive me for ruining our ability to communicate—I never wanted to lose you. I just didn’t know what else to do.”

  A large white hawk came and lighted on the rocks at the top of the rock wall, just above where she knelt, and peered curiously down at her.

  Jiandra held her breath. “Zehu?”

  The hawk cocked its head, watching her while she stared back at it. They sat like that for what seemed like a long time, until finally, the hawk flapped its wings and flew away.

  #

  Zafira accompanied them as they stopped at Stovy Farm on the way to the castle. The late morning sunlight illuminated the familiar stone bridge leading over the creek to their land as well as the burned-out cottage visible just on the other side of it. Jiandra’s heart lurched when she saw the cottage’s destruction in daylight, tears filling her eyes.

  “What happened here?” Yajna asked.

  “Gerynwid set our house on fire the night she stole Rafe.”

  He muttered an imprecation in Nandalan under his breath.

  “Elio!” Jiandra scanned for a sign of her brother as they rode into the yard. “Elio, it’s Jiandra!”

  He emerged from the barn and ran toward them. Jiandra slid to the ground to embrace him.

  “I got word that our brother is safe.” Elio smiled. “I didn’t know you were back already. Is Rafe at the castle?”

  “Yes, he’s with Gracie there.”

  “Thank the Gods.” He nodded to Yajna. “Hello again, Yavi.”

  “This is Yavi’s twin, Yajna,” Jiandra corrected him.

  “Oh, pardon.” Elio extended a hand to him in greeting. “Yajna.”

  “Elio, I have terrible news,” Jiandra said, her voice breaking. “Solange was badly injured by Gerynwid. She showed up at the castle in a dragon form and attacked Solange.”

  He looked stricken. “Is she going to be all right?”

  Jiandra swiped at a tear. “I don’t know.”

  “I must see her at once. Santiago!” Elio shouted over his shoulder, starting toward the barn. “Bring me the plowhorse!”

  “No need for that, brother,” Jiandra grabbed his arm. “You can ride Tiber with Zafira, and I’ll ride with Yajna. Yajna and I will get his horse from the castle stables before we leave for Caladia.”

  “Leave for Caladia?”

  “Yes. Yajna and Yavi saw the armies marching and returned to Villeleia to warn us. War is coming, brother. From Nandala.”

  “Gods’ mercies,” Elio swore under his breath, reaching for Tiber’s reins.

  #

  Jiandra and the twins stood by watching anxiously as Zafira unpacked her candles, herbs, and tinctures and carefully set them on Solange’s night table. Elio sat on a stool on the other side of her bed, holding her uninjured hand in both of his, worry etched into his face.

  Zafira lit three candles, whispering prayers, then selected a vial of orange liquid and tapped several drops into a cup of water. She held it to Solange’s pale lips; the queen swallowed painfully, her breath coming in ragged gasps. A rivulet of the orange liquid spilled from the side of her mouth. Zafira dabbed it with a cloth and then laid some homemade herbal poultices on Solange’s mangled arm and hand, carefully re-wrapping the bandages. She bathed Solange’s facial lacerations with a cloth soaked in warm herbal water, then rested the cloth on the Queen’s forehead.

  “Jiandra, I will stay with her while you go to battle with the sons of Zulfikar. I will do all I can. You must go with them, and leave now. It is ordained by the Gods.”

  “Is she—will she make it?” A sob choked in Jiandra’s throat.

  “She’s in a lot of pain. I’ll give her some things that will help, but her future is uncertain.”

  “If only I still had the Omaja!” Jiandra buried her face in her hands. She’d known when she gave Gerynwid the stone in order to save Rafe that she was jeopardizing Solange, but it turned out to be worse than she’d imagined.

  Yajna pulled her into his embrace, wrapped his strong arms around her, and pressed a kiss to her temple. She cried against his chest.

  There was a light knock at the door. “It’s Cornwall, Miss Stovy.”

  Jiandra stepped outside, and Yajna and Yavi followed her. A large bearded man in full armor stood with Cornwall. He bowed briefly to Jiandra.

  Cornwall introduced him. “Miss Stovy, this is Armand Toledano, General of Villeleia’s Royal Army. He has assembled his men outside the north gate and is ready to march. The castle guard is gathered in the Great Hall, along with the council of advisors. The council is asking about the queen. Will you come speak to them before you go?”

  “Yes, but allow me to take leave of my siblings.”

  #

  When Jiandra entered the Great Hall with the twins, the council advisors looked up at them.

  “It’s the assassin!” someone called out.

  “There are two of them! Twins!” another voice shouted in alarm.

  Jiandra stepped forward onto the platform, holding up her hands. “Gentlemen, please! Hear me out! I bring important news.”

  They quieted to listen.

  “It is true that these two men were sent on a mission by Nandala’s evil emperor to assassinate our queen, but they went against their orders and chose not to kill her, and are here to protect her now. If it were not for their decision to return and warn the queen, Villeleia would be caught completely unawares. We owe them our gratitude.”

  The members of the council of advisors were still listening, so she continued.

  “Queen Solange was attacked last night by Gerynwid the Shapeshifter. The queen is undergoing medical care and cannot leave her chambers at the moment. We pray that the Gods spare her life and return her to us in health.”

  “Here, here,” several men responded.

  “In the meantime, war is upon us. General Toledano is ready to march his army north on Caladian Road tonight. I and the Zulfikar brothers will scout ahead on horseback and report back to the general when we locate the Nandalan forces. Cornwall will remain here with a contingent of his best men to defend the castle and the queen.”

  A tall, light-haired man near the front cleared his throat and stepped forward. He bowed low. “Miss Stovy, Sir Jason Throgmorton. Forgive our uncivil behavior when you entered the hall with your companions. It is apparent that we, and all of Villeleia, are in your debt. The council of advisors has been in some confusion since Sir Barkley was arrested on charges of conspiring against the queen a couple of days ago.”

  “Yes, I am aware of his position in the council,” Jiandra replied. “I did not know that he had been arrested.”

  Sir Throgmorton tur
ned to face the assembly. “Gentlemen, has anyone anything to say to Miss Stovy, other than to proceed, with our full support?”

  Several council advisors shook their heads.

  “All in favor, say ‘aye.’”

  “Aye.”

  “All opposed, say ‘no.’”

  Silence.

  Sir Throgmorton turned back to Jiandra and bowed once again to her and to General Toledano. “Godspeed to you all.”

  #

  Gerynwid looked up from the scrying fountain in her tower room. Her magic had thus far been ineffective in repairing the horrific wound on the left side of her face; her once-smooth, perfect flesh there was marred by an oozing, bloody mess.

  “They ride for Caladia. Good. I’ll deal with those Nandal curs and the little Stovy bitch at the same time.” She whirled to face the altar. “Ujagar! Curse you! You didn’t tell me the boy would become strong against me!”

  His voice thundered in her head, and she clapped her hands over her ears, shrieking in pain.

  How dare you curse me? Neither did I know the boy would gain my power!

  Gerynwid let out a furious howl and rushed to the altar, sweeping the tray, the chalice, and the box to the stone floor with a loud clatter. “Where were you?” she screamed at the ceiling. “Why didn’t you come to my aid at the castle?”

  Silence, handmaid!

  “You abandoned me! Look at my face!” She sank to her knees, wailing aloud.

  I fought hard, but Zehuraster would not release me, the voice said. And now he has sealed off the portal at the waterfall so that you cannot summon him again.

  Gerynwid’s shoulders slumped. “What do I do now?”

  Kill the twins and the Stovy girl, then go after the boy Rafael. Bring him here. We will do a ritual that will bind him completely to me, and we will use his strength on our side.

  #

  Yajna’s horse Sunil was clearly excited to see him again when they retrieved him from the castle stables. Jiandra and the twins rode through Kingston and out of the north gate, passing through the ranks of the Royal Villeleian Army on the way out of the city.

  They flew swiftly and made it to Broomfield before midnight, stopping to rest near a stream. Yajna fished while Yavi built a fire, and they dined on roasted trout and bread from the castle’s baker.

  “Do you two ever grow tired of trout?” Jiandra asked between bites.

  “We do not have trout in our homeland,” Yavi answered. “The Villeleian trout is tasty. I have not grown tired of it.”

  “Nor I,” Yajna agreed.

  “Easy dinner for me,” Yavi added. “Since he’s so good at catching them.”

  Jiandra sipped from her cup. “The queen and the assembly have decided to release the Nandal refugees and let them stay, so perhaps the two of you could stay in Villeleia…for a while.”

  Yavi grinned. “I’m sure my brother likes that idea.”

  “We have a battle to fight first,” Yajna said. “But with Villeleia’s sovereignty secured, I would be in no great hurry to leave.”

  Jiandra gave him a shy smile.

  Yavi cleared his throat. “Well, brother, it seems that our female companion has no tent or bedroll. I wouldn’t mind sharing mine.”

  Yajna picked up a small rock and threw it at his chest.

  “Ow! I take that as a no?” Yavi pitched the rock back at his twin.

  “You may take that as a—” Yajna finished the sentence in Nandalan, and it did not sound complimentary to Jiandra’s ears.

  Yavi grinned. “Well, Mahitha, he’s determined that you and I will not share, so I hope that you will not force me to share a bedroll with this brute.”

  “I, ah—”

  Yajna spoke up. “What my ill-mannered brother is trying to say is, we need to get a couple hours’ rest before moving on. You are welcome to share my bedroll, Jiandra. Or if you prefer, you can have my tent and I will sleep outside. I am more of a gentleman than this devil.” He lobbed another rock that hit Yavi’s arm.

  “Ow!” Yavi rubbed his sleeve.

  She smiled. “I wouldn’t mind sharing. With you, I mean.”

  Yajna pushed himself to his feet. “Let’s get the tents set up then, brother.”

  Jiandra cleaned the dishes in the stream, then replaced everything in their saddlebags. When she was done, Yajna called out to her.

  “Jiandra, over here.” He held his tent flap aside for her to enter.

  Eagerly, she ducked inside.

  THIRTY

  Yajna followed her into the darkened tent and seated himself next to her.

  There was a muffled Nandalan imprecation just outside the tent, and the flap was angrily swept aside.

  “Jiandra, you are in Yavi’s tent, not mine.”

  Jiandra looked up at the twin outside the tent in confusion, then back at the one sitting beside her, who was grinning mischievously.

  “You’re Yavi?”

  He laughed. “Yes, unfortunately.”

  “Come, Jiandra.” Yajna held out his hand to her, scowling at his brother. “Yavi, you are an incredible bastard.”

  Yavi looked thoroughly amused. “It is a strange thing,” he said to Jiandra. “We often call each other ‘bastard,’ though that is not too clever of us, is it?”

  Jiandra chuckled and scooted toward the door to take Yajna’s hand. As he helped her out of the tent, she stooped to peek back inside. “Rest well, Yavi.”

  “Rest well, Mahitha,” he replied. “See you in a couple of hours.”

  Inside Yajna’s tent, she sat next to him in the darkness. “How do I know you are really Yajna?” she whispered.

  “Because Yajna would not trick you like that.” He reached for her hand and held it in his. “We must come up with a password so that you can always make sure it’s me and not that horse’s arse.”

  “What password shall we use?”

  “Do you remember the story I told you my mother read to us when we were boys?”

  “Yes, about a princess? Princess Quvira, was it?”

  He bent forward to brush his lips against her cheek and spoke near her ear in a hushed whisper. “If you ever think Yavi is pretending to be me, you say ‘Princess’ and I’ll say ‘Quvira.’ If he doesn’t say it, you’ll know it isn’t me.”

  Jiandra loved the feel of his warm breath on her jawline and neck. “All right.”

  He hovered there for a second, then sighed. “We should get some rest.”

  “Yes, I, ah…have to keep my leather armor on. I have nothing else to sleep in.”

  “Probably just as well,” he said, reaching behind her to pull back the blankets on the bedroll.

  “Why’s that?” She tugged off her boots.

  “You keeping your armor on will make things much easier for me.” He unbuckled his leather cuirass and stripped it off to lay it aside, then removed his boots. Jiandra crawled under the covers with her breeches and jacket intact. He followed, bare-chested, and she turned her back to him, hoping he would snuggle close behind her.

  He did, snaking a heavy, muscular arm around her leather-clad waist to draw her back into the warm curve of his body. His nearness was blissfully comforting, and she drifted rapidly off to sleep.

  She awoke some time later with his lips tracing her jaw and the side of her neck, his tongue brushing against her skin with feather-light strokes.

  She shivered pleasantly. “Did you sleep?” she whispered.

  “Not much,” he whispered back. “I think the wisewoman’s tea had some side effects. She gave me two more cups of it while you were gone.”

  “It kept you awake?”

  “You might say that.” He stroked her hair and trailed kisses over her cheek, sending a shiver through her.

  Jiandra rolled over and slid an arm around his corded neck, just as she’d wanted to do when they had shared a tent the first time.

  He gathered her into his arms, pulled her close. “Or maybe it’s not the tea,” he whispered, his lips hovering near her mouth. �
�It could be your fragrance, your silky hair and soft, warm skin.”

  Jiandra stretched forward to kiss him, and he eagerly covered her lips with his mouth. His hand slid down into the curve of her waist, over her hip, and around to caress her buttock through the smooth leather.

  “The sight of your rounded backside in these breeches is driving me mad,” he confessed against her mouth. His hand slid farther down along the back of her thigh, then up along the inside of it, moving all the way up to rub against her crotch from behind. The leather breeches shielded her from the scandalous touch a little, but only a little, and Jiandra squirmed against him, kissing him hungrily.

  “I can feel your heat through the leather,” he whispered huskily against her lips, stroking her. “Can you feel my hand?”

  “Mm, yes…” Her nipples had gone painfully tight against the leather cups of her fitted jacket.

  He kissed her neck, still caressing her with his hand. “How does that feel?” he breathed near her ear.

  “It feels like…I kind of wish I didn’t have this armor on…”

  He chuckled and pressed his hips against her pelvis. “We could remedy that.”

  Yavi’s voice came from somewhere outside the tent. “Brother! We should go soon.”

  Yajna groaned. He reluctantly withdrew his hand from between her legs and reached down to adjust himself through his breeches. He sat up and took her hand to pull her to a sitting position as well.

  Jiandra was chilled at the loss of his body heat, but the cold air helped to jolt her back to the reality of their mission. She shoved her feet into her boots while Yajna did the same. He strapped his cuirass on, grabbed his cloak, kissed her, and went outside. Jiandra grabbed her cloak to follow and braided her hair while he took down his tent. They packed everything away on their horses and set off again in the pitch darkness of the early morning hours.

  #

  Gerynwid stepped back from her rebuilt scrying fountain and shapeshifted into a griffon vulture, the Omaja around her neck. She dove out of the upper tower window and flew into the chilly night air, heading south. She traveled with determined speed, fueled by rage and pain, taking a path that would intersect with that of the Nandal twins and Jiandra.