Page 48 of Lacey's Warriors

Lord Rell snorted, some of the darkness leaving his grave expression. “I heard from Chel that when you woke up from your bond with Lady Jelizel breaking, the first thing you wanted to do was get married. Why was that?”

Gwarnon had been anticipating this question, and wished he had a better answer than, “I just had this feeling that I had to get married as soon as possible. That it was important. And I had…this sense that if I waited, something terrible would happen. That same feeling told me I needed to get married in the Lord of Life’s outdoor temple. I know it does not make any sense, and it was probably a result of the shock of the bond breaking—”

“Oh no.” Lord Rell shook his head, his casual sleeveless silver tunic that matched his braided hair glimmering slightly with his movements. “It makes a great deal of sense. After all, your natural father is one of the strongest danger sensors in his generation. It would make sense that his skill would trickle down to you.”

“But I have never felt anything like it before. Believe me, my mother had me tested extensively, hoping to trigger the gift. She went to…horrifying lengths to try and activate my gift. After much effort, she decided I was a dud, that the gift had skipped a generation. My mother told me I was so disappointing a son, the Lord of Life left me without any special skills.”

Gwarnon’s voice was rough by the end, and Lord Rell leaned forward and placed a hand on Gwarnon’s thigh. “Be easy, my friend. I have some news to share with you that you find difficult.”

“What, that my mother tried to have me killed on my wedding day?” Gwarnon spat out.

“We will get to that in a moment,” Lord Rell said while he stood from his chair and began to pace the luxurious silver and purple decorated parlor adjacent to Lacey’s, now their, bedroom. “Did your mother ever explain to you why she wanted you to bond with Lady Jelizel?”

Caught off guard by the question, Gwarnon answered honestly, “She didn’t have to. Lady Jelizel was intensely loyal to my mother and scared of her. She was a weak woman who would do whatever my mother wanted. Since no other Matriarch in her right mind would want to bond Lady Melissi’s son, Lady Jelizel was my only choice.”

Lord Rell paused, his hands behind his back as looked at Gwarnon. “I believe Lady Jelizel was selected to hold your bond for more than just her spinelessness. My mate, Commander Trenzent, can tell you more.”

Gwarnon tried to sit up straighter, to come to some kind of attention as the legendary scarred Commander came through the doorway, but the medical chair held him fast. It wouldn’t let his sense of honor injure him further. To Gwarnon’s surprise, Lorn and Nast—Lady Casey’s husbands—came in as well. Then Nosa and Cormac, followed closely by Phin and Karwin. The big Warriors all moved around the room, selecting chairs and sofas framed by exquisite leaf art on the walls of the parlor.

Lorn crossed his leg and gave Lord Rell a decidedly smug smile.

Lord Rell surveyed the group with a dry look as he said, “I do not recall inviting you in as well.”

“Our loving wives kicked us out,” Nosa said in his deep voice as he leaned against the wall next to his bondmate.

Walking over to Lord Rell, Commander Trenzent gave his blood brother a rare public show of affection. He touched his forehead to Lord Rell’s, something silent passing between them that had an intimate feeling that made Gwarnon look away out of respect. There was a deep affection there, the kind that grew between husbands over centuries.

Commander Trenzent, a legend among the Kadothian Warriors, was Lord Rell’s bondmate and husband to Lady Paige. Gwarnon wasn’t surprised to see Nosa and Cormac, or Lorn and Nast here as well. All of Lady Roxy’s friends considered Lacey one of their own and would have come to visit as soon as they could. Casey especially had a case of hero worship going with Lacey, as she thought his Matriarch was ‘one bad ass bitch,’ in her words.

Lord Rell rolled his shoulders, letting out a sigh. “I just spoke with my Matriarch, and she assures me they are merely indulging in girl talk that would bore us to death.”

A wave of tension went through the room as the men eyed each other and no doubt thought about the scene upstairs.

All of the Matriarchs were now gathered in another room of Lady Tara’s vast manor, plotting all kinds of trouble. With this public showing, they were saying to all of Kadothia that they were friends and supports of House Taylor—something he appreciated. Gwarnon didn’t need anyone to tell him that after surviving the assassination attempt during their wedding, their family would become a major symbolic target for the anti-Earther movement.

The sooner they could get off Kadothia, the better, but his people on Madre Tierra needed a little more time building the infrastructure they would need to begin construction on their manor. They wouldn’t be able to safely move to Madre Tierra for at least another two months. Gwarnon hated endangering the people of Lady Tara’s Territory, but this was probably one of the safest places in Kadothia for them. According to information rolling in through his crystal implant from his crew, Lady Tara’s people were furious that this had happened on their watch and would worker hard to keep their Matriarch safe.

Not that they needed to worry. Though Lacey had her crystal implant set ondo not disturb, he could feel how angry hisalyahwas through their bond. Whatever they were talking about had her incensed. Chel was currently guarding them, and he told Gwarnon that Lacey was doing something the other women referred to as ‘ranting’ and ‘letting it all out’ and ‘venting’. He sent Gwarnon a mental image of Lacey striding back and forth in a feminine room filled with flowering plants and a living canopy of swaying leaves above. The other women were all lounging around comfortably on a variety of chairs and sofas, obviously relaxed. Small tables were placed near the chairs, and held trays filled with sweets and small bits of artful fruit.

A tranquil, warm scene—if you took hisalyahyelling about everything being a bunch of fucking bullshit out of the image.

Looking at Lord Rell, Gwarnon said, “You do realize our wives are currently plotting all kinds of mischief upstairs.”

“The Coven,” Lorn said with a smirk, the same blue eyes he shared with his mother, Lady Elsin, sparkling with humor, “that is how they referred to themselves. Lady Casey said they all had witch like powers now, so the Coven fit even though there are five of them instead of thirteen. And, before you ask, no, I have no idea what she means.”

Nast shook his head, his mane of red, orange, and gold hair held back in a tight Warrior’s braid. “I believe a witch is some kind of magic user in their culture. Since their gifts from the Lord of Life could indeed be considered magic, I believe the name fits. Powerful witches, indeed”

Lord Rell gave the other man a slight nod. “I do not believe they realize just how formidable they are, not yet. Lord of Life help the galaxy once they realize how much influence they wield between them.”

“Hopefully enough to withstand what is to come,” Nosa said in a grim voice.

Confused, Gwarnon was about to ask Nosa what he meant when Lord Rell cleared his throat. “If we could get back to the task at hand—Tren, would you please share what you found on Lady Jelizel’s estate?”

Running a hand over his short silver and black hair, the scared man frowned as he said, “I found evidence that Lady Jelizel had a rare gift that was mislabeled as a shield. Her real gift was being able to force the gifts of others into dormancy, like burying a seed too deep to reach sunlight, leaving the plant thinking it is living through an eternal winter. Rell and I think that you had such a severe reaction to the bond breaking because your gift, which had been suppressed by Lady Jelizel during your bonding, was finally released. We believe you have precognition, like your father, and that your mother concealed it from you so that someday, when she finally managed to break you, she’d have you as a backup for your father.”

“Lady Jelizel wasn’t a willing accomplice of your mother. She collected information on Lady Melissi over the years, enough proof to cause your mother problems,” Lord Rell grimace, “but I am not sure if it is enough to get her convicted. Your mother holds an astonishing amount of power and loyalty. Why the Lord of Life gave her the gift of manipulation, I will never know.”

Chel came into the room, panting as if he’d been running, “Gwarnon, are you all right? Lacey and I felt your distress.”

---