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“Lady Veri, can I get you anything else?” a quiet servant girlasked.
Veri liked her in particular for her soft-spoken ways and how she fixed her tea and sandwiches similar to the kind she would have on Priea. She wasn’t used to the heavy foods of Avvis. On Priea they generally ate more fruits and vegetables thanmeat.
“Yes,” she replied quietly. “Have you seen the Archduke Hayden?” The girl curtseyed and murmured her response beforedisappearing.
Veri could feel Indra’s eyes on her again but ignored the woman. Veri tucked her simulcast back into her dress pocket with plans to pack as soon as possible. She had had enough of this place and Indra’s constant, silent accusations. The archduchess’s obvious hatred for Veri and the threat she posed to Veri’s plans for Hayden, had tried her very thinpatience.
The quiet servant girl returned with a fresh cup of tea and placed it on the carved side-table next to Veri. The cup and saucer were gold and shone like the sun. Veri was about to stand when she heard Indra carry on and instantly she froze at the words the archduchess so carelesslyspoke.
“It will be wonderful. We all know the Dragas are looking to pair off their daughters with this ball, especially Princess Raena. She will need an heir soon after her coronation. Hayden would be such a lovely king,” Indra rambled, eyes sparkling at the prospect of such power. “And you Masha, there are two legitimate princes; let’s not speak of the bastard as an actualoption.”
Indra’s voice was disgusted but Veri had heard the bastard was actually a legitimate lord and very easy on the eyes. His father the king adored him as did the rest of the royalfamily.
Veri felt sick to her stomach as the sparkle in the archduchess’s eye turned to a hard glint. “If Hayden cannot become king, one of my children will rule.” Her voice was resolute and determined. The crafty look on Indra’s face made the breath in Veri’s chest short. “There is always the Neprijat King for you Masha. He is looking for a bride, or so I’veheard.”
Her mind reeled. The archduchess spoke treason. If Indra had contact with the Neprijat monsters…Veri stopped her thoughts from going any further. Why would the archduchess say such things in front of her? She had to be testing Veri, poking to see if she was a spy. Veri wouldn’t fall for Indra’s stupidgames.
She stood from her chair, the tea untouched, and excused herself quietly. Those hawk eyes watched her every move closely. Veri forced herself to walk sedately from the parlor, blind to the luxuries as she exited into the stone hall. Finally, she could take a deep breath, one hand to her stomach as she tried to gather herthoughts.
Hayden was somewhere on the grounds, practicing as the servant girl had said. Veri needed to find him; she needed a distraction from the politics and intrigue. She also needed confirmation of the Avvis family possibly being in contact with the usurper before she left for DragaTerra.
The Neprijat were from another galaxy far, far from theirs and their neighbors. Not much was known about them except they possessed weapons more advanced than anything their galaxy or even Khara’s had seen. Draga was peaceful, and had been at peace with the Khara galaxy fordecades.
War was on the horizon, but Veri didn’t know if it would be from within, or from outside Dragaspace.
Veri needed Hayden’s gentle reassurance and kind words. Veri wanted the safety of his arms around her. She hurried down the empty hall, her soft slippers silent on the stone beneath her feet. Hayden wouldn’t be in the garden outside the parlor as his mother would be able to watch him from there, and the heir to Avvis despised his mother’s scheming. It was part of what Veri loved abouthim.
The stone steps led out of the castle and she followed them around to the back where the food for the noble family was grown and the animals were kept. Veri passed the stables and headed to the practice yard and thebarracks.
Avvis not only supplied most of the galaxy with their wide variety of food, but they also held the largest army in the galaxy, large enough to rival the royal army of Draga Terra. Peace was kept with the constant preparation and training for war. A battle hadn’t been fought in over three hundred cycles, but Veri’s grandfather remembered the blood that ran through the streets like rivers and how the plants soaked it up like gory reminders when the winterflowers bloomed red instead ofwhite.
She could hear the sounds of metal clash on metal before she saw the practice yards where the soldiers trained every day. Her skirts snagged on the bushes as she passed but she didn’t care about the fabric. Hayden was her only thought. She nearly burst through the aggressively pruned trees and suddenly the space opened wide and the fields went on as far as the eye could see. Veri stopped abruptly and swept her gaze over the men training in the dirt before thebarracks.
Hayden was in the center square, paired with the Master of the Guard. Hundreds of other soldiers were paired off, each in their own practice square and the sound of metal deafened her. Though Veri rather enjoyed the shouts and grunts of exertion, the beauty and grace in each figure as they moved, but none of them moved with as much grace and power asHayden.
Veri climbed the stairs of the barracks office building and then watched the soldiers from the terrace. She rested her arms on the railing and leaned forward. Finally, her mind was her own again and the poison from Indra’s shrill voicedissipated.
She watched as Hayden sidestepped quickly before giving the Master of the Guard a playful swat with the flat side of his blade. The sound of male laughter and good-natured jibes reached her ears and sherelaxed.
Being heir of a noble family was no easy task. She and Hayden had that in common. She was supposed to find a good match, learn how to run her family business, and keep the citizens of her planet happy. She enjoyed her work, but she yearned formore.
Hayden looked up and the sun caught the blond highlights in his hair. He smiled at Veri. Her heart stuttered as she smiled back. His brown eyes melted her from the inside out and all her worries seemed so inconsequential incomparison.
A tiny flash of fear made Veri look over her shoulder, but no one was there to witness theirexchange.
Indra had made it clear she would never approve of Veri as a marriage prospect for Hayden. He was too good for her and was meant to be king. Veri didn’t disagree Hayden would make a great king, butshewould be hisqueen.
She watched as he spoke a few words with the Master of the Guard before handing him his sword. Hayden made his way to the barracks as he wiped the sweat from his bare chest with a cloth and she watched with pleasure. She loved the way he tasted after he’d been practicing. His skin was always warm and his muscles hard against her softcurves.
Hayden made his way up the steps before leaning his back against the railing next to her. “How was tea?” he asked. His arm was so close to hers that his fingers barely brushed the fabric of herdress.
The nearness of him had her wanting to throw caution to the wind, but they couldn’t afford for anyone to see them act as more than the courteous friendship Hayden owed a Daughter ofPriea.
“It was dreadful as usual,” she told him. Her eyes stayed on the soldiers below, but she could feel the heat from his skin and his bare chest tempted her. “We’ve all been invited to the royal Choosing Ball and your mother is excited to sell you to the crownprincess.”
Hayden sighed and turned to face the practice yard as well. The afternoon sun was heavy and hot, almost too hot for Veri’s liking. His mouth turned down into a grim and determined line. Suddenly her stomach dropped and she felt as though she mayvomit.
“You wouldn’t marry Princess Raena, would you?” Oh gods what if he did? Did Hayden even really care for her or was it all adistraction?
