The Gentle Master

"Do you have a comb?"

Lara pointed to the small chest. "In there."

Ariana took out the comb. She sat back down behind Lara and began to run the comb gently through the girl's hair. "We must make you look ready to be presented to the king for his pleasure," she told her as she let the girl's white gold tresses fall temptingly down her back and shoulders.

When she had finished, she repinned Lara's gown and smoothed it down, erasing the signs of Mardya's ravaging. She looked into Lara's eyes, at her chiseled yet delicate features. She was as much the image of Karan as Dorian was of Maya. "Are you ready?"

Lara looked at her, wide-eyed. She was frightened, but Ariana saw her steel herself. Lara was, after all, a warrior's daughter. "I'm ready."

Ariana took Karan's daughter by the hand and led her out of the cubicle, down the corridor and into the main room. She felt the other women's eyes on them as they entered the room. Mardya was there too, darting them with poisoned looks. But no one said a word or tried to stop them. Each one knew her fate if she dared to contradict the king's wishes.

The two women went past the guards into the marbled halls, Ariana leading in the direction of Dorian's chambers. She listened to dull thud of their bare feet on the plush red carpets lining the marble floors. The soft sound was the only thing that drowned the harsh pounding of her blood in her ears.

When they reached Dorian's chambers, they came to a stop in front of the guards.

"I bring a gift for the king," she told them.

"His majesty is in council," one of them said.

"Yes, I know. He told me," Ariana answered lowering her voice into a seductive tenor. "But we wish to be here when my lord returns. I felt it would be a pleasurable surprise for him."

Her words hit their mark, strengthened by Dorian's previous orders to let her come and go freely. The guards opened the heavy carved doors and permitted them through, closing them heavily behind the two women.

Once inside, she released Lara's hand and breathed a heavy sigh. Their trial wasn't nearly over, although, by the will of Galen, they were more than halfway. She turned to Lara.

"Stay with me," she told her as she made her way toward Dorian's bath chamber. She peeked inside. The valet was not there. The giant steaming pool of water stood empty of bathers. A golden towel rack had been refreshed with piles of fresh white linens, and there was a marble table with a luxurious chair where the valet helped Dorian with his toilette.

She looked at Lara and bent close to her ear. "Now we go," she whispered. "But you must be brave. The passageways are dark and we share them with other little creatures. Don't make a sound."

Lara nodded obediently and reached out for Ariana's hand. Karan's daughter was a brave young woman and a frightened little girl all contained in one exquisite form.

Ariana grasped her hand and squeezed it comfortingly before leading her to the tapestry. Carefully, she pulled it away from the wall and pushed in the small stone door, taking care not to make any loud scraping sounds. When she had it opened, she urged Lara in ahead of her and replaced the door.

Standing up, she found Lara's hand again in the dark and began to lead her, proud of the way Lara bravely stifled her whimpers each time she stepped on a furry tail and received a squeal of protest.

The memory of her flight of the previous week was strong as she traced the path once again, using her free hand along the stonewall to guide them. It took nearly an hour to reach the opening by the palace wall where the gnarled trees concealed it. The afternoon sunlight stole through chinks in the stones, giving them a bit of scant light by which to see each other's faces.

Ariana crouched by the opening. In the faint rays of light, she watched Lara crouch too. They sat, facing each other. Ariana reached out and touched Lara's shoulder. "Are you all right?"

Lara nodded. "Yes, I am." She was silent a moment. "What is your real name, mistress?" Her tone was filled with gratitude and respect for the woman who was delivering her from bondage.

"Ariana."

"Ariana," Lara repeated in a whisper. "You must love my father very much to have risked your life like this."

Ariana smiled. "I do love him," she answered. "He saved my life. My heart is his. But I would have come for you anyway. I have suffered the same as you, and would only wish your happiness, as I wish his."

Lara was watching her. A glint of tears shone through the shadows. "Thank you, mistress Ariana."

Ariana squeezed Lara's hand. "You're welcome," she said softly. "Now, we wait for the suns to set. Your father will be waiting for us at the edge of the forest."

In the near-darkness, she heard the girl sniffle.

"I can't wait to see my father again," she said. "I thought I never would."

"Soon, you will, child," Ariana reassured her. "Soon." And she stared out between the cracks in the stone, as she waited for darkness to fall.

EPILOGUE

The Veltish snows whirled in the winter darkness. But inside the longhouse, the large fire in the center of the main room blazed with cheery warming light. Karan's clansmen were celebrating the homecoming of their long lost son and had readily made him chieftain so that his aging father, Solen, could finally rest.

Tears glowed in the old man's eyes, reflected by the firelight. His life would end soon enough, yet it would end happily now that his son was restored to him. Karan had brought with him a beautiful, brave wife and a daughter who, at her tender age, already showed signs of one who holds power. At first opportunity he would consult with Sha'ul, a sorcerer who lived on the edge of the nearby forest. If Sha'ul saw the signs as well, he would have her trained as a sorceress.

Solen's only regret was that Karan's mother had not lived to see her son's joyous return. The former chieftain lifted his heavy goblet of mead to the faces around him, each one illuminated by the crackling flames. "Long live my son!"

"Long live Karan!" the clansmen repeated in hearty unison before the drinking of mead silenced the large room.

Ariana, once again the fiery-haired, emerald-eyed beauty, sat by her husband and stepdaughter. The girl was asleep beside her, her head resting on Ariana's thigh. She stroked Lara's hair. The poor girl was still exhausted from the arduous journey north and by the grief that still burdened her. Ariana felt nothing but love and empathy for her. She herself knew how unshed tears ripped at the soul, and prayed that Lara would be able to heal now that she was back with her father and among people who loved her.

Tears glowed in Karan's eyes as he embraced each of his kinsmen. When he had finished, his gaze fell on his sleeping daughter. He set down his empty cup and knelt to pick her up.

He and Ariana bid everyone good night and went down the connecting hall to where the sleeping rooms were. Lara stayed with two of her cousins, Renna and Kira, sweet girls who immediately accepted her as a sister. They were in their beds, whispering together. But when they saw Lara asleep, they quieted and lay still.

Ariana leaned over and kissed the sleeping girl on the forehead before following Karan to their room. Once there, she embraced her husband, nuzzling his beard and letting her hands roam over his back, downward. There had not been many opportunities to make love on the journey home. The caravan of Beren nomads who'd accompanied them north had been very kind and helpful, but also very social. There had been no privacy for the several months it took to reach the Veltlands. So now, in the few days since their arrival, they had coupled every night and first thing in the mornings before rising.

Karan took Ariana's face delicately in his large hands and captured her lips in a soft kiss.

She closed her eyes and pushed her body closer against him. She opened her eyes again when unexpectedly, Karan ended their kiss and gently pulled away.

"I have something for you," he said.

Ariana looked at him. "What is it, my lord?"

Karan went over to the chest in the corner where he kept his clothing. He reached in and pulled out a small glass vial, much like the one that had held the disguising potion. He brought the vial over and put it into her hand.

She felt confused, and a flash of worry jolted through her. "I don't understand, my lord. Do you wish to see Ilani again?"

Karan chuckled and reached up to caress her hair. "No, wife. Though no man is above the temptation to appreciate all female beauty, that isn't what this is for."

"What is it, husband? Is it from Nedda?"

Karan smiled. "Aye. I got it from her the same day as the other one. Only this potion was made to restore your womb. She said it was proven to reverse the effects of the herbs you were given in the palace."

Ariana stared at the vial as Karan's words began to be clear to her. She looked up at him, her heart quickening. "You mean I'll be able to..."

"Bear a child. Yes. It might take a few doses. But I have more in the chest." Karan reached up and gently squeezed her shoulders. "If that's what you want, Ariana. I'll love you either way. I don't want to think about life without you."

Ariana's breathing grew ragged with emotion and her eyes hot with salty tears. She hadn't realized how much she'd hated having been sterilized. Her world had been so small and lonely, her only satisfaction that of having served her mistress to Maya's satisfaction. Now, her life, which had taken such a bitter turn all those years ago, was only growing sweeter. She opened the vial and swallowed its contents without hesitation.

No sooner had she done so, she felt a tingling in her womb that radiated outward, like gentle fingers massaging her insides. The potion was far kinder than the one she had taken to become Ilani.

Ariana smiled up at Karan who stepped forward and gathered her into his arms.

"I believe it's working, my lord," she said softly.

Karan smiled at her. Desire gleamed in his blue eyes.

"Let's test it now," he said. He bent down and claimed her lips in a deep, hot kiss. Her body melted against his, her softness into his hard strength. Her fingertips traced the ridges of his triceps, and she arched her neck upward when he began to nibble and lick the skin of her throat.

"We'll try a thousand times if we must," he breathed between kisses. He stood back so she could raise her woolen gown over her head. She let it fall to the floor and stood under his hungry gaze, naked except for her woolen stockings and leather garters.

Ariana had never had stockings and garters in her life, and found she liked them very much. Karan favored them as well, especially when she wore nothing else. She saw him drinking in the sight of her pale skin, her hair glowing in the lantern light, flames of fiery scarlet cascading down her shoulders and over her swollen breasts, the soft woman's stomach, and her mound of red springy curls.

She bent over to untie the garters, but Karan reached out and stayed her hand.

"Those will wait." He pulled off his tunic, trousers and boots and picked her up, laying her down on their bed, underneath him.

Ariana spread her legs wide open, her sex already soaked and swollen for her master. She thought of Karan's words. "A thousand times," she repeated in a whisper as he slid into her, stretching the soft pinkness. Her eyelids fluttered closed as she lost herself in Karan's strength and scents of earth and smoke. She tilted her face upwards, seeking deep, hot kisses.

"And then I'll pray for a thousand more," she whispered just before Karan's lips captured hers.