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  Dark Court: alchemy

  Book 2 Dark Court Series

  By Camille Oster

  Copyright 2017 Camille Oster

  All rights reserved.

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are the work of the author's imagination, or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, locales, or events is entirely coincidental.

  Camille Oster – Author

  www.camilleoster.com

  http://www.facebook.com/pages/Camille-Oster/489718877729579

  @Camille_Oster

  [email protected]

  Chapter 1

  Tabain's hand in hers, Ashra walked across the lawn on the south side of her manor, toward where the family graveyard was. It was a beautiful spot surrounded by leafy trees and a small fence. There was a lovely view of the manor and its lawns from here, and today it was a gentle sight, the leaves rustling slightly in the breeze. Tabain wanted to run around the gravestones, not yet understanding what this place signified.

  Her son had grown in the time she'd been gone, representing the family at Raufasger's court. She had missed so much. He'd grown a little taller and much heavier, feeling it when she picked him up and put him on her hip. They spent as much time together as possible, feeding the fish in the stream, surveying the farm animals, even walking around the forests where a fungus had been observed by the caretaker. At night, he would sleep in her bed and Ashra loved having him there to snuggle as he slept.

  That fungus that had grown on the trees leading the way to the graveyard, along with an abundance of other things, had to be dealt with. The house and the estate had suffered in her absence. Countless decisions had been put off until her return and she felt overwhelmed with the things that needed doing. It meant this period had involved much more work than she'd anticipated, but that couldn't be helped.

  Stopping by a tree, Ashra crouched down and plucked off the leaf that had become stuck on Tabain's jacket. His cheeks glowed pink in the cool air and he was clearly excited to be outdoors, even if the weather wasn't welcoming. Puddles had formed along the walkway, and Tabain was eager to explore them.

  “Nurse is not going to like the state of your clothes,” Ashra said with a smile, imagining the woman’s face when Tabain returned, drenched in muddy water. "Now, there is something important I want to tell you. You are to have a brother or sister.” Tabain looked at her, and she wondered how much he understood of what she was saying. He did have a friend from the neighboring estate who had a younger brother, so it could be that he did understand. She tucked one of his dark brown curls behind his tiny, soft ear, feeling a rush of love for him. "Someone to play with. Won't that be great? They'll be very little and you’ll have to be careful, be a good brother and protect them." It might be a role he had to take on for all his life, protecting his sibling. But this sibling could be his strength as well. Family was important and expanding it could never be a bad thing.

  The dowager hadn't been thrilled when Ashra had informed her about this pregnancy, particularly as there would be no marriage accompanying it. It had also been difficult to explain that it wasn't a disaster and that they were actually in quite a good position at the moment. Worry had still overtaken the dowager, who paced around the room and lamented the shame of it.

  Ashra didn't go as far as to explain the details around how this child came about, the momentary lapse where her loneliness had recognized its ilk in another. Letting the woman know who the father was would probably also lead her to push for marriage. Ashra wasn’t entirely sure the dowager Lady Greve would see the risks such a marriage would pose to them. Independence wasn’t something everyone valued as much. The dowager also had a tendency to believe the best of people, and that was a clear detriment in Raufasger’s court.

  The dowager also lamented the option on the forests, but it had been a price worth paying for the alliance they had in return. Granted, the revenue from the trees would not come their way, but power was more important. It wasn't something the dowager readily understood. It seemed subsequent generations of Lords Greves had insisted on keeping their wives away from the realities of political life, and the position they were actually in within that system.

  "Come," Ashra said and rose, taking the small child's warm hand. "Let's say hello to your father."

  The small graveyard was well maintained. It was perhaps the one thing the dowager kept a very close watch on as most of her family was now residing there. Ashra hoped she would never be in a position where she lost a child. As much as she grieved the loss of her husband, the dowager's grief knew no bounds.

  This respite at her estate would be over soon and Ashra had to go back to court. Even the thought of leaving made her heart ache. This time had gone by too quickly, a few moments of sanity in a world that seemed to have little to spare.

  Going back, her objective was simple: to keep everything just the way it was. It was a good position she now found herself in. Her enemies were captured and restrained through her alliances, threats and machinations, and all she had to do was keep the status quo. That would be easier said than done as they would continually seek to get out of the hold she had them in. Particularly Lorcan, who did not appreciate the restraints she had placed on him, but with him in particular, she had so much to lose.

  It would also be wise to pay attention to anyone else who might seek to take advantage of the situation. Adversaries may well be lying in wait, using the knots she kept enemies at bay with to push for their own gain. Her lands were still a very attractive prize for anyone. At the same time, it was crucially important, perhaps beyond anything else, to stay out of Raufasger's attention. But stability suited him too, and if anyone had people tied up in knots and unable to move, it was him. Saying that, he loved a bit of dramatics and would create it if it didn’t happen naturally. There was never any saying who his victims would be. It was how he ruled: divide and conquer. At court, however, it was divide and distract. It was hard to argue that it wasn’t effective. They were all too worried about each other to question him or his rule. Plus the fact that he would brutally murder anyone who did.

  Even thinking of going back made her stomach twist in discomfort, but unfortunately, staying wasn't an option. It would put the estate at risk as people would move against her in her absence, and she wouldn’t be there to defend herself. There was no sense of fairness at court. If she wasn’t strong enough, that was her fault. The weak perished. That was the order of things. It was down to her. She had to be strong and she had learnt that she could be.

  Walking up to the newest grave, she stopped. Torunn's name was written in bold letters on a brown marble stone. It hurt every time she came here, seeing his grave. She couldn’t pretend he was simply absent when she was here. It was so unfair, him buried and fading from their hearts. As much as she hated it, he was fading from her, the details of his smile, the familiar touch. She'd been holding onto the memories so very tightly, using them to give her strength, but time was prying her fingers away and things about him slipped quietly from her mind.

  She missed having someone to talk to, to tell her troubles to, not that anything in her life had been all that challenging within her marriage. But it had now become apparent that Torunn hadn't done the same with her. He'd kept his life at court hidden from her and she knew it had been to protect her from the ugliness of Raufasger's entourage and Naufren society in general. But in a way, she felt he should have trusted her enough to handle him confiding in her. Instead, he'd kept everything about what happened at court close to his chest, and she couldn't help but feel a bit cheated. His life at court was a large part of his existence and she had known nothing about the perils and challenges he’d faced. She could have supported him th
rough that. She could have shared the burden with him.

  Ashra sighed as she looked down on the gravestone, wondering if things would have been different if they had shared the family’s troubles. Would it have prevented his death? There was no way of knowing. It could be that Amethyst wouldn’t have had any of her sick and twisted interest in him if his wife was there. Then again, she wouldn’t put it past Amethyst not to care. It could have made absolutely no difference to the outcome.

  With Tabain, she would have to raise him to survive in such an environment. He would not be an innocent thrown into that place, would instead know the ins and outs of political strategies—including all the underhanded and dirty tactics that callous and hardened people would use against them. Together, they would spend time understanding each house, their alliances and strengths. He would know exactly what he was walking into, and if she could help it, he would not have to face that court alone.

  Until that time, she had to keep their enemies from their door, even by strong-arm tactics if she had to. She could not afford to fail.

  Tabain lost interest in the grave and found a branch to play with.

  "I hope you are proud of me," she said quietly, talking to the large stone in front of her. "Perhaps not of the moment of weakness." That need for company, for communion with another person had led her astray. She couldn't afford that and wouldn't let it happen again. Still, how could she bring herself to regret the child? There was a new life growing inside her. It would never be something she would regret. This child would mean love and companionship. A brother or sister, and another child to love. Love was too scarce in this land as it was, and she would never regret having another child in her life.

  There was nothing but emptiness in reply. He wasn't there when she reached out and it hurt to reconfirm it. The silence of death was stark and brutal. Each day, he felt more and more distant from her.

  The winds died down for a moment, and stillness around them stretched. Ashra breathed deeply and exhaled. There wasn’t a person in sight. It was too wet for most people to be outside and dark clouds were threatening on the horizon. The mild weather was to end, it seemed—along with her respite at home. Those dark clouds loomed like her return to the citadel.

  Taking another deep, slow breath, Ashra's eyes roamed over the script of Torunn's name. Amethyst didn't understand how much she had taken from them, from Tabain, who would not remember his father. The dowager, whose grief would never lessen. And from her, who would never know the comfort of her husband's touch again. Anger rose in Ashra again.

  True revenge would probably never be an option. It would mean taking on both Lorcan and Raufasger, an action that would likely destroy their family. The dowager wanted revenge, but Ashra knew it was something they had to give up on. It lessened the blow knowing that someone like Amethyst would never understand, would see that it was her actions that brought the retribution. She would never understand a concept like justice, would never claim her own responsibility. It would always be others who were persecuting her. No doubt she blamed Torunn for rejecting her in the first place. Someone like Amethyst would never see her own responsibility.

  "Mommy, mommy," called Tabain, wanting her to watch him jump on the branch again and again. Ashra smiled as she watched him. His life was so simple. The world was his to explore and the people around him loved him. That was how the world should be. How had they managed to turn everything so wrong?

  "It will rain soon. We should head back. Maybe we'll sit in front of the fire together and read a book this afternoon. Cook might give us some of her gooseberry jam cake." The affairs of the estate could manage without her for a few more hours.

  Tabain ran ahead and jumped in another puddle, the muddy water splashing up his legs.

  "Pigs, pigs," he said, indicating he wanted to go and see the pig pen. He liked the pigs because they were curious and came over to greet him. Especially now that one of the sows had piglets, that ran in and out of the pen, never venturing too far from their mother. The pen didn’t perhaps smell wonderfully, but it didn’t put Tabain off.

  "Alright, but only for a few minutes."

  *

  It was heartbreaking having to step into the carriage and start the long journey back to the citadel. Tabain was crying, understanding that she was leaving. It ripped at her heart, but she couldn't afford to be away any longer. Ensuring her position was stable, she could probably return home with more regularity.

  “I will come back soon, my love,” she said. The words were no assurance to him and he held tightly around her neck until the dowager pried him off. It would only hurt him more if she dragged this out. He would be alright as soon as she was out of sight.

  Tears flowed down Ashra’s cheeks as she quickly closed the door to the carriage and urged the driver to go. Leaving him again was the worst part of coming home, but it would ultimately be devastating for him if she didn’t go back and manage their business at court. This was a sacrifice she had to make.

  Moving further away from the estate, she felt the pervasive tension return to her shoulders, creep up her back and settle in her very bones. There was nothing she was looking forward to in returning to Raufasger's capital. The endless evenings in his company, the constant fear of his rages and moods above all else. Fearing the people around her and their motives secondarily.

  She particularly didn't want to see Lorcan. In this time away, she still hadn't managed to figure out a way to deal with him, but his objectives would not have changed. He wanted this child—needed the child. While she had been recuperating, he had, no doubt, spent his time scheming how to get her to relinquish the child he sought to claim as his heir. And every day the child grew in her belly, a child he cared nothing for but for what it could do for him. He wasn't capable of loving, and she refused to let her child be the pawn in someone's game.

  Unbidden, the carriage trundled closer and closer to the citadel, through mountain ranges and vast valleys where crops were managed by the Solmnite people Raufasger had conquered when he took this land—her people. She was surprised his poison hadn’t leeched into the lands around the citadel, leaving it infertile. But crops still grew, the wind creating patterns across the fields.

  The Solmnite people’s situation had not improved, but from what she knew, it had not grown worse either. There was no strength left in them, no one to fight their cause. Raufasger had been careful in removing anyone strong enough to challenge him, and spies did his bidding in every corner of the land. Then again, not even the Naufren had true strength. All was as Raufasger wished it to be, the families of his court scrapping over his favor and whatever privileges he metered out.

  Eventually, the citadel came into view, its soaring towers, built one on top of another, grown into a behemoth and sticking out like a cancer against the distant mountains range around it. It was still a long road to reach it, but with each turn of the carriage wheel, she felt her unease grow.

  Chapter 2

  It felt alien walking into one of Raufasger's grand halls again, dressed in fine silks, jewels draped around her neck and wrists. Armor, it was, as worn by everyone else. For a while at home, it felt as if she'd escaped, but had now woken up from a dream to find herself in the same horrible place.

  The room sparkled with candles, great swathes of red velvet framing all the windows and the darkness outside. There was to be a dance that night in honor of some milestone she didn't entirely understand. So many different aspects of Raufasger's conquest of the land were celebrated—the fall of towns, the slaying of rebel leaders, not to mention the ultimate victory, when there was no one left to fight.

  Supposedly, most of the families here were a part of that victory, fighting alongside Raufasger, although he took all of the credit. In a sense, he was responsible as there would likely not have ever been an invasion if Raufasger hadn't decided he wanted to conquer all of the land and make himself supreme ruler. Only someone insane would ever have conceived of the notion, but he had the charisma—or l
everage—to make people comply with his grand visions. Plus, he could smite anyone with a lazy stroke of his sword, or use the magicians to destroy anything that stood in his way. It was unfair someone so nasty had so much power, but then he'd dedicated himself to garnering power, hadn't he?

  It was a funny thing, power—something Ashra had never seen before the Naufren came. It had created fear in the Solmnites like nothing else. The use of it always left a bad taste in her mouth, even if nowadays it was used primarily for spectacle. The raw power was easily directed to maim and hurt. Raufasger used it to prove his might.

  Speaking of taste, the worst of her morning sickness had passed and she could eat again, which brightened her outlook considerably. Still, everyone at court now knew her condition. Eyes and whispers would follow her anywhere she went, all curious to discover who the child belonged to. There was nothing quite as exciting as an unspoken alliance. They assumed the father was married as no announcement had yet been made. It was all so very titillating.

  As expected, curious eyes turned to her as she stepped into the hall. All the same old players as before. She bowed her head to Wierstoke, the prominent and most powerful member of her alliance, who bowed back. On the surface, things seemed fine in that regard, but she would have to explore to see that it really was.

  On seeing Ashra, Amethyst's face looked drawn as if a bad smell had appeared under her nose. The woman was not happy and Ashra knew full well she was the reason. But there was nothing Amethyst could do as she couldn't afford for the news to get out with regards to whose baby Ashra was carrying.

  In her absence, there had likely been endless gossip about it, every possible contender examined and evaluated. It was a secret Ashra saw no benefit in revealing. It would only give credence to Lorcan's claim on the baby, and that was not something she was going to let happen. They would just have to gossip away. She was never going to confirm anything.