“We must cut them down for certain, but I think we need to burn the bodies to prevent the spread ofdisease—”
“Burn them?” I interrupted. “Klyn—”
“Octavia, I know that does not sound appealing to you, but we cannot afford anyerrors.”
“They deservebetter!”
“We will make a memorial for them. Perhaps a flower garden,” Klynsuggested.
The more he spoke, the more his idea sounded the most realistic. It would take the two of us so long to bury all of these bodies. I nodded and agreed to go along with hisidea.
“But Klyn, what about myparents?”
My family, dating way back, had a section reserved for them in the Drishane cemetery. I cannot imagine them not take their place with thefamily.
“We will give your parents a properburial.”
Together, we walked between the trees and looked for my parents. It was clear that Carpe Noctem brought outside all of the townspeople that had been inside the Town Square dining hall. I knew that my parents were dead, and that we would find them hanging from a tree branch. Even though I knew they were dead, when we finally came upon their bodies I fell to my knees and sobbed. As my stomach convulsed, Klyn knelt besideme.
My mother’s crown was still on her head, but all of the jewels had been pried from the gold metal. The ruby necklace that my mother always wore and had promised would be mine one day; gone. Her fingers were bare, and had been stripped of pieces that had been passed downgenerations.
My father’s crown was on the ground a yard from where his feet dangled. His neck had been snapped and hung down slightly to the side, like all of the others. His eyes had been removed, perhaps by the vile Carpe Noctem, or crows. I could not stomach the sight of the bloody sockets thatremained.
“Octavia, we need to go back to the castle. I will come back in the morning with a carriage for yourparents.”
I nodded and allowed Klyn to help me to my feet. As we walked away, something caught my eye and I stepped closer to my father. Every jewel had been removed from his crown, and any rings he had worn that night had also been removed. All but one. Still firmly in place was the silver dragon sheath ring; the Darick Familyring.
“What is it, Octavia?” Klyn asked as he jostled myarm.
“They left our family ring on him. They did not takeit!”
I reached out to pull the ring off, but Klyn quickly took hold of my father’s hand and tried to remove the ring. After a few attempts, Klyn announced that it was stuck and would not budge. He said that tomorrow when he came back that he would get the ring off. I nodded but reached out to tug on the ring and it slid right off. Klyn and I stared at the ring with wideeyes.
“You saw me pull on it,” Klynsaid.
“I know, it was stuck,” I agreed withhim.
I stared at the eyes of the dragon ring and was surprised that both of the onyx eyes had still beintact.
“There must be a spell on the ring,” Klyn suggested. “Perhaps something about how the only ones who can remove the ring are familymembers.”
I vaguely recalled my father telling me about the ring as a child. Klyn had been right; no one but a Darick could remove the ring. I slid the ring on my finger and stared at it. I held my hand out toward Klyn and asked him to try to remove the ring. Klyn pulled on the ring and he had not been able to remove it from myhand.
I walked back to the castle with Klyn, eager to get back home. Though I vowed my revenge, I realized we were an army of two right now. We would rebuild Drishane, and then I would find Lochlann. I had all the time in the worldnow.
Chapter Two
Dreyle
200 YearsLater
Even though Iwould have to come back to the castle later on to change for the pageant that night, I was eager to get into town for some of the many festivities that had been planned. I looked forward to the Annual Drishane Festival every year. While the content of the displays were far more tame during the daytime, I still enjoyed taking part. The nighttime festivities were my personal favoritethough.
I sat on the edge of my plum, silk quilt and stared out of the balcony door to Drishane below. In the distance I could hear the music and sounds from the festival already in full swing. I opened my black silk robe and rubbed my hands over my breasts. I pinched my swollen nipples as I parted my legswider.
Briefly, I closed my eyes to savor Roisin’s experienced tongue. At twenty-three years of age, Roisin had been a recent addition to the culinary staff at the castle. I stumbled upon her and another woman from the culinary staff inverted on a stone bench down a corridor that I do not often travel. The two women thought they had been in trouble. Rumors had made their way around the castle that I do not condone anyone stepping out of line. But, these women intrigued me. I had put my heel up on the bench, pulled up my dress, and gave them a taste. It certainly had not been the first time that I had a woman pleasure me, but after that night years ago, Roisin became my preferred woman…when I wantedone.
There was a firm and loud knock on the door moments before itopened.
