“He was swooning.” She nudged Sylar. “Was he not?”
“Desperately.”
Rawn feigned to strike him, and Sylar ducked behind Nisa, snickering. As annoyed as he was, it was fortunate they didn’t tease him in front of the princess. Worst yet, their father. God of Urn, he could only imagine how his father would react to learn Rawn dared pine after her like a lovesick fool.
But he was never confused about his place in the world.
“How long do you plan to remain a castle guard, Rawn?” Nisa leaned against the wall next to him. “You should be a captain in the army now.”
“At best, second lieutenant,” Sylar added. He posted beside him on his other side. His warm brown eyes caught the light as he shrugged, his hair resembling the color of acorns. Sylar had more delicate features that gave him a graceful beauty the court ladies both envied and admired. “You surpassed all of us during training. You don’t belong here.”
“If that were true, I would not be here.” Rawn tried not to show how much it bothered him. To be demoted from a sergeant to a low rank castle guard in front of his entire unit was a great shame, but even more so for it to be done by his father. “The General deemed it so.”
“YouallowedFather to send you here.” Nisa crossed her arms. “You are a fine warrior. It is clear to all who have seen you wield a blade. One day you will be a part of the Ranger Regiment, but until then, you belong with him on the battlefield.”
The irony was that Rawn had never dreamed of becoming a soldier. Nonetheless, that was the card he drew in life when born to a military family who loyally served Greenwood for centuries.
His father had already deemed him a disappointment when he entered the world at the expense of his mother’s life. Rawn had worked hard to please him, to train until the blade was an extension of himself. But when he had been at last promoted to lead a garrison, it had been at the expense of many lives.
Rawn shook his head. “Soldiers died, Nisa…”
The garrison had only stood for one day beneath his command. How could he have known that red elves would attack in the middle of the night? Most of his men died in their beds before ever realizing what had happened.
Nisa looked out at the sky. “We all die one day. A warrior’s wish is to die well.”
Sighing, Sylar leaned his head against the wall. It exposed the edge of the emblem tattooed on the back of his neck. “Such is the life of a soldier. The cost of war is always blood.”
Better it had been his own.
Rawn had been the only survivor, simply because the spear had missed his heart by two inches. Sometimes, he dreamed of that black spear coming for him, yet he couldn’t see the face of the one who threw it. “If the General believes I best serve the King guarding the castle, that is what I will do. I will not disgrace the Norrlen House again.”
His sister scowled. “The only disgrace I see is?—”
She and Sylar abruptly stood at attention at the approach of Princess Aerina, prompting Rawn to do the same. She strolled past the open veranda that faced the garden with her lady’s maid. Rawn and the others quickly bowed.
He listened to the soft sounds of footsteps as they entered the courtyard, her slippers coming to a stop before them.
“Good morrow,” Aerina’s light voice greeted. “How is your mare doing, Nisa? I heard she gave birth to a colt a fortnight ago.”
“She did, your highness,” Nisa said. “A strong one, too.”
“That’s wonderful. I see you’re back on your feet after your magic skirmish in the training yard, Sylar. Has the burn on your leg healed?”
“It’s healed up perfectly thanks to your poultice, princess. Thank you.”
Rawn felt it when Aerina’s gaze landed on him next. “Good day, Rawn.”
A shallow breath caught in his lungs at the sound of his name. He bowed deeper. “Princess.”
A long pause followed as he felt her gaze linger on his down turned head. He didn’t dare look up.
“I will escort you to the study hall, princess,” Nisa said after a pause. “Magi Master Eldred must be waiting.”
“Right, of course. Will you walk with us, Sylar? Tell me more about your studies on the Melodyam Falls.”
“I would be glad to.” He joined her. “I was able to retrieve samples last week. I aim to prove those waters have absorbed the natural magic found in the earth there. I believe it has to do with…”
As their voices faded, Rawn straightened. But to his surprise, Aerina had lingered by the archway into the hall. Her light green gown fluttered in the passing wind as she looked at him, waves of gold-spun blond hair pinned beneath her circlet of gold undulated in the wind. The sunlight danced in her blue eyes with her smile, leaving him frozen there like a fool.
