“Kindness you did not expect?”
Her eyes slid back to his. “I have not been raised to expect kindness.”
“’Tis the fate of those who are first-born.”
She opened her mouth to reply then seemed to change her mind. “We must all accept the lot we are born with.”
“Indeed.”
Her words stirred the turmoil inside him once again. He heard his father’s voice extolling the Knights’ Code.Show no weakness; show no mercy. Rules he had broken more than once on this day.
All at once, he grew tired. It was not yet noon and hours of tasks lay ahead of him. What foolish impulse had led him to bring Ariana up here? He took a step backwards.
“I have little time.” His voice was short, and he saw her heed his change of mood.
“Pray, do not let me detain you further.”
There was no coyness in her manner. No hint of vanity or guile. He couldn’t help but be charmed.
“Tell me, what would you like to see?”
Her eyes widened. They were a beautiful color, he realized. Green and blue, like the sea.
“In the castle?”
He nodded and watched as indecision raced across her face. “The morning room has been set aside for you. ’Tis a pleasant enough room. Shall I take you there?”
She cleared her throat. “One of the maids can show me, I suppose?”
“Of course.”
“I should like to see somewhere the maids do not tread.”
He frowned at her request. “But the maids have the run of the castle.”
“Of course.” She nodded hastily. “I only meant, as your time is so short…” Her voice trailed off.
“You want to see something that only I could show you?”
Her gaze flickered around the tower room as if she was thinking fast. “The might of Darkmoor is known far and wide.”
He shifted his stance. “What of it?”
“I have often wondered,” she paused and took a breath. “I have often wondered, my lord, how the prisoners are treated here.”
Her question took him entirely by surprise. “The prisoners?”
She nodded. “Our priest taught me that the justness of any ruler is shown by his treatment of those at his mercy.” He frowned in puzzlement and all at once he felt her pull away. “Forgive me. I have spoken out of turn.”
“We do not take many prisoners,” he responded. It was true. Most opponents were slaughtered on the battlefield. “You make an unusual request, Ariana.”
She swallowed. “It was but a foolish notion. Please, think no more about it.”
“I have nothing to hide,” he countered. “No reason not to show you the dungeons. But they are no place for a lady.”
He saw the debate rage behind her eyes. “My father raised me to be a ruler first, a lady second.”
Surprise made him pause. There was that glint of steel once again. The unflinching manner he so admired. “Very well,” he decided. “Let us go and see the dungeons. Though I warn you,” he continued, holding up a finger to quell her expression of gratitude, “I have not ventured there myself since the last battle. I know not, exactly, what we may encounter.”
