AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Then my eyes moved over Argen, and a grin edged my mouth. Argen was now the ambassador for the dwarfs. He was on Margarite's council—a seat long since dormant in Catalan. I was proud he'd stepped into this role without question. I know part of it was so that we could remain close. To ensure seeing each other remained feasible.
My heart lightened with that thought. Argen, Bereille, and Sahlyn were a part of me now. I may be my own person, but they make me better, and I like the person I am today. I like her because of their hand in forging me.
Margarite agreed that Catalan did not rule the dwarves and never would. Rimroc was the King of the Dwarves and would remain as such. When that title passed to Argen, someone else would rise to take his place on the council. Catalan would benefit significantly from solidifying a border relationship and political ties with the dwarves. Even trade would grow with ore and metals, andweapons. I was thrilled that the dwarves would truly thrive in this situation. Bereille insisted that the Knights would once again train and have integral ties with the dwarves, and Rimroc was pleased with everything and instantly signed a peace treaty. It would seem the great dwarven King and Bereille had a deep friendship and were both thrilled to be able to access that openly. Drommgar would once again rise as it should. The dwarves would never have to hide again and now have access to many opportunities.
My mind returned to three days of a cursed sleep. After the sweet moments I shared with Sahlyn and my parents when I had awoken, I spent a long while alone with Bereille, where we spilled so much to each other. He feared our relationship would change now that he was a man, not a bird, but I felt just as comfortable and at ease with him as I always had. Love was tangible between us no matter his form, even when he explained that he had come to me because of his niece—his niece!Amira’s husband had been his brother… It was such an incredible and tragic turn of events, but I hated that I was glad something had brought us together.
Argen and Bereille were tethered to me, wrapped deeply around my heart and soul in a spiritual path that surpassed explanation.
I turned back around with a blooming smile as I looked up at the falling stars. Tonight was for appreciating the beautiful things in life to be cherished.
Warm, strong hands wrapped around me, and my smile turned into delight and something intense.
“Are you hiding, my love?”
I laughed, the sound catching on the wind and carrying my happiness in the breeze to settle around us.
“Oh, Sahlyn Asher, you know firsthand I am not one to hide.”
His smile was one of wonder, and there was just a tiny flash of fear in his eyes.
I put my hands on his cheeks. I still woke up sometimes, thinking everything had been a dream—even him. Until I felt his arms around me every morning, I feared that he was part of an epic fantasy my mind had conjured up. Then reality sunk in, and I had Sahlyn, his contact broken, and the queen's wicked reign ended.
To look into this handsome face for all my days, I would do everything repeatedly a thousand times.
I laid my lips on him; a gentle kiss quickly ushered into heated desire—pooling passion in our bodies. You would think we’d have sated our desire for each other, but it had been building for so long that even our nights together, sometimes our days, even our stolen moments between meetings and duties—it wasn’t enough. It may never be enough.
His hands slid around my back and tugged me closer, his tongue slipping into my mouth, and I met him stroke for stroke until we were both feverish with what we felt for each other. I still could not get enough of him and probably never would. We had a once-in-a-lifetime love. Our heart's desire was what our parents shared, what we had always dreamed of and never knew. We had almost lost it and would never take it for granted.
“I think Argen is planning a speech,” Sahlyn stated when he pulled his mouth from mine.
“Goddess of the Beyond, help us,” I said. Sahlyn chuckled. I looked into the extraordinary blue-gray eyes of my knight in shining armor. It was true now. He had been the first one that Bereille had insisted on Knighting. It had taken some convincing since Sahlyn had never seen himself as worthy. I’m unsure precisely what Bereille said to convince him, but I’ll never forget the look Sahlyn sent me before he agreed to Bereille’s offer. It was a look of heat and confession, profound promise and hope. My heart had raced as he’d come to stand before me, then he had slowly gotten down on one knee.
I looked down at my hand where it lay upon his chest and marveled at the stunning Emberlite and silver ring that winked in the path of light from the open balcony doors.
I'll never forget the words he spoke to me in his husky tone, right there in front of Ativan and Bereille.
“I do not deserve you. I do not deserve any of this.”He’d shaken his head then, heaving a mighty breath. “I will never be worthy of being a Knight unless you are by my side. You make me a better person, Autumn.Youmake me worthy.
Autumn, only you will ever hold my heart. For you, my blade and body are sworn before anyone or anything else.”
I had yanked him up for a kiss, and he’d said, “I taste forever on your lips. I didn’t ask the question, but is it presumptuous to take that as a yes?”
It was the easiest decision I had ever made.
He would be a Knight, and we wouldn’t be married for a while yet, wanting to see Catalan in a rightened state before we planned the wedding, but things were working towards rectitude and even prosper.
I met Sahlyn's stunning eyes, which still took my breath away. He was my anchor in this world—my compass.
Bereille asked me to be a Knight too, whichIdeclined. I had a job at my father's side until he could no longer make weapons, and then I would take over the forge. It was in my blood, my bones, and what I needed to do. Thankfully the Knights did not need to be stationed in Savine, they could be in any part of Catalan, and so Bereille stationed Sahlyn in Geva, along with Deven, who had also been knighted.
Sahlyn and I would return together to Geva after we visited Shellak, the tiny fishing village Sahlyn had grown up in. For the past month, we had been traveling between Savine and Drommgar with no chance to visit the coast, but we would soon.
At dawn, Leisa and Ativan would be heading to Feist for a few weeks to help rebuild and prepare for the Knights stationed there to assist in the rebuild. Each Knight recruit would need to spend a week helping Feist reestablish and work with the dwarves for training. I could not wait for Sahlyn’s turn. It would be fun to train alongside him with the dwarves.
Time would heal some wounds, some would never heal, but even so, hope was a powerful thing. A beautiful thing. The demon wolves of the Winterwood had magically disappeared when the queen had died. The guards in the palace we had fought had been demon wolves in human form. How Amira had managed that was still a mystery, and Bereille feared she’d made some kind of bargain with the Lord of the Underworld.
When I had killed Amira, her magic thrust into me as is the case when one kills a dark witch, but because I went into an instant sleep when Amira took her final breath, I hadn’t felt the rush of her power or the debts and deals one gained when they slew a witch. Bereille had explained it to me in length. It was why I had lived, even though Amira’s blade had impaled my side. Her curse on the one to take her life in combination with my power and the sword from Cabro Lightfoot saved me, but we were unsure if there would be any side effects. If in that combination, Amira’s power somehow nulled and voided because I had gone into a slumber, or if it had come into me. It was hard to know for sure.
