The Maiden Read online

  Jura leaned back against the stone wall. If she went with him, it would surely mean her death. No one could sneak up to Brita’s city and capture the Vatell queen without being caught—and tortured.

  But what if they won? What if by some twist of fate they were able to get to Brita and allow this silver-tongued king to talk to her? Could Rowan persuade her to send her young men and women to marry the Irials?

  “Think how strong we would be,” Cilean said. “If we united only the Irials and the Vatells, we would have twice the strength of any other tribe.”

  “Don’t tell Geralt that,” Jura said, and wished she hadn’t. It sounded a bit like she wasn’t loyal to her brother. “Have you talked to the Englishman yet? Who else would go besides the three of us?”

  “Daire, of course,” Cilean said. “Brita hasn’t seen her son since he was a boy. She won’t hurt him.”

  “Unless she considers him more Irial than Vatell. Who else?”

  “That should be enough,” Cilean said. “We don’t want a crowd. The fewer we are, the quieter we will be. Now, shall we tell Rowan? That is, if we can get him away from the women. Perhaps it’s good I’m not married to him because I think my jealousy would overwhelm me.”

  Jura looked out the doorway. The sunlight on Rowan’s hair made him easy to see, but now he was surrounded by pretty young girls who couldn’t seem to resist touching this blond king. Rowan had that innocent look men wear when they want to appear helpless so they can get whatever they want from a woman.

  “Jealous of a gaggle of silly girls?” Jura said under her breath. “It will take more than that to make me jealous. Come, let us tell him our plan—our last plan on earth—before he starts talking again and persuades a hundred mothers to abandon their babies to follow him.”

  Rowan’s blue eyes almost turned black. “The earth will open up and deliver its dead,” he said softly. “The sky will rain blood. The trees will wither and blacken. The stones will turn to bread before I go sneaking into Brita’s camp accompanied by two women and my wife’s former lover.”

  Jura gave Cilean an I-told-you-so look.

  “Rowan, please,” Cilean said, “listen to me. I know the way through the forest. Daire is Brita’s son and Jura is strong and agile and—”

  “A woman!” he shouted. They were inside Jura’s aunt’s house away from curious ears. “Don’t you Lanconians know the difference between men and women? A woman cannot fight.”

  “I did a bloody good job when I won you,” Jura shot at him.

  “Mind your language,” he snapped, then looked back at Cilean. “I will take my own men. I know them and they will obey me. You will draw us a map. Daire may come also if I do not have to watch my back for his blade.”

  “Are you accusing Daire of—” Jura began, but Cilean halted her.

  “I will draw no map. What I have I carry in my head. Meeting Brita in secret is your only chance of getting her to listen to you and only I can take you to her. Daire will go because she is his mother.”

  “But my wife stays here,” Rowan said with finality.

  “No,” Cilean said. “Jura goes with me. Just as you work well with your men, Jura and I work well together.”

  Jura leaned back on her stool, her back against a wall. She knew who was going to win. Cilean had something Rowan wanted and Cilean wasn’t going to give it away for free.

  Chapter Nine

  JURA SLEPT ALONE in the small bedchamber that night and she tossed and turned, listening for the door to open and Rowan to enter, but he did not. An hour before dawn she left the empty bed and tiptoed from the house. She was already angry. The Englishman may not sleep with her for whatever strange foreign reasons he had, but she would kill him if he humiliated her by touching another woman.

  There were people sleeping everywhere, but look where she would, she could not find Rowan. She woke Cilean and together the two of them began searching for Rowan.

  The sun was high in the sky when the women met again. Cilean shook her head. Jura frowned and went in search of Rowan’s squire Montgomery. The tall, dark boy was braiding the mane of Rowan’s big war horse.

  “Where is he?” Jura asked.

  Montgomery looked surprised. “The king isn’t with you?”

  Jura was beginning to grow suspicious. “When did you last see him?”

  “Just before I went to bed. He yawned and said he had some hard riding to do and I thought—” The boy broke off, embarrassed.

  “Where is his riding horse? That big roan of his?”

  “It’s—” Montgomery stopped and stared. “I thought it was down there.” He looked at Jura. “If someone has taken my master, I am ready to fight.”

  Jura let out a sigh. “The fool has gone alone into Vatell land. I know that is what he has done.”

  Montgomery glared at her. “My master is not a fool.”

  Jura paid little attention to him. “He has yet to prove to me otherwise. This must be kept secret. If the people hear he has ridden alone into enemy territory they will ride after him. We must say he…he went hunting. Yes, and you must go with him. He would not go without his squire.”

  “I cannot lie,” Montgomery said stiffly.

  Jura groaned. “Not that knightly honor again! You can lie when it means preventing a war, damn you! Give me four days. If I do not bring him back in four days, there will be no need to send anyone after us. Can you do this, boy? Are you man enough?”

  “Man enough to lie?” Montgomery asked.

  “Man enough to take on responsibility. You will have to fight those high-nosed knights of his and I don’t know if you can do it.”

  “I can do whatever is needed.”

  “Good,” Jura said. “This must be kept as quiet as possible. Saddle my horse and I will get a bag of food. Wait! Tell people I have gone with Rowan to be alone with him. Tell them I was jealous of all the women yesterday and he has taken me away to soothe me. With such an excuse you can stay here and fend off the people for as long as I need.” She was on eye level with the boy, and although she felt much older, she was actually only two years older than he and he had the dark good looks she liked so much. She put two fingers under his chin. “And this will be less of a lie for you. Your master and I have indeed gone off together and you will not know where.”

  Montgomery did not feel that Jura was especially older than he was, and to her surprise, he took her fingers and kissed the tips. “My master is a fortunate man.”

  Jura, feeling a little confused, snatched her fingers away. “You will behave yourself with my Irials,” she said. “I do not want half-English brats nine months from now. Now, saddle my horse so I can ride.”

  Montgomery smiled at her as Jura left the stables. “Insolent English pup,” she muttered.

  Jura’s first task was an argument with Cilean. Cilean wanted to go with Jura, but Jura wasted valuable moments saying that Cilean’s absence could not be explained.

  “I must go alone. Just draw me a map as quickly as possible so I can leave at once.”

  Cilean began to draw but she argued all the while. “How will you find him? He is many hours ahead of you.”

  “I will think like a blond Englishman. Do you think he is wearing mail and carrying an English banner? Oh, Cilean, pray for me. If he is killed, it will mean war. The Irial people will glorify his memory after his honey-tongued speech yesterday.”

  “Here is the map,” Cilean said, then hugged Jura hard. “I am sorry I doubted you. Go and find this errant king of ours and bring him back safely.” She pulled away. “How will you dress?”

  Jura grinned. “As an Ulten. That should keep people away. My aunt has Ulten clothes in storage and I plan to remove them.”

  Cilean kissed her friend’s cheek. “Go with God and come back soon.”

  Jura rode into Vatell territory cautiously. The old, ragged Ulten garment she wore stank so bad her horse had pranced in anger at first and Jura did not blame it for she could barely abide herself. She had stolen