Touch of Destiny
Table of Contents
Prologue The Boy What Makes a Friend? Into the Calm The Tribunal Favor Worthy and Willing The Perfect Shape A Day at the River Finding Humor One Year Later Heart of Gumber Gentle Warning Answers Secret Errand Sacrificial Promise Winter Feast Blood and Snow Metal and Magic Solstice Moon Invitation Pieces of the Past The Raven's Perch Growing Spark Rude Awakening House Arrest Confrontation High Tide Caged Justified The Elder Tree The Raven's Den King's Call No Barrier Can Hold EpilogueSolstice Moon
Back in the comfort of home, Lanara tended to the bloody wound on Damien's cheek and wrapped Lila's torso in a clean bandage. Around them, the Solstice feast was at its peak. The ale kept pouring, the smells of roasted meat stirred about the air, and Kallus sat near the lit hearth with a mug of festive ale. A few paces away from him, Calda sat wrapped in a blanket, sipping her own mug of warm cider.
Kallus rarely found a reason to take his attention away from her as they sat there in contented silence, not until his son came and sat down on the sofa next to him. Kallus welcomed the boy and put his arm around his shoulder.
"You did very well today," he said for what must have been the seventh time that evening. Maybe it was the wound on the back of his head, maybe it was the ale, but Kallus was inclined to let his fatherly pride flow. "Perhaps you should apply to the Fighters Academy also. You have the right set of skills for it, Níhilan. You would go far as a warrior."
"I don't know, Dad," Naelen muttered. "Are you saying you want me to leave home?"
"Your mother and I would miss you but perhaps you owe it to yourself, son. You have the gift for it, just like your sister."
"Yeah, but I don't intend to be like Lila. She wants to be a fighter, and that's great. I don't know what I'd do with my skills."
"You said you wanted to learn the runes, yes?"
"Well, yes, but mostly for the destruction ability I saw back there."
"I can teach you many runes," Kallus said, almost like a whisper.
"Really?" Naelen beamed from ear to ear. "You'll teach me yourself?"
"I would. You came to my rescue, demonstrated your competence. You will learn what I have to show you."
If the boy was excited, Kallus had difficulty being able to tell. He suspected his son didn't want to seem too overjoyed, but the boy's eyes seemed brighter than a moment ago.
Before long, Kallus noticed Calda abandoning her place near the hearth to step outside. His concern compelled him to follow, to make sure she wasn't wandering off without an escort. As it happened, though, Calda didn't venture far outside, merely to the fenced threshold of the backyard. Kallus stopped a few paces behind her, staring as the woman clutched a wool blanket around her shoulders. He saw his own frosted breath before he spoke.
"It would give me peace of mind if you stayed here," he said. "Until the snow thaws at the very least."
Calda turned to him, closing the gap.
"I suppose that would be best," she agreed. "I have no desire to go home any time soon. All my supplies...gone."
"I shall compensate you for your loss, Calda. It's no burden. This infraction will be at my expense, not yours."
"Again, such kindness I don't deserve."
A sigh left her lips, and Kallus didn't understand the source of her gloom. In truth, he expected the opposite.
"Why so sad?" He voiced his thoughts. "Here I am, trying to ensure you feel no shame or loss, and yet..." He trailed off, shaking his head in wonder.
He couldn't stop himself from catching her hand as she reached for him. It was pure magnetism drawing them together. But as he allowed himself to brush her palm against his jaw, she pulled back and reclaimed her hand. Though she turned her back to him again, Kallus didn't sense any distance between them. If anything, he felt closer to her than ever before.
In a rush of nerves and emotion, Kallus unlatched the barrier he had built over his heart and said, "Calda...it would please me if you stayed indefinitely. If not in my House, then within the village. I detest you being so far away where I cannot keep an eye on you. It would bring me peace of mind—"
"I don't think it's only your mind," she cut him off, facing him abruptly. "I suspect you still want me to be your wife, and that is the sole reason why I stay away. A wife you already have, Kal. I could never go and ruin that."
"You would ruin nothing," he said. "I am a lord. You know our customs, just as Lanara does."
"Yes, but I specifically recall how you only took one lifemate instead of many. You chose this, Kal. There is little to be done."
"Calda, I chose because you left me with no other option."
"Don't go making me your scapegoat," she said with grim eyes. "You knew I loved Hael, and still..." She caught on herself, gripping her heart. "Then you went and became lord, sealing your own fate. What could I give you that Lanara already hasn't? She has born your heirs, she tends your gardens, fills your home with love and joy. I couldn't replace that."
"I wouldn't ask you to," he said. "I wouldn't ask you to share my bed if you don't wish it. I only ask...that you let me be your husband, so I can watch over you as I promised."
"And who did you promise that to?"
"Myself."
"Oh, Kal..." She rose a hand to his jaw and looked at him with a tender, tormented gaze. "You are the most loyal friend I've ever had, but I cannot keep taking from you. I can offer you nothing."
"That's not true," he disagreed. "Calda, I know I'm far too late, but I intend to remedy the mistakes of my youth. I suspect...you carry embers of affection for me. You did let me hold you, keep you warm."
"I was delirious with starvation."
"Even so, I refuse to leave you alone and vulnerable in your little corner of the woods. Will you accept my proposal?"
Heaving out a breath, she whispered, "I can't," and left him standing there in the cold.
After discretely stepping in from outside, Kallus refilled his ale and sat back down by the fire. He could only assume Calda had gone to bed because she was nowhere on the main level. Níhilan was still there, sipping his cider and talking with the guests. Across the way, Kallus could see Lila talking with Damien at the dining table, perhaps gossiping by the looks of it. All too quickly, however, Lanara came into the common room, reaching out her hand.
"Come, Níhilan. It's time for your bed." She ordered the boy to comply but he refused.
"But, Mom, it's Solstice," Naelen moaned. "No one has to go to bed on Solstice."
"That's not true and you know it," his mother argued. "People are beginning to leave."
Kallus glanced around, gauging the truth of Lanara's words. Had he truly spent most of his Solstice party outside in the cold? Clearing his throat, Kallus scooted forward and said, "It's alright, Lanara, let the children stay up. I want them to hear the blessing."
With a playful sigh, Lanara turned and claimed a seat in the dining room.
"I suppose that's our cue," Kallus smiled, looking at Naelen. "Come son, you won't want to miss this."
Once they entered the dining room, the rest of the guests followed in their wake and flooded the space. All eyes rested on Kallus, but he made a point of acknowledging his three children as he lifted his mug and spoke.
"This year," the elf lord began, "I offer a blessing to my children." A moment passed as the guests stirred a little, filling their own mugs. "Earlier today, my son and I went to check on one of our neighbors. There we encountered two trespassers who had every intention of harm. They were brought to justice, but it would not be so without the valiant efforts of my children. Today I witnessed them laying their lives down for the common good. I stand here as a proud father." He paused, clearing his throat.
"Surely, I am not the only father who is proud. There comes a time when our children must grow, to become who they are meant to be. I offer this blessing to them." He tilted his mug toward Lila, Naelen, and Damien.
"May you always seek justice. May you protect those in need, and may your efforts bring fairness to the world." Smiling, he drank his ale down to the bottom and let his guests echo in the toast. "Se turessé, my children! Tonight's moon glows for you all."
Later that night, when the gathering ended and the guests had gone, Kallus snuggled into bed beside Lanara and met her bright sapphire eyes. He leaned in to kiss her, savoring her warmth and beauty.
"I love you," he whispered, to hear himself say it. His wife's face glowed at that truth, like it always had.
"That was a wonderful blessing," she said, laying her head on his chest. "I'm glad you all made it back safely. I'm glad...Calda's alright."
The mention of her name made the muscles in his chest go tight. He feared his heartache was showing too easily, so Kallus turned away from Lanara and onto his side.
"I asked her to stay with us until the snow thaws," he informed. "Hope that doesn't bother you."
"Why would it bother me? I adore Calda, she's a wonderful friend. It's good to have her here, especially if you and the children turn up sick after all this."
"A friend indeed." With one more kiss to her lips, Kallus laid back down and let out a brief sigh. "Good night, Lanara. Happy Solstice."
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