Realm Of Light Part 45

"Do you not," she said softly beneath her breath.

He overheard and frowned. "I am not your enemy, whatever you may think."

"Then why am I your prisoner?"

Tirhin leaned back in his chair. "Leave if you wish. Go. I will not stop you."

"My chamber door was locked tonight."

"For your protection."

She sniffed. "I was brought to this room by an armed escort."

"For your protection. In Gault's name, Elandra, you have seen the city. You must surely realize the danger that surrounds us. These walls offer some protection, but not enough. Twice the guards have killed things which crept inside somehow, things you do not wish to meet."

"You brought them here."

Anger flashed in Tirhin's face. He slammed his fist down on the arm of his chair. "Kostimon brought them! Do not lay that blame on me!"

Her gaze dropped a moment; then she looked up again. "And what blame will you accept?"

His mouth tightened. "I let the Madruns sack the city. I regret that now, but at least they have finally been driven out. At the time it seemed my only chance of seizing the throne from the old devil."

"Couldn't you have waited?"

"For how long?" he retorted.

"A few weeks. A few days. Your father had little time left."

Tirhin snorted and drained the contents of his goblet. "Do you think he would not have found a way to thwart death again? I tell you, he was planning something-"

"How could he-"

"Why not?" Tirhin broke in. "He made his bargain before with the dark G.o.d to evade death."

"Yes, but that was over."

"Was it? I'm not so sure." Tirhin poured himself more wine with an unsteady hand, spilling some of it. "He and Sien were plotting some scheme with the darkness."

"But-'"

"I tell you, he would have succeeded!" Tirhin said sharply. "You knew him only a short time, but even so, do you truly believe that he would not have tried again to keep his life and his throne, if there were any way to do it? No matter what the cost?"

Elandra sat in silence a moment, but finally she replied with honesty. "Yes, I believe he would have taken any chance offered to him."

"Yes." Tirhin shifted in his chair and grimaced.

Elandra rose to her feet. "You are unwell. The hour is very late. We can talk later-"

"We will talk now!" he said forcefully, glaring up at her. "This is our only chance for privacy. There is little time, and I will not be put off."

Pain gripped his face again, and he rubbed his leg fretfully.

Watching him, Elandra frowned. "You are exhausted, and your wound pains you. Can this not wait until morning when you are more rested?"

He bared his teeth in a bitter version of a smile and shook his head. "There is never a moment when the wound does not pain me," he admitted. "I do not sleep at night. While the rest of the world lies quiet, I have nothing to do but fill the hours with activity."

Elandra stared at him in consternation. "You do not sleep at all?"

"No."

"But you must take rest."

"Oh, yes, I rest. But there is no sleep. Please, sit down."

She sank back into her chair, feeling more pity for him than she wanted to. "But how can you live if you do not sleep?"

He shrugged and ran the back of his hand across his forehead.

"Can the healer not cure you?"

His lips curved bitterly, and he would not meet her eyes. "Obviously not."

"I do not understand. For all his faults, Agel is a most skilled healer, trained in Trau's best school."

He stared into the bottom of his cup. "Some hurts are beyond all the skill and ability of this world."

Understanding came to her. Chilled, she shrank back in her chair and stared at him with new eyes. Memories of General Paz came to her, along with memories of her own poisoning.

"The darkness is within you," she whispered.

Still he would not meet her eyes.

She swallowed hard, not knowing what to say. She had escaped the trap, but could Tirhin? "Is it the poison?" she asked.

He shook his head.

"If we appealed to the Penestricans-"

"Those witches are not coming within a league of me," he said, and filled his goblet again.

"But if they could help you-"

"They will not," he said.

"Tirhin, it can be fought. It can be-"

"But I don't want to fight it," he said. He turned his pale yellow eyes on her, and she felt as though she had been physically shocked.

She opened her mouth, but no words came out.

"It is time to be frank, Elandra. I want no secrets between us," he said, leaning forward. "The throne will be mine, and once I have it, I shall not relinquish it. I have taken the darkness in exchange for the same life span as my father."

Horrified, Elandra stared at him. "Tirhin, no!"

"Yes. The wound will never heal. I can never sleep again, but I don't care. All is worth it."

"But your father did not-"

"No," he interrupted quietly. "Kostimon did not make the same bargain I have. Kostimon did not pay the same price. But you see, Kostimon had to pay when he died. I am paying now, in exchange for something far sweeter."

She frowned. "I don't understand."

"You don't have to. But I am nothing to fear, I a.s.sure you. I shan't turn into a monster when you least expect it. I am as I shall always be. Young and manly. In my prime."

Elandra blinked. Was he mad? Did he not see how thin and haggard he actually was? Was he unaware of how ill he looked? Did he still believe himself the strong, handsome young man he had been only a few months past? He was lying to her; most certainly he was lying to himself if he believed any of what he had just said.

"Now I have been open and honest with you," Tirhin said, putting his cup aside. "I have explained my reasons and shared my plans for the future with you."

"Future?" she said in astonishment, and gestured at the window. "What future do you expect? Darkness has swallowed Imperia. Soon it will engulf all the empire."

He nodded. "Things are changing, but we will rebuild the city. We-"

"Tirhin!" she said sharply, forgetting caution. "Are you mad? Do you not realize that we are ending? The demons will rule, not you."

"We will rule," he said, leaning forward to grasp her hand.

She tried to pull free, but he held her fast.

"Listen to me," he said intently, gazing into her eyes. "I have nothing to fear, and once you are married to me you will have nothing to fear either. There are ways to survive, even in perpetual night."

"No," she whispered, trying again to pull free.

"You are a beautiful woman," he said. "Courageous, wellborn, intelligent. The people love you. When my father chose you, he chose well. Together, we can mend what is broken in the empire. You are already crowned. Our alliance will be-"

"No!"

She jerked her hand from his and stood up, circling to stand behind her chair. She needed that physical barrier between them.

"Elandra, listen-"

"I will not hear you," she said in agitation. Dear Gault, she had even felt sorry for him. She had forgotten how charming the man could be, how persuasive.

"Elandra, it is imperative that we marry."

Her face grew hot. She glared at him defiantly. "Imperative for you, perhaps, but not for me."

"You cannot rule the empire alone. The people will not accept it."

"Then I shall not rule," she told him.

He laughed and levered himself painfully to his feet. "That is a lie. I can see ambition in your face, hear it in your voice. You were hoping to align yourself with Gialta and the imperial army, but as you have seen, neither of those factors belong to you. I made sure of that from the start."

"Then you do not need me."

"Our borders are weak. Our enemies think we can be taken while we are in this confusion. I don't have time to deal with internal problems and an unruly populace. The people accept you. Don't throw away your crown."

He stared at her a moment, then tilted his head to one side. "Am I so horrible, so repugnant, as a price to pay for your throne? After all, you were married to Kostimon in a political arrangement. This is no different."

"It is very different," she snapped.

Color darkened his cheeks, and his eyes narrowed. "In what way?" he asked.

The cold anger in his voice was a warning, but her own temper was flaring. "I was married to the emperor" emperor" she said. "You are only a usurper." she said. "You are only a usurper."

Her words were intended to hurt as much as possible. The widening of Tirhin's eyes told her she had succeeded.

Crimson surged into his face, then receded, leaving him paler than before. His eyes glittered with fury, and he lowered his head between his shoulders like a serpent about to strike.

"You fool," he said, his voice cutting. "You are not a peasant girl, able to pick from your offers. You are of the imperial house, and you have no choice. I tried to make this pleasant for you, but if you insist on being enemies, we can be, quite easily. The outcome does not change. We will marry in the morning."

She stepped back from the chair so fast she almost stumbled. Horror filled her, bringing with it a sweep of anger, defiance, and fear. "No."

"Yes," he said, limping slowly forward. "Protest all you want, but we will be wed."

Elandra lifted her chin, breathing hard, defiance giving her strength. "Not while I live," she said. "I will never enter your bed. Never!"

Amus.e.m.e.nt crossed his face, surprising and dismaying her. She had wanted to insult him, not make him laugh at her.

"Very spirited," he said appreciatively, in a way that made her blood run cold. "Very becoming. You must know that when you lose your temper, your beauty increases twofold."

Glaring at him, Elandra backed up again. "Get away from me.

He stopped, but the smile still lingered on his face. It was a cruel smile, one without mercy. "I remember when you first came to Imperia on one of your father's elephants. You were a shy, trembling maiden, hiding behind your veil, hardly daring to lift your eyes to anyone. And now you defy me like a warrior queen, proud and fearless, your eyes flashing like magnificent jewels. You have changed, Elandra."

"Yes, I have changed," she said, thinking of the past year in her life and its many hard lessons. "I had no choice."

"Oh, I think we can simplify this. You were a well-behaved, biddable maiden, incredibly modest while you were married to my father, very obedient and anxious to please."

Elandra glared at him, resenting his patronizing tone, hating the way he smirked as he said those things.

"But now you are stubborn and defiant. You refuse to be sensible. You are taking a dreadful risk by insulting me."

"I don't care."

"I know." He looked at her and nodded. "You are in love, are you not?"

Again heat flamed in her face. She bit her lip, knowing her expression had given her away.