Although he wandered around the castle the whole afternoon, he didn’t see her, even once. For a moment, he considered going upstairs, to the family area, but he knew that would be a mistake that might put him and his men out of the village, precipitating the events. That wouldn’t be good for anyone.
Instead, he decided to go down to the river and wait to see if she would go there for her bath that night.
This time, he wasn’t disappointed. When the sun started to go down in the horizon, she appeared, carrying the things for her bath. He allowed her to walk by him and gave her time to get in the water before he walked there.
He knew it wasn't fair, but he wanted her in a place she couldn't escape that easily from him. He was starting to think that would be the only way he would have her by his side for more than a few minutes.
As he imagined, he found her swimming in the clear waters of the river. The shadows of the dying day didn’t allow him to see much of her, but he didn’t mind. Right now, all he wanted was to talk to her.
“Good evening, lady Kaylein,” he greeted, taking a seat on a rock in the river bank.
She let out a small cry and immediately sank her body in the water.
“What are you doing here?” she snarled at him, clearly upset with his presence.
He didn’t pay any attention to that. “I have been looking for you the whole afternoon. Where have you been hiding?” he asked instead.
She snorted. “My father doesn’t allow us to leave our rooms ever since you and your men arrived,” she confessed.
“Why?” he asked, puzzled.
“You’ll have to ask him that,” she said, huffing. “Now would you please leave? I want to finish bathing, and the water is too cold.”
“I’m sure you can take it,” he said with a wicked smile. “This seems to be the only place I can talk to you.”
"Of course not. We had the other night, while we walked through the woods,” she protested.
“Not enough,” he replied.
“You can’t stay here,” she insisted. “I can’t stay here. If I’m not back soon, my mother will find out I’m not in my room.”
“Then, agree to meet me later,” he proposed, pleased his plan had worked.
“Very well, we can meet in the woods or on the top of the northern tower,” she suggested.
“The northern tower would be perfect,” he agreed. “Right after dinner.”
“Agreed…” she frowned remembering the last time they had met on the roof of the tower. “Just use the trap door. Climbing it is too dangerous, you could get hurt,” she added, worried.
He looked at her, with an intrigued expression on his face. “Would you care if I did?”
She blushed. “I would care for anyone… just don’t do it,” she grumbled.
He nodded, with a wide smile. “I’ll see you there.” He got up. “If you don’t show up, I’ll go looking for you,” he warned her.
“I always keep my word. If I’m unable to go for reasons beyond my will, I’ll let you know,” she warned him.
"I'll see you then." Nodding, he left her and walked to where he had left his own clothes for his bath.
Though he would love to take his bath with her, he didn’t want to push her too fast. For what he had seen, nudity was a taboo, and he was sure sex was a bigger one. They would have time to get to that part.
He took his bath quickly, and soon he was walking back to the castle. Things were quiet, especially after the frenetic night they’d. He wished he had scared Lord Bryce away once and for all, but he knew that wasn’t very probable. The man was determined to get the village, and he wouldn’t be scared away that easily.
If he returned while they were still there, he might have to take more extreme measures, though he would prefer not to, he simply couldn't stay still, with his arms, crossed, while they destroyed the lives of the people his válkana cared for.
Dinner was a bit somber that night, and everybody seemed in a hurry as if they had another place they needed to be. That pleased Cuyler, since he too had somewhere else, he would rather be.
When he was about to escape from the main room, Lord Arryn called him.
"I would like to have a word with you, Sir Cuyler if you have a moment."
Cuyler took a deep breath, but he knew he couldn't ignore the man. "Yes, certainly."
Lord Arryn took him to a small room, next to the main room, where he had a few chairs a desk and a small library.
He invited him to take a seat in front of the desk, while he sat behind it.
“What can I do for you?” he asked the man.
"After the strange events that seemed to have scared Lord Bryce away, there have been the weirdest rumors,” he said, resting his elbows on the desk and crossing his fingers. "One of my men that had traveled to the nearest village a few days ago has just arrived and informed me he had seen the man's army retreating as if demons were chasing them,” Lord Arryn told him, in a speculative tone. "His story made me think of you, and I wondered if you or your men had anything to do with this,” he added.
Cuyler considered his options. He could insist that he had nothing to do with it, but if Lord Bryce returned he would want to bargain his help for what he wanted.
“Let’s say I couldn’t allow them to cause unnecessary harm, especially with those catapults,” he said, choosing his words carefully. “Back home, we are warriors, but we only fight alongside with the victims,” he explained. “As you can imagine, after knowing what was going on, we couldn’t stand by with our arms crossed,” he added.
“But I’m sure you don’t fight for free,” the other man concluded.
“Not usually, no. But this time, it was our choice to fight. You didn’t ask us,” he replied.
Lord Arryn sighed. "I won't ask you for more details and all I can say is thank you, in my name and the name of all my people."
"There's nothing to thank. We just did what we had to." He got up, smiling. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I need to talk with one of my men."
“Of course. Have a good night, Sir Cuyler.”
Cuyler left the room and quickly headed to the tower’s roof, hoping she was still there waiting for him.
She was. Sighing relieved, he walked to where she was sitting and took a seat next to her.
"I'm sorry I'm late, but your father wanted to talk to me,” he explained, inhaling her sweet scent, allowing it to rush through his body, in gentle waves of pleasure.
“It’s alright,” she dismissed his delay. The truth was she had thought he had lost interest in her and wouldn’t come. She still couldn’t believe how that simple idea had made her feel as if she had a tight iron fist around her heart. “Does he suspect anything?” she asked him.
“Yes, he knows we had something to do with Lord Bryce’s retreat,” he explained to her what the older man had told him.
“Well, this will become a legend, believe me. People will embellish in a thousand ways and in a few years, no one will recognize the real facts,” she said, amused.
“Yes, I’m sure of it,” he chuckled.
“So, what did you want to talk to me so much you felt the need to threaten me?” she asked him after a few moments of silence.
This time he laughed out loud. “I’m not sure I’m able to threaten you. Let’s say I persuaded you to join me.”
She huffed. “Yes, sure. Whatever makes you feel happier,” she said, smiling. “You have me here, so ask all you want.”
He smiled. “Why don’t you start by telling me a bit more about yourself?”
"Alright… I'm my father's the fifth daughter and surely his last disappointment. He has been craving for a son since he married my mother, but so far, she has only been able to give him daughters." She started, in a sad tone. "This is one of the reasons Lord Bryce covets these lands because he knows my father doesn't have an heir. So he thinks he has a chance of getting them for himself."
“Why haven’t your father asked for your king’s support in this? Wouldn’t he be able to stop Lord Bryce?” he asked, curious.
“Probably, but he has more important problems trying to keep this kingdom united. Greed for power is one of the man’s worst defects, and I’m afraid the king has surrounded himself with a particularly greedy group,” she explained. “Life in court can be very dangerous and certainly isn’t something I would like to experience,” she added, shuddering. “My older sister is one of the queen’s court ladies, and in her letters to mother, she always complains she has to measure each word she allows to come out of her mouth.”
“Oh… that doesn’t sound very pleasant… and yes, I can understand why you wouldn’t like that,” he said, with an amused smile.
She laughed out loud, and the sound of her laughter pleased him as few things did. "I never know when to stay quiet,” she admitted. "And hypocrisy is something that doesn't go along with my personality."
“How many of you are married?” he asked, curious.
“Just two, the older ones. My father hasn’t been able to find suitable husbands for the twins that precede me. They want them to live close enough so that they can visit each other as much as possible.”
“Twins? What’s that?” he asked, unsure of the meaning of the word.
"You know when two babies are born from the same pregnancy. They are identical twins, and even I have trouble knowing which one is which, since they usually dress alike and act alike,” she explained.
Cuyler was surprised. In his species, there were no twins. He had seen it in other species, but they usually had multiple births, and their reproductive systems were completely different from the drogons'.
“I see.”
“They have lived their whole life together and can’t fathom the idea of being separated,” she added.
“Do they look like you?” he asked, curious.
"No, not at all. According to my father, I'm the living image of his mother that died long before I was born. All of my sisters have black hair and green eyes."
“I knew you were unique,” he said, with a naughty grin.
She giggled. “So unique my father hasn’t even bothered to try and find me a husband,” she said with a scowl.
“Do you want him to?” he asked, suddenly upset with that possibility.
“No, I don’t. Here I barely have any freedom at all. As a married woman, I’ll be subdued to my husband, and that’s a terrible idea, especially if I’m not allowed to choose him,” she said in a quiet tone.
“What do you mean? Who chooses him for you?” he asked, puzzled.
“Normally, it’s the father that arranges the marriage with the man or his family,” she explained, sighing. “Most of the times, the couple only knows each other the day they join their lives forever.”
“That’s terrible. What if you hate each other?”
“You learn to live together as best as you can. These are ‘until death does us part’ kind of relationships. There is no other way out.”
There was so much sadness in her tone; he couldn't stop himself from taking her hand in his and caressing it. "That's the saddest thing I've ever heard."
“Isn’t it like that where you came from?” she asked, feeling her heart speeding its pace, the moment he touched her.
“We too join with our mates for life, but we only join with the ones we call our soulmates. This person is your other half, your heart, and soul. Soulmates become the most important persons in each other’s lives,” he explained.
“And how do you know they are the right one for you?” she asked, intrigued.
She knew some people were lucky enough to marry the ones they had fallen in love with, but those were the exception, certainly not the rule.
"We have an instinct that alerts us when we're in the presence of our soulmates,” he explained.
“And you never confuse those feelings?”
“No… they are too powerful, too different to be confused. Once you feel them, you know,” he assured her, gently rubbing his thumb on the back of her hand.
“It sounds as if you’ve found your own soulmate,” she said, as her heart missed a beat, as she considered that possibility. “I thought you said you didn’t have a wife.”
He smiled. “And I don’t, but yes, I’ve found my soulmate, and I can’t wait for the moment I’ll finally join my life with hers,” he assured her.
His words felt like a powerful kick straight to her stomach. She got up, taking a few deep breaths, trying to appease the pain radiating through her whole body. “I’m very happy for you,” she muttered with a faint smile. “Well, it was nice talking to you, but I believe it’s time for me to go to bed. Good night,”