Vicktor? “More lies,” Valerian whispered. “What reason would my brother have for killing me? I am his most loyal and valuable general.”

“Not so loyal. Not with her in your ear,” he said, nodding to Melena.

“But… no one could have possibly overheard those exchanges. We were alone!” Valerian barked.

“There is nothing spoken in this fortress that the emperor does not know about,” the dying man said.

“But the discussions weren’t enough to warrant sending an assassin to kill me,” Valerian said. “I held my position. Kept loyal.”

“I wasn’t sent to kill you,” the man said weakly. “I was sent to kill the one whispering in your ear.”

Melena jerked back, shock written across her features. “Me? But I’m no one to Vicktor! What has he to fear from me?”

“He fears you may change my loyalties. Tell me, have you spoken of our conversations to anyone else?” Valerian asked her.

“Well… only a couple of the women in the harem. I simply said that perhaps one day I could convince you to see things in the right light. That perhaps you could be reasoned with as you are a man of honor and of logic. That you could be made to see how wrong it was to cater to a monster like your brother.”

“Unwise,” Valerian scolded her. “You must watch what you say in this stronghold at all times. But the damage is done now. Vicktor sees you as a threat. If he cannot get to you this way, then he will get to you another. We will have to be very careful.”

Valerian nudged past Melena and jammed his blade into the unfortunate assassin’s throat, killing him.

“It was unwise to make an attempt on me while I was in your protection,” Melena said softly. She looked at him gasped. Grabbing a fur from the bed she pressed it to the bleeding wound. “You are injured!”

“It is nothing,” Valerian said dismissively.

“It is not nothing! You could have been killed!”

“As you heard, I was not the target.”

“What are we to do? If Vicktor wants me dead, you said yourself he will find a way.”

“I must reassure Vicktor that mere words of a harem woman cannot change me. That I will always remain loyal to him.”

“Will you? Will you always remain loyal to him, no matter what he does?”

Valerian looked down at the man he had killed and felt his stomach turn. If Vicktor wanted her dead, then there would be no way to protect Melena in this fortress. He had to remove her immediately. But first -- first he must deal with the woman or women who had betrayed him by reporting to Vicktor. His women were to be loyal only to him. No matter that Vicktor was their emperor; they were to remain steadfastly loyal and submissive to him. To think one of them had been swayed to betray him made him ill, and beyond furious.

“I will remain loyal to him as long as my father allows,” Valerian said. She looked confused at that, but he didn’t expect her to understand.

“But your father is dead,” she said.

“Not to me he isn’t,” Valerian responded. “We must get you out of the fortress. You cannot stay here and expect to live.”

“I am not afraid of Vicktor,” she said with bravado, but it was clear that she was. And so she should be. Vicktor was a dangerous enemy to have.

“It is possible he will follow if you are made to leave, but I doubt he will give you much thought. He no doubt made this decision matter-of-factly. He heard a report of you and responded to it with finality. He probably doesn’t even know who you are. What you look like. Tell me exactly who you told those things to in the harem.”

“Just Hassa and Daria.”

Hassa and Daria… Hassa was beyond loyal to him. He did not doubt her. But Daria was loyal only to herself. Oh, she played the part of a submissive very well… she even enjoyed it, he would say. But her heart was not easily touched by anyone or anything. Still, it was a stretch to think she would be that disloyal. She treasured her place of power in the harem. As one of the senior shisha she was held above everyone else in terms of benefits and considerations. She always got the best silks, the best jewels, the best foods. He took care of all his women generously, but there was still a pecking order and a perception of having better things than anyone else.

For her to act against another shisha in such a way would mean she felt threatened by that shisha. He didn’t see why. Melena had only been part of the harem for three days and nights. Sure, he had shown favoritism to her for each of those nights, but that was often the case with a new shisha. He would spend a great deal of time training anyone new. He had done it at least a dozen times before. What made Melena different?

That was a very good question in more than one way. He had been asking himself that repeatedly throughout the night. What made her so different? Why did she get under his skin like no other woman before her had? Why did he see possibilities in her that he had not seen in others?

“Come. We must get you out of here,” he said, rising to his full height. She followed him, her hands still pressing the fur to his shoulder.

“But your arm!”

“Leave it. I will have the medic stitch it later. We must remove you from this place. That is most important.”

“But --”

“Put your clothes on,” he said, picking up the fragile silks he had removed from her at the beginning of the night and handing them to her.

“But --”

“Obey me!” he barked in a sudden roar.

She subsided significantly, and he felt bad for yelling at her. But he did not apologize. It had the desired effect. She grabbed a robe he sometimes wore from the foot of the bed and belted it on quickly. He dressed quickly as well, then snatched a cloak from a post nearby and draped it over her. It was cold out, and even with the cloak it would not be enough. And he couldn’t send her out into the wilds of the world alone. Not with Vicktor after her. He would go with her. But first he had to make his excuses to his brother. And even before that he had to ferret out the poison in his harem.

He rang for a servant. Good. It was one he felt he could trust. Although he wasn’t much in a trusting mood.

“Take this body and dispose of it quietly and without notice,” he said, pointing to the dead man on the floor. Thankfully the servant took the command in stride. He left the room and came back with others. As a group they lifted the body up and took it away. “We will pretend as though none of this has happened. I will behave as if I have received some reports of difficulty at the war front. Then we will leave this place.”

“Won’t your brother question you bringing one of your women with you to the war front?”

“Not at all. We often travel with one or more of our harem shisha to ease our needs as we go. It is safer than spending ourselves with camp whores. I will bring you and Daria and Hassa.”

“Why Daria and Hassa?” she asked.

Was that a hint of jealousy in her tone, he wondered? He might have enjoyed it under other circumstances. But these were not other circumstances, and jealousy was a dangerous emotion. There was a dead man as proof of that.

“Because one of them has betrayed me, and I would know which one it is. I have my suspicions, but I need proof. I cannot find that proof if they are not close to me. Now go back to the harem. Make ready to leave. As soon as you are packed with the other women, you will make your way down to the stables. Do you ride?”

“Of course I ride. I grew up on a farm.”

“Watch your tone,” he warned her with a half-smile hitching up one corner of his mouth.

“I’m sorry, Sir,” she said obediently. But with those proud shoulders and those defiant eyes he could tell she was not sorry in the least. Still, he had no time to deal with that now. “I do not need this to go to the harem,” she pointed out, indicating the cloak.

“I had thought to send you out directly without stopping, but I see now that would raise suspicion. We must act as if none of this has happened.” He took the cloak from her and hung it back up. He rang for yet another servant, and this one went wide-eyed as he took in his master’s somewhat disheveled and wounded appearance. To his credit the man took the matter in stride and awaited his orders obediently. “Take her to the harem. Guard her carefully, or it will be on your head.”

The servant paled under the responsibility of the directive, but he took Melena’s arm and led her away. Melena went with the servant, but she didn’t break eye contact with Valerian until a door shut in her path, blocking him from view. Valerian then began to rummage through a nearby drawer for a needle and thread. He could call another servant, but too many had been exposed to the recent goings-on in his room as it was. He would sew the wound himself.

He needed to make a quick and stealthy escape without his brother putting a stop to it. But he thought he might trust them. As far as he was willing to trust. Which wasn’t very far at that moment.

By the time he had sewn up his wound, the carpet had been rolled up and taken away, and the servant had cleaned up much of the blood that had seeped through the carpet. The man had returned, awaiting further instructions. Dawn was also on the verge of breaking, the sky having lightened in preparation.

Vicktor was known for keeping late nights, and so would not rouse from his bedchamber until the sun was topmost in the sky. He did not have the luxury of waiting that long. He drew up a letter and sealed it with his signet, explaining to Vicktor that he had heard reports of rebels attacking his troops in force, and so he was needed at the war front… even though it was the dead of winter.

He did not enjoy the idea of riding across hard country with three women in the bitter mountain cold, but he didn’t have much choice. He didn’t like having his hand forced. No more than Vicktor would like him leaving without consulting with him first. But it was not unusual for Valerian to suddenly take off to tend to Vicktor’s battles, so it was likely he would think nothing of it.

It was just as likely it would brew suspicion in Vicktor’s mind. But it was a chance he had to take. He needed time. Time to think and time to put things to rights. Time to get Melena as far from Vicktor’s attention as was possible.

He made his letter to Vicktor as concise and matter-of-fact as he could. He did not effuse about his loyalty to his brother or any such thing. It would be out of the ordinary for him to do something like that. It would get Vicktor’s attention. Instead he made sure it sounded as if this was just another day and just another problem to be dealt with. True, Vicktor might raise a brow at him bringing three women with him in the heart of winter across hard country, but it would hopefully be a passing curiosity.

He couldn’t concern himself with that. He needed to get Melena to safety. By the time a report reached his brother about dead bodies being snuck out of the castle, they would be well away. It was possible Vicktor would try and recall him, but again, it was a worry for another time. He wouldn’t create trouble until it became an issue in reality.

And to think only hours ago his only worry had been how best to handle his Melena. No, that wasn’t true. He held too many responsibilities to ever let go that much. But it had, for a brief time, felt exactly like that. He had been focused more on her training and the pleasures she provided him than any other thing in that moment. She had been a welcome respite.

But he couldn’t indulge like that again. There was too much at stake. Too many things weighing him down. Too many things he was responsible for.

But had he been responsible? Was he being responsible in his care of others? What about his care of Melena? It was his job to keep her safe… and he was failing at that. Yes, he had prevented her murder, and yes, he had set a plan in motion that would protect her, but he had been the one to put her in danger in the first place by bringing her into the court intrigues when she was such a simply bred farm girl who knew nothing about being cautious of what she said because it could be used against her.

He was responsible for letting her sleep amongst women who would see her as a threat and do whatever was in their power to erase her from their path. He was responsible for not warning her… for not preparing her for life as his shisha. He had been more focused on the physical and mental command he wanted over her… selfishly so. He had not thought to prepare her for other things.

Well, it was too late to change what had already passed. Now all he could do was try to rectify his mistakes. He had to protect her… and he had to ferret out those responsible. It was dangerous to travel such rough country in winter, but it was far more deadly to stay in place where she would be within reach of his brother.

But he couldn’t keep her away from Vicktor forever. If he couldn’t convince Vicktor he was loyal to him no matter what others suggested to him, she would always be at risk.

There was another option. He could…

No. He couldn’t possibly consider it. But then again, how could he not? How could he feel right leaving a man in power who would kill an innocent woman just for the words she spoke in an unguarded moment? A woman who had every right to complain about her lot in life after being uprooted and enslaved. She had barely known what she was talking about as she had complained innocently to other women about the two brothers who had upended her life.

What kind of man was his brother that he would feel threatened by such a small thing?

Valerian knew exactly what kind of man his brother was. He had known for years. But this… this was going too far in his mind. For some reason. It just felt like he’d gone too far.

Which was humorlessly funny given the things he had witnessed his brother do over the years. So why now?

Why now?

Valerian pushed those thoughts aside as he left final instructions to his servants and his secretary. The poor man. He’d been roused out of his bed and told he was to meet them on the road as soon as he was able to pack and be on his way.

Valerian had always demanded immediate compliance from those who served him… without thought to how it might disrupt their lives. But here again he found himself questioning his behavior. He had always prided himself on being in touch with the common man.

Perhaps he had been deluding himself. Would he treat the common man so cavalierly if indeed he were in touch with their needs? Melena’s words continually rang in his head about how he thought nothing of others, how he did not appreciate the trials others suffered in order to please him, she being the extreme case in point.

If he truly did care about the common man, he should care about leaving their fates in the hands of his despot brother. He should understand that his father’s teachings had been a guide and that his father would never have wanted his country to fall into the state it had fallen into, regardless of whose birthright superseded whose.

Valerian growled under his breath, shaking his head. This all weighed too heavily on his mind. But, he realized, it was not entirely a new weight. He had been aware of these things… had been having these thoughts… for some time. It was simply hearing them from someone else that was giving them more power. Someone with nothing to gain.

She knew her life was now set. She was his and would be forever. What she argued for she argued for others… not for herself. And she argued for him. She wanted to see his life improved as well. She knew he despised working for a man like his brother… despised the things he had to do… the lives he had to waste as he pursued senseless wars. Power-mongering wars.

He constantly hoped this battle or that battle would finally be enough. That they would finally have expanded their borders enough to satisfy his brother. But in reality he knew that it wasn’t going to be that way. Ever. His brother would never be satisfied.

Valerian made his way to the courtyard in the cold light of a new morning. Sitting there was his empty stallion, and waiting patiently beside it, on a sturdy bay mare and wrapped warmly in furs, was Melena. He could only see her eyes, the lower part of her face covered by furs. If he expected to see fear in those eyes, he was doing so in vain. She wasn’t afraid, even though she had every right to be.

She had the most powerful man in the most powerful country seeking her death, and yet she wasn’t afraid. Perhaps it was because she had so much faith in him that he would protect her. It was humbling to think so. He had, as yet, given her very little reason to trust him. That she was doing so simply floored him.

He glanced beyond her to the two horses standing beside hers. He saw the warm eyes of Hassa amongst the furs of one of the riders, and the calculating eyes of Daria in the other. He could see Hassa was very curious about what had compelled him to ask for her accompaniment. She had not left the safety and comfort of the harem for many years.

It would be a hard ride for three women who were not used to such rigors, though he suspected Melena was more used to horseback than they were. She certainly kept her seat well enough, looking comfortable and at home in her saddle. He mounted and with a pull on his reins he guided the horse ahead of the women and out of the fortress.

As they went at a moderate pace, Hassa and Daria fell behind them and Melena kept to his side. Good. That was where he wanted her. Right where he could keep an eye on her at all times. There were by far no guarantees that they were safe… that she was safe.

He was as safe as it got. Although Vicktor thinking the words of a woman might sway Valerian’s loyalties proved that he did not trust Valerian. And Vicktor did terrible things to those he did not trust. It would be wise of Valerian to think carefully about what his next move would be. It could be that Vicktor would force his hand. If Vicktor went after him directly, he would have no choice but to act for his own self-preservation.

To that end he should see his entire harem removed from the fortress. If Vicktor turned on him he would do so by going after those he cared about the most. Those he would feel deserved his protection. But to remove the harem would be an overt act. Vicktor would see it for the withdrawal that it was.

Of course he could simply move his entire household to one of the lesser palaces. These were dotted all over the Jorku nation, and it wasn’t all that unusual for him to move his household from one to another with differing seasons.

But they usually wintered in the fortress. It would be very obvious that Valerian was conducting a methodical act of withdrawal in preparation for acting against his brother… or at least in preparation for getting them out of Vicktor’s immediate reach.

No. He would leave them be for now. It was safest for them at present. He would remove them only when he had no other choice.

But he was thinking about removing them, he realized. Which meant he was thinking about acting against his brother.

Valerian growled again in frustration. Melena heard the sound and looked at him. She cocked up a curious brow, then reached to pull the furs away from her mouth so she could be heard clearly.

“Is something wrong, Sir?” she asked.

“I have many thoughts on my mind,” he said dismissively.

“Perhaps you would like to talk about those thoughts that trouble you?”

“I would like to quiet them,” he snapped. “I would like for them to not exist at all!”

“You do not strike me as the sort of man who would bury his head to hide from the realities of the world.”

“No, I am not. But that does not mean I don’t sometimes wish I could.”

“I wish I could be free. But I have come to realize that will never happen.”

“Your mind is free. Your thoughts are your own. I only ask for your body and your loyalty… only one of which you have given me so far.”

“I cannot simply say I will be loyal to you. You would not believe me.”

“You’re right. I would not. Perhaps someday I might enjoy that luxury, but that day is not today.”

“I am sorry,” she said with genuine sympathy.

“For what?” he asked, one brow hiking up in curiosity.

“I am sorry you have no one to trust. I can see why you wish for loyalty so very badly. It must be very difficult to be all alone in the world with no one to depend on but yourself. I have known that loneliness. Once I was captured and brought here as a slave, I knew I could depend on no one but myself. I should have remembered that. I should not have spoken my thoughts so freely in front of others.”

He shook his head. “You should live in a world where you can speak your mind without worrying about every word and every act. We all should.”

“That will never happen as long as your brother is in power.”

“Don’t you think I know that?” he barked.

“I think it is becoming more and more clear to you. And I think that is a good thing.”

Valerian frowned. He should feel as though he was being manipulated, because he had no doubt that he was. But for some reason that did not necessarily feel like a bad thing. Perhaps he was in need of a little manipulation. Perhaps he needed someone to point him in the right direction.

Perhaps. Perhaps. Perhaps.

Valerian pulled furs up over the lower part of his face, protecting it from the cold and sealing off his ability to speak. She took his lead and did the same. She did not press him. She did not pressure him. She simply stated things as she saw them and let him work it through on his own. He respected that about her.

But listening to her came with a price.

He needed to decide if that was a price he was willing to pay.