The door opened into a small chamber, which led them into a larger bedroom with a canopied bed made up with blue velvet covers.
“Who would sleep in that? Markus said, perplexed. “Its awful.
Allegra couldnt imagine why he would say such a thing. She thought it was gorgeous. From the colors, gray and dark blue, she suspected it was intended for a man. Compared to his carpets and pillows in Jazid, though, maybe it seemed lifeless.
Markus closed the doors and turned to her with a hard gaze. “Ozi was crying when I got here. What did you do to him?
“Nothing. He saw Cobalts forces. He was terrified. He came looking for me.
“Looking for you? His forehead furrowed. “You mean, he wasnt already here, in custody?
“No, he was free, she said. “No one knew who he was. He had gone riding with another boy. They were playing on the hills.
“Playing on the hills. He walked toward her. “The atajazid, playing on the hills.
She backed up a step. “Thats right.
“Suppose he got hurt? He kept coming toward her, his fists clenched at his sides. “Suppose he fell and broke his damn leg.
She backed into the side of the bed. “He was fine.
“Fine? He grabbed her arms and lifted her off the ground, then threw her across the bed. “Fine? He got on the bed, and when she tried to roll away, he shoved her down. “Fine? You kidnapped him, dragged him across three countries and you say he was fine?
“Markus, dont do this. Pushing up on her elbows, she slid away from him. “Talk to me. Dont hit.
“Like your talk with Yargazon? He pushed her into the covers, pinning her to the bed with his bodyand raised his fist. “Like the general you left bound and bleeding for an entire godforsaken day? You know what he said after he woke up? That I would be better off if you were dead. Why does that thought make me want to die? He slammed his fist on the bed, so close that she felt the brush of air on her cheek. “Talk to you? When you put me in agony for days, not knowing where to find you or my brother? He struck the bed even harder. Pillows jumped around them and the covers bunched under his fist. “How can I talk to you when Im an overbearing, arrogant tyrant? With every word, he hit the mattress.
The intensity of his reaction stunned her. She was scared in a way she hadnt been with Yargazon, because she had let Markus get past her guard and pin her down. He had never lost control this way beforeexcept he wasnt losing control. He was hitting the mattress instead of her, over and over and over.
Suddenly he stopped and sat up so he was kneeling over her, straddling her body with his calves on either side of her hips. He grabbed her tunic and yanked it over her head. “Why do you wear this? Its ugly.
“Stop it. She fought with him, but he dragged the garment off her arms. When she rolled on her side, trying to get away, he pushed her onto her back and threw the tunic on the floor.
Dismayed, Allegra folded her arms over her breasts. “Markus, no, not like this.
He pulled apart her arms and pinned her wrists to the bed, on either side of her head. “You tear up my life, you have from the moment I met you, you take the only family I have leftI thought you would both be dead when I found you. Then what would I have to live for? His voice wasnt loud, but it only made his fury more potent. “We had to send the army to Taka Mal before we were ready because Yargazon knew you were going to warn someone we were coming. I couldnt weaken it by taking a force into Aronsdale while the rest of my men went to war. Yargazon didnt want me here at all. We almost came to blows over it. I had to follow you with only a few men, give up my freedom, maybe even my life. You had no right!
Her anger surged. “You had no right to take my freedom, my life, everything that mattered to me. I had to do what I thought was right!
“Youre my wife, he said. “Dont look at me with those huge eyes, Allegra. Dont destroy the foundations of my life and then expect me to treat you like a queen. He lay on top of her and kissed her. When she jerked her head away, he let go of her wrist and grabbed her chin. Then he held her, kissing her, forcing her jaw open so he could put his tongue in her mouth.
Allegra tore her head away from him. “Stop it! She rolled him off her body and tried to scramble across the bed. Catching her around the waist, he pulled her against him, her back to his front. His armor pressed into her skin.
His voice caught. “You make me weak. He held on to her, his face against her hair, his arm around her waist. “I cant even make myself take from my wife what is right for a man to expect.
“It wouldnt be right. Her voice cracked. “It would be cruel.
He didnt answer. Instead he pulled her leggings and underclothes to her knees. When she grabbed for them, he caught her hand and used his boot to drag the garments off and swing them to the floor. “Why do you wear these ugly clothes? They cover up your beautiful body.
Her pulse had ratcheted up so high, she felt as if she were running a race. “Markus, let me go. Please.
“I cant.
She went still, uncertain what he meant. He lay on his side with one arm around her waist while he caressed her breasts with his other hand. As his breath quickened, his body went rigid. With a groan, he buried his head in her hair and whispered, “Youre destroying me. Then the tension in his body suddenly released, and he sagged against her.
Allegra knew little about men and sensuality, but even she could tell what had just happened. She shifted in his grip, onto her back, and this time he didnt push her down. She sat up slowly, wary as she watched him. He lay sprawled across the bed, a warrior in full armor, mail and boots, the velvet covers bunched up and pulled apart around them.
“Sing me to sleep, Markus said in a low voice. “You put me to sleep for almost a full day, and Ive barely slept since then.
He had tears in his eyes. Tears. The indomitable prince regent of Jazid was crying. She touched the moisture at the corner of his eye. Then she took a breath and looked around. The room was full of shapes. They bordered the windows, tiled the walls, scrolled the bedposts. She laid her hand against the headboard over circles in the carvings of shape-blossom vines.
Allegra sang in a minor key about the rising moon and a lion in the night. He didnt fight the spell, but even after so long with almost no sleep, his body didnt want to let go. Finally the spell caught, and slumber overtook him in a rush, like the cloak of night dropping across the desert.
CHAPTER 19
A RIVER OF BATTLE
When Allegra was sure Markus wouldnt wake, she lifted his arm away from her legs and slid off the bed. Her clothes lay scattered on the floor. She crumpled to her knees and picked up her tunic. She didnt try to dress, though. Oil from his chain mail and dirt from his armor were streaked all over her body.
Her arm was trembling so much, she dropped her clothes. She stared at them, then rose to her feet. Surely a royal suite would have a bathing room. She went to a door on the other side of the room and opened it into a chamber with a small bathing pool. The water steamed, and the scent of box-blossoms drifted in the air.
Allegra went to the pool and let herself down into the bath. She didnt know how they brought in warm water, but she was immensely grateful. She wanted nothing more than to wash away the traces on her body of Markuss fury. She had expected him to yell or strike out; it had never occurred to her that he would spend his anger sexually. The more she knew him, the less she understood men. Or maybe it was just Jazid men.
It was a while before her pulse calmed enough that she could think clearly. In Aronsdale, what Markus had done would be considered an act of violence against his wife. In Jazid, not only was it acceptable, but he would have been expected to beat her and to feel justified, even encouraged, in forcing her. For a Jazidian man he had shown incredible restraint; for an Aronsdale man, he had shown a frightening lack of control.