Act VI
Jason returned to the keep as he and Adrian had agreed upon. He had been escorted to the same room as before, but by a different gentleman. Now he was pacing about the room. Everything was riding on this one meeting. What if the prince didn’t want to grant him and his clan permission to stay on his lands? They would be forced to leave and look elsewhere to stay. He was impatient to finish the contract he and Adrian had agreed upon earlier and wanted nothing better than to leave now with a written copy of it. The sooner he had proof of his alliance with the Prince of S’ran the better.
He whirled around at the sound of the door opening, hoping that it was Adrian. He was in luck: the prince of the realm stood in the doorway for but a moment before entering. Jason saw that in his hands he carried several pieces of parchment, an ink well, and quill. Good. Hopefully it was the contract. He watched as Adrian carefully placed the items he carried on the little intable and smoothed out the paper.
Adrian stepped back from the table and gestured for Jason to look at the paper. “Please. Take your time.”
Jason gave Adrian a mystified look before proceeding forward. He picked up the sheafs of paper and counted them: four total. He read each one carefully, looking for anything that could be used against him or somehow bind him to the prince. Once he was satisfied, Jason set the contracts down and signed each copy.
Jason felt a sense of relief as he watched Adrian sign the contracts. He now had the word of a prince that he would be protected on his lands, along with his clan. In exchange, all he had to do was offer their services when Adrian needed them. His clan could now tend to their wounds without fear.
Adrian caught his attention by proffering two copies of the contract to him. Jason half bowed to the prince as he took the contracts from Adrian. “Thank you, my prince.”
Adrian waved his hand dismissively. “I did not do this for you,” he told the Gaian. At least, he was assuming that Jason was of the Gaian clan of werewolves. “I agreed to this because it is beneficial to me.”
Jason half bowed again. “Yes, my prince.”
“You may come and go from this keep as you please, but only in one of two forms: your human form or as your lupus form. If you appear here in any other form the servants I have left will flee from here and never return. They may even loose their minds,” he warned.
“I understand.”
“Another thing, “Adrian began. He waited until Jason looked up at him. “Be wary of Lady Vanessa. She does not take kindly to wolves nor new, unannounced guests.”
“Lady Vanessa?” Jason inquired, more than a little confused.
“Yes,” Adrian replied. “She has black hair, blue eyes, and fair skin. Dresses in extravagant clothes.”
“I see. I shall be wary of her.”
“Wise of you to do so.” Adrian collected his copies of the contract and headed toward the door. “I shall tell one of the servants to show you the way out. If you will excuse me, I have things to take care of.”
“Of course.”
Adrian nodded once, then left.
Jason stood for a moment in the room, clutching the precious pieces of paper in his hands. Something wasn’t quite right. It wasn’t to say that he wasn’t grateful for what the prince had done, no matter the reasoning. Far from it. There was just something not right: the keep, the servants, and the prince. He knew what Adrian was, but all of it was too odd. He couldn’t put his finger on it, but Adrian seemed the oddest of all.
The Gaian shook his head. No use thinking about it now. He had more important matters to think of.
***
Vanessa watched in mild curiosity as Adrian’s newest guest was escorted down the hall toward the main entrance. He was a decently dressed gentleman in blues and whites with gray hair. She failed to catch a glimpse of his face before he was led down the hall. From the way that the gentleman stood, she guessed that he was not elderly. She wondered what Adrian could want with such a shabby looking man, then shrugged to herself. Whatever Adrian had in mind it was surely beneficial to himself.
She waited patiently for the gentleman to leave before proceeding down the hall to the west wing. She could already hear music being played from the Music Room as she drew near. She cracked the door open to see who was playing and was delighted to find Han. She opened the door further and slipped inside, wending her way stealthily over to a chair. She sat down and waited for Han to finish.
Han finished playing the piece of music with a flourish, and he jumped in surprise to hear someone clapping. He turned around to find its source and was surprised to see Vanessa sitting in one of the chairs, not to mention confused. He had thought that he had been alone. “Ma’am, I-I didn’t know you were here…” his voice trailed off as he tried to think of something else to say.
Vanessa shook her head and smiled. “Don’t worry about me, Han,” she said reassuringly. “I just want to hear you play. Don’t let me distract you.”
Han nodded and turned back to face the piano keys, pleased to have an audience that genuinely wanted to hear him play. He took in a calming breath and began to play.
***
Against his better judgment, and the fact that every doctor that he brought in didn’t know what was wrong, Adrian let Jason Carter’s healer see Solara. He didn’t know what to make of her at first: she wore the traditional garbs of a shaman, but had enough foresight to cover herself. Beads were in her hair and she wore bones about her neck on a black thong. He hair was braided in various places and several tattoos could be seen at odd times on her skin. He watched the shaman move over to Solara and sniff her, then set down her things and checked Solara’s vital signs as he had seen the doctors do.
Adrian let out an inaudible breath and relaxed, Jason at his side. He watched as Jason’s friend tended to Solara, sniffing and prodding as she did. He was surprised by her sudden announcement: “She smell like snake bite, but different.”
Jason turned to Adrian and translated. “She means ‘poison.’”
Adrian’s eyebrows shot into the air. “Poison?!” he asked in alarm.
Jason nodded. “Does anyone have access to such a thing?”
Adrian laughed mirthlessly. “For the right price anyone could get access to anything.”
Jason nodded gravely in acknowledgement to Adrian’s statement. “Is there anyone who would have reason to poison her?”
Adrian opened his mouth to respond, then slowly closed it. There was one person who would want Solara out of the way, but he had no proof. Therein lied the problem: with poison there was no sure way to prove who the culprit was.
“I have a good idea of who may have done this, “ the prince replied instead.
“Very well,” Jason said in quiet tones. “If you wish, we could keep watch over her. Silvana may be able to leech the poison out of her…”
“We are not using leeches on her!” Adrian said vehemently. He knew from previous experience that they were dangerous, despite their supposed healing benefits.
Jason shook his head, his gray hair whipping gently back and forth as he closed his eyes. “Leeches are creatures of darkness, regardless of the fact that they are part of the earth. They would do more harm than good, with all the blood they suck out.” He cracked open one pale, gold eye and fixed it on Adrian. “This, of course, was not meant in reference to you, my prince.”
“Of course, “ Adrian replied smoothly. There was just enough ire in his voice to make Jason wince. “I shall leave Solara in your care, Mr. Carter. In the meantime, I have a few things to tend to.”
Jason inclined his head to Adrian, a sign of acknowledgement and submission. At least, for the time being. “As you wish, my prince.”
***
There were now two more things that Vanessa was not pleased about: Adrian’s new guest Jason Carter and Jason’s friend. She had seen Adrian guide Jason to Solara’s room, talking to him briefly all the while. The woman that had been following Adrian and Jason stood out like a sore thumb. What was she supposed to be, dressed the way she was?
She watched the three of them from a discrete distance. Adrian was agitated over something, though no one could tell just by looking at him. His movements were more abrupt. Less controlled. His voice was sharp at times but never rose in pitch. Little things that no one would normally notice.
How could he care about a woman that he had known for little more than a month? He had known he for years and it had taken a lot of her feminine wiles to even coax Adrian into her bed. Now this foreign girl from nowhere shows up and casts her spell on him. Solara had to be eliminated at all costs.
***
“Jason?”
The Gaian turned at the sound of his name. “What is it, Silvana?”
“She smell of faie,” the shaman said matter-of-factly.
“Solara does?”
Silvana nodded.
Jason frowned. “Faie how?”
Silvana shrugged. “She smell of the faie from beyond the twilight time.”
Jason’s brows shot into the air. “The twilight faie?” he asked. A mixture of alarm and surprise filled his voice. The faie of twilight were perhaps the most dangerous and powerful of their kind. If they actually left their mark on her, then when Solara dies he soul would be taken by them. He cursed low under his breath. He looked up and met Silvana’s gaze.
The shaman nodded gravely.
“Do what you can for her,” Jason ordered. “I shall return shortly.” When Silvana nodded, he took on last look at Solara, then left the room. If anyone should know about this, it was Adrian.
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