As Captain Antonio approached the king and queen’s bedchamber, his face grim, he refused to meet anyone’s eyes as they watched him pass. Nobles whispered behind their hands, and servants gave him a wide berth as though fearful that he would somehow place blame on them for Baron Gauva’s actions. He was so intent on not looking at anyone directly that when he finally reached his destination, he failed to notice the bright smiles the guards wore.
“Please tell His Majesty I have arrived,” Captain Antonio ordered while keeping his one eye fixed on the grain of the door in front of him. He had to be strong. If the queen lay dead, there was no telling how broken Norman would be …
When the guard disappeared into the shadowy room, the captain could hear the faint sound of sobbing, and immediately he found himself fighting off the surge of warmth in his eye.
“You may enter, Antonio,” the king’s voice called out quietly.
Stepping over the threshold and closing the door behind himself, Antonio at long last moved his gaze to where the queen lay. Knowing it would be far crueler to delay the inevitable.
Instead of the peacefully arranged corpse of the woman he had come to love as a niece, Antonio instead found himself staring at Norman kneeling by the bedside holding Ainsley’s hand, his face tearstained as she gazed at him wearily …
She was smiling.
Alive, and smiling.
Antonio’s composure failed and the knot of emotion in his chest vanished so quickly that he couldn’t help but burst out saying, “Oh, thank the Gods.”
Norman smiled at his friend and gestured Antonio closer.
“I was hoping to lie beside my wife and rest with her; however, we didn’t wish to disturb Mrs. Ashowan. Given that her son is currently … busy, I gathered you were the next best person for the job.”
Antonio’s eye turned to Katelyn’s sleeping form, and immediately he felt his joy dim.
She looked near death herself … She had clearly pushed herself for the sake of the queen.
“She can rest for as long as she needs in Lady Jenoure’s former chamber. See to it that Ruby takes care of her as though she were royalty. We owe her Ainsley’s and Alina’s lives.”
Captain Antonio’s eyebrows shot up. “Alina is the new princess’s name?”
“It is. Eric thought of it, and we feel it suits her. Though we will most likely call her Lina for short.”
“Yes, knowing Norman, he will be mixing up her name and my own horribly if we don’t give him a bit of respite,” Ainsley teased, her smile warming the captain’s heart.
“Aye. A good name.” Ainsley and Norman were unable to keep their eyes off each other as Norman bent his head and planted a gentle kiss on the back of her hand.
Wanting to give the reunited couple their privacy, the captain moved toward the side of the bed where Katelyn lay. As he scooped her carefully into his arms, she didn’t stir even once as she was shifted from the soft bed into Antonio’s firm arms.
Cradled against his chest, Katelyn felt small and vulnerable to him. Even her skin felt cool to the touch, and the captain could feel his mind begin to leap into action on ordering her a bath and hot meal the moment she awoke.
Bowing his head slightly, he then wordlessly took his leave of the royal couple.
When he exited the chamber, he noticed the guards saluting Katelyn despite her not being conscious. As he moved the short distance to Lady Jenoure’s former room, he passed Physician Durand who also bowed to the fragile woman in his arms.
Antonio continued walking silently, when he felt Katelyn begin to stir, and so he glanced down briefly into her drawn face in time to see her eyes open with obvious difficulty. She blinked in confusion before lifting her face to him, and the captain immediately felt his heart skip a beat.
“What’s … happening?” the healer asked faintly
“You’re to take a well-deserved rest.”
“Oh … but … why are you carrying me?” Katelyn attempted to look around herself but was obviously too weak to do so properly.
“Because you deserve to be treated as royalty for what you have done,” Antonio explained quietly as he hesitated before their destination.
Clutching her ever so slightly closer to himself Antonio maneuvered her so that he could open the door with one hand quickly before hastily returning his hold around her back.
“I just … did my … duty …” Katelyn protested softly before once again falling into a deep sleep.
Chuckling to himself, Antonio approached the made bed and laid her down upon its satiny surface.
Working with the utmost care, he tucked Katelyn under the cover and gently brushed the stray strands of hair from her face. He smiled down at the woman who had made him, for the first time in decades, feel things he believed he had no right to feel any longer.
The very first night she had met him, he had been irritable and weary. He had not been in any mood for Sir Taylor’s antics, but when Katelyn had welcomed him in and they’d all played simple drinking games … he found himself more and more intrigued by her mind.
Their first day courting she had asked why he had worn a hat that covered his eyepatch, and when Antonio answered that it was because most people feared him, she laughed and said: “I’ve met men who should be feared, but, Captain, you are quite obviously one to be loved. Take off that silly thing; it’s far too hot out to wear that. While you aren’t fearsome to me, if you start to smell I am not going to hold my tongue.”
Moving back to the corridor, Antonio flagged down the nearest passing maid and gave her his orders for Katelyn’s treatment upon awaking.
He then returned to her bedside, the magnetic pull she seemed to share with him as strong as ever.
“I’d like to be honest with you, Katelyn. You are a fine woman. A strong woman. However, I must confess that I am out of practice with all of this. It is strange how easy and wonderful it is to be with you … my last wife I had to go through brutal training for seven years before I could marry her, you see. But she was worth it. Every second … sorry. I don’t mean to talk about her excessively. I suppose I just mean that I don’t quite know what I’m doing. Especially with you being a witch and especially with Finlay being your son. I’ve gone drinking with the man; he is … well, more people should be frightened of him, that’s for certain.” Antonio took a moment and cleared his throat.
“What I am trying to say … well … I would like to have however many days I have left in this life with you. This relationship has moved quickly, but I cannot fathom a better way to spend the rest of my time. I knew the day I met my first wife, and I knew the night I met you.”
Letting out a long breath, Antonio turned toward the chamber door. He was keenly aware of his racing heart.
“Once you have recovered, and perhaps once I speak about this with Finlay, I would like to ask you a question. For now, I just want to practice.”
Stiffly, he made it to the chamber door, then had the brilliant idea of how to get out of a truly difficult conversation later on. Dropping his voice so that it could barely be heard, Antonio gave her one final message.
“Oh, I locked Finlay up in the dungeon for the night. For political reasons. I’ll see you when you—”
“FIN IS WHERE?!” Katelyn suddenly shot up out of her sleep, her bloodshot eyes homed in on the captain who had leapt back against the door in shock.
His mind worked furiously to try and think of a reasonable excuse for having imprisoned her son, while also beginning to rethink which of the Ashowans he should truly fear in that moment.
“I don’t give a damn if it’s for politics or for a prank, you will release my son this instant!” Katelyn was wielding a long thin finger in Antonio’s face.
“He was fine with the plan! Did you ever stop and think about whether or not he might want to be more involved in more respectable positions in the future?” Antonio fired back while lifting his hands up to try and ward off any attack she might launch at him.
“That is for him to decide! He can choose how he may want to go about it as well—one that does not involve him being in a cell!” Despite Katelyn’s haggard appearance, a small tinge of color entered her cheeks.
“I mean no offense when I say this, Kate, but Finlay is terrible in politics! He is too blunt to get anywhere on his own. I know it is tough to see, but I did this because I want to help him! I care about him, and … and you. I wouldn’t do this to pull some childish prank. Can you not trust me on this matter?”
“Antonio, as lovely as you are, and as much as I’ve enjoyed our time together, I will not let you make these decisions for us! You have no right. He is my son, and I will see that he is protected and that he is not jerked around by those in a position of power!”
The captain’s hands dropped, and he fixed Katelyn with an even, calm stare.
“I am not like Aidan, Kate. I told Fin my plan, and I’ll have you know, I was legally within my rights to have him locked up. He attacked a knight who was already in the process of being arrested. This will help him in the long run. Sometimes in life you can’t just be about defense. Sometimes you need to take offensive actions to come out ahead.”
Katelyn squared her shoulders and crossed her arms over her chest, and the military man could see her working all too quickly to regain composure of her emotions. He didn’t want to fight her … he just wanted to take care of her. Gods knew she deserved to be taken care of and perhaps spoiled more than a little.
“Your son is a grown man. He did not openly object to my idea. Ask him yourself in the morning. For now, you need to get in that bed and go to sleep.” He loomed over her, his eyebrow raised sternly.
“Oh, is that what you are ordering me to do? Because you are the authority on everyone today?” she snapped angrily.
“Yes. Because you are sleep deprived, starving, and in desperate need of a bath. Fin can last one more night then take his own well-deserved rest.” As Antonio took a step forward with his head tilted, his gaze sharpened. “Now, are you going to get back in that bed on your own two legs, or am I going to have to carry you back?”
Katelyn’s hands moved to her hips, and her challenging expression faltered.
“I can move perfectly fine on my own, and I need no strong-arming into doing anything!” While Kate tried to keep her tone imperious, there was a flicker of doubt across her face.
“I am glad to hear it, lass.” Antonio folded his arms across his chest and waited expectantly.
“Well, are you just going to stand there, or are you going to go release my son! And I am no lass, I am old enough to be a grandmother!” Kate bit out while taking an unconscious step back.
The captain smiled. She wasn’t reacting to him with fear, and that was something he had sincerely worried about when they’d eventually share a disagreement.
“Well, you’re not my grandmother, and I am a good few years older than you. So, to me you’re a lass. Now, I’ll give you until I count to three before I put you in that bed myself, and I intend to make sure you stay there.”
“This is absolutely preposterous, and you have yet to release Fin. I will not—”
“Three.”
Hastily, the captain swept down and scooped Kate up in one fell swoop over his shoulder.
“HOW DARE YOU— ANTONIO! ABSOLUTELY NOT! NO! I AM NOT A BABE TO BE BURPED! IF YOU DO NOT PUT ME DOWN THIS MINUTE, I WILL NEVER MARRY YOU!”
Antonio froze, then with a short heft, he had Katelyn back in his arms cradled against his chest so that he could better see her face.
“I didn’t know if you’d heard the whole thing,” he admitted sheepishly.
Seeing the captain suddenly turn bashful, Katelyn found her irritation immediately dissolving.
“I did … and I … I mean … You know I’m still married.”
“I do. Which is why we will have to petition the king to dissolve the union as abandonment, or as a retroaction to Helmer’s treatment of you and Finlay. Though the latter will be a far more grueling process.”
Kate’s lips pursed, and it was clear that a long list of emotions was bubbling up in her chest.
“We do not need to rush any ceremony, and I know that we never really talked of this …” Slowly, Antonio set Katelyn down on the bed, then seated himself beside her.
“It has only been … two weeks!” Kate burst out after taking a moment to properly count the days.
“Aye, but we are coming at this with some experience under our belts, lass.” Antonio’s blue eye twinkled.
“My son always comes first.”
“I know. Though he might be gaining an extra family member to pester him— My own mother still lives.”
Kate nodded. “I remember you mentioning her.”
Antonio then turned so that he could face the witch fully, his knee coming to rest on the bed. “Have you told Finlay that you know of his father’s coming?”
“I haven’t. With any luck, the two now look nothing alike and I won’t have to tell him. The last time they saw each other … well …” Katelyn shifted uncomfortably.
The captain hadn’t told her Fin was already well aware of his father’s pending arrival. He didn’t need to get caught up in that mess … even if he had been the one to confess to her that Aidan Helmer was coming.
“You don’t have to tell me if you don’t feel up to it,” Antonio added softly.
“I’m ashamed of who I was back then. That I let that man abuse my son that way. All because I kept reasoning to myself that, because I was healing Fin and myself, it wasn’t as terrible as it could have been. As though physical scars were the worst part, and because Aidan wasn’t home often. I didn’t believe we would be able to make ends meet if it were just Finlay and myself, even though in truth I was better off relying on my own talents than trying to support his movements …” Kate had begun gently rubbing her thumb over the blankets idly. “It feels so much bigger than yourself when you are in that kind of marriage. It wasn’t even me that made him leave in the end.”
Antonio frowned. “Who was it?”
“Fin. He had never shown any magical abilities for years, and then one day … he had enough. Blasted his father clear off the island.”
The captain knew better than to comment how that feat was both impressive and frightening. Instead, he took Katelyn’s hands in his own and gently brushed his thumb against the back of her knuckles.
“I won’t try to take away your guilt because that isn’t for me to do, but … I can say that you have saved countless lives since that day. Your son grew up well, Kate. He is grown up now, though, and it is okay to once again think about what you may want for yourself. So … I won’t need you to answer my proposal today, or even tomorrow. Remember, I had presumed you were asleep,” Antonio noted with a subtle teasing tone. “But do think about it.”
She gave a small nod while furrowing her brow.
Satisfied with that response, Antonio began to wordlessly tuck Katelyn back into the bed, a small smile on his face as he worked.
Once finished, he straightened and headed back to the door. Before making his exit he turned back to the witch and said, “A bath will be brought up for you once you are awake, along with a hot meal. Though sadly it will be the cooking of the kitchen aides.”
“Whose fault is that I wonder?” Kate muttered darkly.
Antonio chuckled. “Sleep well, lass.”
Staring at the armor plate that spanned his back, the healer’s eyes darted to Antonio’s hand on the handle of the door, and suddenly she heard herself call out.
“Antonio would you … would you stay?”
Turning and shooting her a dubious look, the captain didn’t dare assume anything for a moment.
“To sleep!” she insisted while blushing like a young maiden.
Chuckling again, Antonio made his way back to the bed and began removing his armor quietly.
Once the task was completed, he slowly clambered into the bed and lay with his hands folded atop his belly. Once he was resting beside her, Kate nestled down into the covers and closed her eyes. Somehow, despite having enough on her mind to fill several books, she fell asleep almost instantly. Though her final thoughts did circle the notion that, perhaps being married again … if it were to someone like Antonio … it could be … well … wonderful.
With her mind and her heart for once working slowly in the same direction, the one thought that delayed her sleep, albeit for a moment, was: Gods, we may want to wait a little while before telling Fin … perhaps a week or two after he gets out of the dungeon.