Born of Stone (2 page)

She tensed for the second strike from Simon’s whip but it didn’t come.

“Master Orestes, sir. I have to—”

“Get the fuck away from her before I rip your head from your neck.”

Astrid dared a glance over her shoulder and found not only Master Orestes, but all nine gargoyle brothers glaring at Simon in rage. Simon looked like a ghost, white as a sheet with his mouth gaping. He quickly stepped back from Astrid and let the whip drop to the ground while Orestes moved toward them.

“This is what you do? This is how you run our household staff? With fear and brutality? And humans think we’re the monsters.”

Orestes picked up the whip and slashed at him, hitting him across the chest and causing Simon to cry out. He dropped to the ground, writhing in pain and begging for mercy.

Orestes looked at his brother. “This is why I followed the bastard. I knew he was lying about her being new. She’s served at our table before.”

Astrid stood frozen, watching in horrified fascination when all of the brothers surrounded Simon and began to debate what to do with him. It was obvious they had no clue he’d been beating the staff for years.

“We’ll take care of him and call the rest of the humans together to learn the extent of his abuse, brother. Take the woman upstairs and tend to her wounds.”

Astrid whipped her head around to face Kephas at that statement. Orestes stood beside him, watching her with anger in his eyes.

“Will do.”

As he neared, Astrid momentarily considered running. She didn’t know how long she would last in the forest this time but anything had to be better than facing a Master’s wrath. Then, before she could bolt, he was there. She looked up to meet Orestes’s eyes.

“Come, lady. I’ll help you feel better.”

Before she could say a word, he picked her up and cradled her to his chest like a child. She gasped and threw her arms around his neck in response. His hard chest and large biceps made her feel protected rather than fearful, and she marveled at how gently he held her. He strode through the kitchen, earning curious looks from the other servants, who quickly moved out of his way. Astrid noted his frown when fear shone on their faces.

“Why do all of you fear me when it was a human beating you?” he mumbled.

She heard the anger in his voice but dared to answer anyway. “He said it was at your direction.”

“Mine?”

“A-all of the Masters, sir.”

Dark blue eyes focused on her with such intensity she moved her arms over her head in fear. Orestes immediately stopped walking and tightened his grip.

“I have not, nor will I ever, harm an innocent human, either by my own hand or in my instructions to another. Do you understand?”

It took a second or two for Astrid to calm her fears, but then she lowered her arms and looked up into his scowling face. He was such a fierce specimen she didn’t know whether or not to believe him. However, in her time at the castle she’d never seen any of the Masters actually hurt anyone.

Orestes raised a brow, obviously awaiting her agreement. She nodded and he took a deep breath. “Good.”

With that, he proceeded through the dining room and into the foyer.

Astrid had never been anywhere in the castle but the kitchen and dining room. As Orestes climbed the massive staircase, she couldn’t help but look around in awe. Large, beautifully woven tapestries lined the walls, depicting knights in battle with all manner of vile creatures.

“Do you like them?”

His deep voice didn’t startle her this time and she thought it would be rude not to answer. She had to clear her throat twice.

“They’re beautiful.”

He raised his head and looked around as if noticing the tapestries for the first time. They had bypassed the second landing and made it to the third before he moved away from the stairs to walk down a long hallway. Wooden doors lined both sides of the hall, each intricately carved in various designs. Astrid barely had the chance to look around before Orestes pushed open a door and strode inside. The room was pitch black, but he seemed to have no trouble navigating his way through as he walked deeper inside. Astrid gasped and clung to his shirt when he leaned down and gently placed her on a soft surface.

“If you don’t let go, I can’t light the fire.”

Amusement was unmistakable in his voice and Astrid released his shirt in annoyance. She sat up on what she assumed was his bed while his shadowed form moved away from her and back toward the door.

“Is this your room?” she asked.

He closed the door and she tried to ignore her spark of fear at hearing the lock turn. She would never have expected to find herself lying in one of the Master’s beds, locked in his room for some unknown purpose. Whether he truly meant to tend to her wounds she didn’t know, but running seemed impossible now.

He moved silently around the room and she couldn’t see even a hint of him. Then a hiss sounded a few feet away and she had to close her eyes against the abrupt glow of flame. He stood, a dark silhouette against the bright flames in his large stone fireplace.

“Yes, this is my room. Do you like it?”

His voice seemed deeper, more intimate, as he slowly made his way back to her. She swallowed and looked up, but the light behind him left his face in shadows and hid his expression.

“Um, yes. Yes it’s, uh…very nice.”

He chuckled and turned away from her, removing the long, dark leather coat he seemed to prefer. She realized why when he slipped it off his broad shoulders, revealing multiple weapons. Astrid was about to pull her legs into a more comfortable position when she noticed the dirt caked on them. Shame burned through her, heating her cheeks as she quickly moved to the side of the bed and slipped off.

“What is it? What’s wrong?”

Orestes was suddenly at her side. For such a large man, he moved quickly and almost silently. Astrid gasped and took a step back from him.

“My feet. They’re too dirty for your nice bed.”

Annoyance flashed across his expression but at least it wasn’t anger. Astrid realized she was growing comfortable in his presence—a dangerous habit to be sure. Still, when he ran a hand down his face and wariness filled his gaze, she couldn’t help but feel better.

“I’ll return shortly,” he said, before stalking out of the room.

She looked at the closed door in indecision. He obviously expected her to stay put and hadn’t threatened her in any way thus far. Should she await his return? Doubts filled her and she shivered as cold from the stone floor raced up her legs. The warm glow of the fire called to her and Astrid went willingly. As she crossed the vast space from his bed to fireplace, she noticed Orestes’s room was much larger than she had realized. Additional large tapestries lined the walls and various furs covered most of the floor.

His massive bed could easily sleep six people, even with the large man in the middle. That image sent a surge of jealousy racing through her and she shook her head at her ridiculousness. The Masters belonged to no women, especially human women. It was said they left the realm to bed the race of warrior women in Keva when the mood took them. The journey to the neighboring realm went from a ten-day journey to a matter of hours once the gargoyles spread their wings. Astrid shuddered at the thought. She’d only seen a gargoyle in flight once and it had been an awesome sight. It still amazed her how their wings disappeared when they took human form.

Aside from his bed, the only other furniture in the room was a wardrobe and desk. There was also a large chest at the foot of his bed, big enough for a human to fit inside. Astrid frowned and looked away from it. Her eyes landed on a desk piled high with books. She’d heard a servant mention a library somewhere in the castle. Astrid had taught herself to read simple words over the years and longed to own just one book. She’d secretly hoped she would be assigned to dust the library so she could at least look at them. Faced with the bounty on Orestes’s desk, she couldn’t help but wander over and stare in fascination at the stack. It reached her chin and hid, a closer inspection revealed, a similar stack behind it. She reached a shaky hand to touch the top book when Orestes’s voice sounded in her ear.

“You know how to read?”

She screamed and leapt away, hitting her hip against the desk hard enough to send both stacks of books tumbling down.

“Oh no.”

Astrid was nearly in tears over the mess she’d made and threw herself on the floor, grabbing books and stacking them as quickly as she could in an effort to clean the mess. She felt more than heard Orestes bend down beside her, but rather than help, he gently grabbed her wrists.

“Stop, lady. Don’t fret over this.”

Her head snapped up and she tried to pull from his grasp. He released her and she moved back, falling on her bottom in her effort to get out of his reach.

“I’m sorry, my lord. I’m so sorry.”

“Please, just stop.” He released a breath and swiped the books out of his way, crawling toward her while she continued to slide back. She reached the wall and shut her eyes, throwing her arms over her head.

“No. Don’t do that again. How can I convince you that I mean you no harm?”

The exasperation in his voice finally penetrated her fear and Astrid lowered her arms slowly. He was sitting back on his legs, a whisper away, staring down at her with concern. When he realized she was watching, he reached out and gently moved her arms down.

“What is your name?”

She swallowed her fear and answered in a whisper, “Astrid.”

His eyebrows shot up and a sudden grin made him even more handsome. “Astrid? How about that? Tell me, my little star, how did you come to be in my home?”

She opened her mouth to answer but nothing came out. What should she tell him about the hardships of her life? Would he really care? He frowned at her hesitation before sighing and leaning back. She closed her still-gaping mouth while he stood and reached for her.

“Come. I’ve arranged a bath for you.”

That got her attention. “Bath?”

Obviously sensing her excitement, he smiled and led her from his room. “Yes, a warm bath. Then I’ll put a healing ointment on that wound. No sense doing that until you’re clean.”

Shame filled her as she considered how she looked. Whispers about Keva told of large, beautiful women with fair skin and golden hair. Astrid knew she was a plain, little, mousy-looking thing. Small and insignificant. She’d never expected to catch the eye of a man, much less a Master. Orestes must think she was a mess, smelly and dirty. A bath would take care of the worst of her appearance, though she couldn’t help the scars and her stature. With a sigh of resignation, she went willingly through a door across the hall from his room.

Chapter Two

Astrid gasped when they stepped into the bathing room, and Orestes looked down to gauge her reaction. Awe shined from her eyes as she took in the large pool, steam billowing off the clear water. He hid his grin, but satisfaction filled him at her response. Her small, fragile frame intrigued him. He’d never been interested in a human woman before because they looked so weak. However, something about Astrid called to him and he couldn’t dismiss her so easily.

 
He was wary of frightening her again and had no clue how she would react to his bathing her. However, he had no intention of leaving her alone to tend to her own bath. The poor thing was exhausted, swaying on her feet. She’d had a rough evening and he feared her falling asleep in the water. He didn’t know if she could swim and the water reached his chest. The top of her head barely hit the same spot. He smiled at the direction of his thoughts while he tried to justify his decision to stay. He was confident she wouldn’t argue if he simply didn’t leave.

Testing that theory, he led her to a marble bench and sat down. She watched silently while he removed his boots and socks, then he stood and removed the holster he wore like a vest. He unbuckled the second holster around his waist and laid his weapons on the bench, showing her more trust than he gave even his brothers. He doubted she would realize the significance of his removing all weapons in her presence, and tried not to consider why he was even doing it. Her eyes widened when he pulled his shirt off and dropped it to the floor, but she still said nothing. He loosened the ties on his pants before looking up into her curious gaze.

“Are you going to bathe in your dress?”

Her eyes widened further and she looked down at the rag hiding her body from his starving eyes. “Oh. Uh…”

He flashed a reassuring smile before stepping to the side of the pool and removing his pants. Without looking back to see her reaction to his nakedness, he dove head first into the warm water. By the time he surfaced, she had joined him, her dress in a puddle beside his pants. Disappointment flittered through him at missing her initial unveiling. He wanted to know if the scars he’d spied on her back were on other parts of her body as well. She had removed the feeble tie from her hair and a riot of curls framed her pale face.

He stood and walked over to where she clung to the wall. As he’d suspected, her feet couldn’t touch the floor if she wanted her head to stay above water. Moving slowly, so as not to frighten her again, he took her by the arms and pulled her against his chest. She gasped and blushed prettily, lowering her eyes to where her hands now rested on him.