The Emperor's New Nightingale (11 page)

Chapter Twelve

“I like this one.”

Julie held up the swirling, blue and white skirt. The colour sucked her in, reminding her of the blue in Orin’s eyes.

“What you need is some star
diamond combs for your hair. They will set your dark shade off and catch the eye of many handsome, Ario men.” Mik smiled.

Julie sighed
.
I only want one man.

She set the skirt down, shaking her head at the elderly vendor
and, walking along the line of markets stalls, followed after her friend.

“
Pretty lady want new lotions?”

O
ne vendor beckoned her over to her corner stall, right by a shadowy alleyway. The middle-aged, Ario woman with silver and white hair held up a glistening vial. “Scent this, one of the finest perfumes in all of Ario.”

“
I don’t need perfume, but do you have any scented hair wash?”

“
Yes, yes, here! Smell and see what you like.” The vendor waved to the array of merchandise.

Julie
moved in close and reached out to pick up one of the lotion bottles, when a hot, large hand clamped over her mouth, cutting off any attempt at screaming. A strong arm banded around her waist when they lifted her, but undeterred, she struggled and kicked out, trying to dislodge her abductor.

“Easy beautiful, settle
. You know I won’t hurt you.”

Orin! H
er body relaxed against his stronger muscular one. “Don’t scream, all right?”

She nodded her compliance and he
put her on her feet, removing his hand and sliding it down to her arm, spinning her around.

Her back pressed against
a cold wall and she stared up into Orin’s blue depths, blazing with passion.

“By the gods
, I’ve missed you.”

“
Orin, you can’t be—”

His
lips crashed onto hers, plundering and nipping until her head spun, and she melted compliantly against his hard length, every rational thought scattering to the wind.

A pow
der keg of sudden, sexual need burst open in her, and she kissed him back with just as much intensity.
Oh, to hell with it, I love him, I need him!

His hand snaked down
, cupping her ass, lifting her and pinning her back against the wall with his body; his hardened cock pressed through the material of his pants, against her rapidly damping center.

She groaned into his mouth
when his bulge hit her clit and they ground together in frantic desperation.

She heard t
he sound of fabric tearing and felt a sudden coolness on her heated pussy. He broke the kiss, nipping down over her chin, nuzzling in at her neck before kissing and sucking on the skin just under her ear.

“I need you
, beauty. I have to have you again. It is torment without you.”

She opened her eyes to see him staring at her,
and the hunger and desperation she saw quickened her already pounding heart.

She moaned, her eyes rolling back in her head as his fingers
slid between her wet folds, the tip of his index finger running a tight circle around her sensitive bundle of nerves. Her hips jerked forward, allowing him to sink his thick finger into her depths. With his thumb he flicked her clit back and forth. Julie moaned louder while he slowly finger-fucked her, pressed against the wall of a shadowy alley.

“Some
one might see.”

“No one will come near us, Drango will make sure of it.” She hardly
remembered Orin’s personal bodyguard. “Please, beauty, say yes. Tell me I can have you again.”

Her eyes closed, feeling the build of a climax within her, but it wasn’t enough. She wanted release,
she needed it with a sudden hunger which frightened her. She rocked her hips, trying to urge him faster. Damn it, consequences could wait for later—she needed him.
Now!

“Yes, oh
, god, Orin, fuck me, please! I want you.”

Hot chills ran down her spine when his wet tongue licked the outer shell of her ear,
and then taking her lobe into his mouth, he sucked gently. His teeth clamped down, tugging, heightening the pleasure he gave her.

Julie cried out in protest at the loss of his
thumb from her clit and his finger-fucking.

He shifted her up farther, both hands clutching her bottom. Automatically, she wrapped her legs around him. The hard, blunt tip of his cock press
ed against her entrance and she groaned, not understanding how or when he freed his cock, but she didn’t care, wanting him to fill her.

They both moaned when he pushed his thickness into her tight entrance, sinking all the way in until he
couldn’t go any farther.

He pulled out then thrust back in
, starting a quick, hard rhythm, making her pant, moan and writhe against him, the climax again building. He was back at her throat, nuzzling her neck, chanting her name over and over with every deep, penetrating stroke, pushing her higher.

H
er breath seized when the climax tore through her quaking body, and Orin's pace picked up. He groaned against her throat, his own body shuddering with the release of his seed inside her.

Both breathing hard, they sagged into each other
. She was glad for Orin’s strength keeping them both upright.

As her orgasm slowed
, her mind kicked back into gear. Oh, god, what did they do.

She
struggled against him, shoving at his chest, but there was no way she could move him unless he wanted to be moved. Slowly, he pulled back and set her on wobbly legs, but kept one hand on her waist.

“We shouldn’t have done that,
" she said. "Why are you even here?”

“I needed to see you
. What happened...I’m so sorry, Julie. The other female…she...”

Julie’s chest constricted seeing
his reddened, flustered state. This is not the arrogantly confident man she came to know.

“I don’t love her, I love you. I can’t marry her when my heart and soul cries out for you, my Julie, my beauty.”
His words were rushed and breathy and he pulled her into his arms. Julie wanted to do nothing but melt. It was the hardest thing she ever did to remain stiff. Sensing her unrelenting state, Orin pulled back gazing down at her, worry in his baby blues.

Julie inhaled a slow breath. “I thought for the good of your people and for the
continued peace of the galaxy, you must marry the nightingale.”

His jaw tightened and his lips pressed into a thin line.
“For the first time in my life, I don’t care. You are who I care about.”

This
is wrong. If everything he and others told her was true, then Orin really didn’t have a choice, but to marry this nightingale.

The choice was clear, r
esponsibility versus love. It was hard, but when more lives than she could count were at risk, she couldn’t let him behave so recklessly.

“No
, Orin, you don’t love me and I don’t love you. What we have here and now is lust. Any woman would be stupid not to want you. What’s going to happen to your subjects, to the galaxy, if you throw everything away for me? Duty and responsibility is your burden.”

The devastation on his face was worse than being punched in the gut, leaving her winded and in pain. She locked her legs and shoved at him,
and he moved back a foot. “Don’t touch me ever again!”

“This is what you want?” A muscle worked in his jaw.

“What I want is to live my life peacefully here on Ario without you. Haven’t you made me suffer enough? I don’t want or need you, or any other man, so just go and leave me alone.”

He took a step back
and she felt bereft from the loss of his closeness. Her body trembled, close to breaking down. Quickly, she busied her hands straightening her clothing. He simply stood there, so tall and regal. Then, he drew in a deep breath.

“As Emperor, I shall grant you your request.
You will never see me again. May your life be long and as peaceful as you wish.”

He turned and walked down the alleyway
, disappearing around the corner.

A warm wetness rolled down her cheeks
and she sniffed and swiped at her tears. He walked away and took her heart with him. Deep down, she knew, no matter what, she would always love him.

Chapter Thirteen

Two days later,
Julie put down the mug of
veer
and plastered on a fake smile for the patron. The handsome Ario man smiled back, his blue eyes raking down her body. Julie pursed her lips in annoyance.

“Will you be singing tonight
, pretty one?”

“Ah, yes, but later
. Until then, is there anything else I can do for you?”

“Yes, I would like you to have a drink with me.”

A loud crash drew her and several of the other patrons’ attention. Trall stood up and headed over to where a drunken man stumbled and fell.

It was her chance to escape. “
Excuse me, duty calls.” She dashed off, weaving around tables to meet Trall, as they reached the drunken man who was trying to climb to his feet.

He raise
d his head and his clear, green eyes widened. “You!”

“Erson?” S
he grabbed his arm and Trall dived for the other one. He had a black satchel slung around his middle.

“You’ve had way too much already
. I’ll call you a transport.”

“Noo…
Have secret to tell…shhh!” They both steadied him. “I did it all for you, but you don’t want me! You love that bassstard emmmporr.”

Julie met Trall’s confused gaze.

“Come, we’ll take him to the back rooms, then I’ll call a transport for him.”

Erson leaned heavily against her
, but didn’t protest being guided through the curious onlookers.

They set him down into a
n overstuffed and comfortable chair. He continued to clutch the black bag to his chest.

Julie kneeled down
when Trall hurried out.

“Erson? What did you do for me
?” she asked gently. Was he talking about her abduction?

His brow creased and he shook his head as if trying to clear his mind. She rose and sat in the seat next to his
and watched as he struggled to lift the strap of the bag over his head.

“If I give you this
, will you love me, Julie?” He thrust the bag at her. She had no choice but to take it, or it would have dropped, and it was weighty.

She held it for a moment and shook her own head
with a frown. “Gifts can’t buy people's affections, Erson. I’ve already forgiven you and your brother for what you did, so there’s no need for this.”

“No, no…I saw you…I knew you were special. I’m a fool not to have known…you love him.”

Julie sighed. “You found the Empress, Erson. You did what you were meant to do, and now I have a better life living here on Ario. So, don’t worry so much.”

“No!” he barked, startling her
. He grabbed her upper arms, shaking her. “Wrong, it’s all wrong! That…that thing is not the Empress… This, you…open the bag!”

Julie swallowed
, trying to hide her shaking hands. She pulled open the flap and reached into the bag.

Her fingers encountered a round
, smooth object which made her fingers tingle. She gasped, yanking her hand back. What was it? She dove back in, curled her fingers around it and pulled it from the bag.

“By the Four
Galaxies. Is that...?”

Trall returned
and stood in the doorway.

“The Song Krystal, I stole it…” Erson dropped his head into his hands. “For you
, Julie. He promised you would love me if I did it. He promised me I could have you, but I knew, when I saw you with the Emperor…you would never love me.”

“Then
, what is in the Palace, if this is the real Song Krystal?”

“He made me swap it with a fake
. It only shines for that…that…thing.”

“Who is
he
? And who is about to marry the Emperor?” Trall closed the door and moved into the room.

“Lord Ractor of the Shadow Realm
. He promised me…me…well, you.” He grabbed Julie’s hand, a wounded puppy dog look in his unfocused blue eyes.

Julie pursed her lips, yanking back her hand, feeling nothing
, but disgust and anger roiling through her, realizing he was the cause for her pain and the humiliation she suffered.

Trall drew in a deep breath
, letting it out slowly. “This is not good, if a fake Krystal is in the Palace and a false nightingale sings. The barrier between the Shadow Realm and our Realm of Light will be torn apart and the last war between the shadow and light lasted a thousand years. It nearly destroyed everything until the Krystal was found and the very first nightingale sang. How could you be so stupid as to jeopardize our peace, our very existence?”

“For love?”

“No, this was for your own selfish gain.” The barely restrained anger in Trall’s voice was clear. He took a menacing step toward Erson, his four fists clenching and unclenching as if he wanted to hit the Flaxian.

Julie
’s head spun and she struggled to make sense of it all. “So, we have to get this back to the palace.”

“More than that, Julie, not only do we need to get it to the palace, but we also need the nightingale. Without her, our world is lost. Sing
!”

She
glanced sharply at Trall “After all this, you, you can’t still think I’m the—”

“
Sing, Julie! I believe Orin has been right all along. Sing and prove you are what he believed.”

She
swallowed and drew in a breath, letting the words and music come from her heart.

Many nights we prayed, with no proof anyone could hear…

In our hearts a hopeful song we barely understood…

Now we are not afraid, although we know there’s much to fear…

We were moving mountains long before we knew we could.

There can be miracles, when you believe, though hope
is frail it’s hard to kill.

Who knows what miracles you can achieve when you believe.

Somehow you will… You will when you believe…

In her hands
, the Krystal glowed brighter and brighter. Her voice trailed off and it still glowed. She stared at it with disbelief, her heart pounding loudly in her ears. The realization hit her with the force of a falling meteor.

I really am the nightingale! Orin was right all along.

Trall sighed heavily, his gaze on Julie. “You know what this means?”

Excitement, dread and a few other mixed emotions made her feel light
-headed, remembering her harsh words to Orin in the alley.

“Julie is the Emperor’s new Nightingale…” Erson whined, his face
drooping in self-pity.

“
More so, I’m no longer going to be a song bird and tavern girl.”

Julie bolted to her feet
with a renewed sense of purpose. “We have to get this to the palace and stop the wedding.”

Mik burst into the room. “Trall
, we’ve…holy mother! Is this the Song Krystal?”

“Mik, take care of the
tavern, and keep this idiot here.” He pointed to Erson, who now slumped sideways on the seat.

“Julie, put the Krystal into the bag
. We’ve got no time to lose.”

* * * *

Duty felt more like the weight of the universe on his shoulders. What should have been a time of joy and celebration felt more like a funeral—his. The blow Julie rendered with her flat rejection of him refused to heal. Thanks to the gaping hole in his heart, empty bitter feelings took residence. Two days, he spent in solitude, refusing even Drango for company. Only when the servants came to prepare him for the ceremony did he let anyone near him.

It was time to take his place by the
Krystal altar, where they would be joined for the rest of their lives. Orin swallowed down the bile he felt rising at the thought of touching the woman he would wed. Why did his father never tell him it would be a possibility he could be revolted by his bride?

He glanced at Drango as he exited his chambers dressed in his silver and blue wedding robes. Drango’s blue face scrunched in a worried frown. “Did y
ou find anything of interest?” he asked with a glimmer of hope.

Drango shook his head. “I could find nothing, no background at all
. It is almost as if she doesn’t really exist.”

“If she doesn’t exist
, then why did she make the Krystal shine?”

“
I’m sorry, your Majesty.”

Orin clapped his hand on his friend’s shoulder. “No
. Thank you for doing what you could. The rest is up to me now, to make the best of this…situation.”

How he would
do this, Orin didn’t have any clue. For a ruler and a commander, for the first time in his life, he never felt so hopeless or lost. His future looked bleak without his heart and his heart would always be with the soft, brown-eyed Earthling.

He closed his eyes
, drew in a deep breath, but all he saw was her face, the memory of her sweet scent, so clear in his senses.

“Your
Majesty, everything is ready. They await your arrival.”

Orin glanced up to see
Cular, who was officiating the wedding, along with the other councilors waiting to escort him, like guards to his execution. He nodded and followed along behind them. Drango and the formation of Verkin guards took position at his back and they walked the palace corridors.

Excited chatter rose
when they entered the grand hall; Orin moved forward to take his place at the center of the dais by the Krystal Altar to await his future bride.

Drango move
d off as the officials took their places. Melodic music filled the hall; the crowd settled when the main, double doors lined with gold and shining
prelenium
swung open wide. Matika, followed by ten attendants, strode through.

Her white and gold dress clung to her body
. Some would think she is beautiful, her dark eyes shaded with smoky, glittery, grey powder as if trying to give herself a seductive look. To him, it only made her look sinister. Orin kept himself rigid, so he wouldn’t shudder with the thought of having to touch her intimately.

She held her
chin high and proud while she walked the distance, and then climbed the steps to stand by his side. She smiled at him and Orin looked away, instead focusing on Cular, who came to stand before them ready to start the ceremony.

From the corner of his eye
, he noticed Drango lift his
Nikcom 800
, talk into it and listen. Then, Drango motioned to two of his guards. Orin’s tension mounted when Drango briefly glanced in his direction before racing out of the side door of the main chamber.

What was going on?

“Peace to peace and song to song, with the joining of the Nightingale to each Emperor, the darkness will forever be held back.” Cular nodded. “The Song Krystal and all those present will now bear witness to the holy joining of this couple.”

Cu
lar turned to Orin first. “Do you, Orin, Emperor of Ario and the Four Galaxies of Harmony, take your nightingale to be your wife and Empress? Do you swear to treasure, protect and love her until the time of your last breath?”

No!
His soul screamed. He paused longer than necessary, struggling to bring himself to say the words.
They are just words, they mean nothing.

He cleared his throat. “I
, Emperor of Ario and the Four Galaxies of Harmony, swear to take my nightingale…”

“
Stop the wedding!” bellowed a loud voice.

Orin froze
and gasps of shock rang throughout the hall. Everyone’s gaze turned to Trall, racing into the great hall from the side entrance, followed closely by Julie and Drango.

“T
hat thing is not the true nightingale!” Julie darted around the men, coming to a stop just before the Song Krystal altar.

He never saw
a more beautiful sight as Julie, her cheeks flushed from running, her chest heaving and her hazel eyes sparkling.

“Your
Majesty, you have been tricked.”

“
Tricked?” Confusion filled him. “How can this be so? What’s going on?” His gaze swung to Drango.

“
Hear them out.”

“She lies! Shut your mouth
, little tavern rat! How dare you interrupt. Arrest her!” Matika snapped, anger blazing in her gaze.

Julie’s fierce
glare rounded on Matika, “Give it up, I know your game and it’s not going to work. I have proof they…” She pointed at Matika. “…switched the real Song Krystal for a fake one, so it would only glow for her.” Julie held up a bag.

Matika screamed and launched herself at Julie
. Orin moved quickly, grabbing the woman around the waist before she reached Julie, hauling her back. She turned on him and he felt the malice pouring off her body in waves. He took hold of her wrists before she scratched out his eyes.