Free The Carnelian Legacy by Cheryl Koevoet Page A

remembered. Noticing Arrie’s puzzled expression, she giggled softly. She tucked her hair behind her ear, tilted her head toward him and pointed to the small device before subtly raising her finger to her lips.
    Arrie nodded and smiled in understanding. Together they sat in silence and watched as the soldiers organized the camp according to their standard military procedures.
    When Darian and Talvan finally returned, the warriors gathered to sit around the fire as one of the men passed around plates heaped with food. Marisa avoided the gold-toothed warrior by sitting as far away from him as possible. She tried to eat in a ladylike manner but her hunger made it difficult not to gulp the food. She practiced using the translator by listening to the men’s discussions.
    Darian remained silent for most of the evening and she pretended not to notice his stare. The orange glow of the flames danced in his eyes as he studied her from across the fire. The rest of the men lounged around the fire pit, slurping their ale and belching loudly. A couple of them had already drunk too much and their conversation was slowly sinking into the gutter. Talvan offered her a mug of ale, but she promptly refused.
    Disgusted by the three men slowly sinking into a deep state of intoxication, she decided that it was time for her to go get some sleep. Marisa stood up and dusted herself off. Darian quickly downed the last of his ale, scooped up the lantern and sidestepped the lounging warriors to approach her.
    “Milady, allow me to escort you down to the river.”
    The men stopped their drinking and stared at her. Marisa hesitated, but she took Darian’s hand and they walked down the hill away from camp. She didn’t know if her heart was beating faster because of their brisk walk or if it was because he was holding her hand.
    Unable to see where she was going, Marisa stumbled over a rock in the darkness and almost fell, but Darian quickly caught her. She stole a glance at his handsome profile in the low light of the lantern as he guided her down a steep, narrow path. The roar of the water continued to grow louder until they finally stopped several feet away from the river’s edge.
    She gazed up into the night sky, amazed to see millions of stars. They seemed to twinkle in 3-D like tiny shards of glass, dotting the heavens all the way across to the horizon. It comforted her to see the same familiar moon nearly two-thirds full. She glanced over at Darian and noticed that he was quietly studying her in the moonlight.
    “Do you think we might be able to call a truce?” he asked.
    “I didn’t realize we were at war.”
    “Not really war, but I still haven’t made up my mind if you’re a spy or not.”
    “I’m not a spy, Darian,” she said softly.
    “You probably feel like Alice in Wonderland by now.”
    Marisa’s jaw dropped. “How do you know that story? And how is it that you can speak English so well? Or have you been to Earth too?”
    “No, I have not been so fortunate as to have visited your world. I learned to speak English and a few other languages from Celino, the man of whom Arrie spoke yesterday.”
    “But why would you even bother learning to speak English?”
    “To the privy members of the noble class of Carnelia, Earth is known for its, uh, its—what’s the word again? Soph—sophisticated cultures. My mother felt that learning English would enrich my education, so she hired Celino as my tutor. He encouraged me to read all sorts of English books and literature.”
    “Sophisticated cultures?” Marisa raised an eyebrow.
    “Do you not come from a sophisticated society?”
    “Me?” She snorted. “Definitely not. I’m from a small hick town in Oregon that most people have never even heard of.”
    “Have you mastered a trade, or are you a gentleman’s daughter?”
    “If you’re asking me whether I have a job or if I’m rich enough not to need one, the answer is neither. I just graduated from South Medford High last