Free Sorcha's Heart by Debbie Mumford Page A

herself for your loss. The Rex himself has vowed to guard them if I am called to return to the south. Will you call me, my love?”
    “ Yes. King Leofric has placed you under his personal protection. Come when the Rex allows and we will negotiate the peace as the Heart of Fire intended.”
    “ I’m not sure what the Heart of Fire intended,” he growled, “but I am grateful for our time together.”
    She felt his emotion light her soul, and shivered with a cruel mixture of delight and despair. “As am I. I’m not happy with this turn of events, but I am grateful. Give Keeva my love and my thanks. She is not to blame.”
    “ I will tell her you said so. Be well, my love. I will join you tomorrow.”

    *~*~*

    Unable to sleep, Sorcha climbed to the battlements to greet the dawn. She carried herself with dignity though she could feel the suspicious glances of the guards who paced the wide stone walkway. Stepping into the shadow of a deep crenellation, she turned in time to see one warrior sketch a protective sigil between him and where she stood. As deep purple turned to rosy orange, she surveyed the brightening fields with tear-misted eyes. Once, this castle and its bustling town had been her home. She’d been happy here, practicing her craft and avoiding messy entanglements with men who found a young woman of power a compelling aphrodisiac. But then she’d chosen to call the Heart of Fire, and the price had indeed been great.
    She blinked back her tears and studied her homeland. The sheltered valley rose in the southern distance to foothills and majestic crags, but at the north, a lake winked in the sun’s first rays. The forest behind the lake remained dark, but the meadow before it gleamed with green-gold promise.
    There, she thought. We will hold our council there before the lake. She raced down from the battlement, ignoring the whispered comments of the servants going about their morning tasks.
    “ You there, squire,” she called to a youth standing near the castle gate.
    He turned and approached with obvious reluctance. “My lady?”
    “ Run and fetch the castle steward. Ask him to join me there.” She turned and pointed up to the top of the gate. “A gold piece will be yours if you have him back within ten minutes.” The young man’s face brightened and he ran to do her bidding.
    He returned well within the allotted time, urging a panting older man in his wake. Sorcha laughed and pulled the promised coin from her pocket. The youth hesitated for only a moment before taking it, but avoided touching her fingers. Her smile hardened and she turned to face the steward.
    “ Thank you for coming, Sir Dougal. Please, join me.”
    The dignified, gray-haired man moved to stand beside her on the battlement. “How may I be of service?”
    “ I’ve decided that our negotiations with the dragon should take place beside the lake.” She directed his attention to the meadow she’d chosen. “Please arrange for a pavilion for the king’s comfort.”
    They spent a few moments discussing details about what the meeting would require, and then the steward bowed over her hand and left to make the preparations.
    With that duty performed, Sorcha set out to walk to the lake. She strolled down the main street of the village, pretending she neither knew nor cared that the folk stared and made protective signs. Once beyond the gate, she relaxed and enjoyed her solitary stroll. The sun was well up by now and the sky a soft, hazy blue. Buttercups bloomed in profusion and red clover dotted the meadow. Before her sojourn in the ice aerie, she would have been watching for medicinal herbs as she walked, but now the sky called her. Gods and goddesses! It would be a glorious day for a flight!
    She stopped, closed her eyes, and grounded herself in the here and now. She was what she had been born to be — a human woman with magical gifts. The breeze whispered through the tall grass, wafting sweet scents of blossoms and good earth to