ready to flirt, handsome, and with an eye for a pretty girl and a fast horse.” She smiled wryly at him. “In short, Your Grace, a young lord like nearly a hundred others I could name for you.”
“I could throw in a few of my fellow tribesmen and some Zharmatians I know, my lady,” Shima offered. “We’d get that hundred and more easily.”
Now her smile lit the world. “Ah, you men—just the same no matter where you’re from,” she teased him. Then, serious once more, she continued. “Then you know exactly the kind of fellow I mean, my lord. He’s the apple of his father’s eye. His mother thinks the very dirt he treads upon is diamonds and gold. Whatever T— Whatever Lord Charming wanted, he got—and more. Much more. All his life, too many people have stumbled over themselves to give him whatever he’s wanted.”
Shima sighed in dismay and shook his head, thinking that he knew where this trail would lead; no doubt Merrilee had fallen in love with this man, and he cared nothing for her, the fool. “My people have a saying: It is neither wise nor kind to spoil a dog, a horse, or a child. Only ill will come of it.”
“Ill did—but I’m getting ahead of my tale. The spoiled child became a spoiled adult. In some ways, Your Grace, it got worse. Women throw themselves at Tir—at Lord Charming. He’s as handsome as Merrilee is beautiful.”
She stopped, frowning at some memory. To encourage her, Shima ventured, “Let me guess: But he’s not as good as Merrilee.”
Nodding, Karelinn said, “That’s it in a golden nutshell, Your Grace. As I said, he’s utterly charming—one of the most charming people I’ve ever met. That’s why almost everyone has indulged him. I swear, sometimes I wondered if he had a ‘little magic’ that blinded many people to his true self.”
Shima nodded. While he’d not met anyone with a talent like that, since he’d been in the north he’d met one or two people with a tiny spark of wizardry in their souls that enabled them to do something that their fellows could not. One of the shepherds that lived near Dragonskeep could call his sheep to him and they would stand like statues for shearing, turning this way and that as he bade them and even rolling onto their backs. “You may well be right.”
She went on. “And there’s, well, not a ‘darkness’ within him—that would be going too far, I think. At least, I hope it would be. Yet I would never trust him as a friend, my lord. He’s the kind who doesn’t give a fig for anyone else—or so I would have said.
“But then he met Merrilee. Aunt Perrilinia said she’d never seen anyone fall so hard in love so fast. I think for the first time in his life that spoiled little lordling cared about another person.”
That was a surprise. Shima had been certain that the love was one-sided. Good thing Lleld wasn’t here to lay a wager. I’d have lost, he said to himself, thinking of the smallest Dragonlord. “What happened?”
Twist, twist, twist; now the ribbon cut into Karelinn’s fingers. Shima leaned over in his saddle and gently took it from her.
“Thank you. I hadn’t even realized…” She inhaled deeply, staring down at the red welts on her skin. “Oh, how he courted Merri! How kind and gentle he was! She began to fall in love with him. Then Father came for a visit. We were supposed to stay for another year, you see, but … Merri told Father she thought of marrying. He was happy for her—he truly was. Sad to lose her, but glad that she was happy.
“Then he asked who the lucky man was. When he heard the name … My lord, it was awful. He turned first red, then white, and raged that no daughter of his would marry such a bullying, sadistic, cowardly cur. I’ve never seen him like that. He has a temper, yes, that we’ve seen often enough. But never anything like that. He was terrifying.”
Shima could well imagine that the bearlike Lord Romsley would be frightening if angry enough. But to turn
“I could throw in a few of my fellow tribesmen and some Zharmatians I know, my lady,” Shima offered. “We’d get that hundred and more easily.”
Now her smile lit the world. “Ah, you men—just the same no matter where you’re from,” she teased him. Then, serious once more, she continued. “Then you know exactly the kind of fellow I mean, my lord. He’s the apple of his father’s eye. His mother thinks the very dirt he treads upon is diamonds and gold. Whatever T— Whatever Lord Charming wanted, he got—and more. Much more. All his life, too many people have stumbled over themselves to give him whatever he’s wanted.”
Shima sighed in dismay and shook his head, thinking that he knew where this trail would lead; no doubt Merrilee had fallen in love with this man, and he cared nothing for her, the fool. “My people have a saying: It is neither wise nor kind to spoil a dog, a horse, or a child. Only ill will come of it.”
“Ill did—but I’m getting ahead of my tale. The spoiled child became a spoiled adult. In some ways, Your Grace, it got worse. Women throw themselves at Tir—at Lord Charming. He’s as handsome as Merrilee is beautiful.”
She stopped, frowning at some memory. To encourage her, Shima ventured, “Let me guess: But he’s not as good as Merrilee.”
Nodding, Karelinn said, “That’s it in a golden nutshell, Your Grace. As I said, he’s utterly charming—one of the most charming people I’ve ever met. That’s why almost everyone has indulged him. I swear, sometimes I wondered if he had a ‘little magic’ that blinded many people to his true self.”
Shima nodded. While he’d not met anyone with a talent like that, since he’d been in the north he’d met one or two people with a tiny spark of wizardry in their souls that enabled them to do something that their fellows could not. One of the shepherds that lived near Dragonskeep could call his sheep to him and they would stand like statues for shearing, turning this way and that as he bade them and even rolling onto their backs. “You may well be right.”
She went on. “And there’s, well, not a ‘darkness’ within him—that would be going too far, I think. At least, I hope it would be. Yet I would never trust him as a friend, my lord. He’s the kind who doesn’t give a fig for anyone else—or so I would have said.
“But then he met Merrilee. Aunt Perrilinia said she’d never seen anyone fall so hard in love so fast. I think for the first time in his life that spoiled little lordling cared about another person.”
That was a surprise. Shima had been certain that the love was one-sided. Good thing Lleld wasn’t here to lay a wager. I’d have lost, he said to himself, thinking of the smallest Dragonlord. “What happened?”
Twist, twist, twist; now the ribbon cut into Karelinn’s fingers. Shima leaned over in his saddle and gently took it from her.
“Thank you. I hadn’t even realized…” She inhaled deeply, staring down at the red welts on her skin. “Oh, how he courted Merri! How kind and gentle he was! She began to fall in love with him. Then Father came for a visit. We were supposed to stay for another year, you see, but … Merri told Father she thought of marrying. He was happy for her—he truly was. Sad to lose her, but glad that she was happy.
“Then he asked who the lucky man was. When he heard the name … My lord, it was awful. He turned first red, then white, and raged that no daughter of his would marry such a bullying, sadistic, cowardly cur. I’ve never seen him like that. He has a temper, yes, that we’ve seen often enough. But never anything like that. He was terrifying.”
Shima could well imagine that the bearlike Lord Romsley would be frightening if angry enough. But to turn
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