A Promise of Iron by Brandon McCoy (the reading list .txt) 📕

but you are missing something. I’m a woman, and in a few days, I will be without a house. I can’t own anything.”

I took her hand in mine. “Then marry me.”

She slapped me on the shoulder. “Now, you’re joking.”

I turned the copper ring on her finger. “It…it would solve a lot of problems.”

“You don’t marry someone to solve problems, Fae. This is a purse full of coin; there are other ways we can deal with—”

“I’m not asking for your hand to save you, Lira,” I said, kneeling. “I’m asking for your hand to save me.”

She starred at me for a long while. I counted my breaths.

“Gods, Faerin…. I-I don’t know what to say.”

“You don’t need to say anything.” I stood. I wore my best smile, covering my wounded pride. “Just consider it. Now come on, let’s rejoin the group before Tab has a heart attack.”

I moved towards the door. She held my hand and did not follow.

I turned.

“Yes,” she said, tears streaming down her face. “Yes, Faerin. I will marry you.”

Chapter Forty and Two

Summer 1272, Cyllian Imperial Count

I woke near midday, a full night’s sleep for the first time in several days. With last night’s celebration, it was sorely needed. Lira breathed peacefully beside me, her head resting comfortably on my chest. I combed my fingers through her auburn hair. Her eyes remained shut, but she moved her head in appreciation.

“It’s time to wake up,” I whispered.

“What time is it?” she mumbled as she pressed her lips lightly to my skin.

I did my best to ignore the gesture and looked up at the oculus above.

“Half-past tenth hour, if that thing is accurate. No telling how long ago it’s been calibrated.”

She bit my chest, then tossed the sheet over her head.

We emerged from the room a little past eleventh hour, flushed, disheveled, and hungry. The smell of breakfast called to us from the kitchen. We looked over the spread with ravenous eyes: black bread, eggs, and leftover potatoes fried with a thick slab of bacon.

We took our plates to the patio to enjoy some fresh air. Tab and Sam were at work in the field, picking away at the weeds one by one.

“About time you two joined us!” Tab shouted. “Late start won’t do us any good if we want the southern quarter cleared by sundown.”

I pointed to Lira. “It’s her fault, Tab. I had every intention of getting up an hour ago.”

Sam grunted.

Tab slapped him on the shoulder with her wooden spade. “Let ‘em be, Sam. I can remember a time when we struggled to get out of bed. Now we struggle to get out for different reasons.”

“You think I should go help them,” I asked Lira, “at least for a few hours?”

She shook her head. “That’s silly. You said you needed to leave early if you were going to make the camps by dawn. There will be plenty of weeds waiting for you when you get back.”

“I should be able to make the House by tomorrow afternoon after I speak with Monroe.”

“I should come with you,” Lira said. “Seems wrong for you to go it alone.”

I shook my head. “It’s safer that way. At least until we have everything signed and sealed. Your father is powerful, but he won’t risk his position if we have the law on our side.”

“Should we invite him to the wedding?” she asked dryly.

I chuckled. “Maybe we send him a bottle of wine as a parting gift.”

She smiled as she placed her hand on mine. “What about Monroe? We are going to need his blessing.”

“I seem to recall him pressuring Crylwin to marry,” I said.

She scoffed. “I think he was looking for something a little more uplifting than marrying his bastard off to an unemployed disavowal.”

“Come now,” I said. “You won’t be either of those things in a few days. Besides, he likes you better than Decia.”

“Ama maybe,” she said.

“Ama definitely,” I corrected.

She pushed her plate to the center of the table. “Well, how long do I have you?”

“I should go soon if I am to stop by the tree and… deposit our coin.”

“I wish you could stay at least one more day. We only just got here and…”

I kissed her hand. “I will be back for you in a few days. Then it will be nothing but blue skies ahead.”

“Alright,” she said, a sly grin forming in the corner of her mouth. “At least let me help you pack.”

I was saddled and ready an hour later, not that packing had taken more than a few minutes. It was harder than I imagined to ride away, but as the first mile fell behind, my pace quickened. Steven and I made good time to the valley and our lone elder tree. Perhaps it was foolish to head through the country again; I could have saved myself hours had I stuck to the main road, but I couldn’t think of a better place to hide the coin.

Steven and I arrived at the tree just as the sun was beginning its descent. I let him roam the valley freely while I looked for a place to hide the coin. I settled for a hollowed space midway up the trunk that had been home to a squirrel at some point. I managed to scale the tree with some careful maneuvering and hide the bag of coin, minus a handful of iron stars I would give to Monroe as a down payment or a dowry. He would not be happy at gifting away the vineyard, but considering Lira would be joining the family, it seemed a moot point. What was mine was hers already, and there was nothing I wouldn’t give.

I laid my pack down by the tree and made a small fire. Dinner was a simple affair, leftovers from last night’s dinner wrapped in wax paper. There was a little jug of wine to go with it. It was no fifty and one, but it was a treat all the same.

After dinner, I caught up with