Carnal Rites by Ines Johnson (learn to read books .TXT) 📕

sat rigidly in his chair. "That outburst should prove that to us."

A debate rose up amongst the women. But it was all gibberish to Merlyn. She stole out of the room at the first opportunity.

Bursting out of the glass doors, she gulped in a lungful of air.

"Merlyn?"

Merlyn looked behind her to see her sister.

"What are you doing out here?" Alyss said. "They're debating your finding. I thought this was what you wanted?"

"Liam should be here."

"Why would he be here? The males already have a voice on the council. Though he will be reprimanded for speaking out of turn. Can you believe the nerve—"

"It's Liam's finding."

Alyss frowned. "I don't understand you? Even if Liam did the calculations, he couldn't put the whole thing together. That would take a woman's mind. Men don't do complex things like this without it causing destruction."

"That's not true Alyss. I couldn't have done this without Liam. He's gone now and I don't know where he is. I don't know where Jaspir is either?"

"Who's Jaspir?"

"Never mind." Merlyn began walking away.

"Merlyn." This time it was her Mother's voice. "Get back in here. The Sisterhood has questions for you."

Merlyn turned. She looked up at her Mother. The stern look on her Mother's face beckoned her forth, but Merlyn's feet wouldn't budge. She felt off balance. She shook her head and then turned and walked away. A moment later, an arm linked through hers.

"What are you doing?" Merlyn asked Alyss.

"The look on Mother's face was too priceless." Alyss grinned ear to ear. "Plus you are obviously in a state of shock or insanity. You shouldn't be alone now. You can deal with her later."

But Merlyn didn't want to deal with her Mother later on. She didn't want any deals with her Mother any longer.

Merlyn made it to her conveyance. Alyss hopped into the passenger seat and Merlyn began to drive. When the car stopped, they were at Chanyn's. If she couldn't find Liam, perhaps she could find Jaspir. Jian knew where he was the first time, maybe he'd know this time.

When they got to the house, Rianald, the manservant, let them in. Chanyn sat on a sofa in the cradle of her bondmate, Khial. The two of them looked up at a portrait on the wall.

Alyss stepped in front of Merlyn, not waiting to be announced. She made a beeline for the portrait. "That is simply breathtaking."

Khial looked around and frowned. The two had never met before. His arm reflexively tightened around Chanyn.

"Hello, Alyss." Chanyn said from her husband's arms.

"Hello, cousin Chanyn. Felicitations on your conception." Alyss never turned to Chanyn as she spoke. Her eyes were riveted on the portrait. "This is simply lovely. The lines, the colors. They're unlike anything I've ever seen before."

"Thank you, Alyss," said Chanyn. "It was made for me by a friend."

"She is amazing."

"She is actually a—"

"The only thing I would've done differently," Alyss continued, "is add a spot of color, right here. You should tell her to add more of it in her future renderings."

"You can tell him yourself."

Alyss turned confused. Chanyn pointed to the far side of the room where a man stood, his attention rapt on Alyss as though she were unreal.

"You did this?" Alyss pointed at the paining.

The man's eyes tore away from Alyss and followed her finger. Then, as though they were magnetized, his eyes snapped back to Alyss. He didn't respond with any words.

"This is one of my mate, Jian's, brothers. His name is Adom."

Alyss frowned. "Are you apprenticed to the painter Amalyia? Or perhaps Koryn?"

Still no response.

"Surely you could not have done this all by yourself."

"And why not?" His voice was soft.

"Men don't have the capacity for artistic endeavors outside of a paint-by-numbers exercise."

The man blinked and lowered his eyes.

Jian entered the room. His expression grave. His eyes locked onto Merlyn.

"Jian," said Chanyn. "Is everything all right with Jaspir?"

"What's wrong with Jaspir?" Merlyn said.

"You didn't know? He was arrested."

"Arrested?"

"But he's free now."

"Free? Where did he go?"

21

The drive outside of the city took Liam a few hours. The paved roads turned to gravel and then to a green carpet. There wasn't another house for miles. Liam could just make out the smoke from a chimney in the distance. He pulled up to a quaint little cottage and parked his conveyance.

"This is it?" Liam turned to Jaspir. "This is your dream home?"

They'd come straight here after Liam took Jaspir to the landowner's offices. Liam paid the remainder of the debt to the landowner, who looked over her shoulder at Jaspir. Jaspir fidgeted behind Liam. His protests, after he'd left the courthouse, had grown more and more lackluster. All fight had gone out of the male. His money had been stolen by some fiend who was long gone. Jaspir had a good idea of who the culprit was. The concierge who had greeted Liam at each of his visits to The Stallion, save the other day, had mysteriously disappeared. The platinum-haired male could be found and prosecuted. There weren't many places to run and hide. But the matter would take time and the land would be gone by then.

The look on Jaspir's face now as he looked up at the worn structure was one of rapture. Liam had seen the same look on his face the night he'd taken off Merlyn's shirt, when he and Jaspir beheld her naked form.

Jaspir's throat worked but no words came out. Jaspir nodded in answer to Liam's question. Tears pricked at the edges of his eyes. Liam thought he should look away at such a private moment, but he couldn't tear his eyes from the man.

Liam had to wonder, had anything ever inspired him so much? So much that he shook just standing before it. So much that his mouth parted in awe and his heart sank into his chest.

Liam looked away from Jaspir when the answer came through to his mind. He'd spent years licking up the crumbs of affection Merlyn tossed over her shoulder to him. And they weren't true