Darkness Embraced Read online

  “Yes,” Dredd agreed.

  The general gave him an icy stare. “My men do not interrupt me.”

  “I am not one of your men. I will come with you and train the soldiers. But I will answer to no one. I train my way.” Dredd’s face remained impassive, as if he were discussing the weather and not a life changing opportunity.

  Reicher assessed Dredd for a moment and then said. “So be it. But you must show deference to the Royal family when in their presence, should the occasion arise. Other than that you can do what you like. In training. The overall rule of the Armies is still mine and I have complete authority in the running of them.”

  Dredd grunted his assent.

  “It is settled then. We will talk in more detail tomorrow. If you will excuse me, I have much work to do.” Reicher turned to his desk as if the conversation was complete then turned back. “One more thing.”

  Dredd remained just inside the tent flap.

  “What is the name of the ebony-haired female who was at the jail this evening?”

  “Her name is Sloane.”

  The general nodded. “Thank you.”

  “And I have one more request about the job,” Dredd added.

  “Of course, what’s that?”

  “I will be bringing my wife with me.”

  Epilogue

  “Da!” the toddler shouted, his chubby little legs running at high speed until he reached his destination. The little boy wrapped himself around the knees of his father, who had just walked through the door of the well-kept four-room cottage.

  Dredd chuckled and reached down to pick up his son. “Hello, Drayke. How is Da’s little warrior? Did you protect your mother while I was gone?” Drayke nodded emphatically and hugged Dredd’s neck.

  “You would think you’ve been out training for days.” Dredd turned at the sound of his wife’s voice. Ivy smiled, as beautiful as ever, as she stirred the pot over the fire. She placed a hand against her lower back, her belly jutting out as she did so. Dredd never tired of the sight of his wife, particularly when she was ripe with his child.

  They had been living in a haze of happiness these last few annums. Dredd was content in his position as a combat trainer to the Royal Armies. It allowed him to pass on all of the battle skills he had spent his life honing. It also provided security for his new family, and a cottage within the safety of Domini territory, complete with a garden outside a kitchen window, two things Ivy had once told him she longed for.

  “How do you feel, naya rhum?” Dredd’s voice betrayed his concern, his worry growing as she reached the advanced stages of pregnancy. As much as he wished for children, the experience of Drayke’s birth had been pure hell, the cries of his wife in pain cutting him like a knife. He didn’t know what he would do if anything happened to her.

  Ivy stopped stirring and walked toward him, wrapping her arms around both her son and husband, as best she could with her belly in the way. She whispered in Dredd’s ear, “Do not worry, my Vertindi. Nothing worth having comes easy.”

  Dredd leaned down, capturing his wife’s lips in a sweet kiss as their two-year-old squirmed to get down. He loved it when she called him “husband” in Ajaxyan. There was no exact translation for husband, but the word loosely meant “protector.” He set the boy down, who immediately ran to the corner to play with his toys.

  Dredd grabbed Ivy’s face with both of his hands and said, “You saved me that day in the woods, naya rhum. I was just existing before, not living. I had never dared to imagine I would be...happy.”

  Ivy kissed him softly. “You were my dark warrior, come to save me when I needed you most. I just had to learn to embrace the darkness.”

  A word from the author...

  When I read my first romance novel as a teenager (Hearts Aflame by Johanna Lindsey) I was immediately hooked. I’ve been an avid reader of all kinds of romance ever since. It’s been a long-time dream of mine to write romance as well, and one day I realized there was only one thing stopping me from making that dream a reality...ME. I sat down and vowed to actually FINISH a manuscript. After finishing my first book, Darkness Embraced, in fall of 2013, I have since completed a second, Breakout, and currently have a few other works in progress.

  I live outside Austin, Texas with my husband and two dogs, our foursome being what I lovingly refer to as my “pack.” I hold a Bachelor of Business Administration degree and work in accounting and finance by day, when I’m not dreaming up new stories. If I’m not typing away on my laptop I can be found spending time with family and friends, wasting way too much time on Facebook, and watching my favorite TV shows, which include “Game of Thrones” and “The Walking Dead.”

  ~*~

  Please visit me at my website or on Facebook:

  http://www.trisharcangelo.com

  www.Facebook.com/TrishArcangelo

  Thank you for purchasing

  this publication of The Wild Rose Press, Inc.