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several seconds.
    “Rise,”
Mara instructed him.
    “I
am glad to see your safe return, Captain.”
    “Thank
you,” Mara replied. “The guards downstairs said you wished to see me.”
    “Yes,
my Lady. I just wanted to report that all has been quiet while you were away.”
    “Has
Sean returned from his protection detail?”
    “He
returned two days ago, after seeing the Prime Minster safely through his South
Ciar tour.”
    Mara
nodded. “Is that all?”
    Brendan
stared at her for several moments in silence, unspoken questions burning in his
eyes. “Captain Edward is alive and back in the Ciar Court,” she said in a dry
tone, answering his unspoken question.
    “Thank
the Gods for that, my Lady.”
    “It
was a necessity,” Mara replied. “If Edward had died, that would leave Jake in
charge of the Ciar court guard.”
    Brendan
cringed slightly. “No one wants that.”
    “No,”
Mara said in a voice that withheld even the slightest ounce of humor. “No one
wants that.”
    Other
questions burned brightly through Brendan’s eyes, but Mara was his Captain, so
instead he offered a low bow and said, “Is there anything else, Captain?”
    “No.
That will be all for now.” She gave Brendan a curt nod and turned and walked
back towards her own chambers.
    Mara’s
chambers were made of the same granite that formed the rest of the castle. The
floor was covered by a thin black rug. A large bed stood by the left wall and a
large writing desk sat in the right corner of the room near one of two small
windows. A large fireplace was situated along the wall closet to the door, but
no fire was currently lit.
    Mara
walked across the room and pulled back the black curtains covering a window and
pushed open the glass panels. A cool breeze flowed into the room, allowing the
fresh wind to saturate the stuffy air surrounding her. Mara slowly peeled off
her clothes and walked towards the large, private bathroom attached to the
room. With black marble tiles, a large shower and a Jacuzzi tub that was far
too large for its single inhabitant, the bathroom was one of the only rooms
within the ancient castle to have been fully refurbished within the last
century.
    Mara
turned on the water and waited several minutes for the temperature to rise
before stepping into the steaming hot water. She closed her eyes, allowing the
feel of the water beating against her skin to soothe her taut form. She lost
track of time standing in the hot water, drowning out the world. By the time
she stepped out, her normally pale skin had been beaten red by the heat of the
water.
    She
wrapped herself in a large black towel and bound her long black hair in
another. She dried her body thoroughly and then walked back towards the
bedroom. The cool breeze filtering in from the window was soothing against her
flushed skin. She laid down on the large bed with the towel wrapped tightly
around her. As her head touched the familiar black pillows, a sense of calm
began to descend upon her. Here, among these desolate chambers, Mara was able
to drown out the dreams, the memories chased back by the cold mountain winds
and the familiar grey stones that she had called home for the majority of her
life.
    Mara
threw off the towel and slipped under the black covers that cascaded over her
bed. Moments later, she slipped into a deep, dreamless sleep.

Chapter XII
    Sandra
entered the ancient garden. Black roses ran wild, climbing the ancient stone
walls, thorns piercing the crumbling grey rocks. A pond was in the garden’s
center, the water covered in a layer of thick, green moss making the water
appear almost sickly in the fading light. Sandra approached the water’s edge
and closed her eyes, allowing her mind to change the bleak scene.
    As
though stepping into a dream, the moss vanished from the water, transforming it
to a clear pool that reflected the stars above. Her thin, black gown
transformed to royal blue, the skirt becoming fuller as she gazed into the
sparkling crystal water.