The Fire Mages by Pauline M. Ross Page B

it out of his hand. “Leave my things alone! And I don’t care anything about you and Raylan. You can fight all you like.”
    “Good,” he said, which took me by surprise. For a moment there was a look on his face which reminded me of my father, but then he scowled again. “Fucking stupid, he is. And you too, come to that. You’re both stupid. He’s probably more stupid, because he thinks I’m wonderful. You don’t, do you?”
    “No, not at all.”
    “Good,” he said again, puzzling me. Why was it a good thing for me to dislike him?
    “And I’m not stupid.”
    “Oh, but you are. You think you’re so clever, don’t you, Kyra abra Dayna endor Durmaston? You’re just a nobody from nowhere in particular, and yet here you are, mingling with the great ones. But you haven’t the slightest idea what’s going on around you, not really.”
    I was too offended to answer him.
    “And Raylan’s stupid because he’s jealous of you. Ha! My ex-drusse jealous of my new drusse! Of course, that’s because he thinks I’m fucking you. As if anyone would want to. You’re not even pretty, by the moon! Although I could.” His tone became speculative. “If I chose to.”
    His eyes drifted down to my breasts, only partially concealed by my nightgown and robe.
    For a heartbeat, I waited. A flicker of fear rushed through me. Anger still glittered in his eyes, and his lingering gaze made me feel uncomfortable. All this time he’d ignored me, and I wasn’t sure I wanted that to change when he was in this mood.
    “So let’s see what you have.”
    “What?”
    “Take your clothes off, stupid.”
    For a moment, I was shocked. It wasn’t exactly the romantic encounter I’d envisaged. I wondered if I should have taken up Bonnor’s offer to teach me, after all. I would have been more prepared.
    But if it got the whole sex business out of the way, I’d be pleased with that. So I shrugged aside my robe and lifted the gown over my head. His eyes were everywhere, of course, but I was determined not be coy about it. If he couldn’t be bothered even to be polite as he seduced me, I certainly wasn’t going to simper and cower. I was embarrassed, naturally, but I stood straight and looked him in the eye. Or I would have, if his eyes had been looking at my face.
    He grabbed me. There’s no other word to describe the rough way he reached for my breasts and began to squeeze them. It wasn’t painful, exactly, but definitely uncomfortable. As his hands pushed against me, I found myself edging backwards until my thighs bumped up against the bed, and I could go no further. Even then I was leaning away from him. He put a hand on one buttock, pulling me closer, while his other hand kneaded my breasts. His breath was rattling in my ear, and I could feel his hardness thrusting against me.
    Without a word he pushed me onto the bed and fumbled with his trousers. For a moment, there was a respite, and then – a spear of intense pain, flaring, and just as quickly gone. After that, I felt nothing – no pain, no discomfort, no anger, just a curious detachment as I watched his face, red and distorted, and waited for it to be over. Which it soon was.
    For a few moments, he didn’t move, simply stood there, eyes closed, as his breathing slowed. Then he pulled out of me, wiped himself on my nightgown, fastened his trousers and left without a word.

8: Renewal
    Cal was subdued the morning after, watching me covertly as I ate, but he said nothing. Raylan wasn’t there.
    Oddly, having never noticed Raylan much before, I was now curious about him. I hadn’t realised that he’d been Cal’s previous drusse, although if I’d thought about it I could have worked it out. All mages had to have a spouse or drusse for the renewal ceremony, so there must have been one for Cal’s last renewal, which was just before he became my patron. So Cal and Raylan must have gone through the ritual together, and almost immediately Cal had taken up with me. No wonder