Chapter 22
1500 Words
Cool air rattled the vent grate. Nemesis and Marcus lay entwined on the bed. Drops of sweat glistened on their skin in the faint light of the large open room. Through the open balcony doors, the noise of the party below echoed into the room. With a sigh, Nemesis pushed herself up, then leaned down to kiss her love to awaken him before he drifted off to sleep.
“How is it I do all the work and you’re the one tired?” she joked.
“It probably has something to do with the evolution of primitive humans,” Marcus replied.
Nemesis stood up and stretched. A full-length mirror reflected the beauty of her naked flesh, but her mind was focused on water. Walking to the sink, she turned the taps on. Cool water filled her hands before she brought it to her face with a splash, then reached over to grab a towel.
She saw the bodies of two dead men.
“What the f**k is that?” she demanded.
“Oh, right. That’s why I came to find you downstairs before you distracted me,” Marcus informed. “Some would-be assassins tried to earn a place in the officer ranks. Your father still wants me dead, I guess, for seducing his precious daughter.”
“You couldn’t even clean the mess up yourself?” Nemesis stood there, glaring at Marcus, one eyebrow raised. “It’s not like you even had to do the work yourself. You could have just summoned one of my people to clean it up for you.”
“I think you mean my people, because if memory serves me, it was I who gave my lordship to you.” Marcus corrected. “It was worth it to see the anger it caused your father. Not to mention you make a far better leader than I ever did.”
“We both know you did that to seduce me.”
Sitting up, Marcus looked angrily at Nemesis for a second, but then found himself admiring the woman. The way the ward lighting hit her skin through the window. He couldn’t help but smile. He thought back to his first meeting with this amazing woman. She had challenged three of his best fighters in the arena. The crowd bet against her, and the odds were stacked. He bet a substantial amount on her.
“If you remember the night I met you, I bet everything on you. I saw your greatness. I know you hate your father, but you have his warrior instincts and his gift for leadership. That is why I gave you my title and power, and if memory serves, it was you who seduced me. You chased me for a full year after I had nothing more to give you, and only then did I surrender to you.”
Her memories of that time flooded her mind. He was a sweet man, but vicious to his enemies. The bodies behind her with their many wounds attested to that. She did admire that viciousness in him. But, he was kind and sweet to her, never told her what to do, and always supported her goals. Few men dared to defy her father, and even fewer could withstand her anger. She had never met a man that drove her so crazy, but who she couldn’t imagine living without.
“You’re still going to clean that up.” She turned back to the mirror.
“Yes, dear. Right away,” Marcus joked.
Standing up, he stretched before walking to the two corpses by the balcony door. His muscles rippled when he hoisted the two bodies over his shoulder one after another. It was hard for Nemesis to not watch. With ease, Marcus carried the bodies to the balcony edge and looked down. He checked to make sure there was no one in the streets before heaving the corpses over the railing. Turning back, he saw himself covered in blood in the mirror.
“Now, that is more befitting the man and warrior I love.” Nemesis swooned.
“Now I need a shower,” he laughed.
Nemesis remembered Lady Clotho’s suggestion, and trepidation overtook her. It wasn’t that she worried about Marcus's reaction so much as her own feelings towards Lord Drumpf. The warning about Matthew echoed in her mind.
Seeing her pain, Marcus approached her and lifted her face to look into her eyes.
“Just something Lady Clotho told me to do, but I don’t want to do it.”
“That old woman is wiser than all of us. I’ve never doubted her ability to see into the future. You shouldn’t either,” Marcus cautioned.
She had never kept secrets from him before, and she wasn’t going to start now. Still, she couldn’t quite find the words to tell him. It wasn’t fear of how he’d act. Marcus had never shown a hint of jealousy before.
“Lady Clotho has devised a plan to save Matthew, but it is contingent on me.” She spoke softly out of shame.
Marcus leaned in and kissed her, trying to calm her.
Looking into his eyes, Nemesis knew he would support her no matter the cost.
“If it’s for Matthew, then you must do it. If there is anything I can do to help you, know that I will. There is nothing I wouldn’t do for you,” he vowed.
“Even mop up pools of blood?” Nemesis pointed out with a coy smile.
“I would gladly die to save your brother’s life. You might believe you can’t live without me, but I know who you really are. How important your family is to you. I watched what your sister’s death did to you. How much you drank, fought, and begged for death to spare you from the pain. I would sooner die than let you go through that again.”
The words sent Nemesis's mind reeling. She fought hard to resist the memory. Concordia was so sweet and innocent, and no threat to anyone. The only crime she committed was not believing in what everyone else did. Vengeance welled up like a great monster, swallowing Nemesis whole.
“Lady Clotho told me I need to seduce Lord Drumpf and make him believe I love him. Once I have him ensnared, I am to reveal my true self and my many companions, and especially my true love for you. She claims it will drive him mad and he’ll try to kill me, but of course, I am the better warrior, so I’ll end up killing him. It’s the only way to get close enough to learn his plans. Lord Drumpf is very cautious about who he trusts.”
“There is nothing more maddening to a man than to not be powerful enough to claim what he loves,” Marcus replied.
“You’ve never claimed me,” Nemesis snorted.
“A true man doesn’t try to claim the woman he loves but waits to see if she’ll claim him.” Marcus smiled at her. “Weak men believe they can overpower a woman and scare her into submission, but that is not true love. True love only exists when two people accept each other for who they are.”
“Do you accept me for who I am and what I have to do?” Nemesis asked.
“I would f**k him myself to save you this pain, but, sadly, Lord Drumpf and I prefer the company of women,” Marcus joked.
“That would be way too much work for you, my dear. We both know you barely have enough energy to please me,” Nemesis declared. “But, you do please me. You are the only man I will ever give my heart and soul to.”
Before Marcus could say another word, she pulled him into a passionate kiss. She felt the tingles in her body that only he could produce, and she dragged her nails down his spine. Neither noticed or cared that the bloody mess on his chest was now smeared on both of their bodies. , Everything else faded away.
Breaking away, Nemesis tugged at her lover to follow her as she moved towards the bathroom.
“You’ve gotten me all filthy so it’s your job to help me get cleaned up,” she instructed.
“That sounds like a lot of work.” He smiled.
“But, it’ll be work I promise you’ll enjoy.”
No matter what would come, Nemesis knew that with Marcus at her side, she could overcome any obstacle.
- Writer
