Chapter One Preview: Part Two

And here is a second part. Third and last part I will be posting later. Enjoy. :)

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Ruval turned his gaze towards the hearth and did not look as the door opened quietly and soft footsteps came towards him. “What took you so long?” Ruval demanded. “Almost fifteen minutes passed before you showed.”

“I apologize for the delay,” a deep voice answered. “I was outside when I got your summons and came as quickly as I could.”
“So you say,” Ruval said wryly. “I‟m sure you spared no time in getting here, assuming you made the effort.”

There was no answer from the speaker. Ruval sighed and waved him forward. “Stop lurking in the background, Darvir, and get over here. I have a task that needs immediate attention.”

A tall brooding man dressed in the same black attire from head to toe came into view. Thick dark hair fell around a face as hard and unreadable as flint, and eyes as blue as the ocean stared at Ruval with a cold light. “What is it?” he asked evenly.

Ruval ignored the undercurrent of irritation he sensed in Darvir‟s voice and leaned back in his chair. “I need you to leave for the Farrand Hills today. You know where that is, correct?”

“Yes.”

“Good. You have maybe two days to get there before a band of riders pass through and join a larger force. I want the smaller band eliminated—every single one of them before they reach the other group. When you are finished, check the saddlebags of a white horse with brown patches on its front legs. You should find a small wooden chest with silver engraved on it. Take nothing else but that, and bring it to me.”

“I see,” Darvir said coldly, his blue eyes flashing with barely suppressed anger. “Another trinket to add to your collection. Why can't I just steal it when they stop to camp for the night?”

Ruval clenched his fist tighter around the goblet. The boy was definitely growing bolder to question his orders. Ordinarily, he would have given Darvir a sharp reprimand to remind him of whom he was dealing with, but Ruval did not care to waste precious time waiting for Darvir to recover when he had such an important task waiting for him to take care of.
Ruval held his temper in check and took another sip of his wine. “I have been monitoring their pace, and seeing as they have not stopped for more than a couple of hours at the most when night comes, I sincerely doubt they will change now, especially when they are so close to their destination. It will be easier to obtain the chest once they arrive at the Farrand Hills.”

“And after I deliver this chest to you, then what?”

“Then you do what you have always done. Wait until I have something else to use you for.”

“What if I don't want to be used anymore?”
Ruval glanced up sharply at Darvir. “That is hardly my concern. Now stop wasting time and get moving.”

“No.”

Ruval froze, unsure if he had heard him correctly. “What did you say?”

“I said, no,” Darvir repeated grimly. His face was set determinedly, and Ruval could see the open defiance in his gaze.

“I don't care about your schemes,” Darvir continued, “and I'm tired of being your personal hound that you set loose on whomever you feel like.”

Ruval was on his feet in an instant, the sudden movement spilling his wine and knocking the chair to the floor. “I don't care what you want, nor am I interested in your feelings,” he snarled. He glared at Darvir with disgust. “Look at you. The power and skill you possess is beyond what any man or even an elf could attain, yet you not only do not care, you would not even use it if I didn't make you.”

“It is something I never wanted.”

“Yes,” Ruval sneered. “I know what it is that you desire. A family, friends—things that only weak, sentimental fools crave.”

“Then I am one of those fools,” Darvir said harshly. “They certainly possess more and live a better life than I do. At least they are free to choose their destiny instead of being bound to serve one man's will.”

Ruval felt his face beginning to grow hot from the rage seething inside him, and he struggled to control himself from physically lashing out at Darvir. “You have wasted enough of my time for today. Now get going and bring me the chest.”

“And if I refuse?” Darvir‟s hands were clenched into tight fists, and he stood there boldly, almost as if daring Ruval to make a move against him. Even though he would not have minded thrashing the boy for his insolence, Ruval could not let anger dictate his actions when so much was at stake.

“If you wish to try rebelling again, I will have to give you another lesson in obedience,” Ruval growled. “I am your master and whether you like it or not, you are mine to command, and you will obey me.”