I got a ticket for the long way round Two bottles of whiskey for the way And I sure would like some sweet company And I'm leavin' tomorrow what'dya say When I'm gone When I'm gone You're gonna miss me when I'm gone
I sigh, sitting at the foot of my dad's small bed and watching him place clothes and weapons in his pack—he was going out to find some work and wouldn't be home for a few days and he's taking my brothers with him again. "Where is it," dad mumbles to himself looking around the small room, scratching the top of his head. "Lea, have you seen—"before he has time to finish his sentence the front door to our little cottage is kicked in and Lord Rahl's men are filing inside. Father pushes me behind him, instructing me quietly to run the first chance I get. My father unsheathes his sword as the soldiers form a semi-circle around us, blocking my only escape. "Darryl Carter," one soldier asks—his weather-worn face and gray hair showing his age.
"Yeah, what do you want?" I stay hidden behind my father, taking the sheathed dagger out of the back of his trousers and slipping it down the front of my dress. The old soldier steps forward fearlessly, ignoring the sword in my father's hand.
"Lord Rahl has taken an interest in your daughter," he says simply. Father shakes his head, backing away and forcing me into a small crevice that the soldiers couldn't see. "Where is she?"
"Don't know what you're talkin' about, the only daughter I have is in Sheep Haven with her husband and two children." That was my older sister Kacelyn, she's a Confessor. "It's just me and my two boys here and I would appreciate it if you and your soldiers got out of my house." My eyes widen—nobody has ever told D'Haran soldiers that before! The older man nods at one of the soldiers close by and moves out of his way. The soldier, he couldn't be much older than me (sixteen), steps forward and runs my father through without blinking. I let out an involuntary gasp, quickly covering my mouth with my hand and moving further back in the hidden crevice. Unfortunately, doing so means I can no longer see the others.
"Find the girl, but do not harm her—Lord Rahl will have your heads if she is brought to him injured." I close my eyes tightly, willing the men to leave; everyone knows what happens to girls my age that are taken to Darken Rahl. A calloused hand grips my throat suddenly, hauling me out of my hiding place and dropping me on the hard stone floor. "Lyanna?" My gray-green eyes meet the old man's gray ones defiantly, making sure to keep my chin raised despite the fear that tries to overwhelm me. He takes my silence as a yes and motions to one of the soldiers to bind my hands behind my back before taking the dagger out of my dress and tossing it beside my father's corpse. Before I can fight back one of the soldiers knocks me unconscious using the hilt of his sword.
You're gonna miss me by my hair You're gonna miss me everywhere oh You're gonna miss me when I'm gone I got my ticket for the long way round The one with the prettiest of views
The first thing I feel when I begin to come to is an intense pain emanating from the back of my head, the second is that I am lying on something incredibly soft; a bed maybe? Slowly, I open my eyes and take in surroundings in awe. The room I am in is bigger than my cottage and made of marble and stone; the bed I am on has silken sheets and covers, all dark hues; there are two windows that overlook courtyards, one has a balcony. A large desk sits in one corner of the room and a grand fireplace is directly across from the bed, a fire warming the room; to the right is a wardrobe, no doubt filled to the bursting with beautiful clothing.
A nearly silent gasp escapes as I remember exactly what has happened that lead me to being in the lavish room—my father is dead, I was kidnapped, and now I'm somewhere in the People's Palace as a slave of Lord Rahl's. I fight back tears, trying to be strong like my father taught me to be. Just 'cause you're a girl don't mean you have to act like one! C'mon, Lea, pick up the dagger and try it again, but this time, baby girl, try not to cut yourself. Those words were seared into my brain the moment my father spoke them. I was four-years-old, and that was the first time he had ever let me touch a weapon. The small smile that had begun to form quickly diminishes the moment I hear a door open and someone steps into the room, features partially obscured in the shadows.
"Lyanna Carter," the voice states, laced with an aristocratic accent and power. This could only be Darken Rahl himself for no one else possesses the darkness he does with the exception of the Keeper. "I see you've finally woken after your accident." My eyes narrow as I climb out of the bed and stand in front of the most feared man in all of the Midlands, anger taking over.
"I don't remember it being an accident unless one of your thieving dogs dropped his sword hilt on the back of my head, you heartless bastard!" A dangerous light enters his pale blue eyes and in only two long strides he was directly in front of me and I was falling to the ground, my cheek still stinging from his blow. My anger disappears in that instant, being replaced with unimaginable dread.
"I suggest you learn your place here, Miss Carter, or you will be begging for my mercy; is that clear?" His suave voice is low and threatening—eyes narrowing as he forces me back to my feet. I nod my head, eyes widened in fear. There was no denying this man—this monster—anyone that did never spoke again; just another soul for the Keeper. His icy gaze travels down my body, a smirk appearing on his handsome face. It's then I realize I'm wearing an extremely low-cut dress with a corseted top and a thin skirt, two slits going up either side and stopping mid-thigh; the thing that I hated the most about it was that it was red and gold—his colors. One of his arms snake around my waist, my body trapped against his own, his arousal pressing against my stomach. Two fingers of his free hand trace my bottom lip slowly, attempting to gauge my reaction.
I keep my gray-green eyes on the ground, feeling a blush rise to my cheeks as Rahl leans closer, warm breath whispering against the sensitive skin on my neck. "Tell me, Lyanna, do you have Confessor blood in you?" Of course, he's looking for Confessors; I guess he's out of luck with me. I shake my head, biting back a moan as he kisses where my neck and shoulder meet. "I do not like liars, Lyanna."
"I swear I don't!" My eyes meet his now, silently pleading with him to know that I'm telling the truth. "Th-the most I can do is tell whether or not someone is lying, nothing else, I swear!" His eyes narrow in disbelief, making me shiver in fear of what he would do to me. No sane person feels safe in Darken Rahl's presence, no one but the Seeker that is, but he's dead—killed as an infant in Brennidon.
"Your mother was a Confessor, yes?" Nodding my head, I allow my eyes to drop back to the magnificently embroidered rug beneath our feet. "Therefore that would make you one as well."
"Under normal conditions, yes." He gives me a curious look, brushing some of my platinum hair out of my face. "Mother was wearing a Rada'Han when I was conceived; it was a bit faulty though." After another curious look and him arching a single eyebrow I continue. "Um, I wasn't supposed to inherit anything; it's just how that works in my family. At least one of the children I will bear shall be a Confessor." Yeah, my family's pretty fucked up when it comes to this kind of stuff.
"I see." No you don't. "So, if I were to have a child with you there would be a great possibility that it would be a Confessor?" Nodding, I look away from him and to the door that could quite possibly lead to my freedom. He must notice where my gaze is being drawn to because he buries the fingers of his free hand in my shoulder-length hair and forces me to meet his eyes again. "Shall we get started then?" His soft lips cover mine in a possessive kiss, causing me to tense up in shock. I've never been in a situation such as this before and I had no plans to be in one until I was married.
Eventually my senses come back to me and I realize I'm kissing him back and my traitorous fingers have tangled themselves in his thick brown hair. Mmm, he's so warm. I jump as I feel him biting my lower lip before I succumb to a moan, parting my lips and granting his access. He picks me up, wrapping my legs around his waist as he walks over to the large bed and drops me down onto it. Slowly my eyes lock with his again and I rise up onto my knees, beginning to untie the strings on the front of my top. The top easily slides from my body, exposing my breasts to Rahl—the nipples hardening the longer her stares at them. His eyes eventually meet mine again and I ask him something that's been on my mind since he started talking about me giving him a child. "When and if we have a child together, how will it be treated?"
"I will have it treated as though it were my own." I can't help the slight laugh that escapes at his answer; even he gives me a smirk when he realizes that the child would, in fact, be his child. "You know what I mean, Lyanna." He's not lying, I'll give him that. I crawl to the end of the bed where he was still standing, watching my intently, arousal straining inside the confines of his breeches.
"What of your wife, the Mother Confessor?" His eyes harden slightly, but I don't flinch away.
"She doesn't care what I do; she hasn't from the very beginning. Now, stop questioning me and spread your legs like the whore you are," he snarls, pushing me roughly onto my back. He undresses and uses a dagger to cut my skirt to shreds—the last barrier I had before I was completely bared to his critical eye. If I do have a child with this monster at least I know it will be well taken care of and not forced to live on the streets like most bastard children are. One of his hands hooks under my knee, bringing that leg up to rest on his muscled shoulder, bringing him closer to me-the head of his cock brushing up against my swollen clit, ripping a moan from my throat.
"M-my Lord," I stutter, heart racing wildly at this unknown pleasure. My hands fist the sheets as he continues to tease me, enjoying the control he feels. "P-please, my Lord." He leaves a trail of kisses over my jaw to my ear where he whispers in a husky voice," What do you want, Lyanna?" I roll my hips up to grind against him, causing him to let out a hiss at the contact.
"I think you know, Master Rahl." My voice doesn't sound like my own anymore, it sounds like a whore who is trying to seduce a man. "I want you to fuck me." With those words he thrusts into me, groaning at my tightness. "Ahh!" It hurts at first, but with every thrust that pain dies away and is replaced with an intense pleasure I never thought existed. Soon we set a rhythm and he brings his head down, taking a hardened nipple in his mouth. I throw my head to the side, arching into him. It's not gentle like I thought my first time would be, but I quickly realize I'd rather have this delicious pain than anything else. Adjusting us slightly, he pulls my other leg up onto his shoulder, causing him to hit a spot inside of me that released the pressure I had felt growing. Pleasure crashes over me in waves, my core clenching around his pulsing member. He follows after me only seconds later, collapsing on the next to me.
It's got mountains It's got rivers It's got sights to give you shivers But it sure would be prettier with you When I'm gone When I'm gone You're gonna miss me when I'm gone
I grip tightly to my midwife's hand as another spasm of pain washes over me. "You can do it, Lyanna," she whispers encouragingly into my ear, whipping some sweat off my brow. "Only a little longer now." I can't help but to let out a muffled scream, burying my head in in the hand not crushing Terra's. After eight excruciating hours the shrill cry of a baby fills the tense air and I let out a relieved moan as I flop back onto my pillows. Childbirth was definitely not the easiest thing in the world and I'll be damned if I go through that again anytime soon! Darken bursts into the room and is handed our child, a small smile forming on his face.
"It's a girl," he tells me softly, settling beside me on the spacious bed. "What shall we name her?" I hold up a single finger, signaling for him to wait a moment while I take a drink of water.
"Eliza," I murmur, looking at my little girl. She was small with a tuft of platinum blonde hair and the blue-grey eyes all newborns have. I wonder what they'll look like once they've changed. His smile becomes larger as he kisses the top of Eliza's head, chuckling as she coos up at him. I didn't notice at first, but everything was beginning to get darker. "D-darken!" My own voice sounds muffled as blackness begins to envelope me, then I know nothing else.
Darken Rahl is forced to watch as the light slowly leaves Lyanna's eyes, a few tears escaping and rolling down his cheeks. She was the only woman that wasn't afraid to give him her opinion even if it differed with his own; she wasn't empty-headed like many woman in the People's Palace that Egremont had tried to get him to marry and didn't withdrawl into herself like Kahlan seemed to do after their son was born. He may have never loved Lyanna in the traditional sense, but that never stopped the bond that had formed between them. Lyanna Carter was buried the next day in the Rahl family crypt and Darken Rahl became the hardened man he used to be with the exception of when he was around his children.
You're gonna miss me by my walk You're gonna miss me by my talk oh You're gonna miss me when I'm gone.