When Lovina woke up, the first things that she registered were that she was freezing, and that there was a group of men nearby, talking in hushed voices. Immediately after she opened her eyes to take in her situation, a warm, wet tongue made its way across her face.
Lovina glared at the owner of the offending tongue- the same dog that had given her away when she was trying to escape. Well, fat chance she had of that now- her hands and feet were bound with what looked like strips of cloth that only grew tighter as she tugged at them, and she was tied to a tree with the same material. Shivering and thoroughly annoyed, the gypsy looked up from examining her bonds to see the traitorous hound walk over to an unpleasantly familiar head of brown curls sitting at a small fire a few yards away, and shove its nose under his hand.
"Hmm?" Lovina heard the bastard say. "What is it?"
Lovina knew as soon as she made the wish that it was hopeless; the damn dog was going to tell Antonio that she'd woken. She hoped the bastard would leave her alone, though- she needed time to sort out what she was feeling so she could be properly angry again.
After all, in less than a month the Spanish lord had burnt her Nonno, sent her sorella off to an uncertain fate, separated her from her people, imprisoned her, and… saved her life. For all of her righteous anger, quick wit and sharp intelligence, Lovina could not puzzle out why a small, secret part of her heart was glowing with happiness- happiness at the fact that Antonio had saved her.
Logically, she could make sense of it. The Spanish bastard viewed her as his property; he'd gone through some difficulty to obtain her, and it followed that he wouldn't give her up all too easily. But there was that insistent voice from her thrice-damned heart (damned once for not being able to help Nonno, once more for leaving her people, and a final time for allowing any wavering of her feelings towards Antonio) that begged her to reconsider. Of course Antonio would want her back- but to the point where he'd risk what was probably one of his best horses, and possibly his own life, to save her from drowning?
Another voice popped up, prattling about how it was obvious that she would have these odd feelings for the Spaniard; he was the first one who decided to pursue her, albeit in a twisted, malicious way. Before, the hidden glances of longing and bated breaths had been just that- hidden. No one had wanted to get close to her, lest they risk the wrath of her Nonno or the shame of her scorn. But Antonio had seen her, wanted her, and taken what he wanted. While she hated the man, the voice reasoned, she did admire him for taking his horrific initiative. Lovina was not one to harbor affections towards weak-willed men.
Lovina bit her lip hard, hoping that the pain would eliminate the chattering voices and clear her head enough for the inevitable encounter with the Spaniard. She didn't want to hold an argument with the demons inside her skull as well as the ones in reality.
Reminded of his presence, the gypsy looked up, hiding her eyes behind her sopping curls. Antonio was staring straight at her, his eyes unreadable from the distance. When he saw Lovina, his eyes narrowed to angry slits, and then the lord -who, Lovina realized, was probably regretting having saved her- wrenched his gaze away from her, and instead glared deep into the flickering flames of the campfire in front of him.
Lovina tried to swallow a lump that had mysteriously appeared in her throat, and turned her gaze to her knees. Why now, after all that had happened, did she find herself ready to cry? The contemptuous dismissal of the Spaniard cut deeper than she let herself realize, and Lovina felt the first drops of blood seep into her mouth from her bitten lip.
By running away, Lovina realized, she had only reinforced Antonio's beliefs about her people. He saw them as cowards who leeched off of others, then ran at the first sign of trouble. Unfortunately, in a roundabout way -that was undoubtedly Antonio's fault at the core- she had done just that. Lovina knew that any chance of Antonio seeing her as anything more than a Gypsy had probably dissipated as quickly as the water on his horse's coat. And for some strange reason, the same part of her heart that had insisted that Antonio had to feel something for her to save her was now weeping bitterly, mourning what had been lost before it could bloom into something more.
Lovina dug her heels into the slightly damp ground and pushed, shoving herself against the tree at her back. The pain from the rough bark scratching her skin brought some clarity to her thoughts, and she was able to bury the weak part of her that wanted to believe that something could grow between the Spanish bastard and her. He wanted her for her body, and she wanted to get the hell out of his grasp- even if it took death to do so.
Lovina paused her inner turmoil as the dog trotted back over to her tree. She scowled at it, but it just sat and panted, letting its tongue loll out of its mouth as it regarded her with deep brown eyes, its ears swaying slightly. Lovina silently wished any and all misfortune possible upon the dog; if it weren't for the accursed beast, then her escape might have worked.
Lovina forced herself to inhale slowly and exhale slower; an epiphany of sorts had come to her. She had realized that she was not simply thinking of hurting Gillian and running to the hills in the context of saving her sister- it was now all about Antonio. When had it become about Antonio?
Lovina felt a chill sweep through her as she remembered her last shred of a thought the moment before she lost consciousness- not that her sister would be alone from now on, but that at least she had died out of Antonio's greedy hands. The gypsy asked herself the same question over again- when had it all begun to revolve around Antonio?
Antonio sat by the fire, letting the heat slowly dry his clothing. While he didn't care much for the damp, the Spaniard was too absorbed in his thoughts to mind. He paid no heed to the party of men sitting a respectful distance away from him who were swapping stories and wagers. Antonio had more important things to think about than the doings of those in his employ.
Such as the doings of one Lovina Vargas, currently not in his employ, but taking up just as much -of not more- of his time and resources.
The girl- no, gypsy- the gypsy had injured Gillian and attempted to escape. Antonio was not a fool, and he did not pretend that the thought of her trying to run away had not crossed his mind. For him, it had not been a question of if, but when. The Lovina that he wanted was not weak enough to take the abuse of her family and herself without retaliating in some way. Antonio also knew that the gypsy girl was not stupid enough to lash out at him directly; he had anticipated her coming up with more underhanded plots that led to her freedom. The Spaniard had had his best huntsmen at the ready since he had captured his tomato, and had thankfully been able to retake his prize before she was out of his reach.
Antonio wondered what it was that made all women he cared about seem to loathe the idea of living with him. He had no trouble capturing the attention of young, foolish court girls with his looks and charm, but Antonio also had no interest in them. He had been truly interested in two women in his life- and of the two, both would have rather suffered death than be with him. Antonio knew that he should concentrate on the present -that he would regret it later- but he let his thoughts stray to the first woman he had ever loved- Bella.
Bella had been engaged to Antonio since they had been children; their parents were eager for a strong alliance when it had looked like the old king had been growing weak. If it came to war, both of them wanted allies, and their children were the perfect way to form that bond. But Antonio didn't remember the politics behind their engagement; he remembered her curling blonde hair, her smooth curves, her pleasant face and eagerness to smile. Bella had been a bright light in his dull life, and he had sworn his undying love to the woman.
And then, the night before their wedding, she had been found dead. A snake had its fangs sunk deep into her wrist, and was the precise color of the ribbons Bella had been wearing that day.
Antonio never forgot the sight; sneaking to his fiancé's room to wish her a good night and joy upon the morrow, only to find her servants in an uproar and the apple of his eye spread cold across her bed. The doctors had never agreed on whether it was suicide or murder. The soon to be Lord could not decide which would have been worse- knowing that one of the few people he loved in life would rather die than be with him, or that some sick soul had decided to strip him of the little happiness he had.
After that, Antonio had grown cold, devoting his life to the church and the caretaking of his lands. No one had been able to reawaken the fire within him- until he had seen the gypsy girl, twisting in the streets.
The Spaniard hadn't noticed that while he was wandering the dark pathways of his memory, his eyes had drifted to Lovina. When he came to, he made no effort to move them; instead choosing to observe the girl. She had courage, Antonio admitted to himself, to attempt to escape and almost drown. He almost couldn't blame her for trying; he had done some terrible things to her, her family, and her people.
Antonio ran his tongue along the inside of his teeth, wondering when he had given up Bella's ghost in pursuit of the gypsy girl- for when he had rushed to save her earlier, there was no thought of retribution in his mind. He was completely concentrated on redeeming that one, specific, ultimately worthless life; not hoping that by saving the girl he would atone for his inaction in Bella's case. When had this started? When had Lovina become the sun that rose and set on his days? He could not wish to have even the semblance of a normal life with her; they were too different- and she would never forgive him.
For the first time in a long while, Antonio sent his thoughts up to the heavens, praying for the higher power that he so desperately believe in to have mercy on both him and his tomato.
When she looked up, eyes masked by her hair, Antonio fought to stomp down the small flare of joy in the pit of his stomach. He turned his gaze to the flames instead, seeking solace in a kindred spirit- one that could only cause destruction, no matter how much it aspired to help.
"Up," a hard voice commanded Lovina, and she awoke from her uneasy rest with a start to see Antonio standing over her. "We are leaving; you are to ride with me. I assure you, any further escape attempts would be unwise." Antonio pulled a knife from his boot-top and slit the cloth that bound Lovina to the tree; then hoisted her up by her arms. Lovina tottered on unsteady feet; pins and needles making their way up her legs. She walked numbly alongside Antonio to his horse, once again lost in her thoughts. Lovina was just beginning to realize the repercussions of her actions, and could barely begin to imagine what Gillian's reaction to her would be. Lovina almost hoped it would be a fiery tongue-lashing; anything was better than Antonio's silence. The gypsy barely noticed it when Antonio helped her into the saddle and swung his coat around her shoulders to quell her shivering in the cool morning air.
Lovina remained quieter than the day she was born for the remainder of the trip back to the mansion, trying to puzzle out what she felt for Antonio and how that would affect her plans for the immediate future. However, no sooner than she had come to an acceptable conclusion, another thought nagged at her mind. It was a vague reminder that she was forgetting something important, something from a long while ago but that was no less vital to the next part of her life.
Lovina mentally stowed the warning away, along with her unresolved debate from the night before. She would have plenty of time to reflect when she was back in her prison, the gypsy decided.
Felicia had pretended to sleep for much of the journey; it made gathering her thoughts much easier. From what she had learned so far, it seemed that Sadiq intended to go to Lord Antonio's castle, and either challenge him for Lovina or take her by force. Sadiq didn't seem the type to try something underhanded or devious, but Felicia wouldn't put it past him.
The younger sister knew that whatever Sadiq tried, innocent people were bound to get hurt. Well, not necessarily innocent people, but people who didn't deserve to be caught up in a quarrel over her sorella.
Felicia knew that she had a brief window of time while the band of thieves would stop close to town to put the finishing touches on their strategy, and she intended to utilize that time to the fullest. She had to get a message to Lovina, or they were all as good as dead.
Authoress' Random Ramble
Yes, it is I, updating on the one-year anniversary of this fic. If you're mad that not that much happened; this was a chapter for you to get into the minds of the characters, learn a little more about them, and be set up for the action that is finally going to happen next week. Also, that chapter will be one long puppy, so be prepared.
For all of you who are still with this, I would like to extend my never-ending gratitude. If you (understandably) want to know why I haven't updated for months... Well, school sucked the muse right out of me. I didn't want to churn out a chapter per week with no real feeling; I felt that it was better to wait and give you something worth reading rather than post crap.
Also, there is something completely mandatory for anyone reading: check out this fanart, and congratulate these amazing people for spending their valuable time making something wonderful that was inspired by this fic.
Picture one: http(colon)/Morph9(dot)deviantart(dot)com/art/Choose-Me-or-Your-Pyre-204821687
Picture two: http(colon)/lovetema(dot)deviantart(dot)com/gallery/#/d337n29
Picture three: http(colon)/blood-pleasures(dot)deviantart(dot)com/art/Choose-Me-Or-Your-Pyre-fanart-180484636
Video: http(colon)/www(dot)youtube(dot)com/watch?v=_cI-H7NZ-Ps
I realize that I have no right to ask for reviews after being gone for so long and leaving you all waiting, but... It would mean the world to me if anyone out there cared enough to drop me a review. I was so happy that we've reached over 200, and I couldn't have done it without my amazing fans. I less than three you all.
Less than three, less than three.