"You need to talk to me about what Peter said to you."

Liana slammed the cupboard shut and took the kettle off the fire, ignoring the searing pain in her hand as she touched the hot metal. She poured out the water and made the tea, keeping her back to Edmund, who was rocking her niece on his knee. She finished her task and turned around, placing a mug near his elbow and taking the baby from him. When she finally met his eyes, he raised an eyebrow.

She took a deep breath, "He talked to me about the possibility of making an announcement."

"An announcement?"

"About us."

"What does that mean?"

"I'm being very clear."

"Can you please-"

"I would rather discuss this later," she snapped, finally losing her temper. Edmund blinked, but didn't say anything. He picked up the mug of tea and Liana went upstairs to put her niece to sleep. In the small room she had converted into a nursery, Reyna the nurse sat with Merda, making a wreath.

"I'll take her, ma'am," said Reyna. She was old and stout, and reminded Liana of the grandmother that had raised her when her mother had died. She took the baby from her arms and put her into the cradle. Liana gave Merda a quick kiss and made to leave the room, but Reyna stopped her. "I was wondering if I could have a word, Healer?"

"Of course," Liana led her out of the room towards the stairs. "What is it, Reyna?"

"Well, I wanted to say this sooner but you've been so busy I didn't want to worry you," the older woman fidgeted nervously. "Two people came by, a few days ago, to ask about you. I thought you should know."

Liana frowned. "Are you sure it was not someone from the Houses?"

"No, ma'am, I'd know if it was one of them. They were two men."

Liana froze. Reyna wrung her hands anxiously and waited for Liana to speak. Finally, she took a deep breath. "Tell me everything."

"The baby was asleep and Merda was out with her little friends, so they didn't see, and I didn't tell them. They were both men, one was in a soldier's uniform and the other was lordly looking. They just asked if you were home and when I said you weren't they were horribly angry and the lord might have said something but the soldier stopped him and they went away."

"Do you know their names?"

"No, ma'am, they didn't say."

Liana took a deep breath. "The soldier, Reyna, was he tall, fair, bearded?"

"Aye, ma'am. He was young, probably the Just King's age."

"He carried a sword?"

"Aye, and a torch even though it was early in the day."

"A-a torch?" stuttered Liana. "What on earth for?"

"I don't know, ma'am. The soldier said they meant no harm but I didn't want to take my chances, ma'am, I took the baby and ran for the market and bolted the doors behind me. We didn't come back till nightfall and all was quiet then."

Liana sighed. "I- thank you, Reyna, for not worrying the children. I'll see to it that you are not bothered here again."

"You know who they were, ma'am?" asked Reyna hopefully. "You'll tell them not to come here anymore?"

"They won't, Reyna, don't worry."

Reyna smiled and went back to the nursery. Liana clapped her hand over her mouth to stifle the cry that threatened to escape her. She sunk to the ground and leaned against the banisters of the stairs. She felt a headache coming on. She wanted to run downstairs into Edmund's arms and tell him everything, but she was rooted to the spot from shock and fear. Ronas and the Count had come to her home, where her two young nieces lived and where she was wont to spend the night when she felt she should. If she pushed Reyna some more, she was sure they would realize that they had visited the day someone threw a rock through her window.

She had known it was Ronas. After his warning the week before, she had been expecting something to happen, but she was more than a little surprised to find that the Count was involved. Everything he did had a personal touch to it; if he wanted to hurt her, Liana was sure he would have done it long ago on the numerous occasions he had caught her alone. He wouldn't anonymously try to hurt her. But he would try, and perhaps Ronas had convinced him that the only way to get her to marry him was for her to see how dangerous it was for her to be in love with Edmund.

Love. It was strange to think that the man she loved, for she was sure by now that it was love that was keeping them together, was simply the man she loved to her. She still called him by his title in public, or to tease him when they were alone, but lately she had started to forget it. Added to that, after the day she had fallen asleep in his arms, she had had a hard time falling asleep anywhere else. She knew it wasn't safe, but she didn't want to end it. Giving up Edmund would hurt her too much, and it would hurt him and his family. She had grown attached to all of them and she refused to be frightened into letting go of something that could give her so much happiness. But the fact was that Ronas and the Count were not above hurting her to her their way and, probably exactly as they had planned, that scared her to death.

"Liana," Edmund's tone told her that he had heard everything and had probably been watching her for some time. She had been so lost in her thoughts she hadn't even heard him come up the stairs. Part of her, the part that wasn't frozen with fear, was glad that he knew without her having to tell him. She looked up at him, her face blank. He sat down next to her and gently took her into his arms. He didn't need to speak. She buried her face into his chest, her tears coming before she had even realized she needed to cry. "Its alright," his voice was soothing. "I won't let anything happen to them, Liana. I promise."

!

"We should talk to Peter," Liana's voice was hoarse when she finally spoke. Edmund's fingers continued to run through her hair soothingly, but she felt him let out a small sigh of relief. She hadn't spoken a word since he had helped her out of the cottage. She had not been surprised to find that he had taken her back to Cair Paravel and sent two guards down to the village to her home. He had promised to keep her family safe, but he would not let her leave his side. They were curled up on the divan in his solar. The curtains were pulled back to give a splendid view of the setting sun, but Liana barely saw it. Her head was spinning.

"We can do that tomorrow," Edmund spoke gently. "You should rest, Liana."

"I'm fine."

"You're upset."

"Of course I am."

He sighed. "Liana, please, talk to me."

"About what?"

"You know who threw the rock and you know who came to your house that night. Tell me who it is. I can fix this."

"No, you can't."

"If this is about the Count-"

"Its not just him."

"Then who else is it?"

"I'm not sure."

"Liana," Edmund groaned. He ran a hand through his hair in exasperation. "You need to talk to me about this."

"Why?" her eyes were blank as she stared up at him unblinkingly. "I cannot do anything about it. How can you?"

"How do you know I can't?"

Liana was quiet. Edmund got up from next to her and closed the curtains. When he turned around, she was standing as well. He raised an eyebrow. She bit her lip. "I should go."

Edmund blinked. "Why?"

"Its late. I need to go to my room or back home."

"You can't go to either of those places. The safest place for you to be right now is here," he took a few steps closer to her and gently took her hand in both of his own. She looked away. "Liana?" his voice was low. "You don't feel safe with me?"

She looked up at him immediately, her eyes wide. "Of course I do, Edmund, that isn't what I meant."

"Then what did you mean?"

She sighed. "I don't want to make it worse, Edmund. Someone tried to hurt me, and I have accepted that. I know why it happened and I take full responsibility for it. These are my decisions, and I don't regret any of them. But," her voice became earnest and her eyes shone with unshed tears. "Someone went to my home. My whole family is there. If it was the Count, and if it was the same person who threw the rock at my window, I know that they are trying to hurt me. Edmund, those two little girls are all I have. If something had happened to them…" she trailed off, but her lips trembled.

Edmund sighed and pulled her closer, into his arms. She burst into tears for the second time that evening, but he was glad of it. He hadn't realized how worried she was, or he would have done more to keep the children safe. He had assumed that her fear was for herself, but it wasn't. It didn't surprise him, and he could kick himself for overlooking it. Of course, Liana was worried about her family more than anything else. She had him. He would protect her with his life, and she knew that. But those children had no one except her, and Edmund was keeping her away from them.

"I'm sorry," he murmured into her hair. Her tears had stopped, but she was still trembling. "I wish I could make this better for you."

Liana pulled away from his embrace so she could wipe her tears with her sleeve. She gave him a small smile when she saw his look of concern. "You do make it better," she touched his cheek. "Being with you is worth all of this pain, Edmund. I-" she stopped speaking. Her inner voice was begging her to say those three words, but she couldn't. She was sure she loved him, but saying it would only make the pain worse if it ended. She pursed her lips, but something in Edmund's look told her that he had guessed her thoughts. Her eyelids fluttered as his lips neared hers. "Edmund..." she breathed out his name as his mouth pressed against hers for merely a second before pulling back.

"Don't," he murmured. "For once, Liana, don't try to stop me from making you feel better."

She let out a shaky breath. "Okay," she whispered. Edmund's hand cupped her face, pulling her close. Liana threaded her fingers through his hair, gasping into the kiss as he used his free hand to brush her hair back. She hadn't realized how much she had missed him until he had kissed her properly. Emotions had been running so high since he had returned that they had never greeted each other properly. But he was making up for it now; no one could make her feel as safe as Edmund could. His mouth went lower, past her jaw and towards her neck. He brushed his nose against her pulse point, murmuring her name quietly as he pressed kisses wherever he could reach. Liana focused on her breathing, but her heart raced when she felt him intertwine their fingers. His lips brushed against her jaw and came back up to her cheek, where he stopped.

"You're shaking," he murmured against her skin. He nudged her back to the sofa and she sat down without objection. He still hadn't let her go. He kissed her again, this time slower. Liana made a sound of pleasure as he gently ran a hand through her hair. He smiled against her lips. Liana's hands, steadier now, tangled into his hair. It was always messy, and though she was always fixing it, secretly she loved to run her fingers through it.

A knock on the door interrupted them. Liana smiled when Edmund pulled away, but grabbed his sleeve before he could get up to open the door. "Your hair is a mess," there was a smile in her voice that hadn't been there since the day Edmund had left on the hunt. He grinned and stayed still, allowing her to at least try to tame it. She huffed and gave up soon enough, before the person outside knocked again, this time more urgently. Edmund frowned, but Liana merely gave him a kiss and picked up a random book from the table in front of the sofa. She tucked her legs under her skirt and opened the book, resting her head against her hand. She looked so comfortable that even Edmund would have believed that she had been sitting in that same position for hours, if it wasn't for the fact that her lips were unnaturally red to match her cheeks.

He opened the door and raised an eyebrow when he saw who it was. Ronas looked like he was in pain. "I need to talk to you and Liana," he hissed. "Now."

Behind him, Edmund heard Liana's book fall onto the ground with a dull thud, and a horrible feeling settled into the pit of his stomach when he saw the growing red stain on the front of Ronas's tunic.