CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX: Time To Go Home

Arwen's vigil was meant to be a solitary one. Alone on a raised platform beneath the lofty dome of the great temple, she was supposed to keep watch all night over the body of the slain prince.

But as she knelt beside the remains of poor Prince Kassim, Arwen realized that she was not alone. The temple was slowly being filled. As the long night wore on, a silent crowd was gathering in the rows of benches.

It was a strange collection of mourners. Some were merchants of great wealth who had sided with Queen Zuleika out of greed. Some were young women who had honestly welcomed her reign, since she declared forced marriages at an end and allowed women to serve in her palace as scribes, spell-casters and even soldiers. Some were children who had never seen a dead body before. And some were white-bearded holy men who remembered the old days and yet knew they could never come again.

Arwen had something in common with all these people. Like the children, she had been blind to the evil around her for far too long. Like the merchants, she had been captivated by the splendor of Zuleika's reign. Like the old men, she had hoped for a deliverance that would come without risk or toil. All of them had failed, in one way or another, and now the boy prince was dead.

The daughter of Elrond was an elf, a stranger. Yet she was bound to these people. Among them she was just one more sinner in a multitude of sinners. The death of Prince Kassim had given her a new understanding of her own place in life.

Pale morning light was shining through the temple windows as the last mourners arrived. The last of all was the new pirate king Ling Kray. He bowed to her as though she were a priestess, yet his dark gaze lingered on her curves in a way that made her feel naked beneath her sacred robes. Arwen felt her cheeks grow hot. But she did not look away.

"Good friends," she began, holding out her arms in welcome, "all of us have wept this night for the death of Prince Kassim. It was the sorcery of an evil woman that took his life. But Queen Zuleika is dead. And so as we mourn for the noble prince who was taken from us too soon, let us also look into our hearts and ask ourselves how we can change for the better. Let us build the future together, in the name of the boy prince who gave his life for all of us."

Arwen meant to go on and say that Ling Kray was just the man who could lead the city of Zin Zaraboob into the future. She wanted to tell the people how brave and clever he was, but also describe his kindness to Prince Kassim . . . and to her. Lastly she wanted to say that if they all worked together they could make a new start. There was nothing the people could not accomplish if they believed in their new king.

But while she was planning what to say, she felt, all of a sudden, the earth begin to shake beneath her feet. The walls of the temple were starting to tremble, there were moans of fear and cries of alarm, and Arwen had no time to react when a great block of stone broke loose and fell from the lofty domed ceiling high above.

"Got you!" The crashing stone fell just where Arwen had been standing a moment before. But Ling Kray was quick and alert, and he sensed the danger and knocked the tall elf-maid out of harm's way in the nick of time.

"You saved my life." As the earth's shaking subsided, Arwen became aware of Ling Kray's unselfish courage – and the heat and hardness of his powerful body. The two of them were lying on the floor, and the pirate king's muscular arms were wrapped tight around her in a protective male embrace.

"Just because you're not my slave anymore doesn't mean you can get yourself killed," he joked. Their faces were so close, his mouth nearly touching hers. "If you get squashed like a bug, who'll stop me from turning back into a frog?"

Arwen laughed, yet her laughter soon turned to tears. Then Ling Kray kissed her, and she lost her head entirely and started kissing back like a fool. Desire overruled all thought, as it always did when the pirate king held her close.

"Hush, my love," he said at last, breaking the kiss and carefully helping Arwen to her feet. Ling Kray's ebony eyes were shining. "Whatever devilment is causing the earth to shake, we'll soon put it right. You and I can accomplish anything together."

"Oh, Ling Kray, I'm so sorry." Arwen wiped her eyes and sniffled loudly, her tender lips still throbbing from that wild and wicked kiss. "Don't you understand? That earthquake wasn't caused by evil, but by good."

"Huh?" For once the cunning pirate looked absolutely perplexed.

"That rumbling we felt came from the north," Arwen explained, fighting to regain her poise. The eyes of the entire city rested upon her swollen lips and tear-stained face. "Mount Doom has fallen. Sauron and his One Ring are no more. It's time for me to go home."