A Quest of Heroes (Book #1 in the Sorcerer's Ring)

one of the brown
pieces sideways, all the way across the board. It put her mother one move away
from losing.
    Her
mother stared down, expressionless except for a flicker of her eyebrow, which
Gwen knew indicated dismay. Gwen was smarter, and her mother would never accept
that.
    Her
mother cleared her throat, studying the board, still not looking at her.
    “I
know all about your escapades with that common boy,” she said derisively. “You
defy me.” Her mother looked up at her. “Why?”
    Gwen
took a deep breath, feeling her stomach tighten, trying to frame the best
response. She would not give in. Not this time.
    “My
private affairs are not your business,” Gwen responded.
    “Aren’t
they? They are very much by business. Your private affairs will affect
kingships. The fate of this family. Of the Ring. Your private affairs are
political—as much as you would like to forget. You are not a commoner. Nothing is private in your world. And nothing is private from me.”
    Her
mother’s voice was steely and cold, and Gwen resented every moment of it. There
was nothing Gwen could do but sit there and wait for her to finish. She felt
trapped.
    Finally,
her mother cleared her throat.
    “Since
you refuse to listen to me, I will have to make decisions for you. You will not
see that boy ever again. If you do, I will have him transferred out of the
Legion, out of King’s Court, and back to his village. Then I will have him put
in stocks—along with his whole family. He will be cast out in disgrace. And you
will never know him again.”
    Her
mother looked up at her, her lower lip trembling in rage.
    “Do
you understand me?”
    Gwen
breathed in sharply, for the first time comprehending the evil her mother was
capable of. She hated her more than she could say. Gwen also caught the nervous
glances of the attendants. It was humiliating.
    Before
she could respond, her mother continued.
    “Furthermore,
in order to prevent more of your reckless behavior, I have taken steps to
arrange a rational union for you. You will be wed to Alton, on the first day of
next month. You may begin your wedding preparations now. Prepare for life as a
married woman. That is all,” her mother said dismissively, turning back to the
board as if she had just mentioned the most common of matters.
    Gwen
seethed and burn inside, and wanted to scream.
    “How
dare you,” Gwen said back, a rage building inside. “Do you think I am some
puppet on a string, to be played by you? Do you really think I will marry
whomever you tell me to?”
    “I
don’t think,” her mother replied. “I know . You are my daughter, and you
answer to me. And you will marry exactly who I say you will.”
    “No
I won’t!” Gwen screamed back. “And you can’t make me! Father said you can’t
make me!”
    “Arranged
unions are still the right of every parent in this kingdom—and they are
certainly the right of the king and queen. Your father postures, but you know
as well as I do that he will always concede to my will. I have my ways.”
    Her
mother glared at her.
    “So,
you see, you will do as I say. Your marriage is happening. Nothing can stop it.
Prepare yourself.”
    “I
won’t do it,” Gwen responded. “Never. And if you talk to me any more of this, I
will never speak to you again.”
    Her
mother looked up and smiled at her, a cold, ugly smile.
    “I
don’t care if you never speak to me. I’m your mother, not your friend. And I am
your Queen. This may very well be our last encounter together. It does not
matter. At the end of the day you will do as I say. And I will watch you from
afar, as you live out the life I plan for you.”
    Her
mother turned back to her game.
    “You
are dismissed,” she said with a wave of her hand, as if Gwen were another
servant.
    Gwen
so boiled over with rage, she could not take it anymore. She took three steps,
marched to her mother’s game board, and threw it over with both hands, sending
the ivory pieces and the big ivory table crashing down and shattering to
pieces.
    Her
mother jumped back in shock as it did.
    “I
hate you,” Gwen hissed.
    With
that, Gwen turned, red-faced, and stormed from the room, brushing off the
attendants’ hands, determined to walk out on her own volition—and to never see
her mother’s face again.
     

CHAPTER
TWENTY SIX
     
     
    Thor walked for hours through the
winding trails of the forest, thinking about his encounter with Gwen. He could
not shake her from his mind. Their time together