The whole part was slowly leaving, people were approaching the grieving family, expressing their condolences and uttering some words of comfort. The three of them thanked the guest and made all the necessary talk while I was standing aside. Lady Ashling was inviting some of the noble families for a dinner which will be held next week to commemorate her deceased husband. However both her sons need to leave to take care of their houses.
I was watching them and felt alone, I wasn't part of this family. It was already a grace from Lady Ashling's side that I could participate in all the ceremonies.
Galke noticed me and came closer.
"Kian, can I give you a hug?"
"Yes, you may." I smiled faintly and hugged that man too. After all he was Lorcan's good friend. Immediately I noticed Tod staring at me.
"I meant what I said, should you ever change your mind you can always come to me." He touched a strand of my hair.
"Should your life become hard, write to me, I will help you." He added.
"Thank you." His words really meant a lot to me. Knowing that somebody cared about me felt good. I barely said it when Tod was standing next to us.
"Gale, thank you for coming and all your assistance. We shall meet again soon I hope. You are always welcome in my house." He hugged Gale and then looked at me.
"Kian, it's time. We need to go."
I said nothing, I followed him, we said goodbye to his family and to my surprise we never came back to Gale's house, I was placed in a carriage and we set off. Tod was riding a horse at the head of his men and I was enjoying a bumpy ride. We were riding fast and I was wondering how long it would take till we reached his house. To be honest I felt uncomfortable, all my stuff was left at Gale's and I had nothing with me. I was watching the fast changing scenery. We had already left the city and were heading through a thick forest. I kept thinking about what was ahead of me. I was supposed to be with Tod now. What his mother said sounded all fine, I knew all the stuff she said but Tod wanted something else from me.
Lorcan was the only man I have ever been with and I was sure Tod wanted to have sex with me. I think I wasn't really attracted to men, I had feelings for Lorcan only and sex with him felt good. Now his son will expect the same things from me. I felt that my face and ears became hot. I couldn't help and kept thinking about it. Tod wasn't experienced, or maybe was? No, he was over two years younger than me. I shall be able to have a better control over him than with Lorcan. To be honest Lorcan was impossible to control. He only allowed me to do stuff the way I wanted when it wasn't important to him. It might be different with Tod.
A sudden rattling woke me out of my thoughts, they were crossing a bridge. A head of them was a village but they were passing by not even stopping for a moment. I didn't feel well after a while because of the fast pace and uneven road and constant shaking which made me feel nauseous. I didn't eat much nor drink which added to my discomfort. I recalled the hell ride when Lorcan was bringing me back to his home after I ran away. I guess Tod was doing the same thing, he wanted to be home as fast as possible.
We stopped when the sun lowered significantly, it was late afternoon. As soon as the carriage stopped I decided to get out as fast as I could. Standing on solid ground and being able to make a few steps felt amazing.
"Kian, where are you going?" Tod was immediately next to me.
"I need to go somewhere private."
"Oh, sure. Let's go together." He immediately suggested.
"Tod I'm grown up, I can go on my own."
I felt uncomfortable with him in tow.
"Yes, but I need to take a piss too, so let's go."
I said nothing and followed him into the bushes.
I barely finished when Tod shouted at his men.
"Hurry up, we will move as soon as the horses have their fill."
That was bad, I hoped for a few moments to stretch my legs.
"Tod, may I have something to drink?"
Tod looked at me with surprise then he rushed back to the carriage and beckoned me with a gesture.
"Kian, look there is a basket here fastened under the seat with snacks, water and some wine." He looked worried at me.
"I'm sorry I forgot to tell you but I was so excited to take you to my home." He gently touched my cheek and I almost flinched, all his men were looking at us.
"Thank you Tod. How far is your house?" I slowly stepped back into the carriage.
"Not far, we shall be there in the evening."
We arrived just as he said. It was evening, the sun was setting and we were rolling along a cobbled road. The city Katnar was at the coast, I could smell the sea faintly. The houses were well maintained, made of garish rocks. There were many craftsmen here, their workshops had colorful boards that could be easily seen as we were passing by. We passed some inns and a large market which was rather empty now.
We were riding slowly now, people were still strolling the streets or rushing back home. After taking a few turnings we reached a tall wall with a gate. We stopped for a moment and the gate was opened.
The estate was huge, the road to it was across a park. I couldn't see much as we were rushing again only to stop in front of a palace. It was beautiful, with many towers and wide stairs leading to the main entry.
Thanks to its many windows it looked airy and surely was well lit by the daylight. It was a total opposite to the gloomy castle with the snake - like bridge.
Tod helped me out of the carriage.
"Well Kian, welcome to my, no, our house."