Victoria Vane's Blog, page 4

December 30, 2015

ONCE UPON A TRUE LOVE’S KISS – Release countdown

Kiss+Meme+JC
Featured Title: MILADY AND HER SPY by Jillian Chantal

A lady, a spy, a traitor… a battle of wills.


 


Raised in the country after her mother’s death with only the company of three unruly brothers, Lady Augusta Covington is more proficient at fencing, riding and playing cards than being prim and proper. Myles Cuthbert, a spy in His Majesty’s service on a mission to find and expose a traitor, crosses paths with Lady Augusta when she rides to the aid of her brother, believing him to be injured. With the assignment at risk, Cuthbert agrees to accept the assistance of the troublesome lady eager for intrigue. As they move forward, his sense of obligation to her and the danger involved stir his soul.


ONCE UPON A TRUE LOVE’S KISS : Eight Kiss & Tell Tales by Bestselling Award-Winning Authors

USA Today Best-selling author, Julie Johnstone, joins best-selling, award-winning authors, Katherine Bone, Collette Cameron, Jillian Chantal, Samantha Grace, Alanna Lucas, Lauren Smith, and Victoria Vane in this delightful limited edition, containing eight tantalizing kiss-and-tell stories. Meet dashing, wildly charming rogues, spies, pirates, rakes and their extraordinary, intrepid heroines as they whisk you along on sweet to sizzling romantic romps in these wickedly entertaining historical romances.


PRE-ORDER NOW:    Amazon    B&N    ITunes    Kobo
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Published on December 30, 2015 05:00

December 29, 2015

ONCE UPON A TRUE LOVE’S KISS – Release countdown

Kiss+Meme+CC

Featured Title: HER SCANDALOUS WITH by COLLETTE CAMERON

A marriage offer obligated by duty . . . an acceptance compelled by desperation .


 


Philomena Pomfrett is resigned to spinsterhood, but to ease her dying brother’s fretting, she reluctantly agrees to attend a London Season with one purpose—to acquire a husband. Stumbling upon her hiding in a secluded garden arbor during a ball, Bradford, Viscount Kingsley doesn’t recognize his first love, yet something about the mysterious woman enthralls him, and he steals a passionate, moonlit kiss.


 


Caught in the act by Philomena’s brother, Bradford is issued an ultimatum—a duel or marry Philomena. He offers marriage, but even impoverished and with no other decent prospects, she rejects his half-hearted proposal until her brother collapses. Now, Philomena’s faced with marrying a man who deserted her once already.


 


ONCE UPON A TRUE LOVE’S KISS : Eight Kiss & Tell Tales by Bestselling Award-Winning Authors

USA Today Best-selling author, Julie Johnstone, joins best-selling, award-winning authors, Katherine Bone, Collette Cameron, Jillian Chantal, Samantha Grace, Alanna Lucas, Lauren Smith, and Victoria Vane in this delightful limited edition, containing eight tantalizing kiss-and-tell stories. Meet dashing, wildly charming rogues, spies, pirates, rakes and their extraordinary, intrepid heroines as they whisk you along on sweet to sizzling romantic romps in these wickedly entertaining historical romances.


PRE-ORDER NOW:    Amazon    B&N    ITunes    Kobo
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Published on December 29, 2015 05:00

December 28, 2015

Once Upon A True Love’s Kiss Release Countdown

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Featured Title: THE PIRATE’S DUCHESS by KATHERINE BONE

 



Duty forces him to take on the pirate code, but honor brings him back.


 


Prudence, Duchess of Blackmoor, has one desire—to be happy again. After struggling to overcome the horrifying death of her husband, she accepts an earl’s offer of marriage, confident she’s taking a step in the right direction. But demons, refuse to die, and Prudence finds herself caught in an intricate web of deceit that threatens the very foundations of all she holds dear.


 


Tobias, the Duke of Blackmoor, crosses the line when an assassination attempt on him fails. To restore the reputations of friends under attack by the same villain, and ensure his wife’s safety, he stages his own death, becoming The Black Regent, a notorious pirate bent on brandishing justice, never thinking he’d survive. But to his amazement, he has, and now the darkest-kept secrets are not worth losing the duchess his wife has become.


 


ONCE UPON A TRUE LOVE’S KISS : Eight Kiss & Tell Tales by Bestselling Award-Winning Authors

USA Today Best-selling author, Julie Johnstone, joins best-selling, award-winning authors, Katherine Bone, Collette Cameron, Jillian Chantal, Samantha Grace, Alanna Lucas, Lauren Smith, and Victoria Vane in this delightful limited edition, containing eight tantalizing kiss-and-tell stories. Meet dashing, wildly charming rogues, spies, pirates, rakes and their extraordinary, intrepid heroines as they whisk you along on sweet to sizzling romantic romps in these wickedly entertaining historical romances.


PRE-ORDER NOW:    Amazon    B&N    ITunes    Kobo

 

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Published on December 28, 2015 05:00

December 27, 2015

ONCE UPON A TRUE LOVE’S KISS Release Countdown

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Featured Title: AFTER FOREVER by JULIE JOHNSTONE

Widowed Lady Julianna Barrows never wants to fall in love again. But when the notorious former boxer Nash Overton hires her to transform him into a gentleman, Julianna quickly becomes the student, learning more about passion than she’s ever known, and more importantly, learning how to love again.


 


JULIE JOHNSTON – is an USA TODAY best-selling author of edgy Regency Romance. She feels she’s living the dream by working with her passion of creating worlds from her imagination. When not writing, she’s chasing her precocious children around, cooking, reading or exercising. Julie loves to hear from her readers. To connect with Julie or learn more about her books, visit: www.juliejohnstoneauthor.com, www.facebook.com/authorjuliejohnstone or www.twitter.com/juliejohnstone


 


 


ONCE UPON A TRUE LOVE’S KISS : Eight Kiss & Tell Tales by Bestselling Award-Winning Authors

USA Today Best-selling author, Julie Johnstone, joins best-selling, award-winning authors, Katherine Bone, Collette Cameron, Jillian Chantal, Samantha Grace, Alanna Lucas, Lauren Smith, and Victoria Vane in this delightful limited edition, containing eight tantalizing kiss-and-tell stories. Meet dashing, wildly charming rogues, spies, pirates, rakes and their extraordinary, intrepid heroines as they whisk you along on sweet to sizzling romantic romps in these wickedly entertaining historical romances.


PRE-ORDER NOW:    Amazon    B&N    ITunes    Kobo

 

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Published on December 27, 2015 05:00

December 17, 2015

ONCE UPON A TRUE LOVE’S KISS

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ONCE UPON A TRUE LOVE’S KISS

 


USA TodayBest-selling author, Julie Johnstone, joins best-selling, award-winning authors, Katherine Bone, Collette Cameron, Jillian Chantal, Samantha Grace, Alanna Lucas, Lauren Smith, and Victoria Vane in this delightful limited edition, containing eight tantalizing kiss-and-tell stories. Meet dashing, wildly charming rogues, spies, pirates, rakes and their extraordinary, intrepid heroines as they whisk you along on sweet to sizzling romantic romps in these wickedly entertaining historical romances.


Eight Tantalizing Kiss & Tell stories from bestselling award-winning authors $.99 for limited time only

 


AFTER FOREVER by JULIE JOHNSTONE, USA Today bestselling author. Lady Julia is hired to turn a rogue into a gentleman and receives lessons in love and desire.


 


THE PIRATE’S DUCHESS by KATHERINE BONE, National bestselling author. A duke masquerading as a pirate to “rob from the rich and give to the poor” sheds his darkest-kept secrets to keep from losing the duchess his wife has become.


 


HER SCANDALOUS WISH by COLLETTE CAMERON, National bestselling and Award-winning author. A marriage offer obligated by duty . . . an acceptance compelled by desperation.


 


MILADY AND HER SPY by JILLIAN CHANTAL, 2015 RONE Finalist. A lady, a spy, a traitor… a battle of wills.


 


KISSED BY A SCOTTISH ROUGE by SAMANTHA GRACE, Acclaimed, RITA-nominated author. Scottish land steward Fergus McTaggert calls a temporary truce with his employer’s companion only to discover their passionate battles have been masking their hidden desires.


 


STOLEN KISSES FROM THE VISCOUNT by ALANNA LUCAS, National bestselling author. A rake, an heiress, and stolen kisses…this seduction could be his last.


 


TEMPTED BY A ROGUE by LAUREN SMITH, National bestselling, Award-winning author. Gemma never planned on falling in love with her childhood sweetheart’s best friend, Jasper, when he returns home, but she can’t resist the naval officer’s brooding charm.


 


THE REDEMPTION OF JULIAN PRICE by VICTORIA VANE, National bestselling author. She gave him a chance to bury his past…but the price would be his heart.


 


PRE-ORDER NOW:    Amazon    B&N    ITunes    Kobo
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Published on December 17, 2015 08:52

December 9, 2015

December 8, 2015

HOTTEST COWBOY CONTEST!

Hey everyone! I Just got word that Dirk Knowlton from ROUGH RIDER ( on sale for  $1.99 at all e-book retailers until December 31) is a top 10 finalist for the HOTTEST COWBOY CONTEST at the INNER GODDESS BLOG.  I would really appreciate your vote.  It is also an entry for the random drawings of two Grand Prize Baskets.


 


cowboy 15


The ten finalists are: 
 
Brett Brennan from Cowboy Payback by by Donna Michaels
 
Cade Silver from Come Hell or High Water by Sabrina York
 
Cass Bronson from Come and Get Your Love by Tina Donahue
 
Chris Potter from Tangled in Divine by Heather Rainier
 
Dirk Knowlton from Rough Rider by Victoria Vane  
 
Jackson Walker from Sons of Dusty Walker by Randi Alexander
 
Jake Wilder from Truly Sweet by Candis Terry
 
Lucas Benedict from Love under Two Drifters by Cara Covington
 
Titan Sloan from Texas Wildfire by Sable Hunter


buckle 15



Dirk is a fiercely competitive guy and wants to win the HOTTEST COWBOY BUCKLE! 
To vote, please go to  INNER GODDESS FORUM. THE RAFFLE COPTER ON THE BLOG PAGE IS FOR VOTING.
 Rough Rider-300 with badge
 
 
ROUGH RIDER IS ALSO ON SALE FOR $1.99 AT ALL E-BOOK RETAILERS UNTIL DECEMBER 31
 Amazon  B&N   Kobo  iBooks
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Published on December 08, 2015 07:34

November 20, 2015

De Wolfe Pack Blog Hop



Click AUTHOR NAME TO HOP!

1) Elizabeth Rose                  9) Eliza Knight


2) Kathryn Le Veque         10) Lana Williams


3) Victoria Vane                  11) Barbara Devlin


4) Christina McKnight       12) Amanda Mariel


5) Anna Markland               13) Violetta Rand


6) Christy English               14) Scarlett Cole


7) Victoria Zak                    15) Meara Platt


8) Catherine Kean               16) Hildie McQueen


 


VICTORIA'S GIVEAWAY:

For a chance to win reader's choice of any of my books, please comment below with your all time favorite book hero and tell me why you love him! 



BRETON WOLFE by VICTORIA VANE
She swore to defy him to her dying breath... But passion blurs the line between love and hate...

The bluest blood and the hardest heart... at least when it comes to marriage... The daughter of a duke and granddaughter of a king, Adele of Vannes was bartered at birth in a marriage treaty for the sole purpose of producing a royal heir. When her philandering husband is slain by Norse marauders, she is coerced to wed again in order to protect her home and her people. Adele knows that her beloved Brittany needs a strong hand to survive, but how can she ever reconcile her bitterness and hatred with the desire she feels for her mortal enemy?


She’s the jewel he seeks for his Breton crown...A Barbarian bent on building a dynasty, Valdrik Vargr, ‘the Norse Wolf,’ is renowned for both his bravery in battle and shrewdness in statecraft. Setting his sights on claiming the kingdom of Brittany, he knows that siring sons from royal blood would solidify his hold, but the woman he would claim as his queen refuses to have him. Will he fuel her hatred by taking her to his bed, or will the man who strikes terror in the hearts of men be reduced to wooing his bride? 


Buy from AMAZON $1.99
EXCERPT

 Within the gates ere a man shall go, (Full warily let him watch,) Full long let him look about him; For little he knows where a foe may lurk, And sit in the seats within. - Hávamál


 


ADÈLE SPENT the night on her knees, gaze cast heavenward in prayerful supplication. She hadn’t dared to bow her head and shut her eyes for fear that sleep would overtake her. She couldn’t afford to be caught unawares when the marauders came. And they would come. That was a certainty. Rudalt had never returned from his ‘Norse” hunt. None had. They were dead. She felt it down to her bones. In his arrogance, Rudalt had taken the best warriors, leaving her defenseless.


She’d dispatched riders to Cornouaille, but he was days away. He would never arrive in time. Her home would be burned to ashes before help ever came. Perhaps she could buy them off? Did she have enough silver and jewels to pay tribute? Or would the Norsemen simply extract their payment in women’s flesh and men’s blood?


From her bedchamber window, Adèle gazed eastward where the sun was rising, painting the landscape of rolling hills in soft shades of pink and gold. She stared off into the distance, willing her nerves to settle. Last night she’d worn holes in her slippers and bitten her fingernails to the quick. She now accepted that her fate was out of her hands. She had no choice but to entrust herself to the merciful will of God. If death awaited her, she prayed it would be swift.


Moving shadows appeared on the horizon. A moment later they took shape as a solid line of men. Hundreds of mounted men. But rather than shrinking in terror, a strange peace settled over her. She was the daughter of Judicael, a great warrior and Duke of Brittany. Her great-grandfather was Erispoe, the first proclaimed King of the Bretons. She would do as her father and grandfather had done before her—she would fight them to her dying breath.


 


***


 


As Valdrik approached the castle of Vannes, ready to claim his spoils, he raised his sword and swore on the names of his ancestors, that if any man broke ranks to pillage, he would perish by Valdrik’s own hand. Pillaging of property would require replacement, destruction meant costly rebuilding. He could almost hear the grinding of their teeth, but none of the men would dare to defy him. Keeping what they had seized by force, would require winning over the people.


When they reached the gates, the riders drew up in lines and halted. Anticipating a storm of arrows, they raised their shields over their heads, but the castle was deathly quiet. If not for the sounds of bleating sheep and lowing cattle, Valdrik would have thought it abandoned, but they never would have left it provisioned for an enemy. He wondered how many armed men stood behind those walls waiting to attack. They would be foolish not to treat when he came in peace, but Valdrik had come prepared to fight if he had to.


He hadn’t killed the duke’s men, but made each swear their allegiance to him on the hilt of Ulfbehrt. That was not to say he trusted them with their weapons or horses. Although he’d spared their lives, they would still have to prove their loyalty and make their way back to the castle on foot—all but one that is. He pushed the man forward who’d professed to be the duke’s captain, a man named Berengar.


“Go,” he commanded. “Tell them I would treat with them. Bjorn, you will go with him.” Valdrik handed his captain the duke’s sword to present as proof of his death. Returning it was also a sign of good faith and respect.


Bjorn nodded and rode forward with Berengar, who called out to the gatekeeper. A moment later, the peep hole dropped open and a set of distinctly feminine eyes peered out. Large and vivid. Unusual eyes. A woman gatekeeper? Were there no men left behind the walls? A few words were exchanged. Valdrik strained to hear, but he was too far away. The eyes behind the peep hole darted nervously in his direction. They held his gaze for just an instant. “Who are you?” the voice behind the eyes demanded.


While his men kept their attention on the archers, Valdrik spurred his horse forward. “I am Valdrik, son of Viggo Vargr, and kinsman to Hrolfr ‘the Walker’,” he announced proudly. He might not be noble, but he was the son of a revered chieftain and generations of warrior blood filled his veins.


“Those names mean nothing to me,” she replied, cold as an iceberg. “Why have you come?” she demanded.


Her gaze was unblinking and her voice proud and defiant. For a conquered foe, especially a woman, her hauteur surprised him. Suddenly he knew. This was no gatekeeper. This was the duchess herself.


Valdrik cocked his head in amusement. “You expect answers but do not extend the smallest courtesy. Whom do I address?”


“I am Adèle, Duchess of Vannes,” she haughtily introduced herself. “Enough of the pleasantries. I would know your business.”


“The duke is dead,” he proclaimed to the widow. “I come to return his sword that you may honor him.”


“Duke Rudalt is dead?” she repeated woodenly. “I suspected as much when he did not return. So now my husband and protector is slain by the same invaders who killed my father and my brother.”


Valdrik eyed her appraisingly, thinking it strange that she showed so little emotion over her husband’s death.  “There is no greater glory for a warrior than death in battle.”


“We disagree,” she said. “There is greater honor in living peaceably and taking care of one’s people.”


“Caring and nurturing is for women,” he argued. “A man should hunt, fight, protect, and provide. Your duke died because he became soft like a woman.”


How did he die?” she demanded. “Did you murder him?”


Valdrik glowered. “Murder is a cowardly act. Your duke challenged me before three hundred witnesses. Warrior-to-warrior, we fought. Had he killed me, he would have gained an army of three hundred hardened Norse fighters. But he lost.”


“So to the victor goes the spoils?” she replied dryly.


He shrugged. “That was the agreement.”


“You have killed my husband and now you expect me to just open my gate and welcome you?” she asked with a humorless laugh.


“I come in peace, unless you choose to make war with me.”


“Why should I believe you?” she asked.


“If I did not come in peace, do you think we would be having this polite conversation?” Valdrik asked, holding back a smile. With the duke dead, he’d wondered who he would be forced to negotiate with. He’d expected a kinsman or a sénéchal. He never would have anticipated dealing with a woman.  “Had I come to fight, there would be no safety behind your walls.”


 


BUY NOW FROM AMAZON $1.99
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Published on November 20, 2015 03:00

November 18, 2015

NAME THAT COWBOY CONTEST WINNER!

Ring In a Cowboy Banner2 851x315



The winning cowboy name is Griffin Stone from Juanita Decuir. Juanita gets her choice of a signed paperback or a $5.00 Amazon Gift card. Griff and Cassie will be the hero and heroine of my upcoming Holiday novella to appear in the RING IN A COWBOY ANTHOLOGY! 

Honorable mentions are: Ethan Evans (from Angela Havel Barton), Monty Walker (from Debbie Workman), Brand Johnson (from Ruth Gutscher), Chance Campbell (from Kathlee O’Donnell ), Trace Sheridan (from Mary Birchwood Lawson), Bram Houston (from Aprille Shadowspeak), Rafe Gentry (from Amy Medieros), Zane McGraw (from Christine Stokes), Derrick Calhoun (from Lisa Larrabee).


Since I received such an enthusiastic response to my cowboy naming contest on FACEBOOK, I have decided to try to do this for all of my future books! I am also embedding the Facebook post so that everyone can see all the great name suggestions.





Posted by Victoria Vane on Monday, November 16, 2015

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Published on November 18, 2015 16:20

November 16, 2015

BRETON WOLFE by VICTORIA VANE



Slains castle ruins on the Scottish North East coast

 


BRETON WOLFE by VICTORIA VANEShe swore to defy him to her dying breath... But passion blurs the line between love and hate...

The bluest blood and the hardest heart... at least when it comes to marriage... The daughter of a duke and granddaughter of a king, Adele of Vannes was bartered at birth in a marriage treaty for the sole purpose of producing a royal heir. When her philandering husband is slain by Norse marauders, she is coerced to wed again in order to protect her home and her people. Adele knows that her beloved Brittany needs a strong hand to survive, but how can she ever reconcile her bitterness and hatred with the desire she feels for her mortal enemy?


She’s the jewel he seeks for his Breton crown...A Barbarian bent on building a dynasty, Valdrik Vargr, ‘the Norse Wolf,’ is renowned for both his bravery in battle and shrewdness in statecraft. Setting his sights on claiming the kingdom of Brittany, he knows that siring sons from royal blood would solidify his hold, but the woman he would claim as his queen refuses to have him. Will he fuel her hatred by taking her to his bed, or will the man who strikes terror in the hearts of men be reduced to wooing his bride? 


BUY NOW FROM AMAZON $1.99
EXCERPT: BRETON WOLFE by VICTORIA VANE

Within the gates ere a man shall go, (Full warily let him watch,) Full long let him look about him; For little he knows where a foe may lurk, And sit in the seats within. - Hávamál


 


ADÈLE SPENT the night on her knees, gaze cast heavenward in prayerful supplication. She hadn’t dared to bow her head and shut her eyes for fear that sleep would overtake her. She couldn’t afford to be caught unawares when the marauders came. And they would come. That was a certainty. Rudalt had never returned from his ‘Norse” hunt. None had. They were dead. She felt it down to her bones. In his arrogance, Rudalt had taken the best warriors, leaving her defenseless.


She’d dispatched riders to Cornouaille, but he was days away. He would never arrive in time. Her home would be burned to ashes before help ever came. Perhaps she could buy them off? Did she have enough silver and jewels to pay tribute? Or would the Norsemen simply extract their payment in women’s flesh and men’s blood? 


From her bedchamber window, Adèle gazed eastward where the sun was rising, painting the landscape of rolling hills in soft shades of pink and gold. She stared off into the distance, willing her nerves to settle. Last night she’d worn holes in her slippers and bitten her fingernails to the quick. She now accepted that her fate was out of her hands. She had no choice but to entrust herself to the merciful will of God. If death awaited her, she prayed it would be swift.


Moving shadows appeared on the horizon. A moment later they took shape as a solid line of men. Hundreds of mounted men. But rather than shrinking in terror, a strange peace settled over her. She was the daughter of Judicael, a great warrior and Duke of Brittany. Her great-grandfather was Erispoe, the first proclaimed King of the Bretons. She would do as her father and grandfather had done before her—she would fight them to her dying breath.


 


***


 


As Valdrik approached the castle of Vannes, ready to claim his spoils, he raised his sword and swore on the names of his ancestors, that if any man broke ranks to pillage, he would perish by Valdrik’s own hand. Pillaging of property would require replacement, destruction meant costly rebuilding. He could almost hear the grinding of their teeth, but none of the men would dare to defy him. Keeping what they had seized by force, would require winning over the people.


When they reached the gates, the riders drew up in lines and halted. Anticipating a storm of arrows, they raised their shields over their heads, but the castle was deathly quiet. If not for the sounds of bleating sheep and lowing cattle, Valdrik would have thought it abandoned, but they never would have left it provisioned for an enemy. He wondered how many armed men stood behind those walls waiting to attack. They would be foolish not to treat when he came in peace, but Valdrik had come prepared to fight if he had to.


He hadn’t killed the duke’s men, but made each swear their allegiance to him on the hilt of Ulfbehrt. That was not to say he trusted them with their weapons or horses. Although he’d spared their lives, they would still have to prove their loyalty and make their way back to the castle on foot—all but one that is. He pushed the man forward who’d professed to be the duke’s captain, a man named Berengar.


 “Go,” he commanded. “Tell them I would treat with them. Bjorn, you will go with him.” Valdrik handed his captain the duke’s sword to present as proof of his death. Returning it was also a sign of good faith and respect.


 Bjorn nodded and rode forward with Berengar, who called out to the gatekeeper. A moment later, the peep hole dropped open and a set of distinctly feminine eyes peered out. Large and vivid. Unusual eyes. A woman gatekeeper? Were there no men left behind the walls? A few words were exchanged. Valdrik strained to hear, but he was too far away. The eyes behind the peep hole darted nervously in his direction. They held his gaze for just an instant. “Who are you?” the voice behind the eyes demanded.


While his men kept their attention on the archers, Valdrik spurred his horse forward. “I am Valdrik, son of Viggo Vargr, and kinsman to Hrolfr ‘the Walker’,” he announced proudly. He might not be noble, but he was the son of a revered chieftain and generations of warrior blood filled his veins.


“Those names mean nothing to me,” she replied, cold as an iceberg. “Why have you come?” she demanded.


Her gaze was unblinking and her voice proud and defiant. For a conquered foe, especially a woman, her hauteur surprised him. Suddenly he knew. This was no gatekeeper. This was the duchess herself.


Valdrik cocked his head in amusement. “You expect answers but do not extend the smallest courtesy. Whom do I address?”


“I am Adèle, Duchess of Vannes,” she haughtily introduced herself. “Enough of the pleasantries. I would know your business.”


 “The duke is dead,” he proclaimed to the widow. “I come to return his sword that you may honor him.”


“Duke Rudalt is dead?” she repeated woodenly. “I suspected as much when he did not return. So now my husband and protector is slain by the same invaders who killed my father and my brother.”


Valdrik eyed her appraisingly, thinking it strange that she showed so little emotion over her husband’s death.  “There is no greater glory for a warrior than death in battle.”


 “We disagree,” she said. “There is greater honor in living peaceably and taking care of one’s people.”


“Caring and nurturing is for women,” he argued. “A man should hunt, fight, protect, and provide. Your duke died because he became soft like a woman.”


How did he die?” she demanded. “Did you murder him?”


Valdrik glowered. “Murder is a cowardly act. Your duke challenged me before three hundred witnesses. Warrior-to-warrior, we fought. Had he killed me, he would have gained an army of three hundred hardened Norse fighters. But he lost.”


“So to the victor goes the spoils?” she replied dryly.


He shrugged. “That was the agreement.”


“You have killed my husband and now you expect me to just open my gate and welcome you?” she asked with a humorless laugh.


 “I come in peace, unless you choose to make war with me.”


 “Why should I believe you?” she asked.


“If I did not come in peace, do you think we would be having this polite conversation?” Valdrik asked, holding back a smile. With the duke dead, he’d wondered who he would be forced to negotiate with. He’d expected a kinsman or a sénéchal. He never would have anticipated dealing with a woman.  “Had I come to fight, there would be no safety behind your walls.”


 


BUY NOW FROM AMAZON $1.99
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Published on November 16, 2015 05:00