I shuddered; that was where my lover Katlyn was being transported to right now. Perhaps she was even already there. And Governor Arnold, the one man who could help me to find out which mine she’d been taken to, was absent from the town!
He was supposed to be coming back today. I hoped that was true. I suspected that the Governor was deliberately avoiding the Arcanist Maximillian. From what I’d been told by my friend Jacques, who knew Brightwater well, the Governor was a man who might be willing to turn a blind eye to nefarious dealings if the price was right. I’d already had a run-in with Arcanist Maximillian, and he didn’t seem like someone to trifle with. If the Governor had something to hide, I couldn’t blame him for making himself scarce, but I was frustrated by the delay in finding out where Katlyn had been taken.
Well, I would just have to be patient. Katlyn was a tough woman, I reminded myself, and not likely to be broken by misfortunes. There was no point in me getting angry and upset now—I’d do better for everyone if I kept myself together. That would give my companions confidence in my leadership. After all, I reflected, I didn’t really have anything to complain about myself. Quite the opposite.
I took a breath and turned my head to look at the woman beside me. Veronica’s head rested against my arm, her silver-white hair flowing over the blankets. We were both as naked as we’d been the night before. Veronica’s smooth dusky skin rose to the swell of her breasts, just concealed by the blanket. She opened her eyes as I stirred.
“Did you sleep well?” I asked.
“Never better,” she murmured. “Last night was magical.”
“It really was,” I smiled.
She laughed. “I guess it was, although I didn’t mean it in that sense. Life will never be the same for me again.”
I shifted, my leg pressing against her side. I heard a muffled groan under the blankets.
“What’s that noise?” Veronica asked.
“I don’t know.” I lifted the blanket.
“Good morning,” said a sleepy voice, and a tangled mass of blonde hair rose to greet us.
“Amelia?” I said. “What are you doing here?”
Veronica squeaked with surprise, and her cheeks went deep red as she tried to clutch the blanket to herself.
Amelia sat up, bringing her knees in front of her. She was wearing a very small shift which reached just low enough to cover the tuft of blond hair above her sex and provided a thin veil for her bright red nipples.
Her cheeks were rosy, and she was smiling. “I’m so glad you both bonded last night; I was hoping you would.”
“Uh, so am I,” I said. “What are you doing here now though? And how did you get in?”
“I just wanted to be with you both last night. I was lying awake by myself for a while, and I thought I would sleep better if you were both nearby.”
“So, you snuck in under the blankets in between us while we were sleeping …”
“Correct.” Amelia’s voice was chirpy.
Veronica was still looking at her distrustfully, clearly quite shocked by this turn of events.
Amelia looked closely at me. “So, did you unlock your Lightning affinity?”
I glanced at Veronica. Normally, I wasn’t the kind of man to brag to others about my sexual encounters, but the Lightning Mage gave me a subtle nod that said she didn’t mind. After all, last night might not have been explicitly Amelia’s idea, but she wasn’t opposed to me making love to Veronica to gain the affinity.
“He did,” Veronica said. “At least, we think that’s the case.”
“I saw a vision, just like last time.”
Amelia smiled. “I’m so happy; this is just what we were hoping for. And Veronica, I’m so glad you’ve joined us as well.”
She reached forward and embraced Veronica, who froze for a moment, taken aback by the close contact with another woman while she was naked. Then she embraced Amelia too. The blanket slipped as she did so, revealing the side of her breast. This time I didn’t look away. We’d enjoyed a night of bliss together. I wasn’t sure whether the two women would ever be interested in making love with me at the same time but seeing them embrace made me think it might be possible one day.
Their embrace lingered longer than it needed to, and Veronica met my eyes over Amelia’s shoulder and smiled. Suddenly, it seemed like they would be quite open to sharing in this new relationship, and I felt myself beginning to grow hard immediately at the sight of my two beautiful female companions sharing such an intimate embrace.
A knock sounded on the door, and we all looked round.
“Who is it?” I asked.
“It’s the Mistress, bringing your breakfast,” Mistress Blossom’s voice called out.
“Just a moment while I get some trousers on,” I called out, though I was really giving time to Veronica, who had nothing on at all.
Quickly, Veronica pulled on the blue dress she had been wearing the night before. Amelia was only wearing her skimpy undergarment, so she wrapped herself in a sheet from the bed. I put my trousers and tunic on. Once the girls were sufficiently covered and sitting together on the bed, I walked to the door, unlatched it, and pulled it open.
“Oh my, seems like you had a busy evening last night, William,” the Mistress said as she walked in carrying a tray laden with food. “I’m sorry I wasn’t able to join you.”
She laughed, suggesting that she was joking, but I suspected there was some truth behind the joke as well. I laughed as well, as I accepted the tray of food and took it to the little table by the window. There was bread, dried fruit, a soft cheese,
