Stolen Away

By Meyari McFarland

Trapped at his father's court, Coby believed that he would live and die by his father's tyrannical rules. But Coby's lover Rodolf had no intention of allowing that to happen.

Stolen in the dead of night, Coby woke to a new home full of warriors, frigid weather and the age-old battle to establish his place among the people surrounding him. Fortunately Cody learned survival at his father's knee.

• Language: English
• Publisher: MDR Publishing
• Release date: Dec 19, 2013
• ISBN: 9781311060372

Meyari McFarland

Meyari McFarland has been telling stories since she was a small child. Her stories range from SF and Fantasy adventures to Romances but they always feature strong characters who do what they think is right no matter what gets in their way. Her series range from Space Opera Romance in the Drath series to Epic Fantasy in the Mages of Tindiere world. Other series include Matriarchies of Muirin, the Clockwork Rift Steampunk mysteries, and the Tales of Unification urban fantasy stories, plus many more. You can find all of her work on MDR Publishing's website at www.MDR-Publishing.com.

Book preview

Stolen Away

By Meyari McFarland

Other Books by Meyari McFarland:

Matriarchies of Muirin:

Coming Together

Fitting In

Following the Beacon

The Solace of Her Clan

Debts to Recover:

The Nature of Beasts

Assumptions of Debt

The Manor Verse:

A New Path

Following the Trail

Crafting Home

Finding a Way

Go Between

Like Arrows of Fate

The Drath Verse

Clash of Lines

Joining of Lines

Consort of the Crystal Palace

Fragments of a Chain

Stranded With You

Reunited Hearts

A Simple Life

Copyright ©2013, 2017 by Mary Raichle

Cover image

© Unholyvault | Dreamstime.com - Old Medieval Hut Photo

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopy, recording or any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher.

Requests for permission to make copies of any part of the work should be emailed to [e-mail].

This book is also available in TPB format from all major retailers.

Dedication:

This story is dedicated to the lovely people on orig_slavefic on LiveJournal. They saw the first draft of this story and loved it enough that I was more than happy to quadruple this story when I went to rewrite it. Thanks everyone!

Table of Contents

1. Stone Walls

2. Ice Rose

3. Barn Cat

Excerpt: Storm Over Archaelaos

Afterword

1. Stone Walls

There's my beautiful boy.

Coby sighed in his sleep as a smile curled his lips at the sound of his lover Rodolf's voice. The old raider's honey-gravel drawl inspired dreams of their last secret visit. Coby had slipped out of the palace, sneaking through the hallways and hiding from servants, guards and family alike, until he made it out into the garden. Tall thorn hedges had hidden them from prying eyes as Rodolf kissed, caressed and loved Coby.

Their precious stolen moments were all that made Coby's life worth living. The crowded court of Kaer was not a kind place. The constant battles against the troll-like Raiven made men cruel enough without his father King Frits playing his games with everyone's hearts and minds. He sighed and shifted in bed ever so slightly, just barely waking when cool callous-rough fingers touched his forehead.

Sleep deeply and do not wake, little one. I have you.

Magic swept over Coby, dulling his dreams while sending him deeper into darkness than he'd been in ages. He'd learned to sleep lightly during small childhood. His father King Frits had never seen any reason to play mediator among his many legitimate and illegitimate sons so Coby had frequently been bullied for being small, apparently fragile and heartbreakingly beautiful. Even Eduart's protection as the Heir to the throne hadn't meant a thing when they all went to their beds. One smallish boy being attacked amongst the army of other sons was simply not noticed in Kaer's royal court.

His dreams became choppy things full of cold and fear, riding horseback with bare toes, and tangled long white-blond hair. Rodolf's voice murmured comfortingly to him as he slept. His words were like sunlit brandy poured into a timeworn voice, matching the gentle touch of his heavily calloused hands.

When Coby finally woke it was to a stomach screaming for sustenance. Coby stared around the tiny room, trying to figure out where he was and how he'd gotten there. The air was so cold that it burned his nasal passages. All four walls were blank, rough-hewn stone, dark gray instead of the more familiar red at home. He bit his lip, tasting blood that made his stomach rumble desperately.

Worse than the unfamiliar environment, Coby was completely naked. His night clothes were nowhere to be seen. There were no other clothes for him to wear, either. Several unanticipated bruises announced themselves as Coby edged up out of the blankets to get a better view.

What? Coby whispered as he stared around the unfamiliar room in confusion. Where am I?

It wasn't a room that could possibly be in the Palace, not even in the basements where the servants stored the food. His brothers