Excerpt from A Conqueror's Destiny
The edits for A Conqueror's Destiny are complete and it should be on its way to galley any day now...I'm so excited. I want to say a huge thank you to Fran (a Wild Rose editor), who has been a wonderful source of encouragement, not to mention she tightened my script to epic proportions! In honor of the galley here is a quick excerpt:
Half dragging her into Hannibal’s tent, the guards manhandled her, pushing her down onto a wooden stool. Directly in front of her, the General towered over her demonstrating his authority.
A wistful smile played on her lips. This was the kind of man Parrius needed. Commanding. Powerful. Beautiful. And, he was magnificent. Like one of the glorious wild stallions roaming free in the wilds of Parrius. Like him, they were untamed. She saw the same look in Hannibal’s eyes as she did in those stallions. A look of challenge. Defiance.
She drew her attention away from him, turned, and surveyed the room. The heady scent of passion lingered in the air. Her gaze drifted to his rumpled bed, and she wondered what had become of the women. Looking back at Hannibal, it was her turn to raise an eyebrow in question.
“What happened to the two females you lay with earlier?”
Cassandra knew, as a warrior, Hannibal could control his expressions, and would give nothing away on his face. There was no indication her words had affected him except for a slight twitch in his jaw.
A laconic smile replaced the twitch as he perused her body. “Did you enjoy being a voyeur? If you had made your presence known, you may have joined us. I would have enjoyed discovering if your hair is naturally red.”
She blushed in spite of herself. Images of her body wrapped around Hannibal’s assaulted her senses. She refused to look away from him, no matter how much his gaze burnt into her. “I can assure you, General, everything about me is real.”
“Care to put that to test?”
The guards muffled a lewd laugh and Cassandra straightened her spine. She had not come here to be the brunt end of some crude, manly joke. In her world, she was a woman who commanded respect.
Yes, but you want him to take you. You want him to strip off your gown and find out what lies beneath. With him, you want to be a woman.
She could not deny the her internal desires or the random thoughts roaming through her mind. For some illogical reason, with him, she did want to be treated merely as a woman. For many years, she had been strong for Parrius. She fought for the city, fought to retain peace with the other kingdoms. She was tired of the constant battle. Now, faced with a man who shared the same burden, she wanted to put aside her duties and feel for once. In Parrius’ greatest time of danger, all she could think of was Hannibal’s smooth caramel colored skin and the way he had taken the females with such dominance.
“Why are you here, wench?” His gruff voice broke into her silent revere. Gone was his playful tone, in its place was the warrior, the commander.
Cassandra sighed. Her plight would not be as easy as she once assumed. His attitude, his stance, the look in his eye told her Hannibal suspected her of being a spy. Although she did not fear death, if Hannibal removed her head from her body in execution style, even she could not survive that. In addition, Parrius needed her. “I come seeking you, General Barca.”
He folded his arms over his broad chest. The movement raised the cloth of his tunic slightly, exposing the crisp hairs dusting the thick muscles of his thighs. “What do you want of me?” he asked.
“A mere moment of your time, General.”
Doubts began to set in. Had she arrived at the wrong moment? How could she convince a steadfast General the fate of mortal Earth, both present and future, rested solely on his ability to believe in the fantastic?
“Are you their latest weapon?”
Cassandra smiled. “I have been called many things, but never a weapon.”
Hannibal threw back his head and laughed. “Ahhh, very good. They taught you well. Make me believe you are but a weak and feeble woman. Play on my mercy as a just man and what…? Bury a knife in my heart while I sleep?” He stepped closer, crouched down onto his heels so he was finally eye level with her. “Do your leaders think me so foolish? “
The fire and contempt burnt passionately in his dark eyes.
“If I had wanted you dead, General, I could have completed the job easily and quickly while you were…” her eyes moved fleetingly to the bed…“occupied earlier.”
Half dragging her into Hannibal’s tent, the guards manhandled her, pushing her down onto a wooden stool. Directly in front of her, the General towered over her demonstrating his authority.
A wistful smile played on her lips. This was the kind of man Parrius needed. Commanding. Powerful. Beautiful. And, he was magnificent. Like one of the glorious wild stallions roaming free in the wilds of Parrius. Like him, they were untamed. She saw the same look in Hannibal’s eyes as she did in those stallions. A look of challenge. Defiance.
She drew her attention away from him, turned, and surveyed the room. The heady scent of passion lingered in the air. Her gaze drifted to his rumpled bed, and she wondered what had become of the women. Looking back at Hannibal, it was her turn to raise an eyebrow in question.
“What happened to the two females you lay with earlier?”
Cassandra knew, as a warrior, Hannibal could control his expressions, and would give nothing away on his face. There was no indication her words had affected him except for a slight twitch in his jaw.
A laconic smile replaced the twitch as he perused her body. “Did you enjoy being a voyeur? If you had made your presence known, you may have joined us. I would have enjoyed discovering if your hair is naturally red.”
She blushed in spite of herself. Images of her body wrapped around Hannibal’s assaulted her senses. She refused to look away from him, no matter how much his gaze burnt into her. “I can assure you, General, everything about me is real.”
“Care to put that to test?”
The guards muffled a lewd laugh and Cassandra straightened her spine. She had not come here to be the brunt end of some crude, manly joke. In her world, she was a woman who commanded respect.
Yes, but you want him to take you. You want him to strip off your gown and find out what lies beneath. With him, you want to be a woman.
She could not deny the her internal desires or the random thoughts roaming through her mind. For some illogical reason, with him, she did want to be treated merely as a woman. For many years, she had been strong for Parrius. She fought for the city, fought to retain peace with the other kingdoms. She was tired of the constant battle. Now, faced with a man who shared the same burden, she wanted to put aside her duties and feel for once. In Parrius’ greatest time of danger, all she could think of was Hannibal’s smooth caramel colored skin and the way he had taken the females with such dominance.
“Why are you here, wench?” His gruff voice broke into her silent revere. Gone was his playful tone, in its place was the warrior, the commander.
Cassandra sighed. Her plight would not be as easy as she once assumed. His attitude, his stance, the look in his eye told her Hannibal suspected her of being a spy. Although she did not fear death, if Hannibal removed her head from her body in execution style, even she could not survive that. In addition, Parrius needed her. “I come seeking you, General Barca.”
He folded his arms over his broad chest. The movement raised the cloth of his tunic slightly, exposing the crisp hairs dusting the thick muscles of his thighs. “What do you want of me?” he asked.
“A mere moment of your time, General.”
Doubts began to set in. Had she arrived at the wrong moment? How could she convince a steadfast General the fate of mortal Earth, both present and future, rested solely on his ability to believe in the fantastic?
“Are you their latest weapon?”
Cassandra smiled. “I have been called many things, but never a weapon.”
Hannibal threw back his head and laughed. “Ahhh, very good. They taught you well. Make me believe you are but a weak and feeble woman. Play on my mercy as a just man and what…? Bury a knife in my heart while I sleep?” He stepped closer, crouched down onto his heels so he was finally eye level with her. “Do your leaders think me so foolish? “
The fire and contempt burnt passionately in his dark eyes.
“If I had wanted you dead, General, I could have completed the job easily and quickly while you were…” her eyes moved fleetingly to the bed…“occupied earlier.”
Labels: A Conqueror's Destiny, Editing, excerpts
Posted by Scarlett Sanderson at 12:53 AM::
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