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towards her, he recited the ceremonial vows that would bind him to her, “Upon the altar of Annul I pledge my loyalty to you, Caralynne of Elbia, daughter of the great goddess. My life is sealed to yours. Where you go I will follow, and my sword will slay your enemies. By the shedding of my blood upon the sacrificial flames, I swear in her holy name that I will be loyal to you above all others. May the goddess in her wisdom strike me down, and the province of Lydd, if I should ever be proven unfaithful.”
    Cara's breath hitched in her throat at the enormity of his words. “In the name of Annul I acknowledge you, Cush of Lydd, and find you acceptable in my site.” They were such simple words in comparison, and Cara scoffed at the coldness of the statement.
    With a deep breath, Cara brought the blade across his palm. He winced slightly, but his eyes never faltered from hers, and his smile never left his face.
    He stood and bowed his head in acknowledgment, and then walked to the sacrificial fire. He fisted his hand above the flames and sealed his life to hers. As his blood dripped slowly into the fire, he spoke, “I consecrate my life to Caralynne of Elbia, the daughter of Annul.”
    Reyn was the next to step forward. His brown eyes appeared amber as they reflected the firelight, and when he knelt before her, his expression was one of brotherly pride and love. Cara wanted to throw her arms around him. Instead, she smiled and mouthed the words, “I've missed you.”
    He gave her a half-hearted smile, and recited the vows.
    One by one, the men knelt before her and dedicated their lives to her.
    The slightly built and awkward Batch of Loewik. The winsome and mischievous Efnisien of Meall. The suave and well-dressed Wesley of Colechester. They were everything Maeve had described, and Cara couldn't help but feel as if she already knew them. She was at an unfair advantage, since they knew very little, if anything about her.
    “Finn of Crantock,” the High Priestess announced, as a towering form emerged from the shadows.
    Cara's breath caught in her throat, as the warrior approached and stopped a few feet away, gazing down at her with hard blue eyes.
    Cara felt dwarfed as she stared up at him.
    His dark blond hair was pulled back in a leather tie. One piece had fallen loose and framed his perfectly sculpted jaw.
    He knelt before her in the ceremonial pose, and even kneeling his eyes were almost level with hers.
    As he spoke his vows, his voice was dark and heavy with the weight of each word.
    His presence was disconcerting.
    Her knees weakened, and she cursed herself for allowing him to affect her in such a way. She tried to calm her nerves, but her heart was racing in her chest as she placed one hand under his large hardened palm, and quickly dragged the blade across.
    She felt a mixture of relief and disappointment as he made his way back to his place in the shadows.
    Arwel of Bere Alstern and Theo of Ashwater came next. Both were similar in height and build, with matching dark eyes and plain features. Their mannerisms were arrogant and Cara immediately took a dislike to both of them.
    Cara smiled as Helfrich of Drumlish with his unruly orange hair and intelligent green eyes came forward. Maeve had told her that he was a scholar and prided himself in his studies of philosophy and physics.
    The entire experience was exhausting, but there were still three men left.
    Hauk of Northlew was the oldest of the twelve men, and as he kneeled before her, Cara could see strands of silver that ran through his dark braided hair. Maeve had heard rumors that he had once been the Viceroy of his province, but he had resigned position when his wife and children had been brutally murdered by raiders.
    There was despondency in his demeanor that made Cara wonder if the rumors weren't true.
    “Tahdaon of Dalgliesh,” the High Priestess repeated for the third time.
    The man didn't move.
Perhaps he's asleep
. Cara smiled at the thought. She