Chapter Seventeen

CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

T hey reached Rochester in the middle of the night, a castle and keep lit by dozens of flaming torches casting soot and smoke into the darkened sky. It was a massive bastion against the night, a sight that Cantia found extremely comforting. Finally, after a wild, dangerous and unpredictable few days past, she was home. The outcome could have been so much different and she did not take her safety, or anyone's safety, for granted.

The women who tended Arabel, having been summoned by a soldier who had run all the way from the gatehouse, were waiting as Tevin entered the fire-lit inner bailey. Tevin handed his sleepy daughter into their waiting arms. As the returning army around him disbanded, he dismounted with the intention of helping Cantia and Hunt. Before he could reach them, however, he called out to the senior soldier who had charge of Rochester in his absence. The big, war-worn soldier was lingering nearby.

"Have Simon and John returned from Dartford yet?" he asked.

The soldier shook his head. "Not yet, my lord," he replied. "I will send word as soon as they are sighted."

"Any word of trouble from the bridge?"

"None, my lord."

Nodding, Tevin continued to de Lohr's charger where the man was still astride along with Cantia and Hunt. Hunt was sleepy, grumpy, and practically fell into Tevin's arms as the man reached up for him. But that grumpiness was forgotten when the big yellow dog came charging out of the darkness and Hunt was reunited with his very best friend. Cantia watched the reunion as Tevin helped her down from the horse and set her on her feet.

"Hunt," she instructed softly. "Take George up to your chamber, please. I will be up shortly."

Hunt yawned, hugging the big dog around the neck. "But I am hungry," he said. "I want thomething to eat."

Cantia shooed him in the direction of the keep. "I will bring you something," she said. "Take George and go now. Get out of those dirty clothes and put a sleeping tunic on."

Hunt yawned, and grumbled, but did as he was told. Cantia watched him head towards the keep, alternately petting the dog and dragging him by his rope collar. When the child mounted the steps to the keep, she turned to Tevin.

He looked particularly drawn for some reason. Weary, yet edgy. She couldn't quite put her finger on it and she smiled at him when their eyes met.

"It is very late," she said softly.

He grunted in agreement. "Indeed." His dark eyes were intense on her. "Tell me the truth, Cantia. Are you sure you are well after all of this?"

Cantia nodded reassuringly. "I am, I promise. I told you that Gillywiss and his people did not harm me."

"I was not speaking of Gillywiss. I was speaking of Dagan."

Her smile faded. "He did not touch me," she said. "He never came close. But the things he said… Tevin, I have not wanted you to make any move against Charles more than you already have, but I will be honest and say that the man is coming to frighten me. If he offered Dagan my hand in exchange for his release and other promises, who else has he spoken to? What more poison has he spread?"

Tevin nodded, eyeing Myles as the man dismounted his charger. "I intend to have that conversation with de Lohr right now."

"What do you think you will do?"

Tevin shook his head. "I am not entirely sure, but I will not keep Penden at Rochester to wreak havoc. I will more than likely send him to one of my other holdings and keep him locked up for good. In any case, the man will be removed from Rochester and punished for what he has done. I do not want you to worry over it."

Cantia's lavender eyes were sorrowful yet relieved. "I will not," she said quietly. "But we will have to think of something to tell Hunt. He loves his grandfather, you know. He has lost his father and now will lose his grandfather. That is much loss for a child."

"I know it is, but we will explain the situation to him the best way we can and he will accept it. He is young and resilient, and this is where this conversation shall end for now. It is late and I want you to go inside and go to bed. I will join you in a while."

Cantia resisted. "I would like to see to Val first, if I may."

Tevin knew that neither his sister nor Cantia would sleep well without having seen each other and gaining reassurance that everyone was well and whole. He gestured towards the knight's quarters.

"She was in there the last I saw," he said. "I do not know if they have moved her."

Cantia cocked a disapproving eyebrow. "You put her in that musty place?" she scolded him. "Shame on you, Tevin. I will see her removed immediately and put in the keep where she belongs."

Tevin put up his hands as if to defend himself. "It was not my doing, but de Lohr's," he said. "And before you become too angry with me, know that Val seemed to want it, too."

She looked at him curiously. "What do you mean?"

He puckered his lips wryly. "I mean that you were right," he said, lowering his voice as he moved towards her and captured a soft hand. "There is something between them, although Val would not admit much to me. Perhaps she will tell you all of it."

Cantia grinned as she watched him kiss her fingers. "She will tell me everything," she said confidently. "But I will not tell you ."

He lifted a dark eyebrow. "You had better tell me everything if you know what is good for you." He winked at her when she giggled. "But move her into the keep if it pleases you."

"I will."

Cantia removed her hand from his grip and headed towards the knight's quarters but Tevin called out to her.

"One more thing," he said.

She paused and turned to him. "What would that be?"

His eyebrow was still lifted, almost in disapproval. "Putting aside the question of how the subject was even broached with that outlaw, you and I will have a conversation about what, exactly, you told him about my reasons behind not being able to marry you."

She knew the subject would come up. She was frankly surprised it had taken this long, and her good humor fled. "And you and I will have a discussion about why you told him you are the Earl of East Anglia."

"Because I am."

She was serious. "I was thinking all the way back to Rochester that you would not have returned us if Geoff was still in residence," she said quietly. "What happened to him?"

"He is dead."

"How?"

"He attacked me and I killed him in self-defense."

Cantia sighed, thinking of the greater implications of that softly-uttered statement. "I suppose I should be happy about this but I can see by the look on your face that you are torn," she said softly, perhaps with sympathy. "What are you feeling, sweetheart?"

He hadn't really thought about it since it happened. There had been so much else on his mind. After a moment, he made his way over to her and put his arms around her, pulling her close. In the shadow of Rochester's mighty keep, he hugged her tightly.

"I am not sure," he replied. "It all happened so fast… Geoff was furious because I had sent you and Val away, and you were abducted, and he refused to let me send out men to search for you. We argued and he attacked me with a dagger. As I was deflecting his blow, I snapped his neck. I did not mean to do it but it happened. I cannot understand why I am not deliriously happy about it, but I am not. Geoff was a vile creature and we are better off without him. I know that better than anyone."

"But he was your cousin, your blood, and for that reason alone you are torn."

"Perhaps. But it is done. I will not linger on it."

Cantia hugged him close. "This means a great many things will change for you."

"That is true," he whispered. "But it all means nothing without you by my side. You are my all for living, Cantia. Always remember that."

She pulled her face from the crook of his neck, smiling up at him. "As you are mine," she whispered. "We will speak more of all of this later, but for now, I wish to see Val and then I wish to sleep for the next hundred years. I am exhausted."

He nodded. "I know, sweetheart," he said, gesturing towards the knight's quarters once again. "Go and see Val, but do not be too long. I will join you upstairs shortly."

Blowing him a kiss, Cantia headed off to see to Val, her thoughts lingering on Tevin and his newly acquired earldom. It was an enormous event and she was very proud of the man. It would seem that much had happened in the past two days, life changing events that she was trying to come to grips with. Her mind was a little muddled by it all.

Val was ecstatic to see Cantia, and the two women chatted until Tevin finally came looking for Cantia and had to separate them so he could get Cantia up to bed. But Val wasn't to be alone for long. Soon after Cantia and Tevin left, Myles joined Val in her dark little room.

When dawn came, he was still there.

*

"I am going to do all of the speaking and you are going to do all of the listening," Tevin's tone was a growl. "Is this in any way unclear, Penden?"

In his bottle prison, Charles looked filthy and haggard. The time spent in captivity had not been kind to him. His body had aged tremendously and his mind had entered that dark and shadowed realm of madness, now waiting anxiously for word from Sutton on the success of their plan. Du Reims' appearance was not a good sign, and he eyed the man with animosity.

"What time is it?" he barked.

"Dawn."

Charles waved listlessly at him. "Speak then," he said. "But know there is nothing you can say that will interest me in the least."

Tevin's expression was like stone. "I beg to differ," he said. "Let me be the first to inform you that your plans with Dagan Sutton have been foiled. Dagan is dead and your schemes along with him."

Charles' eyes took on a strange glimmer. "Be plain."

"I am. Dagan was killed while attempting to abduct Lady Cantia for the purpose of marriage, I am told, at your prompting. You were to provide the man a dowry for the lady if he married her."

Charles' gaze remained steady. He could see de Lohr and two of du Reims' other knights standing behind him, big sentinels lurking in the shadows. Charles looked at Myles.

"You serve me, de Lohr," he rumbled. "You will defend me against this… this usurper. He accuses me of something he cannot prove and I will have my satisfaction."

Myles could see the madness in Charles' eyes and it both saddened and enraged him. He had been particularly close to Brac and knew the man would have been devastated by his father's actions. He found that he was furious on Brac's behalf more than anything. So many of Charles' actions were disgusting in so many ways.

"Dagan confessed everything to Lady Cantia," he replied, deliberately leaving out "my lord". "She has informed us of your scheme with Sutton. I will not defend a guilty man."

Charles flared. "You would believe that bitch over me?" he snarled. "I will have your hide for this."

Before Myles could reply, Tevin stepped forward. "That woman is the only thing standing between you and certain death," he rumbled. "She has asked me not to kill you and as of this very moment, I will not. But if I ever hear you call her a disparaging name again, I will slit your throat and take great pleasure in your lingering and bloody death. Is this clear?"

Charles gazed at Tevin, a wicked flash in the dark eyes. Either he was too crazy or too arrogant to be intimidated. After a moment, a hint of a mocking smile creased his lips.

"You have wiped everything of Brac off of her, have you not?" he snorted. "My son was barely cold in his grave before you were bedding his wife. Have you flushed her veins with your scent and wiped all taste of Brac from her lips? You are a vile bastard to take advantage of a woman in mourning."

"And you are a vile bastard to shame your son with your behavior towards his widow."

The smile on Charles' mouth faded and he turned away, the insanity in his veins building. Tevin could see the tremor in his movements, the twitch in his eye. He knew there was no reasoning with a madman, and Charles Penden was far gone with madness. It started the moment those arrows struck Brac.

"She is mine to do with as I please," he muttered. "As the Steward of Rochester, she belongs to me."

Tevin could feel his body tense, his fierce sense of protectiveness for Cantia overwhelming him. He pressed up against the rusted iron grate that separated him from Charles.

"And I am East Anglia," he rumbled. "De Gael is dead and the title now belongs to me, which means Rochester belongs to me and everything about it. You take orders from me now, Penden, and I will have the truth. Did you offer Cantia in marriage to Dagan Sutton for a price?"

Charles was looking at Tevin without turning his head, a sort of ghoulish slant of the eye that was unnerving and piercing. "You boast like a fool," he hissed. "How do I know you are truly East Anglia?"

"Because he is," Myles confirmed before Tevin could. "Geoff de Gael is dead and Tevin du Reims now controls East Anglia. He is now your liege."

Charles turned his head now, looking between Myles and Tevin with his sick-eyed expression.

"You have become his dog, de Lohr. I do not believe you. And given the chance, I will do all I can to destroy the chain of command until I am in control of Rochester once again." He was focused mostly on Tevin now. "I promised Cantia to Sutton because I wanted to be free of this unrighteous prison, but the idiot evidently perished before he could carry out my wants. I do not know how he died but I do not care. All I am sure of is that Cantia is the cause of everything and I swear, given the chance, that I will kill her. She deserves nothing less for everything she has caused."

Myles stared at the man. He didn't dare look at Tevin. After a moment, his handsome features twisted with confusion, for he was genuinely and truly baffled.

"What in the world has that woman done to you to make you hate her so?" he asked.

Charles' expression didn't waver. "She took my son from me," he grumbled. "She took him from me and then turned him against me."

"You mean she married him?"

Charles looked away. Myles simply shook his head. "She was your son's wife," he said. "Brac loved her. She was very good to him. She gave birth to your only grandson. Why should you hate her for such things?"

Charles wouldn't answer. When the wait became excessive and Myles finally dared to look at Tevin to see what the man's reaction to all of this was, Charles spouted off one last time.

"I am in this prison because of her," he mumbled. "If it takes me to the end of my life, I will ensure that the woman pays for what she has done to me."

"Then the end will come sooner than you think." Tevin didn't hesitate. He turned to Myles. "Brick up this doorway. The man is a poison that must be stopped because I believe every damn word he says. He will never stop unless I stop him first."

Myles wasn't shocked by the order. It was a cruel world and one did what one must do in order to survive. To protect Cantia, Hunt, and the rest of them, the harsh deed had to be done. They all knew that Charles would not be stopped and, short of running the man through with a blade, there was only one way to put an end to the madness-bottle him up in the prison that was to become his tomb. Charles screamed until the last brick was seated.

When Cantia heard the news, for Brac's sake, she wept.