Masters of Medieval Romance: Series Starters Volume II

by Kathryn Le Veque

  “A spy,” Beaux finally hissed. “And Jamie discovered this, did he?”

  Tobias smacked his lips of the tasteless red wine. “He did,” he said. “He stumbled upon her as she met her lover. Now the girl is in the vault, awaiting my father’s arrival to bring her to justice.”

  Beaux shook his head, distressed with all he was hearing. “And Jamie has had tae manage all of this?” he said. “How could this happen? Who is in command of the castle wit’ the father mad as he is? For a lass tae become a spy… that is a disgrace tae any commander. How could he not have known?”

  Tobias shrugged. “It is quite simple how this happened, actually,” he said. “Lady Havilland and her sisters were in command of the fortress. You see, they were raised as warriors. Their father, having no sons, raised the girls to fight. When Jamison and Havilland first met, she attacked him with a sword. It was a serious battle until he subdued her. She is a lady warrior.”

  Now, Beaux’s shock increased. His half-lidded eyes lifted a bit. “She fights?”

  “And very well.”

  Beaux looked at Kendrick, who simply lifted his shoulders. “If Jamie marries her, she’ll need tae fight,” he said. “It may be a blessing.”

  That wasn’t what Tobias was driving at. He didn’t want them to think that a marriage between Jamison and Havilland would be a good thing at all.

  “If she marries him, then she will be in a strange world, fighting people who will want to kill her simply because she married him,” he pointed out. “That is a difficult life to commit anyone to. Nay, for Jamison to marry one of his kind is all for the best. Lady Havilland should remain here and marry someone who will keep her and her family linked to Four Crosses and to the House of de Lohr. That is the life she knows, after all. She will be happier in time. Besides… she has only really known Jamison a week. How can you know your feelings for someone in just a week?”

  Beaux and Kendrick pondered what they’d been told, thinking that Tobias made some sense in the matter. They were both caught up in the emotion of it, for Jamison’s sake, and Tobias didn’t seem to have that handicap. Perhaps the man was right. In any case, it was a sad situation. As Kendrick stood up and leaned over the table, over to a tray of cold meat that a servant had brought earlier, they heard commotion at the entry to the hall and they turned to see Thad staggering in with his hand to the back of his head. The other hand was dragging Amaline behind him.

  Amaline was fighting and kicking at him, trying to break free, and it was a scene that brought Tobias, Beaux, and Kendrick to their feet. Tobias was the first one to move away from the table, heading for Thad.

  “What goes on here?” he demanded, pointing to Amaline. “Let that girl go.”

  Thad was pale. His head was killing him and the blow to the back had split his scalp. “I will not,” he said. “She hit me over the head and stole the keys to the vault, whereupon she released her sister. Madeline is gone.”

  Tobias’ eyes widened as he looked at Amaline. “You did this?”

  Amaline was weeping and frightened. “I did not let her go purposely,” she sobbed. “I opened the door to give her a cloak and she escaped.”

  Thad didn’t believe her in the least. Frustrated and injured, he looked at his cousin. “She asked me to go to the vault to let her in so she could bring Madeline a cloak,” he said. “I took the stairs before her and she came up behind me and hit me on the head. While I was unconscious, she stole the keys and released Madeline.”

  Tobias was outraged. “How long ago?”

  Thad looked at Amaline, giving her a yank to elicit a response. “You heard him,” he said. “How long ago did she leave?”

  Amaline squealed when he yanked on her again. “I do not know!” she said. “Five or ten minutes. I do not know!”

  By this time, all three Highlanders were on their feet, listening to everything. “She canna have gotten very far,” Beaux said, a sense of urgency in his tone. “Was she on foot?”

  Thad looked at Amaline and, fearful he was going to yank at her again, she spoke. “I do not know,” she said. “She ran out of the vault but I did not see where she went.”

  Tobias was genuinely upset. “She could have walked right out of the gatehouse for all we know,” he muttered, glancing at Beaux. “Jamison did not tell the men of her capture out of respect for the family. He thought to handle the matter quietly. Therefore, only a very limited number of men knew she was in the vault. The rank and file, guarding the gatehouse, would not have known.”

  Thad still had his hand to the back of his head. “Didn’t Jamison say he had followed Madeline from the postern gate?” he said. “I seem to recall that he found her by the river.”

  Tobias nodded. “That would, indeed, mean she took the postern gate,” he said. Then, he hissed. “Damnation… she has probably taken it again and has lost herself in the forest along the river. We will never find her in all of that.”

  “Do we try?” Thad asked. “She cannot get very far on foot and we can send out mounted men to cast a net.”

  Tobias shook his head. “But in what direction?” he wanted to know. “North? East? South? Where?”

  “The longer ye debate this, the further away she gets,” Beaux put in. “Mount as many men as ye can and send them out in all directions.”

  Tobias turned to him. “I cannot risk sending out gangs of men, not when the Welsh have taken every opportunity to attack us,” he said. “Sending them out and opening them up to possible organized attacks is not smart. Moreover, it would leave us low on manpower. I dare not risk it.”

  Beaux could see his point. He didn’t agree with it, but he could see it. “I would suggest ye tell Jamison what is happening and let him decide,” he said. “He is still in command of Four Crosses, is he not?”

  Tobias was loath to agree, given that he had felt all along that he should be in command, so it was Thad who answered. “He is,” he said. “He must know.”

  “I’ll go,” Beaux volunteered. He eyed Thad. “Ye need tae turn the lass over tae yer cousin and have a physic look at yer skull.”

  Thad sighed heavily. He wasn’t feeling at all well. “Agreed,” he said. He thrust Amaline at Tobias. “Lock her up where her sister was. That is the least she deserves. I am off to join the wounded.”

  He was indicating the far end of the hall that still had a few wounded there left over from the battle several days ago. Most were recuperating but some weren’t. The de Lohr surgeon had taken his wounded and retreated back to Lioncross with the army but there was still an old physic left who tended the people of Four Crosses. It was that man Thad sought out as Tobias, unhappy that he has been relegated to tending Amaline, pulled the girl along with him as he headed out of the hall.

  As the de Lohr knights parted ways, Beaux turned to Kendrick. “I’ll go find Jamie,” he said. “This place is an utter madhouse, it ’tis. I would say the sooner we leave, the better. I dunna want tae linger at this place and wait for the next terrible thing tae happen. Spies? Attacks? Madmen? We need tae save Jamie from this place.”

  Kendrick couldn’t disagree. “Aye,” he said. “See if ye can persuade him tae leave on the morrow.”

  Beaux nodded. “I’ll try.”

  Leaving Kendrick with the still sleeping Caspian in the great hall, Beaux exited the hall out into the coming night. It was very cold and the sun, at this point, was mostly down. Off to his left, he could see Tobias dragging the crying girl to the gatehouse, the one who had freed her sister from the vault. Beaux could only surmise that was another sister to Lady Havilland given the conversation he’d just heard.

  More and more, he was coming to think this entire castle was a madhouse. After what Tobias had told them, there was a far greater picture here than he could have imagined. Perhaps coming here might have saved Jamison from becoming entrenched in the madness if he had married Lady Havilland. A warrior woman who lied to protect a mad father… a sister who had betrayed them… now another sister who had released the trea
cherous sister… aye, this place was a madhouse. Better get out of this place and be well rid of it.

  So he headed to the keep, knowing that Jamison was still there because they could still hear him bellowing every so often. Surely, it was difficult for the man to lose a woman he believed he wanted to marry, but Beaux was convinced that getting him out of Four Crosses was the best thing for him. The keep loomed ahead now, a big and squat thing, three stories tall, and Beaux disappeared into the bowels of it.

  It was very dark inside now with the sunset. He could see a couple of rooms on the entry level and he peered into each room, in succession, trying to see if Jamison was in any one of them. One was a solar, a cold and dark and cluttered place, and the second room looked to be more of a dining chamber of sorts. He didn’t see anyone around so he took the narrow spiral stairs, as dark as pitch, up to the floor above and immediately came into contact with a body seated on the landing. In fact, he almost tripped over the boots. Eyes adjusting to the darkness, he caught sight of red hair.

  “Jamie?” he whispered.

  The boots shifted. “I’m here.”

  Jamison had yelled so much that he had no voice left. He spoke in barely above a whisper. Beaux came off the stairs and went to him, nearly tripping again before kneeling down beside him. He sighed faintly, putting his hand on the wavy red hair.

  “’Tis not the way ye expected yer day tae end, is it?” he quipped softly.

  Jamison shook his head, weakly. “Nay,” he muttered. “Why did ye have tae come, Beaux? Why could ye not have simply left me alone?”

  Beaux lowered himself onto the floor next to him. “Because yer da asked it of me,” he said. “Because ye’re closer than a brother tae me and the MacKenzies are out for yer blood. I came tae help ye, Jamie, but I know I dunna seem like it.”

  Jamison exhaled, low and slow. “I know ye did,” he said. “But I have been sitting here thinkin’… if it means I am tae lose Havilland, then I willna go home. Ye can tell me da that ye couldna find me.”

  Beaux shook his head. “He would insist we look again,” he said. “We would have tae look until we found ye. Ye know that.”

  “Then tell him I’m dead.”

  Beaux looked at him in the darkness, seeing his profile in the weak light. “Do ye know what that would do tae yer da?”

  “Do ye know what losing Havilland is doing tae me?”

  Beaux didn’t want to be unkind. He knew that men in love were strange creatures. But he never thought he’d see Jamison succumb to a romance so quickly. It was true that Lady Havilland was a stunning creature, but he was sure that Jamison’s infatuation with the woman was simply that – an infatuation. It couldn’t be love.

  … could it?

  “Are ye telling me that yer da means less tae ye than a woman ye’ve only known a few days?” Beaux said. “Think, Jamison. There are hundreds o’ people depending on ye, people that are rejoicing in the fact that ye’re coming home tae lead them. Are all of those people worth less than yer Lady Havilland?”

  Jamison wouldn’t look at him. “I know me duty,” he said. “I know what is expected. No one knows duty more than I do. But when do I get what I want? If I want tae marry a woman I adore, why can I not do it? Why must I think of others before meself?”

  Beaux could see the distress in the man’s eyes as he spoke. “Look at me,” he said. When Jamison didn’t move, he commanded it. “Jamie, look at me. Look at me and tell me ye love this woman enough that ye’re willin’ tae give up everything for her.”

  Jamison turned to him, then. “I’m willing tae give up everything for her.”

  “And ye’re willing tae let Robbie become Clan Chief when yer da passes on? Because he will be yer da’s heir; not Hector. Hector will have tae take commands from Robbie.”

  That brought a reaction. Jamison looked away, refusing to meet Beaux’s eye. “Robbie is a fool.”

  “I know he is. But if we return tae Foulis Castle and tell yer da that ye’re dead, Robbie becomes his heir. Is that what ye want?”

  Jamison was staring off into the darkness, unwilling or unable to answer. “I willna leave this place without Havilland,” he said, his voice barely above a whisper. “I’ve made a decision, Beaux – no matter me duty tae me clan, and no matter if it will result in the destruction of an alliance, I willna return home without marrying Havilland first. If it is a choice between peace and me own heart, I will choose me heart. I’ve never had tae make that choice before.”

  Beaux wasn’t thrilled with hearing that statement but he didn’t argue. Out of respect to Jamison, he wouldn’t argue, whether or not he agreed.

  “What if she willna marry ye?” he asked softly. “She’s kept ye outside her door all day long. Ye canna force the lass tae marry ye no matter how badly ye want tae.”

  Jamison shrugged, weakly. “She has tae come out sometime,” he said, turning to look at Beaux with a weary smile on his face. “When she does, I will be here.”

  There wasn’t much more Beaux could say to that. Shifting his bulk, he leaned back against the wall, next to Jamison. For a moment, he pondered the situation and what had brought them to this point. He also pondered the original reason for him coming to Jamison. That had yet to be brought up.

  “There’s something more ye should know,” he said. “While ye’ve been up here trying tae reason with yer lady, one sister has released the other from the vault.”

  Jamison’s head snapped to him, his face glazed with shock. “Amaline released Madeline?”

  Beaux nodded. “I dunna know the name o’ the one who did the releasing, but she beat Thad over the head, stole his keys, and released yer prisoner. I think ye need tae go see tae yer command, Jamie. Things are happening while ye’re up here in the keep.”

  Jamison was stunned by the information. “But Amaline was in her chamber all day,” he said, pointing to the chamber across the landing. “I saw her emerge about a half hour ago. She dinna say a word tae me. She simply fled down the stairs.”

  Beaux glanced over at the door Jamison was indicating. “Mayhap she was in her chamber, plotting her sister’s release,” he said. “In any case, yer spy is gone now.”

  “Where is Amaline?”

  “Thad was able tae capture that one. Tobias took her tae the vault.”

  It was a shocking set of circumstances he was describing, enough to cause Jamison to think of something other than his wounded heart. Beaux was correct; while he was up here screaming at Havilland, his command was in turmoil. He looked at Beaux for a moment longer before lurching to his feet. He began to bang on Havilland’s door again.

  “Havi,” he tried to yell with his hoarse voice. “Amaline has released Madeline from the vault. I need tae speak with ye!”

  Truth was, he didn’t expect any real reaction from Havilland. She would probably think it was a trick. But they both heard the bolt on the other side of the door thrown and, suddenly, the panel yanked open. Havilland appeared in the doorway.

  “You had better not be lying just to force me to open the door,” she seethed. “If you are lying, I swear that I will….”

  Jamison cut her off. “I wouldna lie just tae force ye tae open the door,” he snapped back. “Or did ye not know that at any point, I coulda simply kicked the door in if I really wanted tae? Did that occur tae ye, now?”

  Havilland was pale and drawn, just like Jamison was. They both looked as if they’d seen better days, the weight of emotions having taken their toll in both their manners and appearances. Havilland glared at Jamison as if the man was her worst enemy, unwilling to answer his question about kicking the door down. She didn’t see a need to address it. But she did see the need to address the situation with her sister.

  “Amaline would not have done such a thing,” she said, eyeing Beaux, wondering what the man was doing there. “You heard her yesterday. She wanted you to keep Madeline locked up. She would not have released her.”

  “She did, my lady,” Beaux said because Jamison was simply
standing there, staring at the woman. “She hit Thad de Lohr over the head, stole his keys, and released yer sister. Thad has the bump on his head tae prove it.”

  Havilland’s eyes widened and, very quickly, her features washed with distress. “Nay,” she breathed, looking at Jamison as she spoke. “It is not possible. Why… why would she do it? She was terrified of Madeline!”

  Jamison shook his head. “Who is tae say why the lass acted foolishly?” he said. “What matters is that she has released Madeline and Tobias has taken her tae the vault. Now she is in the same cell as her sister was.”

  That bit of information changed Havilland’s manner drastically. Her jaw hardened and her eyes narrowed. “You will release her,” she hissed. “She does not belong there!”

  Jamison was on edge and didn’t take kindly to Havilland’s tone or attitude. He was unbalanced and emotional, a bad combination. “She released a traitor, m’lady,” he said rather formally. “Unless I can find Madeline, Amaline will stand trial for her treachery. Now, where would Madeline go?”

  Havilland was outraged beyond reason. Jaw ticking furiously, she tried to push between Jamison and Beaux, more than likely heading to the gatehouse where Amaline was being held, but Jamison grabbed her by the arm to stop her. The moment he did so, he had a fight on his hands – infuriated and terrified, Havilland brought up a hand to strike him, which he deftly blocked. He grabbed both of her hands and she still tried to fight him, bringing up a knee to ram him in the torso, but he spun her around and trapped her in his enormous embrace. Like a cat in a snare, she was caught… and battling every step of the way.

  “Stop fighting me,” he growled. “Tell me where Madeline would’ve gone. We must find her.”

  “Let me go!” Havilland demanded, still struggling. “I must go to Amaline!”

  “Not until ye tell me where Madeline might’ve gone.”