Justina nodded guiltily.
“He dared you, didn’t he?” Gawyn wondered.
Justina grinned. “I just couldn’t let him get away with being the reigning grape champion.”
“Plus, I dared her.” Adam smiled.
Gawyn nodded in understanding. He and Damien had played few games when they were young, but they were close. As close as Adam and Justina. “We shouldn’t keep the lord and lady waiting.”
Gawyn led them through the hallways toward the Great Hall. Adam regaled him of everything that happened the night before. Justina was silent, letting her brother talk. But she watched, her gaze scanning the hallway, the people they passed.
They entered the back of the room quietly. They were late and had to stand at the back of the line, which was near the large double doors. It looked like Aurora had made progress in hearing the petitions and arguments, but Gawyn wasn’t sure if they would make it to the front of the line before the day’s hours were up. That was one thing Damien had insisted on. That Aurora keep reasonable hours for hearing her people’s troubles. It took a lot out of her and he didn’t like to see her so tired.
Villagers, freemen, and merchants packed the room, standing in small clusters near the tall stone walls.
Gawyn liked to sit in during the judgements and listen. He heard a lot of what was going on in the city. Many times, the troubles stemmed from arguments between neighbors. But there were other times when there were security issues that directly involved him. He stood in the line, his hand resting over the pommel of his sword.
Aurora sat in a chair at the front of the hall, on a small platform three stairs above the main floor. Damien stood beside her. It wasn’t long before Damien locked gazes with Gawyn. Gawyn nodded slightly to him, almost imperceptibly. Damien’s gaze moved away, sweeping the crowd. His brother was always searching the crowd, watching, to protect his lady.
They moved forward. Gawyn glanced at Justina. He still wondered how she knew Damien. He hoped for her sake that it wasn’t his past. That she hadn’t seen something she shouldn’t have. She was straining to see the front of the room where Damien and Aurora were. Her eyes narrowed slightly. “Is this what you expected?” Gawyn asked softly.
Justina glanced at him. “Nothing is what I expected.”
“Acquitaine can be overwhelming. But I am here to help you,” Gawyn reassured with a grin.
Her return smile lit her face, making her eyes shine with an inner light, making her entire face beam like some sort of beacon.
Beautiful. Simply beautiful. He had never met a woman like her, a woman that could sneak up on him, a woman that could pin him to the ground. A woman so full of life and conviction and surprises.
She turned back to the front of the room.
Gawyn followed her gaze. Near the platform where Aurora sat, Gawyn spotted a colorful garment. He stepped away from Justina to get a better view.
A man with a thick mustache and thicker accent was speaking earnestly. A slender woman with bare feet stood beside him. Gypsies. There had been reports of the gypsies seducing village men and dancing for coin. The villagers did not like the foreign gypsies. They were viewed as outsiders and, therefore, untrustworthy.
Gawyn shifted to hear Aurora’s proclamation, although he had not heard the complaint from the gypsies.
“You may conduct your activities at market. You are welcomed inside the city walls to purchase necessary items,” Aurora stated.
A murmuring trickled through the gathered crowd in the Great Hall.
The gypsy man bowed. “Thank you, Lady Aurora.”
The gypsies were happy with this. The crowds in the city would not be. This was not the end of it. Even though it was a fair ruling, the villagers saw Acquitaine as their home and didn’t want the foreigners in it. Still, the gypsies had to make a living. It would be an unpopular decision.
Gawyn watched the man and woman walk past them toward the rear doors. Even the way they moved was foreign, languid, and sexy. They moved up the center aisle as the next person presented their troubles to Aurora.
Suddenly, a commotion behind them caused Gawyn to whirl. Five men dressed in animal furs were pushing their way to the front of the room, shoving peasants and nobles aside.
Gawyn recognized the Hungars immediately. He gently guided Justina and Adam to the side of the room without taking his eyes from the men. “Leave the room. Go out into the hall and wait for me there.”
Justina didn’t argue. She grabbed Adam’s arm and exited through the great double doors they had entered through at the back of the room.
Gawyn skirted the wall and moved toward the raised dais where Aurora sat. Damien had already stepped down a stair and stood before her protectively. The guards moved immediately to defensive stances. No one had drawn weapons. Not yet.
The Hungars stopped just before the stairs. They were all stocky and strong, wearing animal pelts for clothing. Swords and axes hung from their belts.
“There is a protocol here,” Aurora told them. “You must wait for your turn.”
“We don’t wait,” one of the men responded in a gruff tone. The pelt of a bear draped over his shoulders; a necklace of fangs hung about his neck. His brown hair was stringy and greasy and hung past his shoulders. A scar ran from just below his left eye down to his chin. “For anyone.”
“What do you want, Hogar?” Damien demanded.
“You put puny men on our lands.”
Damien cast a quick glance at Gawyn for acknowledgement.
Gawyn shook his head. The soldiers were not on Hungar lands.
Damien looked back at Hogar. “They are on Acquitaine lands. Maybe you’ve forgotten where your borders are.”
“We forget nothing. Least of all how weak you are.”
Aurora stood and walked up to Damien’s side. “We don’t want war, Hogar. But my people will be protected.”
“You’re a pretty girl,” Hogar grunted as the men around him laughed lustily. “We follow no woman’s orders. No matter how her tits jiggle.”
Damien jerked forward, but Aurora caught his arm to restrain him.
Hogar chuckled. “You should visit Hungar to see what real men do for their women.”
Damien’s jaw clenched, but other than that, he appeared relaxed.
Gawyn knew that was when Damien was most dangerous. Every muscle in his body tensed, ready.
The soldiers and guards around him all had their hands on the pommels of their swords, ready for battle.
Hogar’s gaze quickly moved over the armed soldiers which outnumbered his men three to one. His grin slipped. “I come to tell you to remove your men from our lands.”
“And I tell you that my men are not on your lands,” Damien snarled.
Gawyn saw the signal a second before Damien acted. Damien’s left hand fisted. It was a sign that all the soldiers knew. Close in.
Suddenly, there was a flurry of movement. Gawyn drew his weapon and all the Acquitaine soldiers rushed forward. Gawyn placed the tip of his weapon to the throat of the Hungar standing beside Hogar before he could even pull his axe free of his belt.
Damien had Hogar pinned to the ground, an arm around his neck, his face smashed into the stone floor. He leaned toward him, whispering in his ear. Only Hogar heard what he said.
Hogar struggled for a long moment but could not escape Damien’s hold.
Gawyn’s gaze slid over the rest of the Hungars. All had numerous weapons pointed at them. None of the Hungars moved.
“Get off me,” Hogar commanded.
Damien didn’t move. He looked up at one of the men. “Rupert.”
Rupert, the trusted commander of the guard, second only to Gawyn, a soldier with a streak of grey in his shaggy hair, nodded.
“See to it that Hogar and all of his men are escorted from Acquitaine lands.”
“Aye, m’lord,” Rupert answered.
Lithe and dangerous, Damien leapt from Hogar, moving quickly out of his reach.
Hogar cli
mbed to his feet. His upper lip trembled with rage. “We go where we want. When we want.”
“You are going to leave Acquitaine,” Damien said. “And you are not going to return.”
Hogar’s eyes widened in outrage. His lips curled with hatred; his teeth ground. Around him and his men, soldiers from Acquitaine moved in, blocking all ways out except the large double doors at the back of the room. Hogar stood still for a tense moment. His gaze burned into Damien with a molten hatred. Finally, he whirled and led his men from the room. At least twenty Acquitaine soldiers followed them.
Aurora moved to Damien’s side. She stroked his shoulder and he turned to her, capturing her hand in his. They locked gazes for a long moment. Aurora caressed his cheek and took a deep breath.
Gawyn moved to Damien’s side. “If you feel like fighting, you should do it outside of the castle.”
“How the devil did they get in here?” Damien demanded, ignoring his quip.
“I’ll check on it,” Gawyn replied, but he looked toward the door for Justina.
“Go with them, Gawyn. Take two squadrons of soldiers and make sure they are off our lands. I’ll have Sir Robert talk to the outer wall guards.”
Gawyn turned to Damien, anxiety rippled through him. He didn’t want to leave Justina. “I have Justina and her brother at the castle.”
“Justina?” Damien echoed in confusion.
“The girl who lives on the outer lands. In Auch. The one Aurora said to take men and protect. I think Hogar has mistaken those lands for his.”
Damien cursed quietly. “Escort the Hungars. I’ll have someone else entertain them until you return.”
“Damien,” Gawyn warned. He knew how distracted Damien was with the Hungars. He knew a girl was not his top priority. He would forget about her.
“I’ll do it,” Aurora said softly. “I’ll find her, Gawyn. I’ll make sure she is taken care of.”
Gawyn nodded his gratitude. He knew Aurora would take care of Justina. “Thank you. Tell her I’ll see her when I come back.” He jogged after the retreating soldiers.
Damien scowled slightly, unsure what to make of his brother’s sudden interest in the simple girl. He glanced at Aurora.
“Are you all right?” she asked him, her fingers trailing reassuringly over his arm.
Damien frowned fiercely and glanced at the double doors the Hungars had left through. “They will not insult you.”
Aurora grinned. “I care not what they say. Their words are empty.”
Damien fumed silently. “I don’t like them looking at you.”
She tilted her head to the side. “You don’t like anyone looking at me.”
It was true, but he especially didn’t like those barbarians looking at her.
“You frightened me,” she admitted quietly.
For that he was sorry. He brought her hand to his lips and pressed a kiss to her knuckles. “I’ll try not to do that again.”
“Thank you.”
“As long as Hogar never enters Castle Acquitaine again.”
“Then we must make sure he doesn’t,” she agreed.
“Gawyn will see him out of Acquitaine and back to his lands. But that won’t stop them.” He looked down at her beautiful full lips. “I want you to stay inside the castle for the rest of the day.”
Aurora lifted her gaze to him, casting those magnificent blue eyes on him. “You think I’m in danger?”
“I’d feel better knowing you were safe in the castle until the Hungars are out of Acquitaine.”
She leaned forward and pressed a kiss to his cheek. “Then for today, I will stay in the castle.”
Justina stood in the hallway, watching as people passed by, obscuring her view of the double doors to the Judgement Room. Adam stood beside her, leaning back against the wall.
She had seen the Hungars emerge and a large group of soldiers follow them out the door. She had not seen Gawyn. Anxiety rippled through her. First, worry. Had he been hurt? The Hungars looked fierce and savage. She immediately dismissed this thought. He was a trained warrior. He would know how to defend himself. Then where was he?
Two noble women exited the room, speaking amongst themselves.
“Those Hungars are barbarians,” the one with the green dress said.
“And dirty. They are disgusting,” the other said. “Imagine them speaking to Lady Aurora like that.”
They strolled passed Justina.
Adam sighed at her side. “I wish I could have stayed.”
Justina stared at the large wooden doors, wishing Gawyn would appear. “The captain wanted us safe. I’m sure he’ll be out any moment.” But she was beginning to think he had forgotten about them. It had been a long while since they had left the room, or what seemed like a long while. She found herself twisting her hands, worried for Gawyn’s safety.
“I wasn’t afraid,” Adam said bravely.
Justina swung her gaze to him in disbelief. “You weren’t? Those Hungars are fierce and bloodthirsty. Did you see the axe the one had? It was the size of your entire body! Be thankful that Gawyn told us to wait for him in the hall. We don’t want to be anywhere near them.”
Adam kicked at an imaginary rock. “I’m not afraid,” he repeated, but his voice lacked conviction.
Justina took a deep breath. She looked down the hall. She wasn’t sure how to get back to the inner ward, let alone her horse. What if Gawyn didn’t come back? Would they be stuck wandering the halls of this massive castle forever? Justina looked at the doors again. He was taking a long time. Maybe she should peek inside the Judgement Room and see if Gawyn was still there. So many people had come out of the room.
Suddenly, Lady Aurora exited the room, followed by four soldiers. Justina couldn’t help but inhale at her beauty and grace. Her dress was a beautiful white with golden embroidery. Her golden hair fell in waves around her shoulders. She paused in the doorway and looked first left, then right until her gaze settled on them. A slow, warm grin spread over her lips.
Adam gasped as she approached, pushing himself from the wall.
“Are you Justina?” Lady Aurora asked.
Justina opened her mouth. It wasn’t that Lady Aurora was scary or unapproachable. It was that she was so beautiful. Her blond hair reflected golden light. Her eyes were large and blue, like the color of a rare sapphire. Justina couldn’t recall a woman who was more stunning. She closed her mouth and nodded.
Aurora smiled. “I remember you from the village. I’m sorry that Damien frightened you.”
Damien? Justina’s mind echoed. But she pushed the thought away and suddenly remembered her manners. She fell into a deep curtsey before her. She was honored that Lady Aurora remembered her from the village square!
“Gawyn was taken away on business. He requested you wait for him.”
“Wait for him?” Justina echoed, rising from her curtsey.
“Yes. You will wait, won’t you?”
“Of course!” Adam called.
“How long will he be?”
Aurora looked at her with sympathy. “I’m afraid most of the day. I’m certain we can find entertainment for you.”
Justina scowled. She would love to wait for Gawyn, but she couldn’t be away from Uncle Bruce and the farm for long. And then, she remembered the reason she came. “Lady Aurora, I wanted to thank you for the horse. It was generous of you.”
“I was disturbed at the raids happening so close to you. I don’t want you to be in danger.”
“The captain brought a lot of guards to protect us!” Adam exclaimed excitedly.
Justina blinked. Her brother! “My lady,” she said quietly, “this is my brother, Adam.”
Aurora turned to Adam. She folded her hands before her and regarded him with an appreciative grin. “What a marvelous little man. You shall grow into a great knight, I am sure.”
Adam beamed and puffed out his chest.
Justina had never seen him so quiet. Lady Aurora certainly cast a spell over all of them.
“Will you stay?” Aurora asked Justina. “Gawyn would be so upset if you left.”
Justina felt uncomfortable and torn. She knew that they should return to Auch and Uncle Bruce, and yet she didn’t want to disappoint Gawyn, not after everything he had done for them. She glanced at Adam.
He put his hands together as if praying.
With a small sigh, she nodded. “I suppose one more day would be acceptable.”
Adam whooped.
Aurora smiled. “I am very glad you’ve chosen to spend one more day with us. I am sure Gawyn will be happy, also.”
“I’m happy!” Adam exclaimed.
“Have you eaten?” Aurora began walking down the corridor.
Justina and Adam followed. Justina was afraid that if she didn’t, she would be lost in the castle forever.
“Grapes,” Adam said.
Justina grinned. She glanced back at the guards that followed them.
“I trust your accommodations are satisfactory?” Aurora said.
“They’re so big!” Adam stated in awe.
“Yes,” Justina said. “They are more than satisfactory. It’s all so generous of you to welcome us like this.”
“You are guests here,” Aurora said kindly. “I hope that you will return often and report upon the conditions of the borders. You will be our border ambassadors.”
Border Ambassadors. Justina liked that. It was an important title.
“Border Ambassadors,” Adam repeated with an impressed tone.
“I will,” Justina promised. “We will. We would be honored. You’ve done so much for us already. We’ll make regular trips now that we have a horse.”
“Thank you for the horse!” Adam piped in.
“You’re welcome, Adam,” Aurora said.
“I can’t thank you enough for sending soldiers to guard us in Auch.”
“I wish you had told me earlier. I do not want any of my people living in fear. I had no idea the Hungars were raiding our land.” Lady Aurora nodded at a noble man with pointy-toed shoes who passed them as she walked down the hallway. “You live with your uncle?”
“Uncle Bruce!” Adam chimed.
“Uncle Bruce takes care of you?”
“Yes,” Justina admitted.
Legends of Medieval Romance: The Complete Angel's Assassin Trilogy Page 36
