“Well, I’d really better go,” she said, turning back for her car and opened the passenger door. She tossed her purse inside and, on second thought, pulled out the elastic band in her hair and stripped off her lab coat. Everything landed in the front seat.
“Hey, Jeremy?” Wade called softly.
She turned around, her hair free and unbound and the tee-shirt revealing her beautiful shape. “What?”
“Do you believe in fate?” he asked hesitantly.
She smiled and shrugged. “Sort of. Why?”
He shook his head, looking confused and puzzled. “I do not know. This may sound really bizarre, but I think I dreamed about you once. Now, that is pretty weird.”
Jeremy’s breath caught in her throat. My God, how could he have experienced the same thing she did? It didn’t make any sense, any of it. Her heart began to race and before she realized it, she was moving toward him, like in slow motion. She was moving closer, closer, not sure of what she was going to do when she reached him, but going just the same.
It must have been the expression on her face, because suddenly his arms were opening up to her and she was in them, being lifted off the ground and feeling his mouth on hers with fevered, stark intensity. Her arms wound around his neck, responding to him as if she had done it a thousand times before, knowing his mouth but not knowing it, losing herself completely in him.
Jeremy didn’t know how long she remained aloft in Wade’s arms, her feet dangling off the ground and their passionate kisses drowning out everything else in the world. Had she stopped to figure it out, she could not have explained it in words.
Six years and four kids later, she still could not have explained that moment if she tried. And neither could he.
And now this is the story told
Knights of legend, riding bold
Ancient times, of visions gone
Into present of passion’s song
The knight and lady of love long past
Together again, of dreams at last
The Wolfe and his mate, joined for life
Will always be as man and wife
In this age… and the next
~ Conclusion to The Wolfe
* THE END *
NIGHTHAWK
A Medieval Romance
Chronologically Book Two of the de Wolfe Pack Series
By Kathryn Le Veque
The next generation Wolfe Pack
The Wolfe
William and Jordan Scott de Wolfe
Scott (Wife #1 Lady Athena de Norville, issue. Wife #2, Lady Avrielle Huntley du Rennic, issue.)
Troy (Wife #1 Lady Helene de Norville, has issue. Wife #2 Lady Rhoswyn Johnstone, issue.)
Patrick (married to Lady Brighton de Favereux, has issue)
James – Killed in Wales June 1282 (married to Lady Rose Hage, has issue)
Katheryn (James’ twin) Married Sir Alec Hage, has issue
Evelyn (married to Sir Hector de Norville, has issue)
Baby de Wolfe – died same day. Christened Madeleine.
Edward (married to Lady Cassiopeia de Norville, has issue)
Thomas
Penelope (married to Bhrodi de Shera, hereditary King of Anglesey and Earl of Coventry, has issue)
Kieran and Jemma Scott Hage
Mary Alys (adopted) married, with issue
Baby Hage, died same day. Christened Bridget.
Alec (married to Lady Katheryn de Wolfe, has issue)
Christian (died Holy Land 1269 A.D.) no issue
Moira (married to Sir Apollo de Norville, has issue)
Kevin (married to Lady Annavieve de Ferrers, has issue)
Rose (widow of Sir James de Wolfe, has issue)
Nathaniel
Paris and Caladora Scott de Norville
Hector (married to Lady Evelyn de Wolfe, has issue)
Apollo (married to Lady Moira Hage, has issue)
Helene (married to Sir Troy de Wolfe, has issue)
Athena (married to Sir Scott de Wolfe, has issue)
Adonis
Cassiopeia (married to Sir Edward de Wolfe, has issue)
Author’s Note
Welcome to Patrick’s story!
This one has been a long time in coming (because I wrote The Wolfe twenty years ago), but I think it’s well worth the wait. We essentially get to see the next generation of the de Wolfe Pack, right about thirty years after The Wolfe takes place and about fifteen years before Serpent. So this is a peek into the world directly after Jordan and William’s story.
Patrick is a big man destined for greatness. We also get the sense that he is his father’s favorite son. The family clearly loves him and he loves them. It was great fun giving Patrick a journey that took him from a serious knight to a man who had fallen in love and learned a thing or two about life (and women). I hope you think so, too.
Things to note: Berwick Castle features in this story and at this point in history, it was at the transition point between the end of Henry III’s reign and the beginning of Edward I. Edward made major improvements to the castle and to the city’s defenses, but I’ve taken artistic license in moving up those improvements and having Henry start them. I’m about ten or so years off from Berwick really having been a massively built-out bastion, but there is little history about the castle prior to 1296, so I’ve taken the liberty of having the stone rebuilding of the castle starting a little early.
Castle Questing doesn’t exist – it is a creation of my imagination although I can tell you exactly where it sits on the topography of England. More fun things to note: the knights bearing names you will recognize – Hector and Apollo de Norville are the sons of Paris and Caladora de Norville, while Alec and Kevin Hage are the sons of Kieran and Jemma Hage (The Wolfe). Kevin has his own story in SCORPION, set when he’s about fifteen years older. Anson du Bonne is the son of Stephen and Genisa du Bonne (The Gorgon), Damien d’Vant is a son of Dennis and Ryan d’Vant (Tender is the Knight), and Colm de Lara is a grandson of Sean de Lara and Sheridan St. James (Lord of the Shadows).
Patrick has several brothers and we get to meet two of them in this book. Scott and Troy de Wolfe have also appeared in SERPENT and they will eventually have their own books. And as a final note – look for a new character, Kerk le Sander, in this book. He has quite a story behind him, coming out in my 2017 novella duet with NYT Bestselling author Sharon Hamilton entitled The Trident Legacy. It would seem that Patrick’s friend, Kerk, has an immortal soul. Fun stuff for great reading!
More characters of note: Daniel de Lohr makes a brief appearance in this book. His novel is SHADOWMOOR and Chad de Lohr is mentioned as well as the de Shera brothers (SILVERSWORD and THE THUNDER LORD, respectively), so if you haven’t read any of those books yet, they are must reads. In my world, everything is tied in!
In all, this is a great adventure with a good deal of passion in it because Patrick and Brighton have an incredibly strong bond, as you will see. As always, I truly hope you enjoy the book!
Love, Kathryn
PROLOGUE
In the heady days of Yore,
There upon a moonlit shore,
Came the knight known one to all,
A warrior to heed the nightbird’s call.
Son of The Wolfe, a legacy born,
A knight of skill, yet his heart was torn.
A heart so bold, demanded by kings,
Yet a lady claimed it, an angel without wings.
A nightbird with a warrior’s soul,
This is now the story told.
~ 13th c. chronicles
July, Year of our Lord 1269
Westminster Palace, London
“No one enters a room like a de Wolfe.” An elderly man with a head of gray hair and one droopy eye spoke. “Even from afar, the moment the doors open and you enter, it is as if all of the air in the room is sucked out by your mere presence. Your father has the same gift, by the way. Think not that you are special in that regard, Patrick de Wolfe.”
An enormous knight with eyes
the color of jade and hair as dark as a raven’s wing was halfway into the great hall, heading towards the dais at the far end where the king sat. Great Henry, he was called, an elderly man who had ruled England for over sixty years. But the king was in poor health these days and his voice was barely above a whisper, which meant that one of the king’s advisors had to repeat what the man had said so that Patrick could properly respond.
All was formality and pomp within the great hall of Westminster Palace. A mere knight was expected to respond to a kingly statement.
“You have accused my father of such things before, my lord, or so I have heard,” Patrick responded loudly, as the king’s hearing was also very poor these days. “In fact, he told me that you have refused to allow him to enter a room before you for that very reason.”
He was drawing nearer to the king now, his heavy leather boots clapping against the wooden floor in loud succession; boom, boom, boom…. Such a big man made very big sounds. He closed the gap quickly for he’d come with a purpose. An audience with the ailing king was something quite rare these days, even for the man who had been appointed to serve as the monarch’s personal Lord Protector. He had only just reached London and had sought audience with the king, which was granted as soon as the king was feeling better. Now, Patrick had arrived and the king could not be more pleased about it.
But the one person in the room who wasn’t pleased with Patrick’s arrival was, in fact, Patrick himself. He wasn’t one to be nervous or jumpy as a rule. But as he came to a halt before Henry, he realized that he was just that – nervous. God help him, he was here with a purpose in mind and if the king didn’t grant his request, he wasn’t entirely sure what he was going to do. It all came down to the case he would lay out for the king and how convincing he would be. He’d done nothing but pray about it, fervently.
Sweet Christ, let Henry be in a generous mood today!
From the way Henry was staring at him, however, it was difficult to tell just how generous Henry intended to be. The man had been ill for quite some time now and his skin was yellowish, his eyes sunken. The silks swathing his body hung on the man’s thin frame. He was staring at Patrick as if the man’s most recent remark had offended him and, in truth, Patrick was coming to wonder if it had. He and Henry had an easy repartee, as easy as one could have with the king, because Henry owed much to Patrick’s father, William de Wolfe. It was on that basis that Patrick had established his own relationship with the monarch and answering the man as he had was something that usually gave Henry a grin. But, at the moment, that grin wasn’t forthcoming.
Patrick waited.
The grin finally came.
“Cheeky devil,” Henry muttered after a moment. Then, he lifted a finger in Patrick’s direction. “Now, you will tell me why you seek audience with me. You are my Lord Protector, Patrick. I have been waiting for you to arrive and assume your duties.”
“I know, my lord.”
Henry’s eyebrows lifted when there was no more of a reply than that. “Have you nothing more to say?” he asked. “You have never before sought an audience and I will admit that it has me concerned. Speak, now. Tell me what is of importance to you.”
Patrick looked at his monarch. Now, the moment had come. Swallowing away his nerves, he brought forth the speech he had planned for weeks. Now, the time was upon him to speak it. He could not delay.
“This is a formal request, my lord,” he began quietly. “It seemed best served to follow protocol and request an audience.”
“So you did. What do you want?”
Patrick took a deep breath, eyeing the advisors that stood around the king, knowing he was about to bare his soul for all to hear. It was an embarrassing event, to be sure, but the needs of his heart were stronger than his pride. The damnable, stubborn de Wolfe pride. But he hardly cared; if the seasoned men surrounding Henry thought him weak for it, then so be it.
“My lord, it has been the pinnacle of my career as a knight to personally serve you as my father once did,” he said in his rich, melodious baritone. “As a warrior and as a subject, I could ask for no higher honor. But several weeks ago, I had an experience with a raiding band of Scots that has changed my outlook on life. It happened at nearly the same time I received word that I was to come to London to attend you, in fact.”
“Is that so?”
“It is, my lord.”
“And how did this encounter with the Scots change your outlook?”
Patrick cleared his throat softly again; his nerves were still there. “Because there was a woman with them,” he said quietly. “She was a captive, you see, so I brought her back to Castle Questing for my mother to tend. My lord, it is because of this woman that I wish to return home.”
The king may have been ill and hard of hearing, but he wasn’t daft. He could see something reflected in Patrick’s eyes, something he’d once seen in the eyes of Patrick’s father. It is because of this woman that I wish to return home. Long ago, Henry remembered William de Wolfe in a seemingly similar predicament with the woman who turned out to be Patrick’s mother. A man so in love that nothing else in the world mattered, not even the prestige of serving a king. He sighed faintly.
“You want to marry this woman, I take it?” he asked.
“I already have.”
Henry was intrigued. “You have?” he said, astonished. “I did not know this. Who is she?”
“Her name is Brighton de Favereux. Her mother is the sister to Gilbert de la Haye of Clan Haye.”
“I know of him. But who is her father?”
Patrick seemed to falter. “Magnus, my lord.”
“Magnus de Favereux? I do not know him.”
Patrick shook his head. “Nay, my lord,” he said. “Magnus of Norway. He is the Norse king.”
That seemed of great interest to Henry as well as his advisors. The great Earl of Canterbury, Daniel de Lohr, happened to be in London at this time and had been visiting with Henry at Westminster. Patrick had known the man since childhood and he liked him a great deal. The House of de Lohr and the House of de Wolfe went back generations and were great allies. It was Daniel, standing on Henry’s right, who spoke.
“Who told you this, Patrick?” Daniel asked calmly.
Patrick turned his attention to the big, blonde earl, still powerful and agile in his sixth decade. “Her nurse, my lord,” he replied. “An old nun was also captured by the raiding party and she told me of Bridey’s true identity. It has been kept secret for many years.”
Daniel’s eyebrows furrowed. “The lass has been raised by nuns?”
“Aye, my lord.”
“A daughter of the king of the Northmen?”
“Aye, my lord.”
Daniel looked at Henry, greatly perplexed by the story that was coming forth from one of the most reasonable young knights he had ever known. It sounded like madness to his ears but he knew there had to be a complex reason in there, somewhere. Henry, equally perplexed, held up his hand to silence both Daniel’s questions and Patrick’s replies. He was only growing more confused by the moment.
“Patrick,” he said with quiet insistence. “I think you had better start from the beginning, my son. You have married a woman who is the daughter of the king of the Northmen and a Scottish mother?”
Patrick nodded, feeling some of the nervousness drain out of him as he realized that Henry was truly interested in what he had to say. So was Canterbury. These were two men he greatly respected. There was so much to tell he hardly knew where to start. With a sigh, he focused on the beginning of his tale, going back to that night that changed the course of his life. He hadn’t known it then, of course, but he certainly knew it now. And he wanted nothing more than to head back north to Northumberland, to the borders between Scotland and England, where his family ruled.
Where Brighton was.
Fixing the king in the eye, he began his complicated tale. “I have, my lord. And I did not have permission to do it.”
“I see. And now there i
s trouble?”
“Possibly, my lord.”
“Then start this story from the beginning. And leave nothing out.”
Patrick complied. “It was a dark and stormy night….”
CHAPTER ONE
The Tale Begins
Five weeks earlier
Whiteadder Water, near Foulden
England/Scotland Border
They had been waiting for them.
Hidden by a grove of black, shadowed trees beneath a crystal-cold night sky following a violent rain storm, the reivers from Scotland never had a chance. The English overlords from Berwick Castle had been alerted by their patrols that a raiding party of Scots was heading away from the coast after having ransacked an English settlement.
The English patrols had kept track of the reivers as they’d headed inland, sending word to their lords at Berwick because they knew that the castle, held by the House of de Wolfe and a garrison for the English king, would send a highly-trained squad of men to intercept the Scots. Rumor had it that they had a woman with them. Based on the accounts of the village that had been raided, the woman had been a spoil of war.
Fearing it was an Englishwoman that had been abducted fed the bloodlust of the English from Berwick. By anticipating the movements of the reivers, the English had been waiting for them as they’d passed through a lesser-traveled road heading south. Once the group passed into England, those in the trees swooped on them.
The Nighthawk had found his prey.
The fight had been chaotic. Somewhere along the line, the reivers had picked up more men. So by the time they hit the trees where the Nighthawk and his men were waiting, they had nearly doubled in number.
But it was of little matter; the men waiting in the darkened trees were English knights of the highest order, men born and bred for battle. Sons of de Wolfe, de Norville, Hage, and a few others rushed to the road to engage the Scots, who had been startled by the confrontation. Mostly, the reivers were men who raided and ran. They didn’t necessarily go looking for a fight.
The Original de Wolfe Pack Complete Set: Including Sons of de Wolfe Page 134
