Sadgill leaned back against a support column, a lonely piece of wood holding up a section of the roof. “Of course I want Canaan,” he said. “You know I do. But without the support of my allies, I fear it may be impossible.”
Adam threw up his arms. “It is not impossible,” he said. “You must drive out de Wolfe and claim Canaan as you have planned. For all of the information I have given you over the months, you owe me that much. Is everything I’m doing to be in vain?”
Sadgill eyed him. “It will not be,” he said. “But will you ever tell me your motives behind this? I wonder who you are doing this for.”
Adam stiffened. “It does not matter what my motives are,” he said. “They are my own. Canaan is my due and you have promised me command.”
“Indeed I have. But without support of the allies, that may be out of the question.”
That wasn’t what Adam wanted to hear. “Look at my face!” he demanded. “De Wolfe and his men did that. They have beaten all of the du Rennic knights and have subdued the army. In fact, we do not need your allies. I know of a better way.”
“What do you mean?”
Adam was animated. “If I can convince the du Rennic army to revolt, we do not need any help at all.”
Sadgill was very interested but he was also dubious. “How can that be? They are loyal to de Wolfe and, consequently, Edward.”
Adam shook his head. “They are Nathaniel’s men,” he insisted. “They know Nathaniel died because of de Wolfe. There is no love for de Wolfe because of it, I assure you.”
Sadgill had to admit that he was more than interested to hear that. It would be a remarkable solution to a problem he had considered unavoidable; the unavoidable truth that he had no support from his allies any longer for the conquest of Canaan.
The past two weeks of trying to find cooperation for his plan to lay siege to Canaan had been met with resistance. Three of his neighbors – Bennet, Swinklebank, and Stockdale – had been with him when he’d attacked Canaan those weeks ago. But those three lords had been on the receiving end of a deadly de Wolfe offensive and they no longer wished to be party to whatever Sadgill wanted to do. As far as they were concerned, they would rather not lose more men and Sadgill had been grossly humiliated that his allies would not support him in his endeavor to gain Canaan.
But now this.
Was it really possible that Canaan’s army would turn against their liege?
“Do you truly believe the du Rennic army would resist de Wolfe?” he asked.
Adam nodded, with great confidence. “We did it two weeks ago when de Wolfe was purged from Canaan the night you attacked,” he pointed out. “It would take very little for my men to turn against him once more, especially now that he has taken Lady du Rennic to his bed. What kind of man would shame the widow of the man who gave his life for him? Nathaniel du Rennic died protecting de Wolfe and de Wolfe rewarded that selfless action by forcing the man’s wife into his bed. Of course the du Rennic army would do anything to rebel against de Wolfe. You underestimate their loyalty.”
Sadgill considered that. “It would be the only chance we have.”
“Given how much they hate him now, I believe I can convince them.”
Now, Sadgill seemed as if he were starting to feel some renewed hope. His dark eyes flashed. “Then we must act before the Scottish lord is able to reach Canaan,” he said. “Once the castle is in my hands, we will bottle up the fortress and drive all attempts to regain her away.”
Adam’s expression was one of relief, as he’d appeared to be convinced Sadgill was about to give up on the plans they’d had for so long. “I agree,” he said. “We must act swiftly. We must stockpile food and water and weapons to wait out whatever siege de Wolfe or Edward can bring upon us. Surely they will be turned away if we can hold out against them.”
Sadgill nodded, more vigor in his movements now. “Then return to Canaan and see who you can convince to join us,” he said. “Any men that you cannot convince… you will have to dispose of them.”
Adam’s brow furrowed. “Dispose of them?”
“You cannot have any resistance in your ranks, lad. If they are not with you, then they are the enemy.”
Adam pondered the depths of that suggestion. That would mean if Jeremy or Gordon did not support his rebellion, then he would have to take steps to ensure they didn’t stop him. But he was ready; he’d come this far. He could not turn back.
“I will do what is necessary,” he agreed. “I will return when I have more positive news to tell you. In the meanwhile… I have been thinking… mayhap you should tell your allies that if they do not help you gain Canaan, a Scottish lord will take over the vale and we shall be overrun by Scots. Surely that will make them want to lend their support.”
It was a clever suggestion, one that Sadgill seemed to consider. “They’ll not want Scots here,” he said, his voice low with confidence. “Leave it to me. Now that we know what Edward has planned for Canaan… mayhap I can, indeed, convince my allies to lend support.”
“It would be better than having Scots here.”’
Sadgill nodded. “I will do my best,” he said. “Now, you’d better return. You do not want your absence to be noticed. You have said that Huntley has been suspicious of you.”
Adam turned for the barn entry but his movements were slow. “He will not want to support a rebellion, you know.”
“Why do you say that?”
“Because he is the only one who has shown de Wolfe any loyalty.”
Sadgill eyed him. “Then if he is not with you, he is your enemy. Remember that.”
Adam didn’t like the thought of turning against Gordon, in any fashion. He’d always shared a good relationship with the man and it was Gordon who had comforted him after his own father had died last year. Nay, he couldn’t turn against Gordon but he couldn’t have the man interfering in what needed to be done, either.
Adam’s thoughts remained on Gordon and on his return to Canaan as he moved outside to gather his horse. Once he thundered out of the compound, Sadgill turned to the men that were still lingering around him.
There was a serious tone in the air.
“You heard him,” he said to his men. “Edward is going to turn Canaan over to the Scots.”
The three other men grunted their disapproval, shifting around on their leather-clad feet. “A Scotsman in control of the Fawcett Vale?” a man with short, greasy hair snorted. “That is like putting a fox in command of a henhouse. He will draw wealth from the tolls and when the Scots want to attack south of Carlisle, he will let them go wherever they wish, all the way south to Kendal.”
Sadgill understood the implications better than his own men did. He was grossly displeased with it all. “Lads, I fear that the time has come to make some decisions,” he said. “If de Ferrar can rally the du Rennic army to rebel against de Wolfe and Canaan becomes my holding, there is no way I will allow anyone or anything to wrest the castle from me. Once it becomes mine, it stays mine. I shall live there and the proud name of Sadgill will fly on the battlements.”
His men gazed at him in the weak light of the low-ceilinged, smelly barn. “You only have four hundred men to help you,” the greasy-haired man pointed out. “Can you hold Canaan with four hundred men?”
Sadgill held up a finger. “You forget that the du Rennic army will be there, too,” he said. “Aye, I can hold it. And I shall.”
His men weren’t so certain. They glanced at each other, somewhat nervously. “What about de Ferrar?” another man asked. “He is to be in command of Canaan. You told him so.”
Sadgill shrugged, thinking on the young knight who was too ambitious for his own good. “It will be my fortress,” he said. “Young Adam may wish to command it, but that will never be. I only need his help to gain Canaan. After that, he means nothing to me.”
It was an honest statement from a man who tended to look at others as disposable commodities. His men agreed with him lest they become disposable as well.
Although the three men eventually left the barn to attend their duties, Sadgill remained because he didn’t want to go into the manse that was overrun by women. He lingered in the smell, dim barn, pondering the day that Castle Canaan would belong to him and Scott de Wolfe would be a distant memory. He knew that Canaan was in the Bretherdale lordship, but that didn’t matter to him. He would be answerable to no one when he finally had his hands on the castle, de Wolfe included. But that day would come sooner rather than later to prevent it from falling into Scots hands.
In silence, he began to mentally perfect those plans.
Outside the barn, still pressed against the ventilation hole, Stanley had heard everything. It was shocking information and he knew it was vital that Scott should hear it immediately. Surprise aside that Adam de Ferrar was a traitor, there was some very bad dealings going on, but now the attack on Canaan those weeks ago was coming to make some sense. Scott had speculated that it could be the Cumbrian lords at the time and it turned out his instincts were correct.
The Cumbrians wanted Canaan.
Stanley continued to cling to the wall, listening, until Sadgill’s men left the barn. Only then did he carefully climb down off the wall and make his way back the way he had come. On the ground, taking refuge behind dead trees, he slithered his way back up the hill and back to the beck where he’d left his horse.
Thankfully, the horse had been camouflaged enough that Adam hadn’t see the beast when he’d followed the path back to Canaan. And for that, Stanley was grateful. He made very certain to stay a good distance behind Adam, following the beck and staying out of sight, knowing he would reach Canaan well after Adam did, but it couldn’t be helped. He had to make sure he returned to Canaan without tipping Adam off that he’d been followed, so in that respect he kept his patience and his stealth. Above all, Scott had to know what was happening.
And Adam had to think no one knew of his plans.
A rebellion was in the air…
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
Jeremy wasn’t healing.
That was Scott’s first thought when he saw the man spread out over the pallet that had been fashioned for him in one of the smaller guard rooms near the northern gatehouse. He was initially asleep when Scott came in, breathing heavily and steadily, clearly indicative of a body that was trying to heal. As Scott stood over the man, he could see that the entire left side of his face was a giant, bloodied blister.
Gordon was with his son. He hadn’t left him since they’d moved him into the guard room and he came to stand next to Scott as the man visually inspected Jeremy.
“He has been sleeping since we moved him,” Gordon said quietly. “He will awaken if I shake him, but then he falls back to sleep promptly.”
“Is he with fever?” Scott asked.
Gordon shook his head. “I do not believe so, although the wound is warm to the touch.”
“Has he eaten anything? Did you give him watered wine as I told you to?”
“He would not drink it.”
Scott sighed faintly; the signs weren’t good. He still didn’t regret beating Jeremy to a pulp but now he was going to have to do something about it or Jeremy might not recover. It was Stewart who had mentioned that Lady du Rennic might not like that her brother was suffering, which was truthfully the only reason Scott was here. But now the situation was rather serious. The healer in him began to take over.
“I must examine his face,” Scott told Gordon, “but I am sure he will not be amiable to it so you will go and find his fellow knights. They may have to hold him down. Meanwhile, I am going to procure what I need to tend that swelling on his face. Return here as quickly as you can.”
Gordon, looking rather fearful, nodded and fled the room. With a lingering look on Jeremy, Scott started to follow the old man out of the chamber when a quiet, hoarse voice stopped him.
“What are you going to do to me?”
Scott paused by the entry, turning to see that Jeremy was awake. As Scott watched, Jeremy rolled onto his back and opened his eyes. He looked at Scott with eyes the same color as his sister’s; with Jeremy’s injury, the intensity of the color increased. Just by looking at the man, Scott could see the pain he was in. He made his way back over to the pallet.
“I must get a closer look at the swelling on your face,” he said quietly.
“Why do men need to hold me down?”
“Because you have a blister full of blood on the side of your head that must be lanced. It will not be without pain when I do it.”
Jeremy held his gaze a moment longer before looking away. “Let me be,” he muttered. “Mayhap the swelling and the pain will finish the job you started.”
“What job?”
“You want me dead, don’t you?”
Scott shook his head. “I do not,” he replied. “Huntley, you and I were allies once. We have fought together on several occasions. I am not entirely sure what has changed so much other than Nathaniel’s death that should see us at such odds, but I do not want you dead. I never did.”
Jeremy rolled onto his side again, staring off into the darkness of the chamber. “Can you honestly say you do not know what has changed between us?”
“I would not say it if it was not true.”
“A man died for you. The finest man I’ve ever known next to my father. You are not worthy of his death.”
“And I agree with you. But you were there; you saw what happened. I did not push Nathaniel into the path of the arrow. At no time did I ask him to sacrifice himself. He happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time. I am not sure how you can blame me for that.”
Jeremy was silent for a moment. “Because it was meant for you.”
“Then if that is the case, you can blame every king who has ever lived for all of the men who died fighting for him,” Scott said. “Those battles were not personal to those men; they were meant for the king, yet men died just the same. Huntley, if I could have exchanged my life for Nathaniel’s, I would have done it without question. But I cannot, and Nathaniel is dead. The sooner you come to grips with the situation, the better it will be for all of us. Because of you, Canaan is in turmoil and her men, who are so desperate for leadership in the wake of Nathaniel’s death, have none because you are on the rampage. Do you think that gives them comfort to see that?”
Jeremy didn’t reply; he continued to stare off into space. But the truth was that he was reflecting on what Scott had said. It was difficult not to. He hadn’t considered Canaan’s army in all of this, only his own feelings of loss. He was in turmoil and didn’t care if anyone else was because of it, but he knew that he should be.
God’s Bones, was it possible that de Wolfe was actually making some sense?
“It does not matter now,” he finally said. “Longbow told me that I am to be exiled from Canaan when I have recovered. I will no longer be an issue.”
Scott folded his big arms across his chest. “If you did not behave so poorly, I would not have to exile you,” he said frankly. “If you cannot regain your wits and assume your post as the commander of Canaan’s army in a rational and wise fashion, what other choice do I have? If you were in my position and a man of responsibility was openly rebelling, what would you do?”
“I would try to understand his position.”
“Very well. Tell me your position.”
Jeremy turned his head slightly, looking at him. “I have already told you. You are not worthy of Nathaniel’s death.”
“And so I am not, but I am here nonetheless. I am appointed by the king to oversee Canaan. If you have issue with me, then talk to Edward. There is nothing I can do.”
“You can leave.”
Scott lifted his hands in a confused gesture. “And you think that would solve the issue? Your sister has already been gifted to a new husband. When he comes, are you going to throw a tantrum for him, too? He has ever legal reason to be here. I told you this once – you have no claim here. This is not your castle. I am not sure what you think your reb
ellious attitude will accomplish.”
Jeremy knew all of this; increasingly, he was becoming resigned to it but he was kicking and screaming all the way. He didn’t want to see Canaan in the hands of someone else. He wanted things to remain the way they had been. He didn’t like the change and he didn’t like taking orders from any man other than Nathaniel du Rennic.
That was really what this was all about – he didn’t want to take orders from others.
“Is that all you have to say?” he finally asked. “I grow weary of this conversation.”
Scott could feel his frustration rise. He was truly hoping, at some point soon, that he and Jeremy could have some kind of understanding.
“As do I,” he said, unfolding his arms and moving closer to the pallet. “It is the same conversation with you over and over again. I understand that Nathaniel gave you a good deal of power at Canaan and the truth behind all of your behavior is that you do not want to lose that power. It is unfortunate that you have not realized that it is already gone; you have no power. But it is because of your behavior. Had I come to Canaan and you had been respectful and receptive to the changes that are to come, then I can promise you that you would still be in command of Canaan’s army and in a position of respect. But you did this to yourself, Huntley – I had no choice to do what I did because you gave me no choice. I always thought you were a better man than that but I see that I was wrong. This will, therefore, be the last time we have this conversation. If you cannot amend your behavior, then you will, indeed, be exiled when you are feeling better.”
With that, he turned on his heel and quit the chamber, heading off to his own chamber where his saddlebags contained the things he would need to heal Jeremy’s face. But the whole time he walked, he was angry. Angry that Huntley was being so stubborn, angry that the man seemed to have his own reasons for his rebellious behavior. None of the reasons were logical and that was probably what angered Scott the most. One could not rationalize with an irrational man.
The Original de Wolfe Pack Complete Set: Including Sons of de Wolfe Page 199
