by Randi Darren
David left without another word.
“Master, can’t we go back to the tent?” Riley pleaded.
“I don’t think I should, One. My place may not be on the field itself, but it’s better if I’m at least visible,” Alex said, giving her a smile. “It’ll be alright. This has already been going on for a while. Unless the enemy really are fools, they’ll have to pull off sooner rather than later. They’re simply losing too many men.”
From the far side of his line, a sudden commotion got Alex’s attention. Frowning from where he stood, he peered off towards the disturbance.
“Nannie, could you—” Alex started.
“On it,” said the woman, not bothering to hear the full order. She set off at a jog, a short sword slipping free of her sheath and practically appearing in her hand.
“I wonder what it could be,” Alex mused.
“Maybe it’s Max?” Riley asked.
“Maybe. I imagine he’s still pressing hard on their flank though. The enemy isn’t to be taken lightly, and I imagine they’ve been flanked before in their careers.”
A number of men on horses came up over the crest of the hill, slipping through the conscripted peasants who had been put there as a defensive reserve.
“Ah, it’s my special garbage collector team,” Alex said with a grin. “Let’s go see what they managed to pry free from our esteemed enemies.”
Alex waved at the lead horseman and then pointed towards his command tent. Nannie came back looking mildly annoyed, her sword sheathed.
There was no reason to advertise what the spoils were quite yet.
All the horsemen followed along, arranging themselves in a loose formation.
Alex stood in front of them with a smile, looking to someone to step forward and tell him the results.
Eventually, two men with full helmets on made their way towards Alex. They were lugging a large, two-handled chest between themselves.
Reaching Alex, they dropped it with a resounding thud.
One opened the lid while the other stood there with his hands on his hips.
Inside was a glittering mess of gold and silver.
“Hah, what the hell did you do? Rob a chest from their pay-wagon?” Alex asked, looking to the two men with a grin.
“Better, we took a pay-wagon itself,” said the man on the left as he unbuckled his helmet. “Six more chests like this inside it.”
Hooking his helmet to his belt, the young man gave Alex a grin.
There was a strange resemblance to David that Alex couldn’t quite place. All the features were the same, but younger.
Brother perhaps?
“If I remember right, I offered a twenty-percent finder’s fee on items like this,” Alex said, closing the chest. “Let’s say… pick a chest for yourselves, then we’ll count up another and give you one-fourth of that for you and your men, fair?”
As if his smile couldn’t get any wider, the man nodded his head.
Behind him, the horsemen were getting down off their mounts.
“That’s not all though,” said the man. Looking back to his group, he waved at them. “I do believe you had a price on unharmed gentry and generals as well.”
Squirming sacks with feet sticking out of them were carried into Alex’s tent.
“Consider me beyond impressed. I didn’t catch your name?” Alex asked.
Men like this needed to be employed as quickly as possible.
“Daniel, sir. Daniel Herel.”
“Stick around, Daniel. I’ll have a use for you later. I’ll tally up your prisoners and add their worth to the chest we’ll be divvying up.
“Remember, secrecy is the name of the game here,” Alex said. With a nod, he turned and entered the tent, eager to find out whom he’d caught.
Six writhing sacks lay on the ground. Four wore what looked like well-cobbled shoes, and two were in boots.
“Good afternoon,” Alex said. Turning to the side, he motioned at Riley and Nannie to get the tent flap. “My name is Alex Brit, Count Brit. You’ve all been taken as prisoners of war under my domain and control.
“Don’t bother trying to say anything just yet. I’ll be interviewing you all privately. If you’re a high-value prize, you’ll receive fair treatment. If you’re not…” Alex left the statement open, letting their own fears fill in the blank.
Realistically, he’d just turn them over to Duke Tanulf if they didn’t serve his purpose. But there was no reason to tell them that.
“I look forward to speaking with you one and all,” Alex said. “We can—”
“Sir!” Daniel said, speaking through the closed tent flap.
“Yes, Daniel?”
“Sir, they’re retreating from the field.”
“That’s good news. Any reason why?”
“I think they noticed their entire camp was on fire.”
“Oh. Yes, I imagine that’d be a cause for concern. Good. Have David rotate the men out, get the wounded evacuated, a meal in everyone, and enough water to drown a fish. This might not be over.”
“Ah, yes, sire.”
Alex turned back to the sacks. Sacks that now seemed considerably less active.
“Well. That’s interesting. I suppose the good duke will call me in for a staff meeting shortly. We’ll have to make this quick. If you’re of the peerage, go ahead and curl up into the fetal position for me,” Alex said.
Two sacks immediately did so.
“Nannie, could you set those two aside for me? Preferably back near my bed area? I’ll need to interview them first before the meeting, I imagine.
“Ok, next, who’s in the military?”
Two more sacks curled up.
“Put those on the other side of the tent. Far side, that is. Its big enough to house a family of six anyways. Might as well use the entirety of it.
“Either you or Two need to watch over them, Nannie. I’m sure One can keep an eye on them if you want to go track Two down real quick.”
“You and your damn numbers,” Nannie growled.
“The other two… leave them there for now. You’re in charge of those, One.
“Oh, and if you find Three while you’re out there, send her my way.”
Alex waved his hand at them as he spoke. Then he trailed after Nannie as she dragged the two sacks back towards his bed.
“Guh, fuckin’ meatsacks,” Nannie said, then pushed at one of them with her boot, sliding them towards his bed. “Gonna go find that dumb cunt so I’m not alone in this. You got it for now?”
“Indeed. Do be nice to Two; she might take your head off and I’d have to hire a new murdering psychopath,” Alex said, sitting down in a chair nearby.
“She can try,” Nannie said, then left.
“Well then,” Alex said, and reached down to the closest sack. “Let’s get you open and have a chat.”
The sack fell completely immobile as Alex began unwinding the cord around the feet.
Pulling the sack open, he reached in and grabbed a leg.
A bare leg.
With Alex pulling while he stepped on the sack with one foot, the captured party started to move.
The bottom part of the person slid out, which was a pair of legs in a dress that had slid all the way up to her hips.
“Ah, sorry about that,” Alex said. Getting out of his seat, he pulled the sack up and over the woman the rest of the way, rather than yanking her out.
Bound, gagged, and clearly angry, a young woman a few years younger than himself glared up at him.
Light brown hair, bordering on a dark blond, framed her face in a lovely and natural-looking way.
She had fine features and an elegant look to her. She was pretty in her way, though certainly not beautiful.
Her figure was on the better side though, with a nice curve to her body.
Her green eyes had enough heat in them to make him catch fire. That disposition didn’t improve as he obviously inspected her.
“Let’s start with being civ
il to one another. I’m Alex Brit, you’re safe, and I’d love to have a conversation with you. Shouting would be inconducive to that, and we’ll be forced to go down a different road if you do that,” Alex said.
Reaching down, he carefully slid the gag out of her mouth and down to her neck.
“And you are?” Alex asked, sitting back down fully in his chair.
Huffing angrily at him, she shifted around on the ground.
“Baroness Mary Margaret Tilly,” she said, lifting her chin slightly.
“Ah. I see. Who’s the other one,” Alex said, pointing to the other sack.
“My niece,” said the baroness.
“Great. Who’s in charge of Duke Gaelis’s right flank?”
“My uncle, Count Frenis.”
Carla came over and looked to the woman on the ground, then Alex.
“Two, could you pack up that sack over there and hand it off to Riley? She’s nobility, but… minor,” Alex said, looking up at his bandit bodyguard. “I’ll deal with her after the baroness here.”
Carla looked to the woman, then the sack, and then back to Alex. She grunted, then grabbed the booted foot of the niece and dragged the squirming sack off.
Alex looked back to Mary and gave her a smile. They were now alone and separated enough that he could start his spiel.
“Well. I’d say your uncle is falling back to salvage what he can of your camp. Let alone figure out his next move,” Alex said, spreading his hands out in front of himself. “I can’t speak for the rest of the battle, but this fight did not go in your favor.”
Mary had been trying unsuccessfully to pull her dress down to a more dignified position and cover her underwear and legs.
“And what does that have to do with me?” she asked.
“Not much, I suppose, other than that you’re my prisoner. We can discuss terms for your ransom, or terms for your captivity.
“Do you think your husband would be more interested in paying before or after the war ends?” Alex asked.
Mary gave him a strange look, then slumped into the ground, giving up on her dress.
“He’ll not pay a penny for me. Not when I can’t give him a damn heir. He might pay you for my niece though,” she said with a bitter smile.
Oh? Is that the play here? No attention at home, disgraced, unvalued. She has no worth in her own eyes for a failure of her body that’s beyond her control.
It’s a simple thing, then. Offer her attention, care, affection. We can have her turned around rather quickly.
The first time might be awkward, but I bet it wouldn’t be after that.
“I suppose we’ll just have to find another form of payment then,” Alex said with a smile. Leaning forward, he took hold of her dress and carefully pulled it down until it covered her modestly. “I’m sure we could come to some kind of arrangement for your release, dependent on… well… you.”
Mary’s eyes narrowed as she looked at him.
“I take it this is where I’m expected to not resist while you take me by force?” Mary asked, her voice subdued.
“Not in the least. On the contrary, in fact. It’s where we barter for your release like gentlefolk,” Alex said. “I take it you’d like to be released?”
“Yes,” Mary said.
“Great. Then we already have a desired outcome. Now we just have to dicker on the price. Do you need a horse as well?”
“That’d be preferable,” Mary said, sounding unsure.
“A horse, and going free. Is that the extent of your ask?”
“I… yes. Though I’d like my niece as well.”
“Let’s focus on you first for now.”
“Alright,” she said uneasily.
“Wonderful. Now, my price. First, an oath of secrecy to me and mine. That you’ll not reveal anything you discovered here, nor will you act on anything you know after having been here.
“It wouldn’t be wise to return you with information, after all, now would it?”
“I could swear to that.”
“On your life and soul. To Leah,” Alex clarified.
Mary opened her mouth once, then closed it, as if thinking better about what she wanted to say.
“Then… I swear on Leah to safeguard your privacy, and everything I might learn while in your camp. Both on my life and soul,” she said finally.
“Great. I accept your oath. Now, I’d love to let you free. As if nothing were the matter, in fact.
“But I just can’t do that. Not for nothing, at least.”
“Ok…” said the baroness.
“To set you loose… with a horse… I’d like to have dinner with you. Get to know you a bit more, learn about you as a person. Spend some time together. Entertain you as a woman of your stature and grace deserves. Then take you to bed when it’s all said and done and give you the attention a woman of your beauty is due.
“In the morning, I’ll release you, fit as a fiddle, all your possessions as they are, plus a horse.”
Mary didn’t say anything; she merely watched him.
“It’s a fairly simple transaction, and I promise to treat you like a gentleman would throughout, as a lady such as yourself should be entitled to,” Alex said with a smile at her.
“I don’t think you understand how badly my people need me. My husband and my uncle aren’t…” She paused, as if realizing what she was saying.
“If anything, I’d be more inclined to keep you here, for what it’s worth,” Alex admitted. “But… color me interested. At least a bit. I’d like to know you. Your thoughts. Your abilities. You, really. To know Mary.
“And then know you in a far more carnal way, tonight.”
“Just like that, then…? You’d let me loose tomorrow morning for that price?”
“That’d be the deal. Or you could say no, and nothing untoward would happen to you. You’d be treated as a noble prisoner of war and be given all the proper courtesies of your station. And you have my word and oath on that.”
Mary finally broke eye contact and looked to her feet.
“No one would know?” she asked, not looking up. “About our deal?”
“Only you, me, and maybe a few of my personal assistants. Who are all sworn to secrecy and loyalty. On Leah for their souls and their lives.”
Mary shook her head slowly.
“Then I guess… we have a deal.”
Chapter 21
Alex watched as Baroness Tilly rode down the side of their fortification and towards the far flank of both armies.
“She any good?” Nannie asked, scratching at her chest.
Shrugging his shoulders, Alex couldn’t say much about it.
Mary hadn’t been experienced, enthusiastic, or even much more than lukewarm, but what she had been was intrinsically worth quite a lot in his deals.
Unable to help himself, Alex pulled the black crystal from his pocket and glanced into it again.
Not a bit of light reflected through it.
Her deal cost her significantly and gained her very little. I’m betting her uncle and husband won’t be that happy to see her.
It’s what he’d been betting on when he’d heard her husband didn’t value her.
Trying to get back to a man who didn’t care about you, and giving yourself away in the process, had to be an action of beggaring oneself to the very core.
Or so Alex had figured, and could now confirm.
And if we did it right and fed her more attention than she’s ever received before… we might be able to get her back on the hook for more.
After all, we treated her as if she were our beloved wife, whom we missed terribly.
That we were happy to see and to hold.
She wasn’t into it, but she wasn’t against our attentions either in the end.
“She was well worth it… is what I would say,” Alex said.
“Seemed a bit dead-fish to me. Lay-there-unmoving kind of thing,” Nannie said. “Your tastes are messed up. I mean, you bed the nasty cunt over t
here, don’t you?”
Looking to where Nannie was pointing, he saw Carla talking with Riley and Valeria.
“That I do, and I look forward to it every time,” Alex said, then looked back just in time to see Mary disappear around a curve in a low hill.
She was officially on her way, and he’d followed his word and kept his promise.
Now he could enact the second part of his plan in good faith.
“Daniel?” Alex asked, turning to one side.
“Sire,” said the man stepping forward.
“Did you manage to steal any uniforms?”
“We did. Only a handful though.”
“Enough to outfit five or so?”
“Could be. Sounds about right.”
“Did our guests ever get a look at your face?”
“No, sir. I wore my helmet the entire time.”
“Grand. I want you to find four people you trust to take on a mission. I’ll pay you each fifteen gold if you complete it as well,” Alex said.
Motivation is always key to drive a priority.
“I can do that, sire,” Daniel.
“Good. Your task is simple. When battle starts today, I want you to have a number of your people dressed in enemy uniforms chased by a number of people in our uniforms.
“Right up to the enemy picket line,” Alex said, laying out the plan he wanted carried out. “Rush through, tell anyone who asks you have an important message for Baroness Tilly. For her ears only.
“When you finally get to her, tell her that her niece escaped and is hiding nearby. She won’t leave her position without seeing the baroness though, as she trusts no one but her.”
Daniel frowned in incomprehension.
“When you get her out into the field… bring her back here. In a sack if you have to, but preferably not.”
Alex grinned at the man as understanding dawned on his face.
“I understand, sire. I’ll get it done,” Daniel said with a sharp salute.
Nodding his head, Alex turned back to the enemy force across the way.
Then we’ll offer her the same deal as last time. She’ll take it again, I imagine, and we’ll get her paid up twice for the same thing.
And if I’m lucky… she’ll be willing this time, since we treated her like a loved and cared for wife.
