“What?” Ridge exclaimed softly. “Are you serious?”
“Deadly serious. Where is Josephine?”
Ridge lifted his eyebrows at the rather wild story but, given Andrew’s pale appearance, he believed it. But he dismissed the older sentry before answering, sending the man for Sully and telling him to have the man come to the king’s chambers. When the sentry rushed off to carry out the orders, Ridge eyed Andrew.
“Come with me,” he muttered. “There is much to discuss.”
Andrew didn’t like the look on his face. He grabbed hold of the man’s arm before he could enter the building.
“Please, de Reyne,” he begged quietly. “Where is Josephine? Is she well?”
Ridge could see the panic in Andrew’s eyes. He didn’t think he would have to be the one to tell Andrew what had happened to Josephine, but there was no other choice. He had to be the one to deliver the bad news.
“Blackbank took her,” he said, lowering his voice. “They left last night for Haldane Castle. You were not here, d’Vant; you do not know what a nightmare it was with Blackbank. He became ragingly drunk at the feast last night and we had to forcibly separate him from Lady Josephine. Whilst she was safe in her room, the man went on the rampage and bedded a servant girl, killing her. I was guarding Lady Josephine’s door and when I left to search for you, Blackbank broke down her door and killed Nicholas de Londres, who was in the chamber with her as protection. It was a slaughter; as if a lamb went up against a lion. Nicholas never stood a chance.”
Andrew almost couldn’t take what he was hearing; his aching head was now spinning as he slumped back against the doorjamb, looking at Ridge with horror.
“God, no,” he hissed. “Tell me he did not hurt her.”
Ridge shook his head quickly. “Strangely enough, he did not,” he said. “After the king discovered that Blackbank had murdered de Londres, he tried to break the betrothal but Blackbank would not hear of it. He threatened to raze the castle if we tried to break the bargain, so Lady Josephine insisted she go with him. That is why we have been looking for you; the king wishes to speak with you.”
Andrew almost couldn’t function. He was so shocked and horrified at what he’d been told that he could barely move, but he forced himself to, following Ridge as they went to the king’s chambers. They were in the more lavish part of the castle at this point, but Andrew didn’t notice. He didn’t notice the polished floors, the tapestries, the arched doorways made from carved wood. When Ridge came to a halt and knocked softly on a door, it was opened from within.
Ridge and Andrew stepped into the king’s chambers as the man was dressing for the feast. He was standing in front of two polished bronze mirrors, looking at himself as his chamberlain dressed him in fine silks. At first, he caught sight of Ridge but when he also caught sight of Andrew, he spun around and nearly knocked his chamberlain down. His eyes were wide with surprise.
“D’Vant!” he gasped. “You have returned!”
Andrew was feeling weak and exhausted, with his throbbing head. But he stood tall as he faced the king, the man who had altered the course of his life. It was difficult to look at the man and not hate him.
“Aye, my lord,” he said. “I am here.”
Alexander came towards him, seemingly greatly concerned. “What happened?” he asked. “Where did you go?”
Andrew sighed heavily, realizing that he was going to have to repeat his story, but Ridge spoke for him.
“It would seem that d’Vant was abducted by an admirer,” he said. “A woman knocked him unconscious and has held him for the past three days. He has only just managed to escape. I told him what became of Lady Josephine and I told him that you wished to speak with him, but I did not tell him why.”
Alexander looked at Andrew with the same surprise Ridge had displayed when he’d been informed of the abduction by a woman. “That is astonishing,” the king said. “Was she beautiful, at least?”
Andrew shook his head, slowly and painfully. “She was not,” he said, dropping his saddlebags and satchel where he stood. He simply couldn’t hold them any longer. He rubbed at the lump on the side of his head. “It is a long and ridiculous story, but I have a bump on the side of my head to prove it. And I would be eternally grateful for any wine and food you could provide me. At the moment, I am not feeling particularly well.”
Ridge began barking orders to servants, who fled to carry out his bidding. Alexander grasped Andrew by the arm and pulled him over to a chair that was near the blazing hearth. Andrew sat heavily in the chair as William Ward, who had been in the chamber and had heard the entire conversation, brought forth a cup of the king’s own wine for the injured man. Alexander snatched it from him and gave it over to Andrew himself.
“Drink,” he said. “It is a fine Madeira, something I keep only for myself. It will fortify you.”
Andrew drank the entire cup and Ward appeared with the pitcher, filling it up again. He took another long drink, smacking his lips as he looked up at Alexander, wondering why the man was being so nice to him. He was suspicious.
“So my brother took Josephine,” he said to the king. “Ridge told me what happened.”
Alexander nodded, taking the chair opposite Andrew. “Aye,” he said, rather subdued. “He took her.”
“Last night?”
“Aye,” Alexander said. Then, he hesitated before continuing. “If it means anything to you, d’Vant, I am sorry for all of this. I truly believed I was making a strong alliance with a powerful border lord when I betrothed Josephine to him. I have known Alphonse for years and, although the man has always been brutal, I suppose I did not realize just how brutal he was. He killed my nephew and the man wasn’t even armed.”
“I know.”
Alexander sat forward in the chair, watching Andrew closely as he drained his second cup of wine. He sensed the man’s defensiveness, perhaps even his hostility. Not that he expected otherwise.
“You do not forgive me, and I do not blame you, but I want you to listen to me,” he said, his voice earnest. “When I realized that I had made a mistake, I tried to break the betrothal, Lady Josephine would not let me. She told me to let her go because she knew you would come for her. She said she knew you would kill your brother, which would serve justice to you and to me. You would have your revenge against your brother, and Nicholas would see justice.”
Ridge appeared at Andrew’s side, pulling the wine cup from his hand and replacing it with a hunk of bread that had meat and cheese embedded in it. Andrew took an enormous bite, chewing slowly. It hurt his head even to chew. But he managed to swallow before answering.
“I will have my vengeance regardless,” he said. “I gather from this conversation that Josephine told you I had come to Edinburgh.”
“She did.”
“Then mayhap she did not tell you that what I do, I do for myself. It has nothing to do with your nephew. My vengeance against my brother is my own.”
The king sighed heavily, sitting back in his chair. “I want justice for my nephew,” he said. “You want vengeance, as you say, for yourself. And what of Josephine? Do you not want vengeance for her as well, for the fact that your brother has taken her from you?”
Andrew’s eyes narrowed. “You took Josephine from me,” he said frankly. “You ordered de Reyne to abduct her and bring her to Edinburgh. When I figured out what had happened, I followed. Sully and I have been skulking around Edinburgh for days, avoiding being seen, trying to avoid being arrested because I knew if you saw me, you would have me thrown in the dungeons. And now you want my help because the contract you brokered has spiraled out of control? You did this to her. This is all your fault.”
He was rather emotional and Alexander understood why. The man had been through an ordeal, now with an added head injury, and nothing he said was untrue. Therefore, Alexander wasn’t truly offended, but he was greatly remorseful.
“And so, it is my fault,” he said, feeling scolded. “I said I was sorry. You do
not need to accept that apology, but I said it just the same. The important thing is that you go after Josephine. She has been with Blackbank since last night. And without anyone to prevent him from having his way with her, there is no telling what has happened. When will you go after her?”
Andrew didn’t like the thought of that at all. All thoughts of vengeance aside, the very real issue was that Josephine was with his brother, unprotected. He put the food aside and stood up, weaving unsteadily.
“I am going now,” he said. “My horse is in the livery down by the tavern where I almost ended up a permanent resident. As soon as I collect my horse, I will be heading south to Haldane. My brother brought an entire contingent with him, which means he will be traveling at a slower pace. I cannot catch up to him before he reaches Haldane, but I will make haste to reach it as quickly as I can. If I move swiftly, I should not be too far behind them.”
That was what Alexander wanted to hear. He leapt to his feet. “I will provide you anything you need,” he said. “In fact, I will send Ridge with you. If you run into trouble against your brother, he can be of some assistance.”
Andrew looked at Ridge, remembering what he’d said to the man the night he’d disappeared. He knew that Ridge was sympathetic to Josephine’s situation. You said that you owed Josephine a debt. If, for some reason, I am killed instead of my brother, then I ask you to honor that debt.
Aye, Andrew remembered what he’d said, very well. In that context, he was willing to let Ridge come with him because if something happened to him, he needed someone to take Josephine and get her to safety.
Ridge was that man.
“He is welcome,” he said, still looking at Ridge. “Are you ready to ride tonight?”
Ridge nodded. “I am ready when you are.”
Andrew sensed a strong ally in Ridge de Reyne. Strangely enough, he also sensed one in Alexander, who’d had a shocking change of heart. He seemed genuinely concerned for Josephine. But Andrew couldn’t dwell on the king’s guilt. In truth, he didn’t really believe it. If given the choice again, he was sure the man would do the very same thing, whatever was necessary to form an alliance for his crown.
“Then we shall depart immediately,” Andrew said, moving to the spot where he’d dropped his saddlebags. “I fear we will have to stop at Torridon on our way south so that I may retrieve my heavy battle armor. I do not intend to go up against my brother without it.”
Ridge and Alexander were following him to the door. “Torridon is not too far out of the way,” the king said. “In fact, it is along the road you must take south.”
Andrew heaved his saddlebags onto his shoulder, reaching down to pick up both of his broadswords. “It is not exactly on the road, but it is not too far from it,” he said. “The delay shall be minimal.”
He was just turning for the chamber door when the panel suddenly opened, spilling forth Sully and Donald. Sully’s eyes widened when he saw Andrew.
“God’s Bones!” he hissed. “You are alive! Where have you been?”
Andrew didn’t want to take the time to repeat his story. He was in a great hurry. “In a siren’s lair,” he muttered. When Sully’s features screwed up with confusion, he went to the man and put a brotherly arm on his shoulder. “I will tell you on the way. We are going to Haldane.”
Things were moving swiftly but Sully was ready. He’d already had the conversation with the king about saving Josephine, so he already knew the situation, for the most part. He also knew that they had an ally in Alexander, at least for the moment, with everyone wanting the same outcome – justice for Nicholas, safety for Josephine.
But the key factor in all of it had been Andrew, who had been missing up until that very moment. Sully didn’t know why Andrew had been missing, but he intended to find out as they headed off to rescue Josephine.
“I am going with you,” Sully said in a tone that left no room for argument. “Let me gather my things and meet you in the gatehouse.”
“I am going, too,” Donald announced. He had been devastated over Nicholas’ death and Josephine’s situation and, perhaps, even more than Andrew, had visions of vengeance on his mind. “I will meet ye at the gatehouse!”
He raced out of the chamber, well ahead of Sully, who was close on his heels. Andrew and Ridge were nearly through the door when Alexander called out to them. They paused, but the king was looking mostly at Andrew.
“I know I should not wish you luck in killing a man, but I will do just that,” he said seriously. “When you kill your brother and marry my cousin, I hope you will consider forgiving a man for making a bad decision. I could not admit that until now. And I should look forward to a strong new alliance with the new Earl of Annan and Blackbank.”
Andrew could see that the man was sincere. Or, at least he thought he was sincere. But it would be good to have an alliance with the king, someone he could depend on in the greater scheme of things. A man who would be his cousin through his wife.
… his wife.
God, even thinking that was like music to his ears. But there would be no wife unless he got the hell out of Edinburgh, immediately.
“I believe we can have a strong alliance, my lord,” he said. “And when I kill my brother, it is possible that I will mention Nicholas’ name. Josephine was fond of the lad.”
Alexander nodded, his mood melancholy. “As was I.”
Andrew could see the emotion in the man’s face, shocking for the king he thought to be foolish and weak. He didn’t see that in him at the moment.
“I will not fail, I swear it.”
With that, he was gone, followed by Ridge. Alexander went to stand in the doorway, watching the two enormously powerful men moving down the corridor amongst the flickering torches. It was a surreal scene, as if they were both descending into the darkness.
The darkness of vengeance.
“I hope that is not the last we will see of either of them,” William Ward said over his shoulder.
Alexander turned to look at his chancellor. He came into the room, pondering that very thing.
“Somehow,” he said slowly, “I do not think that will be the last time. D’Vant is led by love, I think. He speaks of vengeance, but when he speaks of Josephine, all I can see in his face is his love for her. When one is led by love, failure is not possible.”
With that, he went back to his chamberlain as the man needed to finish dressing him, leaving William standing there, pondering his words.
When one is led by love, failure is not possible.
God, he hoped so.
CHAPTER THIRTY-THREE
Haldane Castle
A beautiful day had dawned over a castle that looked as if it belonged on a level with Purgatory. But it was a day of diamonds in stark contrast to the terrible journey from Edinburgh.
It had taken four long days to reach Haldane Castle, and they’d arrived very late in the night because Alphonse was eager to return home. In fact, the entire journey had been hellish in the sense that Alphonse drove his men and horses very hard. He’d not stopped during the day at all and what stop they did make at night had been very brief. No one had had more than a few hours of sleep and the animals were showing serious signs of exhaustion. But on the night they arrived at Haldane, everyone breathed a sigh of relief, including Josephine.
Finally, they had reached their destination.
Josephine had never been so exhausted in her entire life. Perhaps the only positive aspect of the difficult journey from Edinburgh was the fact that Alphonse had never touched her. He’d kept her close to him, and he’d given her more than his share of lascivious glances, but he hadn’t made a move against her.
Josephine was so relieved about his restraint that it brought tears to her eyes once they reached Haldane. Even then, Alphonse had only taken the time to introduce his steward to her, a man named Chauncey, before he departed to parts unknown within the enormous, dark castle. Josephine had been happy to see Alphonse leave but, in the back of her mind, she someho
w knew he would come to her at some point. Perhaps he’d made a vow not to touch her until their wedding night, but vows were sometimes broken, especially by men of lesser character.
Or men who regarded women as chickens.
Therefore, she would have to be on her guard.
Chauncey was a tall, slender man with a hawk-nose and thin gray hair. He didn’t seem to have much of a personality other than to order men about to collect Josephine’s possessions, what there were of them, and motion for her to follow him. She did, gazing up at the tall keep silhouetted against the night sky as they headed towards it. As the enormous entry loomed up in front of her, with servants lighting the way with torches, Josephine felt rather like she was entering the belly of the beast, from which there would be no escape.
It was a surreal and sinister experience.
Haldane Castle was a large structure, sitting near the borders of England and Scotland, and built to withstand attacks and sieges. There was an enormous outer wall with great turrets on the corners but, once inside those walls, there was a vast courtyard with a moat and a massive keep sunk right into the middle of it.
The keep itself wasn’t a normal keep. It was very big, spread out over a great deal of land, with rounded towers at the entry. The entire structure was at least three stories tall and when Josephine entered the building, she was immediately in a great hall that was quite large. But it was empty at this time of night, with servants cleaning out the hearth or sweeping the room. Large iron chandeliers hung from the ceiling, with fat from their tallow tapers dripping down onto the hard-packed earth below.
Chauncey took her into an adjoining room, which was dark at this hour. Josephine hadn’t seen much of the chamber other than through the light cast by the torches, and she guessed it was a solar of some kind. Chauncey then took her through the room and to a door on the opposite side, which opened up into a small corridor.
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