Her Knight's Quest: A Warriors of the Mist Novel (20 page)

Argue? Is that what she thought he had in mind? Anger slipped through his veins, ripping away the tenuous control he had on his need to have her.

This time he left no room between them. Glaring down at her, he made his position clear. “I will not argue with you, Lavinia. You’ve already made up your mind to stay. Now that I have my answers, I will leave whether you ride with me or not. I’ll take Sarra with me since you asked it of me, but no place will be safe for her as long as Ifre Keirthan lives. But if these are to be our last hours together, I don’t plan to spend them arguing. I want you to think of this moment when I ride out of your life.”

As he spoke, he touched the racing pulse at the base of Lavinia’s throat. Her emotions were running high, a match for his. He ran his finger down and down, between her breasts, across the soft curve of her belly, stopping short of where he really wanted to be.

Then he pushed her against the nearest wall and kissed her as if there would be no tomorrow. It wasn’t much of an exaggeration. The moment he rode down the switchback trail, their time together would be at an end. Not just for now, but forever.

And that truth cut a jagged hole in his heart that would never heal.

*  *  *

Lavinia should fight. She should push him away, tear down the wards, and run, leaving Duncan and the library behind. But somehow instead of shoving Duncan away, she dragged him even closer. Evidently that was the sign he was waiting for.

He grabbed her by the waist and lifted her up, holding her against the wall, pressing his battle-hardened warrior’s body against hers. He continued to kiss her, reminding her how it had been to be the focus of his passion during the night. She could feel his hand between them as he jerked at the lacings of his trews.

Then he yanked the heavy fabric of her skirt up to her waist. With her legs free of its encumbrance, she wrapped them around his hips, bringing her core right against the rigid length of his manhood. Duncan’s hand slipped between her legs where the thin fabric of her undergarments offered little resistance to his strength. Once he’d dispensed with that last barrier, he grasped her by the back of her thighs and drove himself in deep and hard.

She screamed his name at the abrupt invasion. Last night he’d been all consideration and patience. Not this time. As soon as he’d buried the thick length of his shaft inside her, he withdrew and did it again—and yet again, each time panting her name.

“Take more of me, Lavinia. Take it all.”

She nodded and brought her legs up higher, this time around his waist. The move changed the angle of penetration, allowing him to drive in just that much deeper, that much harder.

“Duncan, don’t stop; please don’t stop.”

As his hips were thrusting hard, he buried his face in her shoulder, working the tender skin there with his lips and teeth. The sensation shaded toward pain, almost more than she could bear. She loved it. Tension coiled deep within her, building, tightening, throbbing hot as he continued to flex his hips. The world quickly narrowed down to the cold hard wall at her back and the burning heat of the man who held her prisoner in his arms.

This wasn’t a seduction, but a claiming. They both knew that Duncan might leave her behind, but he’d also leave his mark on her skin and in her soul. Duncan drove them both on and on until her body broke free of the world’s tethers and everything around her shattered.

Including her heart.

Chapter 21

“T
ell me something, Captain Gideon. Why should I take your word for anything when I know nothing about you?”

Gideon stared across the table at the man who laid claim to the lands a day’s ride east of Lady Merewen’s estate. He was well aware that he made the man nervous. It was true for all the men who’d answered Merewen’s summons.

Eventually, if they spent enough time with him, they might learn to ignore the strangeness of Gideon’s eyes. They’d get used to Scim staring at them from the perch behind Gideon’s shoulder and the way Shadow liked to prowl under the table, looking for food scraps and mice. Maybe then he’d get past the urge to drag them out to the bailey and use his sword to teach them exactly who was in charge and why.

Gideon remained impassive, letting none of his temper show. Leaving these men bruised and battered might improve his mood, but it wouldn’t move him any closer to his goal of forging an army, one capable of taking on the duke himself.

“I understand your reluctance, Sir Gilford. If I were in your place, I would feel the same way.”

Gideon paused to take a drink of wine and then leaned forward to rest his elbows on the table. He looked at each man in turn, trapping their gaze with his.

“If we had an unlimited amount of time, we’d go hunting and swap tall tales over flagons of ale to get to know each other better. However, time is the one thing I do not have to waste, so I’ll settle for being blunt.”

Gilford mirrored Gideon’s action, leaning forward and glaring at him from across the expanse of the table. “By all means be blunt, Captain Gideon. You’ve already dragged all of us here for no obvious reason. Why fall back on good manners now?”

That did it.

“By a show of hands, how many of you have led an army into battle? I’m not talking about a skirmish with bandits. I’m talking war.”

He stared at Gilford, waiting for his response, although Gideon already knew the answer. Up and down the table, not a single hand moved. He had no doubt that most of the men were trained with weapons and had men-at-arms who were as well. He told them that much.

“None of you have ever had to defend anything larger than a single caravan or perhaps your own home, so you have a decision to make and very little time to make it. I’m sure your first choice would be to return to your homes, bar the gates, and hope that Duke Keirthan’s move against the people of Agathia somehow passes you by.”

He forced himself to lean back in his chair, wanting them to listen to his words more than he wanted to make them feel threatened. “If I were one of you, I might make that same choice myself. I’m telling you right now that it would be the wrong one.”

“And what makes it wrong? None of our keeps has been attacked. Lady Merewen’s problems with Lord Fagan were a family dispute, nothing more.”

Gideon didn’t bother trying to figure out who posed the question. It didn’t matter. Someone had been bound to ask it.

“True, we did take back Lady Merewen’s home from her late uncle and his men, but it was far more than a family dispute. Lord Fagan had promised Lady Merewen to the duke to use for his own foul purpose. His lady wife, as well.”

He paused to let that sink in. “Several of you have reported that people have gone missing from their homes, never to be heard from again. What do you think is happening to them?”

The same voice spoke again. “We don’t know that Keirthan took them, and we have only your word that Lady Merewen’s cause against her uncle was just.”

This time Gideon did look. “Are you questioning my honor, Sir Gable? Because if you are, we can take that discussion outside right now and let our swords decide whose honor is beyond question.”

The silence was telling.

Finally, Sir Gable mumbled, “No insult was intended.”

Gideon didn’t bother saying none was taken and moved on.

“Keirthan is using blood magic to strengthen his hold on Agathia by sacrificing the very people he should be protecting. We think he wanted Lady Merewen because she inherited her father’s gift with the horses. Keirthan would use her magic to fuel his own. His strength is growing daily. If he reaches his full power, no one will be able to stand against him.”

He slid his fists off the table, his knuckles white with fury. He preferred not to let the others see how strongly the threat to Merewen affected him. Better to let them go on thinking he and his men were a group of mercenaries she hired to regain control of her family’s lands.

Eventually they would learn that Gideon shared her bed; he’d deal with that when the time came. For now, he wanted to keep everyone’s attention focused on the inevitable confrontation with Keirthan. The duke might not be ready to strike, but the battle was coming. Nothing would stop Keirthan’s predations except his death.

Gideon meant to make sure the bastard was rotting in his grave before the Damned were called back to the river, even if he had to dig the hole himself.

Gilford spoke again. “I have lost more than just people. I raise sheep, large numbers of them. This time of year, the shepherds keep the flocks up in the high valleys where the grazing is good.”

He cracked his knuckles, the snap of the bones echoing in the brief silence while everyone waited for him to continue.

“One of my men rode all the way back down to the keep to tell me wild stories about finding four or five, even as many as eight of my prime stock dead. Not a mark on them. He said it was as if they’d fallen over right where they stood.”

Gideon nodded. “Lady Merewen has lost horses in the same manner. All I can tell you is that the weapon is a bright light, like lightning thrown as one would throw a rock.”

Then he pointed toward Scim on the perch behind him. “We didn’t see the attack on the horses, but that was what happened when my gyrfalcon was attacked shortly after we arrived.”

“Yet your bird lives.” Gilford leaned to the side to get a better view of Scim. “Why didn’t he die?”

Gideon shuddered at the memory, not caring if the men around him saw it as a weakness. They had no idea about the powerful bond between him and the falcon. “He almost did. All we can think was that Duke Keirthan hadn’t yet developed complete control of his weapon, and it wasn’t up to full strength.”

It was time to press the small advantage this new turn in the conversation gave him. “If Keirthan can kill your livestock from a distance and take your people without your knowing it, how long before he comes after one of you? Or your women and children?”

Sir Gable poured himself another flagon of Merewen’s finest wine. “We have only your word that Keirthan wanted to take Lady Merewen. Perhaps she claimed that as an excuse to overturn the duke’s order that rightfully gave Lord Fagan control of this estate as the eldest male. We all know that managing a family’s fortunes is a man’s duty. Women simply don’t have the mind for it.”

Murdoch’s grip tightened on his drink, as if he were fighting the understandable urge to break something over Gable’s thick head. Before Gideon could think of a suitable reply—one that didn’t involve blood and pain—another voice joined in.

“Why, Sir Gable, I’ll remember that next time you’re in need of a new mount for your wife. It’s obvious that you no longer have faith in my ability to ensure my horses continue to breed strong and true. That’s truly a shame.”

The chill in her words was enough to shrivel more than a man’s pride. Gideon sincerely hoped Merewen never aimed that particular smile in his direction. She took the empty seat next to him as she continued.

“Please give Lady Gable my kind regards and my regrets. I’m sure she’ll understand why you couldn’t purchase that dappled gray she’s been admiring so much.”

By that point, Gable looked as if the dappled gray had just stomped all over him. It didn’t help that several of the other men started laughing. Sir Gilford actually raised his cup in salute.

“Well played, Lady Merewen, but please consider how reluctant he’ll be to return home without the mare. You might have mercy on him.”

He smiled in Gable’s direction, making it clear there was little love lost between the two men. “For a substantial price.”

“I’ll take your advice into consideration, Sir Gilford.”

Then Merewen took her own measure of the men who had gathered at her request. “None of us wants war, least of all me. I have already lost men, ones who were loyal to both my father and me, in the fight to regain control of the keep. That night, Fagan’s captain set fire to the stable when it was full of horses.”

There was an audible gasp from around the table. “What kind of fiend would do such a thing?”

“The kind my uncle surrounded himself with.”

Her voice was choked thick with the remembered horrors of that night. Gideon picked up where she’d left off.

“Fagan returned a week later with a force of the duke’s men riding with him. I have fought more battles than any of you can dream of, but I have never seen the like of those men. They fought in total silence, never talking, not even to scream when stricken with the most dire of wounds.”

Murdoch spoke for the first time. “If your ruler doesn’t hesitate ensnaring his own men with blood magic, what do you think he would do to an enemy?”

Those words hung over the gathering as if written in the air for all to read. It was time to let the men discuss the matter alone. Either they would join the Damned or they wouldn’t. Once Gideon knew which it would be, he’d be able to make plans.

“Gentlemen, we have given you much to consider. Sir Murdoch and I will withdraw now to allow you freedom to discuss the matter without our interference.”

He rose to his feet and offered his arm to Merewen. She started to accept, but Gilford stopped her. “My lady, I would appreciate it if you would stay. We may have questions that only you can answer.”

As he spoke, he gave her a pointed look before turning his gaze to Gideon and Murdoch. Before answering, Merewen looked to Gideon, her own questions reflected in her dark eyes. She wanted to know how much to share with her neighbors about the nature of the Damned.

“Tell them whatever you deem necessary.”

Then he bowed and walked away, Murdoch at his back as usual.

*  *  *

They didn’t stop until they reached the walkway above the gate in the palisade. It would give them a place to pace without revealing their nerves to the group. Up there, away from Merewen’s people and the visiting nobles, the air felt cleaner, easier to breathe.

“I hate this.”

Gideon pretended to misunderstand. “Walking the perimeter? At least up here, we’re not having to bite our tongues when we’re being insulted by Sir Gable.”

Murdoch chuckled. “That posturing fool! From the look on his face when Merewen threatened to keep the mare, I would guess that his wife has taken possession of all of his family jewels.”

“He did look a bit pale, didn’t he?”

They stopped to stare down the narrow road that led away from the gate and out into the grasslands beyond. Murdoch had nearly died down there only days ago.

“I was talking about us, Gideon. This endless cycle of fighting alternating with sleeping under the chill of the river. Think it will ever end?”

“I don’t know. Mayhap I could’ve negotiated a better bargain with the goddess, but at the time I didn’t know how. Besides, we were all too busy dying to think much beyond trying to draw one more breath.”

That wasn’t much of an exaggeration. If he hadn’t called on the goddess to help them, the five of them would’ve all bled out by that river, their bodies scavenged by animals and their bones left to bleach in the sun. Some days, he was half convinced that would’ve been the better bargain.

Murdoch’s big hand came down on Gideon’s shoulder. “I can’t bring myself to regret our decision. We’ve helped a lot of people over the centuries.”

“True, but no matter how many times we beat back those who would prey on the innocent, they keep coming back even stronger. Lord Fagan was but a petty tyrant compared to what we’re learning about Duke Keirthan.”

He started walking again. “At least Duncan should be returning soon. I’d feel better about all of this if the five of us were together.”

Gideon looked around again to make sure he wouldn’t be overheard. “I didn’t say anything to Merewen because I didn’t want to worry her, but something happened the day after Kane and Averel rode out. I decided to send Scim after them to make sure they were all right. But when I tried to join with him, I couldn’t. Not at first, anyway. When I finally did, I couldn’t maintain the connection for more than a minute, maybe two. That’s never happened before. I fear the separation is weakening us all.”

Murdoch didn’t look all that shocked. “I had trouble calling Shadow from my shield as well. I had to repeat the spell four times before she appeared. I’ve been reluctant to send her back.”

“I don’t blame you, but I’m sure things will improve when Duncan and the others return.” At least he hoped so.

“I never thought I’d admit this, but I actually miss Hob’s ugly face prowling around the keep.” Murdoch looked a bit sheepish. “Don’t tell Kane I said that. He’ll think I’ve gone soft.”

A movement down in the bailey caught their attention. Gideon had hoped it was Lady Merewen coming to fetch them back to rejoin the discussion. Instead, it was Lady Alina out strolling with Shadow at her side.