Epic Knights of Legend and Steel

Chapter Nine

CHAPTER NINE

“M y son has told me about your… exploits,” de Moray said, his black eyes as hard as cold steel. “You will forgive me for not readily accepting your proposal. Although I love and respect the House of de Shera, you will understand when I say that I am reluctant to pledge my daughter to the brother who possibly has one or more bastards running about England, and who furthermore has a reputation for deflowering maidens or stealing them from their husbands.”

The conversation was ugly from the start. Gallus, Tiberius, and Bose were in Bose’s chamber, next door to Douglass’ new chamber. Garran was over in her old sleeping chamber trying to piece together the door he had destroyed. The initial conversation between Gallus and Bose had been brief and to the point, and now they were coming to the meat of the situation. As Tiberius had feared, the look in de Moray’s eyes was not promising.

“The same could be said for many men,” Gallus pointed out quietly, seated on a small chair that was barely able to hold his considerable bulk. “That does not necessarily make them unworthy or unfit.”

Bose nodded. He was looking particularly weary this night, exhausted from travel, from drama perpetuated by his son and daughter. The marriage proposal from Tiberius de Shera was not surprising at all. In fact, he had been expecting it from the way Tiberius and Douglass had been looking at each other. Bose was no fool. But he was also not inclined to hand his daughter off to a knight with a reputation for women.

“I realize that,” Bose said. “I know many fine men who have a bastard or two, men who have, in fact, married good women and have good marriages. But they were older and wiser when they married. I certainly mean no offense to your brother, but he is young still. Women at his age are a fascination and, much like a feast, must be sampled in abundance. I am not convinced that Tiberius is ready to settle on one woman.”

“Then what would it take to convince you?” Tiberius asked earnestly. “Name it, my lord, and I will produce or provide it. But let me say this, I realize that I am young and that I have managed to earn myself a reputation that some might consider unsavory. Never have I been ashamed of that reputation until now. It is difficult to say what changes a young man into a wise man, or a man who understands what he wants out of life. All I can tell you is that the moment I met your daughter, something inside of me changed. Douglass changed it. I swear to you upon my honor that I would be a good and true husband to her. I would never knowingly hurt or disappoint her.”

Bose was listening to Tiberius with reservation but he could see how genuine the knight was being. He was telling the truth, or at least the truth as he believed it. Infatuated young men often meant what they said and truly believed they were capable of such things, but the reality was that the lure of being young and happy and lusty could override such promises. Bose grunted softly, his indecision evident.

“I will confess something,” he said. “I spoke with my daughter at length about you earlier. When I saw the broken door to her chamber, I originally thought you had broken it trying to get to her. Even though you told me that Garran did it, I did not believe you until both of my children confirmed that to me. But Garran told me he did it because you were alone with my daughter in her chamber and he broke the door down with the intention of saving her honor. You were alone with her in her chamber, were you not, Tiberius?”

Tiberius nodded his head. “I was,” he said honestly. “But nothing unseemly happened, my lord. We were simply talking.”

Bose eyed him. “I know,” he said. “Douglass told me. And I know my daughter well enough to know that she would not have permitted anything unseemly to happen. Still, the fact remains that you were bold enough to overlook propriety to get to her.”

Tiberius didn’t know what to say to that for a moment. To his credit, he maintained eye contact with Bose even though he knew the man was right. It was like being caught stealing or committing another petty crime. He knew he was guilty of what he had been accused of.

“It was without ill-intent, I assure you, my lord,” he said quietly. “I simply wanted to speak with her and that is all we did.”

Bose’s dark gaze lingered on him. “I was a young man myself, once,” he said. “I know what lies in the heart of youth and talking isn’t among it. However, to your credit, I will say that my daughter told me the same thing. I commend you for your restraint. I do not, however, commend you for your boldness. I do not appreciate my daughter being put in such a position that her honor could be questioned.”

Tiberius understood that. “She is beyond reproach,” he replied. “She is perfect and mannerly in every way. My lord, I realize that you are hampered by rumors and by what you perceive as a less than desirable reputation, but I will again say that my intentions toward your daughter are completely honorable. I will make a fine and noble husband for her and I beg you consider my suit.”

Bose could tell that Tiberius was sincere simply by the look on his face. Bose remembered what it was like to be young and infatuated, as if nothing else but the sweet face and dulcet tones of the object of your fascination existed. But as much as he sympathized with Tiberius, he had to think of his daughter’s welfare. He had to think of her future.

“You are already aware that another match has been selected for her, are you not?” he asked.

Tiberius was stoic. “She told me, my lord,” he said. “She told me that Henry has selected Tallis d’Vant. A good knight from a good family.”

Bose sighed softly. “And this is another matter altogether,” he pointed out. “You and I do not support the same cause. How would it look if I were to pledge my daughter to a man who not only serves de Montfort, but he is a de Shera as well? We will be on opposite sides of the battle, Tiberius. Would you lift a sword against your wife’s father in battle?”

Tiberius could see where this was going. Not only was his reputation at question but so were his loyalties. Everything that could possibly be against him, in fact, was. Being a calculating man, he was willing to sacrifice in order to gain his wants and, at this moment, he wanted Douglass more than he had ever wanted anything in his life.

There were things in life he was willing to accept and things he wasn’t. He was not willing to accept that Douglass de Moray would never be his. He could see that bargaining was not going to work with de Moray. The man needed more than words. He needed proof. As Tiberius pondered the situation, he knew that he was going to have to make a sacrifice bigger than himself in order to achieve it. He was going to have to make a choice he did not want to make. If he truly wanted Douglass, it was time to act.

He was going to have to change his destiny.

“I have already faced off against you in battle but my sword was never wielded in your direction,” he said softly. “It never will be. I can do nothing about my reputation. It is set and I cannot erase it. All I can do is change the future and it is my intention that Douglass be a very big part of that future. I can see, however, that you will need convincing. I will need to prove to you that I am a far better man that Tallis d’Vant and that will be no easy feat. I cannot do it if I am sworn to de Montfort but I can do it if I am sworn to you. Will you accept my fealty, my lord?”

Gallus nearly fell off the chair he was sitting on. He had remained quiet throughout the exchange, hoping Tiberius could convince de Moray of his intentions without Gallus’ help. Tiberius’ proposal of fealty to de Moray had been completely unexpected and Gallus was shocked to the core. Stumbling to his feet, his eyes were wide with astonishment on his youngest brother.

“Ty,” he hissed. “Have you gone mad? You cannot do such a thing.”

Tiberius looked at him. “Why not?” he asked calmly. “Gallus, you are my brother and I love you dearly. You are the blood that flows through my veins. But there comes a time in every man’s life when he must choose his own path and to achieve my wants, mayhap my path is not with you. Mayhap I must go my own way to learn and grow and prove that I am the knight I am born to be. To prove I am the man I was born to be.”

Gallus was speechless. “But…,” he said after a moment, “but this is not the way, Ty. You cannot swear fealty to whoever suits your purposes at the moment. You know that. Fealty is based on convictions and beliefs and bloodlines, among other things. Do I really need to explain this to you?”

“My fealty can be given at my discretion. That is every knight’s privilege.”

“But it belongs to me. I will not release you.”

Tiberius didn’t waver. “If you were in this situation and it was Jeniver we were speaking of, what would you do?”

That stopped Gallus in his tracks. At that moment, he knew he was going to lose Tiberius. He could see it in the man’s face and, more importantly, he couldn’t deny his question. They both knew, very well, what he would do if Jeniver were involved. He knew what it was to want a woman so badly that he would do anything to have her. Aye, he knew very well and the realization sickened him. It was then that Gallus realized that the Lords of Thunder, as England knew them, might no longer exist. He was devastated.

“Then you will be lifting a sword against me,” he said, a lump in his throat. “You will be fighting against Maximus. Is that what you want? Is Douglass more important than your brothers?”

Tiberius could see the glimmer of emotion in his brother’s eyes and it nearly did him in. In fact, his eyes started to water. There was such pain in his heart that he could hardly stand it.

“Nay,” he said hoarsely. “But there is a time in every man’s life when he must follow his heart. This is the time when I must follow mine. Please do not hate me for it, Gallus. I must do this.”

Gallus couldn’t help it. His eyes filled with tears. “Because of her?”

Tiberius lost his composure. His eyes watered and spilled over, shattered by what was taking place.

“Because of me ,” he whispered. “Don’t you see? I must become a better me . I must prove to myself, most of all, that I am no longer this young and foolish knight who only cares for himself. I care for someone else now and I must prove to me, and only to me, that my feelings are right and true. If you cannot understand that, then I am not sure what more I can say. I love you, Gallus. You are my oldest brother, the man I have always looked up to and hoped to be. Now, you must let me become a great man by following my own path. Let me soar out from under your protective wing to see how high I can rise.”

Gallus closed his eyes, the tears spilling over. He was so very distraught. But he also understood what Tiberius was telling him. Perhaps it was time for the youngest brother, the young knight who had lived in the shadow of two very powerful, older brothers, to finally find his own way. As much as it pained Gallus, he understood completely. God help him, he did.

“Are you sure?” he whispered.

Tiberius nodded. “I am.”

There was nothing more Gallus could say. Reaching out, he pulled his brother’s forehead against his lips and kissed him.

“Do what you must, then,” he said comfortingly. Then, he looked to de Moray as he wiped away the tears. “Take good care of him, my lord. Please.”

With that, he walked from the chamber and Tiberius stood there a moment, struggling not to sob. He wiped quickly at his eyes, composing himself, before turning to de Moray. At that moment, as their gazes locked, something changed between them.

Bose had an expression of abject sorrow on his face but, in some small way, he saw Tiberius through new eyes. A man could speak persuasive words as he tried to convince those around him that he was sincere, but a man who gave up something that was most precious to him in order to prove his sincerity was something altogether different. Perhaps young Tiberius meant what he said. Any man who would break from his beloved brothers was a man to be considered.

“Are you certain you want to do this, Tiberius?” Bose asked softly. “This is all rather sudden. I understand if you wish to think it over.”

Tiberius took a deep breath, pulling himself together. “I do not need to think it over, my lord,” he said. “I will swear fealty to you and fight by your side. Much as Garran does, however, it is you I support and not Henry. I still do not believe in the man or his ideals. Therefore, it is you I fight for and not the king. But if we end up in battle siding with Henry, so be it. I want to prove to you that I am the right man for your daughter and if this is the way to do it, then so be it. You have my complete loyalty.”

“What if I do not want it?”

“Then I will follow you wherever you go, so you may as well accept it. I am yours whether or not you want me.”

Bose didn’t dare deny him, not after what he had just seen. He wondered how Henry was going to react knowing that Tiberius de Shera was now fighting for his cause. In fact, he wondered how all of England was going to react knowing that the Lords of Thunder were now two instead of three because Tiberius had defected to the enemy. It would make Bose a fairly hated man by de Montfort, of that he was sure. He also wondered how he was going to explain to Henry how the marital contract between his daughter and d’Vant would need to be delayed because Tiberius de Shera was now competing for her hand. In truth, the addition of Tiberius de Shera could be a great upheaval in more ways than one.

Only time would tell.