Chapter Thirty-Six #5
When they reached the first landing where the stairs split in two directions, the front door swung open and several soldiers spilled forth. Gaston glanced disinterested until he saw they completely bypassed Alex in the dining hall and headed straight for him.
“My lord!” one of the soldiers called out to him.
Gaston put Remington down gently. “What is it?”
“We have received a messenger from Mt. Holyoak, my lord. She’s under siege!”
Gaston did not react but Remington’s hand flew to her mouth. “By whom?” he asked.
“Botmore,” the soldier said. “The messenger is outside with Sir Hugh. He shall be….”
At that moment, Hubert and a disheveled soldier marched into the hall. All attention riveted to the warrior in Mt. Holyoak’s colors, especially Gaston. “Who attacks my keep?” he demanded of the soldier.
The soldier was one of Gaston’s elite guards, seasoned and intelligent. He was bloodied and dirty, but saluted his liege sharply. “Botmore, my lord. And we were told that Stoneley rides with him.”
Remington couldn’t help herself; she shrieked and closed her eyes, feeling the ground sway beneath her. Gaston did not look at her, but he put out a hand to comfort her. “You know for sure that Stoneley is with him?”
“His own men identified him, my lord,” the soldier said firmly. “Sir Roald ordered me to ride forth to find you, and then I was to take a message to Lord Brimley and seek reinforcements, with your approval.”
Remington was shaking heavily with shock and fright. “Gaston, Dane and Trenton are inside the keep. Guy mustn’t….”
He looked to her, then, seeing the terror in her eyes.
He gathered her against him as he took the steps down to Hubert and his soldier.
“You will continue on to Brimley and seek his support,” his eyes flicked up to see Alex moving into the foyer and their gazes locked.
“I shall solicit Lord Ingilsby’s assistance. ”
“No need to request, my lord,” Alex said. “Consider my force your very own to do with as you please. I can have all three hundred mounted within the hour.”
“Thank you,” Gaston’s gaze fell back on his soldier. “You may tell Brimley that I rode forth with Ingilsby.”
“Aye, my lord,” the soldier saluted again, assuming he was dismissed until Gaston stopped him.
“What was the status of Mt. Holyoak when you left?”
“We received word from a perimeter patrol that an army was approaching from the southwest, armed to the hilt, and Sir Roald put the fortress on alert,” the soldier said.
“Sir Roald sent one of Stoneley’s men back with the patrol to see if the man could determine who was approaching.
Word came back that it was Botmore, riding with Stoneley at his side.
At that point, two messengers were sent to seek you.
Unfortunately, we ran into an advance party and there was a brief skirmish.
I managed to get away, but my colleague was dispatched. ”
“Then the army was just upon the keep when you left,” Gaston clarified.
“Aye, my lord. The battle was just engaging.”
Which was four hours ago. Quite a bit could happen within four hours, but he was positive the keep had not been breached within that amount of time.
Yet the one seed of knowledge that blossomed in his mind was the fact that Stoneley had built the keep and, therefore, would know all of her weaknesses.
If there were a fault to be exploited, then Guy would know it.
He began to feel distinctly uneasy with that thought.
Dismissing the soldier, he turned to Remington. “You shall stay here and keep Lady Anne entertained.”
She blinked, dashing her tears away as they fell. “My sons are within the walls. What will happen if Guy…?”
“He won’t,” Gaston insisted firmly, grasping her by the shoulders. “You know the keep, too, Remi. Are there any tunnels or passages I should know about? Any secret caves?”
She shook her head. “There is no way in or out except the drawbridge,” she paused thoughtfully. “Except… except there is a seldom used servants entrance in the wall next to the kitchens. A postern gate. But the servants rarely use it because it is so dangerous.”
“I know of the door, I have seen it,” Gaston nodded. He’d made note of it on his security sweeps of the kitchen storage areas. “As I recall, it was blocked off by heavy barrels of wheat and had not been used in some time.”
She was trying to compose herself, her eyes focused on him as he thought. After a moment of pondering the unlikely possibility that Guy could capitalize on the entrance, he gathered her quaking form against him tightly.
“Do not worry, angel. At least we know where Guy is now and I can do what I should have done a year ago.”
“Off to war again. I hate it when you go off to fight,” she sniffed.
“I know,” he smiled gently and kissed her nose. “I get the same speech from you every time. Have I ever gone back on my word and not returned to you whole? You worry overly.”
She threw her arms around his neck and he pulled her off the floor, embracing her sweet body reverently.
Actually, he was relieved that Stoneley was attacking Mt.
Holyoak. Gaston would be in his glory in the middle of a battle, striking Stoneley down as he would any other enemy soldier.
Then it would not matter if the church intended on granting Remington’s annulment petition or not; Guy would be dead and there would be nothing to prevent Gaston and Remington from marrying.
The thought brought a smile to his lips and she caught it. “Why are you smiling?”
He kissed her, smiling broadly now. “Because I am happy.”
She looked shocked. “Happy. How can you say that? Guy is attacking Mt. Holyoak, our sons are inside, and you are happy?”
He laughed and lowered her to the ground. “Aye, I am. Don’t you see, Remi? Guy has lured me into a situation where I am more at home than anywhere else. I shall find Guy, strike him down in a fair fight, and we shall be rid of him. I should thank him for making it so easy for me to dispose of him.”
She looked at him dubiously. “You are mad. The smell of battle is making you insane.”
“Mayhap,” he kissed her loudly. “But I am always right. I shall make short work of Lord Stoneley and we shall bury him next to Mari-Elle so that they may rot in hell together.”
She shook her head, still upset but growing more relaxed with his easy manner. If he wasn’t truly concerned about the battle, then why should she be? He was the authority on warfare, was he not?
“You are sure there is nothing to be concerned over?” she asked insistently.
He shook his head. “Roald is a fine warrior and will hold the keep strongly. With Ingilsby and Brimley attacking from Botmore’s rear, he will be fighting on two fronts and it should be a decisive victory.
Even so, Nicolas and Antonius are riding north at this very minute with five hundred more troops.
Guy and Botmore do not stand a chance in hell, Remi. ”
She still looked doubtful, but the tears were gone. Frowning, she crossed her arms and eyed him. “I want the battle done by the second morning. And do not linger any longer than you must; I want you to bring me home when the fight is concluded.”
He raised an eyebrow. “Aye, general. Any other orders?”
“Yes. I do not want you to bury Guy. I want you to burn his corpse and spread his ashes to the wind. I want nothing left of his evil.”
His expression softened hearing the frightened woman speak. He touched her cheek gently. “Anything for you, angel. Anything at all.”
A smile creased her lips and he smiled in return.
He knew the men were beginning to mobilize in the bailey; Alex and his soldiers had long since vacated the foyer and he and Remington had been alone for quite some time.
He took Remington’s arm, intent on settling her for the night before retreating to the bailey to join Ingilsby.
“Gaston, I have decided something,” she said decisively as he led her up the stairs.
“What’s that, love?”
“That I am going to take a switch to both Dane and Trenton for getting themselves into such a predicament.” They topped the flight of stairs and headed down the corridor.
“I know you said that a reprimand oft works better than a welted backside, but in this case, I’d feel better if I spanked them myself. ”
“Is that so?” he raised an eyebrow at her as they approached the door to their room. “If you feel it necessary, then I will hold them for you myself.”
“You do not need to. I shall do it.”
He opened the door, fighting off a grin. “Remi, Dane can outrun a horse and Trenton is bigger than you are. Now, do you truly think they’ll not protest whilst you take a switch to them?”
“Of course they will,” she insisted. “They’d not dare run from me.”
He laughed low in his throat as she kicked off her slippers, laughing again when he thought of Remington chasing the boys up and down the corridors of Mt.
Holyoak with a willow branch in her hand.
“On behalf of the offenders, my lady, I beg you to reconsider. ’Tis only their first offense, after all, and they were only thinking of you. ”
“And it will be their last offense if they remember the sting of the switch.”
He shook his head, still chuckling. “Pray show mercy, madam. I believe I can vouch that the punishment de Vere plans for them will be quite sufficient to deter any future infractions. They are, after all, his pledges and we must leave the discipline to the earl.”
She looked at him, uncertainly, and released the last few stays of her surcoat. The scarlet silk coursed to the floor and she threw the garment on a chair. Clad in the corset and shift, she shrugged. “If you say so.”
“I do,” he wanted to help her undress but he knew he would never make it downstairs if he were to lay the slightest hand on her. It was going to be hard enough to kiss her good-bye. “Now undo that torturous contraption you wear and get into bed. It has been a particularly fatiguing day.”