Chapter Five #4
One would have thought Tiberius was dumb but for the fact he retained knowledge that was verbally relayed to him as tightly as a vault.
He could visualize numbers in a way that wasn’t normal, but he could still figure the most complex mathematics in his mind and come out correct.
And, much like Maximus, Tiberius could recall conversations, events, or facts from years prior or two minutes ago – his total recall was infallible.
Unlike Maximus, however, Tiberius didn’t see only two sides to a coin or to a situation.
Maximus’ world was black and white, with nothing in between.
Tiberius, however, could see all colors of a situation with great clarity.
In that capacity, he was invaluable. The man was clearly not dumb.
He was the most brilliant of all three of them.
“This missive is from de Montfort,” Gallus told him. “Apparently, Prince Edward, the king’s heir, has joined de Montfort’s cause and de Montfort has summoned us to Kenilworth immediately to discuss it.”
Tiberius’ eyes widened with surprise. “Edward?” he repeated. “The man has withdrawn support of his own father?”
Against the wall, Maximus grunted. “It is as Gallus said,” he said quietly.
“If Edward inherits the throne from his father at this moment, he will have to deal with the Savoyard and Poitevin element that Henry has allowed into this country, greedy Frenchmen who are soaking up English properties for themselves. Edward wants them out of England as badly as we do, I would suspect. Siding with de Montfort will gain him what he wants.”
Tiberius knew all of that but the reality was still shocking.
He shook his head, hissing. “I do not like this,” he muttered.
“Edward has properties in Gascony he is having trouble with. Mayhap he wants de Montfort’s help with those, which means we could quite possibly be sent to France to fight Edward’s wars.
Throwing his support behind de Montfort will indebt de Montfort to him.
He could easily ask for the man’s help.”
Gallus couldn’t argue the fact. “If that is the case, then I do not want to fight for a greedy prince,” he said.
“I will threaten de Montfort with changing loyalties if he intends to send us to France. England needs us right now and I’ll not spend my time or resources in France fighting for a futile cause. ”
Maximus nodded in agreement. “Nor I,” he said firmly. “Let de Montfort send someone else to France if he will pledge support for Edward there. I will fight in England for Henry before I will fight in France for Edward.”
The armory fell silent a moment as each man pondered the course of the immediate future.
With Prince Edward siding with de Montfort, things were uncertain indeed.
But the thought of Edward inevitably brought on thoughts of Henry and, along with him, thoughts of de Moray, who was a great supporter of the king. Tiberius looked to Gallus.
“I wonder if de Moray knows any of this,” he ventured quietly.
Gallus shrugged. “My guess is that he does not,” he said. “For his own sake, I should tell him. The man needs to know who his allies and enemies are and if Edward’s loyalties have indeed shifted, then de Moray must know.”
Maximus sighed with resignation. “When do we leave for Kenilworth?”
Gallus glanced at the parchment in his hand.
“He has summoned us immediately so I imagine he wants us at Kenilworth today, tomorrow at the latest,” he said, moving to the armory doorway and gazing out across Isenhall’s bailey.
This was his empire, what he was fighting and living for.
He thought of Jeniver and the son she carried.
He thought of a world with no conflicts, only peace.
It seemed like a dream to him. He wondered if it was something he would ever truly see.
“Be ready to leave by dawn tomorrow. I am not overly anxious to leave my wife today.”
Thoughts of a wife brought about thoughts of Douglass to Tiberius. He fervently wished that he had a wife to leave behind, that he had her to leave behind. As Gallus moved to leave the armory with the intention of speaking to de Moray, Tiberius stopped him.
“Wait, Gallus, please,” he said hesitantly, eyeing both brothers as they looked at him curiously.
Suddenly, he felt rather embarrassed and uncertain but he charged on anyway.
“I… I wanted to apologize for embarrassing you last night. I am afraid the cider loosened my tongue far more than I would have liked.”
Both Gallus and Maximus grinned at the change of subject. “Apologize to Max if you must,” Gallus said, pointing to the middle brother. “He was the one who suffered when he took you back to your chamber.”
Maximus was waving him off even as Tiberius turned to him. “It is not even worth mentioning,” Maximus said. “I seem to remember you taking care of me once or twice when wine had gotten the better of me.”
Tiberius smiled weakly at the memories of a drunk and combative Maximus, a fearsome beast indeed. Maximus was the meanest drunkard he had ever seen. “It was no trouble,” Tiberius said. “You are my brother. It is my duty to take care of you.”
Maximus nodded his head firmly. “And I, you,” he said. “You were no trouble at all, really. Well, except when you were telling de Moray that you wanted his daughter. You were quite adamant about it.”
Tiberius’ smile faded. “I know,” he said. “I remember that part.”
Maximus was mildly astonished. “You do?” he asked. “That is surprising considering the amount of cider you had consumed. I think de Moray has forgotten about it, however, so you are safe.”
Tiberius emitted a heavy sigh. “Nay, I am not.”
“Why?”
Tiberius was having difficulty looking his brothers in the eye.
“Because it was not the cider forcing my words last eve,” he said quietly.
“I… I am not even sure how to speak on this subject. I rescued a woman who beat me, fought me, argued with me, yet for all of that, she is on my mind like no other woman has ever been and I cannot seem to shake her. At first, I thought I was simply interested in another conquest but now… now I am not so sure. All I know is that I do not want her going to London where a potential husband is waiting for her. I do not want her out of my sight.”
That softly uttered confession brought Gallus back into the armory. Both Gallus and Maximus closed in on Tiberius, their expressions laced with both disbelief and humor.
“Is this true, Ty?” Gallus asked as if he hadn’t heard his rakish brother correctly. “You have feelings for Garran’s sister?”
Tiberius was feeling embarrassed and confused and joyful, all at the same time. “It is possible,” he said. “I do not want her leaving for London. Can we keep her here somehow?”
Gallus looked at Maximus, both men shrugging at a seemingly impossible endeavor.
“I do not know much about de Moray’s contract with her potential husband,” Gallus said.
“I suppose I could ask him if you are truly serious about her. Are you serious, Ty? Are you certain she is not meant to be another one of your conquests? To do that would sorely damage the relationship between the House of de Moray and the House of de Shera. Surely you know that.”
Tiberius nodded. “I know,” he said quickly. “I assure you that is not my intent, at least not now. Mayhap it was yesterday but… but that is not my intent today. Something about the woman moves me in a way I’ve never known before. Is that what it is like to love someone?”
Maximus let out a hiss. “Love, is it?” he said. Then, he shook his head as if Tiberius were a fool. “You are speaking of something quite serious, Ty. You do not love someone so quickly. It takes time.”
Tiberius was looking at him. “How long did it take for you to know you loved Courtly?”
Maximus backed down a bit. “Well,” he said slowly, having difficulty looking Tiberius in the eye. “More than a day, in any case.”
Gallus was looking at Maximus rather drolly.
“It took you exactly one day to declare your intentions for the woman,” he said.
“Do not forget, I was there. We were all there. We know what you went through for Courtly. It is perfectly plausible that Ty is indeed feeling the first seeds of love, but be that as it may, the fact remains that Lady Douglass already has a suitor waiting for her in London. I would imagine that de Moray has already given the man his word and that will be a difficult bond to break.”
Tiberius knew that and struggled not to feel discouraged. “The suitor was picked by Henry himself,” he told them. “According to Lady Douglass, the knight Henry has selected for her is Tallis d’Vant.”
That drew a reaction from both Gallus and Maximus. “D’Vant?” Gallus repeated. “Of the Cornwall d’Vants?”
Tiberius nodded. “We all know who he is,” he said, sounding defeated. “He is a great knight in the arsenal of Henry’s armies. The man is well-connected and has a fine reputation.”
Maximus simply looked at Gallus. He would let his older brother handle this situation because it involved politics and that was Gallus’ strength.
Maximus simply put a hand on Tiberius’ shoulder in a comforting gesture before turning away to ponder the situation.
He didn’t want to tell his youngest brother that the situation was hopeless, but it sure sounded that way. As he wandered away, Gallus spoke.
“The House of d’Vant holds most of Cornwall,” he said. “As I recall, Tallis is the eldest son of the house, which means he will inherit it. That would be a position of prestige for Lady Douglass.”
Tiberius was starting to feel quite inadequate against Tallis d’Vant. “I have my own lordship,” he insisted. “I inherited Lord Lockhurst from grandfather and my lands produce an excellent income, plus Keresley Castle belongs to me. I am not a pauper.”
Gallus patted him on the shoulder to quiet him. “I know,” he said. “But you must admit that d’Vant and his Cornwall estates are rather attractive.”