Chapter Fifteen #2
Jax bobbed his head in understanding. “De Lohr told me all of this,” he said. “You say you have confirmation that it is, in fact, your cousin?”
Rod nodded, facing the two lords. “After Lord de Lohr told me of the alleged identity of the mercenary commander, I returned to Bronllys to tell my grandfather of our conversation,” he said.
Then, he shook his head sadly. “My grandfather refused to accept that Bretton had somehow survived Lord de Velt’s siege and would not speak of the possibility, but for my part, my curiosity grew.
I was determined to know if Bretton, in fact, was alive and tearing up the Marches, so I sent a missive to Cloryn Castle and asked Bretton to meet me in Newtown if he was, indeed, Bretton de Llion, son of Morgan.
I wanted to know if my cousin was still alive. I can confirm that he is.”
Christopher’s eyebrows lifted. “Then it is your cousin?” he said, somewhat stunned. “And you met with him?”
Rod nodded and drained the rest of his wine.
“I met with him,” he confirmed. “There is no mistaking he is a de Llion. He looks just like the rest of the family. But it is much worse than we could have ever expected, for the man is nothing as I had hoped. He was not glad to see me. He is very bitter towards my grandfather for not trying to find him after Four Crosses was taken. But that bitterness aside, he holds a massive sense of vengeance against Lord de Velt and blames the man for ruining his life, so much so that the burned Alberbury Priory to abducted Lady Allaston de Velt. He plans to use her to lure Lord de Velt to his death, but you already know that. Here is where it becomes complicated – Lady Allaston de Velt was with him when he came to Newtown. I gave her the opportunity to escape and she would not take it. She says that she cannot leave Bretton because if she does, he will stop at nothing to kill her father, and she is quite convinced she can talk him out of it if she stays by his side. Lord de Velt, she stays with him willingly to protect you.”
Jax just stared at him, those dual-colored eyes wracked with emotion.
After an eternal moment of staring at Rod, digesting what he had been told, Jax let out a hissing sigh and rolled his head back.
He ended up staring at the ceiling with the expression of a man who could hardly believe what he’d just been told.
“Allie,” he whispered. “God’s Bones, is it true? Is she really doing such a thing?”
Rod cast a long glance at Christopher, who seemed equally concerned. As Jax reflected on the state of his foolish, brave daughter, Christopher addressed Rod.
“Did she seem in good health?” he asked. “Good spirits?”
Rod nodded. “She was healthy and whole,” he said. “But when I challenged Bretton to a fight to allow her to escape, she refused to flee.”
Jax was still staring up at the ceiling, now shaking his head in disbelief.
“She was always a head-strong, foolish girl,” he muttered, eventually looking at Christopher and Rod.
“But she is much like her mother in that she is extraordinarily brave and stubborn. If she thinks she can talk de Llion out of his vengeance, then she will not give up. She will be like a dog with a bone in her persistence.”
Christopher understood a woman like that, as did Jax.
The older knights could comprehend the strength of women but Rod was still puzzled by it.
With no wife, and no lady love, he wasn’t seasoned in the ways of woman like Christopher and Jax were.
In fact, Rod came across as being rather insulted that the lady didn’t take him up on his offer to release her.
“I tried to help her escape,” he said, “but she flatly refused. But rest assured that she seemed quite healthy and sound.”
Jax did take comfort in that. “Then my mind is eased as far as her health is concerned,” he said, disgruntled. “But the fact remains that she has been abducted by a man who shows no fear as he murders and burns. She is at the mercy of a madman.”
Christopher couldn’t disagree. He looked at Rod. “Did de Llion seem unstable to you?” he asked. “How was the man’s demeanor?”
Rod shrugged. “As I said, he is very bitter against my grandfather and full of hatred against de Velt,” he replied. “He did not seem unstable, only resentful and determined.”
“How did he behave towards Lady Allaston?”
Rod thought back to his meeting with Bretton and the lady. “He was not unkind to her,” he said. “He was not cruel to her and, frankly, did not treat her like a prisoner. When I first came into contact with them, I thought she was his wife.”
Jax’s brow furrowed. “Wife?” he repeated, terrified and disgusted. “Wife? Was he… God’s Blood, he wasn’t affectionate towards her, was he?”
Rod shook his head. “Nay,” he assured him. “I mean that they coexisted relatively peacefully. She was not resisting him and he was not being dominant over her.”
Jax fell silent, contemplating that scenario. Although he was vastly uncomfortable with it, it was better than the alternative – acting brutally towards her. As he contemplated the relationship between his daughter and her captor, Christopher spoke.
“Is there anything the man said that would be helpful to us in regaining Lady Allaston?” he asked. “Did he discuss any plans with you? Anything of value?”
Rod shook his head. “He did not speak of anything I would consider valuable to use against him,” he said. “Are you planning on launching an offensive any time soon?”
Christopher glanced at Jax before speaking.
“Not immediately, at any rate,” he said.
“Two days ago, I sent a missive to Cloryn Castle acting as a mediator on Lord de Velt’s behalf.
Since I am not directly involved in the situation, Lord de Velt came to me to ask for assistance.
He thought using me as a mediator might ease some of de Llion’s volatility.
I will act like a buffer, as it were. But the same day I sent a missive to Cloryn, I also sent a missive to Keller de Poyer at Nether Castle asking for reinforcements.
I do not want to ask for reinforcements from any marcher lords because it would deplete their force should de Llion decide to move against them, so de Poyer is the logical choice.
He is buried deep in Wales and not in the direct line of sight of de Llion’s activities. ”
Rod nodded in understanding. “I know Keller,” he said. “He and my brother were good friends. Rhys spoke very well of the man.”
Christopher moved to pour himself another cup of wine as he spoke.
“It is my hope that he sends me what I requested in order to reinforce my ranks,” he said.
“In any case, I believe it prudent to wait and see what kind of response I receive from de Llion. If he is as determined as you say he is, he may look at my attempt at mediation as interference. It might earn me his wrath, so I am taking a serious chance doing this.”
“And I appreciate it,” Jax said, making sure Christopher understood just how pleased he was to have the man’s help.
“But something is concerning me now that we have heard from de Titouan. If what he says is true and Allaston is remaining with de Llion willingly, and is in good health, I am hesitant to move on the man. I know my daughter. If she is working on a plan, we must give her time to complete it. If she thinks she can single-handedly bring de Llion to his knees without violence or blood, then I am wondering if we should not give her that opportunity.”
Christopher looked at him. “Do you believe she is truly capable of negotiating with a mercenary who is out for your blood?”
“You’ve not met my daughter.”
That was true. Christopher had never met her so he didn’t know how persuasive she could be. Still, he didn’t like, not in the least.
“What would your wife say to you right now if she heard that?” he asked. “She is the girl’s mother, after all. Would she agree with you?”
Jax cracked a grin. “She would demand I go and get her.”
Christopher’s lips twitched with a smile.
“Then I will suggest this,” he said. “Let us wait a nominal amount of time for three important reasons – the first being that we should give de Llion time to respond to my missive and the second being that we should wait to see if de Poyer can spare reinforcements from Nether. And the third… oh, Christ, I did not even think of this. Rod, do you remember what your Uncle Morgan looked like?”
Rod’s brow furrowed at what he thought was an odd question out of the blue.
“I was a very small boy when I last saw him,” he said.
“I remember images of the man and not much more. He was very big and he had big, booming laughter. He was also missing most of the little finger on his right hand. I remember being fascinated with that as a child. My grandfather said he lost it when a horse bit it off. That made me frightened of horses for a very long time. Why do you ask?”
Christopher looked at Jax. “Did you hear that?” he asked. “The man was missing his little finger on his right hand. Did you notice this on your John Morgan?”
Jax’s dual-colored eyes were glittering with the possibilities as he looked at Christopher.
“I do not know,” he said truthfully. “I cannot recall. We sent a missive to Northumberland to send his bodyguard to the Marches the same day we sent off the missives to de Llion and de Poyer, so I suppose now all we can do is wait and see.”
Rod was confused, looking between Christopher and Jax. “You sent a missive to Northumberland, too?” he asked. “I do not understand what is being said. Why did you do this?”