Chapter Fourteen #2
“I am not going to argue with you,” Garran said to Bose. “But this is wrong and you know it. And now we have been ordered to confiscate Erith Castle from de Montfort. This is full-blown civil war, Father, for once we attack Erith, de Montfort and his stronger barons will retaliate.”
“De Shera?” Grayson asked softly.
Garran turned to the elder de Winter knight. “Aye, de Shera,” he said. “And Bigod and de Clare. They will retaliate and it will become very, very ugly, especially given the fact that French mercenaries are now being brought in to fight Henry’s war. This is utter and complete madness, all of it.”
“There is something else,” Bose said quietly to the men in the room.
“Something I swore not to reveal but I find that I must. It is very important to the king’s cause.
I have been told by a very reliable source that Prince Edward is siding with de Montfort now.
If that is the case, then this war will be more violent and deadly than you know. ”
The men in the room looked at him in shock. “Who told you this, Bose?” Grayson asked, aghast.
Bose shook his head. “Someone I would trust with my life, many times over,” he said. “I will not reveal his name but I know he tells the truth. He would not lie about something as serious as this.”
It was a horrible thought, for all of them, and one that caught them all off-guard.
Davyss put his hands on his head and turned away, overwhelmed with the thought, while Garran stood there, shocked, knowing that Gallus or Maximus must have told his father about Edward.
It was the only explanation. He also knew that Bose would never betray them, but that piece of information was very crucial. He looked at d’Vant.
“Do you believe Henry knows this?” Garran asked the knight. “That his son is siding with de Montfort?”
D’Vant appeared genuinely stunned by the information. “Nay,” he said. “I am sure he would have said something. He must not know at all.”
Bose grunted, pushing himself off the wall he had been leaning on.
“Then you must ride to London and tell him,” he said.
“I will mobilize my men and I am certain Grayson will, too, and we will ride for Ingleton to await Henry’s arrival.
But the king must be made aware that Edward sides with de Montfort. ”
Tallis nodded firmly. “Without question, my lord,” he said. “I will ride at dawn. If you do not mind, I should like to feast tonight here at Wintercroft with your daughter before leaving. I hope that is acceptable.”
Bose nodded. “It is,” he said. “A few hours will not make a difference.”
Garran, having heard enough, excused himself from the room.
He was tired of hearing about French mercenaries and a king who would go back on his word to his barons.
He went to the chamber door and exited into the corridor outside, shutting the door before realizing there was someone standing at the other door a few feet away down the corridor.
When he looked up, he found himself looking into Tiberius’ familiar eyes.
“Ty?” he said, cocking his head curiously. “What are you doing here?”
Tiberius opened his mouth but d’Vant started talking and his voice floated out of the slightly open door that Tiberius was standing beside.
Tallis was continuing the conversation about Henry and the French mercenaries and, at that moment, Garran knew exactly what Tiberius had been doing. His eyes widened.
“You heard all of that?” he asked.
Tiberius, his expression serious, nodded. “I did,” he said. “But in my defense, I was looking for your father. I happened across the conversation quite by accident.”
“But you heard everything?”
“I did.”
Garran gave him an expression suggesting that the situation was quite serious, indeed.
Tiberius had heard private information that d’Vant had delivered to Bose and Grayson in what the man assumed was confidence.
Now, one of the most important knights in de Montfort’s arsenal was privy to the future battle plans of the king. It was a dire situation, indeed.
“What are you going to do?” Garran hissed.
Tiberius appeared surprised by the question. He moved away from the door, making his way towards Garran. “What are you going to do?” he turned it around on Garran. “At the very least, you should be telling your father what I have heard.”
Garran was greatly torn. Scratching his head, he slumped back against the wall, seemingly despondent. “I… I do not think I can,” he said. “Did you hear d’Vant speak of ten thousand French mercenaries?”
“I did.”
Garran’s expression was wrought with urgency. “Then you must go to Isenhall, now, and tell your brothers,” he whispered. “They must know what Henry is doing!”
Tiberius knew that. God help him, he knew that. But there was the small matter of Douglass. “I know,” he muttered. “But Douglass… I cannot just leave her.”
“If you do not, then Gallus and Maximus will be riding into a slaughter and you know it.”
It was a shot straight through Tiberius’ heart.
He very much wanted to marry Douglass, to take her away and claim her for his own, but he couldn’t let his brothers ride to their deaths.
Perhaps there were some things more important than him and his love for the lovely Lady Douglass and if she truly cared for him, she would understand.
She would wait for him. For now, Garran was correct.
He had to tell his brothers what he had heard, regardless of the fact that he had sworn fealty to de Moray.
His faith, his true honor, was with his brothers. They had to know.
“You are correct, of course,” Tiberius said, inhaling deeply in resolve. “I must go to Isenhall but I must tell Douglass why. I will leave tonight, Garran. Will you help me?”
Before Garran could reply, a voice came from the open door that Tiberius had just been standing beside.
“You are not going anywhere, Tiberius.”
Tiberius and Garran turned to see Grayson and Davyss standing there as Bose and Tallis emerged from the first door. Tiberius thought many things at that moment. How he could fight his way out of this or charm his way out of it. Either way, he knew he was in a world of trouble.
“Unfortunately, I am,” he told Grayson steadily. “I must return to Isenhall.”
Grayson didn’t seem angry or threatening, simply weary. He shook his head in a gesture that suggested frustration.
“I would assume you heard most, if not all, of what we were speaking of?” he asked.
Tiberius shrugged. “I heard enough,” he said. “I cannot let my brothers ride into a slaughter. You know this.”
Grayson shook his head again, suggesting he was weary of the entire situation. “I know,” he said. “But I cannot let you tell them what you know. Everything I stand for screams against it. Do you understand that, lad?”
Tiberius didn’t pull any punches. He could see where this was going. He turned straight to de Moray. “We saved your life and the lives of your children in Coventry when de Montfort’s assassins were looking for you,” he said. “You may now pay that debt. Let me go back to Isenhall.”
The focus swung to Bose, who met Tiberius’ demand with a steady eye. “I do indeed owe you and your brothers,” he said, knowing that the situation was far more complex than that. “Let me speak with de Winter and see if we can come to an agreement.”
“No agreement,” d’Vant said. The congenial knight was now hard and deadly as he gazed at Tiberius. “The man overheard privileged information. He is, therefore, a spy. Spies will be executed.”
Both Garran and Davyss put themselves between Tiberius and Tallis in a protective gesture. “Try it, d’Vant,” Garran snarled. “You’ll get more than you bargained for and I can promise you that you will not leave Wintercroft alive.”
The men were armed, all of them, so before blades could be drawn, Bose put himself in the middle of it, holding out his hands to cool young, heated heads.
“You will not fight,” he commanded as only Bose de Moray could. “Garran, you and Davyss take Tiberius with you. Do not let him out of your sight. D’Vant and Grayson and I will remain here and discuss this situation. Go now, get out.”
Garran didn’t hesitate. He took Tiberius by the arm while Davyss got in behind him and, together, the two knights forcibly escorted Tiberius from the corridor. With the men shuffling down the hall and moving down the big, spiral staircase, Bose turned to d’Vant.
“If you ever threaten a de Shera again, I will kill you where you stand,” he said quite calmly. “Is that in any way unclear?”
D’Vant didn’t flinch. “Aye, my lord.”
Bose’s jaw ticked as he studied the young knight, so strong and loyal to Henry’s cause.
His absolute stance would make for a difficult situation.
In these complex times, older knights like Bose and Grayson knew that one had to be flexible and that old friends and family loyalties exceeded those of kings and barons.
Tallis had not yet learned that. But perhaps it was time he did.
“Get back into the chamber,” Bose commanded d’Vant again, pointing to the room they had been meeting in. “Stay there for now. If you come out, I will punish you personally. Do you comprehend?”
“I do, my lord.”
“Stay there until I come for you.”
Tallis didn’t respond other than to go into the chamber and shut the door. When the young knight was gone, Bose turned to Grayson. It was clear they were facing a very difficult decision. Hearts and souls and minds and bloodlines were about to be prioritized, and it was Grayson who spoke first.
“What do you want to do?” he asked Bose softly. “Tell me and we shall do it. But d’Vant might prove to be a problem.”
Bose sighed, his clever mind working on a solution to this seemingly terrible problem. “Not if I distract him with something more important,” he muttered.
“What?”
“My daughter.”
Grayson didn’t like the sound of that. “What do you intend to do?”