Chapter Ten #2
“Emmeline,” he said. “I came at Max’s request. The only reason I have interfered when it came to sleeping arrangements is because what Max and his father were doing to you was not fair. It was not right. They were not behaving chivalrously, and I cannot abide that.”
“You stepped in to help me.”
“I stepped in to do what was right.”
“But you helped me.”
“What is it that you want me to say?”
She shook her head. “Nothing,” she said. “There is nothing to say. But I know what you did. You’ve been doing it from the start. The moment you fished me out of the River Tweed was the moment you became my champion.”
He almost argued with her but thought better of it, mostly because she was right. He had appointed himself her champion, as much as he told himself that he was not involved in any way. He didn’t want to be involved in any way.
But he was.
God help him.
“You had better not say that in front of Max,” he said quietly.
“He is your husband, and by God and the law, he is your champion. Not me. I do not know how he would react knowing that you view me as your savior, so please do not say that in front of him. Max is my friend, and I should like to keep that friendship intact.”
Emmeline felt as if she’d just been slapped back a little.
She wasn’t sure why she felt rejected, but she did.
Addax had been the one person she could depend on for kindness and compassion since this whole foolish mess started, but now he was telling her that he wasn’t really her champion.
He was just trying to keep the peace. If it came down to it, he would choose Maximilian, his friend, over anything that had to do with her.
That meant she was alone in this, again.
Still.
She felt stupid.
“I understand,” she said steadily. “I have expected too much. Maximilian was your friend long before I was, so of course he should take precedence.”
“I did not mean—”
She cut him off as she started to walk faster, moving away from him.
“I said that I understand, Sir Addax,” she said, back to addressing him formally.
“Your loyalty is with Maximilian and not with me. I should not have assumed for a moment that our friendship was more important. I can see that I have imposed upon you, and for that, I apologize. Please return to Maximilian now. I can walk alone.”
Addax watched her walk up ahead, sensing her clipped manner, hearing her brusque tone.
He hadn’t meant to hurt her feelings, but she was indeed assuming too much.
Assuming he had any kind of a stake in her marriage with Maximilian, which he didn’t.
Assuming their friendship was more than an acquaintance, but the truth was that it wasn’t as much as he wanted it to be.
Since the day he met her, in spite of the bumps along the way, he’d come to know a witty, deeply introspective young woman with a good heart.
She had absolutely no one to turn to, however, and Addax had been kind to her, so it was natural she’d grown dependent on him. So very natural.
And it was natural that he should like it.
Things were stirring in him that shouldn’t be stirring.
Suddenly, Maximilian bolted past him. Startled from his thoughts, Addax watched as Maximilian thundered up to Emmeline where she was walking and cut her off.
His horse kicked up some of the mud from the road, hitting her traveling dress with it, and she was forced to come to a stop as Maximilian demanded to know where she was going and how close they were to Alston Castle.
As Emmeline and Maximilian discussed the end of their journey, Addax mounted his horse and moved it aside as the carriage pulled up.
He took up pace beside it as it continued down the road, but Claudius opened the door, standing in the opening and looking at the landscape.
“I shall be staying the night at Alston Castle, but returning to Raisbeck on the morrow,” he said. “I’ve been away from home long enough. May I have your brother escort me home?”
Addax looked over his shoulder at Essien at the rear of the group. “Aye, my lord,” he said. “The Earl of Bretherdale should be afforded all due consideration.”
Claudius was satisfied. “Thank you,” he said. “I did not bring any knights with me, you know. Simply soldiers. But Alston has knights and a larger army because of the mines. De Witt had hundreds of men assigned to protect the mines.”
Addax looked at him. “Thieves?”
Claudius nodded. “Thieves and jealous neighbors,” he said. “I knew Ernest de Witt. I think the man was the suspicious type but I suppose that it is better to be safe.”
Addax considered that. “But this area is remote,” he said, looking around. “I should not think thieves or jealous neighbors would take the trouble to come all the way to the Pennines to rob mines. There must be easier ways of collecting ill-gotten gains.”
Claudius conceded the point. “True,” he said. “But the de Witt mines are very rich. It must be worth the risk.”
“Your lands border the de Witt lands, don’t they?” Addax said. “And you have no ore on your property?”
Claudius shook his head. “We border the southwest portion,” he said.
“Unfortunately, no valuable deposits to the south. Which is why it was vital that I brokered the marriage contract between de Witt’s widow and Max.
Now, Bretherdale will be an enormous empire that can support itself easily.
It will be important to find new buyers who will be willing to pay more for the raw ore. ”
Like Scots aiming for Berwick, Addax thought. They’d veered back on the subject that was at the heart of Addax’s trip to the Pennines, so he chose his words carefully.
“Then you intend to help him expand the mining operation, my lord?” he said.
Claudius was looking at the small village up ahead and also the fact that Maximilian was riding back in their direction without his wife. She seemed to be far up ahead, still walking.
“Max is many things, but he does not have a head for making money,” Claudius said. “He needs my help.”
Addax, too, couldn’t help but notice that Maximilian was returning alone. “He earns money on the tournament circuit,” he said. “When I allow him to win, that is.”
Claudius chuckled. “You are good to him, Addax,” he said. “But to answer your question, I do intend to help him expand the operation. There are many who will pay a good price for the ore, probably better than what they already get for it.”
Addax looked at him. “You mentioned that on the day Max and Emmeline married,” he said.
“You sounded as if you already had men lined up to purchase the ore, and when I said that Max would be pleased, you said it was not for Max. That tells me that you have big plans for the mining operation, bigger than anything de Witt did with it. Whatever it is, I still think Max will be grateful for your help.”