CHAPTER SIXTEEN
Castle Canaan
With Scott and Stewart off to Kendal, Milo was in charge of the mighty bastion of Canaan. If was just after the nooning meal as he made his way around the battlements, vigilant as he watched the activity both outside and inside the castle.
Being that Canaan was built as a shell keep, meaning the living quarters, kitchens, and hall were built against the perimeter wall, the battlements were a narrow walk that went around the entire top of the walls. Reached by two sets of spiral stairs, designed to make it very difficult for intruders to mount the battlements, they were also dangerous because the parapet itself was only about three feet high. Men had been known to fall over the side, head first into the moat three stories below. Therefore, Milo was careful as he paced.
There were sections of the battlements that had fighting platforms jutting out from the walls. These, too, were rather dangerous and narrow, but it gave the defenders more room to work with. Scott and his men had seen that when they’d been locked out of Canaan those weeks ago because those platforms had held men more than willing to prevent them from regaining control of the castle.
A tactical move that Huntley had been paying for ever since Scott had retaken the castle.
But the situation was peaceful now for the most part. With the bright blue sky above and the vibrant, green hills surrounding them, it was quite sublime, as if the rebellious du Rennic knights were only a faded memory. As Milo looked over to the south side of the wall walk and relived the beating the du Rennic knights had been given, for it made for some arrogant recollection, footsteps came up behind him. He turned to see Stanley on the approach.
“Well?” Milo asked, breaking from his thoughts. “Did Jeremy Huntley survive the move from the barracks?”
Stanley nodded but it was clear he was perturbed which, for Stanley, was his normal state. “He did,” he grunted. “But from the posturing going on with his fellow knights, you would have thought we were sending him to his death. They did not want any of us to move Jeremy; they had to do it, but they are so injured from the beating we gave them that they could hardly move him. It was slow-going the entire time as Gordon tried to keep the peace. The man is a saint, Milo. Jeremy and those wild dogs that call themselves knights do not deserve his loyalty.”
Milo grinned. “I am sorry I missed it,” he said. “But someone has to keep watch. I’ve got a mix of du Rennic and de Wolfe soldiers on the walls, but you just never know when a fight will break out. The tensions still run deep, even after two weeks.”
Stanley knew that. He looked around, seeing de Wolfe soldiers in groups on the battlements and then du Rennic soldiers in separate groups. It was like a standoff.
“Do they not mix at all?” he asked, pointing to the two distinct factions. “God’s Bones, they are both on watch. Do they not know they are supposed to work together?”
Milo shook his head. “Evidently not,” he said, rubbing at his upper thigh where his groin injury was healing, but slowly. “In truth, I do not know if they will ever mix. There is bad blood here, Stanley. I am not entirely sure de Wolfe is aware of how bad.”
Stanley leaned on the battlements, his gaze moving out over the brilliant green landscape.
“Stu knows,” he said. “Surely he has told de Wolfe.”
Milo shrugged. “I am sure he has, but whether or not de Wolfe is listening is another matter,” he said. “He has had other things on his mind with Edward’s messenger and Lady du Rennic and that whole bloody political situation. I am not entirely sure he has the pulse of the men in his command.”
Stanley glanced at him. “He always knows what is happening. He is not out of touch.”
“Nay, not out of touch, but certainly not in the thick of it the way Stewart and I are.”
Stanley cocked his head. “Do you believe something is coming? A rebellion from the du Rennic men, mayhap? God, not another one.”
Milo really didn’t know. “It is just a feeling I have,” he said quietly. “I have been a knight many years. I have seen what divisiveness looks like. I fear that Scott has a bigger problem than he realizes.”
Stanley wasn’t sure what to say to that. Milo began to move down the wall walk towards the eastern side of the wall and he followed.
“Then Stu should make sure he understands,” Stanley said. “Why hasn’t Stu been more insistent with de Wolfe?”
“It is a delicate situation.”
Stanley had less tact than Milo had and spoke what they were both thinking. “Because for the first time since his wife’s death, Scott is showing interest in a woman?” he asked bluntly. “And not just any woman; Nathaniel du Rennic’s widow. Does he not know what the men are saying about him? That he is a following the woman around as if she is a bitch in heat?”
Milo looked at him, sharply. “It was explained to you why Lady du Rennic was seen leaving de Wolfe’s chambers,” he said. “Why are you so willing to believe poorly of de Wolfe? He is your liege, Moncrief. If I were you, I would watch my tongue when it comes to Scott de Wolfe.”
Stanley backed down. “I am only repeating what I have heard,” he said. “I have not repeated it to anyone. My loyalty is to de Wolfe and always shall be. But there is more going on at this castle than he is aware of.”
“Make no mistake. De Wolfe is aware.”
Stanley didn’t say anything more, mostly because he didn’t want to appear as if he were speaking ill of his liege. If that got back to Scott, it would go badly for him. As he thought on something else to say, because a change of subject would have been welcome as far as he was concerned, he caught sight of a horse and rider emerging from the northern gatehouse and heading straight into the heavy line of trees that surrounded the brook just to the north.
The rider was cloaked, and moving very quickly, disappearing into the winter-dead trees with great stealth. Had Stanley not been looking right at the northern side of the fortress, he surely would have missed it because the rider had moved just that quickly. Blink and he was gone. Curious, Stanley began to wonder if he even saw such a thing.
“Did you see that?” Milo suddenly hissed.
Stanley pointed to the trees. “Do you mean the rider?”
“Aye.”
Stanley nodded firmly. “I saw it clearly,” he said. “Who do you suppose that was?”
Milo shook his head, quickly making his way to the tower at the northwest corner of Canaan. The tower had better visibility than where they’d been standing on the battlements and there were two de Wolfe soldiers on the tower, both of them looking to the trees to the north. Milo spoke to one of them.
“Did you just see a horse and rider bolt from Canaan and disappear in the trees?” he asked.
The man, an older soldier, nodded. “Aye, my lord,” he said, pointing to the heavy trees that lined the brook, or beck as it was called, all the way up into the hills and disappearing over the summit. “A cloaked rider on a warhorse.”
Milo’s eyebrows lifted. “Warhorse?” he repeated. “Are you certain?”
The soldier nodded. “Aye, my lord,” he replied. “The horse was big and scarred.”
“Did you recognize it?”
The soldier shook his head. “Nay, my lord. The horse does not belong to de Wolfe.”
“How would you know that?”
The soldier looked at him. “I have been with de Wolfe for fifteen years, my lord,” he said. “I know all of the horses that the knights ride and more besides. It was not one of our horses.”
Milo’s puzzlement only grew, looking at Stanley, who was baffled as well. Together, the knights and the old soldier moved to the edge of the tower battlements, which protruded slightly. From this position, they could clearly see the exterior of the gatehouse and they could see that the portcullis was closing. It occurred to Milo that there were men who had seen the rider close up, men who were currently lowering the portcullis. Something more occurred to him.
“The north gatehouse has mostly du Rennic soldiers manning it,” he muttered to Stanley. “And that warhorse did not belong to any of us. That leads me to believe that a du Rennic soldier has just left Canaan and wanted to make very sure he was not seen by quickly losing himself in the trees before he could be identified.”
Stanley was greatly puzzled. “But why? That makes little sense.”
“Did you not say that there is still division between the men?”
Stanley wasn’t quite following him. “Aye, there is, but….”
“Think,” Milo cut him off. “De Wolfe has overpowered the Canaan soldiers. He has subdued the du Rennic knights. Essentially, they are defeated. What if someone has gone for help against de Wolfe?”
Stanley’s eyebrows flew up in surprise. “Seeking reinforcements?”
Milo was starting to feel the burn of battle in his stomach. “I can think of no other reason a lone du Rennic rider would leave Canaan. Can you?”
Stanley couldn’t. But he knew who had the answers. “I will go down and ask the soldiers on guard who it was,” he said, popping his knuckles in anticipation of having to use his fists on men who would not give him the answers he sought. “I will find out where the rider was going.”
Milo eyed him. “I would wager that they will not tell you, at least not quickly,” he said. “Find Raymond. He had the night watch so he must be sleeping in his chamber. Send him to me and I will explain the interrogation that needs to happen in the gatehouse. As for you – follow whoever that was and waste no time. I would know where that man is going. If Raymond cannot wrest it from the gatehouse soldiers, then I would have your eyes on him. Hurry, now; time is of the essence.”
Stanley didn’t argue with him. He was on the move, sending the first de Wolfe soldier he came across for Raymond, instructing the man to send Montgomery to Milo on the battlements. Something was up and it was time for the de Wolfe knights to band together and hold the line until Scott returned. With the uncertain situation between the du Rennic knights and the de Wolfe knights, nothing could be left to chance. No one had requested permission to leave Canaan, yet someone had.
…but who?
That was what Stanley intended to find out.
In less than ten minutes, he was charging from Canaan’s north-facing gatehouse while Milo and Raymond planned to put the soldiers responsible for letting the rider go free through an unpleasant interrogation.
Not surprisingly, the du Rennic soldiers in the gatehouse didn’t seem to know anything.
*
Scott was afraid to look at Avrielle.
Not exactly afraid, but reluctant. Definitely reluctant. It all started when they were leaving town with the wagon full of seeds and plants, and Stephen had once again spied the villein boy with the small, black puppies.
Having just seen a dog show, the lad was clearly mad for dogs and, as Scott saw it, the peasant boy with the puppies surely didn’t need that many. He surely couldn’t feed so many dogs and as the party passed northward, out of town and heading for home, Scott paused long enough to speak to the villein boy’s mother about her son’s puppies. A short conversation about the dogs and then a silver coin for the mother, and Scott had himself a black puppy.
Or, more accurately, Stephen had himself a black puppy.
Oh, but there was joy in Stephen’s world now that he had a treasured pet. The lad had literally squealed with delight when Scott handed the puppy over to him and, even now, as Canaan loomed on the horizon below a sky turning shades of dusk, Scott could hear Stephen in the wagon with the puppy, petting it and hugging it and telling it how much he loved it. It did Scott’s heart good to hear that but he wasn’t so sure Avrielle felt the same way.
Hence, he was afraid to look at her.
Therefore, Scott rode at the front of the party with Stewart, not looking at Avrielle because he was certain he would see anger in her eyes. She might even make gestures suggesting she would strangle him at the earliest possible opportunity. It was, therefore, far better not to look at the woman.
Safer, too.
As Scott pretended he had no interest in the young boy in the wagon and the boy’s mother, Stewart had an interesting trip watching the dynamics of the whole thing. Having a wife himself, a woman he adored, he was wondering if Scott and Lady du Rennic had come to some kind of an understanding because the entire trip back from Mealbank, Scott hadn’t looked at the woman, not once. That was in great contrast to the trip to Mealbank, where Scott had looked at her quite often. It was puzzling, but Stewart thought it was rather amusing. He’d never seen Scott behaving in such a way so every hour, every minute, was something both surprising and, if he really thought about it, touching as well. Finally, the man with the heart encased in stone was smashing through those walls.
Stewart never thought he would live long enough to see that day.
With weary men from an all-day march to town and back, it was a grateful party that finally approached Canaan as the sun began to set, watching the heavy, iron portcullis lift to admit them entrance. The smell of burning rope and the sound of creaking chains filled the air with the grate lifting ever-so-slowly. Stewart and Jean-Pierre began shouting to the men, urging them to pick up the pace as they passed beneath the portcullis and into the cramped bailey beyond. With the sun setting, it was important to get inside and lock down the fortress for the night.
The wagon, surrounded by a sea of soldiers who were in the process of being dismissed back to the barracks, was finally removed to the stables where more soldiers, commandeered by Stewart, were waiting to offload the goods. In the hub of that bustle, Scott dismounted his warhorse and went straight to the wagon to offload the human cargo.
It was time to face Avrielle over the puppy scandal. Prepared for a verbal lashing, he made his way to the wagon where Stephen was standing in the bed, his face split in two by a massive grin as he held his puppy. When he saw Scott approach, he tried to lift the puppy up as if to show him.
“Look at my puppy!” he cried. “I have named it after you!”
Scott didn’t smile at the child although he wanted to. “Is that so?” he said, reaching up to lift the boy, and the squirming puppy, out of the bed. “I am not sure it is a good idea to have a dog with my name.”
Stephen’s face fell. “Why not?”
Scott could just hear the laughter of his men when a dog named Scott was whistled at. “Because it might be confusing,” he said tactfully. “I would hear my name and think you were calling to me.”
Stephen still wasn’t convinced. “But I named him Wolfe.”
Scott understood now. “Ah,” he said. “That is better than naming him Scott.”
“Why is your name Scott?”
“Because my mother is from Scotland. That is the name of her clan.”
Before Stephen could ask another question, Avrielle appeared at the end of the wagon and Scott reached up to lift her down, also. Sophia was still in the wagon bed, holding her baby sister, and she carefully handed the infant over to her mother once the woman was on solid ground. Scott reached in to help the little girl out of the wagon but she scurried down herself. That left Scott standing with Avrielle, meeting her gaze and knowing he should probably be the first one to speak.
“I find myself again asking you the same question,” he said quietly. “Are you angry with me? If you are, I apologize, but your son seemed so enamored with the dogs that I thought a puppy would make him happy. All young boys should have a dog.”
Avrielle looked up at the man, seeing that he was torn between defiance and remorse. There was far less defiance than there was of remorse and, in truth, she really wasn’t all that angry with him. He was only trying to be kind and she knew that. After a moment, she simply shook her head in resignation.
“You and Stephen are conspiring against me, no matter what I think,” she said, although she wasn’t entirely serious. “I see that he has you as his strong ally in all things.”
Scott smiled, a quirky sort of grin. “As I am your ally as well,” he reminded her. “But the dog seemed to make him very happy.”
Avrielle eyed her son, who had put the puppy down on the ground and it was now pissing all over the place. She sighed.
“I know,” she said, her gaze lingering on the boy. “Not much has made him happy since Nat died. I suppose I cannot become upset over it. You have brought joy back to my son, my lord. You have my thanks.”
“You are welcome, my lady.”
“Even though you did not ask me before giving it to him.”
“I stand rebuked.”
She looked at him, suddenly bursting into soft laughter. “Nay, you do not,” she said frankly. “You regret nothing.”
“I regret nothing.”
Avrielle continued laughing at him because he was shaking his head at her, being rather exaggerated about it. She was coming to think he could be very charming when he wanted to be. Of course she could not become angry with him; she probably never could, not when the man clearly knew he could get around her. There was a level of familiarity with them already that was deep with understanding. Instinct.
God, she loved that.
In her arms, the baby started to fuss, reminding her that the child needed to be given over to the nurse for tending. She’d fed the infant again on the trip home in the privacy of the wagon bed but the babe would soon need to eat again. She rocked the infant to quiet her, knowing that this was the moment when she would retreat to the family chambers with her children and Scott would go off and get himself lost in knightly things.
But she didn’t want to leave him. Avrielle spent the entire day with the man and it was difficult for her to let him out of her sight now that they were home. So much had been said between them and the understanding they’d come to had her heart singing. The entire way home, when she should have been annoyed with Stephen’s new puppy, all she could think of was marrying Scott de Wolfe. Never in her life had she had such silly, giddy dreams, but she certain had them now. Her heart was so light she swore it would float straight away if she let it.
“I suppose a knight of your stature would never have any regrets in any decision he made,” she said, her eyes glimmering at him. “I hope that means you do not have any regrets about escorting the children and me to town. I know it took you away from your duties here at Canaan, but please know how much I appreciate it. With all of the seeds and plants we procured, I will have the garden looking beautiful once again.”
Scott expression was bordering on warm. “I am sure you will,” he said. He hesitated a moment before continuing. “But remember you are the Lady of Canaan. You do not need to hoe and plant yourself. There are plenty of servants to do it for you. You can simply direct them. Every army needs a commander, you know.”
She smiled at him, rocking the baby because the fussing was growing louder. “I will remember,” she said. “But I do so like to plant flowers.”
“Have someone else dig the hole,” he said. Then, he lowered his voice. “I should not like my future wife digging in the ground like a common serf. I realize you find enjoyment in the garden, but leave the dirty work to those better suited to it. Will you do that?”
Reluctantly, she nodded, but her heart was leaping in all directions at his mention of their future together. “I will.”
“Promise me?”
“I promise.”
He winked at her. “Good,” he said. “Now, take the child inside before she screams herself into anemia.”
Avrielle nodded, looking at the red-faced daughter in her arms. “Where are you going now? Shall I see you later?”
There was hope in her tone and the corners of his mouth tugged with a smile. “You shall, indeed,” he said. “I have duties to attend to now, including seeing to your brother, but I will seek you later.”
She was curious. “My brother? Why?”
He lifted an eyebrow. “Do you recollect I told you of the battle between Nathaniel’s men and mine?”
She nodded solemnly. “I do.”
“Your brother took a very bad beating. He is not recovering well. As a favor to your father, I am tending to him.”
Avrielle thought that was all quite surprising – she had not expected to hear that Scott was tending to her brother’s fight wounds. But, then again, they’d not spoken of Jeremy or of the nasty fight that saw the du Rennic knights beaten down since it happened. She’d not seen her brother at all since then, mostly because she hadn’t wanted to. She didn’t want his violent nature around her children so she’d been keeping a distance. But now she was concerned that he wasn’t well.
“What is wrong with him?” she asked anxiously. “Can I help?”
Scott shook his head. Putting a hand on her shoulder, he turned her for the spiral stairs that led to the living chambers above. “There is nothing you can do that is not already being done,” he said. “Now, take the children upstairs. Get them away from this chaotic bailey. I will see you later.”
Reluctantly, Avrielle did as she was told, taking Sophia by the hand and calling to Stephen to follow. The little boy was more interested in chasing his puppy around than listening to his mother, but encouragement from Scott saw the lad picking the puppy up and following his mother up the stairs.
Scott stood there, watching them mount the stairs and waiting until they disappeared before turning his attention elsewhere. It was a futile gesture, really, because even though the woman was out of his sight, thoughts of her still lingered.
So did the smile on his face.
Quickly, he wiped it away, knowing his men were watching him. After the rumors regarding him and Avrielle, he didn’t want to throw any more fuel on the fire than he already had. Certainly his intentions were honorable, but that wasn’t anyone’s business at the moment. The growing feelings he had for her were his own, to be announced when the time was right. And that time wasn’t now.
But it would come.
The mass of men in the bailey disbanded as Scott made his way past the wagon, still being offloaded by soldiers who were carrying sacks of seed and potted plants into the old garden. Stewart was standing near the garden gate, directing the men, and when he saw Scott, he waved the man over. Scott headed in his direction.
“I am not sure where you want all of these stored so I am having the men put the sacks upon the stone bench so they will not become damp on the ground,” Stewart told him, pointing inside the gate to indicate the pile of seeds that was currently on the pretty stone bench. “Any potted plants are being put against the walls until Lady du Rennic decides what to do with them.”
Scott could see that all inside the garden was fairly organized. “I am sure she will be pleased with what you have done,” he said. “If Lady du Rennic is pleased, then I am pleased.”
It was a comment Stewart hadn’t heard before and he looked at Scott, seeing a relaxed liege before him. Normally, Scott was stiff, formal, in any situation, and Stewart was still becoming used to the new man before him, clearly increasingly smitten with Lady du Rennic. If Lady du Rennic is pleased, then I am pleased. Stewart tried not to grin about it; a comment like that was a sure sign that a man was far gone with his infatuation over a woman.
“Was she angry about the puppy?” he asked quietly.
Scott glanced at him, fighting off a grin. “She thanked me for making her son happy.”
“The lad was quite happy – that is the truth.”
“She also accused me of being in collusion with the boy.”
“A sure way to win over the mother is to be kind to the children.”
Scott’s smile faded as he looked at him. “Is that what you think I am doing?”
Stewart shrugged. “That is what I would be doing.”
Scott thought on that a moment. “I suppose that would be the usual tactic, but that is not why I did it,” he said. “I did it because it needed to be done. That child needed a dog and needed it badly. The poor lad is looking to adults for companionship and now that he has a puppy, the dog can be his companion.”
Stewart thought on that a moment. “You know the mind of boys,” he said. “I miss mine, in fact. I realize we have not been gone from Ravenstone overlong, but even a few days seem like forever sometimes.”
Scott could hear the longing in Stewart’s voice, which was unusual. The man usually kept himself guarded around Scott, strictly professional. He knew Stewart was attached to his boys and to his wife who was pregnant with their third child. It was always Stewart who manned Ravenstone when Scott would wander, although his wandering had been a lot less in the past year or so. That was how Scott knew that Stewart was attached to his family because he had seen it for himself. But the man never complained when the army went off on campaign, sometimes for weeks or months at a time. Not once had Stewart ever mentioned his longing for his family, no matter how long they were gone.
That realization gave Scott pause. Something in Stewart’s tone spoke volumes to a man longing for his family, now feeling brave enough to voice it.
Had he really been so blind all along?
“Has it been so difficult for you, Stu?” he asked. “Being my second in command, I mean. Where I go, you go, and if I stay away for weeks, so do you. Has that been so difficult to bear?”
Stewart was surprised by the question but in the same breath, he knew the answer. He simply wasn’t sure he wanted to admit it, not even now when he and Scott shared a more relaxed relationship. Perhaps there were some things he still shouldn’t voice.
“I am a knight and you are my liege,” he said simply. “It has been my great honor to serve you, my lord. My wife understands that.”
Scott thought maybe that was what Stewart wanted him to hear. “You did not answer my question,” he said. “Is it difficult to be away from your family so much?”
Stewart sighed and averted his gaze. “I miss them; that is true.”
Scott was starting to feel like a bit of an ogre. Loyal, devoted Stewart was a family man and, more than likely, all he wanted to do was spend his time by his wife’s side, watching his children grow. That wasn’t something that Scott had ever understood.
Odd; he realized he’d never felt like that with Athena. She was the daughter of a knight and she had married a knight, and Scott went off and did what he pleased while she remained at home with her sisters and mother and the children for company. She’d never complained about it. He wondered if it had ever bothered her that he’d been off on his knightly duties so much. He wished he’d had the chance to ask her.
But Stewart wasn’t like that. He had a strong sense of home and family. Scott thought he had that sense, too, but perhaps he hadn’t. Not like that. But now, he had to admit that the thought of going home – really going home, to Castle Questing – was very appealing right now. For the past four years, however, Stewart had been his only family.
And the man had never complained, not once.
Scott was feeling the need to show Stewart how much he appreciated the man’s loyalty through the years. As he’d told him, there had always been one constant in his life over the past four years and that constant had been Stewart. The man was more valuable to him than he could ever know.
It was time to show him how he felt.
“I have been thinking,” Scott said as he removed his helm and scratched the dirty hair beneath. “We know that Canaan is valuable and we know that I have lied to Edward about Lady du Rennic’s marital status, which means I must remain here at Canaan for the foreseeable future. But you do not have to stay. Once the castle is settled and the situation with the du Rennic knights is settled, there is no reason for you to remain. You may return to Ravenstone and stay there, in command, until such time as I return.”
Stewart listened with interest. “If you wish it, my lord, of course I will return to Ravenstone,” he said. “But if I go, who will carry out your commands here?”
“Milo can stay with me,” Scott said. “You can take your choice of junior knights back with you, but just one. I will need the others with me.”
“Very good, my lord.”
“And… when I do return to Ravenstone, I was thinking to give you the outpost of Ash Fell on the northern border of the Bretherdale lands. You know the place? The castle is rather small, but there are two villages within proximity of it. The income from them would be enough to sustain you and your family quite comfortably.”
Stewart looked at him with a good deal of shock. “Give me Ash Fell?”
Scott nodded. “You have earned it, Stu. For what you have put up with from me since Athena died, you have surely earned all of that and more.”
Stewart was clearly stunned. “Are you serious, my lord?”
“Never more serious in my life.”
Stewart just stood there, struggling to absorb this most unexpected turn of events. “I… I do not know what to say,” he said after a moment. “Your generosity… I am speechless.”
Scott slapped him on the shoulder. “I can afford it,” he said. “Remember that I will inherit Wolfe’s Lair and Castle Questing in addition to the Bretherdale properties. I will not be destitute in the least but I want to make sure you and your family are taken care of. For your service, it is the least I can do.”
Stewart suddenly grabbed his hand, squeezing it tightly. The expression on his face was one of astonishment as well as delight as he began to realize that Scott was very serious about all of this. It wasn’t a joke; his serious, brusque liege was starting to return to that gregarious, loveable man they’d all known and loved before that tragic event. Scott de Wolfe before that day had been wildly generous and well loved; Stewart could hardly believe that the man he knew so long ago might actually return. But the gift of Ash Fell Castle was an indication that, perhaps, the darkest of days were finally over.
Perhaps Scott de Wolfe’s heart was really warming, after all.
“You have my loyalty and my sword until the day I die, my lord,” Stewart said sincerely. “To thank you… it does not seem enough, but thank you. I am most grateful.”
Scott could tell that simply by looking at him. De Wolfe squeezed the man’s hand before letting him go. “It is I who am grateful,” he said quietly. “We will discuss the details at a later time, for now I must find Jeremy Huntley and see if the swelling on his face has gone down. Do you know if he has been moved from the barracks yet?”
Stewart was struggling to focus on the question; he was still lingering on the incredibly generous gift he’d just received. “I do not know but I know Milo was instructed to move him this morning,” he said. “In fact, I’ve not yet seen Milo but he must be here, somewhere. I shall find him.”
Scott shook his head. “Nay,” he said. “I can just as easily look for myself. I am smelling roast meat right now so I am sure we will see him at the evening meal.”
Stewart nodded but he was looking around, attempting to spot Milo or Stanley or Raymond anywhere. They’d only just arrived back at Canaan a few minutes before, but he still expected to see one of them. Milo, at the very least, should have met them when they rode in. He was just about to say something to Scott to that regard when he abruptly caught sight of Milo emerging from the northern gatehouse, heading in their direction. He pointed.
“There, my lord,” he said. “Here he is.”
Milo wasn’t simply heading in their direction; he was practically running, pushing through the men who had just returned from a day’s march into town and back, making his way to Scott and Stewart as they stood next to the old garden gate. As soon as he reached Stewart, he reached out and grabbed the man by the arm but his focus was on Scott.
“My lord,” he said, winded from evidently running from wherever he’d come from. “Something has arisen that you must be made aware of.”
Scott’s brow furrowed and he took a step closer to Milo, concerned by the urgency in the man’s tone. “What is it?”
Milo was looking around, clearly unwilling for their conversation to be overheard. “Mayhap we should speak somewhere more private.”
Scott shook his head and moved in even closer. “Nay,” he said. “If it is that urgent, you will tell me now. What has happened?”
Milo took a deep breath, laboring to calm his rapid breathing. He had, indeed, run all the way from the top of the southern gatehouse when he saw the de Wolfe party returning from Kendal. He’d been in the midst of interrogating the du Rennic gatehouse soldiers and, even now, Raymond was still with them, still trying to get to the bottom of things but it had been slow going. He tried to keep his voice down as he spoke.
“Around the nooning meal, I was on watch on the battlements with Stanley when we both saw a cloaked rider bolt from the northern gatehouse and disappear in the trees that line the beck to the north,” he said. “Normally, that would not be of issue but for the fact that no one had permission to leave and whoever did so clearly did not wish to be seen. I sent Stanley to follow the rider, but Raymond and I have spent the past several hours interrogating the du Rennic soldiers who were in the northern gatehouse at the time. It is clear that they are in collusion with the rider because they will not tell us who it is or why he left.”
Scott and Stewart were looking at Milo with some confusion before looking at each other, processing the information. “Odd,” Scott said after a moment. “A cloaked rider? And the sentries will not tell you who it was?”
Milo shook his head. His gaze moved between Scott and Stewart. “There is an undercurrent here at Canaan between the du Rennic army and the de Wolfe army,” he said, quieting down when a group of de Wolfe soldiers moved past them. He spoke again when they were out of earshot. “My lord, surely you realize that all is not well between our men. They will not work together, they will not eat together. These are men who have fought on the field of battle together, yet ever since we came to reinforce Canaan, they act as if we are the enemy.”
Scott knew as much; he’d seen it from the onset but it had never gotten any better. “It seems to me that they are coexisting but there is no camaraderie.”
Stewart shook his head. “It is worse than that,” he said. “I know what Milo means. There is still an undercurrent of rebellion here, not only with the knights but with the soldiers. It is quite possible this rider has something to do with that.”
Scott looked at him, seriously. “Explain.”
Stewart considered the request, glancing at Milo as he spoke to ensure the man was in agreement with him. “If I could guess – given the fact that the gatehouse sentries will not tell us anything about the rider – I would say that the rider may have been sent to summon allies of du Rennic. If there really is a rebellion brewing with the du Rennic men, then they would need help. I can think of no other reason the sentries would not tell you who the rider was or why he left.”
“My thoughts exactly,” Milo said. “We will know more when Stanley returns, but until then, I suspect we must be very careful. We cannot let our guard down if the du Rennic army is planning something.”
Scott couldn’t discount any of that because it made perfect sense. “It is better to be prudent than to be caught off guard,” he muttered. “That being said, you will separate our men from the du Rennic troops and you will tell them why. Tell them to watch themselves. And disarm every du Rennic soldier. Clean out their armories. I do not want them having access to any manner of weapon. I must go see to Jeremy Huntley as it is, but while I am there, I will speak with Gordon. Surely the man knows something.”
“Do you trust him, my lord?” Stewart asked. “He is, after all, a du Rennic knight. His loyalty is to his daughter and to his son, and ultimately to Nathaniel. I know he has been the only peaceful soul we have run into at this place, but it is quite possible that peace does not hold out where it pertains to us. I would not trust him completely.”
Scott knew that. “I will treat him with caution, but I want to know if there is something in the wind. I will not come out and ask him, but give me time… mayhap I can discover what is going on.”
Stewart and Milo nodded. “Aye, my lord,” they uttered in unison.
Scott cast them a pointed look. “Keep this information quiet, good knights,” he said. “I would rather have those with subversive intentions believing they will catch us unaware when the truth is that we will be more than prepared.”
Stewart and Milo were in full agreement. “That means we should keep the sentries we are interrogating away from the other soldiers,” Milo said. “If we release them, they will talk.”
“Agreed,” Scott said. “Keep them isolated. If they refuse to talk, there is nothing more we can do until Stanley returns, so let us go about our business as if everything is normal. We will reconvene at the evening meal.”
“Very good, my lord,” Stewart replied.
Before Scott departed completely, he addressed Milo. “Where did you put Jeremy Huntley?”
Milo pointed towards the eastern side of the southern gatehouse. “In one of the smaller guard rooms, my lord.”
Scott headed off without another word. Stewart and Milo also disbanded, already turning away to go about their duties. They had their orders and they intended to quietly, discreetly, fulfill them. There was a sense of purpose among the men but there was also a sense of patience because nothing could be done until Stanley returned. If the man had information when he came back, then they could act upon it. But if he didn’t have information, it would be more imperative than ever to either wrest information from the gatehouse sentries or somehow coerce Gordon Huntley into divulging what he knew.
As Scott headed off to the southern gatehouse, he didn’t want to entertain the thought that Avrielle might have knowledge of what was happening as well. But, in truth, it was possible. Anything was possible. She was Jeremy Huntley’s sister and Jeremy was at the head of any rebellion at Canaan. Was it possible she knew more than she let on?
The mere thought sickened him.
Scott could only hope Avrielle was just as innocent of subversion as she appeared to be because the alternative would be a blow he wouldn’t recover from.