Tender is the Knight (9 page)

He was gone so fast that Ryan didn’t have a chance to ask him where he was going.  As he slipped down the darkened corridor, he heard her throw the bolt on the door.  Taking the spiral stairs that led down into the hall, he headed out to the kitchen to find the old cook and explain to him what was about to occur.  He didn’t want the old man casually informing Ryan of what had become of her goat as she toured the kitchens.

The old cook was rather startled at Dennis’ information but heartily agreed to keep silent about the goat.  He even went so far as to hide the head which had thus far been sitting out in plain sight.  Dennis then went on to locate Riston, who proved more difficult to find.  He eventually found the man in the knight’s quarters, a sturdy squat structure located near the outer
wall that housed St. Austell’s knighted warriors.  Riston was in the small common room, strapping on pieces of plate armor, when Dennis came across him.

“Where is Lady Lyla?” Dennis asked as he entered the dim, smelly room.

Riston finished with the fasten. “I have her locked in my chamber,” he said, pointing to one of the two closed doors on the south side of the room. “Why?”

Dennis glanced at the old oak door. “I am taking my wife to the port and she wishes for her cousin to accompany her,” he said. “
Furthermore, she wishes a tour of St. Austell and we must make sure she does not discover the fate of her goat.  I have already spoken to the cook about the matter and he will remain silent.”

Riston nodded seriously. “She will not hear it from me,” he muttered. “Has she asked for him?”

“She has.”

“What did you tell her?”

“That I entrusted the goat to you and that I was sure you had accomplished the task.  Then I changed the subject.”

Riston rolled his eyes. “She is going to hate me
forever when she finds out I allowed her goat to become tonight’s supper.”

Dennis waved him off as he headed for Riston’s door. “Just stay out of sight for a
while,” he told him. “If she sees you, she will want to ask you where the goat is, so just stay away from her until I can tell her what has happened.”

As Riston nodded in resignation, Dennis knocked on the chamber door. “Lady Lyla?” he called. “It is Dennis. Please open the door.”

The door flew open immediately and Lyla was standing there, eyes wide.  “What happened to Bute?” she demanded.

Dennis could feel his heart sink a little.
But rather than let Lyla see his reaction, he took the stern approach and cocked an eyebrow. “Were you listening to our conversation?”

Lyla’s mouth flew open to argue but she quickly shut it, knowing she had been eavesdropping and
had all but confessed her act. Caught, she struggled to recover.

“It was difficult not to hear you,” she insisted. “The door… it is thin….”

“The door is three inches thick,” Dennis pointed out. “You would have had to put your ear to the seam to hear what we were speaking of.”

Lyla turned red and lowered her gaze.  Dennis took her by the elbow and pulled her from the chamber.

“I will not tell you anything about the goat before I have had a chance to tell Lady Ryan,” he said, “but let me be clear; if you breathe one word of this to her before I have had the opportunity to speak to her, I will send you back to Launceston before you can take another breath and I shall never allow you back at St. Austell again.  Do you comprehend me?”

By this time, Lyla was looking at him fearfully. “I do,” she said.

Dennis gave her his best stern glare before throwing open the door to the bailey beyond,  introducing blinding white light to the dimness of the knight’s quarters.  A new day beckoned, one that now saw two warring families in a tense peace.  It was a new way of life for them all.

“Good,” he said. “You seem like an intelligent girl, Lyla
, but if you betray me, I will make sure you go the way of the goat.”

Lyla could only nod her head at the big, intimidating knight as he dragged her out into the daylight beyond.

***

“How do you suppose she is faring?” Thomas asked quietly. “Do you think she has been treated well?”

In the earl’s rich solar, Thomas and Richard sat opposite each other, pondering the question that they had both been contemplating since yesterday.  Watching
Ryan ride off with a host of St. Austell soldiers had been the most difficult thing either of them had ever faced.  Ryan had been the strong one, oddly enough, while Lyla wept and the two men struggled not to break down.  It had been a painful and poignant parting.  Now, Thomas asked the question they were all faced with.

“I sincerely do not believe
d’ Vant would like anything happen to her,” Richard finally said. “He seemed rather intrigued by her. Could you not see that?”

Thomas
shrugged, his jaw ticking as he toyed with a cup that had once contained a sweet red wine.  He had drunk it all, far too fast.

“He was very possessive of her,” he muttered.

Richard watched the man’s expression, that of a worried father. In truth, he was feeling some worry as well, old worries from long ago. It was something that he and Thomas never spoke of, something long buried in the past.  There was a time when more than one man loved the wife of Sir Thomas de Bretagne, Ryan’s mother, and because of that Richard had always been inordinately interested in the welfare of the Lady Ryan de Bretagne.  So had Richard’s brother, the king.  But that was where the situation had become very complex and was therefore something they did not speak of. It was a situation, and a mystery, long buried, but at moments like this Richard couldn’t help but reflect upon it.

“He was indeed possessive of her,” Richard finally said. “He had every right to be; she is his wife. Would you rather
that he be indifferent?”

“Of course not.”

“Then I would consider it fortunate that d’ Vant had such interest in your daughter,” he said quietly.  But his gaze lingered on the man, the dark eyes flickering with something deep and cunning. “Would you have Ryan home again, Thomas?”

“Without question.”

“So would I,” Richard said casually.  “Let us be honest, Thomas; we do not simply want peace with St. Austell.”

Thomas looked at him. “We don’t?”

Richard shook his head. “It would be better if St. Austell and all of her lands and ports belonged to us.  As it stands, St. Austell might as well belong to the king and that, my friend, will not do.”

Thomas thought on that a moment. “Odd that you consider your brother an enemy,” he muttered. “I understand the factors behind it, of course, but it still seems strange me.”

“That is because you love and respect your family,” Richard pointed out. “That has never been the case between Henry and me.  Were I to hold St. Austell and her ports, I would wield much power against my brother.  That has always been the goal, has it not? That is why we have waged such war on the d’ Vants; I need what they have.”

Thomas nodded.  “I am aware.”

“Now St. Austell is within my grasp.”

Thomas wasn’t quite following him. “What do you mean? It does not belong to you.”

Richard stood up from behind his heavy oak desk, the one that had such marks on it for times when the earl raged and took out his fury on the indestructible piece of furniture.

“There were many reasons for agreeing to a treaty between Launceston and St.
Austell,” Richard said, almost casually. “Peace was not among them.  Conquest was. Years of warring cannot accomplish what Ryan can.”

“I do not understand.”

Richard wandered over to the long lancet window that overlooked the small inner bailey and the massive wall surrounding Launceston.  He couldn’t see much but somehow, his gaze reflected a good deal of vision.  There was something in his expression, an aged man with dreams of grandeur.

“Where is
Miguel el Mar Diablo
this time of year?” he asked softly.

Thomas looked surprised
at the change of subject. “Miguel the Pirate?” he clarified.

“Indeed.”

Thomas was still surprised, now curious. “He is usually off the western coast of Cornwall or down near Penzance in the warmer current,” he replied.  “Or he could be at his home port in Spain because of the more temperate weather. Truthfully, I have not heard of his movements in months. Why do you ask?”

Richard stared from the window, his wily mind pondering the truth he would tell
Thomas.

“He does not have a base in
England,” he murmured.

“Nay.”

Richard turned to look at him. “Mayhap that will change,” he said. “I have been giving him a good deal of thought as of late.  Miguel has ravaged the coast of Cornwall for years and his men have traveled inland to accomplish their terrible deeds.  In spite of the fact that he is a pirate, Miguel has the reputation of a cunning and strong man.”

Thomas was lost. “What is your meaning?”

Richard’s focus returned to the window. “Simply this,” he said. “I have done a good deal of thinking since yesterday. I realize that Dennis d’ Vant has proposed an honorable peace, but peace is not something I wish with St. Austell.  Years of battling the d’ Vants is in my blood. It is a part of me. I cannot so easily discard it.”

“No peace?” Thomas repeated, stunned. “But everything you said about the fact that Dennis is different from his forefathers… you did not mean it?”

“I meant it,” Richard said. “But the fact remains he is a d’ Vant.  He may want peace, and we may have agreed to it, but that is ultimately not what I want.”

“What do you want?”

“St. Austell.”

Thomas’ head was swimming with what Richard was suggesting. “What does any of this have to do with Miguel the Devil?”

Richard smiled ironically. “Miguel is a mercenary; he does what he does for possession and money. Suppose I was to offer him our support against St. Austell in an attack.  Suppose I was to offer him the fortress as a reward for destroying the d’ Vants once and for all.  When it was all over, he would have a castle in a major port city to do with as he pleased and I would have him as a vassal.  We would share in the port tariffs and the d’ Vants would finally be a distant memory. All of Cornwall would belong to me.”

Thomas was horrified.
“You cannot support Miguel in an attack against St. Austell,” he said. “You are bound by treaty, and my daughter’s marriage, to support d’ Vant.”

Richard was serious. “
D’ Vant would never know it was me who supported Miguel’s attack against his fortress,” he said. “There would be nothing linking us together other than I would provide him with my men disguised as pirates.  Miguel has many ships from what I am told; he can carry many men to the port of St. Austell and lay siege to the castle.  In the fortress’ weakened state, it should not take long to overcome it.”

Thomas had moved beyond his horror to outrage and shock. “My daughter is within those walls,” he stood up from his chair, angry. “I do not want her in a fortress under siege.”

“She has been in Launceston during times we were under attack. No harm befell her.”

Thomas couldn’t believe what he was hearing. “St. Austell is significantly weakened since the last battle,” he pointed out hotly. “Her safety will be greatly compromised with a horde of pirates tearing it down. More
over, what if d’ Vant should find out you were behind the attack? What do you think he will do to my daughter in that case? Her life will be forfeit!”

Richard pointed a gnarled finger at him. “You over dramatize the situation,” he said calmly. “Nothing will happen to
Ryan. I suspect d’ Vant will not have the heart to punish her even if he does find out. And Miguel… well, he will not harm her in any case, not when I promise him her hand as the new Lord of St. Austell.”

Thomas’ eyebrows flew up. “My daughter will not marry a thieving man of dishonor.”

Richard’s patience faded. “Your daughter will do as I dictate, as will you. She, and the fortress, will be Miguel’s prize for doing away with the House of d’ Vant once and for all.”

Thomas was speechless.
He had served the earl for many years and knew the man to be ruthless, but this went beyond what he believed him capable of.  Certainly there had been more than their share of war against St. Austell, but with the peace treaty, Thomas had hoped that chapter had ended. He could see that his hope was in vain.

“Why?” Was all he could think to
ask.  “There is a peace accord, my lord. Why would you savage it?”

Richard turned away from the window yet again, now moving back to his desk.  He seemed both pensive and defiant.

“There are things you do not know about Rodrick d’ Vant and my family, Thomas,” he said after a moment, now seemingly weary as he sat on his fine silk chair. “The history between the House of d’ Vant and the royal family is intertwined in ways best left unspoken.  You must simply understand that I must do as I must and we will leave it at that.  You will send messengers in search of Miguel and tell him I would meet with him. Tell him to come to Launceston. I have an urgent matter to discuss with him.”