Chapter 16

Kay and Em kept attentive watch at the central window in the late afternoon sunlight, sitting on a low bench which had been dragged up against it. They strained for the slightest movement, the merest hint of approaching riders coming from the east road. They had not moved from their location for the past hour. Kay glanced at her sister for what must have been the fiftieth time.

“Em, really, please lie down on the couch. There is no need for both of us to be on lookout. I will let you know the moment I see anything.”

Em shook her head resolutely, her eyes pinned to the narrow ribbon of dusty brown. “Eric is coming for me,” she repeated quietly, a mantra almost, a fervent hope and wish. “He will be crazed with worry when he reaches those gates and hears what has happened. I will be here, in the window, to at least reassure him with my presence that things will be all right.”

Kay patted her hand and looked back out toward the rolling hills, toward the swells of moss green and doe brown and twisting scrub. The sunlight’s strength created sharp shadows for every tree, every hillock. Their shadows slowly migrated across the earth, drifting like clouds, reminding her that time did indeed progress outside their room. For some reason she almost felt as if the world were holding its breath …

“There -” she whispered, almost afraid to shatter the moment. She had seen a kick of dust, a drifting of something at the far edge of her vision. Em leant forward, and Kay could almost feel her sister’s heart thundering as the two strained, searched …

Yes, it was a lone horseman. The steed was black, large, and it was only a few seconds before Em relaxed against her sister, breathing out the name in shaky relief.

“Eric.”

A cheer went up from the soldiers gathered along the tree ring as he thundered toward the keep, and then over the rise the rest of the force slowly came into view. Kay estimated that her father had brought perhaps fifty men – a healthy contingent to witness his daughter’s marriage and to restock the keep under its new master. Kay’s heart skipped a beat. It was all upside down now. The new master could very well be a traitor, a man who had deceived them all.

The horse faltered for a moment, as if reined in, and then it reset to gallop at top speed toward the group of men waiting in the clearing. Kay watched as Eric pulled to a hard stop, looking around in confusion at the collection of men camped out there. Leland ran over to him at once, talking with him urgently, while Reese paced the sidelines.

Kay shook her head in frustration, her eyes scanning the scene. “They haven’t told Reese yet,” she muttered under her breath. “Leland is keeping him in the dark. Surely by now he can be trusted?”

Em squeezed Kay’s hand gently in sympathy, her eyes not leaving her husband’s form. “Trust in what they are doing, sis,” she whispered. “They are going to get us out of this. We have to trust them.”

Suddenly Eric was standing in his stirrups, turning in shock, staring up at them. Em stood at once, leaning her head out the window, and even though clearly her voice would not carry at this distance, she called out with all her might, “Eric!”

Her husband’s anguish was clear, and he spun his mount in a frustrated circle, his eyes going to the main keep gates and then back up to his captured wife. Then, with one more glance at Leland, he turned his steed again and rode back down the road, at a hard gallop, moving to rejoin the main party.

Kay gave her sister a gentle hug. “He has gone to tell father,” she reassured Em. “Soon they will all be gathered, and then the negotiations will begin. You and I must prepare.”

“Prepare?” asked Em distractedly, her eyes following her husband with single minded focus, her hands still pressed against the windowsill.

Kay leant her head against her sister for a moment. “Em, we must be strong. The men will have a plan of some sort. They will do everything they can to get us out safely. We must be fully ready to react to whatever they say, to follow their lead, and to assist them in their quest.” She took her sister’s hands in her own. “Also, we must reassure them that we are fine. That way they can concentrate on rescuing us, and not be distracted by our current situation.”

“Yes, yes, you are right,” murmured Em, slowly shaking herself into awareness. “If Eric feels I have been mistreated, it might cloud everything else he is doing.”

Kay smiled fondly at her sister. “Of course it would,” she agreed. “Come, let us go into your room, and sit quietly until we are called.”

Kay did her best for the next hour to keep her sister relaxed and distracted. She could hear noises in the outer room while Galeron’s men set up the pair of tables which would serve as their negotiation area, and she peered out occasionally to keep an eye on their progress. Most of her time, though, was spent in brushing out Em’s long, blonde hair, then plaiting it in an intricate braid. It was almost as if they were back to the days before Em had gotten married, to the afternoons of relaxation and courting and fun. Kay kept the conversation light, doing her best to draw Em’s mind away from the situation that was swirling around them.

Finally a knock came on the door. Kay went to the door and opened it slightly. Galeron was standing there, a smile on his lips.

“Women, we are ready for the main event,” he offered, sweeping his hand out in invitation.

Kay moved back into the bedroom, twined her fingers into her sister’s, giving her a smile of support. Then together they walked out into the solar. The two tables had been set up across the waist of the room, splitting it into two parts. Four chairs were on either side of the length, and a guard stood at each end, preventing anyone from easily moving to the other side. There was already a man sitting on their side of the table in one of the end chairs. He turned as they approached …

“Jack,” snapped Kay, visions of him holding Molly still fresh in her head.

The blond man gave a twisted version of the smile Galeron had offered a few minutes earlier. “Surprised to see me out of custody, I might imagine?” he queried with a wolfish grin.

“I am surprised to see you included at a negotiation table,” growled Kay.

“Galeron and my aims align for the moment,” mused Jack, his eyes sharp. “He needs an extra sword arm and I found myself available for employ. We will see what the future holds.”

Galeron came around her other side, gently guiding her. “You sit here, next to me,” he instructed with a calm smile. “Your Lady will be right at your side. We will keep the two of you at the center of the table, since you are indeed the focus of this little meeting.”

“You mean to keep us further from any chance of moving around the edge of the table,” corrected Kay, her mouth tight.

“Oh, Kay, do not be like that,” soothed Galeron, his eyes twinkling. “This is simply a business transaction. In a short while it will all be over and we can each go on with our lives.”

Kay helped her sister settle into her seat, and then took her own. Her eyes scanned the four seats facing them.

“Why four?” she asked, looking down the row. “Why not just a chair for Lord Weston, and perhaps one guard?”

“A man of his stature?” responded Galeron with a raised eyebrow. “I thought it more fitting to allow him some dignity, and to help reassure him that this negotiation was safe to attend. He can bring up three men – unarmed, of course.”

Kay pursed her lips. Galeron did everything with a purpose. Perhaps her father’s comfort was part of it – Lord Weston might be more willing to negotiate at length, and meet concessions, if he felt secure.

“You plan everything,” she bit out. “You know exactly who he will bring with him. You want to watch them, see their reactions to what you say.”

Galeron’s smile grew, his eyes meeting hers with sharp admiration. “I knew you and I were well matched,” he praised with a chuckle. He turned to her sister. “Ah, Keren-happuch, if only you had chosen me on your own before Reese’s little discovery, and not made me resort to my back-up plan. How much smoother things would have gone.”

Kay turned to her sister, meeting her eyes with steady seriousness. “We must be strong,” she emphasized again, her voice low. Galeron was setting a scene, and would look for every advantage. They could not give away their true natures with a word or a glance.

Em nodded her head, and Kay prayed that they could get through this without incident.

There was a noise from the stairs, and all eyes turned immediately toward the door. “And the party begins,” called out Galeron with a smile, settling himself into the seat at the far right. He leant back slightly in it, his eyes focused on the doorway, his eyes attentive and calculating.

Footsteps worked their way up the spiral, and then a man stepped into view. Reese. His eyes locked with hers, and Kay felt a crazed desire to leap from her chair, to vault the table, to run into his arms, to be held by him, comforted … she held herself still with an effort, and saw the same tightness in his muscles, the tension in his neck as he remained where he stood, took in a long breath.

Then, without turning, he called back over his shoulder. “Come on up.” He moved forward into the room, stepping to one side, his eyes held steadily on Kay’s for a long moment before scanning the rest of the room. His hand dropped to his hip, swept the open air where his sword hilt usually lay ready. Tension rippled through his shoulders and was forcibly relaxed.

A blond man moved into view – graceful, sturdy, his face handsome and weathered. Em squeezed her sister’s hand hard, drawing in a long breath, but she was true to her word and her face stayed steady. Eric’s stride hitched as his eyes came to those of his wife. He moved to the other side of the door across from Reese, his gaze carefully neutral.

A slower shuffling came from the stairs and in a moment Lord Weston entered the room, accompanied by Leland. The two moved to the center chairs and Leland carefully helped Lord Weston sit.

Galeron stretched out a hand, waving to Reese and Eric. “Please, gentlemen, come sit with us,” he offered. “I swear no harm will come to anyone during these talks.”

Reese glanced at Eric, and then the two men moved forward and took their seats opposite Jack and Galeron. They were so close, they were almost within the reach of a hand. Temptation flooded through Kay. It would be so easy to reach across to Reese, to wrap herself in the reassurance of his steady grip. She felt Em twine her fingers even more tightly into her own, and wondered if her sister was under the same strong spell.

Lord Weston began without preamble. “I would like to protest the unchivalrous and uncalled for action of kidnapping a pregnant woman,” he ground out in a hoarse voice. “If she were to lose the child, I will make it my mission to grind you into dust. She is a complete innocent in all of this!”

Galeron leant back, his face carefree and relaxed, chuckling at the lecture. “As I seem to recall,” he pointed out, “you offered this woman as a potential wife, and stated she was indeed innocent.” He moved his eyes to look pointedly at her round stomach, protruding slightly over the edge of the table. “Instead, we have proof here that she is a harlot who cannot keep her legs together and who carries a bastard child. Just what coward of a man abandoned her in this state, that you had to foist her off with this deception?”

Eric’s face flared crimson, and a thick vein in his neck began pulsating. Kay felt as if her fingers would be crushed by Em’s grip, and she prayed with every ounce of her being that the men would not give into this blatant goading. Galeron was trolling for information. It was the reason he had allowed her father to bring men with him, and already it was working.

She leant forward. “What are your demands,” she interjected with a snap, attempting to move the discussion onto more concrete grounds. “You said this was a business transaction. Let us get to it.”

“My, my,” grinned Galeron, turning his eyes from Eric’s face to hers. “No appreciation for the niceties of negotiation, I see. Well, then, I will accede to your wishes, my dear.”

He pulled the codex from a leather bag on the floor and flipped it open a few pages. “Ah, yes, here we go.”

He looked up at Lord Weston. “First, I am, of course, technically the winner of your little game. Keren-happuch convinced both Uther and Alistair that they should move on to new opportunities. Both men went willingly away. We have witnesses to that.”

He turned to nod toward Jack. “Our third contestant has an issue with how he was treated, but for now he is willing to state that he was put out of the running by your daughter.”

Kay glanced down the table at Jack. His face held a deep frown, but he said nothing to contradict the statement.

Galeron’s smile grew. “Which only left us with Reese here. Just two days ago, Reese voluntarily, and quite deliberately, removed himself from the game.”

Kay’s heart dropped. Everything had moved so quickly – the enormity of what he had done still had not registered with her. He had chosen to leave. He had been actively abandoning her when the fighting had begun. Why?

Her eyes seeked to his, and his face was a mask of control, covering – what emotions? Was there pain in there? Regret? The frustration of the situation almost overwhelmed her. If only she had five minutes to talk with him alone …

Galeron looked up from his codex. “So that just leaves me as the winner,” he continued, apparently oblivious to the sea of emotions roiling around him. “I should therefore get the prize.”

Kay could almost see the force of effort holding Eric in his chair, the tight press of his lips holding in any words. It was her father who, after a long moment, spoke in a wheeze.

“So your intent is to force my daughter into marriage, even seeing her state?”

Galeron let the silence drag on for a long moment, then he sat back, rolling his shoulders, his twinkling eyes moving down each man’s face in turn. “Ah, Lord Weston, I find that there is often no need to resort to force to get what you want. If you plan things out properly, what you desire in life comes willingly to your doorstep.”

Kay was stretched taut with this game of cat and mouse. “Spit it out,” she snapped. “What is on that damned list of yours?”

Galeron turned to gaze at her, grinning, slowly shaking his head. “I could watch you all day,” he responded with a contented sigh. “You wear your emotions on your sleeve, my dear. Again, I will acquiesce to your wishes.” He glanced down at the parchment.

“Hmmmm. Item one. With my dowry, I was promised a payment of … let us see … eight thousand pounds. I believe that money is in the cart outside?”

Lord Weston nodded, his wrinkled face somber. “The money is here,” he confirmed.

“Check,” noted Galeron. “Second, with Keren-happuch’s hand I was promised the Keep of Serenor, with all the property, servants, and associated materials. I already have possession of it, as you can well see, and I do not intend to relinquish it.”

“A master of a keep is one who can hold it against attack,” growled out Lord Weston, his eyes sharp.

“Right you are,” agreed Galeron without malice. “When we settle our negotiations here, I will give you and your men time to get out of my courtyard and out of range of my walls.” He spread his arms wide. “Then, by all means, give it your best shot to take Serenor back. I think you will find that I am quite capable of defending what is mine.”

Lord Weston’s eyes moved to Em’s face. “And my daughter?” he asked, his eyebrows coming together.

“Do you mean the pregnant lady here?” replied Galeron in innocence, looking across Kay toward Em. “Clearly she is already tainted, and I would have no use for her here. You can have the wench back.”

Relief washed through Kay’s body, and she saw the relaxing of tension in the four men across from her. It seemed almost too good to be true. Yes, Galeron would get the money – but her father’s forces sat right outside the keep. The drawbridge was still broken, both sets of doors caved in. Galeron’s forces had caught them off guard, but their small numbers should be no match for the combination of the keep’s own units and her father’s. They could retake Serenor. She knew it.

By the look in her father’s eyes, she sensed he felt the same way. His voice was firm. “Agreed.”

Galeron put his hand across the table. “You will shake on it, on your honor?”

Weston did not hesitate. He put his hand into Galeron’s, and gripped it tightly. “I agree to your terms,” he vowed.

Galeron smiled with bright approval. “Well then, send up the money and let us get this process on the way,” he encouraged the men before him. “When I have the money, you can have the lady.”

Weston nodded to Leland, and in a minute the captain was jogging down the spiral stairs. Kay wondered if they had planned for this condition, because he was barely gone from the room before a group of Galeron’s men were lumbering back into the area burdened by heavy sacks of coins. The men lined the side wall with the burlap bags before moving back out of the room.

Galeron nodded to the guard at the far edge of the table. The heavyset man moved over to the sacks, untying each one in turn. He dug into each one with thick fingers, stirring the coins around, peering within. When he was done with the last bag, he turned back to Galeron and nodded.

“Good, good,” agreed Galeron, turning to the four men with a grin. “This should do quite nicely to pay for the Grey Wolves’ services.”

Reese and Eric both snapped into focus, staring at Galeron with dawning awareness. Lord Weston was slower, shaking his head in confusion. “What is this?”

Galeron smiled, turning his head to look at Kay. “I am sure Kay can tell you the hold this place can have on a person. I am master now of Serenor, and I intend to keep it. The Grey Wolves will be arriving first thing tomorrow morning with a force of two hundred men. They have agreed – for a small fee, of course – to help ensure that what is mine stays mine.”

Kay sagged as life drained out of her. This would not be a small rag-tag group of men that they could overcome easily. The Grey Wolves were famous throughout the land for their fighting skills. If Galeron truly had them on his side, her father’s forces might never wrest control away from him.

The soldier by the window made a hand motion to Galeron, and his smile deepened. “Ah good, apparently my supplies have just arrived as well.”

Lord Weston’s brow furrowed. “Supplies?”

“Yes, for the repairs,” explained Galeron. “We should have that drawbridge and both doors fixed up in a few hours. I had of course planned for both to be damaged in the attack, and have the replacement boards all precut and shaped. So, rest assured, my keep will be snug and secure, in case of any unwarranted attack.”

Kay’s sense of hopelessness grew. He had planned for every contingency, every last detail. The moment the soldiers left the keep, the doors would seal behind them, and it would be lost forever. Everything she had dreamed of her entire life would be gone. And the people within – what would happen to them?

If was as if Galeron had read her mind. He turned to smile at her. “Jack and I will be able to run this keep in any way we choose, for years to come.”