Carried Away (11 page)

***

Caedmon and Aidan wanted to be home in time for Yuletide, and departed almost immediately. Blythe clung to them for a long while before they mounted. She might never see them again. Aidan couldn’t speak. Caedmon clasped Dieter’s hand. “I’m entrusting to you the life of my daughter. Take good care of her.”

Dieter’s father and sister returned to Saxony, taking Johann. He would be safer there until the conflict with Heinrich was over once and for all. The newly-weds celebrated Yuletide alone, completely immersed in their new found delight in each other’s bodies. They celebrated the Pagan tradition of burning the Yule log, lying naked before the hearth. He sang for her the ballad of Parsifal he’d been singing at the lake when she’d stumbled upon him naked. They laughed at the memory.

For Yuletide dinner they dined on traditional roasted goose and Humble pie made from the heart, liver and brains of a deer. Blythe taught the cook how to make mincemeat tarts. The servants entertained them with a
trope
, chanting in dialogue the story of the nativity and the Holy Family. Dieter offered a toast of thanks to all his servants, wishing them health and happiness for the coming year. They returned the wishes.

However, everyone in Köln acknowledged that the problems of the Empire’s domination remained unresolved and that a confrontation still loomed between Duke Lothar of Saxony, Dieter’s overlord, and the Emperor.

***

Throughout the month of January in the year of our Lord One Thousand One Hundred and Fifteen, Dieter was kept busy organizing soldiers who would fight in the ongoing conflict with the Imperial Army. Though Emperor Heinrich had tried to bring Duke Lothar to heel, the Saxon continued to intrigue against him, and Dieter was the undisputed leader of the opposing forces in Köln. Lothar intended to be Emperor.

Emboldened by their success at Andernach, the rebel forces decided to mount an all out attack. Blythe found all this talk of war and intrigue very unsettling, especially when Dieter told her the Imperial army was well to the east of Köln, and his men would likely have to ride several days to join forces with Duke Lothar.

At the end of the month the confirmation came that they would be riding to join the Duke in Mansfeld, a four day journey. Dieter spent many days preparing his armour and weapons, Blythe watching him sadly. She was proud of his prowess as a warrior and his reputation as a hero, but fearful of what might happen to him. She’d just found him and couldn’t bear the thought of losing him. The day he left, bundled in his huge wolfskin coat to keep out the chill, she clung to him. Tearful servants gathered to see him off.

“Don’t worry, Blythe,” he whispered in her ear. “This is something I have to do. I’ll return safely. Nothing can keep me away from you for long.”

“We’ll be waiting for you,” she murmured, trying not to cry.

He held her away from him. “We?”

She nodded. “Your son and I.”

He hugged her ferociously and buried his face in her neck. “You’re with child? You didn’t tell me.”

“I wasn’t sure—but now I think it is so. I didn’t want to distract you from your mission.”

He placed his hands on her belly. “You’ll never be a distraction. You’re my life, but life will be better for all Saxons, including this little one, once we get rid of Heinrich.”

“
Auf Weidersehen
, my love.”

“
Auf Weidersehen
, Blythe. Take good care of my son until I return.”

He kissed her deeply, mounted his stallion and rode out to join his assembled forces.

***

Their route took them through the village of Brilon situated high in the hills on the upper reaches of the river Möhne. The town lay between the Arnsberg Forest to the west and Lake Diemel to the south-east.

From there they went on to the hill town of Warburg where they stayed in the Old Town in the Diemel Valley. Nordhausen at the southern edge of the rugged Harz Mountains was their next camp, where they went to Mass at the Cathedral of the Holy Cross. Dieter prayed for the success of their campaign and for his wife and unborn child at home. He’d called Köln home for some time. He loved the city and his house there, but he would eventually take his family home to his own estates in Wolfenberg.

Finally they passed south east of the River Harz, through Sangerhausen and on to Mansfeld, where Lothar waited.

Five days later the forces of the Emperor commanded by Hoyer of Mansfeld gathered at Welfesholz to await the united Saxon troops led by Duke Lothar. Before the battle, Hoyer put his fist through a stone and proclaimed to his men the certainty of a victory over the enemy. The armies clashed in a long and bloody battle. The fight ended in the total destruction of the imperial army and Hoyer’s death. Heinrich took flight. Duke Lothar had broken Imperial power in Saxony. He was now the most powerful noble in Saxony and the wealthiest prince in all of northern Germany.

The battle had lasted several days and Dieter and his men were exhausted. He’d lost a number of them and took charge of finding and burying their bodies. Some had to have limbs removed. The piteous moans of the wounded drifted across the camp and the stench of death filled the air. Dieter was sickened by it and longed to return home. He resolved to be done with war now that Lothar had been victorious. He would return to Wolfenberg with Blythe and take care of the lands Lothar had given him to rule over as
Graf
.

It wasn’t until the end of the month of February that he was able to return to Köln. He’d sent messengers ahead and as he rode into the courtyard Blythe came out to meet him. His heart and his
rute
soared at the sight of her. He was exhausted, but his beautiful and passionate wife would soon restore his energy.

***

In the autumn of that year Blythe and Dieter welcomed their son, Lothar Caedmon von Wolfenberg into the world.
Graf
Dieter von Wolfenberg paraded around the house firmly holding his baby son belly down on his hip, much to the delight of all the devoted servants and seemingly Lothar himself. Johann rode on his father’s back, laughing and giggling.

When the babe wailed his demands, Blythe took him to her breast. “This child is going to be ruined if you keep on this way.”

Johann wandered off to play with his toys. Dieter loved to watch her feed his son. Contentment washed over him. Blythe loved the manor house in Wolfenberg as much as he did. He had another healthy boy. After Lothar’s birth, he’d strutted around the house like a madman, proudly showing everyone his son’s maleness. The midwife had trailed after him, objecting loudly. If it was possible, he loved his wife even more after the birth of their child. “You were born to be a mother, Blythe. You’re radiant.”

She gazed at her son. “I’m not sure yet whom he favours. Perhaps when he grows hair we’ll have a better idea! He has your blue eyes, though my mother told me a baby’s eyes sometimes change colour.”

“I hope his will change to the colour of yours. Sometimes I think they’re brown, sometimes green. You’re a woman of mystery!”

His arousal grew as he stared at his family. He ran his hand over his son’s head and then let his fingers trail over his wife’s swollen breast. “Perhaps when you’re done with Lothar you can see to my needs? I know I can’t enter you yet, but there are other ways to—”

He looked at her speculatively, hoping she wouldn’t be shocked. He should have known better!

Her eyes twinkled and a suggestive grin lit up her face. “Dieter, you know I’ll always be ready to meet your needs in whatever way I can!”

###

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Carried Away
. If you enjoyed this book, I would appreciate it if you would help others enjoy it too.

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Would you like to know more about Caedmon and Agneta’s story? How they met? Why Caedmon left her to join the First Crusade?
A Man of Value
.

Read about Blythe’s twin brother, Aidan, in
Sweet Taste of Love
, Book II of the FitzRam Family series.

Could any man tame Ragna, the FitzRam Family’s
Wild Viking Princess
?

Perhaps a real Viking?