Cast Love Aside (26 page)

“You don't know Norbard,” Lilianne said. “He
won't pause for more than a moment or two before he comes after
us.”

“All the more reason to hurry,” Magnus told
her.

“No. Leave him to me.” Pulling away from
Magnus, Lilianne stepped forward to face Erland's closest
associate, the man she detested as much as she hated her uncle, for
it was Norbard who had arranged her father's fatal accident.

“So,” she said, assuming her haughty
noblewoman's demeanor for his benefit, “is this how you control
Count Erland's men in his absence? A fine steward you are,
Norbard.”

“What happened here?” Norbard demanded. He
was a short, stocky man with heavy shoulder muscles and pale,
almost colorless eyes set in a badly sunburned face. He jerked his
bulky frame in a series of abrupt movements until he had turned
completely around, taking in the sight of dogs, injured men, and
the cluttered hall as he went.

“Well may you ask,” Lilianne snapped.
“Gilbert and I decided to go riding. For reasons incomprehensible
to me, the lieutenant of the men-at-arms tried to prevent us from
leaving. Naturally, the knights whom Uncle Erland has hired to be
our bodyguards could not allow such an insult to pass without
objection. You see the result,” she finished, making a grand,
sweeping gesture to indicate the entire hall.

“I see Gilbert is here,” Norbard responded,
“and I wonder when Erland allowed him to return.”

“Since you have been absent for much too
long,” Lilianne said coldly, “I do not expect you to understand the
present circumstances.”

“You've been gone from the manor, too,”
Norbard said. “I saw you with these three men.”

“I left here with Uncle Erland,” she stated
firmly. “Do not dare to question my uncle's decisions, or my
obedience to his orders.” Never again would she obey any order of
Erland's, but hearing the lie on her own lips and seeing Norbard's
fearful – and hastily concealed – reaction to the threat she
implied, Lilianne experienced a thrill of power so intense that she
began to understand why men persisted in spying. The excitement was
enthralling; it could easily become habit-forming.

“Lady Lilianne.” Norbard sounded as if he was
about to offer an explanation or an apology, but Lilianne raised
one hand and he fell silent.

“Tell me, Norbard,” she said, “should Count
Erland return at this moment, what do you imagine his reaction
would be to this disgraceful scene?”

“He wouldn't like it,” Norbard admitted with
reluctance.

“I hope you intend to discipline the
men-at-arms for their intransigence and their rudeness to my
brother and me,” Lilianne said, fixing Norbard with a cold glare.
“Furthermore, I trust no one at Manoir Sainte Inge will dare to
question my actions again, or try to stop me from going wherever I
wish.”

“Count Erland has never allowed you free
movement,” Norbard reminded her. His brows drew together in an
unpleasant frown, the momentary trace of meekness vanishing from
his expression. “When did Gilbert return? And why did Erland allow
it?”

“If you wish to question your master's
commands,” Lilianne said, “you will have to speak to him when he
returns.”

“When will that be?” Norbard asked.

“Two days, three at the most,” Lilianne said.
“I expect you, in your capacity as my uncle's steward, to oversee
the cleaning and restoration of this hall. I want it set to rights
again before Gilbert and I return from our ride. Come along,
Gilbert.”

She laid an arm across Gilbert's shoulders.
William had stayed close to the boy during Lilianne's confrontation
with Norbard, and he did not move away now. Confident that William
would protect Gilbert with his life, Lilianne ventured a step
toward Norbard and the door. She couldn't see Magnus or Braedon
without taking her gaze away from Norbard, which she didn't want to
do. She wanted Norbard to be intimidated by her arrogant assurance
and she was certain that both men were at her back. With a bit of
luck they would soon be on their horses and riding away from Manoir
Sainte Inge without needing to resort to further violence.

Unfortunately, luck seemed to have deserted
them. Norbard refused to move, staying where he was, a short but
all-too-solid barrier between Lilianne and the door.

“You cannot ride today,” Norbard said. “It's
raining hard. If little Gilbert gets wet, he'll develop a cough and
inflammation of his lungs. You ought to be more careful of your
brother's health, Lady Lilianne,” he finished on a sneer.

“Sir Norbard,” Magnus said, breaking his long
silence, “you will speak more respectfully of the lord of Sainte
Inge. Count Erland would not like to hear the tone you have just
used.”

“I will use any tone I please, until Count
Erland directs me otherwise,” Norbard replied.

“I cannot allow such disrespect,” Magnus
spoke with a softness that Lilianne recognized as dangerous.

He stepped around Lilianne, placing himself
squarely between her and Norbard. Lilianne made no objection to the
way he shouldered her aside. She finally understood that Norbard
was unwilling to let them leave without a fight.

Knowing Magnus wanted all of his companions
safely out of the manor, she wondered if he was about to reveal
their connection to Royce. Though Norbard was duplicitous enough to
work for both Royce and Erland and to accept payment from either
man, it was possible Magnus had thought of a clever way to use what
he knew about the steward. A treacherous man like Norbard must be
open to bribery.

“Lady Lilianne,” Magnus said, still in that
same quiet tone, “I am sure you would like to step into the kitchen
and give your personal orders to the servants there to come and
clean up the dishes and the spilled food. Sir Braedon will be happy
to accompany you, just in case there is any question about the need
for prompt action.”

Now she knew what Magnus expected. He wanted
her, and Gilbert, to take the tunnel exit out of the manor, with
Braedon as their guard. Though she didn't like the idea of leaving
Magnus and William behind to face Norbard and the men-at-arms, she
did understand that Magnus wanted to know she and Gilbert were
safely away. Common sense told her this was not the time to
argue.

“What a good idea, Sir Magnus,” she said.
Still with her arm on Gilbert's shoulders, she headed for the rear
of the hall and the kitchen.

“Halt!” Norbard shouted, as if he had the
right to issue orders to Lilianne and Gilbert. “Lady Lilianne, you
will be escorted to your bedchamber, where you will remain until
Count Erland returns. Since you are so bent upon keeping your
brother near, he will stay with you.”

“Go now, Lilianne,” Magnus said.

“No! We will stay and fight,” Gilbert
declared, pulling away from Lilianne.

“Will you behave?” she hissed at him.
Clamping her fingers tightly around his wrist, she dragged the
unwilling boy toward the kitchen door. Gilbert dug in his heels and
refused to move.

While Lilianne continued to tug at her
brother's wrist, William grabbed Gilbert's other arm. Still holding
his sword in his free hand, William gave a hard jerk that propelled
Gilbert into the kitchen. Magnus backed slowly toward the kitchen
doorway, keeping a wary eye on Norbard.

Upon seeing armed men bursting in on them,
the servants scattered out of range of the broadswords. Braedon
raced through the kitchen like a human whirlwind, pausing only to
snatch a lighted torch from the wall on his way to the steps
leading to the storeroom. Down the stairs he ran, to begin heaving
baskets and barrels aside in his haste to reach the tunnel entrance
before Norbard could catch them. Lilianne and William followed,
both still holding onto the protesting Gilbert.

“You cannot make me leave!” Gilbert yelled at
the top of his lungs. “This is my home, and I will defend it
against Norbard and his minions!” He tried again to break free,
nearly knocking his sister and William off the steps in his frantic
efforts.

Somehow, the three of them reached the bottom
of the staircase without falling and with Gilbert still held
tightly. Magnus came just behind them.

“Guard our backs,” Magnus said to
William.

“Aye, gladly. This boy is naught but a
nuisance.” William released Gilbert, who promptly wrenched his arm
out of Lilianne's grip. With tears streaming down his face, Gilbert
tried to push past Magnus.

“Gilbert, what’s wrong with you?” Lilianne
cried. She lunged toward him, but he slipped away from her.

Magnus caught him before he could reach the
steps to the kitchen, stopping the boy in his tracks, enfolding him
in strong arms and holding him close, though Gilbert was screaming
and pummeling the large man with both fists.

“I don't know why he’s being so naughty,”
Lilianne said. “I’ve never seen him like this. Oh, Gilbert, do be
quiet! Magnus is trying to help us.”

Braedon tore open the tunnel door, pushed
Lilianne through the doorway, and handed her the torch he had
seized during his rapid sprint through the kitchen. Magnus went
through next, with the still-struggling Gilbert clamped against his
side.

From the kitchen above came the sounds of
booted feet, and of Norbard's voice, issuing orders.

“He has rallied the men-at-arms,” Braedon
noted. “If we don't hurry, we'll have to fight in the tunnel, which
I would rather not do. There's little space in there to swing a
sword.”

“William!” Magnus called. “Shove a few of
those storage barrels into the tunnel. We can use them to block the
door.”

By now Gilbert hung limply in Magnus's grip,
weeping and shuddering.

“Take him,” Magnus said, handing the boy to
Lilianne. He returned to the tunnel entrance to help Braedon and
William. Before Norbard and the men-at-arms could reach the tunnel
door, it was barricaded by as many barrels as William had been able
to thrust into the tunnel. Someone began to pound on the latched
door, the sound echoing along the tunnel.

“I think Gilbert has fainted,” Lilianne said
as Magnus rejoined her. “Can you carry him? He's too heavy for me.
Magnus, I am sorry for the way he keeps delaying us.”

“He has reached the end of his endurance,”
Magnus said. “He's weakened by lack of food, and I'm sure he spent
every day of his imprisonment thinking of ways to wrest his
rightful inheritance back from Erland. No wonder he doesn't want to
leave. He fears he'll never see his home again.”

“You are remarkably understanding.” Lilianne
watched Magnus pick Gilbert up and cradle him against one shoulder
as lightly as if her brother were still an infant.

He glanced from his companions to the tunnel
door, where Norbard's men were still pounding so hard that one of
the stacked barrels suddenly broke loose and rolled down the
tunnel.

“That is just the first piece of the
barricade to go,” Magnus noted. “The rest won’t hold for long.
Still, Norbard should be delayed long enough for us to get away,
provided we don't linger. We'll head for the beach and hide among
the dune grasses until we can reach the woodland beyond. Pray that
the sentries at the gate are directing their attention to the road
and not to the seashore.”

“Magnus, wait.” Lilianne caught his sleeve to
slow his progress along the tunnel to the beach beyond. “Either
Norbard knows about the main tunnel, or he knows enough to make an
accurate guess, but he cannot be as familiar with the tunnels as I
am. He didn't grow up at Manoir Sainte Inge. I did.”

“Tunnels?” Magnus repeated. “You did mention
once before that you played all over the manor as a child. Are you
saying there's more than one tunnel?”

“This is the largest and the easiest to use,
but there are others beneath the manor. It's a very old house,
after all. I remember a passage that opens on the opposite side of
the manor from the exit we used the last time. If we take that
alternate way out, and Norbard thinks we've left through the cave,
he and his men will be searching the wrong beach while we escape.
The cliff will stand between us and him.”

“Show us the other tunnel,” Magnus
responded.

“As soon as we are inside it, we ought to
douse the torch, so the light doesn't shine through the entrance
and alert Norbard,” Lilianne said. She was already walking forward
along the main passageway, looking for the opening she recalled
from earlier years. “We'll have to hold onto each other so we don’t
get lost, but I'm sure I can find the way to the outside.”

By this time Braedon and William had joined
them and Lilianne could see their tense faces in the flickering
light of the torch she was holding. Another barrel rolled down the
tunnel.

“You expect us to get out of here in total
darkness?” William exclaimed. “I prefer to make a stand where we
are, where only one or two men can attack us at once.”

“This tunnel isn’t wide enough for a decent
swordfight,” Braedon objected. “If Norbard sends men down to the
beach to come into the tunnel through the cave, we’ll be trapped
between two forces.”

“We don't have time for a discussion about
this,” Magnus said, his firm voice reminding them who their leader
was. “The decision is made. Lilianne, put out the torch.”

“I'll do it in just a moment,” she said.
While Magnus and the others waited she moved ahead, lifting the
torch to illuminate the tunnel wall. “The side tunnel we want opens
just beyond a fold in the rock. But there are several openings
along here, and I want to be sure I've found the right one.

“Here it is,” she called softly. “Magnus, the
opening isn't very large. You will have to squeeze through.”

“I'll take Gilbert,” Braedon offered, “and
pass him into the opening after you are inside.”

The entrance to the secondary tunnel was
twice as tall as Magnus, but extremely narrow. He had to wriggle
his way through, and at one point his sword got stuck. Lilianne
heard a few choice oaths before he called back that he had reached
a larger space. Braedon handed Gilbert through the opening and
Lilianne followed. She held the torch high, letting the men see the
tunnel and get their bearings until William joined them.