The Beast of Renald (The Northern Knights) (33 page)

‘Twas as though the two taunted the other apurpose, a showmanship of their expert swordsmanship.

The display made Caroline sick to her stomach.

Undercurrents of rivalry flowed barely restrained between them.

Soon enough Darc’s blade found itself embedded in Raven's right shoulder.

He spewed oaths and said. ‘You will never know if it is my seed that your little whore will give birth to, brother.’

‘Braying ass. You have never learned to shut your mouth.’ Darc snarled and drew out his bloody sword.

The battle song of death continued to Caroline’s surprise as their blades hit hard strike for strike.

Raven struck. Darc deflected and remained surefooted as Raven pushed down upon him.

Caroline held her breath afraid to look away but knew she had to for she needed a weapon.

Renald guards reached for her but she ordered them back. She snatched a long dagger from one’s waist and held her hands out for the rope binding her wrists to be severed. The tall soldier hesitated. The other soldier gave him an odd look and cut her free. The tall one tried to take the dagger from her and Caroline jerked back before bringing the dagger down to stab him in the arm.

‘My lady!’ shouted the other guard.

‘Seize him!’ she ordered. Other men and Melbert approached to do as she bid and Caroline stood facing the tall guard, hatred in her eyes as her chest rose and fell with her heavy breaths. ‘He is a
traitor
.’ She said, disgusted.

Sadness and fright entered the tall soldier’s eyes as he mumbled. ‘Twas the guard who had helped Gan. Melbert’s angry gaze followed as the men dragged him away.

Caroline whirled around back to view the fight between her husband and Raven. From where she stood it looked as if most of the blood was on Raven.

He let out an earth shattering roar and what he did next surprised them all.

He turned and ran toward the village.

Darc gave the order to follow him and Caroline let out a cry and was nigh trampled by Renald men-at-arms as they ran past her.

A few feet away from her Darc stood, chest heaving, sweat and blood covering his face and neck. She saw that he had been cut, just under his neck, near the shoulder parts of his quilted gambeson. She went to run to him, but his command froze her mid-step.

‘Stay there! Melbert, take that dagger from her.’

‘Darc, I need to tell you ‘twas not on-‘ Caroline started.

But he cut her off when he grabbed her shoulders and shook her soundly, his battle fierce expression scared her as he said through clenched teeth. ’
Never
do something like that ever again.’  

She knew what he meant and her heart skipped a beat that he had noticed her after all whilst he’d fought with Raven. Then a wave of dizziness washed over her and the dull ache in her skull grew. Collapsing at his feet stopped her retort.

Darc cursed as he handed her unmoving form over to a nearby guard. ‘Get her inside now, Melbert!’

CHAPTER FORTY-ONE

‘Burn it down.’

The second torch had the thatch roof hut engulfed and still Raven did not emerge from within.  Darc rode around the hut. There was no way out for his brother but through the front door. He motioned to one of his men to stay near the only window cut out in the little hut to keep watch. Suspicion rose in Darc as he dismounted and strode toward the inferno ignoring the shouts from his men.

Feeling the heat of the blaze on his face, he stared at the door waiting for his brother to burst through it and choking from the smoke .He could not hold a breath in the thick smoke much longer himself as it filled the dusk-filled sky,.

A hoarse cry came from inside just as the building groaned and collapsed in on itself into a pile of smoking rubble.

Darc stopped breathing. Something in him, not sadness he guessed but a profound grief that in letting his brother burn he was just as cruel as Raven.

But he’d not told him to run in. Raven had run in like the coward he was.

Fury twisted Darc’s face. He had thought to smoke him out.

He glanced to the nearby Reeve and ordered, ‘Have them bring water. I want to make sure his body is in there.’

Ignoring the still hot, smoking embers of timber, Darc stepped through the charred mess, kicking aside debris and ash with the toe of his boot and bare hands.

His hands started to smart, but determination pushed him on. He needed to see his brother’s body.

The body they found was unrecognizable. A man, his face….gone, burnt beyond recognition. But it was the hair that kept Darc’s gaze riveted.

It was Raven’s….like his, the build…the clothes had burned away and fallen from the body as much as into the charred remains. A hollow feeling filled his chest and he did his best to ignore it.

‘My lord, here.’

Darc swallowed, lifted his head and looked up. A young knight held Raven’s long sword in his hand. Darc still did not believe it, but the hair, now the sword.

Had his brother been so crazed he let himself burn alive rather than come out to face him?

CHAPTER FORTY-TWO

Caroline watched Darc walk into the room, not only was he covered in blood and soot, but he smelled strongly of burnt wood. He went to the other side of the room and dismissed Melbert. Caroline waited, her aching body turned on the bench to follow him. She could not wait to tell him about Gan. He did not meet her gaze.

She knew before the air in the room changed that something was wrong for Darc turned sharply toward the door, his body rigid and ready to do battle.

Before she could open her mouth or turn to see what it was that had put such a dark scowl upon his face, something hard slammed into her.

Caroline let out a cry as she fell to the stone floor as something crashed down right in front of her.

Darc’s battle cry rent the air and the room exploded with the sounds of clashing steel and metal, cries of pain and gurgles of death.

That and blood pounding in her ears nigh deafening; Caroline covered them to block the noise out for a moment, then dropped her hands.

With her heart thudding she saw it was a trestle table Darc must have turned over and kicked in front of her to protect her.

She panicked and shot to her feet.

Angry fire shot through her veins at the scene before her.

Gan, the traitorous bastard and three of Raven’s men surrounded her husband.  Caroline knew the castle guards had to have heard his battle cry, but most of them probably were still out of doors. And she could not wait. She quickly looked about for a weapon. One of the thick legs on the table dangled, having broken in the fall and she hurriedly wriggled it free.

Grasping the heavy wood with both hands she rounded the table ready to join him in battle. She paused but a moment over the two bodies that lay dead on the other side of the table. Mayhap he did not need her help after all. But she moved forward anyway. Darc now sparred with Gan and the remaining three.

‘Come Renald,’ Gan said in a pompous tone. ‘There are more of us. You cannot think to kill us all.’

‘Aye, Gan. I do.  And I shall slit your throat last.’ 

Gan’s laugh was nervous and unsure as he backed up and like the coward he was, shoved one of his comrades forward in front of him. The petrified man swung wildly at her husband and was quickly skewered in the belly by Darc’s blade. He fell like a log to the floor. Shivers shot down her spine at the frozen grimace on the man’s face.  

Caroline was not sure how she should come at Gan. She loathed the man. She never trusted him from the first time he’d put his hands on her. Why Darc had not cut ties with him sooner she did not know. But now, she wanted her piece of him.

She heard the castle guards rushing in from outside into the corridor.

Gan gave a wide eyed look of horror as his route of escape was blocked. Caroline knew now who the traitor had been who had allowed Cedric to walk freely about. As if he knew what she was thinking Gan’s eyes fell upon her and he grinned knowingly. He removed a familiar looking dagger from a sheath on his belt. Caroline’s breath stuck in her throat.

She vaguely heard Darc’s order.  ‘Caroline. Stay where you are.’

He walked right at Gan and the man frantically tried to throw the dagger in her direction, but it fell to the floor with a clang as he tried to fend off her husband’s direct attack and began to swing, but it was futile.

Darc’s blade swung once, a chilling whistling sound filled the room from its speed as it did what he'd promised. And Gan’s head hit the floor with a dull thud.

Caroline recoiled as the blood spurted and she turned away from the gruesome sight.  She heard the guards enter, then after a moment, Darc’s voice came at her back.

‘Caroline?’

She turned back around and opened her eyes. The look on his face froze her to the spot. Murder was still in his eyes.

He took the table leg from her and said, ‘I should have killed him on that day long ago at Halvard’s. Are you alright?’

She could only nod. Then she remembered the dagger. ‘Where is it?’

She sidestepped him, but his body stopped her. Caroline jumped back when the warm blood from battle on him wet her clothes.

‘I have it. Go to your chamber. I will speak with you after this is cleaned up.’

She stood immobile for a moment till his bloody hand reached out for her. She took a step back. ‘Aye.’ She muttered.

On her tingling bare feet, Caroline walked around him and out of the room. Darc stared after her worried. Spotting Melbert he said. ‘Assist my lady to her chamber.’

Melbert did as bade. Darc looked down at Gan’s head and told a nearby knight on his way out of the room.  ‘Place it on a spike outside the wall.’

CHAPTER FORTY-THREE

Dawn brought a cold torrential downpour and sent its chilly tentacles throughout the castle. Caroline kept to her chambers most of the day. She had not seen Darc since he’d lopped off Gan’s head yestereve and a part of her was glad as a part of her was angry still.

The events of the past sennight finally were wreaking havoc on her emotions. What she had shoved aside was forcing her to face things. Sadness weighed heavy upon her and she was glad Mildred and Laur kept Kelbie away for most of the day.

She did not want him to see her like this.

He had not understood her absence and the only tears he had shed were over the fact that she had not kissed him goodbye. She had found herself close to tears in explaining her reason. She had gone off to visit a friend.

His sadness disappeared immediately and he was just glad she was back now. Seeing him smile had made her feel a little better and Caroline was glad he was too young to truly understand much of anything other than being the little boy he should.

Darc on the other hand. She still seethed that he had not come for her nor had he come to her about her well-being. Like the clouds in the sky, doubt clouded her thoughts for the remainder of the afternoon.

Caroline fretted over Darc’s ever increasing dark mood. He had barely said more than a few words to her since the death of Raven and nothing of substance. He had started to look gaunt in the face and the dark circles under his eyes worried her. She believed he grieved for the brother he had once loved, at some point in their lives. Despite his despicable crimes she knew it could not have been easy for him to end his brother’s life.

And he was not long enough in her presence to question him on it as he did not eat in the hall and had stopped coming to it in the fortnight since it had happened.

At first he seemed sad, then angry. He was pleasant enough to the castlefolk, Laur, Mildred and others and Kelbie. But not her. Caroline did not want to think she was paranoid, but his anger did seem directed only at her. The looks he shot her chilled her to the bone.

She had wanted to tell him about her ordeal, share it with him to get it out of her system and to talk about the babe. His avoidance was not only evident to her, but to all.  His avoidance of her had gone on long enough. She would see the end of it tonight

Darc found her first as she made her way from the hall and demanded she join him in the room off the hall.

‘The dagger Gan had. Is that the one?’ he asked her.

He need not explain further for Caroline knew what he referred to. ‘Aye,’ she said around the lump in her throat. ‘Twas the jeweled dagger used to kill her father. ‘Where is it?’ she asked him.

‘I have it someplace safe. Why did you use the blade on the guard out there?’

‘He-He helped in my taking with Gan. ‘Tis one of the things I tried to tell you.’

The muscle in his jaw flexed as he nodded. ‘His head will join Gan’s on a post.’

Caroline just stared at him. His eyes blazed with anger and his strained tone bespoke he was hiding something.  She walked to him and he turned away. She fumed. She had been right. Something was terribly amiss. His anger was directed at her.

‘Darc,’ she started. ‘Why did you not come for me?’ her question burst from her lips.  

Darc understood her anger. To give her his reasoning behind his actions he knew would not soothe the hurt feelings he read so laid bare on her flushed face. So he did not try.

‘Sit down, Caroline.’ He commanded.

She was shaking her head in disagreement. ‘Nay.’ And continued her pacing in front of him, her face reddening more and more with her temper. ‘The humiliation down there in front of everyone was barely tolerable. And for you to think so little of it…Thanks be to the saints for Mildred and Laur and their good sense at keeping Kelbie away so he did not witness my shame in the bailey.’

‘You are well entitled to your anger. But it is now over. Talking more of it will only make it worse. You are safely back here now and with Kelbie. Is that not what is important in the end?’

She stopped and stared at him, eyes wide with a look as though he’d gone mad. Darc shrugged and clasped his hands behind his back. His hardened expression did not soften at her incredulous look.